Good Food is First Food. It is not junk food. It is the food that connects nature and nutrition with livelihoods. This food is good for our health; it comes from the rich biodiversity of our regions; it provides employment to people. Most importantly, cooking and eating give us pleasure. …
the use of adult stem cells to develop new transplant therapies might not prove to be very viable, indicate two recent studies. The medical world has for long been hopeful that stem cells
a recent report released by an expert committee recommended that France should continue testing new genetically modified (gm) organisms in open fields. However, the advisory committee
Intelligence is effected by the environment one grows in, proves an analysis of 124 studies published in the January issue of Psychological Review. Dennis Garlick, of the University of Sydney in Australia, says that the neural plasticity model of intelligence better explains how intelligence is developed. His model suggests that …
PUSHPA M BHARGAVA Former director, Centre for Cellular and Molecular Biology Manipulating research is not a new phenomenon. Earlier, the reason for manoeuvring the results of scientific research was professional rivalry. But for the last four decades, it has been economic gain and power, which could be personal, corporate or …
The recently published World Watch List for Domestic Animal Diversity estimates that every week the world loses two of its valuable domestic breeds. The document, issued by Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO) and United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP), is the result of 10 years of data collection in 170 countries …
for thousands of years now, a stumpy tree prized for its heartwood and sandal oil, has been a source of pride for India. Yes, it is none other than the sandalwood tree. However, indiscriminate harvesting and rampant poaching have left the once luxuriant stands in shambles. It is feared that …
Clive James, president of the International Service for the Acquisition of Agri-Biotech Applications (isaaa), says that Argentine crop area planted with genetically modified (gm) seeds will rise 1.5 million hectares to 11.44 million hectares in the 2001-02 season. Argentina is the second largest user of gm products. The area planted …
everything is not black and white. It's all shades of grey. This has been proved by a recent genetic research according to which, except for the skin colour, humanity is remarkably similar. Though people from different parts of the globe differ genetically, the dissimilarities are insignificant when compared with variations …
does evolution occur through very small genetic changes involving a very large number of genes, or does it occur through changes associated with a smaller number of genes? This question has nagged researchers for decades now. They have been studying the possible mechanisms underlying evolution but the challenge has been …
LIKE A FISH out of water, she chokes and gasps. Writhes. She struggles to snatch a lungful of air, while watching television she suddenly hits a vacuum. She is asthmatic. She is just about anybody. One of the 150 million that are reminded the hard way that life in today's …
WITH increasing patients and many of them in industrialised nations the market for asthma drugs is growing rapidly. It is the eighth largest selling drug market and possibly the most profitable venture for pharmaceutical companies, at par with profits made from cancer and heart diseases related drugs. In the absence …
in an apparent knee-jerk reaction to the farmers' demand to cultivate Bt cotton, the Union government plans to commercialise several genetically modified crops by the end of 2002. The government can meet this deadline only if it flouts its own procedures. Manju Sharma, secretary in the department of biotechnology, has …
it was an experiment waiting to happen ever since Dolly the sheep was born. Yet, when us-based biotechnology firm Advanced Cell Technology (act) cloned a human embryo, the breakthrough rekindled the debate on human cloning. This even as the objective of the test was not creating a human being, but …
The biodiversity bill has finally been approved by the Parliament standing committee on science, technology and the environment. The last time the bill made it to Parliament in May 2000, it was referred to the parliament standing committee for further deliberations. Having a national biodiversity became essential after India signed …
they might well be the modern-day buccaneers. To further their research, agricultural and pharmaceutical companies often tap local communities for traditional knowledge relating to the use of biological resour ces. The conglomerates lose no time in appropriating this painstakingly assimilated information. And make a fast buck by developing products based …
the Philippines has recently passed a stringent law for labelling of products containing genetically modified organisms (gmos). In contrast, six European countries face trial for failing to protect their environment from the gmo threat. As per the new Genetically Engineered Food Right to Know Act of the Philippines, infringement can …
the us has another issue to grumble about. The European Commission has introduced its long-awaited proposals on the labelling and traceability of foods containing genetically modified organisms (gmos). But this has evoked a sharp response from the us, the world's largest producer of gmos. Washington has termed the plans as …
A UN commission has agreed on setting up, for the first time, global principles for assessing the safety of genetically modified (GM) foods. The Codex Alimentarius Commission, a division of the World Health Organisation (WHO) and the Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO), has agreed that the safety of food derived …
