astronomy

Rick van der Ploeg

Rick van der Ploeg is a astronomy 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 Rick van der Ploeg rather than just read about it. In short: Frederick "Rick" van der Ploeg (born 28 April 1956, in Rotterdam) is an Anglo-Dutch economist and former politician. Career After having obtained his PhD at the University of Cambridge, he held professorships in economics at the University of Amsterdam, Tilburg University, and the London School of Economics.

Key takeaways

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

Reference excerpt

Frederick "Rick" van der Ploeg (born 28 April 1956, in Rotterdam) is an Anglo-Dutch economist and former politician.

Career After having obtained his PhD at the University of Cambridge, he held professorships in economics at the University of Amsterdam, Tilburg University, and the London School of Economics. After having served as an MP for the Dutch Labour Party (PvdA) from 1994 until 1998, he became State Secretary for Culture and Media in the government of Prime Minister Wim Kok from 1998 until 2002. Van der Ploeg is currently a professor of economics at the University of Oxford and the VU University Amsterdam, and the research director at the Oxford Centre for the Analysis of Resource Rich Economies. In 2010 he became a correspondent of the Royal Netherlands Academy of Arts and Sciences. Van der Ploeg's studies the potential impact of climate change on the economy. To meet proposed carbon emissions reductions, and prevent temperature increases beyond 2 degrees, up to one-third of global oil reserves, half of gas reserves and 80 percent of coal reserves will have to remain unburned, making them stranded assets. This will affect oil, gas, and coal companies, and "carbon-intensive industries such as steel, aluminum, cement, plastics, and greenhouse horticulture". Van der Ploeg emphasizes the need for investors to be aware of climate-related financial risk and take them into account for long-term planning.

Other activities Max Planck Institute for Tax Law and Public Finance, member of the board of trustees

Personal life Van der Ploeg has Dutch nationality. His father is Dutch, his mother is British. He is married and has a son called Boris.

References

External links Profile at the Oxford University Department of Economics

Illustrations

Worked examples

Example 1 — a first encounter with Rick van der Ploeg

Start with the simplest possible case. Write down what Rick van der Ploeg claims or describes in one sentence, then invent the smallest concrete situation in which that sentence is true. In astronomy, 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 Rick van der Ploeg 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 Rick van der Ploeg 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 Rick van der Ploeg

In research: Rick van der Ploeg appears in astronomy 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 Rick van der Ploeg 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: Rick van der Ploeg is common in secondary-school and first-year university syllabi. It links to neighbouring topics 1956 births, Academic staff of Tilburg University, Academic staff of Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam, so understanding it makes those chapters shorter.
In everyday life: Look for Rick van der Ploeg 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 Rick van der Ploeg in 20 minutes

Read the reference excerpt below once, without taking notes.
Close the page and write down what Rick van der Ploeg 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 Rick van der Ploeg out loud to somebody else — or to Teacher Smith in the lgStudy chat.

Frequently asked questions

What is Rick van der Ploeg in simple terms?

Frederick "Rick" van der Ploeg (born 28 April 1956, in Rotterdam) is an Anglo-Dutch economist and former politician. Career After having obtained his PhD at the University of Cambridge, he held professorships in economics at the University of Amsterdam, Tilburg University, and the London School of…

Why does Rick van der Ploeg matter?

Because it connects several astronomy 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 Rick van der Ploeg?

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 Rick van der Ploeg.