The Human Imprint

High fructose corn syrup and diabetes

Check out the article in Scientific American.

Mount Tongariro erupts in New Zealand

Mount Tongariro, situated in a remote part of the country's North Island, erupted for five minutes on November 21. It sent ash clouds 2.5 miles (4 kilometers) high in the air. In August, the 6,490 foot (1,978-meter) Tongariro had erupted for the first time since 1897.

Source: Scientific American

Food security and nutrition will remain a top priority for G20 and G8 during Russian presidency

Russia, which will be presiding over the G-20 in 2013 and the G-8 in 2014, is committed to keeping food and nutrition security high on the international agenda. Follow the link to read more.

 

Source: FAO Media Centre

Malvern Autumn Conference 2012

Check out the highlights.

Nuffield Farming Conference 2012

Check out the highlights of the Nuffield Conference 2012  

LEAF Presidents Event 2012

Check out the highlights.

Rivers No Longer Burn but Climate Threats and Runoff Still an Issue

Scientific American reports that when the US Clean Water Act becamelaw in 1972, the nation's waterways and coastlines were in crisis.

"Oily debris in the Cuyahoga River in Cleveland, Ohio, had notoriously caught fire several times. The southernmost of North America's Great Lakes, Lake Erie, had been pronounced dead or dying. Fish in Californian coastal waters were so laced with the pesticide DDT that it disrupted the reproductive systems of brown pelicans, threatening them with extinction".

Forty years and billions of dollars later, rivers no longer burn, Lake Erie is much healthier and pelicans are off the endangered species list, but much remains to be done. Follow the link to find out more.

Diabetes rates soar as 18 US States see diagnosed cases double

The Independent reports that the number of people living with diabetes is soaring in the United States. Eighteen states have seen at least a doubling of cases since 1995, according to a US government survey.

Nigeria Exxon Spill Spreads for Miles along Coast

Scientific American reports that an oil spill at an ExxonMobil facility offshore from the Niger Delta has spread at least 20 miles from its source, coating waters used by fishermen in a film of sludge. Follow the link to read the full article.

Poorest families hit hardest by income squeeze

The Independent reports that the 10 per cent of UK households with the lowest income – £8,000 or less – have seen the biggest rise in the rate of inflation over the past year when the impact of soaring university tuition fees is stripped out. These households faced inflation of 2.49 per cent in the year to October, compared to just 2.1 per cent for the richest 10 per cent. Click on the link to read the full article.