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The evolutionary reason for humans?

This post over at WorldChanging got me thinking.

For those who liken the human species to a virus, feeling the planet would be better off without us ...

For those who poo-poo technology ...

Pop quiz: What do you do when an asteroid is hurtling toward the Earth and the impact will likely cause mass extinction?

Maybe send some pesky humans into space to knock the rock off its course? By employing some fancy technology?

But wait ... are extinction-level events "natural"? Cause if so I assume we humans should not prevent them.

Maybe I'm just a confused "libertarian." Take the poll (click "Link and Discuss") and tell me what to think.

Oregon tests out an alternative to the gas tax — pay-by-the-mile taxes

There was a bunch of comment in the blogosphere yesterday about hiking gas taxes, with the rough consensus that it's OK environmental policy, tough on the poor, and politically risky (though perhaps not quite as unthinkable as it once was).

So it's interesting to note that Oregon -- often considered a policy innovator among U.S. states -- is in the middle of an experiment that could eventually lead to a repeal of the state gas tax.

Wealthy strive for

"I went to the woods because I wished to live deliberately," wrote Henry David Thoreau. His experiment in stripping down has inspired generations of environmentalists to cast off possessions, or at least aspire to -- but simple living doesn't look so appealing when it's the only choice you have. Today, anthropologist Elizabeth Chin puts a new spin on environmental consciousness as she examines rich and poor consumers, and the difference between simple living and survival.

An interactive illustration of how the other half lives

You know how, in grade school, it was easier to understand multiplication when there were pictures of fruit and panda bears involved? Today we bring you that. Only, the multiplication is now stats about poverty and the environment. And the pictures of fruit and panda bears are now an original illustration by Keri Rosebraugh. Which has pop-up factoids. We bet you haven't had this much fun since grade school. Check it out.

A simple change that can help utilities and their customers conserve energy

This is good news: According to NW Current, more and more utilities are becoming interested in "decoupling" -- which could be the single most cost-effective step I've heard of for encouraging conservation.

Mardi Grist

By all accounts -- that is, all accounts from people who were privileged enough to attend, as opposed to people who were told that their presence was not worth the price of a subsidized plane ticket and hotel room, even though they totally would have rocked the party, hmph -- last night's Mardi Grist in NYC celebration was a resounding success.

You can see some pictures from the bash here, courtesy of fiftyRX3.

Avian flue expert calls on birders to become first-alert front

Like anyone who's neither an idiot nor willfully ignorant, I've followed the avian flu issue with enough depth and interest to know that it's scary as hell. Yesterday I happened to pick up a copy of the International Herald Tribune (it was in the lobby of the Zurich hotel we stayed in after a week of skiing in the Alps; yes, I know, life is tough) and read a scary piece about how avian flu has turned up on a poultry farm in France, forcing French health authorities to quarantine a farm family. The family's young daughter was away from home when the outbreak was discovered and she's not allowed to return home, and because the local postman is afraid, he leaves the family's medicine on the road near their farmhouse.

And then I read a scary piece about how avian flu is likely to make its way around the globe, written by Laurie Garrett, who apparently has written a scary book about the topic.

Her analysis is fascinating, but so is her solution -- mainly because it relies heavily on the longtime footsoldiers of grassroots environmental activism. Writes Garrett: "One of the best untapped resources in this epic battle against influenza is bird-watchers, who are among the most fanatic hobbyists in the world."

Chuck Norris strikes again.

From your reliable online source of Chuck Norris Facts:

There is no such thing as global warming. Chuck Norris was cold, so he turned the sun up.

The hobgoblin of little minds

This NYT review of two new climate-change books is fairly good, but it's especially notable for bringing to light this delicious quote:

And [Eugene Linden] appreciates the value of complex, ambiguous data in forging roundabout paths to new discoveries. As one of his sources in oceanography says admiringly of another, "Republicans would call him a flip-flopper, but he's really just a good scientist."

The loneliness of the long distance … reporter

The situation with global warming in the U.S. media is truly strange.

In the political press, the issue is pretty much invisible. There are lots of good stories in the science and health departments, but there are very, very few daily reporters tasked with exploring all the facets of what is likely to be the biggest story of the century.

So what's it like for those few reporters that do follow it?

For a brief but fascinating glimpse, check out this post from Bill Blakemore, who covers global warming full-time for ABC News. It's about the psychological effect of understanding an enormously dangerous and consequential story before the public at large does.

It will be a relief -- albeit a sad one -- as more and more of the public begins to acknowledge and deal with the true scale and impact of this story, as seems to be happening now, so that we who cover it may come to feel less isolated.