Join the conversation in Â鶹´«Ã½'s Letters section, where readers can share their thoughts and opinions on articles and see responses from experts and enthusiasts across a range of science topics. To submit a letter, please see our terms and email letters@newscientist.com
16 January 2019
From Cedric Lynch,<br/>Potters Bar, Hertfordshire, UK
Michael Le Page says an important part of reducing the contribution of household heating to climate change is to install heat pumps, powered by clean electricity, in rural and suburban areas ( 17 November 2018, p 22 ). I see very little effort to promote these. I got my heat pump from a firm that …
16 January 2019
From Susan Payne,<br/>Cape Elizabeth, Maine, US
Thank you for addressing the most critical threat to our long-term survival: global warming and climate disruption ( 8 December 2018, p 31 ). Each step described is important to reduce carbon emissions. But how can we bridge the gap between being aware of the problem and taking the system-wide steps needed to address it? …
16 January 2019
AI still can't figure out how to tell the difference between black people though Woke bae of pigs sees a flaw in artificial intelligence identifying genetic disorders by the shape of someone's face ( 12 January, p 15 )
16 January 2019
From Niall Leslie,<br/>Yarker, Ontario, Canada
There have been extensive discussions of the pros and cons of autonomous vehicles (for example Letters, 17 November 2018 ). But I have seen no mention of their use by elderly people. When issues with such vehicles are effectively solved, car travel will be as safe and as easy for the old as for others. …
16 January 2019
From Steve Dalton,<br/>Chipstead, Kent, UK
Peter Lemme is right to ask where the division of responsibility lies between automated aviation systems and pilots, and right to conclude that pilots should be ready and able to take over ( 22/29 December 2018, p 24 ). I would add that "able" means no aircraft should prevent the pilot taking control, and "ready" …
16 January 2019
From Tim Stevenson,<br/>Prestwood, Buckinghamshire, UK
You report that a tyre recovering electrical energy could save 800 kilojoules a year ( 8 December 2018, p 19 ). You could have knocked me down with a motor car! That's 0.22 kilowatt-hours, which is the energy in 0.024 litres of petrol.
16 January 2019
• Cave bears died out around the last glacial period within the recent ice age ( 22/29 December 2018, p 54 ). • The photo used to illustrate frost flowers was of hair ice, which exudes from logs. Water is more likely to supercool if particulate impurities are absent ( 22/29 December 2018, p 52 …
23 January 2019
From Brian Tagg,<br/>Taunton, Somerset, UK
Marks mentions electric vertical take-off and landing (eVTOL) aircraft. To suggest that these might replace commuter trains is, frankly, frightening. According to figures from the UK Department for Transport , there were some 1.7 billion rail journeys in the country in 2017-18, of which over half were commutes or for business purposes. If just 1 …
23 January 2019
From Richard Hind,<br/>York, UK
David Robson talks about the extended infancy in humans that allows us time to develop cognitive skills through play and its role in enabling innovation ( 22/29 December 2018, p 65 ). This brought to mind an insight expressed by musician Brian Eno in his 2015 John Peel Lecture ( bit.ly/EnoLecture ). He says children …
23 January 2019
From Graham Legg,<br/>Ragged Appleshaw, Hampshire, UK
I thank Mike Aris for sharing his technique for handwriting with Parkinson's disease (Letters, 22/29 December 2018 ). My wife Brenda was most distressed to lose her writing abilities. Using Aris's method of sounding the letters, she has regained a lot. She was amazed that she could produce a recognisable set of initials on a …
