When the gas chromatograph spectrophotometer broke late last summer, it was Grant Wallace’s job to fix it. The instrument, which the University of Minnesota graduate student is using to measure the tiny products of pesticide reactions, is more than 10 years old, and its manufacturer no longer offers repair services. With the help of a…
State health officials will start testing mercury levels in newborns at Twin Cities hospitals and clinics this summer as part of a $500,000 investigation to determine if elevated mercury levels among women in immigrant communities can be traced to illicit skin-lightening products. READ MORE
Justine Mrosak entered the exam room, laptop in hand, and began interviewing her patient about his shoulder injury, systematically checking off questions and entering medical data on the computer. At Entira Family Clinics, where the third-year medical student was making her rounds last week, the computer has become an extension of the doctor’s arm, as…
A common ingredient used in antibacterial soaps is building up in Minnesota’s lakes. In a study publicly published Tuesday, University of Minnesota researchers reported that increased use of triclosan — a common antibacterial ingredient — has resulted in the buildup of the chemical and its derivatives since its debut in 1964. The U.S. Food and…
When Mark Koepp started farming in the 1980s, he joined 16,000 other pig farmers in Minnesota. Today, about a quarter are left. Fewer people are staying on the family farm, and the farms are getting bigger. Technology and improved methods have made crop yields skyrocket. But some things never change. Farmers can always count on…
Since Eric Kaler began his presidency at the University of Minnesota in 2011, all but four administrators on his 18-person senior leadership team have left their old posts. It’s an unspoken rule in higher education that when a new president comes in, key administrators offer their resignation so the new leader has the opportunity to…
Erin Rupp donned pipe-cleaner antennae and stood outside the Home Depot in northeast Minneapolis on Wednesday to make a point about helping bees survive. “If you’re a homeowner and you want to plant more bee forage — which is one of the major ways to help bees — right now you don’t have many choices,” Rupp said.…
Reports of sexual assault at Minnesota colleges have risen sharply in recent years, lending urgency to a national call to bring down the number of sex offenses that occur on campuses across the country. The University of Minnesota, which has had two high-profile rape cases this school year, reported 31 percent more sexual assaults in…
David Norlund went home with nine separate medications when he left the hospital after treatment for pulmonary disease last month. With so much to keep track of, it’s no wonder that roughly one in five older patients winds up back in the hospital within a month of being discharged — a number that is costly…
Before she reaches her first birthday, a black child in Minnesota is more than twice as likely to die as a white child. An American Indian high school student is twice as likely to have suicidal thoughts as his white classmate. And Hispanic Minnesotans are three times as likely to be uninsured as their white…
Rebecca Harrington 