Eric Booth
@egbooth.bsky.social
Hydroecologist at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. Interested in interactions between water, land, climate, humans, food, energy, etc. and transdisciplinary community-engaged research. Views shared here are my own. https://www.ericbooth.org/
Always appreciate introspection from the hydrologic modeling community. Reflecting and acting on the social aspects of modeling doi.org/10.5194/hess...
HESS Opinions: Reflecting and acting on the social aspects of modeling
Abstract. Hydrological models are generally acknowledged as subjective and uncertain, yet they are often still perceived as neutral, meaning they are seen as not taking sides. This notion of neutralit...
doi.org
November 11, 2025 at 2:43 PM
Always appreciate introspection from the hydrologic modeling community. Reflecting and acting on the social aspects of modeling doi.org/10.5194/hess...
Reposted by Eric Booth
The NWS Chicago area forecast discussion is WILD
November 9, 2025 at 4:36 PM
The NWS Chicago area forecast discussion is WILD
Super excited to hear this!!
We're hiring in history of science at UW Madison! TT Assistant Professorship with a focus on water. Joint appointment between the History and Integrated Liberal Studies depts, and part of a university-wide hiring cluster on earth/sustainability science. jobs.wisc.edu/jobs/profess... #STS #HSMT
Professor of History - Madison, Wisconsin, United States
Current Employees: If you are currently employed at any of the Universities of Wisconsin, log in to Workday to apply through the internal application process.Job Category:FacultyEmployment Type:Regula...
jobs.wisc.edu
November 8, 2025 at 1:34 PM
Super excited to hear this!!
Reposted by Eric Booth
Insurers plan for 1-in-200-year storms. Why don’t governments?
If a Melissa-level hurricane hit the Northeast, would we be ready? New column looks at climate whiplash, risk, and what real preparedness means.
open.substack.com/pub/susanpcr...
If a Melissa-level hurricane hit the Northeast, would we be ready? New column looks at climate whiplash, risk, and what real preparedness means.
open.substack.com/pub/susanpcr...
Insurers plan for extreme events that could crater their solvency. Shouldn’t all levels of government do the same?
What if a storm like Melissa hit the northeast US?
open.substack.com
November 7, 2025 at 1:29 PM
Insurers plan for 1-in-200-year storms. Why don’t governments?
If a Melissa-level hurricane hit the Northeast, would we be ready? New column looks at climate whiplash, risk, and what real preparedness means.
open.substack.com/pub/susanpcr...
If a Melissa-level hurricane hit the Northeast, would we be ready? New column looks at climate whiplash, risk, and what real preparedness means.
open.substack.com/pub/susanpcr...
Reposted by Eric Booth
You VERY rarely ever see a satellite presentation like this anywhere in the world. And you certainly don't expect to see it this close to a mountainous island.
As of 5am EDT on Tuesday, #Melissa is the 8th strongest Atlantic hurricane on record by central pressure (901 mb).
As of 5am EDT on Tuesday, #Melissa is the 8th strongest Atlantic hurricane on record by central pressure (901 mb).
October 28, 2025 at 11:36 AM
You VERY rarely ever see a satellite presentation like this anywhere in the world. And you certainly don't expect to see it this close to a mountainous island.
As of 5am EDT on Tuesday, #Melissa is the 8th strongest Atlantic hurricane on record by central pressure (901 mb).
As of 5am EDT on Tuesday, #Melissa is the 8th strongest Atlantic hurricane on record by central pressure (901 mb).
Beautiful autumn morning light today at Parfrey's Glen near Merrimac #wisconsin
October 27, 2025 at 12:35 AM
Beautiful autumn morning light today at Parfrey's Glen near Merrimac #wisconsin
Reposted by Eric Booth
I’ve got a short piece up in The Conversation on the catastrophic flooding in Southwest Alaska from ex-typhoon Halong and the challenges of recovery work. #akwx #ExtremeWeather #Alaska #AlaskaSky
theconversation.com/typhoon-leav...
theconversation.com/typhoon-leav...
Typhoon leaves flooded Alaska villages facing a storm recovery far tougher than most Americans will ever experience
‘As the storm approached Alaska, everything went sideways,’ leaving people no time to evacuate and little time to prepare. An Alaska meteorologist explains what happened and the challenges ahead.
theconversation.com
October 14, 2025 at 4:55 PM
I’ve got a short piece up in The Conversation on the catastrophic flooding in Southwest Alaska from ex-typhoon Halong and the challenges of recovery work. #akwx #ExtremeWeather #Alaska #AlaskaSky
theconversation.com/typhoon-leav...
theconversation.com/typhoon-leav...
Reposted by Eric Booth
OpenAI's VP for education recently said the company wanted to become "core infrastructure" for schools and universities. Any infrastructure, though, always depends on habituating users to its technical affordances - so I've been trying to track how it's doing that 🧵 www.nytimes.com/2025/06/07/t...
Welcome to Campus. Here’s Your ChatGPT.
www.nytimes.com
September 26, 2025 at 9:51 PM
OpenAI's VP for education recently said the company wanted to become "core infrastructure" for schools and universities. Any infrastructure, though, always depends on habituating users to its technical affordances - so I've been trying to track how it's doing that 🧵 www.nytimes.com/2025/06/07/t...
Reposted by Eric Booth
My latest column for the Chronicle of Higher Ed is now live. It's an argument for including AI-critical voices in campus conversations and policymaking workgroups, and I'm proud to get this dissenting piece into the mainstream genAI/higher ed discourse. Please read and share if you're so inclined 🙂
Advice | Sometimes We Resist AI for Good Reasons
Why higher ed needs to listen to the contrarians in setting policies on using tools like ChatGPT in faculty work.
www.chronicle.com
September 24, 2025 at 5:47 PM
My latest column for the Chronicle of Higher Ed is now live. It's an argument for including AI-critical voices in campus conversations and policymaking workgroups, and I'm proud to get this dissenting piece into the mainstream genAI/higher ed discourse. Please read and share if you're so inclined 🙂
Reposted by Eric Booth
Just like NOAA provides weather info for communities, NOAA should provide free, credible, & actionable information about a range climate impacts. For some climate hazards, they do. But not yet for future rainfall. Our new paper provides a workaround until they do. iopscience.iop.org/article/10.1...
September 20, 2025 at 6:15 PM
Just like NOAA provides weather info for communities, NOAA should provide free, credible, & actionable information about a range climate impacts. For some climate hazards, they do. But not yet for future rainfall. Our new paper provides a workaround until they do. iopscience.iop.org/article/10.1...
I'm very excited and honored to lead this year's Water Resources Management practicum @uwmadison.bsky.social on the 60th anniversary of this excellent MS program nelson.wisc.edu/the-commons/...
Celebrating 60 Years of Watershed Stewardship | The Commons Magazine
For 60 years, the water resources management practicum has trained generations of water leaders — and transformed communities, ecosystems, and policy along the way.
nelson.wisc.edu
September 16, 2025 at 2:42 PM
I'm very excited and honored to lead this year's Water Resources Management practicum @uwmadison.bsky.social on the 60th anniversary of this excellent MS program nelson.wisc.edu/the-commons/...
Reposted by Eric Booth
Finally! 🤩 Our position piece: Against the Uncritical Adoption of 'AI' Technologies in Academia:
doi.org/10.5281/zeno...
We unpick the tech industry’s marketing, hype, & harm; and we argue for safeguarding higher education, critical
thinking, expertise, academic freedom, & scientific integrity.
1/n
doi.org/10.5281/zeno...
We unpick the tech industry’s marketing, hype, & harm; and we argue for safeguarding higher education, critical
thinking, expertise, academic freedom, & scientific integrity.
1/n
September 6, 2025 at 8:13 AM
Finally! 🤩 Our position piece: Against the Uncritical Adoption of 'AI' Technologies in Academia:
doi.org/10.5281/zeno...
We unpick the tech industry’s marketing, hype, & harm; and we argue for safeguarding higher education, critical
thinking, expertise, academic freedom, & scientific integrity.
1/n
doi.org/10.5281/zeno...
We unpick the tech industry’s marketing, hype, & harm; and we argue for safeguarding higher education, critical
thinking, expertise, academic freedom, & scientific integrity.
1/n
Reposted by Eric Booth
This piece from @vauhinivara.bsky.social is an object example of what journalists should be doing with these questions unlike the Hard Fork infomercialists. (Might need to sign in to read.) www.bloomberg.com/news/feature...
How Chatbots and AI Are Already Transforming Kids' Classrooms
Educators across the country are bringing chatbots into their lesson plans. Will it help kids learn or is it just another doomed ed-tech fad?
www.bloomberg.com
September 5, 2025 at 7:54 PM
This piece from @vauhinivara.bsky.social is an object example of what journalists should be doing with these questions unlike the Hard Fork infomercialists. (Might need to sign in to read.) www.bloomberg.com/news/feature...
Wonderful article about my friend and colleague @creekthinker.bsky.social , her research, and her amazing students! news.wisc.edu/uw-madison-s...
After the flood
UW students apply classroom learning to support a Wisconsin community in healing.
news.wisc.edu
August 28, 2025 at 3:47 AM
Wonderful article about my friend and colleague @creekthinker.bsky.social , her research, and her amazing students! news.wisc.edu/uw-madison-s...
Reposted by Eric Booth
Good news: bipartisan legislation to reauthorize Sea Grant programs around the country (including the Great Lake states), due to the high value generated compared to the cost
ecomagazine.com/news/policy/...
ecomagazine.com/news/policy/...
US Legislation to Reauthorize the National Sea Grant College Program - environment coastal & offshore
Legislation was introduced to reauthorize the National Sea Grant College Program, a partnership between the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) and 34 university-based programs in e...
ecomagazine.com
August 21, 2025 at 11:35 PM
Good news: bipartisan legislation to reauthorize Sea Grant programs around the country (including the Great Lake states), due to the high value generated compared to the cost
ecomagazine.com/news/policy/...
ecomagazine.com/news/policy/...
Reposted by Eric Booth
Annual flood series for the Milwaukee River at Milwaukee, just downstream of I-43 bridge, 1915-2023. Top of the scale is 20,000 cfs, flood of record was 18,200 cfs. At 2:30 AM this morning it was at 19700 cfs, at 9AM, 19300 cfs, off-scale (too high for the gage?) in between.
August 10, 2025 at 6:24 PM
Annual flood series for the Milwaukee River at Milwaukee, just downstream of I-43 bridge, 1915-2023. Top of the scale is 20,000 cfs, flood of record was 18,200 cfs. At 2:30 AM this morning it was at 19700 cfs, at 9AM, 19300 cfs, off-scale (too high for the gage?) in between.
Reposted by Eric Booth
Here’s the USGS chart.
August 10, 2025 at 4:05 PM
Here’s the USGS chart.
Reposted by Eric Booth
The official state 24-hour rainfall record is 11.72” from Mellon in 1946.
It will have to be decided if the MPS - Madison High School gauge/rain total gets investigated for a possible new record.
It will have to be decided if the MPS - Madison High School gauge/rain total gets investigated for a possible new record.
August 10, 2025 at 1:15 PM
The official state 24-hour rainfall record is 11.72” from Mellon in 1946.
It will have to be decided if the MPS - Madison High School gauge/rain total gets investigated for a possible new record.
It will have to be decided if the MPS - Madison High School gauge/rain total gets investigated for a possible new record.
Reposted by Eric Booth
Saturday and Sunday August 9-10 are Critical Weather Days for Wisconet because of the Moderate Risk (Level 3/4) of Excessive Rainfall.
Stay weather aware this weekend and don't attempt to drive through flooded roadways.
57% of flood fatalities occur on moderate/high risk days.
Stay weather aware this weekend and don't attempt to drive through flooded roadways.
57% of flood fatalities occur on moderate/high risk days.
August 8, 2025 at 8:34 PM
Saturday and Sunday August 9-10 are Critical Weather Days for Wisconet because of the Moderate Risk (Level 3/4) of Excessive Rainfall.
Stay weather aware this weekend and don't attempt to drive through flooded roadways.
57% of flood fatalities occur on moderate/high risk days.
Stay weather aware this weekend and don't attempt to drive through flooded roadways.
57% of flood fatalities occur on moderate/high risk days.
Reposted by Eric Booth
Counterpoint: no we don't.
August 4, 2025 at 5:39 PM
Counterpoint: no we don't.
Reposted by Eric Booth
Nothing like a Friday afternoon to drop a big graphics projects! If you're still online, check out our new @propublica.org story "The Drying Planet" -- you'll learn that groundwater depletion has become a bigger & bigger part of sea level rise (among other things!)
www.propublica.org/article/wate...
www.propublica.org/article/wate...
“Staggering” Water Loss Driven by Groundwater Mining Poses Global Threat
A new study finds that freshwater resources are rapidly disappearing, creating arid “mega” regions and causing sea levels to rise.
www.propublica.org
July 25, 2025 at 6:10 PM
Nothing like a Friday afternoon to drop a big graphics projects! If you're still online, check out our new @propublica.org story "The Drying Planet" -- you'll learn that groundwater depletion has become a bigger & bigger part of sea level rise (among other things!)
www.propublica.org/article/wate...
www.propublica.org/article/wate...
Reposted by Eric Booth
Today, the AAUP released a new report, "Artificial Intelligence & Academic Professions." The report calls for policies that prioritize economic security, faculty working & student learning conditions as AI tech accelerates.
www.aaup.org/news/new-rep...
🧵1/9
www.aaup.org/news/new-rep...
🧵1/9
New Report Calls for Faculty Control in AI Decisions
Today, the AAUP released a new report, Artificial Intelligence and the Academic Professions, sharing survey findings and calling for the establishment of policies in colleges and universities that pri...
www.aaup.org
July 22, 2025 at 4:19 PM
Today, the AAUP released a new report, "Artificial Intelligence & Academic Professions." The report calls for policies that prioritize economic security, faculty working & student learning conditions as AI tech accelerates.
www.aaup.org/news/new-rep...
🧵1/9
www.aaup.org/news/new-rep...
🧵1/9
Reposted by Eric Booth
Back on track: Scientists restart work on next-gen rainfall project to defend against worsening flooding #DefendDemocracy #TeamTrident floridatrident.org/back-on-trac...
Back on track: Scientists restart work on next-gen rainfall project to defend against worsening flooding
A suspended federal project that promised to be a game-changer in protecting the public from worsening flooding is back in business today, with a team of
floridatrident.org
July 22, 2025 at 11:50 PM
Back on track: Scientists restart work on next-gen rainfall project to defend against worsening flooding #DefendDemocracy #TeamTrident floridatrident.org/back-on-trac...
Reposted by Eric Booth
The discourse surrounding precipitation changes in a warming climate (both public discussion and even scientific one at times) is complicated by widespread conflation of changes in averages vs extremes (and also actual vs *potential* evaporation/evaporative demand). [Thread]
July 16, 2025 at 7:35 PM
The discourse surrounding precipitation changes in a warming climate (both public discussion and even scientific one at times) is complicated by widespread conflation of changes in averages vs extremes (and also actual vs *potential* evaporation/evaporative demand). [Thread]
Reposted by Eric Booth
Really proud of this piece pushing back against renewed enthusiasm for “land sparing” (i.e. industrial ag boosterism), written with some brilliant colleagues. Check it out!
This week we have members of the Agroecology Research-Action Collective ( @adamcalo.bsky.social , Maywa Montenegro de Wit , @beniuliano.bsky.social , @alastairiles.bsky.social ) taking on the productivist roots of the "feed-the-world" approach to food security.
spectrejournal.com/the-enduring...
spectrejournal.com/the-enduring...
The Enduring Fantasy of “Feeding the World” – Spectre Journal
Members of the Agroecology Research-Action Collective argue against the productivist logic underlying the "feed-the-world" approaches to feed security.
spectrejournal.com
July 15, 2025 at 4:30 PM
Really proud of this piece pushing back against renewed enthusiasm for “land sparing” (i.e. industrial ag boosterism), written with some brilliant colleagues. Check it out!