sallyscienceshorts

[sallyscienceshorts]

Marketing Research Age Group 50-65 Suitable for Businesses and Charities in the Arts, and Restaurants/Cafes

I was tasked with compiling a marketing report focused on the age group 50-64 for my role in marketing at an arts charity in the West Midlands. It took really quite a long time! If you have a similar task, feel free to look at my marketing report for ideas, links to statistics, references, and views on marketing to this age group from people who work in the field. Obviously don’t just copy it, it won’t be exactly the same as what you need, and I’m not an experienced marketer, but I AM a scientist, so be prepared for a lot of references! I was so grateful to the people who had written on this topic, as they made my job much easier, it’s only fair I do the same and share my work.

There is an overview, and then a longer discussion, every point I have made has a reference, and I make it clear when something I have written is my opinion, apart from in the overview, as everything spoken about therein can be found in more depth in the body of the report. The report has a number of appendices, but references are found within the body of the text, as I thought that would make it easier to look up a point or a statistic than the standard way we reference scientific documents. If you have any feedback, that would be greatly appreciated, as this is the first time I have complied a report of this nature. My name is Sally Nall. (Warning - it is really quite long, and the tables did not translate as copy and paste, but they are all referenced, with links to where you can find the original data).

Market Research Age Group 50-64: An Overview

In 2012, 18.2% of the population was aged 50-64

People aged 50-64 in 2013 were born between 1949 and 1963, and reached adulthood between 1967 and 1981

Their children are adults

They likely have grandchildren and great grandchildren

They have an employment rate of 66.3% (2012)

Average (mean) income for ages 50-64 is £33,900

They are the wealthiest age group

They are likely to be in their late sixties before they have paid off their mortgages

They spend only slightly less than those aged 30-49

They spend more on recreation and culture than any other age bracket

They spend almost as much as those aged 30-49 on education, and on recreation and hotels

In the West Midlands, people die statistically younger than average, and earn statistically less than average (statistics do not apply to the individual)

They use email just as much as younger people

Over a fifth use a smartphone

60% use social networking

57% of internet users aged 50-64 use Facebook (2013)

They don’t use Twitter anywhere near as much as younger people (figures are difficult to gauge due to anonymity, based on estimates by people in the field, roughly 15% of those aged 50 use Twitter, dwindling to roughly 3% of people aged 64. This is an estimate based on a set of estimates from various sources, with no reliable date, so should be treated as conjecture. It is currently not possible to be more precise due to the nature of the medium)

Market Research Age Group 50-64

What percentage of the population falls into this age bracket?

In 2012, 18.2% of the population was aged 50-64

Source: Eurostat

http://datamarket.com/data/set/1aow/people-by-age-group#!display=line&ds=1aow!z59=1:z5a=3

In 2007 there were 9.2 million people in Britain aged 50-65  

Source: GAD 2007 

http://www.efa.org.uk/pages/older-people-uk-.html

The population of the UK aged 65 and over was 10.4 million (16 per cent of the UK population) in 2011. This shows a large increase in a short period of time.

Source: Office of National Statistics (ONS)

http://www.ons.gov.uk/ons/rel/census/2011-census/population-and-household-estimates-for-the-united-kingdom/stb-2011-census—population-estimates-for-the-united-kingdom.html

When were they born and when did they have children?

People aged 50-64 in 2013 were born between 1949 and 1963. They reached adulthood between 1967 and 1981, and so they are in no way a homogenous group. However, since those who had children did so earlier in life than is currently the norm, their children are likely to now be adult, with the exception of men in relationships with younger women, or women who have adopted much later in life or have guardianship of a relative’s child (I consider this to be the exception).

They are, however, reasonably likely to have grandchildren of an age to make use of our children’s activities, particularly those born closer to 1963.

Those born closer to 1949 are reasonably likely to have great grandchildren of an age for our children’s activities.

What with high childcare costs, one in four working families relies on grandparents for childcare.

http://www.grandparentsplus.org.uk/grandparents-helping-childcare

What proportion of this age bracket is in work?

During August- October 2012, there were 7.54 million people aged 50-64 in employment (an employment rate of 66.3%)

The unemployment rates for those aged 50-64 was 4.8%. These rates had increased over the past year by 0.1 percentage points

 For those aged 50-64, unemployment has fallen for men over the last year (down by 4,000) but there has been an increase of 1,000 in the number of unemployed women.

In November 2012, there were 255,700 people aged 50 or over claiming Jobseekers Allowance, an increase of 14,400 (6%) from the previous year.

92,400 had been claiming JSA for over a year.

Source:  Labour Market Statistics, Office for National Statistics, December 2012

Median hourly pay for workers in their 50s is £12.00, as opposed to £13.03 for workers in their 30s

Source: Annual Survey of Hours and Earnings 2011 Results (Table 6.5a), ONS, 2011

There has been a trend of people leaving the workforce (presumably for retirement) later. For men, the estimate of average age of withdrawal increased from 63.8 years in 2004 to 64.5 in 2009. For women, it increased from 61.2 years in 2004 to 62.0 years in 2009

Source: Pension Trends Chapter 4: The labour market and retirement, ONS, 2011

18.1% of employees in the UK aged between 50 and retirement age have received job-related training in the past four weeks, as opposed to 25.8% aged 25-34 and 38.7% aged 35-49.

Source: Economic and Labour Market Review (February 2010) Table 6.10, Job-related training received by employees

A separate report from Prudential found that 62 per cent of people, who originally planned to retire this year are now planning to carry on working, with nearly half of those saying they will definitely have to continue to work to supplement their pensions or build further savings.

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/finance/personalfinance/8323339/Those-aged-50-to-60-worst-hit-by-financial-crisis.html

How much money do they earn?

Average (mean) income for ages 50-64 is £33,900 (ONS)

Table to show relative average yearly incomes broken down within the age bracket (2004-5) For 2010-11, increase by 22% to allow for inflation (this is really just to show that income decreases from age 50 to age 64).

Median Income

Mean Income

50-54

£19,300

£27,000

55-59

£17,200

£24,500

60-64

£13,600

£20,000

Source: ONS (see appendix i for full table)

These data are for yearly income and do not take account of savings.

Whereas previous generations could have expected to have paid off their mortgages by this age, according to Post Office Mortgages, people can expect to be well into their 60s by the time they have paid off their mortgage, so there is not necessarily the extra disposable income for this age group that one might expect.

http://www.mortgagefinancegazette.com/uncategorized/average-age-for-paying-off-mortgage-increases-by-more-than-a-decade/

Nearly half of 50-64 year olds are putting extra into their savings accounts  for retirement (40% in West Midlands), further reducing disposable income.

http://www.saga.co.uk/newsroom/press-releases/2012/november/over-50s-make-extra-savings-for-retirement.aspx

50-54 year olds

 55-59 year olds

 60-64 year olds

Saving to fund retirement 

 39%

47% 

 44%

Saving for an emergency/rainy day 

57% 

 53%

 56%

Saving for a holiday 

 40%

41% 

 50%

Source: Populus interviewed 10,203 Saga customers, all aged 50 and over, online between 29th and 31st August 2012. Populus is a member of the British Polling Council and abides by its rules.

In a study conducted by the Centre for Economic and Business Research, a detailed analysis of data provided by the ONS, the findings were that those in the age bracket 50-60 have been hit the worst by the recent economic downturn. The study found that the annual real disposable income – taking into account inflation – had fallen from £34,366 a year ago to £33,900, or those between 50 and 64, an annual fall of more than £450.

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/finance/personalfinance/8323339/Those-aged-50-to-60-worst-hit-by-financial-crisis.html

Of course this is a relative dent in their finances, as even £33,900 as a yearly salary is well above the national average of £26,500 (ONS)

How much do they spend?

The average household headed by someone aged 50-64 spends £27,000 per year, compared with £30,000 for those in the age range 30-49 (ONS)

http://opinion.publicfinance.co.uk/2013/07/age-hysteria-revisted/

      What are their spending habits?

These are the ONS statistics for household expenditure by age of household reference person in pounds (rounded to the nearest ten pence) per week for the age bracket 50-64:

Recreation and culture - £70.90

Education                   - £8.80

Restaurants and hotels - £44.10

For full list see appendix ii.

www.ons.gov.uk/ons/…/social-trends-40—-expenditure-chapter.pdf‎

How does this compare with other age groups?

<30

30-49

50-64

65-74

75+

All

R + C

41.50

67.20

70.90

63.70

29.60

60.10

E

3.00

8.90

8.80

1.30

0.40

6.20

R + H

38.20

46.40

44.10

25.10

12.60

37.70

From this we can see that the 50-64 age group spends the most on ‘recreation and culture’.

This age bracket spends slightly less than the 30-49 age group on ‘education’, by ten pence per week, but compared to the under 30s and over 65s, the 50-64 age group spends a significantly higher amount. Bearing in mind that younger people are generally still in their initial period of study (college, graduate degree, post graduate degree etc) in order to advance in their careers, this suggests that the education on which they (50-64) are spending their money is more likely to be for recreational purposes or supplementary to, rather than integral to, their careers. This may be for a career change, but is more likely to be for topping up skills, gaining qualifications which were formerly not required (e.g. teachers, nurses), computer skills. This spending may also be on recreational education such as learning a foreign language, or studying for interest rather than practical use. The University of the Third Age and the Open University may account in part for this as they are growing in popularity.

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/education/educationpicturegalleries/9884792/Most-popular-university-subjects-for-over-60s.htmlhttp://www.theguardian.com/education/2009/nov/24/university-of-the-third-age

The age group 50-64 spends more than the average on ‘restaurants and hotels’, far more than those 65+, slightly more than the under 30s, and slightly less than the 30-49s. This is of interest due to Cafe Bliss being of great import.

Relative wealth within the West Midlands

The West Midlands has the highest proportion of people with no qualifications and one of the highest proportions of households living in relative poverty.

The percentage of the region’s population having no qualifications in 2010 was 14.0 per cent compared with 10.7 per cent for the UK as a whole.

The median equivalised disposable weekly household income after housing costs in the West Midlands was £333, one of the lowest of all English regions in the three-year period 2007/08 to 2009/10.

In the same period, 25 per cent of people (1.3 million) were in households with incomes below the poverty threshold, one of the highest percentages of all English regions.

Life expectancy at birth in the West Midlands is close to the UK average. The figures were 77.9 years for males and 82.2 years for females in the three-year period 2008 to 2010 compared with 78.2 and 82.3 years respectively for the UK.

Source: Office for National Statistics

http://www.ons.gov.uk/ons/rel/regional-trends/region-and-country-profiles/social-indicators/social-indicators—-west-midlands.html

Internet and Technology Usage

Email

People aged 50-64 use email easily as much as their juniors.

When trying to find stats on what percentage of older people use email, after an hour or so, having read many marketing reports, it has become clear that in the age group 50-64, they appear to use email as much as, if not more than, younger people. This was a surprise, and the fact that this is a surprise to marketers (who tend to be much younger) is something of an in- joke amongst professional bodies representing and marketing to, people in this age bracket and above.

I have no specific source for this, but I have bookmarked a number of marketing reports for this age group and others, which are referenced throughout this report. Please forgive this familiar writing style.

Smartphones

Smartphone usage is on the rise in all age groups, and whilst use decreases with age, people between 50 and 64 use smartphones.

Smartphone take-up by age

Age

16-24

25-34

35-54

55-64

65+

All

%

66

60

43

19

3

39

Source: Communications Market Report: UK. Ofcom, 2012

Since only 39% of the population as a whole uses a smartphone, and at least a fifth of people aged 50-64, this is likely a sign that the perks of a smartphone (apps, internet access etc) over a traditional mobile phone are of importance to this age group.

Six out of ten people aged 50-64 use social networks.

http://www.attacat.co.uk/brain/month-in-numbers-august-2013

25% of UK internet users are aged between 50 and 64 (May 2010)

http://www.wsiims.co.uk/internet-marketing-trends-2011-part-2/

http://econsultancy.com/uk/nma-archive/35822-online-population-rises-by-2m-users-in-past-year

The majority of new internet users are men over 50 (38%) and women over 50 (15%)

http://econsultancy.com/uk/nma-archive/35822-online-population-rises-by-2m-users-in-past-year

Clearly those over fifty are becoming increasingly internet capable, but men vastly outnumber women in this, so women over fifty may still be difficult to market to via the internet.

Tablet Computers

When comparing use of tablet computers across the population, those in the 50-64 age group appear to be active users. They dominate tablet use for email (70%), news (60%) and weather (52%) in the UK, US, Canada, France, and Germany. In addition to this, across all age groups, roughly 8 in 10 respondents said they use their tablet most frequently at home. 50-64-year-olds were the most likely of the age groups to say they use them most frequently while out and about, with 17% saying that was the case.

About the Data: The survey was conducted in March 2013 by Survey Sampling International.                                                                                                                       

Source: http://www.marketingcharts.com/wp/topics/e-commerce/which-common-tablet-activities-vary-in-popularity-by-age-35350/attachment/adobe-common-tablet-activities-by-age-group-july2013/

See Appendix iii for full list of tablet computer browsing habits by age

Social Networking

Between July 2010 and October 2011, the number of people using social networking worldwide drastically increased, the largest increase being in people between 45 and 55+ (+9.4% rise in under a year).

This took social networking usage in the 45-54 age group to 82.9%, and usage in the 55+ age group up to 79.9% (see bar chart in Appendix iv).

Source: http://thesocialskinny.com/100-social-media-statistics-for-2012/

  Facebook

26.8million Brits visited Facebook in May 2011, rising to just under 33 million in 2013.

http://www.rosemcgrory.co.uk/2013/01/08/uk-social-media-statistics-for-2013/

Just two years ago, in the UK, the profile of Facebook’s audience was noticeably skewed towards 18-34 year olds. This is no longer the case. While Facebook’s unique UK audience has risen 41 percent since May 2009, the increase in the number of 50-64 year-olds visiting the site has easily outstripped this, growing by 84 percent. 

Source: http://www.ukaop.org.uk/news/over50sleadinguksocialnetworkgrowth2844.html

57% of internet users aged 50-64 use Facebook (2013)

http://uk.reuters.com/article/2013/08/08/column-miller-idUKL1N0G90R320130808

Twitter

Twitter is extremely useful as a social networking tool, with more users signing up every day, including more mature users (those over 36). However, Twitter is not nearly as popular as Facebook among the age group 50-65, so it is currently of less import in marketing terms.

Twitter use is roughly inversely proportionate to age (data for ages 10-95), with usage dwindling significantly above the age of 36 (accurate October 2012).

In addition to this, whilst most Twitter users are female, above this age, usership becomes predominantly male.

Males prefer darker, more sombre colours for their Twitter accounts, with the most common choice being a steel grey.

Source: http://www.beevolve.com/twitter-statistics/#a2

“We know that the overall number of active Twitter accounts topped 200 million during December. This study suggests that just over 17% of Twitter users are in the UK, so that would give us a total figure of 34 million live accounts in the UK.  Even allowing for a certain amount of educated guesswork (because users don’t have to provide any personal information when they sign up, all Twitter data beyond the overall number of accounts is based on some kind of extrapolation), that’s still a big jump from last year’s figure of 26 million, and may be overestimating things a little.

Having said that, big events like the Olympics and the Jubilee, both of which saw heavy coverage and discussion on social media, may have been a driver in recruiting new users for 2013.

Because of the Ad Planner change, the most up to date information on demographics is now ageing, dating from August 2012. Assuming the mix hasn’t changed too much since then, we’re still seeing quite an even split between the main adult demographic groups – 25-34, 35-44 and 45-54 age groups each make up around 20% of the Twitter population.” (Stephanie Hayden, Nielsen senior director)

Source: http://www.rosemcgrory.co.uk/2013/01/.08/uk-social-media-statistics-for-2013/

The growing number of over-50s visiting social networks is presenting brands with new opportunities. Stephanie Hayden explains: “It’s becoming more commonplace for the over-50s to discuss topics online with people they do and don’t know. For some brands, this can open up a new marketing channel.  “Brands should first gain a deeper understanding of how and why their older consumers are using social networks. Depending on the evaluation, they may benefit from creating a new Facebook page or Twitter account. It can even be appropriate for brands to go further, giving opportunities for older consumers with more life-experience to facilitate conversations, offer expert advice, or provide a place where people can share experiences, ask questions, and help each other.” She continues: “In addition, for all brands, the growing number of silver surfers on social networks, means these sites - as a consumer-insight tool - are becoming more and more representative of the total market.

Source: UKOM/Nielsonhttp://www.ukaop.org.uk/news/over50sleadinguksocialnetworkgrowth2844.htm

  Marketing to the over 50s – opinions from those in the field

A selection of quotes from Mark Beasley, managing director of RHC Advantage, the UK’s only independent marketing agency to specialise in mature audiences:

“For individuals, old age is a relative concept.”

 “Research by direct marketing agency Millennium in 2008 found that 55% of over-50s believe that advertising treats them in a patronising manner.”

“Anyone who is foolish enough to devise and operate a campaign which ignores almost half of the adult population is likely to have an ill-conceived campaign on their hands.”

“Older people are not a single segment; this market is too large, too diverse and too complex. The other mistake that businesses make is in believing that there is something different about older people.”

“Older people don’t behave any differently from anyone else,” he adds. For example, it’s a mistake, he says, to think that older people are more set in their ways. They are just as likely as anyone to switch brands and suppliers if their needs aren’t being met. Neither are they more inclined to respond to discounting than anyone else.”

“Inclusivity means not excluding older people, rather than actively targeting them, for instance, some brands seem to go out of their way to appeal to younger people, even though older people are also potential customers.”

Source: http://www.marketingdonut.co.uk/marketing/sales/marketing-to-older-customers

Richard Reed, the founder and marketing director of Innocent, the drinks company, when asked how he approaches the issue of age when markerketing, said “Age is unimportant”.

Source:http://www.the50plusmarket.com/Downloads/Not_another_article_about_marketing_to_the_over_50s.PDF

Alex Batchelor of Orange said, “We don’t think appealing to older customers alienates the young or the other way round. Older people either ignore it, if it is more about style over substance, or they get the message, even if it is conveyed to young people”.

Source:http://www.the50plusmarket.com/Downloads/Not_another_article_about_marketing_to_the_over_50s.PDF

“They’re trying to corner the aging process and stop it; they don’t want to be called old,” says Anna Son, analyst at IBISWorld research and co-author of a new report about the consumer habits of that prodigious generation born between 1946 and 1964. “You may want to simplify the marketing messages you send them, but you definitely don’t want to say, ‘Hey old people, this product is for you.’”

http://www.dmnews.com/dont-make-this-old-marketing-mistake/article/288944/#

  Appendix i

Age band

Median income

Mean income

Median income (men)

Mean income (men)

Median income (women)

Mean income (women)

Under 20

£ 8,130

£ 9,570

£ 8,490

£ 9,810

£ 7,990

£ 9,250

20 – 24

£ 11,800

£ 13,200

£ 12,400

£ 13,800

£ 11,200

£ 12,300

25 – 29

£ 17,000

£ 19,300

£ 17,800

£ 20,600

£ 15,900

£ 17,800

30 – 34

£ 19,500

£ 23,900

£ 21,600

£ 26,700

£ 16,400

£ 20,100

35 – 39

£ 20,100

£ 26,800

£ 23,600

£ 31,700

£ 15,500

£ 20,100

40 – 44

£ 20,200

£ 28,100

£ 24,600

£ 34,600

£ 14,900

£ 19,800

45 – 49

£ 20,300

£ 28,600

£ 24,800

£ 35,400

£ 15,200

£ 20,100

50 – 54

£ 19,300

£ 27,000

£ 23,500

£ 33,400

£ 15,100

£ 19,200

55 – 59

£ 17,200

£ 24,500

£ 20,900

£ 29,900

£ 13,100

£ 17,200

60 – 64

£ 13,600

£ 20,000

£ 16,500

£ 24,300

£ 10,700

£ 14,200

65 – 69

£ 12,600

£ 17,900

£ 13,600

£ 19,500

£ 11,100

£ 14,800

70 – 74

£ 13,300

£ 18,100

£ 15,600

£ 21,100

£ 10,700

£ 14,300

Over 75

£ 12,400

£ 16,700

£ 15,300

£ 19,900

£ 10,400

£ 14,100

Income distribution across age bands Office for National Statistic 2007

 Tax year 2004-05. To estimate for 2010-11, increase by 22% to allow for inflation.

Appendix ii

Household expenditure:1 by age of household reference person,2 2008

United Kingdom £ per week

Under 30 30–49 50–64 65–74 75 and over

All households

Food and non-alcoholic drink 38.70 57.00 55.50 48.20 34.90 50.70

Alcohol and tobacco 10.50 12.30 12.80 9.30 4.40 10.80

Clothing and footwear 23.20 27.50 23.70 12.70 7.70 21.60

Housing (net),3 fuel and power 76.20 59.50 49.10 42.00 36.10 53.00

Household goods and services 23.90 35.70 32.90 26.20 17.60 30.10

Health 2.80 4.20 7.70 4.60 4.90 5.10

Transport 55.80 77.90 80.30 41.20 16.00 63.40

Communication4 13.20 14.20 13.20 8.20 5.90 12.00

Recreation and culture 41.50 67.20 70.90 63.70 29.60 60.10

Education 3.00 8.90 8.80 1.30 0.40 6.20

Restaurants and hotels5 38.20 46.40 44.10 25.10 12.60 37.70

Miscellaneous goods and services 31.30 45.40 36.60 24.00 20.10 35.60

Other expenditure items 83.00 125.70 73.60 47.20 26.80 84.70

All household expenditure 441.20 581.90 509.20 353.60 216.80 471.00

1 See Appendix, Part 6: Living Costs and Food Survey. Expenditure rounded to the nearest 10 pence.

2 See Chapter 2: Households and familes text box for an explanation of household reference person.

3 Excludes mortgage interest payments, water charges and council tax (domestic rates in Northern Ireland). These are included in ‘Other expenditure

items’.

4 Includes mobile phone equipment and services.

5 Includes purchases of alcoholic drinks in pubs, restaurants and hotels.

Source: Living Costs and Food Survey, Office for National Statistics

Appendices iii and iv would not appear as graphs, but there are links to where I found them online.

If you’ve made it this far, congratulations, you are very patient!

[sallyscienceshorts]

Antifreeze: Cold Comfort For Our Furry Friends

  Winter is coming, and we will be reaching for the antifreeze to keep our cars ticking over; although it is used as an engine coolant year-round, this is the period during which we tend to remember that this is important, as demonstrated by an increase in seasonal antifreeze sales prior to and during a cold snap.

Car maintenance is essential, nobody wants to be stranded, especially during Winter, when rescue may be more difficult and it will be miserable waiting in the cold, so Winter-proofing your car is very important.

The problem with antifreeze is that it is highly toxic, so a leak, inappropriate disposal, getting it on the driveway during car maintenance etc, means that animals will be at risk of being poisoned if they drink it.

Why would an animal drink antifreeze? Antifreeze looks like water, smells and tastes sweet, which attracts animals to it, and since it is a liquid, it can easily run off concrete, tiles and slabs and into puddles, which will then be an easy source of drinking water during the Winter because it will not have frozen.

It would seem sensible to put a chemical into antifreeze to make it smell and taste bad, much like the artificial odour of commercial gas, it would be a warning that the product is toxic. Sadly, this would cost more money than not doing so, pet owners cover the cost of vet treatment, and animals are bad at lobbying. The humans who protest on their behalf are not taken seriously, and it’s cheaper to make a donation to an animal charity than it is to fix the problem. Antifreeze is labelled as toxic, so a human who drinks it is unlikely to garner much sympathy, but animals can’t read, and when it is keeping a source of water unfrozen, the only labelling that could work i.e. a chemical marker to demonstrate danger, is not present.

As a side note, cats can’t taste sweet, they are thought to be the only mammal not able to, so they may not be attracted by the odour and taste, but they drink from ponds and toilets so they are not that fussy.

Okay, by now I’ve probably got you sufficiently scared for your animal comrades, but is there anything we can actually do?

Short of a change in policy regarding the manufacturing of antifreeze, there are limited options, but there are some things you can do to help to keep animals safe.

You can replace your antifreeze with propylene glycol, which is less toxic, but requires a pH buffer, because when it oxidises, it forms lactic acid (the same stuff that builds up in your muscles when you work out) which is corrosive to metal. This also needs to be checked periodically because bacteria will grow in it and form a slime which will corrode the engine. If it’s red, it needs to be replaced. You can find out more online, or talk to a mechanic, if this is an option which interests you. Remember, it is still toxic, but less so, so accidental ingestion or contamination of water is less serious (but still see a doctor or a vet if a human or a pet is exposed).

You can dispose of waste antifreeze responsibly. If you pour it down the drain, sink, toilet etc it will enter the water supply, but there are not clear guidelines on disposing of antifreeze, for example, if you check the government and local council websites, there is no information for domestic use. You can take it to a mechanic or other commercial business and ask them to dispose of it for you, you can keep it in a safe container until then, you can find a local service, or you can ask your local council for guidance.

You can be alert for signs of antifreeze poisoning in your pets. The effects vary between species, but it is highly toxic, especially to cats and rabbits. If your pet appears to be drunk, has trouble walking, seems lethargic, is vomiting, drinking or urinating excessively, then the sooner you get them to a vet the better. There is an antidote, but it needs to be given within hours, so if you are in doubt, call or see a vet, it’s a painful death.

[sallyscienceshorts]

Why do dogs’ eyes not look red in photographs?

When using flash photography, human eyes appear red when they are looking straight at the camera because the light bounces off the retinas at the back of the eyes, which are red due to the concentration of blood vessels.

Dogs also have blood vessels on their retinas, but have evolved a reflective layer behind them, known as the tapetum lucidum (from the Latin for ‘shining tapestry’), which helps their nocturnal vision.

This extra layer reflects light back through the retina a second time, which increases the light available to the parts of the eye, known as photoreceptors, which pick up and process images, and this helps them to see at night when light is scarce.

The pigment of the tapetum lucidum varies with coat colour, so for example a black dog’s eyes may appear green in photographs. Animals with very dilute coat colour, such as some Siamese cats and albinos, lack the pigment in the reflective layer so although the light still bounces off the tapetum lucidum, it reflects the red of the blood cells on the retina just as it does in humans.

The tapetum lucidum is of particular interest because it is found in unrelated animals (mammals, birds, insects etc) and therefore is a good example of something which has evolved independently many times, much like the eye and the wing.

[sallyscienceshorts]

You know what? When men accost women in bars by touching them inappropriately or making lewd comments about their appearance or sexual availability, this is not merely an issue for women that should be ignored by men.

If you’re not one of these troglodytes, but don’t get furious when you hear of...

[sallyscienceshorts]

What’s in a name?

The recent discovery of a hitherto unknown dinosaur from Utah has filled me with joy, not just because dinosaurs are brilliant, but because of its less than flattering name. Nasutoceratops titusi, or “big nose, horn face”. This seems the ideal time to explain the system…

[sallyscienceshorts]

What's in a Name?

What’s in a name?

The recent discovery of a hitherto unknown dinosaur from Utah has filled me with joy, not just because dinosaurs are brilliant, but because of its less than flattering name. Nasutoceratops titusi, or “big nose, horn face”. This seems the ideal time to explain the system behind naming new finds, and to share some of my favourite species names.

Carl Linnaeus, a polymath from the eighteenth century, is best known for coming up with the scheme of biological nomenclature we still use today, and as such is known as the father of taxonomy.

Thanks to Linnaeus, whenever a new species is found, scientists, much like children in the playground of a private school, pick out its distinguishing features and give it a Latin nickname for everyone to call it by. It’s useful because after years of studying the natural sciences, one can figure out roughly what a species is by deciphering its name, before looking up specifics.

Take, for example, the dinosaur, Pachycephalosaurus wyomingenesis. Immediately we know something about the animal just by translating its name; it was a thick-headed lizard which was found in Wyoming (amongst other sites), because pachy = thick, cephalo = head, saurus = lizard, and, well, Wyoming = Wyoming, Sherlock.

Animals are also often named after famous people, for example the spider-like arachnid Draculoides bramstokeri. This creepy critter crushes its prey to death before sucking out its juices with fang-like pincers, hence its vampiric name, and is one of the reasons no small invertebrates should visit Australia.

Once a name is given, however, there is no changing it by deed pole, which is why a certain cave-dwelling beetle is forever cursed with the name Anophthalmus hitleri, or “the eyeless one of Hitler”. Ironically, it’s blond.