We Are Scientists
I don’t remember learning much from the two years I spent at community college. If I try hard enough, I can vaguely recall testing for mineral hardness, or learning that most archaeologists make a living by inspecting construction sites, not excavating jungle tombs (way to crush my Indiana Jones dreams, Mr. whateveryournamewas!) , but the truth is, I wasn’t that motivated by school anymore. Having sort of sabotaged my academic momentum by not bothering to really apply to universities, I found myself without any real goals or real hope for change.
I found inspiration in the summer of 1996, ironically enough, in astronomy, sociology, geology, anthropology, ecology (and plenty other -ologies)…just not in the classroom. Kim Stanley Robinson’s Red Mars 
Shortly thereafter, when I transferred to USC for film school, I read and enjoyed Robinson’s next novel, Antarctica (I even tried to persuade the development company I was interning with to option it!), but after that, fell out of touch with old KSR. By the time I checked up on him again, he was already 2 books in to his next trilogy, one about global warming. Blue Mars deals with the repercussions of global warming—does my erstwhile favorite writer really need to stoop to Roland Emmerich material now, I thought as I looked at the sensationalist covers that seemed far too Tom Clancy for my tastes. It wasn’t until last month that I finally caved.
Here we were, in the heat of election season, with my now officially confirmed guy talking about change, but I just wasn’t feeling it. Maybe it’s silly, but when I was struggling to get excited about our real world heroes, I looked again to Robinsons’ science heroes for inspiration.
Forty Signs of Rain
17. September 2008 at 12:10 am :
I know exactly what you mean. My school background was unpleasant and I had some teachers that turned what would have been fascinating topics into dull droning nonsense. The only ‘ology’ I ever found truly captivating was Parapsychology, which I got a certificate in this past May. I’m not sure what I’ll ever use it for but it was a fun subject to study except when I got to the module about the beliefs in I’Ching. I hated I’ching and I hated how the text book on it was written.
17. September 2008 at 9:32 am :
With your huge library, you should consider doing a weekly book recommendation! ^_^
19. September 2008 at 8:22 am :
Personally–and if I offend someone out there, I am extremely sorry–I don’t think global warming is as catastrophic as the media wants us to believe. I’m not saying that there isn’t truth in the theory, but from what I’ve read it seems like the environmental version of about writing a will because someone sneezed on you.
I believe that we should take care of our planet and plan for the future, but I’m also slightly cynical when people tell me I have to believe something without offering proof. The proof I have seen has mainly consisted of predictions and you can’t prove a prediction was accurate until the event occurs. That said, I do believe the climate has changed slightly for the warmer, but I’m not convinced that we all need to be worried about the Apocalypse just yet.
Again, sorry if I offended anyone, but I maintain my rights as an individual to have a different opinion. If you disagree, I am willing to listen to an logical argument, but please don’t flame me because you think I’m stupid for not seeing what you think is brutally obivious. I’m not intending to bait anyone and would actually like to hear your opinions.
Wow, I spent almost half that post apologizing for having a potentially offense view on global warming. You all have just read my standard “Please don’t yell @ me because this is what I think” speech.
19. September 2008 at 8:24 am :
And I will admit, global warming does make for some pretty awesome sci-fi.
19. September 2008 at 9:57 am :
‘and if I offend someone out there, I am extremely sorry–I don’t think global warming is as catastrophic as the media wants us to believe. I’m not saying that there isn’t truth in the theory, but from what I’ve read it seems like the environmental version of about writing a will because someone sneezed on you.’
Even those down playing the effects of global warming don’t deny the polar ice caps have started to melt. And even one degree every few decades (and that’s what they’re talking about here) can have a catastrophic effect.
Scientists have determined that there was a short ‘mini ice age’ during the era of the black plague in which the typical temperature in Europe was roughly five degrees lower than it should have been adn this caused serious environmental issues such as crop failuers, which in turn lead to famine and witch hunts.
The slightest thing can have the greatest effects. And personally, I’d rather not have great, great grand kids playing in 99 degree fahrenheit Christmases. And even those who say global warming is being exagerated admits that’s what we can expect in a few centuries if this continues. I wish, we, as a race, weren’t so short sighted as to not think of our next generations. We don’t live forever except in our children and selfishness harms their futures.
19. September 2008 at 11:45 am :
‘I believe that we should take care of our planet and plan for the future, but I’m also slightly cynical when people tell me I have to believe something without offering proof. The proof I have seen has mainly consisted of predictions’
No offense but… Wow, you really haven’t been paying attention. Even the most cynical scientific skeptics have admitted that the Earth’s temperature has gone up at least one degree in the last fifty years.
And let’s not forget the VERY real polar ice caps starting to deteriorate. That’s not a prediction. That’s something that’s been on the news for over a year, it’s just seldom talked about now because of issues of war and economy taking centre stage.
19. September 2008 at 2:36 pm :
Even the most skeptical of global warming today no longer call it a theory. Their latest self-justifications are ‘It’s such a small change over such a long period of time that by the time it effects anything we’ll be dead.’ and that’s very short sighted.
19. September 2008 at 7:28 pm :
This series sounds intriguing. I don’t cave into Tom Clancy novels, either.
And I feel sad to admit that even though I live in the US, I have not the slightest clue of what is going on with the election.