The Raw Story

Science and religion just don’t co-exist, according to a recent study by economists at Princeton University.

‘Places with higher levels of religiosity have lower rates of scientific and technical innovation, as measured by patents per capita,” said Roland Bénabou, the study’s lead author, told Mother Jones.

The researchers used an economic model to explore the relationship between scientific innovation, religious faith, and government power as they formed different ‘regimes.”

They identified a secular, European-style regime where religion had very little policy influence and science enjoyed great support; a repressive, theocratic regime where the state and religion suppress science; and an American-style regime where religion and science generally thrived.

They study, which has not been published in a peer-reviewed journal, found a strong negative relationship when they analyzed data on patents per capita and religiosity, using data from the World Intellectual Property Organization and the World Values Survey, showing that more religious countries had fewer patents.

Other factors – such as wealth and education – can influence the number of patents per capita, but the researchers found […]

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GALLUP

PRINCETON, NJ — Americans’ trust in the federal government to handle international problems has fallen to a record-low 43% as President Barack Obama prepares to address the nation on Wednesday to outline his plan to deal with ISIS. Separately, 40% of Americans say they have a “great deal” or “fair amount” of trust in the federal government to handle domestic problems, also the lowest Gallup has measured to date.

Trust in Federal Gov’t to Handle International, Domestic Problems

The results are based on Gallup’s annual Governance poll, conducted Sept. 4-7. This year’s poll was conducted at a time when the government is faced with instability in many parts of the world, including Iraq and Syria, the Middle East, and Ukraine. President Obama, who recently said he had “no strategy” for dealing with ISIS — the Islamic extremists who have taken control of parts of Iraq and Syria and recently captured and beheaded two American journalists — is set to present his plan for dealing with the group Wednesday.

Americans’ confidence in the government to handle international […]

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The standard school lunch for an American child often contains dishes brimming with preservatives and sodium. While some schools have completely overhauled their school menus to contain fresh vegetables and grains, others still struggle with meeting nutritional guidelines. But for students in France, it appears that school lunches are the least of their concerns.

Rebecca Plantier moved to a town near Annecy, France to research why French children aren’t as overweight as many American children are. The local city council offered Plantier a tour of her children’s cafeteria, orcantine as it’s known in France, and Plantier discovered early on that if America and France had a school lunch food fight, France would be the overwhelming victor.

In France, lunch menus are prepared two months in advance and sent away to a nutritionist who gives the menu final approval. The nutritionist can make adjustments to the meal, such as suggesting a dessert be swapped for fruit if ‘she thinks there’s too much sugar that week,” writes Plantier. Not only that, but lunches are prepared on site. There are no ‘ready made frozen” meals […]

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Data taken with dozens of weather stations shows temperatures increasing across Australia over the past century. Photo: Reuters

Australia is without a science minister for the first time in decades and some scientists now refer to the missing minister as “our invisible friend”. The absent minister symbolises the current ambivalence of the Australian political right to science.

That ambivalence turns to open hostility when it comes to climate science. Five years ago Tony Abbott dismissed the science of climate change as “absolute crap” and that statement still resonates. Now, we are seeing more worrying developments.

Scientists hiding and manipulating data? Mysterious time travelling forces? Easily debunked myths being repeated as facts? Plucky amateurs and bloggers saving us from professional scientists?

Such notions are traits of pseudoscience and would be mocked if being promoted by crystal healers. Unfortunately we are hearing such nonsense being repeated by right wing media, government advisors and MPs.
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Over the past few weeks […]

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The Raw Story

If you wonder why so many members of Congress are in denial when it comes to climate change, follow the money. This week, Forecast the Facts and SumOfUs, two grassroots groups working to sway public opinion about global warming, took a step toward holding legislators accountable with the release of a new report exposing the companies that since 2008, according to FEC data compiled by the Center for Responsive Politics, have bankrolled the ‘Climate Denier Caucus” to the tune of $641 million in campaign contributions.

Many of these companies claim to be working to fight global warming, even as their dollars help send climate change ”skeptics” to Capitol Hill. The report not only names names, but also highlights the apparent disconnect between political spending and corporate public relations efforts. Google CEO Eric Schmidt told an audience that gathered to laud the company’s efforts to build ‘a better web that is better for the environment” that ‘you can lie about the effects of climate change, but eventually you’ll be seen as […]

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