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Ecosystem alteration linked to human health risks
November 25, 2013 — Across the globe, there are signs that human activity is causing changes to Earth’s natural systems that may result in risks to health—from Indonesia, where fires used to clear land have been linked to…
Deadly environments
[Fall 2013 Centennial issue] On a October afternoon in 1948, daylight barely trickled into the storefronts of Donora, Pennsylvania. Stagnant weather had trapped a noxious black cloud of emissions from nearby steel and zinc plants above the town,…
Harvard's first lady
[Fall 2013 Centennial issue] By the time Alice Hamilton joined Harvard’s faculty in 1919, she was already one of the nation’s pre-eminent researchers in the field of occupational health. Her tenacious methods were legendary—in her study of workers…
Protecting workers’ health
[Fall 2013 Centennial issue] Throughout the School’s history, researchers have sought to keep workers safe and workplaces healthy. From pioneering efforts exposing the adverse effects of early-20th-century factory life to current studies on the heart health of firefighters,…
Deadly occupation, forged report
[Fall 2013 Centennial issue] In the early 1920s, workers at U.S. Radium Corporation’s luminous watch dial factory were mysteriously falling ill and dying. Eager to halt a mounting scandal, company President Arthur Roeder contacted industrial hygiene expert Cecil…
A mother's crusade for clean water
[Fall 2013 Centennial issue] In 1972, Anne Anderson’s life changed forever. Her 3-year-old son Jimmy, the youngest of her three children, was diagnosed with leukemia—and other children who lived nearby were suffering from leukemia, too. “Everywhere I went—to…
Getting the lead out
[Fall 2013 Centennial issue] “Every time you fill up your car with gasoline, you can think of Joel Schwartz,” William Reilly, former administrator of the EPA, remarked several years ago. That’s because Schwartz, professor of environmental epidemiology, is…
Engineering clean water
[Fall 2013 Centennial issue] When sanitary engineer Gordon Fair joined the faculty of Harvard School of Public Health in 1919, one fact seemed certain: Water could sustain life, but in many cases, it could also take it away.…
Student's interest in Taiwan food scandal leads to published paper
Spread of tainted food products highlights need to strengthen global food safety October 15, 2013 – In fall 2011, Chih Chao “Justin” Yang, MPH ’12, a physician pursuing a career in internal medicine, had an idea for his 1,000-word…
Aircraft noise linked with heart problems
For immediate release: Tuesday, October 8, 2013 Boston, MA — Older people exposed to aircraft noise, especially at high levels, may face increased risk of being hospitalized for cardiovascular disease, according to a new study from Harvard School…
