Pollution-Induced Food Safety Problem in China: Trends and Policies

Based on systematic literature study and policy document analysis, this paper investigates the environmental pollution-induced food safety problem in China, including the impact of environmental pollution on food safety and the policy response of Chinese government since 1970's. The results show that, to different degrees, food safety of China is affected by large but inefficient chemical fertilizer and pesticides residue (although the consumption began to decline after around 2015), cropland heavy metal pollution (especially cadmium), water pollution, and high ozone concentration. The evolution of pollution-induced food safety policies of China can be divided into four stages, i.e., preparation stage (1974–1994), construction stage (1995–2005), elaboration stage (2006–2013), and intensification stage (2014–). Through the four stages, the increasingly stringent policy system has been featured by “from supply-safety balance to safety first,” “from multi-agency management to integrated management,” and “from ex post supervision to ex ante risk control.” To further prevent pollution and control food quality, more collaborations between the agricultural and environmental agencies and more specific policies should be anticipated.

A system-level dual-redundancy steer-by-wire system

Vehicle steer-by-wire system (SBW) can improve the handling stability, passive safety, active safety and drive comfort significantly, which becomes a hot topic in research. However, the safety problem of SBW is one of the most critical problem in its practical application. In order to solve the safety reliability problem of SBW, a dual-redundancy steer-by-wire system (DSBW) is proposed in this paper by applying the redundancy theory, in which no system failure is achieved when any single random electrical fault occurs, showing that DSBW is a system-level dual-redundancy system rather than a system with local redundancy. Finally, a DSBW prototype is manufactured to prove its high safety reliability. Fault injection experiments of the system are performed, in which DSBW works normally when any single electrical fault occurs.

The Problem of Iatrogenic Injury

This introduction briefly presents the problem to which the book is addressed: the hundreds of thousands of avoidable deaths and millions of injuries suffered by Americans in the course of their healthcare. To date, the patient safety problem has proven incalculably difficult to ameliorate through the conventional efforts of both the healthcare industry and the legal system. The aim of this book is described: to explore strategies the law could undertake that look beyond conventional malpractice litigation. A new generation of innovative laws could harness the insight that more can be achieved by attending to higher levels of organization, by correcting perverse incentives, by encouraging the use of appropriate new technology, and by pursuing other innovations. The chapter concludes with a roadmap to the rest of the book.

Safety Problem of Gaseous Extinguishing System in Underground Subway Station

The gaseous fire extinguishing agents CO₂, Halon 1301, and HCFC-BLEND A and a clean fire extinguishing agent are installed and operated in 85.5%, 6.19%, 4.14%, and 4.62% of the city railroad subway stations of Korea, respectively. The fire extinguishing halon gases Halon1301 and HCFC-BLEND A currently used in city railroad subway stations are already regulated globally because of global warming and ozone layer destruction.Moreover, the use of Halon 1301 is prohibited because of the development of alternative clean fire extinguishing gas. However, newly installing and operating CO₂, unlike the use of halon gas, has not been sanctioned. In particular, even though a fire extinguishing CO₂ facility has the serious safety problem of choking accidents occurring as a result of operation in a closed space because of the characteristics of a subway station, the situation has not been improved. The Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development designates CO₂ as the major substance causing global warming and forcibly allocates the reduction of carbon emissions to member countries through a reduction policy. Therefore, overall annual replacement of CO₂ fire extinguishing facilities installed and operated in subway stations is necessary, and the problems of fire extinguishing operation characteristics and maintenance of fire extinguishing gas facilities should be reviewed. The purpose of this work is to presentthe maintenance status of fire extinguishing gas facilities installed and operated in the city railroad subway stations of Korea. Furthermore, the preparation of measures and laws for preventing fatalities resulting from choking caused by fire extinguishing CO₂ facilities and for improving cooperation with the international environmental response is proposed.

Is Acrylamide really a food safety issue?

Purpose Acrylamide is a compound found in several food products. Due to the toxicity of this compound, research also seeks strategies to modify industrial and homemade processes, impacting on the reduction of the compound. This paper aims to discuss the aspects surrounding the presence of acrylamide in foods. Design/methodology/approach Published literature on the presence of acrylamide in foods and on its effects has been reviewed. This paper explores the importance of this compound, summarizes the knowledge of its formation and gathers data on its incidence in food and the possibilities of mitigation. Special attention is given to an evaluation of the toxicological tests applied, to analyze whether acrylamide can be considered as a food safety problem. Findings Human exposure to food with high levels of acrylamide varies in their levels regarding the consumption of food in the diet and not only by the level of the compound present in them. Although the compound is well defined as toxic to humans, the association between its intake and most common cancers may not be directly related. Originality/value Depending on the approach of the researchers, contradictory results are obtained, showing the importance of this topic to the development of healthy food products. Further research is still needed to validate the potential effects of acrylamide on human health.

A Study on the Efficiency of Vertical Non-Combustible Blocking for External Fire Spread of EIFS with Combustible Insulation in Piloti Building

The requirements for exterior finishing materials have been substantially established recently. After a fire at an apartment building in Uijeongbu City, fire safety requirements for exterior finishing materials used in the buildings that have six and more stories or are taller than 22 meters were specified in 2015, and three and more stories or are taller than 9 meters were specified in 2019. However, the buildings built before that may not accomplish the safety requirements and thus have fire safety problem. This study suggests a method for partially reinforcing the Exterior Insulation Finishing System (EIFS) of buildings to enhance the fire safety. EIFS specimens whose walls on the pilotis were reinforced with a mineral insulation material, were tested in accordance with BS 8414-1. The result showed that fire spread was delayed more than 9 min when compared with an EIFS specimen without reinforcement.