Philosophy of activism: “I bet we can find one million” facebook groups

Posted on By David Shiffman 20 Comments on Philosophy of activism: “I bet we can find one million” facebook groups
Uncategorized

Image from montana.edu

It’s time for another “philosophy of activism” discussion, in which we debate a tactic that a particular group of activists is using in order to determine if the environmental movement should adopt it. This time, we turn to Facebook.

As a Facebook addict, I’ve noticed a new trend: groups that say “I bet we can find one million people who (insert your cause here)”. Examples include “I bet we can find one million people who support same sex marriage”, “I bet we can find one million people against abortion,” and “I bet we can find one million people who want Japan to stop killing whales”.  There are over 1,100 such groups (though some are not political in nature, such as “I bet we can find one million people who hate the Jonas Brothers”. Let’s discuss whether or not these groups help their respective causes.

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Blogger Day at the Georgia Aquarium

Posted on By David Shiffman 2 Comments on Blogger Day at the Georgia Aquarium
Science

I will be attending “blogger day” this Saturday at the Georgia Aquarium this Saturday. I’ve heard some good things about the aquarium and their “Planet Shark: Predator or Prey” exhibit, and I’m excited to finally check it out. The last time I was in Atlanta was literally one week before they opened. I’ll have a … Read More “Blogger Day at the Georgia Aquarium” »

More proof of Global Draining

Posted on By Andrew Thaler 2 Comments on More proof of Global Draining
Science

Since I discovered the Global Draining phenomenon yesterday, my e-mail and twitter has been flooded with witnesses of similar events all over the country. By fortune and chance, Jeff Priddy documented the earliest stages of Global Draining over three days this weekend. In it, you can see the wetland begin to drain, slow down briefly … Read More “More proof of Global Draining” »

Ethical debate: saving owls by killing owls?

Posted on By David Shiffman 71 Comments on Ethical debate: saving owls by killing owls?
Conservation

Image from OwlPages.com

This month’s Frontiers in Ecology and the Environment has a brief article about a new proposed conservation strategy that seems perfect for a Southern Fried Science ethical debate.  Northern spotted owls (Strix occidentalis caurina) are one of the most famous endangered species in the United States. While solutions to the destruction of their habitat by logging have been debated for years, a new threat has been recently identified- encroachment on their limited habitat by another species of owl (the barred owl, Strix varia).  Some conservationists now believe that we need to kill barred owls to protect spotted owls.

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