ianl, most kids of all varieties simply prefer *NOT* - they simply prefer pizzing about to factz. Poor white and black young men do so badly because they are allowed to mess about. Society has given up on them and their parents have done the same. Society tells girls that science is dirty and boring and boy stuff. The messages are woven into TV, advertising, toys and even teaching. The kids who do well in school, especially in the hard subjects are those who are pushed by their parents or tachers but most of all both. See mid to far eastern kids. Medicine and other 'caring' sciences are now acceptable for girls to aspire to but STEM will follow.

Society as a whole tends to deride smart kids. Nerds, geeks, etc. This is encouraged by arts graduates in TV of both sexes. All kids are being pushed to worry more about the feelz than the facts. I remember seeing the BBC breakfast team plus a group of guests laughing at internet geeks. I thought of how horrified they'd be if someone admitted that they'd never read a Shakespeare play or Dickens but that they were fine with smugly admitting that they were strangers to technology. And most of them were men.

tinyCO2

>" One of things that has held women back is the general belief that they can't do the hard subjects ..."

No, I don't think so. Most women simply prefer *NOT* - they simply prefer feelz to factz. Note that of those women who choose science disciplines, about 90% choose the various strands of medicine (doctors, labs, nurses and so on), where the science needed is strong enough and feelz is an important factor.

Mark. I think you may have got the wrong end of the stick. The discussion is about the use that might be made of DEPLETED oil and gas fields. These, using techniques already employed in the North Sea, can be used to store natural gas or accept waste gas (mostly CO2). But the Welsh fields are small and not particularly well sited to be of much use - unless sponsored for national (false) pride (or something for the South Wales geoscientists to do and get funding for).

"Oil and gas: Measuring the importance of Wales' reserves"

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-wales-49919018

"Wales' oil and gas fields may have "meagre" reserves but they could be important for generating other types of energy, an expert has said.

Marine and petroleum geologist Tiago Alves believes they could be used for wind turbines, geothermal energy (from the seabed) or even to dispose of factory emissions.

Wales has oil and gas at the Douglas Fields off Rhyl and maybe Cardigan Bay.

Dr Alves said these sites could also help firms cut their carbon footprints.

"Oil and gas companies are now becoming energy companies and want us to consider energy as a global resource," he said.

"There is still a serious amount to be found in Scotland.

"But in Wales, these companies will look to diversify - into areas such as renewables or geothermals."

Dr Alves, of Cardiff University's School of Earth and Ocean Sciences, believes another reason Wales' coast could be important to oil companies is their drive to become carbon neutral.

For example, if they release harmful emissions from oil rigs in Egypt or Libya, they could offset these by capturing smoke from UK factories before it gets into the atmosphere.

A technique is being developed in the laboratory to allow this to be injected into former oilfields.

Because of its location, Dr Alves believes the Douglas Fields could potentially take emissions from England's industrial north east."

[Any thoughts? Sounds barking mad to me].

You reap what you sow, and it isn't going to be pretty:

"Germany AfD: Far right 'overtake Merkel's party' in Thuringia"

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-europe-50202916

"Seven Worlds, One Planet review – breathtaking, moving, harrowing"

https://www.theguardian.com/tv-and-radio/2019/oct/27/seven-worlds-one-planet-review-david-attenborough-breathtaking-moving-harrowing

"Any nature programme is now, in essence, just a list of things we’re killing. A record for posterity (whatever that looks like) of what we once had and fished, boiled and starved to death via climate breakdown. But if you can set aside the growing sense of fiddling with the remote control while Rome and every single other point on the globe burns, there is still much to enjoy in the latest offering from the BBC: Seven Worlds, One Planet."

[It's because of that sort of thing that I didn't watch it - I expected propaganda preaching for the duration of the programme. Did anyone watch, and if so, can you advise me otherwise, please?].

"Greta Thunberg is old enough to scare the world. Are teens like her really too young to vote?"

https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2019/oct/27/greta-thunberg-old-enough-scare-world-are-teens-really-too-young-to-vote

The BBC double-dipping again - this article (or a variant of it) first appeared on their website months ago. It isn't "news" but it is what they love best - a climate/environment article that also enables them to take yet another dig at Brexit, regardless of the reality:

"Brexit: Will the Falkland Islands wildlife suffer?"

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/newsbeat-50095808

"'World-class' surf lake opens near Bristol"

"A "world-class" surf lake that's opened in Bristol is 100% powered by renewable energy, say its creators."

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/science-environment-50082566

"Chief executive Craig Stoddart says it's costing an extra £100,000 a year to use renewable energy."

[No analysis is provided of the claim that it's entirely powered by renewable energy, nor regarding the cost claim. I'm suspicious of both, though at least there is an admission that renewable energy is more expensive].

"Fracking: Cuadrilla plans 'goodwill payments' after tremor"

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-lancashire-50202033

Very green:

"Virgin Galactic: Branson's space firm set for stock market launch"

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-50189019

I see that Electricity North West are the latest outfit to believe that the can change the specific heat of water by reducing the power consumption of a kettle. I still believe it takes about 4.2 kJ per kilogramme per degree Kelvin. Of course it doesn't help the grid either. Reduce the power of kettles, and more of them will be boiling water at the same time. The result is no saving in instantaneous demand, and probably increased energy use as the longer boiling time allows more heat loss.