Cato’s Tom Bell is starting up the “Simon Market in Science Claims.” From what I can gather, it will orchestrate a market for “idea futures” in various environmental claims. (It’s named, of course, in honor of Julian Simon’s famous bet with Paul Ehrlich.)
I suppose the idea is a good one, but I think Bell is a bit optimistic when he says his group could provide an alternative for the media when it comes to doomsday predictions. After all, there are plenty of reputable scientists (and I think organizations?) who would be willing to go on record disputing environmentalist claims, but that doesn’t usually happen. (Thanks to Pete Johnson for bringing this to my attention.)
