In light of recent events, the organizers of this year's TEDxPSU may have been concerned that the event might get lost in the fray. Despite it all, the community made a strong showing yesterday, filling up much of the allotted space in the HUB. Attendance probably should have been even higher since it was definitely worth seeing.The theme was Relics to Revolutionaries, and speakers including Michael Mann, Mia Bloom, Ian Rosenberger, and Joseph Michael Valente who covered topics as diverse as cyber charter schools, the involment of women in terrorist organizations, and making art from Twitter feeds.
And you thought you were having a rough year! Take a look at Meteorology professor Michael Mann's. Mann was the subject of a recent Virginia court case that focused on his time spent at the University of Virginia and grants he may have used in his climate research. The Virginia Attorney General, Kenneth Cuccinelli, lost his case forcing UVA to disclose the grant documents, but Mann still might not be out of the woods.
Read on to see what could be next for Mann...
Good news for Professor of Meteorology Dr. Michael Mann, who was cleared by a panel of his peers in the "Climategate" scandal. In case you don't remember, Mann became involved in a global controversy when hackers broke into a colleague's email account and published correspondance between climate researchers, including Mann, that suggested a potential cover up of data refuting the theory of man-made global warming. The scandal resulted in the resignation of a professor at the University of East Anglia in the United Kingdom.
Read on to see what the panel had to say, and why its conclusion is not without controversy...
We've been inundated with "Climategate" lately, but not with what the man at the center of the controversy, Penn State meteorology professor Michael Mann, has to say, apart from a few short clips. However, Mann has published an open letter defending himself and his work in this month's issue of the magazine Voices of Central Pennsylvania. He asserts himself from the very first sentence of the letter: "Climate change is real."
Mann says he welcomes scientific debate and a healthy skepticism, but contrasts this with what he's called the "contrarianism" of stubborn skeptics who refuse to believe anything about climate change or to do anything about it, even pointing out an instance where one of his published works fell on the more skeptical side regarding climate change. And of course, he addresses the email hullabaloo.
So what does Mann have to say? Read on to find out!
The Penn State panel in charge of investigating the so-called "Climategate" emails of Professor Michael Mann has announced the end of their investigation. Dr. Mann's email correspondence with Dr. Phil Jones of the University of East Anglia in the U.K. was leaked late last November. Dr. Mann's work was considered to be some of the most important evidence for human-induced climate change, until allegations surfaced from these emails that he had falsified the data suggesting that theory.
A Penn State panel of faculty and staff was tapped to look into the matter, which has gotten worldwide attention, including that of the United Nations. University of East Anglia also conducted their own investigation of Dr. Jones. About three weeks ago, former CIA agent Kent Clizbe launched his own private investigation of Dr. Mann, but was obviously limited in his powers, as he is now a private citizen.
Penn State has said they will announce their findings later this week, though they had previously flirted with the idea of keeping those findings confidential, in the interest of protecting their faculty member. However, even with the public release, some have pointed out flaws in the method of the investigation, namely who the investigators are. Quoted in the Collegian, Samuel Settle, a member of the conservative group Young Americans for Freedom (previously featured in Onward State Stories), said that Penn State has put "an awful lot of power in the hands of three [Penn State employees] with no external oversight."
Get the full story after the jump.
Kent Clizbe isn't working for the US government or any other organization. He's one man searching for answers amidst the Climategate controversy. As the Collegian reported this week, Mr. Clizbe sent letters to 27 Penn State faculty members in hopes of locating a snitch whistleblower. He possesses an extensive background in secure communications and has even recruited a lawyer who has experience working with the False Claims Act.
Faculty members who come forward with information about the Climategate controversy will be protected--and apparently well paid. We contacted Mr. Clizbe to understand his motives for launching this personal investigation.