To me, he appears to have been driven insane by Trump. Jonah elaborates.
New NASA Chief Of Staff
Janet is an excellent choice. It’s just a shame that Bridenstine couldn’t get the deputy administrator he wanted.
I’m honored to welcome Janet Karika as my Chief of Staff. Her 38 years of space experience will serve the agency well. I’d like to thank Tom Cremins for doing an outstanding job as my Acting Chief of Staff. It’s an exciting time at NASA, and I’m very thankful for our team. pic.twitter.com/79pflMbYcy
— Jim Bridenstine (@JimBridenstine) November 27, 2018
Melania
She is criticized for decorating the WH for the holidays with the skulls of her enemies.
Really? Honestly, this just makes me like her more.
Sea-Level Rise
In the context of the report released on Friday, Judith Curry has issued her own final report on it:
Why have I devoted so much time to the sea level rise issue? First, I regard sea level rise to be the most consequential potential impact of predicted global warming. Second, there is a great deal of public confusion about the issue, including decision makers. Third, a number of CFAN’s clients have queried me about a range of specific concerns that they have regarding sea level rise (and I have been doing consulting on this topic).
Why do I think an independent assessment of the sea level rise issue by yours truly is needed, given the plethora of international and national assessment reports? My clients are concerned about the alarmist predictions they have encountered. I have seen various ‘experts’ make public statements projecting 21st century sea level to be as high as 9 m [30 feet]. My clients are looking for someone that they trust to provide an objective assessment that focuses on their issues of concern.
I am not a published expert on sea level rise, although I have published some relevant papers in oceanography and the climate dynamics of the polar regions. What I bring to this assessment is a broader perspective on the issues of climate dynamics, climate modeling and uncertainty than most of the community working on the sea level rise issue. In any event, it is arguably useful for a knowledgeable person outside of the publishing sea level community to provide an independent assessment.
Yes. It will be interesting to see the response from the alarmists, if any.
The Rural Landscape
It will be transformed by flying cars and transport robots.
Restaurants
This is one of the many reasons I hate going out to eat. In fact, last time we went out, it was on a patio on a pier, listening to the waves, which was quite pleasant.
The Man Who Won The Moon Race
A nice profile of George Low, as we approach the half-century anniversary of Apollo 8, when the race was won.
The Keto Diet
Myths versus facts, from Nina Teicholz:
I think the larger question is why we are seeing such a sudden rash of anti-keto stories. So many of them quote no experts [sic] sources and do not provide citations for their claims. Skeptics with little acquaintance with the diet are quoted exclusively instead. From a journalistic perspective, this lack of balance of viewpoints and the failure to back up claims with evidence falls below basic reporting standards. Offenders on this list include even the Harvard School of Public Health, which recently published more than one unsourced, one-sided article on the keto diet (This is in addition to the Lancet Public Health article cited above, by Harvard researchers, which suggests that a low-carb diet kills you). These stories could reflect lazy reporting or they could very well be scare tactics to steer people away from the keto diet. Why would reporters or scientists at Harvard be doing such a thing? That’s material for another post. Stay tuned.
I’ll look forward to her thesis.
Landing On Mars
A little over half an hour away. Watch live.
[Update after the successful landing]
I’m seeing a lot of the usual nonsense about how if NASA can land a robot on Mars why don’t we believe them about climate? That’s like saying, if someone on a baseball team is a really good pitcher, why don’t we pay any attention to the outfielder’s opinions about politics?
Also, this.
This is a chronic pet peeve of mine about space, and "rocket scientists." People who design rockets are engineers, not scientists. It also feeds into the association of space with "science," when in fact human spaceflight has little to do with science, and never has.
— Rand Simberg (@Rand_Simberg) November 26, 2018
The Space Settlement Summit
I attended it a few weeks ago. So did Jeff Foust.
It’s not going to happen until the line of affordability crosses the line of desirability for a sufficient number of people. Over the weekend, Elon made the point that living on Mars is not for the faint of heart (or as a haven for rich people).
Meanwhile, the NatGeo series Mars has started to explore the legal issues, an area in which I am currently involved. Note that Dennis O’Brien is a big fan of the Moon Agreement (that he calls the “Moon Treaty”). I am not.