Rice LL601 content: 5 per 10,00 kernels, BfR reports

The EFSA-estimate of 6 kernels of GMO-rice per 10,000 kernels may be too high. The German Bundesinstitut für Risikobewertung (BfR) reports only 5 kernels per 10,000 in samples collected at food retailers.

The BfR also points out that selling LL601 is illegal because the variety has never been submitted for approval. But LL62, a related rice variety, has received approval by the US government.

RAEM

GMO-Rice LL601 content in rice shipments: 6 in 10,000 kernels

I have now found a source that provides some data on the quantity of GM rice LL601 found in US-rice shipments to the EU. The European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) reports:

"Preliminary reports from US rice producers indicate that the level of adventitious presence of LLRICE601 might be below 0.1% (Riceland reported 0.06% i.e. 6 in 10000 seeds). Exposure levels in the EU Members States cannot be estimated accurately from the data provided."

RAEM

GMO Rice LL 601 in rice shipments from the USA

Currently, the press is full of reports about GMO-contaminated rice. For example, ABCNews reported on Sept 21st 2006, "EU chases GMO-tainted rice strain in four countries", the Economist speaks on September 16th 2006 about "Grains of doubt", Gretchen Vogel writes in Science, September 22nd 2006 about "Tracing the Transatlantic Spread of GM Rice", and the German Greenpeace website carries a long list of stories about where in the EU GMO rice has been found in rice sold to consumers. LL Rice 601 was developed by Aventis CropScience which was bought by Bayer but I could no find anything about the subject on Bayer's websites.

To stop "unauthorised GMO entering the EU" the EU Commission requires certification of US rice exports to the EU. Greenpeace EU called for the termination of all rice imports for the USA.

Strangely missing from all the reports is any indication of the quantities of of LL Rice 601 found in the rice shipments from the USA. Some will say that this doesn't matter because of zero-content rules that are in place in Europe. Such rules may be fine for administrative reasons. As a consumer and believer in the heuristic that quantative information is superior to qualitative information, I would still like to know how much GMO has been found in the contaminated shipments. Even if GMO-traces would be a threat to consumers' health (and not only a threat to some consumers' state of mind), the quantity of GMO would most likely matter. It is unlikely that Paracelsus' dictum has lost its validity: "Alle Ding' sind Gift und nichts ohn' Gift; allein die Dosis macht, das ein Ding kein Gift ist. " ("All things are poison and nothing (is) without poison; only the dose makes that a thing is no poison.")

RAEM

Anderson, Lessig and the long tail

Chris Anderson, the champion of the "Long Tail", advertises on his blog an event at the New York Public Library where he and Lawrence Lessig of Stanford University and the Creative Commons Foundation converse about "The Rise and Fall of the Blockbuster".

This may be good news for those living in New York or close by. For the rest it is of little use to know that the event happens on Thursday, September 28, 2006 at 7:00 PM at the Celeste Bartos Forum and that admission is $15 for nomembers and $10 for $10 library donors, seniors and students with valid identification.

I wonder why Anderson, Lessig, and the NYPL don't exploit the long tail that consists of the many people who would be willing to spend a few bucks to listen in over the Internet. It is a pitty that Anderson missed the opportunity to drive demand down the long tail.

RAEM

Work harder - become a genius!

Ian Johnson, Science Correspondent of "The Scotsman" explains in a short article "Why it takes a lot of work to become a genius." According to Johnson's sources, it takes three things to become a genius: a normal dose of intelligence, as measured by the IQ, focus, and sustained effort.

Anders Ericsson, psychologist of Florida State University, believes that geniusses "generally invest five times as much time and effort to become great as an amateur does to be competent."

In a way, the story is eroding the self-esteem of most people who are not a genius. Earlier, one could blame one's forebears for not being a genius - now there is no one else to blame.

RAEM

Good news: The end of appeasing the Chinese dictators?

China is still unter the dictatorship of a commuist party. The party is smart enough to allow some economic freedoms but it has thrown its weight around on the Internet. Finally, there seems to be and end to Internet information providers letting themselves being bullyed by the old men of the Chinese communist party: Jimmy Wales of Wikipedia resisted Chinese pressure, reports Instapundit.com Good on him.

RAEM