Study links breast cancer to farm work
13 Oct 2006 at 2:10pm
October is Breast Cancer Awareness Month. Think that has nothing to do with the environment? Guess again. A new study of women in Windsor, Ontario, found that those who have worked on a farm are 2.8 times more likely to develop breast cancer than those who haven’t. The research was …
Commuting costs often outweigh savings from living in suburbs, researchers say
13 Oct 2006 at 2:10pm
The cost of commuting more than 12 miles often nullifies the savings of cheaper suburban housing, says a new study by the Center for Housing Policy. Low- to moderate-income families are often pushed to outer suburbs by a lack of affordable housing near job centers; then, as public transportation is …
Jonathan Rosenthal, fair-trade fruit purveyor, answers readers’ questions
13 Oct 2006 at 2:10pm
“How fair is fair trade?” one reader asks Jonathan Rosenthal, head of Oké USA, a fair-trade fruit company. It would be more realistically described as “slightly less unfair trade,” Rosenthal answers, but he still has high hopes that his work can help transform the way we do business globally. As …
Katrina and Rita destroyed 217 square miles of Louisiana coastline
13 Oct 2006 at 2:10pm
Hurricanes Katrina and Rita drowned 217 square miles of Louisiana’s fragile coastline, turning wetlands, undeveloped dry land, and farmland into open water, says a new study by the U.S. Geological Survey. The research underscores the urgent need for a storm buffer of plants, soils, and barrier islands. “We need a …
Solar-powered robot could pick weeds and reduce herbicide use
13 Oct 2006 at 2:10pm
Here’s an innovative idea for limiting herbicide use: A solar-powered robot with 20/20 vision and depth perception that uses GPS navigation to search out and destroy weeds. As it moves along at three miles per hour, the two-foot-tall, five-foot-long robot, designed by engineers at the University of Illinois, can tell …