Study links garden pesticides to Parkinson's risk

Science News Article | Reuters.com:

Researchers at the University of Aberdeen in Scotland have discovered that the more pesticides gardeners are exposed to, the more likely they are to develop the degenerative brain disease.

Time running out to stop bird flu -experts

Science News Article | Reuters.com:

Global health officials fear it could mutate into a lethal strain that could rival the 1918 Spanish flu pandemic that killed between 20 and 40 million people.

'Time is running out to prepare for the next pandemic,' said Michael Osterholm, of the University of Minnesota, Wednesday in a special section of the journal Nature devoted to avian flu.

'There is a critical need for comprehensive medical and non-medical pandemic planning at the ground level that goes beyond what has been considered so far,' he added.

Scientists believe the next pandemic, which many believe is overdue, will probably originate in poultry in Asia. To become a pandemic strain, H5N1 will have to adapt sufficiently on its own, or mix its genetic material with a human virus to become highly infectious in humans, who have no protection against it.

Plastic's harmful side effects

Salon.com News :

Scientists in America have found the first evidence that common chemicals used in products as diverse as cosmetics, toys, plastic wrap and plastic bags may harm the development of unborn baby boys. Researchers have long known that high levels of substances called phthalates have gender-bending effects on male animals, making them more feminine and leading to poor sperm quality and infertility. The new study suggests that even normal levels of phthalates, which are ubiquitous, can disrupt the development of male babies' reproductive organs.

The discovery poses a huge problem for the chemical industry, which is already embroiled in a battle with the government over the European Union's proposals on chemical safety.

Several types of phthalates, which are used to make plastics more pliable, and have been around for more than 50 years, have been banned, but many are still produced in vast quantities.