Archive for February, 2009
Video: A Day in the Life of GustieWare
Sarah Lundquist, a current Gustavus student, recently created this great video titled, “A Day in the Life of GustieWare” for her Public Discourse class. I wonder how long it took to do all of that stop-motion animation…
Meeting Minutes – February 9, 2009
Present: Jim Dontje, Deborah Downs-Miers, Lauren Fulner, Stacey Gerken, Kate Goodpaster, Ann Hakes, Lisa Heldke, Steve Kjellgren, Joe Lencioni, Rebecca Welp Reports Steve Kjellgren The student-created video about Gustieware is now available on youtube. Several individual students and/or groups are working with/through DS this semester: Some students of Bruce Johnson will be doing research for […]
Who’s minding your food? Surprise! It depends
A recent article from the Associated Press notes that “at least 15 government agencies have a hand in making sure food is safe.” The article notes that positive progress is being made to shift away from the current system–President Barack Obama’s new agriculture secretary, Tom Vilsack, “supports creating a single, combined food safety agency.” Associated […]
Multivitamins don’t work
According to a short article in The Week, taking daily multivitamins is a waste of money. In an enormous study involving more than 160,000 women over a period of eight years, researchers found that multivitamins do absolutely nothing to prevent cancer or heart disease or increase people’s longevity. More than half of all Americans take […]
Why aren’t we “going trayless???”
Recently, a student queried Dining Service Director Steve, about the possibility of eliminating trays as a way of saving energy and reducing food waste. Here’s what I had to say about that matter, back in September, when colleges across the country rolled out their new trayless programs. (The piece was published in the Free Press […]
How ’bout some mercury with your soft drink?
High fructose corn syrup, the sweetener found in–well…maybe it’s easier to list the things it’s NOT found in these days–is being found to contain MERCURY, a known neurotoxin. Read more here. Hmmm. Mercury. Does this mean that if I drink enough Coke, I’ll be able to take my own temperature?
Dire Food Future?
Ever since Malthus warned us we were running up against the limit of being able to feed the world, we have dodged the conflict between food production and a growing population by innovation and increased use of fossil fuel inputs. Now rising food prices, stagnating cereal production, and declining fish catches have the UN suggesting […]
New food labels on the horizon
Secretary of Agriculture Tom Vilsack appears to be advocating for country-of-origin labeling on fresh foods such as unprocessed meats and vegetables. According to an article from the Associated Press, he’s hoping for voluntary compliance, but will “write new rules” if the voluntary approach doesn’t work.
Mood and Food
Increasingly, research is finding a connection between a person’s food intake and mood, behavior and brain function. The human brain has high energy and nutrient needs. Intake of energy and nutrients affect levels of chemicals in the brain called neurotransmitters. Neurotransmitters allow nerve cells to communicate with each other and influence mood, sleep patterns, memory, […]
They’re Back……and They’re Hungry!!
Gustavus students are back on campus in full force and have brought their appetites with them! The Dining Service Staff has been commenting all week about how glad they are to see their Gusties again – those who were away during January and especially, those who have returned from a semester abroad. Their other comment…..jeesh….didn’t […]