essays on science for the common good
Introduction Key words: race, racism, racialization, racial classification, racial/ethnic classification, classification, public health research, public health, monitoring, public health research What comes to mind when you hear the word “race”? Grab a piece of paper and pen or pencil and jot down words or phrases that the word “race” evokes. Nearly 165 years since the …
Continue reading “PART LVI: The Concept of “Race” Is it Valid? Is it Fair?; Part 1″
Sir Isaac Newton (1642-1727), English physicist and mathematician, who was the culminating figure of the Scientific Revolution of the 17th century. In optics, his discovery of the composition of white light integrated the phenomena of colours into the science of light and laid the foundation for modern physical optics. In mechanics, his three laws of motion, the basic principles of modern physics, resulted in the formulation of the law of universal gravitation. …
Continue reading “Part: LV Selected Laws of Astronomy and Physics”
For this essay I’ve decided to fulfill a promise I made to myself and write a compendium of mini essays on loosely related topics-all at least, science related with some math thrown in. Since much of my country is in the throes of writer storms, I have decided to focus first on the miserable wind …
Continue reading “LV Wind Chill and Heat Index-Opposite Extremes-Equally Important”
In the last essay we learned the role that pedigrees have played in tracking given traits or conditions from generation to generation. We also learned some different patterns of inheritance. I also dropped a hint or two that the eugenics movement of the early 20th Century had some lofty goals to improve humanity but soon …
Continue reading “Part LIV: Racism in Science in the early 1900’s”
The major focus of Essay LIII is the historical development of pedigree charts, their purpose, and how they have been used by misguided individuals to promote racial injustice. Simple genealogical charts have been around for centuries. Bacteria, fungi and other living organismswith short life cycles serve as excellent subjects for genetic studies for obvious reasons. …
Continue reading “PartLIII: The Eugenics Movement; Bad Science”
In the last essay (Part LI), we found that Mendel’s brilliant work was lost for some thirty two years. The April 1900 issue of Berichte der Deutschen Botanischen Gesellschaft (Reports of the German Botanical Society), University of Amsterdam’s botany professor Hugo de Vries (1848-1935) reported that he had previously discovered the same principles of heredity that …
Continue reading “Part LII: Meiosis, Mendel’s Principles, Representations”
For the past year or so even though I have focused-on two main topics, COVID-19 and climate change, I have not had the well-defined essays from both the content and the organizational angles. This includes a lack of content outlines that characterized my earliest essays. I’m sure regular readers have also noticed that the quantity …
Continue reading “PART LI: Mendel: His Life, Work, Lasting Importance of”
Part LI: Mendel: His Life, Work, Lasting Importance of Part LII: Meiosis, Mendel’s Principles, Representations Part LIII: Implications on Evolution Part LIV: The Dark Side or the Intended Side A. The Eugenics Movement B. Where do we go from here
I dedicate this essay to the memory of a long time friend, Gary Anderson (since kindergarten and Sunday School–nearly three quarters of a century ago) We both played trumpet in band, often playing duets at Christmas Eve and Easter Services, were confirmed together at Zion Lutheran Church, loved sports (especially the Chicago Cubs) played intramurals …
Introduction At the risk of overkill, I will limit myself to two more essays on global warming, this one on a review of the past two years and the final one on present conditions of the Arctic and Antarctic regions. From late 2019-, “Study after study published in recent months has underscored the rapid pace …
Continue reading “Part XLIX: Promises Made, Promises Broken; Are They Real or Just a Token”
