1970s
20th century
A01=Carrie Nielsen
academic failure
Author_Carrie Nielsen
behavior issues
car pollution
cars
Category=PDX
Category=PSAN
Category=THF
Category=TQ
children
ecology
environment
eq_bestseller
eq_isMigrated=1
eq_nobargain
eq_non-fiction
eq_science
eq_tech-engineering
gasoline
health policy
health science
lead
lead and violence
lead exposure
lead in children
lead poisoning
lead problem
leaded gasoline
medicine
mining industry
oil
public health
science
teen pregnancy
violent crime
Product details
- ISBN 9781978821002
- Weight: 2g
- Dimensions: 152 x 229mm
- Publication Date: 17 Sep 2021
- Publisher: Rutgers University Press
- Publication City/Country: US
- Product Form: Paperback
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When leaded gasoline was first developed in the 1920s, medical experts were quick to warn of the public health catastrophes it would cause. Yet government regulators did not heed their advice, and for more than half a century, nearly all cars used leaded gasoline, which contributed to a nationwide epidemic of lead poisoning. By the 1970s, 99.8% of American children had significantly elevated levels of lead in their blood.
Unleaded tells the story of how crusading scientists and activists convinced the U.S. government to ban lead additives in gasoline. It also reveals how, for nearly fifty years, scientific experts paid by the oil and mining industries abused their authority to convince the public that leaded gasoline was perfectly harmless.
Combining environmental history, sociology, and neuroscience, Carrie Nielsen explores how lead exposure affects the developing brains of children and is linked to social problems including academic failure, teen pregnancies, and violent crime. She also shows how, even after the nationwide outrage over Flint’s polluted water, many poor and minority communities and communities of color across the United States still have dangerously high lead levels. Unleaded vividly depicts the importance of sound science and strong environmental regulations to protect our nation’s most vulnerable populations.
Unleaded tells the story of how crusading scientists and activists convinced the U.S. government to ban lead additives in gasoline. It also reveals how, for nearly fifty years, scientific experts paid by the oil and mining industries abused their authority to convince the public that leaded gasoline was perfectly harmless.
Combining environmental history, sociology, and neuroscience, Carrie Nielsen explores how lead exposure affects the developing brains of children and is linked to social problems including academic failure, teen pregnancies, and violent crime. She also shows how, even after the nationwide outrage over Flint’s polluted water, many poor and minority communities and communities of color across the United States still have dangerously high lead levels. Unleaded vividly depicts the importance of sound science and strong environmental regulations to protect our nation’s most vulnerable populations.
CARRIE NIELSEN is an associate professor of biology and environmental science at Cabrini University in Radnor, Pennsylvania. Her research interests include environmental justice, science pedagogy, interdisciplinary teaching, watershed management, nutrient cycling in forest soils, and faith perspectives on environmental sustainability. She lives in Bryn Mawr, Pennsylvania with her husband and two daughters.
