physics

Our World 2.0

Our World 2.0 is a physics topic covered in the lgStudy science library. This page brings together a partial reference excerpt, illustrations, worked examples, real-world applications and a short study plan, so you can understand Our World 2.0 rather than just read about it. In short: Our World 2.0 is an online magazine created by the United Nations University Media Centre, located in Tokyo, Japan. At launch, it initially focused on climate change, peak oil, biodiversity, and food security.

Key takeaways

Our World 2.0 belongs to physics; place it in that map before memorising details.
Learn the definition first, then one example that makes the definition concrete.
Connect Our World 2.0 to a quantity you can measure, compute or draw — that is where exam questions come from.
Reproduce the core statement of Our World 2.0 from memory before moving on to harder problems.

Reference excerpt

Our World 2.0 is an online magazine created by the United Nations University Media Centre, located in Tokyo, Japan. At launch, it initially focused on climate change, peak oil, biodiversity, and food security. The magazine was affiliated with The Guardian's Environment Network for a number of years.

History and mission Our World 2.0 was launched in July 2008, in time for the 34th G8 summit. In August 2009, Our World 2.0 became part of The Guardian's Environment Network. The central tenet of Our World 2.0 is that humanity can use its collective knowledge, technology, and design to facilitate creativity, innovation, and collaboration among people in order to respond to these challenges. In 2013, the Our World 2.0 online magazine was completely redesigned and the range of topics covered was expanded to encompass all areas of the United Nation's work. At that time, the 2.0 tag was dropped from the magazine. The story behind the development of the Our World 2.0 magazine was covered in a book chapter published in 2013 by Brendan F.D. Barrett, Mark Notoras and Carol Smith. All were involved as editors for the magazine. One innovative component of the Our World 2.0 magazine was the introduction of video briefs – short 5–6 minute videos designed to introduce complex scientific issues (mainly in the field) to policy-makers and the general public. They tend to be short, character-driven stories about people and organisations that are tackling complex social development and environmental issues in new, innovative ways. They can be viewed on the United Nations University's YouTube Channel.

Licensing and platform Our World 2.0 uses of Creative Commons licensing to enable other interested parties to copy and modify the materials contained in the web-zine. It uses open source software called WordPress.

References

Worked examples

Example 1 — a first encounter with Our World 2.0

Start with the simplest possible case. Write down what Our World 2.0 claims or describes in one sentence, then invent the smallest concrete situation in which that sentence is true. In physics, the smallest case is usually a single object, a single equation or a single measurement. Check that every symbol or term in your sentence has a meaning in that case.

Example 2 — changing one variable

Take the situation from Example 1 and change exactly one quantity: double it, halve it, or set it to zero. Predict what should happen to Our World 2.0 before you calculate. Comparing your prediction with the result is the fastest way to find out whether you understand the idea or only the words.

Example 3 — an exam-style question

Typical questions about Our World 2.0 ask you to (a) state it precisely, (b) apply it to given data, and (c) explain a limitation. Practise writing all three answers in under five minutes; the third part is what separates a full-mark answer from an average one.

Applications of Our World 2.0

In research: Our World 2.0 appears in physics research whenever the underlying quantities have to be modelled precisely. Papers usually cite it as a starting assumption and then explore where it breaks down.
In technology and industry: Engineering practice reuses Our World 2.0 in design rules, simulations and safety margins. Knowing the idea lets you read a specification sheet and understand why the numbers look the way they do.
In the classroom: Our World 2.0 is common in secondary-school and first-year university syllabi. It links to neighbouring topics 2008 establishments in Japan, Energy magazines, Environmental blogs, so understanding it makes those chapters shorter.
In everyday life: Look for Our World 2.0 outside the textbook — in sport, cooking, traffic, electronics or the sky above you. An example you found yourself is remembered far longer than one you were given.

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How to study Our World 2.0 in 20 minutes

Read the reference excerpt below once, without taking notes.
Close the page and write down what Our World 2.0 means in your own words.
Compare your version with the excerpt and mark what you missed.
Work through the three examples above with pen and paper.
Explain Our World 2.0 out loud to somebody else — or to Teacher Smith in the lgStudy chat.

Frequently asked questions

What is Our World 2.0 in simple terms?

Why does Our World 2.0 matter?

Because it connects several physics ideas at once: it gives you a definition you can apply, a quantity you can calculate, and a way to check whether a result is plausible.

How should I study Our World 2.0?

Read the excerpt, restate it from memory, then work through the examples and applications listed on this page. The five-step study plan above takes about twenty minutes.

What does this page cover?

It gives you a compact reference excerpt plus original lgStudy explanations, examples, applications and study material on Our World 2.0.