TV weathercasters have differing opinions about climate change according to a recent study. (Photo courtesy of Scott Eric CC-2.0)
A new survey reveals what TV weathercasters think about climate change. Lester Graham reports… that’s important because many people look to the TV weathercaster for information about climate change.
Transcript
A new survey reveals what TV weathercasters think about climate change. Lester Graham reports… that’s important because many people look to the TV weathercaster for information about climate change.
Surveys by the George Mason University researchers have shown many people trust the person who tells you whether to take an umbrella for news of global warming.
Edward Maiback is director of the Center for Climate Change Communication at George Mason. The survey revealed different TV weathercasters have different opinions about climate change.
“About half of them tell us, responded to our survey that climate change is real; about a quarter said that it wasn’t and about another 20 percent said that they weren’t sure.”
By comparison, a survey of leading climate scientists found 96-percent of them indicated climate change was real and human activity is a significant cause.
Maybe that differences shouldn’t be surprising. Forecasting the weather is not the same as predicting climate change. Weather… is next week. Climate is the next century.
Critics of sonar say it’s so loud that it confuses whales and other marine animals, and can cause them to be injured or even die.
(Photo courtesy of NOAA)
A new federal ruling could
protect marine animals by
changing how and where
the Navy uses sonar. Samara Freemark reports:
Transcript
A new federal ruling could
protect marine animals by
changing how and where
the Navy uses sonar. Samara Freemark reports:
Critics of sonar say it’s so loud that it confuses whales and other marine animals, and can cause them to be injured or even die. That’s why environmental groups have been pushing for tighter regulations on the technology.
This week the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, or NOAA, took a step in that direction. The agency acknowledged that current policies are not doing enough to protect marine mammals. And NOAA says it will identify critical marine habitats impacted by sonar.
Michael Jasny is a policy analyst with the environmental group the Natural Resources Defense Council. He hopes the policy will be a first step to banning sonar in those habitats.
“It’s not a prescription, it’s a plan. And it sets in motion potentially a very significant change. I mean, the proof will be in the pudding, of course.”
Jasny says his organization will work with NOAA and the Navy to negotiate sonar policy so that marine mammals are not hurt.
Diaper-free parents say that their baby shows them signs when a bathroom break is needed. They call the dialogue "elimination communication." (Photo by Jessi Ziegler)
When most Americans have a baby,
the parents decide whether to use
disposable or cloth diapers. But
Julie Grant reports that there’s
another trend: no diapers at all:
Transcript
When most Americans have a baby,
the parents decide whether to use
disposable or cloth diapers. But
Julie Grant reports that there’s
another trend: no diapers at all:
Having kids without diapers might seem kind of far out. So,
who better to tell us about this then Willow Lune, of
Berkeley, California.
She remembers when her son was 3-months old. They
were at her mother-in-law’s house. Her husband took the
baby to the bathroom – and accidentally left the door open.
“And his mother came in and saw him holding our son over
the toilet. And she said, ‘what are you doing?’ And my
husband said, ‘well, he’s going to the bathroom, just like you
do.’ And it took her about a minute, and she said, ‘that’s so
cool.’”
Lune and her husband said it was normal to see babies
without diapers when they were traveling in Tibet and
Thailand. So, when their son was born, they decided to try
it. He’s was going to the toilet on his own by age 1 and a
half.
Now Lune teaches classes in Berkeley and other areas
around San Francisco.
She says diaper-free little ones can wear crotch-less pants –
or might not wear anything from the waist down.
And it’s up to the parents to pay close attention – or risk
having to reach for the cleaning supplies.
“There might be a little wiggle, or sometimes just the staring
at you. There’s just little subtle clues that they actually give
you from the time they’re born. So it’s our job to look at that,
listen for that, pick up on that. And then respond to it.”
Turns out, there’s a name for this little dialogue between
babies and parents. They call it elimination communication,
or E.C. Instead of using diapers – and then training them to
go in the toilet a few years later – Lune says parents can just
pay attention. They can show babies from the start what to
do when the need arises.
Lune says one of the reasons she and her husband do this
is because they are concerned for the environment.
Pampers and Huggies clog up the landfills. The other major
option – washing cloth diapers – takes more attention from
parents. But doing that can use a lot of water and electricity.
Jennifer Williams lives in the San Francisco area. She has
three children – all under age four.
Williams is also concerned for the environment. And she
wants to pay close attention when her 6-month old daughter
goes to the bathroom. She even uses cloth diapers.
“Even just with cloth diapers, you have to be way more in
tune to what’s going on with someone’s body. Where –
she’s in disposable right now – I’ll just forget about it for five
hours. You don’t have that option with cloth. Unless you
want to give her a horrible a rash. So, the whole EC thing is
really interesting, because you really have to be in touch with
what’s going on physiologically.”
But Williams works full time. Elimination communication just
is not practical for her family.
“Yeah, I mean, because you really do have to be available to
whenever the baby has to go to the bathroom. With one
baby, when I was home on maternity leave, I probably could
have done it. Once you have more than one running
around, it just doesn’t fit. Maybe I’m lazy. So be it.”
Supporters of the diaper-free lifestyle say it’s actually easier
then potty training kids when they’re older. And they say
parents don’t have to do it all the time. They can try it when
they do have time to pay close attention.
Only two Right Whales have been spotted in
the last 50 years off the southern tip of Greenland (Photo courtesy of NOAA)
Scientist think they’ve found
a rare whale in a place where
they thought they were wiped
out. Sadie Babits reports,
they haven’t seen the whale
but they’ve heard it:
Transcript
Scientist think they’ve found
a rare whale in a place where
they thought they were wiped
out. Sadie Babits reports,
they haven’t seen the whale
but they’ve heard it:
Scientists thought the North Atlantic Right Whale
was gone. Only two of them have been spotted in
the last 50 years off the southern tip of Greenland.
But some underwater microphones picked up right
whale calls.
“They sound like mmmmmmick… kind of like that.”
That’s David Mellinger. He teaches at Oregon State
University.
He says they recorded more than two
thousand right whale calls in a year. That doesn’t
mean there are a lot of the whales, but Mellinger
says hearing any in the North Atlantic is significant.
“Because the population is so endangered. There
are only 300-350 maybe right whales in the world.
So finding any new whales is important.”
But there is a concern. As the Arctic Ice Cap
melts because of global warming, more ships are
expected to pass through the area. That could
mean ships could strike and kill the few right
whales that are left.
A recent study indicates people are more likely to feel satisfied with their lives when they feel connected to nature. But urban planners often don’t take that need into account. The Great Lakes Radio Consortium’s Rebecca Williams has more:
Transcript
A recent study indicates people are more likely to feel
satisfied with their lives when they feel connected to nature.
But urban planners often don’t take that need into account. The
Great Lakes Radio Consortium’s Rebecca Williams has more:
You’ve might’ve guessed that crawling along on a crowded highway, or working
all day in a stuffy office can be bad for your mental health. A new study confirms that.
Stephen Kaplan co-authored the study in the American Journal of Public
Health. Kaplan says urban design that limits contact with nature can make
people feel tired and irritable.
“Planners are typically educated in the economic mold, and from that point
of view, people want to achieve as much financial input as possible, they
want to get places in the fastest way as possible. We’ve done studies that
show that people much prefer a route that isn’t the fastest if it gives them
a chance to experience nature along the way.”
Kaplan says if planners are to design livable communities, they need to keep
nature in mind.
For the Great Lakes Radio Consortium, I’m Rebecca Williams.
TV weathercasters have differing opinions about climate change according to a recent study. (Photo courtesy of Scott Eric CC-2.0)
