Peat bogs capture much more carbon per acre than forests. Currently, peatlands store twice as much carbon as all the world’s forests . One problem is that they are being drained to free up the land. (also but I think less importantly peat and non-rotten sphagnum moss are harvested for gardening). Various sources (most or […]
This is actually related to my day job. For some decades I have been puzzled by two of Kahneman and Tversky’s discoveries (reported very well in this excellent book). First, there is the excessive reliance on diagnostic characteristics (called diagnostic expectations by economists). A classic example is the room with 90 lawyers and 10 engineers. […]
I had studied architecture in the Chicago high school I attended and found the idea of drafting homes and buildings with the other features to be interesting. Why(?) is another story. What interfered with my going further into the interest was “not ready for college,” a war-time US, and probably the lack of maturity then. […]
Brief discussion by an intelligent basketball legend on hot weather caused by pollution and the resulting deaths from it. “Heat aggravated by carbon pollution killed 50,000 in Europe last year – study,” The Guardian, as discussed by Kareem Abdul-Jabbar Summary: Hot weather inflamed by carbon pollution killed nearly 50,000 people in Europe last year, with the continent […]
GOP’s attack on Americans’ retirement savings just went to the next disgusting level, Opinion, Alternet. “To protect older Americans’ life savings, President Biden pledged in October to crack down on financial advisers who recommend investments just because they pay higher commissions. Then the insurance industry got to work.” Explained: The Controversy Over Tim Walz’s Military Service, […]
Workers across the US rally after string of heat-related deaths. Grist This story was originally published by Grist. Ayurella Horn-Muller For the last two years, Cecilia Ortiz has worked as a passenger service agent at Phoenix Sky Harbor International Airport. She typically has to walk 10 to 15 miles a day, up and down ramps, […]
It is a common trope that university faculty don’t understand or live in “the real world.” This always tickled me. The unemployment rate for college grads has always been lower than for those without a degree, I guess university faculty do know a thing or two about the real world, since they can train students […]
In my lifetime, I’ve seen plenty of changes. The business model for recorded music (LPs, 8-tracks, cassettes, CDs, streaming), the business model for movies (theaters, Blockbuster, online), the business model for cameras (film SLRs, digital SLRs, mirrorless), the model for lecture presentations (live with chalkboard, live with overhead projector, live with Powerpoint, online recorded) all […]
Appointed officials have the life-saving solutions the public needs to stay safe from rising temperatures. But they don’t have political power. Zoya Teirstein . . . Once a month, roughly a dozen people enter a Zoom room to talk about what to do about this. They log on from their desks in Los Angeles, Phoenix, Jacksonville, San […]
American colleges and universities are the envy of the world. The American higher education system is an important driver of the economy. There are those who sneer at the educated. They only expose their insecurity. In JD Vance, Donald Trump has chosen a running mate who has publicly stated that he sees colleges and universities […]