Air pollution linked to “huge” reduction in intelligence • Hacker News Board

Re: Air pollution linked to “huge” reduction in intelligence

#11

Post by Symmetry » Mon, Oct 15, 2018, 3:00 PM UTC

Reason077 wrote: post #3

Electrification of surface transport is the most obvious way to improve air quality in dense cities. This needs to be a priority.

If the new power is generated in coal plants that might actually be a net minus, at least in particulates and SO2 terms.

EDIT: I'm referencing this:

A series of studies by Tsinghua University, whose alumni includes the incumbent president, showed electric vehicles charged in China produce two to five times as much particulate matter and chemicals that contribute to smog versus gas-engine cars. Hybrid vehicles fare little better.

https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/in-coal-powered-c...

Re: Air pollution linked to “huge” reduction in intelligence

#12

Post by swebs » Mon, Oct 15, 2018, 3:02 PM UTC

Symmetry wrote: post #11

Reason077 wrote: post #3

Electrification of surface transport is the most obvious way to improve air quality in dense cities. This needs to be a priority.

If the new power is generated in coal plants that might actually be a net minus, at least in particulates and SO2 terms. EDIT: I'm referencing this: A series of studies by Tsinghua University, whose alumni includes the incumbent president, showed electric vehicles charged in China produce two to five times as much particulate matter and chemicals that contribute to smog versus gas-engine cars. Hybrid vehicles fare li…

How so? A car's ICE is much less efficient than a power plant.

Re: Air pollution linked to “huge” reduction in intelligence

#13

Post by jeffdavis » Mon, Oct 15, 2018, 3:02 PM UTC

What's with the use of the word "linked"? Is thay synonymous with "correlated"?

I feel like it's just another way to suggest causation without knowing that it is causation.

Re: Air pollution linked to “huge” reduction in intelligence

#14

Post by peacetreefrog » Mon, Oct 15, 2018, 3:02 PM UTC

peacetreefrog wrote: post #7

I'd be interested in how reading more about how they're controlling for non-air pollution factors, particularly since they say the effects are most pronounced among the non educated.

For example: assume in China that people in cities generally have more opportunities to get educated.

That'd mean if you live in a city and have not had much education, it might be because you are less intelligent (on average). While if you're in a rural area, a lack of education might not mean anything, because you have less opportunity to get educated in general, regardless of intelligence.

If you did a simple regression in this case with years of education and air pollution (more common in cities) in the model, I think you'd find that -- controlling for education -- air pollution would be correlated with a reduction of intelligence, even if the air pollution itself wasn't causal.

There are ways of controlling for this, and I'm not at all saying the study didn't take this into account, but it'd be useful to know more. There are a lot of ways (as in any model) the relationship could be correlated without being causal.

Re: Air pollution linked to “huge” reduction in intelligence

#15

Post by dest » Mon, Oct 15, 2018, 3:03 PM UTC

I think it is misleading to display a picture of chimneys of nuclear power plants, when the only thing they release is clean water droplets: no SO2, NO2 or PM10.

edit: Actually, not 100% sure it's a nuclear power plant. Thanks for your comments

Re: Air pollution linked to “huge” reduction in intelligence

#16

Post by sneak » Mon, Oct 15, 2018, 3:04 PM UTC

Reminder: part of Google’s new Project Dragonfly is a feature that allows Beijing to lie about air pollution figures in real-time.

https://theintercept.com/2018/09/14/google-china-prototype-l...

Re: Air pollution linked to “huge” reduction in intelligence

#17

Post by DalasNoin » Mon, Oct 15, 2018, 3:04 PM UTC

Symmetry wrote: post #11

Reason077 wrote: post #3

Electrification of surface transport is the most obvious way to improve air quality in dense cities. This needs to be a priority.

If the new power is generated in coal plants that might actually be a net minus, at least in particulates and SO2 terms. EDIT: I'm referencing this: A series of studies by Tsinghua University, whose alumni includes the incumbent president, showed electric vehicles charged in China produce two to five times as much particulate matter and chemicals that contribute to smog versus gas-engine cars. Hybrid vehicles fare li…

Power plants can be in low population density areas.

Re: Air pollution linked to “huge” reduction in intelligence

#18

Post by gameswithgo » Mon, Oct 15, 2018, 3:04 PM UTC

Symmetry wrote: post #11

Reason077 wrote: post #3

Electrification of surface transport is the most obvious way to improve air quality in dense cities. This needs to be a priority.

If the new power is generated in coal plants that might actually be a net minus, at least in particulates and SO2 terms. EDIT: I'm referencing this: A series of studies by Tsinghua University, whose alumni includes the incumbent president, showed electric vehicles charged in China produce two to five times as much particulate matter and chemicals that contribute to smog versus gas-engine cars. Hybrid vehicles fare li…