Bioscience Resource Project News and Views

Published today on Independent Science News: Climate Technofix: Weaving Carbon into Gold and Other Myths of “negative emissions” by Rachel Smolker, Co-Director of Biofuelwatch.

Synopsis: IPCC models for achieving even potentially safe levels of climate change (i.e. 430-480ppm CO2 and 2ºC of warming) are not as plausible as is widely assumed. Buried in the small print of those models is an expectation that viable carbon capture technologies will create “negative emissions”. Yet no such technology currently exists. The only one mentioned by the IPCC as “near term available” is Bio-Energy with Carbon Capture and Sequestration (BECCS). Smolker’s excellent article describes the short, costly and painful history of BECCS (and carbon capture as a whole) and why the 2ºC roadmap needs a new route if it is to avert disastrous climate change.

To read Rachel Smolker’s important article go to: https://www.independentsciencenews.org/environment/climate-technofix-weaving-carbon-into-gold-and-other-myths-of-negative-emissions/.

Published today (Mon Nov 29, 2015) on Independent Science News: Students Protest the University of California’s War on Agroecology

Synopsis: The decision of the University of California Berkeley to sell Gill
Tract Farm is part of a systematic repression of agroecology being practiced
by the University of California, say students in an open letter. The University
of California, says the letter, must reject privatization and corporate
control and embrace sustainability, urban agriculture, and racial justice.

To read the full open letter from UC Berkeley Students go to: http://www.independentsciencenews.org/health/students-protest-the-university-of-californias-war-on-agroecology/

Independent Science News just published “Why the United States Leaves Deadly Chemicals on the Market,” an investigative report by Valerie Brown and Elizabeth Grossman.

Synopsis: Valerie Brown and Elizabeth Grossman’s investigation reveals that a computer-based modeling system for estimating human health effects from synthetic chemicals has been known for years to greatly underestimate risks if used in certain ways. This system, called “physiologically based pharmacokinetic” (PBPK) modeling was originally developed by the US Department of Defense. PBPK’s use has been pushed by the chemical industry. It has been effectively used read more…

Public Interest Attorney Steven Druker was interviewed by Ryan Clover-Owens at Durland Alternatives Library during Druker’s recent Ithaca visit. Their discussion covered many topics including how genetically engineered organisms (GMOs) came to be so prevalent in the current industrial agriculture and food system; the role of academic scientists in misleading the public about the risks of genetic engineering; how both arrogance and the profit motive harm the quality of science; what happens to scientists whose work challenges the safety of genetic engineering and what can a concerned person do about it. Steven Druker encourages scientists and non-scientists to get informed and speak out.

To watch the video of Ryan Clover-Owens’s interview (20 minutes) with Steven Druker go to: Steven Druker Interview: Genetic Engineering and the Subversion of Science.

Additional data supporting Druker’s interview answers is presented in his book Altered Genes Twisted Truth.  For additional reading on Public Interest vs Private Interest Science see:

O’Brien, M. H. (1993). Being a Scientist Means Taking Sides. BioScience, 706-708.

Wilhelm Peekhaus (2010). The Neoliberal University and Agricultural Biotechnology: Reports From the Field. The Bulletin of Science, Technology & Society 30: 415-429.

So, A. D., Sampat, B. N., Rai, A. K., Cook-Deegan, R., Reichman, J. H., Weissman, R., & Kapczynski, A. (2008). Is Bayh-Dole Good for Developing Countries? Lessons from the US Experience. PLoS Biology 6(10), e262.

Arancibia, F. (2013). Challenging the Bioeconomy: The Dynamics of Collective Action in Argentina. Technology in Society, 35(2), 79-92.

OVER THE SHOULDER (OTS, a weekly one-hour series of public interest programs) is showing Altered Genes, Twisted Truth — an edited version of Steven Druker’s public talk in Ithaca, N.Y. The OTS show will be aired on Community Access TV Channels 13 (w/Cable Box or Digital Adapter) & 97-1 (digital TV’s w/QAM Tuner) on:

Tuesday        November 24 at 9 PM
Wednesday  November 25 at 1:30 PM
Thursday      November 27 at 11 AM
Saturday       November 28 at 11 PM

For more informations see:
http://pegasys.webstarts.com/index.html
http://pegasys.webstarts.com/pegasys_series.html

Produced by Jurden Alexander, camera and Wies van Leuken, editor:  OTS 271 Altered Genes, Twisted Truth shows Steven Druker discussing his book “Altered Genes Twisted Truth: how the venture to genetically engineer our food has subverted science, corrupted government, and systematically deceived the public”.  Mr. Druker is a Public Interest Attorney, genetically modified foods (GMO) critic and executive director of the Alliance for Bio-Integrity.  The event took place at the Unitarian Church in Ithaca, NY on September 30, 2015 and was organized by the Bioscience Resource Project in Ithaca, NY.
Length 59:13

Additional cablecasts during the same week at the discretion of the station manager.
Posted at YouTube at https://youtu.be/uBtdeioRyQ0