Peer reviewed science

In light of new evidence claiming fraudulent data regarding vaccines and the occurrence of autism in children, there are people demanding "more rigorous controls ... over what is published as peer reviewed science and what is not". Should it be the scientific community, the press or the general public responsible for determining reliability of data? What controls could there be put on the scientific community if any? Could an entire nation become scientifically literate, let alone just having the ability to think critically about what it hears in the news (or on facebook or on twitter or any other form of published work)?

Read the following article, before commenting
http://news.yahoo.com/s/ac/7546906_autism_vaccine_link_study_proven_as_a_fraud

anti-smoking legislation in foreign countries

Cigarette companies such as Phillip Morris have several lawsuits out against governments in countries such as Uruguay and Brazil. They say that these governments are too restrictive of a product that is legal for adults to use. Is it simply the governments of these countries being too restrictive and demanding of the cigarette companies or is it the companies bullying countries who are small, poor and often uneducated?

Read the following articles from the new york times
http://www.nytimes.com/2010/11/14/business/global/14smoke.html
http://www.nytimes.com/2010/11/14/business/global/14indo.html?_r=1

few Americans (or canadians) eat their vegetables

Even small children know that they need to eat their vegetables, yet most North Americans still do not get the recommended number of servings of fruits and vegetables every day. As a society this is hurting us because there is more demands on our health care system and less productivity in our workplaces. What can be done, and should something be done to "force" people to eat more vegetables and fruits and less processed foods? Listen to the following podcast to hear some expert opinions on this topic.

http://www-s1.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=130432584

"Growing" meat for consumption in the laboratory

If raising cattle is proving to be detrimental to the environment, by causing mass deforestation and excess fossil fuel consumption, does it make sense to "grow" meat in a laboratory in order to help feed our rapidly growing population?

Owning a genome

Should a large company be able to own a genome. Some large companies have genetically engineered organisms so that they are beneficial in some way (plants resistant to disease, microorganisms that clean up oil spills, etc.) should they have exclusive rights to these organisms and be able to sell them at a premium to those who need/desire them? What kind of consequences does this type of "ownership" have?

a new view of drug addiction - page 862

There is a genetic link between chemical imbalances and drug dependency, therefore persons with family members that are dependent on drugs will be much more susceptible to drug addiction.

Compulsory AIDS testing - page 774

AIDS testing should be mandatory for all health care workers.