Pet Foods for Thought
More than a month since the major recall of dog and cat food in North America began, many key questions still remain unanswered. On 16 March, Menu Foods, Inc. initiated a North American recall of dog and cat foods, prompted by pet owner complaints and by its own testing. Since then, a growing list of…
Blood transfusion – never entirely safe.
This week an enquiry into the use of contaminated blood by the UK National Health Service opened (BBC story). The enquiry will examine the circumstances surrounding use of contaminated blood in the 1970s and 1980s by the NHS and the exposure of several thousand patients to HIV and hepatitis and their resultant deaths. The accusation…
1000 diseases mapped – a challenge is issued
Over at the Agricultural Biodiversity Weblog Jeremy decided to lay down a challenge to us here at CABI – make it possible to view the changes in distribution over time. We’d like to explain a little more about the history of the maps – we began publishing Distribution Maps of Plant Diseases in 1942 and…
Could it bee your mobile phone?
One serious cause of honey bee die-off in the US is Colony Collapse Disorder (CCD). It leads to collapse of the hive often with complete absence of bees or only the queen and few other individuals remaining. A story in the Independent yesterday highlighted a theory that radiation given off by mobile phones and other…
Where have all the bees gone?
Recent reports of disappearing bees may initially come as a relief to some of us, but this is actually very serious news considering bees pollinate a large proportion of our plants, including some food crops, and are keystone species in the ecosystem. Today the Bumblebee Conservation Trust invited the UK public to send in sightings…
Twinkle, twinkle, little star
Hurtling around the planet, some 23 km above our heads, will be a network of 30 satellites making up the EU Galileo positioning system. The 675 kg spacecraft will carry the equipment necessary to potentially pinpoint the position of a transponder on the Earth’s surface with centimetre-accuracy. Assuming the project overcomes the economic and political…
Ticks: be aware, but don’t panic
Over Easter I took the opportunity for a few days’ break in the Scottish Highlands; although it’s a bit too early in the year for blood-sucking arthropods to be a problem, I was reminded of the publication a few months ago of a new edition of ‘Ticks: your pets, your family and you’, by Alison…
Hitching a flight
We have all heard stories in the past about how invasive species have travelled along transport networks or have managed to hitch a ride from one country to the next. For example: Japanese Knotweed has spread rapidly down road and rail networks in both the UK and USA. Zebra Mussels have been transported around North…
Wine has many uses
The antioxidant protective effect of fruits and vegetables, notably tomatoes and green leafy vegetables, is well known. But did you know that a wine extract can protect your skin against the damaging effects of UV radiation? Sunburn, immune suppression and skin cancers develop from overexposure of skin to solar UV radiation, which results in the…
1000 diseases mapped!
This month sees the publication of map number 1000 of Distribution Maps of Plant Diseases the authoritative source for accurate data on the worldwide distribution of plant diseases of economic or quarantine importance, published by CABI in association with the European and Mediterranean Plant Protection Organization (EPPO). First published in 1942, Distribution Maps of Plant…