Mims has done amazing things, marred by right-wing, anti-science beliefs. I recall some little bits written by him in a Jameco Electronics catalog in which he belittled government scientists. I was annoyed at this blanket condemnation of folks who decided to go into civil service instead of academia, given that I was one such myself. I complained by email to the company. Mims and I exchanged a few emails, in which he railed about atmospheric scientists in government employ who subscribed to anthropogenic global warming. IIRC he claimed they were using temperature readings measured by faulty thermometers. I guess he believed the whole of climate science (and thermodynamics for that matter) is dependent on a few measurements. He also wrote that the greenhouse effect is much more dependent on water vapor than CO2 in the atmosphere. A common climate change denial claim . . . but we don’t really have much control over water vapor.
It’s pretty clear this guy has a lot of talent as a technician and writer, but (combined with his denial of evolution) has a lack of critical thinking skills when facts conflict with his belief system. The actual working of science requires an ability to accept being wrong on occasion.
