Summary of Redes 62: Desmontando mitos sobre el mundo - estadística social

00:00:00 - 00:30:00

In this video, Professor Eduardo Punset and Hans Rosling discuss how statistics can be used to understand and dispel myths about the world. They argue that we are doing better than we think and that people are more generous than we give them credit for. As an example, they point to India, where social disparities have been decreasing over the past few decades. They conclude the video by asking the audience how they think things are going and whether they think they are getting better or worse.

• 00:00:00 In this video, Eduardo Punset, a professor of health international studies at the Institute of Karolinska in Sweden, discusses how statistics can be used to understand the past and future of a country. He discusses how his software, which takes data from sources like the United Nations, Unicef, and other agencies, allows for easy visualization of historical trends. He also mentions that even though the world is becoming more interconnected, people still rely on preconceived notions when making decisions. Hans Rosling, a professor of global health at the Karolinska Institute in Sweden, presents a single graph that illustrates the past 200 years of world history. Rosling's software, which is based on data from various sources, is freely available to the public. He argues that we are doing better than we think and that people are more generous than we give them credit for. As an example, Rosling points to India, where social disparities have been decreasing over the past few decades. He concludes the video by asking the audience how they think things are going and whether they think they are getting better or worse.
• 00:05:00 This video discusses how world statistics have changed over time, with particular emphasis on how the world has improved in terms of health and family life. It discusses how different countries have progressed in different ways, with some countries, such as India, China, and Spain, experiencing rapid population growth due to high fertility rates. Meanwhile, other countries, such as the United States, Japan, and Canada, have seen a decrease in the size of their families due to the spread of contraception and other family planning methods. In the year 2018, almost the entire world is found to be living in countries with more than two children per woman, surpassing the number of children per woman seen in 1950.
• 00:10:00 This video discusses the history of life expectancy in Europe and China, and how it has changed over time. It also discusses the statistical indicator of family size, which shows that, although China has made progress in recent years, Europe has still far to go in terms of family size.
• 00:15:00 In this video, statistics professor Redes discusses the myths about social development. She notes that while in Europe, the development engine was industrialization and the economy based on market principles, after that came technology and the welfare state--resulting in a sequence in which countries progressed differently. China, because of its healthy population and well-educated workforce, has been able to achieve very rapid economic growth, while North America and Europe experienced a more gradual industrialization, with the majority of development taking place after the revolution in agriculture. Later, with social and educational reforms in place, Chinese companies were able to compete on a global scale and grow rapidly. Moreover, throughout the development process, there have been costs, both social and economic, that the Chinese population has had to bear, such as struggles for human rights and democracy, as well as rising prices of everyday goods. However, even with these challenges, the country is on track to become the world's largest economy by 2030. In addition, Redes shares another secret--that China is growing faster than any other country in the industrialized world, due to its ability to combine strong health and education systems with strong economic growth. Over time, this has allowed China to become the leading force in global culture and politics.
• 00:20:00 The speaker discusses the idea that dividing the world into religions doesn't make much sense, and that it doesn't lead to any good destinations. He suggests that instead, we should focus on advancing democracy and the rights of women, which takes time and cannot be achieved automatically. One example the speaker gives is how, in China, women used to be very oppressed but now have more equality in many aspects than in India. This change has happened in just one century in China. Another example the speaker tells is about how in Sweden, a conservative government banned contraception a hundred years ago. A woman attending the talk's Informational Session heard him speak and attended an earlier talk where he had given a talk about condoms. The woman was arrested for five seconds after attending the talk because she was wearing a condom. This happened in 1936, and a hundred years later, in 1958, Sweden allowed contraceptives to be sold in public. The speaker remembers a day in 2007 when he learned that two of the last three Swedish avispas had joined the Lutheran Church. He recalls that this change was so recent that many people didn't even know it had happened. He tells the audience that, in order to progress, we need to develop human abilities, and do so
• 00:25:00 In this video, Redes 62, statistics professor, discusses the topic of urban and rural distribution of civilizations, with a focus on the increase in population growth in cities over the next few decades. He also discusses the various problems that arise with an increase in population in cities, such as crime, child mortality, and drug addiction. He concludes the video by saying that while progress is often a messy process, it is essential for countries to move from traditional rural societies to more pleasant and livable cities in order to decrease mortality rates among young women.
• 00:30:00 The presenter of the video discusses how statistics can be used to dispel myths about the world. For example, people may think that their parents had a better life than they did, that they imagined a new house with a warm water heater and TV, and that they had a garden. However, many people in developed countries do not have similar imaginings. Political debate focuses on the next three years, while people in developing countries plan for the next 25 years. They are aware of where they want to go and are willing to fight for it. The problem is not ignorance, but preconceived ideas. Hans Rosling demonstrates this by discussing how fingers are not always the same length.