Tag: pollution

2022-23, Environment, Natural World

Listen to Your Heart: The Risk of Spatial Environmental Factors on CVD-related and All-cause Mortality

Peter Gillespie ’25 Recent research from Dr. Paola Boffetta and his colleagues suggest that spatial and environmental factors around us can negatively affect our well-being. Dr. Boffetta and his team conducted a study that assesses how spatial environmental factors (SEF), or our proximity to both harmful or helpful environmental and social influences, affect both all-cause mortality and mortality due to cardiovascular disease (CVD).  The study … Continue reading Listen to Your Heart: The Risk of Spatial Environmental Factors on CVD-related and All-cause Mortality

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2018-19

An Environmentally Friendly Solution for Oil Contaminated Soils

By Raymond Cheung ‘22 Global oil production is on the rise; in 2017, a record of 92.6 million barrels were processed daily (1). Although the petroleum refining process is needed to refine crude oil into usable products, the process often generates significant amounts of oil sludge. These oil sludges contain toxic chemicals that are hazardous to the environment and as a result, are difficult to … Continue reading An Environmentally Friendly Solution for Oil Contaminated Soils

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2017-18

Air Pollution: A Potential Contributor To Diabetes

Rachel Kogan ’19 Despite efforts to diminish industrial contamination, air pollution remains a prominent issue throughout most of the world. This form of pollution has long been associated with the rise of respiratory tract illnesses such as asthma and lung cancer. However, a recent study, conducted by a team of researchers lead by Al-Aly Ziyad of the Department of Medicine at Washington University in St. … Continue reading Air Pollution: A Potential Contributor To Diabetes

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2017-18

The State of the Great Pacific Garbage Patch

By Meenu Johnkutty ‘21 Almost two trillion pieces of plastic are currently floating in the Pacific Ocean. Nestled between Hawaii and California, the Great Pacific Garbage Patch is unrivaled in size — three times the size of continental France, to be exact. New findings published by the Ocean Cleanup Foundation reveal the latest updates on the state of this plastic monstrosity, and the findings are … Continue reading The State of the Great Pacific Garbage Patch

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2017-18

Arsenic and Copper May Affect Reproductive Health in Chickens

By Matthew Lee ‘21 Arsenic and copper are trace elements that can have deleterious health effects when present in the body in large quantities. Their toxicity in certain body parts such as the liver, nervous system, and lungs is well documented. However, the effects of arsenic and copper on testicular tissues are not as studied. A recent study led by Yizhi Shao of Northeast Forestry … Continue reading Arsenic and Copper May Affect Reproductive Health in Chickens

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Figure 1. Researchers discovered lower working memory levels in primary school children who were exposed to traffic-related pollutants.
2017-18

The Effects of Air Pollution on Working Memory in School-Aged Children

By Meenu Johnkutty ’21 According to the Environmental Protection Agency, the average person takes about 23,040 breaths each day. Multiply this figure by 365, and an individual takes a gargantuan 8,409,600 breaths per year. That’s a tremendous amount of air! Because the human population is virtually tied to its air supply, it is no surprise that polluted air is detrimental to the human body. A … Continue reading The Effects of Air Pollution on Working Memory in School-Aged Children

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