Expect more peanut-related products to be recalled after a Texas processing plant closed Monday night because of possible salmonella contamination, reports The New York Times. The plant was operated by the Peanut Corporation of America, the same company that owned the Georgia facility blamed in the ...

While contests tend to give my blog a small boost, I find learning about other people more rewarding. Consider that most of the stories I received about why a loved one deserves flowers reveal a bit about what is going on in America in a way that the media fails to capture. Below are a quote or two ...

“To say that food safety in this country is a patchwork system is giving it too much credit. It is a hit or miss gamble, and that is truly frightening. It’s time to find the gaps in the system and remedy them.� – Agriculture Committee Chairman Sen. Tom Harkin, D-Iowa As I’ve been reporting...

Scenario: Your 13-year-old daughter comes home from school, runs crying up to her bedroom with cell phone in hand. Do you: Go up and talk to your daughter but don’t ask to see the message on the phone. Demand to see the messages on the phone. Go back to making dinner and pretend nothing happened. ...

At first, the recall of peanut butter contaminated by salmonella was contained to big institutions like hospitals. But the recall has been steadily expanding as companies such as Kellogg, Hy-Vee and Perry’s are worried about the peanut butter used in cookies, ice cream and crackers. Gee, you think...

While hiking through the McDowell Mountain Sonoran Preserve, I noticed this bird keeping watch from his saguaro. I believe that he is a woodpecker cactus wren thanks to the help of a reader. , though his colorings don’t quite match up with photos I find online. I often hear woodpeckers making hole...

I have a question for my readers: What do you think of the New Jersey law that requires children between 6 months and 5 years old to have flu and pneumonia vaccinations if they are attending most day care and preschool programs? The idea behind the law is to stop flu transmission among young childre...

Wow, I think this is the longest I’ve ever gone without posting. Mostly, I’ve just been busy as a work-at-home dad. Here’s a typical day during the holidays: Read the news Feed the kids breakfast Lael, do you need to go potty? (she’s in training this week.) Edit an e-mail for work Lael, do y...

When I first started this blog in the Spring of 2004, I never found myself at a loss for words. Lately, though, I’ve had a hard time posting. Part of the problem is directly related to the annual flu from hell. Not sure if this time it is one flu, or several viruses working their way through our f...

Although solar cells are technologically exciting, there’s another way to convert sunlight into energy. Stirling generators can convert heat energy into electricity without the use of toxic chemicals. Essentially, all you need are large mirrors, a Stirling engine, a little bit of reusable hydrogen...