Science policy and politics under microscope in humanities talk

KALAMAZOO—The future of science policy under the administration of newly re-elected President Obama will come into sharper focus this month when a noted science and political writer visits Western Michigan University's campus.

Chris Mooney, senior correspondent for American Prospect Magazine and author of "The Republican War on Science," will speak at 6 p.m. Thursday, Nov. 29, in 2008 Richmond Center for Visual Arts as part of the University Center for the Humanities Power and Publics Series. His presentation, "Political Science 2012: What the Election Means for Science Policy on Climate Change and Beyond," is free and open to the public.

In his talk, Mooney will take a look at the future of science policy under the Obama administration and discuss some of the unanswered questions regarding science policy in the United States after 2012, including climate change legislation and how seriously science will be taken by the federal government.

Chris Mooney

Mooney has been nationally recognized for his publications in recent years and has appeared on The Daily Show with John Stewart, The Colbert Report, MSNBC's Morning Joe and many other national radio and television programs.

Mooney's "The Republican War on Science" was a New York Times bestseller. His more recent book is "The Republican Brain: The Science of Why They Deny Science and Reality." He is a blogger for the Center for American Progress and Center for the American Progress Action Fund website. He also is host of the podcast Point of Inquiry.

Mooney speaks regularly on university campuses and elsewhere. His career started while studying at Yale University where he wrote for the Yale Daily News. He also worked at the American Prospect as a writing fellow, a staff writer and online editor before he became a freelance writer. His articles recently have been published in New Scientist, Slate, Salon, Mother Jones and Legal Affairs, among many others.

One of his articles was included in the volume Best Science and Nature Writing in 2006. He won the Preserving Core Values in Science Award from the Association of Reproductive Health Professionals and had a feature story about ExxonMobil nominated for the Los Angeles book prize.

Power and Publics Speaker Series

The University Center for the Humanities Power and Publics Speaker Series was inspired by the 2012 elections. The center invites community members to join in a discussion of various publics and their political power. Mooney's presentation is co-sponsored by the WMU Center for the Study of Ethics in Society, the Mallinson Institute for Science Education and the biological sciences, chemistry and physics departments.

For more information about the center and the Power and Publics Speaker Series, visit wmich.edu/humanities.