The post Safe Or Scary? The Shifting Reputation Of Glyphosate, AKA Roundup : The Salt : NPR appeared first on Rationally Thinking Out Loud.
]]>Safe Or Scary? The Shifting Reputation Of Glyphosate, AKA Roundup
John Draper and I are sitting in the cab of a tractor on the research farm he manages for the University of Maryland, alongside the Chesapeake Bay. Behind us, there’s a sprayer. “So, away we go!” Draper says. He pushes a button, and we start to move.
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]]>The post Glyphosate can cure cancer? Yes, some research ‘shows’ that — but what does it mean? And what does it say about Roundup doomsday claims? | Genetic Literacy Project appeared first on Rationally Thinking Out Loud.
]]>Now that three juries have said Bayer’s weed killer Roundup (glyphosate) causes cancer, many people believe there is clear evidence that the herbicide is dangerous. Organic industry-funded advocacy group U.S. Right to Know (USRTK) certainly wants consumers to believe that.
The post Glyphosate can cure cancer? Yes, some research ‘shows’ that — but what does it mean? And what does it say about Roundup doomsday claims? | Genetic Literacy Project appeared first on Rationally Thinking Out Loud.
]]>The post Courts don’t determine scientific facts | The Logic of Science appeared first on Rationally Thinking Out Loud.
]]>Most people have probably seen the recent news that Monsanto has been ordered to pay $289 million following the ruling by a California jury that Monsanto’s glyphosate (a.k.a. Roundup) is dangerous and likely contributed to Dewayne Johnson’s cancer. I could write many lengthy posts about why that ruling is wrong.
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]]>The post It’s That Time Of Year Again: Roundup vs Vinegar Weedkiller Concotions appeared first on Rationally Thinking Out Loud.
]]>With Contact Herbicide applications the weeds can grow back sometimes a quickly as a week or two. Contact herbicides kill only the plant parts contacted by the chemical, where-as “Systemic Herbicides” are absorbed by the roots or foliage and translocated (moved) throughout the plant.
Roundup or glyphosate is a systemic, which means you spray it on the foliage and it’s actually absorbed through the leaves, goes into the stems, goes into the roots, and kill the entire plant over a short course of time.
And Roundup/glyphosate has a half-life (meaning it degrades) in soil between ranging between 2 and 197 days and a typical average of 47 days depending upon soil conditions meaning it decays. Vinegar on the other hand in the soil remains changing the pH until it is neutralized by adding a base such as lime or limestone. The same is true for any salts. They are permanent until they are washed away and carried downstream (think California’s Salton Sea). That said Epsom salts aren’t necessarily washed away since they are a “Fertilizer” and consumed (digested) by plants for the magnesium in them.
Thinking about that now it makes me wonder if you are trying to kill weed via a vinegar-Epsom salts solution isn’t that a treatment that works against it intended purposes? You are killing the weed by scorching it with the vinegar but then you are fertilizing the roots so it can come back faster. (I will have to ask my landscape/gardener friend Harry when I see him again in the next few days.)
I hate to tell everyone this but if your desire is to garden completely chemical free and vinegar (acetic acid CH3COOH) and Epsom salts (magnesium sulfate MgSO4) are chemicals then the only way to weed is by hand weeding early and often making sure you have pulled the roots. I use an ancient short dandelion weeder tool this help that I have been playing with since I was a little kid.
12.5″ Garden Weeder – Smith & Hawken™
Get the upper hand on weeding with the Smith & Hawken Weeder. Great for small root removal and perfectly sized for flower beds and small vegetable gardens. Includes convenient hang-up hole for easy storage.
Ames Forged Dandelion Weeder-2942100 – The Home Depot
The Ames dandelion weeder is great for removing dandelions and other weeds from lawns and landscape beds. The V- notched blade is sharp to cuts the roots deep below the surface. A leather lanyard makes
• Vinegar Weedkiller vs RoundUp: Testing Head to Head
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]]>The post Glyphosate isn’t scary. The movement to demonize it is though | AGDAILY appeared first on Rationally Thinking Out Loud.
]]>Dad encountered the glyphosate smear machine while paying rent checks. The landlord in question has a farming background, isn’t prone to conspiracy theories, and is normally quite rational. But he asked dad whether there was an alternative herbicide to Roundup that Dad could use, because he’s heard some pretty bad stuff about glyphosate.
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]]>The post Where does broccoli come from? appeared first on Rationally Thinking Out Loud.
]]>The post The Less People Understand Science, the More Afraid of GMOs They Are – Pacific Standard appeared first on Rationally Thinking Out Loud.
]]>Americans with low levels of science knowledge are more likely to mistrust food additives and genetically modified foods, according to a new survey from the Pew Research Center. This is one of a few major takeaways from the report, which surveys Americans’ attitudes toward the risks certain foods pose.
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]]>The post Why I Don’t Buy Organic, And Why You Might Not Want To Either | Forbes appeared first on Rationally Thinking Out Loud.
]]>I fully appreciate the contribution that the organic movement made in the early 20th century when it highlighted the importance of fostering soil health. My problems with institutional organic are not at all about its founding ideals or about organic farmers, but rather about organic’s self-imposed limitations and about the ethics of a sub-set of its promoters.
Why I Don’t Buy Organic, And Why You Might Not Want To Either
By all rights I should be an enthusiastic advocate of organic. I grew up helping my beloved grandfather in his organic garden in the 1960s. Some of our best friends in the late 1970s were pioneers in the development of the commercial organic industry.
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]]>The post Dr. Steven Novella argues that many of the fears surrounding genetically modified crops are unsupported. appeared first on Rationally Thinking Out Loud.
]]>No, GMOs won’t harm your health
With historic drought battering California’s produce and climate change expected to jeopardize the global food supply, there are few questions more important than what our agriculture system should look like in the future.
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]]>The post Would Rachel Carson eat organic? appeared first on Rationally Thinking Out Loud.
]]>Rachel Carson, who was born on May 27, 1907, and launched the modern environmental movement with her 1962 book ” Silent Spring,” was a highly private person. But on one occasion she allowed an interviewer to ask, “What do you eat?” Her sardonic answer: “Chlorinated hydrocarbons like everyone else.”
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]]>The post Genetically modified disbelief and the lonely road to the sorcerer’s s | Southwest Farm Press appeared first on Rationally Thinking Out Loud.
]]>It’s an issue that is much debated and one that parties on both sides of the argument are impassioned over when it comes to food safety and nutrition. The hot topic, of course, is whether genetically modified organisms are safe or not without risks.
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]]>The post How GMOs can save civilization (and probably already have) appeared first on Rationally Thinking Out Loud.
]]>A Long History of Genetic Modification Humans first began collecting and growing edible grains, fruits and roots, and corralling wild animals for meat, milk, and material goods thousands of years ago. Ever since, we have been shaping these plants and animals to meet our needs and desires.
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]]>The post Organic Food Isn’t Better For Your Health – Gid M-K; Health Nerd – Medium appeared first on Rationally Thinking Out Loud.
]]>Environmentally friendly? Maybe. Healthy? Probably not An ongoing argument that I’ve had with almost every “clean eater” that I’ve ever met is about organic food. Virtually every person who tries to eat healthy, at one point or another, decides to go organic.
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]]>The post A Scientist Didn’t Disclose Important Data—and Let Everyone Believe a Popular Weedkiller Causes Cancer – Mother Jones appeared first on Rationally Thinking Out Loud.
]]>Does a common herbicide cause cancer? Over the past several years, that question has stirred up no shortage of controversy, with international health agencies offering conflicting information. The weedkiller, a chemical called glyphosate, is commonly sold by the agribiz giant Monsanto under the brand name RoundUp.
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]]>The post Six reasons to always buy organic – The Method – Medium appeared first on Rationally Thinking Out Loud.
]]>Writing for the National Review, Julie Kelly recently attacked the organic industry by calling it a scam. Such an attack on their bottom line prompted a quick response from the Organic Trade Association. Executive director Laura Batcha called the article divisive, insisting that “People choose organic because they know it makes a difference”.
The post Six reasons to always buy organic – The Method – Medium appeared first on Rationally Thinking Out Loud.
]]>The post Six reasons to always buy organic – The Method – Medium appeared first on Rationally Thinking Out Loud.
]]>Writing for the National Review, Julie Kelly recently attacked the organic industry by calling it a scam. Such an attack on their bottom line prompted a quick response from the Organic Trade Association. Executive director Laura Batcha called the article divisive, insisting that “People choose organic because they know it makes a difference”.
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]]>The post There’s a new website on the block….(explaining what GMOs and Farming are about) appeared first on Rationally Thinking Out Loud.
]]>The post Memoirs of a Monsanto Shill – The Risk-Monger appeared first on Rationally Thinking Out Loud.
]]>I have stopped reading newspapers. Not because of all of the stories raising fears about chemicals, cancers, industry domination and planet devastation, but because of all of the horrible things I am finding out about this Risk-Monger character. If half of the stories about him during “glyphosate fear-surge week” were true, I definitely would not want to meet that chemical-loving little bastard!
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