Astrophysicist Neil deGrasse Tyson makes a pointed observation here, but I wonder how true it is.
I grant that some of us need to be scientifically literate. Without that, our civilization could not keep up with things like vaccines against pandemics, while creating all other medical breakthroughs. we wouldn’t have effective anti-ballistic missiles, climate change mitigation solutions, a deeper understanding of the cosmos around us, and the entire ensemble of IT and communications technologies that make our lives ever more productive.
Keep in mind, however that anything of importance that’s happening in science in the 21st Century is happening at the outermost fringes of incredible levels of specificity. What I learned about physics in college 50 years ago no more qualifies me to understand theoretical physics today than it enables me to fly to the moon in my Prius.
Another thing I would grant is that the 99.999% of us who are not “scientifically literate” in any meaningful way should respect the value of science, and reject QAnon-style beliefs, e.g., the flat Earth, the notion that COVID is a government plot, that global warming is a hoax, that Bill Gates is trying to enslave the population, etc.
I’m sure some of these excuses are extremely common in the minds of those making huge profits by destroying our planet.
As shown at left, it’s possible to use helium ballons to lift a wind turbine high into the troposphere, where wind currents are stronger and more stable than they are near the Earth’s surface. Experiments with such devices have been being conducted since long before 2GreenEnergy came on the scene in 2009.
There are intrinsic limitations to this approach, however. Long tethers can run afoul of aviation, and they face extreme stress and operational complexity. Translation: huge costs, which is why we don’t see these in commercial use.
Did China test one of these? Probably. About 20 years ago.
I’m sure there are tens of millions of idiots who believe what U.S. House Speaker Mark Johnson said at left. Yet the majority of Americans understand that:
ICE is a lawless institution.
Trump consistently violates the Constitution by usurping the power that should reside in congress.
Our illegal war in Iran is endangering the entire planet, as is our war on clean energy.
Violent crime has been falling steadily since the early 1990s; Republicans taking credit for it is a lie.
Causing (some) voters to believe the lie that our elections are rigged endangers our democracy. So is voter suppression.
Committing war crimes like the bombing of small boats off the coast of Venezuela helps to create a lawless world.
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