Letters to the Editors; December 2004; Scientific American Magazine; by Staff Editor; 2 Page(s)

The prosaic yet essential commodities of water and cereal were served up in our August issue. In "Arsenic Crisis in Bangladesh," A. Mushtaque R. Chowdhury examined the stark prospect that 50 million people worldwide could be affected by arsenic-contaminated groundwater and looked at potential strategies to halt this tragedy.

Both "Back to the Future of Cereals," by Stephen A. Goff and John M. Salmeron, and SA Perspectives on "The Green Gene Revolution" explored the promise of genetically modified (GM) crops. Jo Gent of Brookline, Mass., wrote, "Science says overwhelmingly that the GM food currently available poses no risk to human health. But the only experiment I know is that cited by industry--the one currently done on every American who unwittingly consumes GM foods." But Kevin Pyle of Loveland, Ohio, defies anyone "to find food that is not genetically modified. People have been modifying seed for specific characteristics for generations. And the world's largest creator of GM food is Mother Nature herself." More brain food follows.