Utility Week

UTILITY WEEK | 4TH - 10TH NOVEMBER 2016 | 31 Community Autocomplete is the expert Michael Gove's much derided sneer during the referendum that "people have had enough of experts" may at last have some evidential base to support it, if the experience of New Zealander Christoph Bartneck is anything to go by. An associate professor at the Human Interface Technology lab at the University of Canter- bury in New Zealand, Bartneck was annoyed to receive an invi- tation to speak at a conference about nuclear energy, given that he knows nothing about nuclear energy. So in response he typed the word "atomic", hit autocomplete on his Mac, and submitted it as his proposed paper. Three hours later, his paper, despite being gibberish, was accepted. At that point the bemused prof withdrew his paper, but not before recounting the whole thing on his blog. So there you have it: experts, what are they good for? Of course, it is possible that on the monkeys-and-type- writers theory the autocom- plete came up with a workable scienti‡ c paper on nuclear energy purely at random. In which case any maths professor reading this might want to get over to NZ post-haste because there's a terri‡ c paper on prob- ability there that practically writes itself. The way the wind blows Disconnector is wondering just how out of touch with the mood of the country the Conservative party is. David Cameron famously got it all horribly wrong over the EU ref- erendum. But it now turns out that an earlier attempt to court the popular vote by banning onshore windfarms may also have been ill-judged. According to a ComRes poll conducted on behalf of climate change charity 10:10, public support for windfarms is far higher than widely believed. Wind turbines are also far more popular than fracking or nuclear power (both backed by the government), with 73 per cent of the public supporting onshore windfarms, 17 per cent opposed, and the rest unsure. Windfarm support was strong even in rural areas, which are more likely to house turbines: 65 per cent for versus 25 per cent against. There was even stronger public support for solar energy – 83 per cent for and 8 per cent against – yet solar subsidies have been slashed regardless. "It's plainly not true onshore wind is unpopular with the UK public," says Max Wake‡ eld at 10:10. He points out that although polling con- sistently shows 75-80 per cent of the public favouring renewa- bles, the Conservatives are curtailing their development despite coming to power with only 37 per cent of the vote. Don't cockups count? Iain Duncan Smith, who pre- sided over bene‡ ts cuts in his last ministerial post, has waded into a row over disability bene‡ ts by criticising the latest Ken Loach ‡ lm I, Daniel Blake, which is about man's ež orts to get bene‡ ts aŸ er he has suf- fered a heart attack. Declaring Loach had taken "the absolute worst that could happen to any- body", he implied the movie- maker was somehow cheating by doing so. Yet bureaucratic screw-ups undoubtedly happen. Discon- nector is reminded of the story reported earlier this month of a woman forced to rely on foodbanks aŸ er a tax agency cancelled her tax credits and accused her of co-habiting with one Joseph Rowntree, who is not only a famous 19th-century Quaker but also very de‡ nitely dead. In fact, the woman lives in a property provided by the Joseph Rowntree Foundation, which is a housing association and research funder. Disconnector Editor, Utility Week, and content director, Utilities: Ellen Bennett, t: 01342 332084, e: ellenbennett@fav-house.com; Acting editor: Jane Gray, t: 01342 332087, e: janegray@ fav-house.com; Insights editor: Mathew Beech, t: 01342 332082, e: mathewbeech@fav-house. com; News editor: Lois Vallely, t: 01342 332080, e: loisvallely@fav-house.com; Networks correspondent: Lucinda Dann, t: 01342 332083, e: lucindadann@fav-house.com; Reporters: Saffron Johnson, t: 01342 332050, e: saffronjohnson@fav-house.com and Tom Grimwood, t: 01342 332061, e: tomgrimwood@fav-house.com; Business development manager: Richard Powell, t: 01342 332062, e: richardpowell@fav-house.com; Business development executive: Nigel Searle, t: 01342 332009, e: nigelsearle@fav-house.com; Publisher: Amanda Barnes, e: amandabarnes@ fav-house.com. General enquiries: 01342 332000; Membership enquiries: Peter Bissell, t: 01342 332507, e: peterbissell@fav-house.com. ISSN: 1356-5532. Registered as a newspaper at the Post Offi ce. Printed by: Buxton Press, Palace Road, Buxton, Derbyshire SK17 6AE. Published by: Faversham House Ltd, Windsor Court, Wood Street, East Grinstead, West Sussex RH19 1UZ 3,580 Average circulation Jan–Dec 2015 Membership subscriptions: UK £637 per year. Overseas £749 per year. Contact Peter Bissell on: 01342 332507 Utility Week is a member of the Independent Press Standards Organisation (which regulates the UK's magazine and newspaper industry). We abide by the Editors' Code of Practice and are committed to upholding the highest standards of journalism. If you think that we have not met those standards and want to make a complaint please contact the editor, Ellen Bennett, at ellenbennett@fav-house.com. If we are unable to resolve your complaint, or if you would like more information about IPSO or the Editors' Code, contact IPSO on 0300 123 2220 or visit www.ipso.co.uk Energy Relief @Energyrelief The cost of a domestic bill rose in October by £45 for this winter (made up of £25 in gas costs and £20 in electricity costs). #BESW2016 CCWater @WaterWatchdog Check out our spook-tacular tips for making sure water bills don't give you a scare! Anglian Water @AnglianWater #ScaryStoriesIn5Words Wet wipes fl ushed down toilets. William Marchant @richonlyinname First impressions count. Industry can't afford to give the impression it's keener on getting meters on walls than on making them work. Redbourn Group @RedbournGroup #Smartmeters cover more than 50% of US homes. Charles Perry @_charlesperry What does our new prime minister really believe in? Or do her beliefs simply change overnight? Europe, Heathrow, Hinkley, Climate change, etc. Michael Liebreich @MLiebreich First #Hinkley, now #Heathrow. Sort it out, @gregclarkmp, we were promised an indus- trial strategy, not a corporatist snoutfest! Rainforest Alliance @RnfrstAlliance YES! #Renewable energy has passed coal as the largest source of new electricity worldwide. ECIU @ECIU_UK Netherlands Railways announces all electric trains will run on renewables. Roger Helmer @RogerHelmerMEP For all those Tweeters who' ve been rubbishing my call for coal-fi red power stations: how come the Germans are building them, but we can't? Top Tweets

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