Tag: politics

What’s on your citrus fruit? Trump’s EPA fights to keep controversial insecticide in use

10.11.18.

Citrus growers hope to fend off fruit-munching katydids, but one weapon is under scrutiny. Researchers found that children growing up near fields where the insecticide chlorpyrifos was deployed exhibited autism-like symptoms. A court ordered the Environmental Protection Agency to ban the insecticide’s use, but Trump’s EPA is fighting back. PBS science correspondent Miles O’Brien reports.…
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The EPA isn’t taking its own advice on a pesticide that causes brain damage in children

08.30.18.

Chlorpyrifos is one of the world’s most widely-used agricultural pesticides. Studies have linked exposure to the chemical to neurological issues in children, yet the EPA has–so far–decided not to ban the use of chlorpyrifos. Miles explores the issue for the PBS NewsHour. TRANSCRIPT Judy Woodruff: It’s not well known to the general public yet that…
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The Murky World of Science Transparency – Hash it Out with NYU Professor George D. Thurston

07.26.18.

There are calls in the EPA and in Congress for the use of more transparent science. But what does that mean? Why do scientists seem united against these regulations? And what would it mean if they went into effect? In this special Hash it Out episode, Brian and Fedor talk to vocal opponent of science…
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New Jupiter moons, CRISPR issues, “secret science” battle: this week in science

07.19.18.

Here’s a look back at this week in science, with stories you don’t want to miss. CRISPR causes previously undetected DNA damage CRISPR-Cas9 may not be all that it is cracked up to be. A study published this week reports previously overlooked issues with using the versatile genetic editing tool taking biology by storm. Scientists…
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NASA scientists track climate-changing methane leaks from the air

07.12.18.

Miles reports from the atmosphere above Southern California, where NASA engineers leverage state-of-the-art technology to measure methane. Released through oil and gas production, livestock emissions, and organic waste, methane is about 85 times more potent at trapping heat than carbon dioxide. California wants to identify specific methane leaks so it can plug them. Originally aired…
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The Chemical Ban That Got a Reprieve from Trump’s EPA – with Miriam Rotkin-Ellman of the Natural Resources Defense Council

06.25.18.

After years of exhaustive research linking the pesticide chlorpyrifos to a host of developmental and cognitive deficiencies in children, the EPA was poised to ban the chemical in November 2016. But something else happened that same month: the election of Donald Trump. As a result, this potent neurotoxin is still in use. Miriam Rotkin-Ellman is…
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