Abstract Answer: poll results with a 52%–48% split. Rob Gandy examines the contradictory adjectives used by media to describe same numbers in different contexts

In a recent issue of PNAS, Grainger (1) claimed that the evidence for decline of global tropical forests is ‘‘unclear’’ and that it is difficult to demonstrate that it is happening ‘‘convincingly using available tropical forest area data.’’ We agree with most of the article, yet we feel these statements overstate the uncertainty about tropical deforestation. His assessment is based only on the ...

In spite of hard epidemiological and clinical evidence associating asbestos fibre with asbestosis and cancer, the issue is controversial and likely to remain so. The focus is now shifting to non-occupational exposure, differential risk to various asbestos fibre types and the relatively low level of carinogenicity of the chrysotile form. This creates further space for scientific debate and the o...

Convincing evidence now supports a probable preventive role for physical activity in postmenopausal breast cancer. The mechanisms by which long-term physical activity affect risk, however, remain unclear. The aims of this review were to propose a biological model whereby long-term physical activity lowers postmenopausal breast cancer risk and to highlight gaps in the epidemiologic literature. T...