Matt Yglesias writes:
There’s extensive evidence that the fine particulate matter that’s floating in the air on high pollution days impairs cognitive abilities. On high-pollution days, investors make worse trading decisions, baseball umpires blow more calls, chess players make more blunders, and British MPs speak at a lower grade level. This is also true of work that’s normally thought of as less-skilled — we see lower efficiency at pear-packing factories on high-pollution days. Prolonged exposure to pollution increases the risks of Alzheimer’s and dementia.