ИПИ Библиотека

Millions of lives have been saved from malaria and typhus-two of the world's greatest killer-by DDT, a chemical that anti-technology groups in the United States managed to get banned. Yet these same groups oppose regulation of products with proven toxicity-for example, organic foods and alternative medicines-but this contradiction does not seem to bother them. Bountiful Harvest debunks these myths about the dangers of technology.

"There is a growing concern in the United States over “clusters”of cancer and/or birth defects (Gawande 1999). As would be expected, the immediate suspicion is that there are hidden chemicals (meaning man-made chemicals) in the environment that are the cause of the cluster (Sachs 1998). In epidemiology, clusters of a disease often become the basis for investigation into a possible local cause. Obviously, a cluster that is several hundred or even several thousand times what would be expected in a random distribution affords more than sufficient reason to initiate a thorough epidemio-logical investigation."

Thomas DeGregori

Thomas DeGregori is a professor of economics at the University of Houston, specialising in the role of technology in economic development and food production.

DeGregori was a Consultant to USAID and a member of its Research Advisory Committee (1987 to 1993).