- Bishop Hill blog - Quote of the day

The anonymous peer review process is the enemy of scientific creativity…peer reviewers go for orthodoxy.

Professor James Black

North Dakota economy booms, population soars - USATODAY.com

North Dakota is enjoying an oil boom in the western part of the state, drawing workers from across the country. Williston, in oil country, grew 17.6% to 14,716. The oil windfall has created a $1 billion state budget surplus.

Wanna green your ride? Ditch the Prius, hop on a train | Grist

Here's one to piss off the yuppies: Driving your hybrid car from your Energy Star home to the food co-op is not as green as hopping on the subway from your apartment. A new EPA study says that moving from a car-oriented to a transit-oriented community has the biggest impact on your energy usage -- more than green buildings or green cars.

Your iPod is polluting China and L.A.—and Wyoming might be next | Grist

Thus far, then, your iPod has contributed to glacial melting in the Himalayas, the dirty air in Guangzhou, and the increasing incidence of respiratory disease in China.

An amazing Republican vote | Michael Tomasky | Comment is free | guardian.co.uk

But liberals should remember that Barack Obama isn't the reason common-sense reforms can't happen in this country. We have a situation in which 95% of the scientific community thinks A, and roughly two-thirds of Americans agree about A. Then we have a small but tenacious faction that has disproportionate power in Washington and that insists A is a socialistic plot. It's that last bunch that is the real problem.