Friday, September 7, 2012

tempest quotes

Bob Dylan's new album 'Tempest' resulted in my stumbling across a few The Tempest quotes....

  • “We are such stuff as dreams are made on, and our little life is rounded with a sleep.” 
  • “What's past is prologue.” 
  • “Let us not burden our remembrances with a heaviness that's gone.”

Tuesday, September 4, 2012

Organic food study | Science | guardian.co.uk

Organic food no better for you, suggests US study | Science | guardian.co.uk

Don't fully agree with the headline 'no better than you' since the main point is " Organic produce and meat typically is no better for you than conventional food when it comes to vitamin and nutrient content, although it does generally reduce exposure to pesticides and antibiotic-resistant bacteria, according to a US study."  I personally was always skeptical about the nutrition argument, but would think reducing exposure to pesticides, and especially antibiotic and horomone treated meat, were anyway the best reasons for organic. Furthermore it could be argued that even though both non-organic and organic are within safety levels, one would hope the safety margin might be greater for organic, and even the farms themselves might be more scrutinized, even perhaps more reliable, since generally smaller, and having to meet a higher standard.

The original study is referenced here , and the exact conclusion is perhaps more open than the newspaper articles suggest:
Conclusion: The published literature lacks strong evidence that organic foods are significantly more nutritious than conventional foods. Consumption of organic foods may reduce exposure to pesticide residues and antibiotic-resistant bacteria.

random quote - woody allen

Life is full of misery, loneliness, and suffering - and it's all over much too soon