globalbriefs
News and resources to inspire concerned citizens to work together in building a healthier, stronger society that benefits all.
Danger Signs Monsanto Weed Killer Causes Animal Mutations
The world’s most popular weed killer, Mon- santo’s Roundup, a systemic, broad-spectrum herbicide, can induce morphological changes in vertebrate skeletal animals, say U.S. biolo- gists studying its effect on amphibians. A study by University of Pittsburgh researchers says the poison, tested in environmentally relevant concentrations, caused the shapes of two species of amphibians to change. The study is the first to show these dangerous consequences. The presence of predators can cause tad-
poles to change shape by altering their stress hormones, but similar shape changes seen after exposure to Roundup suggest the weed killer may interfere with the hormones of tadpoles, and potentially, many other animals. The de- velopment is important because amphibians not only serve as a barometer of an ecosystem’s
health, but also as an indicator of potential dangers to other species in the food chain, including humans.
Better Doggie Bags Want Not, Waste Not
The New York Times estimates that 78 mil- lion dogs produce more than 10.6 million tons of dung annually. To tackle the grow- ing problem of unhygienic doggie doo-doo, about which USA Today reports, “At some beaches, dogs help raise bacteria levels so high that visitors must stay out of the water,” operators of Allan H. Treman Marine State Park, in Ithaca, New York, started a project in
2009 to compost the waste in its dog park. Plastic bags that don’t decompose easily end up in landfills, so park of- ficials began placing corn-based, compostable bags in dispensers. A local com- pany, Cayuga Compost, picks up the waste weekly for processing and deposits it into a pile mixed with yard and wood waste at a nearby composting site. In 18 months, the company composted 12 tons of dog waste from the park.
Lab tests have shown that the compost is pathogen-free and has a high-nutrient profile that is perfect for flowers, shrubs and trees. Cayuga Program Manager Mark Whiting calls it a great example of upcycling—taking something that is otherwise considered worthless and turning it into a product with higher value.
Note:
ZeroWasteUSA.com and similar entities provide complete sustainable systems for pet waste disposal; biodegradable bags are widely available at retail.
10 NA Twin Cities Edition
natwincities.com
Fit Lit Long Live Exceptional Books
With the avalanche of digital con- tent available on a host of common devices that include computers, tablets and phones, some educators are concerned that literary classics are getting short shrift in the mix of websites, blogs, social networks and music. The Great Books Sum- mer Program (GreatBooksSummer. com) introduces young book lovers to literature they would not typically encounter in today’s classrooms. The unique summer camp, held for the past 10 years at Am- herst College, in Massachusetts, and Stanford University, in California, was created for middle school and high school students to discover and maintain critical reading and think- ing skills during their seasonal break and beyond. “Great Books’ faculty not only stresses the importance of reading, but introduces exceptional literature that students wouldn’t typ- ically discover on their own,” says co-founder and Academic Director Peter Temes, Ph.D.
Primary goals of the program are to help students learn how to read and think at a college level; learn how to engage in lively, spirited, yet disciplined discussion; gain new powers of perception, critical think- ing and self-expression; develop greater confidence with peers and adults; and launch their own lifelong intellectual journey. Register now for next summer.
Source: The Christian Science Monitor
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