Smart water meter installations suspended after city finds spikes of brain-damaging lead in homes

CHICAGO — Mayor Lori Lightfoot has suspended the city's water meter installation program after recent testing found high concentrations of lead in some homes.

The mayor’s order to halt work on the program is said to be out of an abundance of caution, and comes after the city has already installed new water meters in nearly 200,000 homes.

Data uncovered by the Chicago Tribune found there were spikes of brain-damaging lead in more than one in five homes where new meters were installed.

According to the report, of 510 homes tested since 2017, 22% had elevated lead levels in tap water, and 7%  had spikes that were three times higher than the FDA standard for bottled water.

The problem is attributed to street work on or near the city’s old lead pipes, plumbing repairs or the installation of the smart meters.

Former Mayor Rahm Emanuel had pushed for smart meters to encourage water conservation.The city borrowed more than $480 million  to fund the program, leading to higher water rates.

Throughout his tenure, Emanuel downplayed any lead problems with Chicago's water system.

During her campaign, Lightfoot called for expanded lead testing.

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Ditch the GPS. It’s ruining your brain. ( plus an article “Forget Self-Driving Cars. Bring Back the Stick Shift” )

The following article in the Washington Post has interesting implications for our children’s future as we enter the world of 5G and the Internet of Things (IoT), where more and more of our thinking, and most importantly, our children’s, is done for us by our devices. How will, what has been called the Google Effect, change they way we think and our ability to think independently of our devices? A shrinking brain perhaps? The second article deals with a lack of awareness associated with self driving cars. In a future world where AI does the driving will the parts of the brain needed for driving awareness also shrink, as it is no longer needed? Perhaps hints of a dystopian world where humans can no longer function without the aid of their devices….

Don

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From the Washington Post

Ditch the GPS. It’s ruining your brain.

By M.R. O’Connor

June 5

Excerpts:

M.R. O’Connor is a journalist who writes about science, technology and ethics, and is the author, most recently, of “Wayfinding: The Science and Mystery of How Humans Navigate the World.”

It has become the most natural thing to do: get in the car, type a destination into a smartphone, and let an algorithm using GPS data show the way. Personal GPS-equipped devices entered the mass market in only the past 15 or so years, but hundreds of millions of people now rarely travel without them. These gadgets are extremely powerful, allowing people to know their location at all times, to explore unknown places and to avoid getting lost.

But they also affect perception and judgment. When people are told which way to turn, it relieves them of the need to create their own routes and remember them. They pay less attention to their surroundings. And neuroscientists can now see that brain behavior changes when people rely on turn-by-turn directions.

In a study published in Nature Communications in 2017, researchers asked subjects to navigate a virtual simulation of London’s Soho neighborhood and monitored their brain activity, specifically the hippocampus, which is integral to spatial navigation. Those who were guided by directions showed less activity in this part of the brain than participants who navigated without the device. “The hippocampus makes an internal map of the environment and this map becomes active only when you are engaged in navigating and not using GPS,” Amir-Homayoun Javadi, one of the study’s authors, told me.

The hippocampus is crucial to many aspects of daily life. It allows us to orient in space and know where we are by creating cognitive maps. It also allows us to recall events from the past, what is known as episodic memory. And, remarkably, it is the part of the brain that neuroscientists believe gives us the ability to imagine ourselves in the future.

Studies have long shown the hippocampus is highly susceptible to experience. (London’s taxi drivers famously have greater gray-matter volume in the hippocampus as a consequence of memorizing the city’s labyrinthine streets.) Meanwhile, atrophy in that part of the brain is linked to devastating conditions, including post-traumatic stress disorder and Alzheimer’s disease. Stress and depression have been shown to dampen neurogenesis — the growth of new neurons — in the hippocampal circuit.

What isn’t known is the effect of GPS use on hippocampal function when employed daily over long periods of time. Javadi said the conclusions he draws from recent studies is that “when people use tools such as GPS, they tend to engage less with navigation. Therefore, brain area responsible for navigation is less used, and consequently their brain areas involved in navigation tend to shrink.”..SNIP

Read the full article here

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From the New York Times

Forget Self-Driving Cars. Bring Back the Stick Shift.

Technology meant to save us from distraction is making us less attentive.

By Vatsal G. Thakkar

Dr. Thakkar is a psychiatrist.

Excerpts

I was backing my wife’s car out of our driveway when I realized I wasn’t watching the backup camera, nor was I looking out of the rear window. I was only listening for those “audible proximity alerts” — the high-pitched beeps that my car emits as I approach an object while in reverse. The problem was that my wife’s car, an older model, doesn’t offer such beeps. I had become so reliant on this technology that I had stopped paying attention, a problem with potentially dangerous consequences. Backup cameras, mandatory on all new cars as of last year, are intended to prevent accidents. Between 2008 and 2011, the percentage of new cars sold with backup cameras doubled, but the backup fatality rate declined by less than a third while backup injuries dropped only 8 percent.

Perhaps one reason is, as a report from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration put it, “Many drivers are not aware of the limitations” of the technology. The report also found that one in five drivers were just like me — they had become so reliant on the backup aids that they had experienced a collision or near miss while driving other vehicles.

The fact that our brains so easily overdelegate this task to technology makes me worry about the tech industry’s aspirations — the fully autonomous everything. Could technology designed to save us from our lapses in attention actually make us even less attentive?…SNIP

Read the full article here


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Overuse of Technology Can Lead to ‘Digital Dementia’

Have you ever heard a scatter-brained, stressed out friend mutter ‘I have such ADD today’? It’s become all too common to dismiss our flustered, uninterrupted lives as just part of the everyday new normal. Undeniably, modern society is dictated by our constant connection to technology. Plain and simple, we are married to it – for better or worse. But it’s actually quite serious. In fact, more and more young people who’ve been raised in a digital age are showing signs of short term memory dysfunction as a result of their addiction to technology. What can be done and what does this mean for future generations?

An eye-opening study in Seoul, Korea – where more people are connected to digital devices (over 67%) than anywhere in the world –  as well as U.S. study conducted at UCLA has revealed some alarming information about the developing brains of young people.  They’re spending upwards of 7 hours a day attached to their iPads, smartphones, computers and gaming consoles. And the effects to their brains are proving to be very damaging.

It’s Called Digital Dementia

“Digital Dementia”, a term coined by top German neuroscientist Manfred Spitzerin his 2012 book of the same name, is a term used to describe how overuse of digital technology is resulting in the breakdown of cognitive abilities in a way that is more commonly seen in people who have suffered a head injury or psychiatric illness.

Individuals who rely heavily on technology may suffer deterioration in cerebral performance such as short term memory dysfunction. While many of us grew up remembering phone numbers and other key information simply by memorizing it, most kids today have grown up not needing to remember things like phone numbers because we have devices that do it for us.

“Over-use of smartphones and game devices hampers the balanced development of the brain,” Byun Gi-won, a doctor at the Balance Brain Center in Seoul, told the JoongAng Daily newspaper.

It may seem like an easy way out, but can lead to development of the rational, linear, fact-finding skills of the left side of the brain at the expense of the right side which is more intuitive, imaginative and emotional.

The U.S. study blamed modern lifestyles for the problem –  saying that spending time on a computer and texting prevents people focusing and memorizing information.

They also blamed stress, saying hectic lifestyles prevent concentration information retention.

A growing number of adults, too, are susceptible to constant connection and overuse of technology which can lead to lateralization of brain function  which means the brain suffers imbalance. Damage to the right side of the brain is associated with deficits in ability to concentrate, short attention, memory span, and emotional disturbances, such as depression.

How many of us have a smartphone filled with our contacts whose phone numbers we can readily access but we don’t truly know? Or what if we can’t remember the name of the lead actress in a favorite film? Instead of spending the extra few minutes to recall that information organically — by accessing our natural memory and using our brain— we just go look it up on Google.

We’ve become terrifyingly dependent upon technology to the point that we are ruining our brains.

Can Digital Dementia Be Reversed?

Current thinking seems to say it can. So that means that many of us, including kids who grew up with technology and those of us who adopted it in our later lives as part of living in the modern world, may not be destined to digital dementia indefinitely after. But if we are to reverse the damage, we must take an active — rather than passive — role in the health of our brains.

And we need to start right now.

So how can we do this? Manfred Spitzer asserts that all digital technology should be removed from classrooms. That seems unlikely. But, according to neurologist Dr. Carolyn Brockington from St. Luke’s Roosevelt Medical Center in New York City, we can do other things simply by ‘exercising our brains.’ For example,

1. Use Your Head. Retrieve information from your brain organically – rather than automatically turning to Google to look up that actress you can’t remember immediately. Sit there and concentrate until you can recall it.

2. Crack Open a Book. That’s right. Reading an actual book rather than a tablet has been shown to improve memory retention.

3. Learn a new language. Putting you outside your comfort zone helps your brain work harder, which makes you smarter.

4. Play a new instrument. Instruments require the use of both side of the brain – like the piano or the guitar, for example, which help strengthen and balance it.

5. Get physical. Physical exercise increases blood flow and accelerates the transport of vital nutrients to your brain.
Essentially, we need to be doing anything that can lead to the healthy restructuring or ‘rewiring’ of our brains. We need to be spending less time relying on technology and more time relying on our brain power.

What Can You Do Today?

Use it or lose it, the experts contend. The brain, just like a muscle in our body, can atrophy if we don’t use it.

Perhaps consider a digital sabbatical — like Baratunde Thurston did which was famously published in Fast Company last summer. Although it’s not easy or ideal for most of us who are ‘plugged in’ due to our jobs and the needs of the modern world, we should, at the very least unplug during the weekend. Work can — and should — wait. Facebook can wait. If we focus instead on having real conversations, reading books, getting out into nature, and disconnecting from technology, we will be taking care of our brain health and our emotional health as well.

Have you or a loved one grown too dependent on technology? What can you do to encourage more real conversations and less texting, more reading and less video games? Please discuss your thoughts in the comments below.

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50% of Quebec boys don’t finish high school in 5 years

Quebec's dropout rates can't be compared with Ontario's: minister

Comparing Quebec's education system with that of Ontario is the equivalent of comparing apples with oranges, the education minister says.

Comparing Quebec’s education system with that of Ontario is the equivalent of comparing apples with oranges, Education Minister Sébastien Proulx said Wednesday in the wake of a report critical of Quebec’s high dropout rate.

That report, produced by the Institut du Québec, indicates that the graduation rate in Quebec is the lowest of all 10 provinces and that the situation faced by boys, handicapped students and pupils with learning disabilities is particularly worrisome.

The Institut’s report, made public Wednesday, found that Quebec’s graduation rate of 64 per cent hasn’t budged in nearly a decade and that the rate is 20 per cent lower than in Ontario, Nova Scotia and New Brunswick. And that success deficit increases to 25 per cent when the graduation rate of boys in the Quebec system is compared with their counterparts in Ontario.

However, Proulx insisted to reporters on Wednesday that comparisons with the Ontario system are flawed because while this province compiles graduation rates for the entire, five-year secondary cycle, Ontario only does so for the last three.

Proulx also said that means Quebec’s graduation rate is 60 per cent compared with 50 per cent for Ontario. He also said the requirements for a diploma are more demanding in this province than in Ontario.

“Understand what I’m saying,” Proulx said. “I’m not saying these distinctions excuse anything. I’m just saying apples should be compared with apples and not oranges.” 

Proulx acknowledged Quebec has work to do, particularly in the area of literacy. However, he dismissed the idea that increased funding for the education system was the solution.

That point of view is shared by the Institut, which proposes instead that best practices in education elsewhere be adopted by the province and that an institute for excellence in education be created.

Meanwhile, in the National Assembly, opposition parties accused the Liberals of being responsible for the results of the Institut’s critical report because of their on-again off-again funding of the education system.

Parti Québécois Leader Jean-François Lisée suggested the Couillard government had cut $16 million in funding from the system before reinvesting money back into the department.

Québec Solidaire took the same line of attack, saying cuts followed by reinvestment had made it difficult for the system to function efficiently.

The Coalition Avenir Québec called for kindergarten classes to begin at age 4 and that schooling be obligatory until age 18.

Source

WiFi may interact with signaling pathways in the brain, causing irreversible damage

The effects of repeated WiFi exposure on human health have been widely debated. A recent study reviewed evidence from 23 controlled scientific studies which investigated the health effects of WiFi on animals, human cell lines, and humans to determine once and for all, whether WiFi has a detrimental effect on human health.

WiFi or a wireless network consists of an antenna that is connected to the internet and several wireless devices, such as laptop, phone, etc. The electromagnetic frequency of WiFi is pulsed rather than continuous. This is a critical issue, as pulsed electromagnetic frequencies have a larger biological impact.

A 2015 study argued that more pulsed an electromagnetic frequency, more harmful they are for biological specimens. Researchers have also tried to determine the dose relationship between WiFi exposure and biological effects, and found that a specific intensity range of electromagnetic pulses may produce maximum effects, and this may drop off at lower and higher intensities.

When the impact of pulsed electromagnetic frequency was observed in the brains of mice, it was found that exposure for 1–2 months was relatively modest and that the changes were reversible after removing the trigger. However, months of exposure led to severe irreversible effects on neurons and the brain. These results suggest that the changes induced by pulsed electromagnetic frequencies accumulate over time, with harmful long-term effects.

Should we stop children and pregnant women from using WiFi connected devices?

The pulsed electromagnetic frequencies may be particularly damaging in young children due to the small size of their skulls and reduced skull thickness. This may increase brain exposure to pulsed electromagnetic frequencies.

Pulsed electromagnetic frequencies have also been shown to be particularly potent in embryonic stem cells. As these cells occur at a higher frequency in fetus and children, it further puts them at risk, leading to effects on brain development. This effect is particularly striking considering that WiFi placements are a common fixture around schools these days.

WiFi may interact with signaling channels in the human brain

One of the first studies to elucidate how the pulsed electromagnetic frequencies could affect human health showed that low-intensity pulsed electromagnetic frequencies could be blocked using drugs that block voltage-gated calcium channels. Subsequent studies showed activation of calcium channels in response to pulsed electromagnetic frequencies in plants, animals, and human cells.

Apart from calcium channels, voltage-gated sodium, potassium, and chloride channels were also shown to be activated by pulsed electromagnetic frequencies. In humans, seven different voltage-gated ion channels are known to be activated by exposure to pulsed electromagnetic frequency.

This change was observed within five seconds in cells in culture, suggesting that this is a direct effect of pulsed electromagnetic frequency on the plasma membrane.

The different biological effects of pulsed electromagnetic frequency exposure include oxidative stress, lower female/male fertility, neurological effects, cell death, and damage, changes in steroid hormone levels, calcium overload.

Previous studies that have investigated this effect used computers with WiFi cards. Although WiFi cards have been designed to communicate with WiFi antennae, currently there is no information as to how these pulsed electromagnetic frequencies compare with the radiations of genuine WiFi.

Furthermore, many studies have claim there are no effects of pulsed electromagnetic frequencies as the observed effects were not scientifically significant. However, concluding that there is an absence of effects due to lack of statistical significance may not mean that there is no effect whatsoever.

The ubiquitous presence of WiFi in spaces occupied by humans, particularly in schools should be dealt with caution until the effects of pulsed electromagnetic frequencies on humans are established.

Source:

Martin L. Pall. 2018. Wi-Fi is an important threat to human health. Environmental Research. 164 pp.405-416. doi.org/10.1016/j.envres.2018.01.035

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