Fast Company: “Earlier this month, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) unveiled a significant change to car regulations that delighted safety advocates, annoyed automakers, and surprised pretty much everyone. In a first, NHTSA proposed forcing car companies to limit the risk of pedestrian head injuries in a collision. If the proposal becomes law, models… Continue Reading
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Category Archives: Health Care
Americans can order free COVID-19 tests beginning this month
AP: “Starting this month, Americans will be able to order free COVID-19 test kits that will be mailed to their homes. U.S. households will be able to order as many as four nasal swab tests at COVIDTests.gov when the federal program reopens. The U.S. Health and Human Services agency overseeing the program has not yet… Continue Reading
A World of Waste: Risks and opportunities in household waste management
World Risk Poll: “As the global population continues to expand and development accelerates, the volume of waste generated worldwide is increasing at an unprecedented rate. Safely managing this growing waste burden is an escalating challenge with significant implications not only for the environment but also for human health, safety, and wellbeing. Download the report here… Continue Reading
Microplastics in the Olfactory Bulb of the Human Brain
Amato-Lourenço LF, Dantas KC, Júnior GR, et al. Microplastics in the Olfactory Bulb of the Human Brain. JAMA Netw Open [full text]. 2024;7(9):e2440018. doi:10.1001/jamanetworkopen.2024.40018. The ubiquity of microplastic (MP) pollution has become a pervasive environmental concern, raising questions about its occurrence within the human body and its harmful effects. While MPs have been detected in… Continue Reading
Flooded Again: Visualizing Repeated Flooding Across the U.S.
NRDC: “For communities across the country, flooding is an all-too-frequent experience—and, often, one with devastating consequences. Over 250,000 properties in the United States have had multiple claims under the National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP). These “repetitive loss properties” are found in every U.S. state as well as Puerto Rico, the U.S. Virgin Islands, Guam, and… Continue Reading
WMO Ozone and UV Bulletin
World Meteorological Organization and Global Atmosphere Watch – new joint publication – WMO Ozone and UV Bulletin – [h/t Ben Amata] Continue Reading
Huge study from The Economist about car bloat in the US
The Economist [unpaywalled]: “…For all the safety features available in cars today to help them avoid crashes, the laws of physics are cruel. When two vehicles collide, it is usually the heavier one that prevails. This advantage has changed little over time. Thirty years ago when a passenger car crashed with a pickup truck or… Continue Reading
Your tax dollars are funding a $64 billion scam
Raw Story: “…Medicare Advantage is not Medicare. These plans are private health insurance provided by private corporations, who are then fully reimbursed by the Medicare trust fund regardless of how much their customers use their insurance. Thus, the more they can screw their customers and us taxpayers by withholding healthcare, the more money they make.… Continue Reading
A National Study of Sexual Harassment and Assault in the United States
Raj A, Rao N, Patel P, Kearl H. #MeToo 2024: A National Study of Sexual Harassment and Assault in the United States. Newcomb Institute. Tulane University. September 2024. https://newcomb.tulane.edu/content/metoo-research. New research from Tulane University’s Newcomb Institute found that not only have most American women experienced sexual harassment or assault before even reaching adulthood, but very… Continue Reading
Scientists just figured out how many chemicals enter our bodies from food packaging
Washington Post: “Shrink-wrap sealed around a piece of raw meat. Takeout containers filled with restaurant leftovers. Plastic bottles filled with soft drinks. These are just a few types of food packaging that surround humans every day. And a new study released Monday shows the chemical toll of all that wrapping — and how it might… Continue Reading
Nine AI Bills Pass US House Science, Space and Technology Committee
Science Committee Passes Nine Bills to Support the Advancement of Artificial Intelligence – September 11, 2024, the House Committee on Science, Space, and Technology passed nine bipartisan bills to ensure U.S. leadership in artificial intelligence (AI). The bills encompass a range of initiatives, including increased support for AI research and development and the promotion of AI… Continue Reading
Good news: More people are dialing 988
Your Local Epidemiologist: “September 8th was 988 Day—a day to raise awareness of the 988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline, which only 18% of adults are aware of. The three-digit number has been available for two years at no charge. Dialing this number connects people with a network of crisis call centers, so that when a person calls,… Continue Reading
