Science and Technology

Research ban will not make us safer

The US House of Representatives recently approved a ban on “gain-of-function” research that supposedly modifies pathogens so as to make them more dangerous to humans. This may seem like a good idea, but there is more to it than meets the eye. Gain of function (GoF) refers to mutations in genes that render their products, proteins that function as enzymes, transporters, binding agents etc, more active. Such mutations have occurred throughout evolution (as have their opposites, loss-of-function (LoF) mutations). Whether these benefit the organism depends on many factors, but the current...

From the Sahara to algal blooms

The Devil’s Element: Phosphorus and a World Out of Balance by Dan Egan documents the history of humanity’s relationship with one of the essential building blocks of life and one of our most important natural resources. Phosphorus in its pure form is extremely reactive and combusts at around room temperature. It was first discovered by German alchemist Hennig Brandt in 1669, who stumbled upon it after conducting elaborate experiments involving boiling gallons of his own urine. Egan charts its use in war and detergent through to the irreplaceable role it now plays in feeding the world’s eight...

Word4Word: Quantum leap

Quantum leap is one of those phrases that can cause great annoyance to some, particularly those who know something of the science behind it

Why scientists say CDR is necessary

The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) Fifth Assessment Report (2014) highlighted the potentially important role for carbon dioxide removal (CDR) technologies in keeping global temperature rise below 2°C. The report defined CDR as methods that “involve removing CO2 from the atmosphere and storing the carbon in land, ocean, or geological reservoirs”. CDR is also called “negative emissions technologies” (NETs). The IPCC’s fifth report discussed CDR technologies such as land carbon sequestration by reforestation and afforestation; soil carbon management, or biochar; ocean carbon...

Motions on “climate interventions”, “geoengineering”

Workers' Liberty decided the following on 19th November 2023. On climate change, the overwhelming priority remains the struggle to reduce emissions as swiftly as possible. Geoengineering is not a substitute for sharp emissions reductions. Some of the geoengineering technologies might have major downsides and risks. But they may prove necessary to confront a world we never wished for. The present stage is mostly about research, experiments and testing. On balance, it makes sense to support authorised, publicly-funded research. We raise the questions of governance of geoengineering, pushing for...

Planets: a jumbo discovery?

In early October, astronomers using newly acquired data with the James Webb Space Telescope (JWST) announced the discovery of a new type of astrophysical object; Jupiter Mass Binary Objects (or “ JuMBOs ” for short). When peering at a patch of the sky associated with a recent phase of star formation, the Orion Nebula, the team found a statistically high number of faint objects that appeared in pairs. By analysing the amount of light arriving from these objects, the team concluded that instead of being light from stars, these are instead better interpreted as systems of twin planets, freely...

The debates on geoengineering

What if fossil fuels continue to be burned unabated? What if greenhouse gas emissions continue on their upward trajectory? What if capitalist firms carry on putting profit before human needs and the ecosystems on which we depend? What if bourgeois states fail to reach the necessary agreements to reduce emissions and undo the damage already done? What if the impacts of climate change are greater than expected? What if tipping points are reached and boundaries exceeded? Socialists active in climate struggles have a duty to face realities now and in the foreseeable future. We have an obligation...

The politics of the ChatGPT hype

Readers have no doubt seen all the news stories surrounding “Artificial Intelligence” in general, and ChatGPT in particular — whether they are talking about how it poses an existential threat, or how it is coming for our jobs. There are many problems with how mainstream media is covering this topic — first and foremost blurring the line between “AI”, and what is known as Large Language Models (LLMs). The latter powers ChatGPT. The former doesn’t actually exist. In order to cut through the nonsense, we must first understand what ChatGPT is, and what it is not. Large Language Models have been...

Take climate change and science seriously

Earlier this month, Sunak and other prominent Tories declared that Starmer and Labour were taking climate change too seriously. Sunak frothed that “eco-zealots at Just Stop Oil are writing Keir Starmer's energy policy" — alongside other dishonest smears from other champions of climate catastrophe. Paul Vernadsky’s recent letter seems to take a similar tactic: “I am alarmed that Solidarity ’s ecological politics is collapsing into a callow regurgitation of Extinction Rebellion and its offshoots.” He doesn’t specify what are the similarities or specific limitations of XR, Paul simply uses XR as...

The zoonotic transfer risk

Matt Sanderson’s article, “The risks from bird flu” ( Solidarity 675 ) is right to raise the alarm, and the limitations of current precautions. Since this highly pathogenic strain of the H5N1 subtype of bird flu emerged two years ago, it spread far and wide across bird populations. A particular concern the last half year, beyond the economic impact, and the very small number of humans knowingly infected, is the large number of mammals infected. Thousands or tens of thousands of sea lions seem to have been killed by bird flu in south America this year. Many mink were found infected prior to the...

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