Archive for the 'Health' Category
Flashback 2002: Australian Scientist Urged Government to Use Biological Weapons Against “Overpopulated” Countries
May 24th, 2010Via: The Age: World-famous microbiologist Sir Macfarlane Burnet, the Nobel prize winner revered as Australia’s greatest medical research scientist, secretly urged the government to develop biological weapons for use against Indonesia and other “overpopulated” countries of South-East Asia. The revelation is contained in top-secret files declassified by the National Archives of Australia, despite resistance from […]
ADHD Linked to Pesticide Exposure
May 17th, 2010Via: CNN: Children exposed to higher levels of a type of pesticide found in trace amounts on commercially grown fruit and vegetables are more likely to have attention deficit hyperactivity disorder than children with less exposure, a nationwide study suggests. Researchers measured the levels of pesticide byproducts in the urine of 1,139 children from across […]
Air Tests from the Louisiana Coast Reveal Human Health Threats from the Oil Disaster
May 17th, 2010Via: Institute for Southern Studies: The media coverage of the BP oil disaster to date has focused largely on the threats to wildlife, but the latest evaluation of air monitoring data shows a serious threat to human health from airborne chemicals emitted by the ongoing deepwater gusher. Today the Louisiana Environmental Action Network released its […]
Scientists Find ‘Baffling’ Link Between Autism and Vinyl Flooring
May 17th, 2010Via: Scientific American: Children who live in homes with vinyl floors, which can emit chemicals called phthalates, are more likely to have autism, according to research by Swedish and U.S. scientists published Monday. The study of Swedish children is among the first to find an apparent connection between an environmental chemical and autism. The scientists […]
New York Midwives Lose Right to Deliver Babies at Home
May 16th, 2010Via: New York Times: As residents of the world’s consumer capital, New Yorkers can have anything delivered to their door at any time. They can have their hair cut in the living room, have champagne and caviar rushed to them on a whim, enjoy a shiatsu massage in their own bed or invite a clairvoyant […]
Man Fitted with Robot Arm Controlled by the Mind
May 13th, 2010It’s unfortunate that killer robots are the inescapable flipside of this kind of stuff. Whether you love the machines, or dread them (or both), this is pretty remarkable. Via: BBC: Every morning Christian Kandlbauer wakes up, dresses himself, and gets in his car to drive to work. This may sound mundane, but for the 21-year-old […]
$3 Microscope Plugs into Cell Phones
May 13th, 2010Via: MIT Technology Review: Inexpensive, lightweight device provides basic medical diagnostics and images. A small digital microscope that costs just a few dollars can plug into a cell phone and perform basic medical diagnostics that would ordinarily require expensive lab equipment. The microscope, which uses no lenses, saves on cost and weight by using algorithms […]
Connecticut Growing Gardens at Prisons to Cut Food Costs
May 9th, 2010While Connecticut’s decision to have prisoners grow some portion of their own food is a positive development for several reasons (the health of the prisoners being the main one), let’s make sure that we’re seeing the big picture and understand that the prison industrial complex is just about the most diabolical aspect of the American […]
Tainted Nuclear Power Plant Water Reaches Major NJ Aquifer
May 8th, 2010Via: AP: Radioactive water that leaked from the nation’s oldest nuclear power plant has now reached a major underground aquifer that supplies drinking water to much of southern New Jersey, the state’s environmental chief said Friday. The state Department of Environmental Protection has ordered the Oyster Creek Nuclear Generating Station to halt the spread of […]
American Meat Infused with Heavy Metals, Veterinary Medications, Agricultural Pesticides
May 1st, 2010Via: Alternet: While the public has gotten used to microbes like E. coli and salmonella threatening the nation’s meat supply, and while food safety agencies make food-borne illness a high-profile priority, contamination of meat by heavy metals, veterinary drugs and pesticides has been slipping through the bureaucratic cracks. Microbial contaminants can be killed by cooking, […]
