Aug 7, 2025 05:43 PM
https://beyondtheabstract.substack.com/p...journalism
INTRO: In my newsfeed this morning, I stumbled upon this article from the BBC. “The world is getting hotter – this is what it is doing to our brains.” I read it and got frustrated… and felt the need to write about this.
This isn’t just about heat. It’s about what happens when science, storytelling, and advocacy become indistinguishable. And it’s about why the difference still matters.
The BBC claims climate change is giving us "hot brains" — but the science doesn't support a neurological meltdown narrative. While extreme heat can be dangerous for vulnerable populations, human brains are remarkably heat-tolerant, and many of the risks cited are misrepresented or overgeneralized. Anecdotes like a child with Dravet syndrome may tug at the heart, but they don't prove a coming epidemic. This post breaks down where the science ends and the storytelling begins — and why the distinction still matters.
Now, lets really dive in!
This article offers a revealing case study — a shift from data-driven concern to narrative-driven alarmism. This not just about heat, but about how science, anecdote, and activism get braided together to create a compelling narrative. The result is a piece that blends solid research with speculative leaps, making it difficult for the reader to disentangle known risk from imagined catastrophe... (MORE - details)
INTRO: In my newsfeed this morning, I stumbled upon this article from the BBC. “The world is getting hotter – this is what it is doing to our brains.” I read it and got frustrated… and felt the need to write about this.
This isn’t just about heat. It’s about what happens when science, storytelling, and advocacy become indistinguishable. And it’s about why the difference still matters.
The BBC claims climate change is giving us "hot brains" — but the science doesn't support a neurological meltdown narrative. While extreme heat can be dangerous for vulnerable populations, human brains are remarkably heat-tolerant, and many of the risks cited are misrepresented or overgeneralized. Anecdotes like a child with Dravet syndrome may tug at the heart, but they don't prove a coming epidemic. This post breaks down where the science ends and the storytelling begins — and why the distinction still matters.
Now, lets really dive in!
This article offers a revealing case study — a shift from data-driven concern to narrative-driven alarmism. This not just about heat, but about how science, anecdote, and activism get braided together to create a compelling narrative. The result is a piece that blends solid research with speculative leaps, making it difficult for the reader to disentangle known risk from imagined catastrophe... (MORE - details)