Socialism and Human Health

Daniel Tarade October 18, 2019

We are taught that all improvements in societal health are causally linked to a corresponding scientific advance. This is the myth of heroic science. It is clear that lifespan has steadily increased due to a decline in infectious disease mortality. However, this has more to do with improve quality of life due to labour and socialist movements than antibiotic and vaccine development. Socialism is capable of improving our material conditions through wealth redistribution and my allowing democratic control of our scientific institutions to make sure we all benefit from our collective genius and creativity.

Cottage Interior with Seated Woman. Max Liebermann.

Graduate Students in Science: Exploitation and Precarious Work

Daniel Tarade August 30, 2019

Graduate students at the University of Toronto are poorly remunerated for our scientific labour. Our stipend is a poverty wage, and we are ripe for financial exploitation. This desperation drives graduate students to the gig economy for the money they need to survive. In the freelance editing world, trainees can expect low payouts and stressful deadlines. We need to provide a living salary for all scientists, even those who are still in training.

Catastrophic Climate Change and Insulin: Can Communities Produce their own Medicine?

Daniel Tarade August 23, 2019

From poverty to climate change, many threats to the current insulin supply exist. Biological medications are controlled by monopolies and produced by for-profit companies dependent on international trade. Can communities produce their own insulin in accordance with decentralized, non-hierarchical practices?

Saint Bride. John Duncan. The modern scientific process saving lives. Not pictured: Profit and exploitation.

Deconstructing the Myths of Heroic Science: The Green Revolution and Big Tobacco

Daniel Tarade July 12, 2019

Myths are made out of courageous scientists fighting against pestilence and famine. These myths naturalize the problems of the world and hides the economic and political motivations behind many famous scientific “breakthroughs.” By deconstructing the myths of science, such as the Green Revolution, we begin to ask economics-based questions about contemporary science, such as the recent development of nicotine-free GMO tobacco.

Before the performance. Edgar Degas. Just because your tutu is yellow, does not mean you are superior.

Political Ideology and Evolution

Daniel Tarade June 28, 2019

The theory of evolution is held up as a litmus test for scientific literacy. But there is a fierce debate about the relative importance of the major drivers of evolution: natural selection and neutral drift. These conceptions of evolution are not apolitical but instead influenced by the organization of our own society. In turn, these theories influence how we view not only ecosystems but also human systems and economic organization.