Tuesday 30 November 2010

Rain


As coisas vulgares que há na vida
Não deixam saudades
Só as lembranças que doem
Ou fazem sorrir

Há gente que fica na história
da história da gente
e outras de quem nem o nome
lembramos ouvir
(...)
A chuva molhava-me o rosto
Gelado e cansado
As ruas que a cidade tinha
Já eu percorrera

Meu choro de moça perdida
gritava à cidade
que o fogo do amor sob chuva
há instantes morrera

A chuva ouviu e calou
meu segredo à cidade
E eis que ela bate no vidro
Trazendo a saudade.

Jorge Fernando

BY: Tânia



Be happy for this moment. This moment is your life!!

By: Tânia

And the cold has arrived ...




Wednesday 24 November 2010

Monday 15 November 2010

What are the main issues of concern for human health?



.



Different GM organisms include different genes inserted in different ways. This means that individual GM foods and their safety should be assessed on a case-by-case basis and that it is not possible to make general statements on the safety of all GM foods.

GM foods currently available on the international market have passed risk assessments and are not likely to present risks for human health. In addition, no effects on human health have been shown as a result of the consumption of such foods by the general population in the countries where they have been approved. Continuous use of risk assessments based on the Codex principles and, where appropriate, including post market monitoring, should form the basis for evaluating the safety of GM foods.




The safety assessment of GM foods generally investigates:



  • direct health effects (toxicity);

  • tendencies to provoke allergic reaction (allergenicity);

  • specific components thought to have nutritional or toxic properties;

  • the stability of the inserted gene;

  • nutritional effects associated with genetic modification;

  • any unintended effects which could result from the gene insertion.

GM food



    For at least the last decade,human beings have been eating foods created in laboratories. This is a completely new phenomenon, with no long-term studies having been conducted as to the effects of such food.Today, about two-thirds of all food available in supermarkets has been genetically engineered. Government agencies have long assured the public that these new “biotech” foods present no threat to human health or the environment. Only now are many realizing the extent to which they have been misled and the ominous consequences of this genetic intrusion. The advantages are:


  • Pest resistance



  • Herbicide tolerance



  • Disease resistance



  • Cold tolerance



  • Drought tolerance/salinity tolerance



  • Nutrition



  • Pharmaceuticals



What are some of the criticisms against GM foods?

Environmental activists, religious organizations, public interest groups, professional associations and other scientists and government officials have all raised concerns about GM foods, and criticized agribusiness for pursuing profit without concern for potential hazards, and the government for failing to exercise adequate regulatory oversight. It seems that everyone has a strong opinion about GM foods. Most concerns about GM foods fall into three categories: environmental hazards, human health risks, and economic concerns.