Thanks for shining light on solar's clear advantage (1)
Thank goodness Michael Le Page highlights the rarely stated gap in energy yield between crops grown to produce biofuels and solar photovoltaic panels, of 50 to 110 fold. Those figures need proclaiming in headlines(5 November, p 27).
What possesses Western governments to press on with subsidies for biofuel crops so large that farmers literally can’t afford to ignore them is beyond comprehension. Such a huge difference in yield makes biofuels (as opposed to energy from bio waste) technically, morally and economically indefensible.
Thanks for shining light on solar's clear advantage (2)
With reference to your article supporting the principle of solar panels on agricultural land, why don’t we cover part of the roofs of large car parks with solar panels, as I saw in Italy a few years ago? As well as generating electricity, this has the added advantage of shielding vehicles – and the people walking to and from them – from hot sunshine and precipitation.
Every little helps when it comes to energy saving
The UK government’s resistance to publicising energy saving advice is bizarre. While only a small portion of the populace would take notice of the likes of “opt for a jumper rather than an overheated house” or “try to make one journey fewer this week” or even the ancient “is your journey really necessary”, it would still save energy(22 October, p 12).
It would also show solidarity with Ukraine. If we could export any surplus energy, it might even help relations with Europe and our balance of payments.
Red-lit roundabout is a modern marvel
Sam Edge’s letter regarding street lights that use red LEDs rather than white ones was fortuitously read by me on the morning after I experienced my first red LED-lit roundabout. This was at the new island junction just east of Upton-upon-Severn in Worcestershire. I could hardly believe it as I approached: an island junction entirely bathed in red light. It was a pleasant experience and it looked very safe, too(Letters, 5 November).
Just peeling back layers of the cosmic onion
The introduction to your interview with Laura Mersini-Houghton began by asking: “How did our universe begin?”
But, of course, her theory doesn’t tell us how it began(5 November, p 43). She says that “in the very first moment, before the universe emerged in space-time, you can think of the universe as a wave function in an abstract space of energies”. But how did that come into existence?
For a dose of healthy gut bugs, try some kimchi
Your article about probiotic appetite suppressants makes no mention of the fact that the bacterium involved, Hafnia alvei, is part of a normal, healthy gut biome and is present in a wide variety of fermented foods, such as cheese, yogurt and kimchi (5 November, p 20). It is also found on fresh vegetables. Rather than prescribing expensive pills containing the bacterium, would it not be better to recommend a healthy diet?
US experience suggests sports helmets are no cure (1)
The call to consider US-style headgear to ease head injuries in rugby isn’t supported by evidence from other sports. All but one of 111 deceased former professional American football players who donated their brains for research had evidence of degenerative brain disease resulting from repetitive brain trauma (Letters, 29 October).
US experience suggests sports helmets are no cure (2)
Although a seemingly sensible suggestion, helmets don’t reduce the damaging intracranial motion of the brain on impact or resulting long-term cognitive effects, as the current health crisis in American football demonstrates. This is probably due to the perceived safety of the helmet leading to an increase in impact intensity and head-on-head collisions.
Confining poultry just creates another risk
It struck me that the increasing prevalence of dangerous strains of bird flu in the wild in the UK, which has now led to commercial flocks being required to be kept indoors, is leading to exactly the conditions required for even worse strains to develop in those more cramped and worse ventilated quarters (22 October, p 7). Isn’t this how we got into this position in the first place, when bird flu mutated to a more deadly form in captive birds in China?
Did the long sleep help rural France?
In the not-so-distant past, a form of human hibernation might have been more common than thought. Graham Robb, in his book The Discovery of France, describes it as a physical and economic necessity in remote parts of rural France. He writes that lowering the metabolic rate would have prevented hunger that might result from exhausting supplies. He quotes an observer from as late as 1908 saying that, in winter, the peasants “pass their lives asleep, corked up like snails” (15 October, p 46).
Why UK will fail to really shrink its carbon footprint
Sadly, I don’t share Michael Le Page’s optimism that the UK will eventually manage to curb carbon emissions sufficiently. Its target is based on domestic production, when it is domestic consumption that is driving big emissions both there and beyond its borders (29 October, p 38).
A solution to the AI art copyright conundrum
You raise questions over copyright of AI-generated works. AI is essentially an algorithm stored on a microchip. Microsoft’s Word is similarly an algorithm. If I create an original document using Word, I own the copyright to that combination of words in the document. Similarly, if I use an AI algorithm to produce a document or artwork, I own the copyright to the work produced(8 October, p 17).