*Updated late 15 October with link to second iPolitics piece in series, and addition of new paper out in CJFAS
The Canadian government kicks off its fall sitting (one month late) with tomorrow’s Throne Speech. It will presumably renew Harper’s War on Science (let’s not even get into his Minister for SciTech putting together a war chest to oppose ‘radical ideologues’ aka scientists), and require continued sleight of hand on behalf of the government to distract Canadians from the corruption and scandal rife within the Conservative party.
Coinciding with the Throne Speech, I’ve pulled together a group of Canadian scientists and policy experts to write an op-ed series over at iPolitics. Thanks to the keen interest of iPolitics editor James Baxter, the series begins today with Paul Dufour‘s excellent piece “Let Canadian Science Off the Leash”, and John Dupuis’ overview of the “War on Knowledge: Notes from the Front”. The series will continue until approx 18 November, with one to two articles per week commenting on Canadian science policy and specific ministerial portfolios.
To take my mind off the doom and gloom that is Canadian science and politics, I wrote about something different for my scheduled blog post at the Canadian Science Writer’s Association. After listening to an interview with Margaret Atwood on CBC, I decided to look at how we incorporate science into fiction Thanks to Jude for rejigging the schedule so I had a week’s extension!
Meanwhile, the Science Borealis team is in the midst of beta-testing our new blog aggregator site and working out our final site protocols. Thanks to everyone who’s commented thus far.
Finally, as of Sunday I’ll be on a wi-fi & cell-limited adventure to the Rockies with my family, camping and hiking in our favourite season for mountain adventures. With help from my counsellor, I think I’ve planned a trip that will reduce anxiety, accommodate mood swings, and still have a plan B should things go awry. Wish me luck!
ONE MORE THING! My PhD student’s second thesis paper came out today in Canadian Journal of Fisheries & Aquatic Sciences. I’m especially proud of his work because it combines physical hydrology, ecology/fish biology, and numerical modelling. I think this multidisciplinary approach is critical to future environmental science studies, but I’ve had a lot of trouble convincing people of it. Ryan’s done a great job with this research, with no shortage of challenges along the way (including a supervisor on medical leave…). Way to go!
