The team is now looking to get the car registered as road-legal. Hear the interview.
Friday, October 30, 2015
Photon finish!
The University of NSW Solar Racing Team Sunswift came fourth in the cruiser class in the World Solar Challenge.
The team is now looking to get the car registered as road-legal. Hear the interview.
The team is now looking to get the car registered as road-legal. Hear the interview.
Wednesday, October 28, 2015
Our brains are holding us back
One of the things that fascinates me about our reaction to climate change is just how many things outweigh facts and rational decision making. I've recently read a couple of articles about our psychology in this area.
One is about gender socialisation. What that means is from childhood boys are taught that masculinity means "detachment, control and mastery" while girls are taught "attachment, empathy, and care". Researchers think this is partially why more women accept the reality of climate change. Essentially they are trained to care more about the dire consequences.
The other article was about temporal discounting, which means our struggle to give up a small thing now for more later. In experiments people choose $100 now instead of $120 in a month's time. Financially it makes no sense. The extra $20 represents an interest rate of 240% and is definitely worth the wait. But our brains "discount" (or devalue) the future when we make decisions.
In experiments it might cost us 20 bucks, but in climate change it could cost us a whole lot more.
One is about gender socialisation. What that means is from childhood boys are taught that masculinity means "detachment, control and mastery" while girls are taught "attachment, empathy, and care". Researchers think this is partially why more women accept the reality of climate change. Essentially they are trained to care more about the dire consequences.
The other article was about temporal discounting, which means our struggle to give up a small thing now for more later. In experiments people choose $100 now instead of $120 in a month's time. Financially it makes no sense. The extra $20 represents an interest rate of 240% and is definitely worth the wait. But our brains "discount" (or devalue) the future when we make decisions.
In experiments it might cost us 20 bucks, but in climate change it could cost us a whole lot more.
Monday, October 05, 2015
Dodgy facebook news
Have you noticed those little "trending" news stories on the side of your facebook feed? I got this one tonight.
It might be only for Australian readers, but it represents everything that's wrong about climate science reporting.
It seems to suggest that we should reconsider the findings of an international team of experts in the area of climatology - because some bloke in Perth (with no relevant qualifications) has a different opinion.
This is on par with saying that the whole cigarettes-cancer connection has been exaggerated .... according to an Architect in Adelaide.
Related video: Which is bigger? 15 or 5?
It might be only for Australian readers, but it represents everything that's wrong about climate science reporting.
It seems to suggest that we should reconsider the findings of an international team of experts in the area of climatology - because some bloke in Perth (with no relevant qualifications) has a different opinion.
This is on par with saying that the whole cigarettes-cancer connection has been exaggerated .... according to an Architect in Adelaide.
Related video: Which is bigger? 15 or 5?
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