Importance

We’re influenced by what we read. We certainly know that newspapers are biased and we are likely to choose ones that correspond to at least some of our values, as well as hoping for a degree of objectivity in actual news items. I’m glad that the ones I read make it clear whether an article is news or opinion.

But what about items that appear as actual news? The Washington Post sends me a daily summary of the seven top stories of the day, They appear below:

1.Ukraine has started firing a controversial U.S. weapon at Russian forces.

2. We are living through Earth’s hottest month on record.

3. A nationwide UPS strike appears increasingly likely.

4. Seven big tech companies agreed to alert people to AI-generated content.

5. Ancient soil from Greenland suggests some of its ice could disappear

6. The U.S. plays its first game at the women’s World Cup tonight.

7.The biggest movie weekend of the year is here: It’s time for Barbenheimer. (Barbie plus Oppenheimer).

And here are some questions about the ordering:

• Which ones have implications for our long term future? What would that order be?

• Which ones show the priorities of our culture?

• How would I number these in order of importance? I’ll let you decide for yourself. To do so says much about what we value as we skim over the realities of our universe.

Practical changes

Turning to practical things I should be doing to save the planet allows a short break from thinking about other things. There is a new coach in this area in the Washington Post who is now offering weekly tips.

He points out the dilemma we continually face. One person’s actions doesn’t have a significant effect. Nevertheless, united efforts do. Anything we can do to encourage friends and colleagues to join in can help. So here is my help in spreading the news - some counter-intuitive. We live in the age of wonderful appliances that do their jobs well.

1. Stop pre-rinsing the dishes before putting them in the dishwasher. The appliance uses less water than washing by hand and detergents are effective. Scraping is good; rinsing is unnecessary.

2. Turn out the lights as your parents always used to remind you to do - but recognize that this action is a minor one now with the invention of LED units. Make sure you have replaced any old ones because these new ones emit more light with only 10% of the previous electricity use. What this means is keeping up with the applications of good science from reputable sources and paying attention to it.

3. Pay more attention to the food on the back of the fridge shelf that may be going bad than worrying about changing the temperature. Food waste is a bigger issue.

4. Wash your clothes in cold water. Detergents have improved. You can also try those detergent sheets that friends of mine keep recommending. I meant to order some online but did notice them in a nearby shop so I now have no excuse to buy another of those large plastic bottles that take a lot of shelf space to transport.