Michael Specter
Michael Specter
Michael Specteris an American journalist who has been a staff writer, focusing on science and technology, and global public health at The New Yorker since September 1998. He has also written for The Washington Post and The New York Times...
NationalityAmerican
ProfessionJournalist
CountryUnited States of America
best carbon cent change climate cut deal emissions increase largest obvious per six
The best way to deal with climate change has been obvious for years: cut greenhouse-gas emissions severely. We haven't done that. In 2010, for example, carbon emissions rose by six per cent - the largest such increase on record.
blatant change combine desire dismiss fear forms good health misguided physicians race rarely tool
The most blatant forms of denialism are rarely malevolent; they combine decency, a fear of change, and the misguided desire to do good - for our health, our families, and the world. That is why so many physicians dismiss the idea that a patient's race can, and often should, be used as a tool for better diagnoses and treatment.
children boys years
Benjamin Franklin refused to have one of his children vaccinated against smallpox. The four-year-old boy died, and Franklin wrote later of how mistaken he was to expose him to the needless risk.
pennies accepting pharmaceutical-companies
I have never earned one penny from any pharmaceutical company. I will never accept one penny from them either. Ever.
vaccines sides side-effects
There are always potential side effects for every vaccine.
law sick people
Flu is easily transmitted, so if you are working with sick people - who are most at risk for getting seriously ill - you ought to be vaccinated. I am not really equipped to say whether it should be the law or not.
new-york children school
Vaccination is a public health issue because influenza is a highly contagious disease. If you don't vaccinate your child, his or her schoolmates are much more likely to become ill. That is why some places (New York, for example) are making the vaccine mandatory for school children.
believe age radio
In the Internet age, with the screaming on the radio, etc., it is hard to know what to believe and who is informed and who is not.
stupid believe sleep
I understand the horrors of having no insurance, but, believe me, eight hours of sleep and good meals are NOT going to prevent you from getting sick. Don't gamble with your life; it's a stupid bet.
thinking mcdonalds healthy
I think it is true that you can eat extremely healthy food at McDonald's, and you can eat amazingly badly at Chipotle.
thinking mcdonalds people
I think it's too soon to say that, and I think, basically - most of the people that I ran across and most of the studies that I saw suggest people don't go to McDonald's to eat healthy food. They go to eat fries and cheeseburgers.
fraud monsanto being-accused
It is not possible to assert publicly that Monsanto is anything other than venal without being accused of being a sellout, a fraud, or worse.
vitamins values
Daily vitamins are of no value.
writing epidemics medicine
I started to write about science and medicine at the Washington Post, in the early days of the AIDS epidemic.