I told you a month ago that come the first of the new year, the word to remember is GloFish. Here is the webpage for the company that created these fish.
These glow-in-the-dark biologically-altered fish are brighter than salt-water tropicals, but you can keep them in a simple freshwater fish tank. They are flying off pet shop shelves even though they are not supposed to even be on sale until Jan. 5.
Here is a story from the St. Petersburg Times.
As I told you a month ago, California wildlife officials have already banned GloFish because of concerns about the bioengineering. Now, ScienCentral reports, a lawsuit is on the way to stop the sale of these fish. The article says:
…several consumer advocacy organizations led by the Center for Food Safety announced they will sue the Food and Drug Administration for failing to exercise its authority over the glofish.
“Our primary concern is not the glofish per se, but the precedent it sets for genetically engineered pets of almost any kind — not just fish — as well as bait and sport animals, being sold all over the country without getting any federal approval first,” says Peter T. Jenkins, attorney and policy analyst at the Center for Food Safety.
“This will eventually cause environmental chaos as these animals are accidentally or intentionally released into the wild, and could cause potential threats to public and animal health.”
Glofish.com posted a webpage that speaks to ethics concerns. The site also has a page about the environment and what might happen if the fish were released into waterways.
The St. Pete Times said:
Just in time for the new year comes this glow-in-the-dark fish that is wowing tropical fish fans, even as it sparks debate on the ramifications of tinkering with the genes of animals we eat and play with.
The GloFish glows a rosy hue instead of flat black and silver. The cause: A gene that makes the sea anemone red is inserted into the zebra eggs before they hatch. Researchers have used this genetic splicing on zebra danios, the aquatic equivalent of a white lab mouse, for more than a decade in studies of vision, cancer, and vertebrate development.
But GloFish marks the first time the science has been used solely to please tropical fish collectors.
Critics say GloFish opens the door to genetically-altered animals that we will buy for companionship or consumption, and that their inevitable release into the general population will upset the ecosystem. Proponents say the ornamental fish, native to India and Bangladesh, can’t survive the nontropical waters of the United States long enough to establish an invasive colony.
They see the fish as a harmless tool to boost interest in tropical fish collecting, and to raise awareness about the role of fish in important research.
Loud Toys (follow-up)
The people at the Wisconsin State Journal (in Madison) sent me a copy of their wonderful story on loud toys. It would make a good post-holiday follow-up.
The WSJ folks spotted the story I posted on Al’s Morning Meeting a few weeks ago in which I said, “Nine of 11 toys tested by the Sight & Hearing Association for noise levels this holiday shopping season sounded out at more than 100 dB — similar to the blare of a chainsaw. Moreover, all of the toys tested are meant for children under 5. Currently, the Consumer Product Safety Commission does not have regulations that address the loudness of toys.”
The Wisconsin State Journal said:
“They’re noisy enough that they can damage hearing,” said Colleen Moore, a professor of psychology at UW-Madison who has studied the effects of noise on children.
The impact of noise depends on its loudness, duration, and distance from the ear. While it’s nearly impossible to link any specific sound to later hearing loss, parents should be aware of the problem and avoid the risk, experts say.
Moreover, researchers in child development warn that the din from toys, blaring televisions, radios, computer games, and music can create a noise level that interferes with children’s learning.
Home Pregnancy Test Turns 25
The National Institutes of Health is celebrating the birthday of the home pregnancy test by dedicating a webpage to the marvel of modern medicine. The site even offers a way for people to share their personal stories of when they learned they were pregnant (or not.)
Some of the women who wrote on the bulletin board talked about how frightened they were to take the test. Several were teenagers when they first took the test. One had to drive a couple of hundred miles to Canada to buy a test kit for a friend.
USA Today reported, “Exact figures on sales for home pregnancy tests are unknown, but sales of such tests and infertility test kits combined are well over $200 million a year, according to ACNielsen, a market research firm.”
Super Cool Zip Code Finder
Wait until you see this from MIT student Ben Fry who says he whipped it up in a few hours. Type in a 5-digit zip code and watch the map zero in on the city. To reset the map, hit the backspace and type in another number.
Unusually Wet Spring 2003 Means Lots of Mold in Schools
See this Washington Post story.
Most Admired
I am always amazed that people say they don’t trust politicians and religious leaders, and yet year after year when I see Gallup’s “most admired list”, it is loaded with politicians and religious leaders.
We are always looking for your great ideas. Send Al a few sentences and hot links.
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