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For the 4th year in a row, we've got nation disrupting the Euro Apple cart. For 3 straight summers we did the Greece & Grexit dance that rattled markets & now thanks to a David Cameron referendum we've got Great Britain taking a vote on staying in the European Union or abandoning the Euro, the EU and it's commitments to the European Bank. It's going to be another interesting Summer. God Bless everyone, T @newTHOR on Twitter https://www.facebook.com/thornewsgo https://www.theguardian.com/science/occams-corner/2016/apr/06/eu-brexit-scientific-impact-complicated "olitics is so much more complicated than science. For every action there isn’t an equal and opposite reaction and nor are there equations that predict how the system will respond to changes in the input conditions. So how do we work out what to do when it comes to the referendum on whether or not Britain should stay in the European Union? The impact of Brexit on UK science is unlikely to loom large in most people’s decision on how to vote, but the EU is an important matter for many scientists. As professional investigators, you would expect us to deal in facts, to sift through the evidence to figure out the principal components of the debate. The trouble is that such sifting is unlikely to yield a clear solution because the problem has too many dimensions. For a start there are so many facts – and quite a few “facts” – that just keeping track of them all is difficult, never mind the effort required to verify which ones have real weight. It would help if much of the opinionated noise could be filtered out of the discourse, but that’s not likely. We have to recognise the fact that this is an emotional matter, calling on beliefs and allegiances that are informed from our earliest days. However hard the head may try, the heart will have its sway. Scientists are no less susceptible to human and political passions but we should at least keep reminding ourselves to check back with the evidence. That’s easier said than done, particularly on social media where political exchanges are often too testy and too fleeting to permit examination of the data. In the past week or so I have found myself embroiled in more than one unedifying ‘debate’. But the experience has at least galvanised my determination to be better informed, on both sides of the argument. So let me tell you where I’ve got to so far. In the interests of open discussion, I should at the outset declare that my instincts have long been that UK science (and the UK generally) is better off within the EU. Naturally, that colours my analysis and yours may very well differ – but none of us is free from bias."