California has legislated a state wide ban on the use of trans-fats in food. It is the first US state to do so and sets an example for others, which will no doubt follow soon. Trans-fats are processed oils used to bulk up and preserve processed food, but significantly contribute to weight gain, cholesterol build-up …
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Category:7 Holonics and Life
The Food We Waste
Its not just transport and packaging that are destroying the natural world, but our waste of food. An extensive UK study by WRAP analysed garbage of over 2,000 households to identify the food we waste. The results are revealing. The sheer volume of food thrown away by all types of people is embarrassing: over £ …
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Eat now for tomorrow there will be nothing
Alarming reports from the Rights and Resources Initiative show that an escalation in land acquisition and deforestation is underway. The cause underpinning this land grab is increasing demand for crop land upon which to grow food and biofuel. The consequence of this deforestation will be an acceleration of the destruction of nature and humanity’s home. …
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Nitrogen is destroying the biosphere as much as carbon.
It is rarely mentioned in the media yet, but production of reactive nitrogen is already at catastrophic levels. Its main contributors are vehicles and farming for the gross quantities of fuel they consume. The consequence of emitting massive excesses is destruction of habitats and food chains. As with other identifiable culprits of planetary destruction, the …
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Humanity pushes another mammal off the planet.
Last year it was the baiji dolphin of China which became extinct – the first mammal for 50 years to do so. Now it seems that another dolphin is being pushed off the planet by humans – the Mekong Irrawaddy dolphin, principally found in Cambodia. This may seem to be far from you, but the …
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World Values Survey shows we’re getting happier
The recent publication of this year’s World Values survey shows that the world is getting happier. The survey is simple, but revealing and you can download much data here. Two aspects are particularly interesting: In general the Human Development trend points towards stronger secular-rational values and stronger self-expression values. There is a diminishing marginal return …
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Natural capitalism’s time is now
While doing research to design a community that lives in and with nature, I came across Rocky Mountain Institute’s declaration of core principles, which are an excellent template for any person or business. One of these advocates Natural Capitalism, which is an inevitable evolutionary step in humanity’s social development as we must now recognise our …
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Mothers’ junk food diet harms child
New evidence has been published that shows that junk food eaten by a pregnant woman is likely to harm the gestating foetus. Its not only that the unborn child might pick up bad habits – a craving for fatty, salty food, but may also suffer long term health risks. This is a very strong argument …
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The United States of Advertising and our dysfunctional perspective
This funny article and video clip give a good insight in to the difficulty we all face of having a sensible and balanced view of our world. The author mainly discusses the differences between advertising in the US and elsewhere, such as the promotion of prescription drugs – “if your doctor isn’t prescribing this, ask …
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Was there time before the big bang?
Physicists now claim that analysis of the universe’s cosmic microwave background suggests that our universe was spun off from another one. One of the main conclusions hypothesised is that the second law of thermodynamics – that the universe evolves from order to disorder – does not necessarily hold true. Consequently, time may not just flow …
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