Word: plasticizing
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...What's Toxic in Toyland" [Dec. 11] included misleading information about substances that make plastic toys and other children's products soft (phthalates) and shatterproof (bisphenol A., or BPA). Phthalates have been used in consumer products for more than 50 years. During that time, no reliable research has ever found that phthalates cause negative health effects in humans. The Consumer Product Safety Commission in 2003 completed a four-year review of the main phthalate used in vinyl toys (called DINP) and found "no demonstrated health risk" and "no justification" for banning it, as the City of San Francisco has done...
...message boards is a ubiquitous form of expression. So how can you stand out from the crowd? Try getting illuminated. Philips Research's Lumalive combines red, green and blue LED pixels to form an array of colors beneath any fabric's surface. The LEDs are housed in a flat plastic sheath, which is connected to a control driver containing the battery and a playlist of preprogrammed images. SMS texts can be sent to a GSM receiver enabling a variety of new messages. (The Lumalive parts are easily removed for laundering.) London-based industrial designer Ron Arad describes Lumalive as "great...
...city's many saucy neighborhoods: Soi Cowboy, a neon-lit stretch boasting clubs such as Spice Girls and Doll House. During the day, I can walk Cassius, my pet schnauzer, down Soi Cowboy, and she gets friendly pats from sex workers in hot pants and plastic miniskirts. Even the poodle owned by a fearsome-looking mama-san doesn't mind a fuzzy interloper. With Cassius in tow, my husband does not get asked to "lookee, lookee." Pet dogs accomplish what wives apparently...
...buffer. And that takes attention." So learning, says Sirois, is essentially the laborious business of resolving mismatches. "The thing is, you can do a lot of it with this wet, sticky thing called a brain. It's a fantastic, statistical-learning machine." Daniel, exams ended, picks up a plastic tiger and, chewing thoughtfully upon its head, smiles as if to agree...
...changes took place in microscopic structures called telomeres, which are often compared to the plastic wrappers on the ends of shoelaces and which keep chromosomes from shredding. As a general rule, the youngest cells boast the longest telomeres. But telomeres in the more stressed-out moms were significantly shorter than those of their counterparts, making them, from a genetic point of view, anywhere from nine to 17 years older than their chronological...