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The nuclear option
COMMENT
Folding phones are no fad Samsung is the first major manufacturer to launch a folding phone, and it might be useful rather than gimmicky, says Holly Brockwell
JOSIE FORD
SAMSUNG’S launch last week of the Galaxy Fold sent shock waves through the internet, with many people outside the tech industry seeing a folding smartphone for the first time. The reaction has been as divided as the phone’s hinged chassis, with one side professing starry-eyed love for the device’s innovative functionality and the other decrying its price and perceived gimmickry. The Galaxy Fold isn’t the first folding smartphone to market but it is the first from a high-profile brand, and as such it is a big deal. Samsung has spent time and money to be the first mainstream tech name on the folding bandwagon, which suggests the company believes it will be a popular category. Is it right? Well, yes and no. The Galaxy Fold itself isn’t likely to sell well: it is expensive ($1980 according
The nuclear option The proposed Green New Deal should consider the value of nuclear power, says David Titley SINCE last November, proposals in the US for a Green New Deal (GND) have incited much debate. The GND aims to address both climate change and economic inequality, but support for it is dividing along partisan lines. It is championed by many Democratic 2020 presidential candidates vying for votes from 24 | NewScientist | 2 March 2019
their progressive wing, and criticised by many Republicans. One of the contentious issues is the role in the GND of civilian nuclear power, or lack thereof. The issue is muddied by confusion between the information in the official resolution in Congress laying out the details of a Green New Deal and an accompanying
fact sheet that was briefly published on the website of the resolution’s sponsor, charismatic congresswoman Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez. So first, the facts. The resolution doesn’t contain the word “nuclear” anywhere in its text. It does state that, within 10 years, the US will be “meeting 100 per cent of the power demand in the United States through clean, renewable, and zero-emission energy sources” – but some would
“In 2017, nuclear power provided about 58 per cent of the US’s non-carbonbased electricity”
to reports) and unproven. But as the first step in a new direction, it is exactly what the market needs. Smartphone innovation has stagnated in the past few years, with various near-identical designs competing for the same money. Manufacturers have tried various tactics to stand out, experimenting with colours or add-ons, but consumers have generally stuck to their favourite brands. Foldables, as the category is known, are an innovation that combines the cool factor with functionality. Superficially, they may seem like curved TVs, which failed to revolutionise their market because consumers weren’t convinced they added anything to the viewing experience. Foldables may be different. That is because of the phones’ ability to transform into a
argue that nuclear meets those criteria. Ocasio-Cortez’s fact sheet, however, reportedly stated that the GND “will not include investing in new nuclear power plants”. Here are some more facts. According to official figures, in 2017, nuclear power provided about 20 per cent of US electricity, and 58 per cent of the country’s “non-carbon-based” electricity. Furthermore, nuclear power plants often operate at 90 per cent of their rated capacity. That of wind and solar, by comparison, ranges from 20 to 30 per cent. Ideally, wind and solar would be rapidly scalable and battery
For more opinion articles, visit newscientist.com/opinion
Holly Brockwell is a technology writer based in London
storage of the energy they generate would be nearly free, so that the electricity can be fed as needed onto power grids. But in the real world – the one where climate is changing rapidly and threatening our health, our economy and our security – we need to use what we have. Leaders are often faced with choosing between imperfect options, and one of those, for the foreseeable future, should be current and next-generation nuclear technologies. ■ David Titley is director of the Center for Solutions to Weather and Climate Risk at Penn State University
ANALYSIS Zebra stripes
TIM CARO/UC DAVIS
different device when needed. It isn’t hard to see the value in a hand-sized phone that can slip into your pocket and also fold out to offer a big screen for movies. However, one of the stumbling blocks of curved TVs also applies to foldables: concern about fragility and repair. If you break the screen on your $1980 Galaxy Fold, how much is it going to cost you to fix? Potential early adopters may be put off if they feel breakages are likely to be costly and hard to remedy. Ultimately, though, the Galaxy Fold is more important for the smartphone industry than for the consumer. It is a call to arms for manufacturers to embrace a new form and put their design talents to work finding new ways to improve people’s lives. This kind of novelty is often left to the niche brands to experiment with before the big players like Samsung will risk jumping in. The Galaxy Fold is a bold statement. It may well pay off for Samsung in the long term if it gives the firm a head start in developing and improving the technology, but that depends on how consumers – and other phone manufacturers – react. ■
Beware evolutionary just-so stories Michael Marshall
necessarily. Some ideas don’t seem to stand up, notably the suggestion that the stripes help zebras stay cool on hot days – if that were true, we would expect more stripy tropical animals. But other ideas have more to them. One that at first seems ridiculous is that the stripes are a form of camouflage. Obviously, zebras aren’t inconspicuous. But the stripes could create “dazzle camouflage”, overwhelming a predator’s visual system and making it hard to track the zebra’s movement. Imagine watching
WHEN it comes to explaining why zebras have stripes, it is best to remember that some issues aren’t black and white. A study published last week offers further evidence for one of the most promising explanations: that the stripes deter biting flies. In the parts of Africa where zebras live, there are blood-sucking horseflies that carry lethal diseases. Clearly, zebras would do well to avoid being bitten. The idea is that the stripes somehow confuse the flies so that “There is something they don’t land on the zebras. psychologically appealing A team led by Tim Caro at the about a single, clear University of California, Davis, tracked explanation” captive zebras and horses at a site in the UK. Horseflies circled round both, a herd of zebras all dashing in different but they landed on horses significantly directions, and trying to pick out one of more often. Putting striped coats them to bring down. on the horses’ bodies meant the The evidence here is mixed. A 2016 horseflies landed there less often, study suggested that the dazzle effect but still landed on their heads, which only really works if the stripes are were uncovered. The implication is parallel to the animal’s direction of that the stripes were having a real travel, implying that zebra stripes go effect (PLoS One, doi.org/gfvq46). the wrong way to work in this way. The hypothesis is backed by a lot of But this came from tracking humans evidence, but does that mean it is the playing a computer game. A 2014 only reason for a zebra’s stripes? Not
study, based on computer modelling of how moving zebras would appear to a predator, indicated that the stripes would be extremely confusing. There is also the simple possibility that the stripes are a signal. The message may not be for other zebras: in 2017, researchers suggested that the stripes signal to other grazing animals, encouraging them to graze alongside the zebras. Such mixed-species herds offer more protection against predators. For now, this is only a hypothesis. Perhaps the most important point is that these studies can tell us only why zebra stripes continue to exist today, not why they arose in the first place. Evolution is good at repurposing things, so a body part may arise, be used for one purpose, and then end up being employed for something entirely different. An obvious example is the lens of the mammalian eye. This probably arose as a protective cover for the retina and only later developed the ability to focus light, creating a sharper image – which is now its most “obvious” function. Zebra stripes may have a similarly complex history. There is something psychologically appealing about a single, clear explanation. That instinct doesn’t mean we are wrong to seek such things – sometimes just-so stories turn out to be correct – but this is one area where our biases can work against us. ■ 2 March 2019 | NewScientist | 25
Folding phones are no fad Samsung is the first major manufacturer to launch a folding phone, and it might be useful rather than gimmicky, says Holly Brockwell
JOSIE FORD
SAMSUNG’S launch last week of the Galaxy Fold sent shock waves through the internet, with many people outside the tech industry seeing a folding smartphone for the first time. The reaction has been as divided as the phone’s hinged chassis, with one side professing starry-eyed love for the device’s innovative functionality and the other decrying its price and perceived gimmickry. The Galaxy Fold isn’t the first folding smartphone to market but it is the first from a high-profile brand, and as such it is a big deal. Samsung has spent time and money to be the first mainstream tech name on the folding bandwagon, which suggests the company believes it will be a popular category. Is it right? Well, yes and no. The Galaxy Fold itself isn’t likely to sell well: it is expensive ($1980 according
The nuclear option The proposed Green New Deal should consider the value of nuclear power, says David Titley SINCE last November, proposals in the US for a Green New Deal (GND) have incited much debate. The GND aims to address both climate change and economic inequality, but support for it is dividing along partisan lines. It is championed by many Democratic 2020 presidential candidates vying for votes from 24 | NewScientist | 2 March 2019
their progressive wing, and criticised by many Republicans. One of the contentious issues is the role in the GND of civilian nuclear power, or lack thereof. The issue is muddied by confusion between the information in the official resolution in Congress laying out the details of a Green New Deal and an accompanying
fact sheet that was briefly published on the website of the resolution’s sponsor, charismatic congresswoman Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez. So first, the facts. The resolution doesn’t contain the word “nuclear” anywhere in its text. It does state that, within 10 years, the US will be “meeting 100 per cent of the power demand in the United States through clean, renewable, and zero-emission energy sources” – but some would
“In 2017, nuclear power provided about 58 per cent of the US’s non-carbonbased electricity”
to reports) and unproven. But as the first step in a new direction, it is exactly what the market needs. Smartphone innovation has stagnated in the past few years, with various near-identical designs competing for the same money. Manufacturers have tried various tactics to stand out, experimenting with colours or add-ons, but consumers have generally stuck to their favourite brands. Foldables, as the category is known, are an innovation that combines the cool factor with functionality. Superficially, they may seem like curved TVs, which failed to revolutionise their market because consumers weren’t convinced they added anything to the viewing experience. Foldables may be different. That is because of the phones’ ability to transform into a
argue that nuclear meets those criteria. Ocasio-Cortez’s fact sheet, however, reportedly stated that the GND “will not include investing in new nuclear power plants”. Here are some more facts. According to official figures, in 2017, nuclear power provided about 20 per cent of US electricity, and 58 per cent of the country’s “non-carbon-based” electricity. Furthermore, nuclear power plants often operate at 90 per cent of their rated capacity. That of wind and solar, by comparison, ranges from 20 to 30 per cent. Ideally, wind and solar would be rapidly scalable and battery
For more opinion articles, visit newscientist.com/opinion
Holly Brockwell is a technology writer based in London
storage of the energy they generate would be nearly free, so that the electricity can be fed as needed onto power grids. But in the real world – the one where climate is changing rapidly and threatening our health, our economy and our security – we need to use what we have. Leaders are often faced with choosing between imperfect options, and one of those, for the foreseeable future, should be current and next-generation nuclear technologies. ■ David Titley is director of the Center for Solutions to Weather and Climate Risk at Penn State University
ANALYSIS Zebra stripes
TIM CARO/UC DAVIS
different device when needed. It isn’t hard to see the value in a hand-sized phone that can slip into your pocket and also fold out to offer a big screen for movies. However, one of the stumbling blocks of curved TVs also applies to foldables: concern about fragility and repair. If you break the screen on your $1980 Galaxy Fold, how much is it going to cost you to fix? Potential early adopters may be put off if they feel breakages are likely to be costly and hard to remedy. Ultimately, though, the Galaxy Fold is more important for the smartphone industry than for the consumer. It is a call to arms for manufacturers to embrace a new form and put their design talents to work finding new ways to improve people’s lives. This kind of novelty is often left to the niche brands to experiment with before the big players like Samsung will risk jumping in. The Galaxy Fold is a bold statement. It may well pay off for Samsung in the long term if it gives the firm a head start in developing and improving the technology, but that depends on how consumers – and other phone manufacturers – react. ■
Beware evolutionary just-so stories Michael Marshall
necessarily. Some ideas don’t seem to stand up, notably the suggestion that the stripes help zebras stay cool on hot days – if that were true, we would expect more stripy tropical animals. But other ideas have more to them. One that at first seems ridiculous is that the stripes are a form of camouflage. Obviously, zebras aren’t inconspicuous. But the stripes could create “dazzle camouflage”, overwhelming a predator’s visual system and making it hard to track the zebra’s movement. Imagine watching
WHEN it comes to explaining why zebras have stripes, it is best to remember that some issues aren’t black and white. A study published last week offers further evidence for one of the most promising explanations: that the stripes deter biting flies. In the parts of Africa where zebras live, there are blood-sucking horseflies that carry lethal diseases. Clearly, zebras would do well to avoid being bitten. The idea is that the stripes somehow confuse the flies so that “There is something they don’t land on the zebras. psychologically appealing A team led by Tim Caro at the about a single, clear University of California, Davis, tracked explanation” captive zebras and horses at a site in the UK. Horseflies circled round both, a herd of zebras all dashing in different but they landed on horses significantly directions, and trying to pick out one of more often. Putting striped coats them to bring down. on the horses’ bodies meant the The evidence here is mixed. A 2016 horseflies landed there less often, study suggested that the dazzle effect but still landed on their heads, which only really works if the stripes are were uncovered. The implication is parallel to the animal’s direction of that the stripes were having a real travel, implying that zebra stripes go effect (PLoS One, doi.org/gfvq46). the wrong way to work in this way. The hypothesis is backed by a lot of But this came from tracking humans evidence, but does that mean it is the playing a computer game. A 2014 only reason for a zebra’s stripes? Not
study, based on computer modelling of how moving zebras would appear to a predator, indicated that the stripes would be extremely confusing. There is also the simple possibility that the stripes are a signal. The message may not be for other zebras: in 2017, researchers suggested that the stripes signal to other grazing animals, encouraging them to graze alongside the zebras. Such mixed-species herds offer more protection against predators. For now, this is only a hypothesis. Perhaps the most important point is that these studies can tell us only why zebra stripes continue to exist today, not why they arose in the first place. Evolution is good at repurposing things, so a body part may arise, be used for one purpose, and then end up being employed for something entirely different. An obvious example is the lens of the mammalian eye. This probably arose as a protective cover for the retina and only later developed the ability to focus light, creating a sharper image – which is now its most “obvious” function. Zebra stripes may have a similarly complex history. There is something psychologically appealing about a single, clear explanation. That instinct doesn’t mean we are wrong to seek such things – sometimes just-so stories turn out to be correct – but this is one area where our biases can work against us. ■ 2 March 2019 | NewScientist | 25