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26 Oct 09

Climate change and warfare: Cool heads or heated conflicts? | The Economist

www.economist.com/...displaystory.cfm - Preview

agriculture climatechange US politics conflict war warfare production history trade technology industrial revolution

The chart shows the correlation between the number of conflicts and the average temperature during most of the second half of the millennium, the period for which the data are best. Until the mid-18th century, this correlation is continuously and significantly negative (the line remains close to the 95% confidence level, suggesting there is only one chance in 20 that it is an accidental, random effect). In other words, lower temperatures mean more wars. Then, suddenly, the negative correlation vanishes. The line goes into positive territory, but not enough to be statistically meaningful. The inverted correlation between temperature and conflict has therefore disappeared.
3 more annotations...
- They argue that the reason the relationship between warfare and cold vanishes in the mid-18th century is that this is the moment when the industrial revolution began
- These developments meant farmers could often produce reasonable yields during colder weather—and even when they could not, long-distance trade provided a buffer against crop failure. Meanwhile, the growth of cities and non-agricultural occupations meant there was money to buy such traded crops.
- The lesson, rather, is that the way to minimise the likelihood of climate-induced conflict in the future is to continue the process of crop improvement (for example, by taking advantage of the potential of genetic engineering) so that heat- and drought-tolerant varieties are available; to make farmers aware of these new crops and encourage their use; and to promote free trade and non-agricultural economic development. That way people will have no cause to fight, and tyrants no excuse to stir them up.

04 Jun 09

Yes, We'll Still Make Stuff - The Future of Work - TIME

www.time.com/...898024_1898023_1898085,00.html - Preview

economy manufacturing US statistics reference production

16 May 09

French Sleep Most, Koreans Sleep Least | The Marmot's Hole

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production productivity korea US japan france sleep food nutrition eating diet time statistics reference health work

18 Feb 09

Fruits and vegetables getting less healthy

www.kottke.org/...egetables-getting-less-healthy - Preview

vegetables agriculture fruits mass production production produce food health

19 Nov 08

The global economy and Detroit - How the World Works - Salon.com

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economy economics recession autoindustry detroit bailout US production jobs

The paramount question is what effect would, say, a G.M. bankruptcy have on the overall U.S. economy right now, as we head directly toward ever more perilous waters? As James Surowiecki writes in his Balance Sheet blog, even if "coming to G.M.'s rescue would only delay the inevitable until next summer... it might still make sense to put the twenty-five billion dollars into the company as a way of averting yet another massive trauma to the economy at a time when businesses and consumers are feeling incredibly fragile."
In the New York Times Economix blog this morning, Catherine Rampell explores the question of how many jobs would be lost in the event of a major "contraction" of the U.S. industry. She cites a study released by the Center for Automotive Research on Election Day.

The study... estimates "the economic impact -- in terms of jobs, compensation and tax revenues -- of a major contraction involving one or more of the Detroit Three automakers," under two separate scenarios. In both cases, there would be major short-term shocks to employment; depending on which scenario you use, a contraction of the Detroit Three would result in direct and indirect job losses of 2.5 million to 3 million in 2009.

That's a lot of jobs, right smack in the middle of the worst recession in modern times. I am one who has long believed that U.S. automakers deserved their comeuppance. But now is not the time to extract a Ford Expedition or Chevy Tahoe-size pound of flesh.