Eat Less, Live Longer?
Want to get more satisfaction out of eating and appreciate food more? Try fasting one day a week. Sure it will take some serious will power, but just imagine the benefits. If you’re like most Americans then each and every day you’re probably consuming far more calories than you need, especially if you work a sedentary cubical job. Sophisticated scientific studies have shown that those extra calories may actually be taking years off your life, even if you’re not obese. Also consider, if you’re passing up a meal that includes meat, you will be significantly reducing the amount of carbon dioxide pollution that you are personally responsible for (the meat industry is a notorious offender - too many reasons to list here). And of course you could be saving a substantial amount of money that could be used to eat tastier or healthier food the rest of the week. A final caution: if after diligent regular fasting you find yourself looking thinner than Kate Moss, then you might be overdoing it.
Filed under: Green Living | 8 Comments »
What were you doing when you were 16?
Posted on June 1st, 2008 by NateG
I bet you weren’t making a significant contribution to ecological science. 16 year old Daniel Burd did just that recently, discovering a way to decompose plastic bags in only three months. According to The Record:
Daniel Burd’s project won the top prize at the Canada-Wide Science Fair in Ottawa. He came back with a long list of awards, including a $10,000 prize, a $20,000 scholarship, and recognition that he has found a practical way to help the environment.
He’ll probably be getting into a pretty darn good school. The science behind his discovery is pretty interesting. Without getting too detailed, he isolated the microbes that naturally decompose plastic (usually after hundreds or thousands of years), created optimal composting conditions, and added lots of the plasic-eating microbes to ground up plastic bags. For a more detailed description of his project, visit The Record.
Way to go, Daniel! May I suggest turning your attention to disposable diapers? Or we could all just start using cloth diapers…