Got a promo for 'Prospect' magazine, which is probably far too intellectually challenging for my wee brain, but I thought I'd put up these gleanings from their 'In Fact' column which, the leaflet says, is a 'constant source of surprising and often alarming footnotes to everyday life, from our reseachers and a variety of media'. A few samples of their facts are...
There are more British troops in Northern Ireland than in Iraq. (Well, I'm not sure that actually astounds me, because presumably with NI still being nominally within the compass of the British Isles, they're not doing house-to-house searches and engaging in daily exchanges of fire with religious fanatics. Are they?)
Australia emits 30% more greenhouse gases per capita than the United States. (Greenhouse gases are natural phenomena, so context is everything. Which gases, and how, and are they harmful or not?)
The percentage of Nigerians living on less than $1 a day has risen from 32% in 1985 to 71% today. (So does that mean that more Nigerians are earning at least some money, whereas previously they didn't even get a dollar a day?)
Israelis own 10% of the private land on the Moon. (Who's the estate agent for the Moon? Since when did any of it become privately owned?)
Europe's merchant ships emit around a third more carbon than aircraft do. (I know I'm nitpicking, but is that calculated over the mileage sailed versus the mileage flown? And how many merchant ships are there versus aircraft? And what about Liberian-registered tankers?) :suspect:
I somehow doubt I'll be subscribing to a magazine whose researchers plonk down so many bald statements which raise so many questions. I'm all for a bit of a mental workout, but this is ridiculous!
There are more British troops in Northern Ireland than in Iraq. (Well, I'm not sure that actually astounds me, because presumably with NI still being nominally within the compass of the British Isles, they're not doing house-to-house searches and engaging in daily exchanges of fire with religious fanatics. Are they?)
Australia emits 30% more greenhouse gases per capita than the United States. (Greenhouse gases are natural phenomena, so context is everything. Which gases, and how, and are they harmful or not?)
The percentage of Nigerians living on less than $1 a day has risen from 32% in 1985 to 71% today. (So does that mean that more Nigerians are earning at least some money, whereas previously they didn't even get a dollar a day?)
Israelis own 10% of the private land on the Moon. (Who's the estate agent for the Moon? Since when did any of it become privately owned?)
Europe's merchant ships emit around a third more carbon than aircraft do. (I know I'm nitpicking, but is that calculated over the mileage sailed versus the mileage flown? And how many merchant ships are there versus aircraft? And what about Liberian-registered tankers?) :suspect:
I somehow doubt I'll be subscribing to a magazine whose researchers plonk down so many bald statements which raise so many questions. I'm all for a bit of a mental workout, but this is ridiculous!
"and......." 