He changing of the climate It has many effects that can be imagined and others that are more difficult to imagine. For example, it could make our politicians much more simple. Scientists came to this conclusion from a recently published study. Aarhus University, in Denmark. In it, they analyze the language of parliamentarians from 8 different countries over several decades and compare it with the temperature of each moment. Thus, it is noted that, oddly enough, complexity of politicians’ language It decreases greatly with increasing temperature.
If you read this and not a single joke came to mind, you probably don’t have a soul. But the truth is that this research has very serious implications. Its authors note that such simplicity of the language of politicians may indicate cognitive decline. Obviously this applies to any profession, but they are the ones who are supposed to represent the people and make laws, supposedly so that we have a better country to live in. If high temperatures reduce your ability to do this intelligently, we’re screwed.
This is a very comprehensive study in which more 7 million performances. Regardless, its authors hope to delve deeper into the issue to see how climate change in general, and heat in particular, could affect our productivity at work. Because it is undoubtedly dangerous for him to influence the cognition of politicians, but it is even more dangerous for him to change the activities of, for example, doctors, teachers or electricians. Their work gives us health, education and light. If they can’t think clearly, we are truly lost.
Warmth and knowledge
As heat becomes an increasingly serious problem, many scientists have focused their research on testing How does this affect our brain? To begin with, it has been observed that high temperatures can worsen the course of patients with neurological diseases. But even in healthy people they can have problematic consequences. And our cognition may be greatly impaired by climate change and heat.
In 2023, a group of Yale University scientists published a study based on the results 8 year study, in which Chinese children and adolescents had to answer a series of tests to assess their cognitive abilities. When comparing the results with meteorological dataa significant association was seen between low readings and high temperatures.
The data is consistent with data obtained from a 2021 study in which health consequences heat. Among other things, there was a decrease cognitive activity. They also agree with another study conducted in 2016 and published in 2018, in which researchers from Harvard University analyzed the cognitive abilities of students living in university residences during heat. Some had air conditioner but others don’t. Thus, both groups were used for comparison and to verify that indeed high temperatures affected their ability to solve a number of tasks set by the researchers.
The simplicity of the language of politicians is another example. But this illustrates very well how serious it can be. climate change effect.
The language of politicians as a voice of alarm
This study analyzed 7 million speeches by parliamentarians over several decades. There was a total 28,000 politicianscame from 8 different countries.
To carry out the analysis we used computational methods highly innovative, combining automated analysis of politicians’ language with weather data from each country.
The results were very significant, since as the heat set in, the language of politicians became decidedly simpler. This can be seen as a positive thing. After all, simpler language is much better understood. But in reality and taking into account all existing research on knowledge and warmthIt is clear that these parliamentarians’ intentions were not to be understood. In fact, they had no specific intention of changing their way of speaking. The politicians’ language simply reflected how much the heat had impaired their cognitive abilities.
A question of age
To be sure that this simplification of politicians’ language is due to a decline in cognition, these scientists focused on just one of the countries, namely Germany. When comparing all German politicians, they were faced with a more homogeneous sample in which other factors could be analyzed. Thus, they saw that the language of senior politicians suffered much more than that of their younger colleagues.
It is well known that elderly population It is he who suffers the most from the effects of the heat. So they were faced with further evidence that what they found was not a coincidence.
This will become more common as climate change progresses. Thus, politicians and others around the world have a new reason to try to stop catastrophic temperature rise which is already underway. It’s not just about our knowledge. And also all the people around us. Let’s not forget that we live in a society.
Source: Hiper Textual
