Going Green – Update 08.23.24

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A quick rundown: First, in the middle of the month, news broke that Superpedestrian was shutting down just 18 months after raising $125 million in fresh funding. A few days later, Micromobility.com, formerly known as Helbiz, was delisted from Nasdaq for failing to maintain a share price above $1. Then came the biggest shockwave of all: Bird, the largest e-scooter company in the U.S. with a one-time valuation of $2.5 billion, filed for bankruptcy.

E-scooter companies are going bankrupt. That should alarm you even if you hate them —https://www.fastcompany.com/91005446/e-scooter-companies-are-going-bankrupt-that-should-alarm-you-even-if-you-hate-them

TBH I never understood this e-scooter thing from the very beginning.

Maybe I’m too risk adverse.

UCLA-led research finds that scooter injuries nearly tripled across the U.S. from 2016 to 2020, with a concurrent increase in severe injuries requiring orthopedic and plastic surgery over the same period.

The study, which compared national trends in scooter and bicycle injuries during the period, also found that costs to treat those injuries rose five-fold, highlighting the financial strain these injuries pose to the healthcare system — a finding that “underscores a critical juncture for discerning the underlying causes of injuries and informing policies for injury prevention,” the researchers note.

University of California – Los Angeles Health Sciences. “Hospitalizations for scooter injuries nearly tripled in the US between 2016 and 2020, UCLA-led research finds.” ScienceDaily. ScienceDaily, 9 January 2024 — https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2024/01/240109121215.htm

Turkey’s Koc Holding said it revoked an agreement with Ford Motor and South Korean battery maker LG Energy Solution for a joint venture to produce battery cells for commercial electric vehicles…LGES said the three companies had mutually agreed to scrap the plan due to the current pace of consumer electrification adoption.

Ford’s joint battery cell plant in Turkey is scrapped — https://europe.autonews.com/automakers/ford-battery-plant-turkey-dropped-slow-ev-adoption

At the end of Q3 2023, Hertz told investors that significant price cutting during the year had “resulted in lower EV residual values, increasing vehicle depreciation expense and negatively impacting salvage cost.” Additionally, its rental EVs were damaged or crashed more often, and the much higher cost of repairs for Tesla vehicles—on average about 20 percent higher than other EVs—has meant that Hertz’s Teslas earn it less money per vehicle than its other rentals.

Consequently, it’s selling off 20,000 EVs over the course of this year. Currently, the company has over 700 EVs for sale, including 35 Chevrolet Bolts, four Kia EV6s, a single BMW i3 and Nissan Leaf, and then 673 Teslas—552 Model 3s and another 121 Model Ys.

Hertz is selling 20,000 used EVs due to high repair costs — https://arstechnica.com/cars/2024/01/hertz-is-selling-20000-used-evs-due-to-high-repair-costs/

There is a reason for such unusually rapid depreciation. It is precisely because the device is in need of a new battery – and the cost of that battery is (in this case) in the range of $13,000-plus. Not counting the cost of the installation.

Don’t Buy a Used EV — https://www.ericpetersautos.com/2024/01/12/dont-buy-a-used-ev/

In Indonesia, nickel extraction is causing environmental and social devastation.

The dirty road to clean energy: How China’s electric vehicle boom is ravaging the environment — https://restofworld.org/2022/indonesia-china-ev-nickel/

Over the past few years, as Tesla built out its gigafactory near Berlin, it cut down around half a million trees.Kayrros, a company that analyzes satellite images using AI, made the calculation. Tesla cleared around 813 acres of forest between March 2020 and May 2023, according to the analysis. Tesla cut down 500,000 trees to build its German gigafactory

So going green is good?

My Decision on Retirement

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I have made a commitment to work and to share what I learn with others; this is my responsibility and contribution to life. Work has richly educated me, and I am very grateful for the many opportunities I have been given to learn and to share.

Tarthang Tulku

Low Magnesium Levels Do What?

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Scientists from the University of South Australia measured blood samples from 172 middle aged adults, finding a strong link between low magnesium levels and high amounts of a genotoxic amino acid called homocysteine. University of South Australia. “Low magnesium levels increase disease risk.” ScienceDaily. http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2024/08/240812123307.htm (accessed August 13, 2024).

Journal Reference:

Varinderpal S. Dhillon, Permal Deo, Michael Fenech. Low magnesium in conjunction with high homocysteine increases DNA damage in healthy middle aged Australians. European Journal of Nutrition, 2024; DOI: 10.1007/s00394-024-03449-0

Whole grains, dark green leafy vegetables, nuts, beans, bananas, avocados and dark chocolate are magnesium-rich foods.

    Multifocal Positive Margins After Prostate Cancer Surgery

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    In Cox multivariable analyses, compared with negative surgical margins, positive surgical margins were significantly associated with a 1.7- and 2.2-fold increased risk of cancer-specific and all-cause mortality, respectively, in patients with intermediate-risk and high-risk disease, respectively, Ugo Giovanni Falagario, MD, of Karolinska Institute in Stockholm, Sweden, and colleagues reported in European Urology Oncology. Positive surgical margins were also significantly associated with a 1.8-fold increased risk of adverse pathologic characteristics, including Grade group 4 or higher, pT3 or higher, pN1, or PSA persistence. Multifocal Positive Margins After Prostate Cancer Surgery Up Mortality Risks – https://www.renalandurologynews.com/news/multifocal-positive-margins-after-prostate-cancer-surgery-up-mortality-risks/

    Reference:

    Pellegrino F, Falagario UG, Knipper S, et al; ERUS Scientific Working Group on Prostate Cancer of the European Association of Urology. Assessing the impact of positive surgical margins on mortality in patients who underwent robotic radical prostatectomy: 20 Years’ report from the EAU Robotic Urology Section Scientific Working Group. Eur Urol Oncol. 2024 Aug;7(4):888-896. doi:10.1016/j.euo.2023.11.021

    Just 2-4 Cups of Fruits and Veggies Does What?

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    Lowers blood pressure, improves kidney health, improves CVD risk factors.

    In a randomized control trial over a five-year period, investigators divided the cohort of 153 patients with hypertension into three groups:

    1. Study participants adding 2-4 cups of base-producing fruits and vegetables in addition to their usual daily food intake
    2. Study participants prescribed NaHCO3 (acid-reducing sodium bicarbonate, which is common baking soda) tablets in two daily doses of 4-5 650 mg tablets
    3. Study participants receiving standard medical care from primary care clinicians

    The results of the study show that both fruits and vegetables and NaHCO3 improved kidney health, but only fruits and vegetables, and not NaHCO3, reduced blood pressure and improved indices of cardiovascular disease risk.

    The trial supports fruits and vegetables as foundational hypertension treatment to reduce chronic kidney disease progression and cardiovascular disease risk.

    Elsevier. “Eating more fruits and vegetables to reduce dietary acid lowers blood pressure and improves kidney and heart health in patients with hypertension.” ScienceDaily. http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2024/08/240806131316.htm (accessed August 11, 2024).

    Journal Reference:

    1. Nimrit Goraya, Nicolaos E. Madias, Jan Simoni, Maninder Kahlon, Nazan Aksan, Donald E. Wesson. Kidney and Cardiovascular Protection Using Dietary Acid Reduction in Primary Hypertension: A Five-Year, Interventional, Randomized, Control Trial. The American Journal of Medicine, 2024; DOI: 10.1016/j.amjmed.2024.06.006

    I had two cups of fruit in my breakfast bowl this morning.

    What did you eat for breakfast?

    The T2D-GENE Trial

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    The prevalence of type 2 diabetes was significantly lower in the lifestyle intervention group than in the control group.

    University of Eastern Finland. “Type 2 diabetes can be prevented by diet and exercise even in individuals with a high genetic risk.” ScienceDaily. http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2024/08/240807122749.htm (accessed August 10, 2024).

    Effects of Genetic Risk on Incident Type 2 Diabetes and Glycemia: The T2D-GENE Lifestyle Intervention Trial – The Journal of Clinical Endocrinology & Metabolism, dgae422, https://doi.org/10.1210/clinem/dgae422

    Remember, Stay as Thin as You Can as Long as You Can.

    A Broad Range of Flexible Retirement Arrangements

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    A Phased Retirement Program

    Emory University is one of the few employers that offers a phased retirement program. Here’s a breakdown of how its program works:

    • The phased retirement commitment must be for a defined duration, spanning a minimum of six months to a maximum of three years.
    • Throughout this period, you’ll adjust your work hours, reducing them by anywhere from 10% to 50%, while maintaining a minimum of 20 hours per week.
    • By participating, you agree to retire at the end of the specified time frame.
    • Your pay will be adjusted to reflect the reduced workload during phased retirement.

    Source: Phased Retirement: What Does It Mean And How Does It Work? — https://www.thepennyhoarder.com/retirement/phased-retirement/

    Sign me up (when I’m ready).