November 28, 2001 - Human cloning and stem cell research have become hot topics of debate again this week after a company announced that it was the first to clone human embryos. Advanced Cell Technology says they have taken human eggs, and combined them with cells from adults, and turned them into embryos. Lori Andrews is an author and medical ethicist at Chicago-Kent College of Law. She will deliver a speech today entitled "Embryo Stem Cell Policy, the Intersection of Values, Science and Law" at the University of Minnesota Law School later today. Professor Andrews joins us on the line now. That's Lori Andrews who will speak today at 11:30 at the University of Minnesota Law School.
November 28, 2001 - Minnesotans are amoung the most prolific inventors in the country. A review of filings with the U-S Patent and Trademark office from 1990 to 1999 ranked Rochester 3rd and the Twin Cities 10th in number of patents for every 100-thousand residents. Minnesota was the only state to place two metro areas in the top ten. The review was conducted by an online newsletter called Demographics Daily. Mike Moore is the director of health technologies at the University of Minnesota. He says both the Mayo Clinic and the University of Minnesota have large research budgets that drive innovation:
November 29, 2001 - Student union leaders at the University of Minnesota could decide tonight whether to ban the sale of tobacco products on the Twin Cities campus. The products are currently sold at three stores on campus, and the student unions get some of the profits. Two committees at the University's Boynton Health Service passed resolutions last spring requesting a ban. School health officials say campus surveys show a 60% increase in tobacco use since 1992 by students 18-24 years old. Kristen Moore is the president of the Twin Cities Student Unions' Board of Governors, the group which could decide at a meeting tonight whether or not to continue selling the products. That's Kristen Moore, the president of the Twin Cities Student Unions' Board of Governors.
November 29, 2001 - The United Nations is appointing former U.S. Senator George McGovern as the U.N.'s first global ambassador for hunger. McGovern will organize relief efforts in Third World countries and help people there improve food production techniques. He just finished serving as ambassador to the United Nations Food and Agricultural program in Rome. McGovern grew up during the Great Depression. He says he never personally knew real hunger, but his family provided food to young men in need:
November 30, 2001 - The University of Minnesota will continue to allow cigarettes to be sold on campus. The Student Board of Governors for the Twin Cities student unions voted unanimously last night Helms reports.
November 30, 2001 - South Dakota needs 47.5 million dollars in reserve funds to balance its books for this year and next. Governor Bill Janklow proposed his 2.5 billion dollar budget to lawmakers Thursday in Pierre. He says state revenues are coming in at about a third of the pace anticipated. Minnesota Public Radio's Cara Hetland reports.
December 3, 2001 - Governor Ventura has announced the formation of a tri-partisan task force to study rising health care costs and the quality of care. Ventura says the state's double-digit health insurance increases and a floundering economy could lead to higher uninsurance rates. However, he says the task force will not make recommendations until after next year's gubernatorial election. Minnesota Public Radio's Tom Scheck reports.
December 5, 2001 - Legislative leaders have started highlighting their proposals to fix the state's nearly 2-billion dollar budget shortfall announced yesterday. Caucus leaders spoke today at the Association of Minnesota Counties' Annual Conference in St. Paul. They say they will wait for Governor Ventura to outline a plan that could help balance the budget, but started making recommendations which include raising taxes and cutting services. Minnesota Public Radio's Tom Scheck reports.
December 11, 2001 - The Minneapolis-based American Refugee Committee is launching a program to combat the spread of tuberculosis in Afghan refugee camps in Pakistan. A team of health experts just completed a tour of the camps to assess the need for drugs and diagnostic equipment. A-R-C executive director Joe Bock led the trip. He says conditions in the camps were worse than he expected:
December 11, 2001 - A Defense Department study shows Gulf War veterans are nearly twice as likely to develop Lou Gehrigs Disease- or ALS- as other military personnel. Department of Veterans affairs continue research on the connection between other illnesses and the Gulf War and increase research into ALS in search of a cause, treatment and cure. Moorhead native Kevin Shores believes he is suffering from a gulf war illness. He says The new research, which included nearly 2.5 million military personnel, is one of the largest epidemiological studies ever conducted and offers the most conclusive evidence to date linking Gulf War veterans to a disease. Still, researchers don't know why these veterans were more likely to get sick. Kevin Shores has gulf war sydrome