Atrazine, one of the most commonly used and controversial weedkillers, can turn male frogs into females, researchers reported on Monday.
“Ten percent of the exposed genetic males developed into functional females that copulated with unexposed males and produced viable eggs,” the researchers wrote.
The European Union banned atrazine in 2004. The finding may add [...]
This article from Maria Minno brings to mind many warnings about the push to vaccinate against the flu from our correspondent Ted LaCombe:
The finger is being pointed directly at the World Health Organisation, which stands accused of announcing ‘a false pandemic’; in June last year.
Critics now claim that the drug companies manipulated the WHO into [...]
Every time I see a photo of the towers of Dubai Leering over the ocean, I envision this oil-built city tumbling into the sea… I think of the ruins of the Coliseum in Rome, and I can see the future of our insane civilization.
“…an aquarium containing hundreds of sharks and thousands of sprung a leak.
Though [...]
More news from Ed Brown:
…synthetic nitrogen’s effect on carbon sequestration swings from being an important ecological advantage to perhaps its gravest liability. Not only would nitrogen fertilizer be contributing to climate change in a way not previously taken into account, but it would also be undermining the long-term productivity of the soil.
via New research: synthetic [...]
Bayer CropScience has not properly maintained or tested the underground storage tank where it keeps roughly 200,000 pounds of methyl isocyanate, the deadly chemical that killed thousands of people in Bhopal, India, in 1984, state inspectors have alleged.
via Bayer cited for MIC tank violations – News – The Charleston Gazette – West Virginia News and [...]
In a shift of position, the Food and Drug Administration is expressing concerns about possible health risks from bisphenol-A, or BPA, a widely used component of plastic bottles and food packaging that it declared safe in 2008.
The action is another example of the drug agency under the Obama administration becoming far more aggressive in taking [...]
WASHINGTON — Facing last-minute liberal resistance in Congress, the drug industry is bracing for an increase in its share of the cost of the proposed health care overhaul beyond the $80 billion over 10 years that it had negotiated with the White House, industry lobbyists say.
via Drug Industry Girds for Rise in Its Share of [...]
Another interesting story from science journalist DeLene Beeland:
“…Leaf litter is piled up in drifts on the cave floor. The camera zooms in, and suddenly you realize these are not leaves… they are bats: hundreds and hundreds of dead bats. The footage is all the sadder because this cave houses the largest colony of hibernating bats [...]
SUVs belching to match their price…
“No rarefied air here: A newly released study of street-level airborne pollution has found that the Upper East Side is home to some of the dirtiest air in the five boroughs.”
http://www.nytimes.com/2009/12/17/nyregion/17pollute.html?sudsredirect=true
“…more than 62 million Americans have been exposed since 2004 to drinking water that did not meet at least one commonly used government health guideline intended to help protect people from cancer or serious disease…
Some federal regulators have tried to help officials like Dr. Parekh by pushing to tighten drinking water standards for chemicals like [...]
