In the Press (all articles)

The response to the COVID-19 pandemic prompted abrupt and potentially lasting changes to human behavior, including the types of direct contact that enable transmission of common pathogens. Although the handshake and other types of physical contact are gradually returning, they have been on an extended hiatus. Such changes have already altered the epidemiology of a broad range of infectious diseases, including influenza, measles, and norovirus, and will likely continue to affect their age distribution, severity, and typical seasonal patterns. Changes to contact patterns may also nudge the evolutionary trajectory of pathogens, as they adapt to new norms of less human contact. Initiatives to measure social contact patterns through time and track their effects on the epidemiology of endemic …

The hiatus of the handshakeRead More

Oklahoma lawmakers have been known to conduct themselves in curious ways, but a bill passed by the Oklahoma House of Representatives left us scratching our heads. If senators fail to kill House Bill 3159, which would allow students infected with head lice to continue attending class, that itch — like head lice — will spread quickly. The only way to prevent head lice from spreading is to treat the host, killing the lice and nits. If senators fail to kill House Bill 3159, which would allow students infected with head lice to continue attending class, that itch — like head lice — will spread quickly. The only way to prevent head lice from spreading is to treat the host, killing the lice and nits. See full article. 3/25/02. Muskogee Phoenix. …

Keep kids with lice at homeRead More

"Being a parent has shaped my 25 years at PAN in fundamental ways. My first several years with the organization I was part of a job-share with another young mom, tag-teaming our organizing efforts to win a global ban of the fumigant pesticide methyl bromide. The more I learned about this dangerous chemical, the more protective I felt of our infant daughter Linnea — and the more horrified I was about the millions of children around the world who are regularly exposed to this and other pesticides. In 1999 our son Connor was born. After my maternity leave I dove into work on the Stockholm Convention, an international treaty that targets persistent organic pollutants for global phaseout. These chemicals travel the globe and biomagnify up the food chain, building up in the fatty tissues of our …

Reflections, Part Two: Kids, pesticides & scienceRead More

As I look back on two and a half decades of work with PAN, I see one very clear through-line: aggressive industry efforts, year after year, to block any and all initiatives that threaten their bottom line. These efforts look different in different arenas, but the playbook is the same: cozy up to those with decision-making power, intimidate activists pressing for change, and throw money (lots!) at controlling the story. Oh — and regularly consolidate/rebrand your way out of trouble too. When I first started with PAN in 1996, I joined our global campaign to phase out methyl bromide under the Montreal Protocol, a global treaty to control ozone-depleting chemicals. A broad-spectrum biocide, methyl bromide is also a potent ozone depleter that was being targeted for a global ban. Read entire …

Reflections, Part One: Pesticide industry’s playbookRead More

Human DNA can be extracted from the ‘cement’ head lice used to glue their eggs to hairs thousands of years ago, scientists have found, which could provide an important new window into the past. In a new study, scientists for the first time recovered DNA from cement on hairs taken from mummified remains that date back 1,500-2,000 years. This is possible because skin cells from the scalp become encased in the cement produced by female lice as they attach eggs, known as nits, to the hair.EurekAlert: https://www.eurekalert.org/news-releases/938695 …

Nits on ancient mummies shed light on South American ancestryRead More