rssMaybe Steven Chu Was Stumped After All
Thursday, April 23, 2009 at 3:29 pm
- 7 Comments
I was more than a little incredulous when I read that Rep. Joe Barton (R-Texas) claimed via Twitter to have stumped Energy Secretary Steven Chu with a simple science question. After all, Chu is a Nobel Prize-winning physicist, while Barton doesn’t exactly have the firmest grasp of science. And, having witnessed the exchange firsthand at yesterday’s Energy and Commerce Committee hearing, I can say that it was Barton, not Chu, who came across as rather clueless.
But then I reviewed the photos I took at the hearing. Turns out Chu may have been a bit baffled after all:
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7 Comments
Comment posted April 23, 2009 @ 1:26 pm
Looks to me like Chu's trying to keep a straight face.
Comment posted April 23, 2009 @ 2:37 pm
As a geologist, his answer left a lot to be desired in clarity and specificity. However, he did get the general idea correct. Science is hard, and being a physicist doesn't make you an expert in geology. So I cut the man some slack.
The question did reveal Barton's total lack of understanding though. Not sure if he was going for a global warming angle here? Either way it was totally incoherent. Maybe Chu was just thrown off by the lack of any kind of logic…
Comment posted April 24, 2009 @ 1:27 am
He looks like he's making an effort to not respond to the Honorable Representative as he would a little kid.
Comment posted April 27, 2009 @ 2:07 pm
Alaska was near the equator millions of years ago and it did indeed drift up to the North Pole.
Comment posted April 27, 2009 @ 9:07 pm
Alaska was near the equator millions of years ago and it did indeed drift up to the North Pole.
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