Many suspect that a lot of kids diagnosed with "ADHD" are just normal kids ill-suited to a classroom environment. New evidence: kids born in August (younger than their peers if there's a Sept cutoff) are more likely to be diagnosed with ADHD. news.harvard.edu/gazette/story/… via Harvard University

Some grim news: global CO2 emissions from fossil fuels and industry will rise around 3% in 2018, the fastest in 7 years, dashing any hope of a peak. I break down the details of the Global Carbon Project data over at Carbon Brief: carbonbrief.org/analysis-fossi…. A few key takeaways: 1/5

On the day parliament was supposed to vote on her deal to leave the EU, here Theresa May gives her reasons for remaining in the European Union shortly before the 2016 referendum.

'Apprehending the Transcendent' A conversation between Sir Scrutopia - The Roger Scruton Summer School and Dr Jordan B Peterson moderated by Stephen Blackwood Now available on YouTube youtu.be/kne-YULXUzU

Are you frustrated with the stale ideologies and mutual demonization of the Left and Right? Here's a manifesto for Radical Centrism, Liberal-tarianism, Bold Moderation, an Open Society, smart regulation, and a liberal democratic capitalist welfare state. mailchi.mp/1217b3655170/n…

The fallacy: that meritocracy is a consciously chosen system. Reality: It's what you get when you move away from cronyism, nepotism, racism, sexism, old-boy networks, & other biases. nyti.ms/2GwhbaZ

We finally got round to doing a detailed review of the important "Book of Why" by Judea Pearl and Dana Mackenzie: probabilityandlaw.blogspot.com/2018/12/book-r…

If you grow up in a leafy suburb, attend private schools from elementary school onwards, go straight into uni & an internship in a white-collar industry you can possibly be forgiven for not understanding the true range of abilities in the cognitive domain x.com/sentientist/st…

"Self-education is, I firmly believe, the only kind of education there is."--Isaac Asimov, born OTD 1920.

Do the math: To stave off climate change, wind and solar power can’t provide enough energy to radically reduce carbon emissions—but nuclear power can. wsj.com/articles/only-… via The Wall Street Journal

My presentation at the Oxford Climate Society Oxford Climate Society is now available on YouTube m.youtube.com/watch?v=7BZFvc… (the sound improves after ~30secs.) Abstract attached. Thanks to Felix Heilmann for organising. CEMUS Tyndall Centre for Climate Change Research Policy@Manchester Diana Urge-Vorsatz George Monbiot

‘We have a system that is fundamentally broken.’ — Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez is explaining just how f*cked campaign finance laws really are

Ever since I first taught psycholinguistics in 1980, I've been collecting lexically or syntactically ambiguous headlines. Today's NYP is one of the best: deliberate, but clever in working both ways.

“‘Are you feeling alright?” I asked her. ‘I feel all sleepy,’ she said. In an hour, she was unconscious. In 12 hours, she was dead.” - Roald Dahl on the death of his daughter, Olivia, aged 7, from measles. The anti-vaxx movement is deadly.

I feel optimistic about the future because humanity seems to be growing more mature; scientists are paying more attention to our inner values, to the study of mind and the emotions. There is a clear desire for peace and concern for the environment.

This eagle has seen some things.

First analysis from Geert Jan van Oldenborgh for Australian heat record on December 18. Lower bound estimate is that observed warming since 1900 made event 20 times more probable (best estimate is infinite, i.e. event would not have occurred without observed warming).