Via Reddit: “Map created by me, an attempt to define cost of living tiers. People often say how they live in a HCOL, MCOL, LCOL area. Source for all data on cost of living dollar amounts by county, with methodology: https://www.epi.org/publication/family-budget-calculator-documentation/ To summarize, this cost of living calculation is for a “modest yet adequate standard… Continue Reading
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Category Archives: Health Care
Wyden, Markey Reveal Automakers Provide Detailed Location Information to Law Enforcement Without a Warrant
Washington, D.C. – “Sen. Ron Wyden, D-Ore., and Sen. Edward Markey, D-Mass., requested the Federal Trade Commission investigate major automakers for breaking a pledge to protect their customers’ location data, in a letter to Chair Lina Khan sent today. The automakers had deceptively pledged that they would insist on warrants or other court orders before… Continue Reading
The reckless policies that helped fill our streets with ridiculously large cars
Vox – Dangerous, polluting SUVs and pickups took over America. Lawmakers are partly to blame. Cars, you might have noticed, have grown enormous. Low-slung station wagons are all but extinct on American roads, and even sedans have become an endangered species. (Ford, producer of the iconic Model T a century ago, no longer sells any… Continue Reading
LED lighting is bright, efficient, and perhaps a problem
CBC: “The global transition to LED lighting seems to be having some concerning impacts on the natural world and human health. These energy efficient artificial lights produce different spectra than older incandescent technology, or the natural light of the Sun that life on Earth evolved with over billions of years. LED lighting is brighter, bluer,… Continue Reading
Ai and Moderna
Noting this press release as it shines light into the foothold AI is gaining in major sectors, in this case, pharmaceuticals: “For over a decade, Moderna has been at the intersection of science, technology and health. Since our beginnings, we’ve leveraged the power of machine learning to support our mission to develop transformative mRNA medicines.… Continue Reading
Spring 2024 Harvard Youth Poll
The Spring 2024 Harvard Youth Poll surveyed 2,010 young Americans between 18- and 29 years old nationwide, and was conducted between March 14-21, 2024. Top Issues – Inflation; Healthcare; Housing; Gun Violence – “A national poll released today by the Institute of Politics (IOP) at Harvard Kennedy School indicates that among 18-to-29-year-olds nationwide, more than… Continue Reading
Global study revealed world’s biggest known plastic polluters
Washington Post: “Every year, companies produce more than 400 million metric tons of plastic. Some of that plastic spills onto waterways or beaches, clogging streams or floating in huge gyres in the ocean. Some of it breaks down into tiny microplastics or nanoplastics that float in the air and enter human lungs, blood and organs.… Continue Reading
NOAA expands availability of new heat forecast tool ahead of summer
“NOAA is expanding the availability of a new experimental heat tool called HeatRisk ahead of the hot summer months. A collaboration with NOAA’s National Weather Service (NWS) and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), HeatRisk provides information and guidance for those who are particularly vulnerable to heat and may need to take extra… Continue Reading
Vast DNA tree of life for plants revealed by global science team
PHYS.org: “A new paper published April 24, 2024 in the journal Nature by an international team of 279 scientists led by the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew presents the most up-to-date understanding of the flowering plant tree of life. Using 1.8 billion letters of genetic code from more than 9,500 species covering almost 8,000 known flowering… Continue Reading
Nearly 2 in 5 Americans breathe unhealthy air
Washington Post: “A rising number of Americans — nearly 2 in 5 — has been living with unhealthy levels of air pollution, while the United States experienced a record number of days between 2020 and 2022 with very unhealthy or hazardous air, according to a new report. More than 90 million people are living in… Continue Reading
10 Times as Much of This Toxic Pesticide Could End Up on Your Tomatoes and Celery
ProPublica – “Against the guidance of scientific advisory panels, the EPA is relying on industry-backed tests to relax regulations on acephate, which has been linked to neurodevelopmental disorders. “It’s exactly what we recommended against,” one panelist said. When you bite into a piece of celery, there’s a fair chance that it will be coated with… Continue Reading
Should you take vitamin D? Here’s the science
PopSci: “Nutritional science is supposed to chart a course to our healthier selves. But contradictory scientific results and interpretations can muddy the waters—and few nutrients have recently demonstrated that more clearly than vitamin D. At one point, it seemed that everyone should be taking vitamin D supplements, and that doing so would protect against a… Continue Reading
