Sina Ghaffarnejad
9/29/2014
Periodic-als Science in the News
Topic Selected: GMO’s( genetically modified organisms)
Why did you select this topic?
I selected this topic because mainly I am interested in it but I also have good knowledge on the issue. I have a research paper on it that includes both the cons and pros of the issue.
Why is this topic currently a news headline?
The topic of GMO’s have been in the news for a while now but i don't think it has been addressed as much as it needs to be. GMO’s have a great effect on everyday american lives. Going to your average supermarket you will find it hard to believe that 80% of the food in there are made up of GMO’s. GMO’s are now banned in 30 countries including Japan and Australia but is still legal in the US. There are great harmful effects that GMO’s can bring that thats why it is so important right now.
Fact Source 1
Source 1 Title: Studies Show GMOs in Majority of U.S. Processed Foods, 58 Percent of Americans Unaware of IssueMLA Citations: PR NewsWired, Studies Show GMOs in Majority of U.S. Processed Foods, 58 Percent of Americans Unaware of Issue, 2014, July 24, http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/studies-show-gmos-in-majority-of-us-processed-foods-58-percent-of-americans-unaware-of-issue-104510549.html
Fact Source 2
Source 2 Title: A Lonely Quest for Facts on Genetically Modified CropsMLA Citations: Harmon, Amy, A Lonely Quest for Facts on Genetically Modified Crops, January 4, 2014 http://www.nytimes.com/2014/01/05/us/on-hawaii-a-lonely-quest-for-facts-about-gmos.html?_r=0
Fact Source 3
Source 3 Title: GMOs: Facts About Genetically Modified Food
MLA Citations:Lallanilla, Marc, GMOs: Facts About Genetically Modified Food, November 01, 2013, http://www.livescience.com/40895-gmo-facts.html
9/29/2014
Periodic-als Science in the News
Topic Selected: GMO’s( genetically modified organisms)
Why did you select this topic?
I selected this topic because mainly I am interested in it but I also have good knowledge on the issue. I have a research paper on it that includes both the cons and pros of the issue.
Why is this topic currently a news headline?
The topic of GMO’s have been in the news for a while now but i don't think it has been addressed as much as it needs to be. GMO’s have a great effect on everyday american lives. Going to your average supermarket you will find it hard to believe that 80% of the food in there are made up of GMO’s. GMO’s are now banned in 30 countries including Japan and Australia but is still legal in the US. There are great harmful effects that GMO’s can bring that thats why it is so important right now.
Fact Source 1
Source 1 Title: Studies Show GMOs in Majority of U.S. Processed Foods, 58 Percent of Americans Unaware of IssueMLA Citations: PR NewsWired, Studies Show GMOs in Majority of U.S. Processed Foods, 58 Percent of Americans Unaware of Issue, 2014, July 24, http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/studies-show-gmos-in-majority-of-us-processed-foods-58-percent-of-americans-unaware-of-issue-104510549.html
- GMOs are now present in 75 to 80 percent of conventional processed food in the U.S.
- 58 percent of Americans are unfamiliar with the issue of GMOs
- in food"Non-GMO" is the fastest-growing health and wellness claim
- 80 percent of Whole Foods Market shoppers surveyed said they would seek out non-GMO products with clear labeling, and would be willing to pay more for these products.
- The FDA does not require food with GMOs to be labeled as such,
- GMOs are banned or significantly restricted in 30 other countries around the world,
- Unfortunately, due to cross-contamination and pollen drift, very few products in the U.S. are completely free of GMOs.
Fact Source 2
Source 2 Title: A Lonely Quest for Facts on Genetically Modified CropsMLA Citations: Harmon, Amy, A Lonely Quest for Facts on Genetically Modified Crops, January 4, 2014 http://www.nytimes.com/2014/01/05/us/on-hawaii-a-lonely-quest-for-facts-about-gmos.html?_r=0
- Public hearings were dominated by recitations of the ills; such as cancer in rats, a rise in childhood allergies, out-of-control superweeds and genetic contamination
- There's debate about what GMO’s are exactly, are their DNA just altered or are they mixed with another species DNA
- GMO’s can save crops from diseases
- You just type ‘G.M.O.’ and everything you see is negative
Fact Source 3
Source 3 Title: GMOs: Facts About Genetically Modified Food
MLA Citations:Lallanilla, Marc, GMOs: Facts About Genetically Modified Food, November 01, 2013, http://www.livescience.com/40895-gmo-facts.html
- A genetically modified organism, or GMO, is an organism that has had its DNA altered or modified in some way through genetic engineering.
- In most cases, GMOs have been altered with DNA from another organism
- these organisms are sometimes referred to as "transgenic" organisms
- Tomatoes have been developed that resist frost and freezing temperatures with antifreeze genes from a cold-water fish, the winter flounder
- the biggest use of GMO technology has been in large-scale agricultural crops
- 90 percent of the soy, cotton, canola, corn and sugar beets sold in the United States have been genetically engineered.
- GMO crops are genetically engineered to control pests
- Genetically modified foods have been linked to toxic and allergic reactions, sick, sterile and dead livestock, and damage to virtually every organ studied in lab animals
- Most developed nations do not consider GMOs to be safe
- Consuming foods containing ingredients derived from GM [genetically modified] crops is no riskier than consuming the same foods containing ingredients from crop plants modified by conventional plant improvement techniques
- there have been cases where GMOs have caused harm
- Potatoes engineered with a lectin gene (for resistance to pests) were linked to stomach damage in rats that consumed the potatoes,
- The argument over the development and marketing of GMO foods has become a political hot potato in recent years
- Geneticists have bred GMO pigs that glow in the dark by inserting into their DNA a gene for bioluminescence from a jellyfish
- A gene from a spider that helps the arachnid produce silk, for example, could be inserted into the DNA of an ordinary goat.