You might recall The Reeler whirring into frothy, batshit madness over last month's reports of the U.S. government funding screenwriting scientists in Los Angeles. It was horrible--just horrible.

But now, like a finger-snap awaking me from a succession of "Intelligent Design, starring Mel Gibson" nightmares, the Museum of the Moving Image has launched its new Science Cinematheque site for all to see. The design seems a little flat at first, but a few clicks reveal an elegent wealth of science-related shorts and articles focusing on the application and perception of science in cinema. In one piece, museum curator David Schwartz evaluates filmmaker Bill Condon's use of the scientific method in Kinsey, while Elaine Charnov briefly looks at some problems presented by Werner Herzog's Grizzly Man.

Oh, and yes--there are films! Short student films, to be exact, from David Barba's eerie UV-skin-allergy piece XP to Andy Watts' gardening-in-the-city short Concrete. There are four others as well, plus collected video from the museum's past panel discussions on science-related films and issues.

Three cheers for the Sloan Foundation, which funded the Science Cinematheque project and continues to back film schools and festivals around the country. We are grateful for anything that will save us from the next celebrity outburst against scientific inquiry.