Category Archives: environmental engineering

A cosmic twin study

Posted on by

Astrobiologist David Grinspoon takes the anthropocene off-planet to our nearest cosmic neighbor Venus and discusses what we learn about climate change here on Earth from Venus’ catastrophic green-house effect.  He also takes some time to address George Carlin’s environmental philosophy and talk about his childhood friend and mentor, Carl Sagan.

Audio clip: Adobe Flash Player (version 9 or above) is required to play this audio clip. Download the latest version here. You also need to have JavaScript enabled in your browser.

Download Episode (Right-click and select Save Link As…) Continue reading →

Wrapping our heads around geoengineering

Posted on by

Drift into the stratosphere as environmental engineer Granger Morgan explains how to use aerosols to control climate change and why he calls this a bit of a Faustian bargain.  He also discusses what position the States would have to find itself in to actually do this as he builds to the terrifying realization that an individual (or a nation for that matter) with a few billion dollars could make the unilateral decision to go ahead and change the climate.

Audio clip: Adobe Flash Player (version 9 or above) is required to play this audio clip. Download the latest version here. You also need to have JavaScript enabled in your browser.

Download Episode (Right-click and select Save Link As…) Continue reading →

Are you afraid of climate change?

Posted on by

Co-founder of the Breakthrough Institute Michael Shellenberger discusses the cultural relevance of the Anthropocene and why it’s a term that so many people have adopted.  He also addresses the complex topic of climate change, how he deals with climate uncertainty, and spends some time reflecting on whether or not climate change scares him.

Audio clip: Adobe Flash Player (version 9 or above) is required to play this audio clip. Download the latest version here. You also need to have JavaScript enabled in your browser.

Download Episode (Right-click and select Save Target As…) Continue reading →

The law of climate change

Posted on by

Climate scientist-turned-legal scholar Michael Wara discusses the nuts and bolts of greenhouse gas reduction programs and questions the value of the long-standing search for a one-size-fits-all, silver bullet solution.  He makes a case for small-scale experimentation when dealing with climate change and offers a few thoughts on why bad political ideas just never die.

Audio clip: Adobe Flash Player (version 9 or above) is required to play this audio clip. Download the latest version here. You also need to have JavaScript enabled in your browser.

Download Episode (Right-click and select Save Link As…) Continue reading →