Earlier this month, California adopted one of the strongest pay equity laws in the U.S. aimed at decreasing the wage gap. Women have always been paid less than men for the same work, currently a median 84 cents for every dollar a man earns, according to the U.S. Census Bureau. That means women would have […]
Monthly Archives: October 2015
Corn is much maligned in public health because of its use in stuffing beef cattle till they fart. And of course high-fructose corn syrup. But corn doesn’t have to be all bad, so let’s take a moment to look at the bright side. An American maize researcher in Mexico is working with New […]
My astute friend Lia asked me what is up with Vitamin D. And indeed, sales are up (by about 1000% over the course of the 2000s), and Google searches are up (by a factor of about 4 since 2004 on both Vitamin D and Vitamin D Deficiency). In the last 10 years or so, […]
Emily Oster thinks that screen time for kids is probably fine. Her analysis is both original and well-considered—just not in the same places. Economists, more than people from any other discipline it seems to me, love to write outside their area of expertise. You can find economists confidently telling you about how marriages work, […]
My original post on racial profiling provoked quite a discussion on the Spirit of 1848 listserve. A colleague wrote that he wasn’t sure that racial profiling has a profound effect on health outcomes. Indeed not. But I use the word “profound” not as a simple synonym of “big”, but to mean deep — going down many […]
Here’s an innovative idea. Ditching tables and chairs for standing desks at schools. That is just what this elementary school has done in San Rafael, California. We are seeing more workplaces using standing desks and replacing chairs with yoga balls, so why not schools? Sitting for too long can have a negative impact on […]
You hear a lot of talk about upstream factors in public health, and there is a strong shared belief in their importance. So what are these upstream factors that drive population health? I recently read the original article by John McKinlay, which remains not only fresh, but radical. There is a lot to say […]
Not much to add here, but wow! h/t Streetsblog
“Somehow this has become routine. The reporting is routine. My response here at this podium ends up being routine. The conversation in the aftermath of it. We’ve become numb to this.” President Obama delivered a powerful speech in the aftermath of the latest mass shooting at an Oregon community college. He called for greater gun […]
OK, here’s a really bad idea that should be nipped right in the bud. US Senators Cory Booker and Richard Bloomenthal think the TSA should implement some kind of airport-level security for trains and subways. Seriously? StreetsblogUSA has an excellent take-down of this farcical proposal. The Senators are concerned about an attack like the […]
- 1
- 2