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Where have all the insects gone?

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Re: Where have all the insects gone?

#111

Post by john61 »

thisiscorrect wrote: post #49
jerry1979 wrote: post #36

Anecdotally, while driving along Minnesota's segment of I94 in the '90s, one would have to stop and scrape the bugs off the front window and grill. Today, this is no longer a problem.

Could that be explained by improved aerodynamics of cars now compared to then? Has that been studied?

I drive my old motorcycle with the same big windshield since the 90ies. Insects are dramatically less on it now than 20 years ago.

Re: Where have all the insects gone?

#112

Post by farias0 »

skulk wrote: post #76
farias0 wrote: post #50

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I mean, probably? If we had elected good officials at least. I'm not defending socialism at all, but if you accept the fact that this kind of thing happens because there's no monetary incentive for the industry to avoid it, then the logical conclusion is that under a system not motivated by profit this would be less likely to happen. But what I'm sure you are aware of this line of thinking. What is the argument again…

> What is the argument against it? I've discussed this with libertarians and the best argument I've heard is that the incentive to manage negative externalities comes from private ownership. If the factory down the road is polluting the river that runs by your house, you sue them.

Well, sure, this is trying to fix capitalism, which is something I'm all for. But one way or another, I think it's vital to have the shortcomings of a capitalist system understood. It's one thing to believe capitalism is the way to go, it's another to go defend that we should always act in self interest and this will only lead to good things.

Re: Where have all the insects gone?

#114

Post by zsmi »

rib3ye wrote: post #32

I feel like if this were true we would be seeing a major decline in the sales of pesticides, at least on consumer-level volume. Has anyone dug into those numbers?

Pesticide use is down 40% since 1992 but it's complicated by a number of factors. The biggest being the chemical formulas, concentrations and dosages have not stayed constant over time.

zhttps://www.the-scientist.com/news-opinion/us-pesticide-use-...

Re: Where have all the insects gone?

#116

Post by throwanem »

jonny_eh wrote: post #71

> He spent a sabbatical conducting field work on Trinidad and Tobago and in Suriname. What a great example for why we need the Oxford Comma.

Not applicable here, as "Trinidad and Tobago" is a single name in a list of two items. But a comma following "Tobago", while not a serial comma sensu stricto, would still aid comprehension.

Re: Where have all the insects gone?

#117

Post by toss1 »

LanceH wrote: post #75
papito wrote: post #65

Earlier quoted context omitted.

It's not like we were all driving in Chevrolet Bel Airs in the 90s and now switched to Lamborghinis.

It is an variable that very obviously needs to be controlled and is worth mentioning.

Yup, not only that, but the Lamborghini Countach has a Cd of 0.42, while every car on this list has a lower Cd, except for the original VW Beetle [1].

(Although, TBF, the Lambo's wing and aero package adds a lot of drag in exchange for much greater downforce)

[1] https://ecomodder.com/wiki/Vehicle_Coefficient_of_Drag_List

Re: Where have all the insects gone?

#120

Post by hinkley »

jerry1979 wrote: post #36

Anecdotally, while driving along Minnesota's segment of I94 in the '90s, one would have to stop and scrape the bugs off the front window and grill. Today, this is no longer a problem.

I recall my dad checking the washer fluid level before road trips because we ran dry on a previous trip and it was clear we wouldn’t make it home without hitting a gas station ASAP.
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