B’More Healthy — Joint Effort Yields Better Food Choices

Poor urban neighborhoods are often food deserts, bereft of fresh fruits and vegetables. According to a report by the Bloomberg School of Public Health, nearly one in four school-aged children in Baltimore live in a food desert — an area where nutritious food choices are limited, and almost one-third of city households lacked access to … Read more

Empowerhouse — From Concept Home to Family Residence

One of the green concept homes showcased at the Department of Energy’s 2011 Solar Decathlon now has a permanent address in Washington, DC. The design is based on several net-zero energy systems that reach peak efficiency when they are joined together. A rainwater harvesting system captures water from the roof and adjacent land, minimizing the … Read more

Nutrition Education for Vietnamese Women on Calcium Intake

A new study suggests that community-based education programs to improve intake of dietary calcium could make a difference in bone health and fracture prevention for the postmenopausal population. In many Asian countries, levels of dietary calcium and vitamin D in the general population have been shown to be below FAO/WHO recommended levels of calcium intake. … Read more

The Garden Classroom

At Mark Twain Middle School in Los Angeles, a blooming garden serves as a classroom. Students learn math by measuring the growth of wheat, ancient history by building a Mesopotamian-style irrigation system and the science of evaporation, evolution and genetics by watching their garden grow. At lunchtime you will find them snacking on pasta tossed … Read more

New School Nutrition Programs

Chicago Public School students will be growing much of their own food next year. On Sunday, Mayor Rahm Emanuel announced a $1 million investment into the school system’s gardening and nutrition programs. The money is left over from the NATO Summit that took place last spring. About 100 Chicago schools will be getting the new … Read more

Heads Up! Smart Glass is Here!

Forget your smartphone, shelve the tablet, and clear your desktop for something useful. Those great looking sunglasses may be your key to Cognitive Demand. It’s not enough for Google, Microsoft, and others to be in your face. They want to be on your face! Microsoft plans to deliver “augmented reality” – where data and illustrations … Read more

‘Homemade’ 3d Printer

Coffman High School teacher, Jim Roscoe, with the help of students, built a 3D printer last spring and is now turning out plastic items that can be used in a number of scenarios. The machine melts plastic from a spool to make 3D items. “All the information for this is open source,” Roscoe said. “The … Read more