Watching the World

Why So Much Cancer?

◆ Dr. Ernest Wynder of the American Health Foundation claims that most human malignancies are related to our “civilized way of living.” At a conference on nutrition and cancer attended by over 1,000 physicians and dieticians, Dr. Wynder and others stated that cancer is closely related to dietary factors, in addition to the other recognized causes such as smoking, food additives or industrial by-products. A study showed that animals fed synthetic foods tended to develop increased tumors. It was also felt that some cancer may be partially determined by the eating habits of persons in their youth.

Billions for Snacks

◆ In one year, Americans spent a billion dollars on potato chips alone, as much as they spent on breakfast cereals. In the same year they spent about five billion dollars on other snack foods and soft drinks, more than they spent on fresh fruits, which are far more nourishing.

Ancient Teeth

◆ A study of about 5,000 mummies of ancient Peruvian Indians reveals that their teeth had fewer cavities than modern man. The various cultures studied are said to have flourished from about 600 B.C.E. to about 1700 C.E.

Foremost Marriage Problem

◆ In England, money used to be the foremost marital problem among couples seeking counsel. However, according to Nicholas Tyndall of the National Marriage Guidance Council in England, sexual problems are now foremost. He says: “Couples are told all the time that they ought to be having a good, full and active sex life. They believe that, and if it doesn’t happen to them, they want to know what to do about it.” As a result, “it is affecting the stability of their marriages.

Largest Telescope

◆ At a meeting of the Optical Society of America, Soviet scientist Igor Karachentsev reported that a new 234-inch reflecting telescope has been in use since January in the Caucasus Mountains. Previously the largest one had been the 200-inch Hale telescope on Mt. Palomar, California. The Soviet telescope is said to have increased man’s view into the solar system one billion times beyond normal eyesight.

Morbid “Game”

◆ “Death Race” has become a fast-selling arcade game in the United States. It has a computerized television screen similar to that used in computer tennis, but with a difference. In “Death Race” simulated people run randomly across the TV screen, and the player, behind an accelerator and steering wheel, tries to run over and “kill” the “pedestrians.” Each time that he does the machine emits a shriek. The player racking up the highest number of corpses wins. In some places, demand for the game reportedly has outrun the supply.

Prisons Failing

◆ Canadian prisons are in “turmoil and unrest” says the Toronto Star. In the past six years there have been 60 prisoner suicides and 14 murders by fellow prisoners. Many others were beaten, bludgeoned or stabbed. Four prison employees were killed in one year. The Star concludes: “We have failed​—and in an expensive, spectacular way—​to design an effective way of dealing with criminals. There is also impressive evidence that our prisons fail to change the behavior of people we send there. In the past 10 years, there has been a 90 per cent increase in the rate of violent crimes. Three out of every four convicted offenders have graduated from penal institutions.”

Helping Choking Victims

◆ Several thousand persons die each year from choking on food lodged in their throats. Various methods have been suggested in helping, such as bending the victim and striking him hard between the shoulder blades, or removing the food with plastic tweezers or fingers, perhaps even cutting into the windpipe with a sharp instrument. Another method has proved to be effective in recent times. The rescuer gets behind the victim, clasps him in a ‘bear hug’ below the rib cage, makes a fist with one hand with the thumb placed in the victim’s abdomen, then pulls up with a quick motion, repeating if necessary. This raises the diaphragm and compresses the lungs so that air pressure in the windpipe is increased, forcing the obstruction out.

Koala Comeback

◆ The cuddly looking Australian koala bear was once nearing extinction. One year, about two million of them were killed for their pelts, used in coats, hats, bags and belts. But then laws prohibited such use, and now there is a surplus of koalas in the protected areas. Hence, some are being taken to other areas where they were once plentiful. Of course, their favorite food​—the leaves of the eucalyptus tree—​grows in the new locations.

Using Solar Power

◆ The energy from just fifteen minutes of sun shining on the earth could satisfy mankind’s energy requirements for a year. But no one has yet devised an economical way of tapping that energy. However, more efforts are being made. By the end of 1976 the United States Energy Research and Development Administration was installing solar heating systems in about 1,300 hospitals, schools, factories, offices, hotels and other buildings.

Disposing of Sludge

◆ The disposing of sludge​—thick and gummy sewage residue—​is a growing problem in the United States. Currently the country must get rid of about 300 million tons of wet sludge annually, and the amount increases yearly. Dumping it into the oceans, or burning it, has been a popular method of disposal. But because of air and water pollution, those methods are being restricted by law. Sludge is being tested as a fertilizer and also as a landfill. However, experts warn that unless properly treated, such use could become a health hazard.

Gasoline Misuse

◆ Gasoline fuels automobiles and other machines, but some people also use it for other reasons. In Oregon, three women were using gasoline to clean a kitchen floor, when the refrigerator switched on, igniting the gasoline fumes. One of the women was killed when she was blown out of the house, and the other two were badly burned. Fire officials warn: Do not use gasoline for cleaning, but use a nonflammable cleanser.

Soviet Strength Growing

◆ A number of Western officials express alarm at the rapid growth of the Soviet Union’s military power. A Royal Air Force officer in England states: “Soviet progress in arms technology is so rapid that the West could lose its will to resist and submit to political pressure.” It was claimed that during the last decade Soviet forces have changed from being primarily defense oriented to being more offense oriented.

More Girl Runaways

◆ The National Police Agency of Japan reports a sharp increase in the number of young girls running away from home. In a recent month, 4,110 fled. Half of them listed problems at home and school as the main reason. The other half cited personal problems with the opposite sex, the influence of friends, or the desire for a good time. Many of the girls steal or become prostitutes to support themselves.

How a Fly Lands

◆ How does a housefly land upside-down on a ceiling? For years some thought that the fly approached an overhead surface with its legs hanging down and then at the last instant did a ‘barrel roll’ to land. Others felt that the final maneuver must be a ‘loop.’ But when English naturalist Stephen Dalton photographed the procedure with a precision, high-speed camera, he found something else. The fly approaches straight at the ceiling, reaches up with its front legs to catch hold, then brings the rest of its body to the upside-down position so its other four legs make contact.

Perfect Record

◆ At times, advertisements offer low-cost devices for projecting television pictures onto a wall or screen many times the size of the TV tube. However, when Mechanix Illustrated investigated, it found the projection very inferior. In a totally dark room, the picture was faint and blurry. When brightness control was turned up, sharpness was lost on an already poor picture. Said the magazine: “For over a quarter of a century inventors have tried to hook some sort of mechanical-optical gadget to a TV to get larger pictures or turn black-and-white sets into color. Every one was a flop. Not one [of the low-cost type] has gained consumer acceptance​—a perfect failure record on the market.”

Children’s Foot Troubles

◆ A clothing specialist at the University of Nebraska says that 80 percent of teen-agers have foot troubles. Most of these, he feels, are due to the poor-fitting shoes that they wore in childhood. He recommends that children’s shoes be matched to the widest measurement of the foot and at least a half-inch (12 millimeters) longer than the longest toe.

Wild House Cats

◆ The house cat is threatening some of Australia’s wildlife. An official of the National Parks and Wildlife Service says that many people buy kittens as pets for their children, but later abandon the pets in the countryside. The cats turn wild, and in their search for food cause havoc among birds, lizards, snakes and small marsupials. The stronger and larger cats survive better and multiply, resulting in a kind of “supercat.” One estimate is that there are several million of these wild house cats roaming the countryside in certain areas.

Provoking Death

◆ A New York motorist was beaten to death when he angrily shouted at three youths whose car had nearly struck his. The youths got out of their car and attacked him with their fists, and also with a baseball bat. In this violence-prone world the sound advice given by the Bible is especially worth while: “An answer, when mild, turns away rage, but a word causing pain makes anger to come up.”​—Prov. 15:1.

Longest People-Tunnel

◆ Japan is constructing a railway tunnel that will be the world’s longest for transporting people​—33.6 miles (54 kilometers) under ground, with 14.5 miles (23 kilometers) being under water. It will link the main island of Honshu with the northernmost island of Hokkaido. About half completed, the double-track, two-way system is expected to be finished about 1982.

Killing Price

◆ A psychologist asked over 650 Americans the question “What is the least amount of money you would take to push a button to kill a person inside a black box (no one would ever know what you did)?” The answers were shocking. Nearly half of those who had killed before​—usually military men—​or those who had tried to kill, said that they would kill again for money​—an average of $20,000. About a quarter of those who had never tried to kill also said that they would kill for money​—an average of $50,000.

Life-Spans Compared

◆ The average European woman’s life expectancy now exceeds 78 years, while that of American women is just 75.9 years. European men expect to live an average of 72 years, but American males reach only 68.2 years. There are just 69 white American males over 65 for every 100 white females, while there are 73 black and 87 Spanish-origin males for every 100 females of those ethnic backgrounds.

U.S. Capital of Illegitimacy

◆ Washington, D.C., the U.S. capital, “has the distinction of being the first major American city in which more children were born out of wedlock in a given year than were born to married women,” reports the Associated Press. In 1975 unmarried women had 4,988 children, compared to 4,758 for married women.