Watts Up With That?

I’m not usually a fan of food additive scares, as I find a lot of the
"science" driving them to be somewhat emotionally based rather than factually
based. For example, one of the urban legends surrounding this topic can be found
here. Be sure to read the whole article before you retch.

I like to point out that we have the safest and most nutritious food supply
in the history of mankind right now, but we also have a lot of bad choices
available. Its when the good choices start to become problematic that I get
concerned.

Food coloring, specifically Red
Dye number 40 is found in so many things, that its often hard to know if its in a food unless
you read the fine print on the product label. For example, today I found out that EGGO waffles
have Red#40 in them. It was a complete surprise. There are hundreds of other
foods that you wouldn’t suspect that have it too.

I have two small children, and my wife has found that Red Dye 40 can lead to
behavioral problems in young children. I was skeptical at first, but when we
removed all foods and snacks containing Red 40 from our son’s diet, we began to see a marked
change towards the mellow, easy going child he used to be.

It works. Here is an
article from teachers.net for you to read if you have an interest in this
issue.

Jessica Gresko at the Associated Press reports:

Certain hurricane forecasts could be up to 16 percent less accurate if a key weather satellite that is already beyond its expected life span fails, the National Hurricane Center’s new director said Friday in calling for hundreds of millions of dollars in new funding for expanded research and predictions.

Bill Proenza also told The Associated Press in a wide-ranging interview that ties between global warming and increased hurricane strength seemed a “natural linkage.” But he cautioned that other weather conditions currently play a larger part in determining the strength and number of hurricanes.

One of Proenza’s immediate concerns is the so-called “QuikScat” weather satellite, which lets forecasters measure basics such as wind speed. Replacing it would take at least four years even if the estimated $400 million cost were available immediately, he said.

It is currently in its seventh year of operation and was expected to last five, Proenza said, and it is only a matter of time until it fails.

Without the satellite providing key data, Proenza said, both two- and three-day forecasts of a storm’s path would be affected. The two-day forecast could be 10 percent worse; the three-day one could be affected up to 16 percent, Proenza said.

That would mean longer stretches of coastline would have to be placed under warnings, and more people than necessary would have to evacuate.

Average track errors last year were about 100 miles on two-day forecasts and 150 miles on three-day predictions. Track errors have been cut in half over the past 15 years. Losing QuikScat could erode some of those gains, Proenza said, adding he did not know of any plans to replace it.