Abuses of Science Political Cartoon Contest

AngryNick writes "The Union of Concerned Scientists has announced a cartoon contest for amateur and professional artists. 'The absurdity of political interference in science is fertile ground for satire,' said Dr. Francesca Grifo, Director of the UCS Scientific Integrity Program. 'We hope these contests encourage amateur and professional cartoonists alike to express concern--through humor and art--about the impact of the abuse of science on our safety, health and environment.' A celebrity judge panel will select twelve finalists and the public will then choose the Grand Prize winner. The winner will receive a host of prizes, including $500 and an all-expenses-paid trip to have lunch with the celebrity judge of his or her choice. You can read Contest details, sample topics and the list of celebrity judges."

Comments

Re:It's not a religion 'till someone dies.

[diekhans]

This posting continues to repeat common distortions and false dichotomies about DDT, malaria, and the environment.

• The use of DDT to prevent malaria is not an environmental issue. The amounts used are tiny when compared to what was used in agriculture.

  Millions of tons of DDT were applied agriculturally, resulting in the wide-spreed environmental contamination and non-consented exposure of humans. This also resulted in the evolution of strains of DDT-resistant mosquitoes, making DDT less effective in malaria control.

  A large about of the agricultural use in developed countries was to produce cheaper cotton. Yet this misuse that lead to the ban on the agricultural never seems to be criticized by the so-called DDT defenders.

• The weakening of egg shells of birds by the DDT metabolite DDE has not been disproved.

• The implication that individuals who are concerned about the environment and other species are not concerned about people in third world countries. There are extremists in every corner, but as a rule, no evidence ever presented to back this up.

  Personally, I have had malaria while in a developing country, with out access to western medical facilities. I have a greater appreciation than most of the direct affects of malaria.