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De Omnibus Dubitandum - Lux Veritas

Friday, December 4, 2015

Genetic Literacy Project

The Human Condition:

Why Americans respond to drug placebos more than any other nationality
Remarkably the placebo effect--a fake treatment in which a person taking an inactive substance like sugar, water or saline solution reports feeling better simply because the person has the expectation that it will be helpful. seems to be influenced by where you live

Charlie Sheen’s HIV announcement put AIDs back in the headlines. Gene editing may provide the chance to eliminate the disease.

The sources of obesity look more biological, and less psychological, which opens new avenues toward addressing the crisis. Finding answers has never been more important, and will probably come from a complex array of factors, including diet, exercise, and biology.

Why don’t elephants die of cancer nearly as often as humans, even though they have about 100 times as many cells? The answer to that question may save your life.





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Agriculture:

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The FDA will have its work cut out when it comes to coming up with a workable definition of ‘natural’, if the comments submitted to the FDA thus far are anything to go by. The comments – which you can read HERE -are in response to an FDA call to actionissued on November 10 inviting views on whether it is appropriate to define‘natural’ on food labels, and if so, what the definition should be. The FDA has also asked whether consumers view 'natural' and 'healthy' as "synonymous terms", and whether shoppers confuse the terms 'natural' and 'organic'. So far, most of the 781 comments available for viewing in the docket from the 2,110 received are from consumers, with the leading food companies and trade associations likely to request for the comment period to be extended or failing that, submit their views just prior to the Feb 10 deadline. Down the rabbit hole... So what can we learn from the comments submitted thus far?...

Many critics of conventional agriculture claim organic food is grown with "natural" and "botanical" pesticides that are safer than synthetic products. Some studies are starting to dispel this belief.

Discussions about GMOs often degenerate into shouting matches, especially on line. The science minded should consider the psychology of how views are formed. Don't 'fight with facts' or just science; respect and curiosity works best.

The World Trade Organization ruled that the EU violated treaties when it banned GM imports. What's happened since?

Declines in bee health have been blamed on pesticides and other factors. A new study suggests that economic changes may be the primary causal problem.

Discussions about GMOs often degenerate into shouting matches, especially on line. The science minded should consider the psychology of how views are formed. Don't 'fight with facts' or just science; respect and curiosity works best.










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