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. …
JOHN Van der Sande, professor of material science at the MIT and his team are using a new technique to compile information on all types of soot. This knowledge will be used to detect the exact sources of pollution. The library of sootprints will be based on the molecular structure …
The 32nd US patent on neem was give to FMC Corporation of Philadelphia. It is the corporation's second patent titled, "Combinations of neem seed extract and bifenthrin for control of ectoparasites on animals". This patent, awarded on December 5, 1995, became the eighth patent to the awarded in the US …
THE increase of debilitating disorders, like asthma, may have sent shock waves amongst the human population worldwide, but has resulted in a windfall for the pharmaceutical industries the world over. The year past - 1995 - saw drug sales soaring to record levels: markets in the top nine countries including …
RESEARCHERS from-the department of chemistry and biochemistry at the University of Texas in Arlington, US, have developed an inexpensive method of combating water pollution by using sunlight in combination with catalysts. The department has also developed a technique to tackle chromium pollution using a conducting polymer called polypyrrole. According to …
An unique sea-floor observatory to keep a watch on two under-sea volcanoes is in the offing near the coasts ofWashington and Oregon in the US. Part of the National Science Foundation's RIDGE (Ridge Inter- Disciplinary Global Experiments) programme, the observatory will be set up on the ocean floor to monitor …
RIGHT now in the US, all eyes are glued on the presidential contenders for the forthcoming elections. Too bad, because (Bill Clinton being a jellyfish) it makes little difference who sits in the White House than which party dominates the Congress. One of the vital hinges in that difference is …
The latest progress reported in the quest for a toxic waste-free environment comes from researchers at the California Institute of Technology in Pasadena, US (Alternatives Journal. Vo122. No 1). Chemist Michael Hoffman and his colleagues have used high frequency ultrasound waves to break down samples of several toxic chemicals. Tiny …
THE record highs of summer, this past, year in the us, could be attributed to the phenomenon of global warming. But what about the blizzard of 1996 which lashed throughout northeastern us, depositing more than 50 cm of snow in most areas, dipping mercury levels and paralysing normal life? The …
THE post -World War II period witnessed the rapid development of many parts of the world. Burgeoning town apd cityscapes ~parkled witl.I millions of lights. And consequently, the night sky over a typical suburb in the us shines five-10 times brighter than the natural night sky, and that above a …
IT SEEMS to be a jinxed programme for the National Space and Aeronautics Administration (NASA) in the us. While its first effort to deploy a satellite in space as part of the Tethered Satellite System - a joint us-Italian venture - ended unsuccessfully after the tether got jammed, this time, …
ALTHOUGH the significance of Tegular exercising in low~ring blood pressure in persons with mild to moderate hyper- tension has been established by earlier studies, its relevance in relieving very severe hypertension has only recently been emphasised. Researchers at the 'Veterans Affairs Medical Centre in Washington in the us conducted studies …
The first mobile telephones in the us were so cheap that they were being distributed free with every purchase of petrol. Now, the purchase of a Burger King whopper earns one a CD-ROM for free. The fast food chain is handing out Disney titles such as The Lion King and …
Bungling up of data on secondhand smoke has landed a us company, Healthy Buildings International, in the dock. A federal grand jury is investigating whether the company, which monitors air quality for federal and private buildings, made false statements to the federal government regarding the risks of secondhand smoke and …
Ultimately, it could be a victory for the much abused environment. With US industries and environmentalists at loggerheads for the past one year over the now familiar tug-of-war between environment and development, it seemed unlikely that a joint consensus could ever be achieved. But a presidential panel consisting of adversaries …
THE erstwhile -cold war between, the us and Russia seems to have given way to a war over chickens! If a threatened Russian poultry ban takes effect, yankee chickens may no longer be welcome in Russia. Apparently, Russians are holding out the ban threat -as a measure to protect Russian …
FROM this year, Chicago (us), will start using three prototype buses powered by fuel cells of a type which were aban- doned after the Gemini space pro- gramme in 1996, but resurrected by Ballard Power Systems of Vancouver - a small Canadian firm of engineers. The only thing coming out …
Spirogyra along with another algal species Cladophora, disrupts normal aquatic life and forces municipalities to spend enormous sums on declogging water bodies (Frontiers -Newsletter of the National Science Foundation. December. 1995). R Jan Stevenson of the University of Louisville in Kentucky. US. has reiterated the wisdom of following nature's ways. …
An additional search for neem-related patents through the US patent database, carried out in late December, 1995, revealed the existence of two more patents. Both were obtained by US corporations: patent no 5411736, dated May 2, 1995, held by W R Grace and Co, called Hydrophobic extracted neem oil -a …
THE consumer rights crusades of Ralph Nader during the '60s and the '70s had the us government running around in circles. No wonder alarm bells have been ringing ever since Nader announced plans to take on the us President Bill Clinton from the left as a Green Party candidate, in …
This year, Ralph Nader faces one of the stiffest challenges of his career -and the visible possibility of a setback -since the failed attempt to get the Congress to establish a Consumer Protection Agency. The setback could stem from an issue known as the 'tort reform', which seeks to restrict …
