I just wanted to make a point about something.
When there's some sort of heated debate going on, you'll often hear one side complain of "Media Bias," that the news outlets are out to get them and discredit them and will favor one side of the story. While this undoubtedly happens in some media outlets (coughcoughFoxnewscough) the majority of media outlets, ESPECIALLY print media, where people make less money and tend to be more idealistic, tend to strive to get both sides of a story.
This isn't a perfect system, for one, there are usually at least three sides to any disagreement (ie., my side, his side, and what actually happened) and this compulsion to get a contrasting viewpoint can actually lead to a bias, but not what the pundits usually mean when they scream "Media Bias!"
I will offer, by way of example, Global Warming.
Now, most scientists, for the sake of argument we'll say 98%, agree that:
1. In spite of annual fluctuations, the Earth's climate is following a warming trend
2. This is bad news, generally for life as we know it, and adversely affects many plants, animals and people
3. The actions of mankind, as a species, is contributing to this warming trend, and is responsible for it to a yet-undertermined degree
4. We, as a species, would be better off taking some big, but theoretically acheivable, steps to make this problem, if not better, than at least less bad
OK, still with me?
So, say you're a local newspaper that wants to do a story on Global Warming (a very topical story right here in New Jersey today). You call a bunch of scientists, say, a biologist, a couple meteorologists, and a few others. Say you get 7 guys or girls who are willing to talk about Global Warming as a reality, and as a bad thing. Now, your editor says "well, if we don't present the opposing viewpoint, we won't be fair."
So, you start making some phone calls. To get your 7 "Global Warming is real" guys you made, maybe, eight or nine phone calls. To get some Global Warming skeptics, you probably have to make ten phone calls before you get a single one, unless you know somebody, or have spoken to someone before, or get a reference to somebody from one of your other scientists. Or, I suppose, you could just call the oil company (although it depends on which company, you might be hard pressed even there).
So you end up with 7 global warming experts, all of whom have advanced degrees and have been published in peer-reviewed literature, and 3 global warming skeptics, only one of whom has a doctorate, one of them claims to be a scientists, but won't tell you where his degree is from, and the other one is a blogger on a neoconservative web site (I specify neocon here because, if you think about it, environmentalism is a conservative value, but that's another rant).
So you present your story, where your 7 say yes, global warming is real, and 3 others dispute it. In reality, you make is seem as if 30% of experts think global warming is a crock, whereas the real numbers are just 2% (hypothetical numbers here, remember, I haven't done a survey or anything). You end up, in fact, with an EXREME bias...in favor of the global warming skeptics. And someone will still complain.
Ponder that one a bit.
Monday, June 9, 2008
Monday, May 19, 2008
Open Letter to a Careless Driver
To the guy in the gargantuan white SUV whom I encountered this morning at the intersection of Readington and Hillcrest roads,
You may not have seen me there till the last minute, while I was riding my bicycle. I'm a small guy, being only 6'3" and my bicycle is a hardly-noticeable shade of neon green. I could see how it would be so easy for a conscientious driver such as yourself to miss.
However, there was a stop sign to the right of your cyclopean gas guzzler, just before the point at which you made that left turn at full speed. You may have seen them around. They're red, have eight sides and have the letters S-T-O-P printed on them fairly largely.
We have this tradition, some might even consider it a law around these parts, that when one comes in direct contact with one of those signs, one is supposed to bring one's vehicle to a complete halt and look both ways before proceeding about one's business.
One is not supposed to roll through it, even if one is in a hurry. And one is certainly not supposed to, say, kill the poor guy riding his bicycle to work.
See, I was there, riding along, trying to do my part for fitness, the environment and my lack of surplus cash. I was following all the traffic laws, as I prepared to make the turn onto the road you were coming out of. I first looked over my shoulder to make sure the way was clear, then I looked ahead, I moved to the left side of the lane and stuck out my left arm in what we call, where I'm from, a "turn signal."
Up to that point, everything was going smoothly, as an experienced cyclist, I felt that I had judged my speed and my position on the road proper for such a turn. What I wasn't expecting was for you to come flying out through the stop sign and directly at me to make your own left turn.
You may forgive me, then for the loud, inchoate noise I made to alert you to my presence. I hope you'll also forgive me for some of the possibly inappropriate language I used in my attempt to explain how, according to our local customs, you may have not handled the maneuver properly.
See, when one is traveling along, trying to operate one's vehicle safely and properly, it can be something of a shock to have a large truck suddenly directly in one's path. Fortunately, I was alert enough, and experienced enough to brake and change direction slightly so that, with what I can only believe is the direct intervention of the Madonna di Ghisallo, I avoided a painful collision. However, if it had been a less competent cyclist (I make no claim to extraordinary ability, mind you, but I've got enough mileage to be at least moderately confident in my skills) or even a heavier, less maneuverable vehicle, such as a motorcycle, or even a car, the situation might have devolved into such a mess as to, say, damage your otherwise pristine paint job.
If I may make a suggestion, perhaps you should do some research on our quaint local customs regarding traffic signs. And, if I may be so bold, you may wish to reconsider your choice of vehicle. In addition to a lack of maneuverability and a poor field of view, such a means of conveyance, in these days of international tension and environmental crisis might be considered by some, even those you haven't nearly killed recently, as somewhat...gauche. Unpatriotic even. Far be it from me, who merely uses muscle power on occasion to lessen my personal dependence on foriegn oil, to question your lifestyle, but it is something to consider.
Thank you,
A Cyclist.
You may not have seen me there till the last minute, while I was riding my bicycle. I'm a small guy, being only 6'3" and my bicycle is a hardly-noticeable shade of neon green. I could see how it would be so easy for a conscientious driver such as yourself to miss.
However, there was a stop sign to the right of your cyclopean gas guzzler, just before the point at which you made that left turn at full speed. You may have seen them around. They're red, have eight sides and have the letters S-T-O-P printed on them fairly largely.
We have this tradition, some might even consider it a law around these parts, that when one comes in direct contact with one of those signs, one is supposed to bring one's vehicle to a complete halt and look both ways before proceeding about one's business.
One is not supposed to roll through it, even if one is in a hurry. And one is certainly not supposed to, say, kill the poor guy riding his bicycle to work.
See, I was there, riding along, trying to do my part for fitness, the environment and my lack of surplus cash. I was following all the traffic laws, as I prepared to make the turn onto the road you were coming out of. I first looked over my shoulder to make sure the way was clear, then I looked ahead, I moved to the left side of the lane and stuck out my left arm in what we call, where I'm from, a "turn signal."
Up to that point, everything was going smoothly, as an experienced cyclist, I felt that I had judged my speed and my position on the road proper for such a turn. What I wasn't expecting was for you to come flying out through the stop sign and directly at me to make your own left turn.
You may forgive me, then for the loud, inchoate noise I made to alert you to my presence. I hope you'll also forgive me for some of the possibly inappropriate language I used in my attempt to explain how, according to our local customs, you may have not handled the maneuver properly.
See, when one is traveling along, trying to operate one's vehicle safely and properly, it can be something of a shock to have a large truck suddenly directly in one's path. Fortunately, I was alert enough, and experienced enough to brake and change direction slightly so that, with what I can only believe is the direct intervention of the Madonna di Ghisallo, I avoided a painful collision. However, if it had been a less competent cyclist (I make no claim to extraordinary ability, mind you, but I've got enough mileage to be at least moderately confident in my skills) or even a heavier, less maneuverable vehicle, such as a motorcycle, or even a car, the situation might have devolved into such a mess as to, say, damage your otherwise pristine paint job.
If I may make a suggestion, perhaps you should do some research on our quaint local customs regarding traffic signs. And, if I may be so bold, you may wish to reconsider your choice of vehicle. In addition to a lack of maneuverability and a poor field of view, such a means of conveyance, in these days of international tension and environmental crisis might be considered by some, even those you haven't nearly killed recently, as somewhat...gauche. Unpatriotic even. Far be it from me, who merely uses muscle power on occasion to lessen my personal dependence on foriegn oil, to question your lifestyle, but it is something to consider.
Thank you,
A Cyclist.
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