Conditions linked to everyday chemicals—used in cosmetics, plastics and common household items like sofas—lead to $340 billion in treatment and lost productivity costs annually in the U.S., according to a new study.
Researchers behind the paper, published in The Lancet, evaluated a set of chemicals that have been shown to disrupt normal functioning of the endocrine system using data on the levels of the chemicals in blood and urine of subjects of a Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) study. Flame retardants like PBDEs, phthalates, which are widely used in cosmetics and scented products, plastic component DEHP and organophosphate pesticides are among the chemicals linked to health issues in the U.S., according to the research.
The study contributes to a growing debate about how best to assess and manage the safety of common chemicals. Improved regulation could reduce exposure to some of the most damaging chemicals, the report’s authors say. Previous research has shown that Europe—where regulations require manufacturers to prove household chemicals are safe before they hit shelves—loses a significantly smaller share of its GDP as […]
Eight people were killed and at least 40 were wounded over the weekend, according to police and data compiled by the Tribune. Credit: Chicago Tribune
A thousand more people have been shot in Chicago this year compared with the same time last year after a weekend that saw eight people killed and at least 40 wounded, according to police and data compiled by the Tribune. (emphasis added)
At least 3,475 people had been shot in the city as of shortly after midnight Monday compared with 2,441 people shot this time last year, an increase of 1,034, according to Tribune data. There have been at least 595 homicides this year compared with 409 this time last year, an increase of 186.
The gun violence over the weekend was at levels usually seen in the summer when shootings typically spike.
A single attack Friday night in East Garfield Park killed one man and left six others wounded, according to police. The people were standing […]
The 8 member Supreme Court
Credit: NBC
Senate Republicans have formed a united front around the principle Barack Obama should not be able to appoint a replacement for Antonin Scalia, and that the seat should instead be selected by the winner of the 2016 election. This “principle” rests on a wildly selective reading of senatorial history, according to which it is somehow improper for a president to fill a Supreme Court seat in his final year. In reality, this principle has never existed before and was concocted on the fly in order to justify the simple exertion of power.
The implication of this claim, though, is that if Hillary Clinton wins the election, Republicans will give her latitude to appoint a reasonably well-qualified, non-extreme jurist to the vacant spot. I have long been skeptical that Republicans would actually go along with this if it comes to pass. And now John McCain confirms it. In […]
As Donald Trump and his supporters ramp up their allegations that the U.S. presidential election will be rigged, an arrest in Kansas last week offers some disturbing evidence that fears about post-election violence and unrest may be warranted.
Curtis Wayne Allen, Patrick Eugene Stein, and Gavin Wayne Wright, members of a small militia group calling itself “the Crusaders,” were arrested on Friday and charged with plotting to bomb an apartment complex in Garden City, Kansas. That complex is home to a large number of Somali immigrants—most of them employees at a local meatpacking plant—with one apartment being used as a mosque. The men had been surveilling the building but weren’t too subtle about it: According to the criminal complaint:
STEIN at various times yelled at Somali women dressed in traditional garb, calling them “fucking raghead bitches.”
The men were allegedly planning to use bombs similar to those used by Timothy McVeigh in the 1995 Oklahoma City attack, and the attack was planned for Nov. 9, the day after the election. According to the complaint, the men had hoped their terrorist action would “wake up” […]
Houses surrounded by water in St. Augustine, Florida Oct. 8 in the aftermath of Hurricane Matthew.
Credit: Marc Serota / Greenpeace
In 1992, Hurricane Andrew ripped through southeast Florida, doing more than $26 billion in damage and killing at least 65 people. At the time, I was working on a masters degree in marine biology in southeast Florida; several of my close friends lost their homes during the storm.
Our marine lab was at the end of a barrier island and there were so many overturned Australian pines along the road that it looked like someone had dumped a giant bag of Lincoln Logs. I remember helping friends move their belongings off houseboats and out of trailers to higher and safer ground, and the mint green color of the sky just before our transformer blew up.
Strangest of all, I remember being asked to shoot holes in the deck of a yacht to try to […]
Remote Viewing the Year 2060
