Just the Facts

Pork It Over
Dunkin’ Donuts is planning to open 100 new stores in China. The company has hired basketball star LeBron James to help launch its new signature product—pork donuts.

Bad for the Brain
Shark fins contain a toxin linked to Alzheimer’s, Parkinson’s, and other neurodegenerative diseases. A new study suggests that the neurotoxin, beta-methylamino-L-alanine, concentrates as it passes up the food chain.

Animal Cops
Anthropologists studied chimpanzees at a Swiss zoo and found that they mediate conflicts between other group members, not for their own benefit, but for peacekeeping and social cohesion. In 600 hours of observation, they saw an alpha male or his sidekick break up 69 disputes. They often ran into the scuffle or got face-to-face with the skirmishing individuals. Chimpanzee policing has also been observed in an English zoo and in the wild, and in some cases the cop is a female.

Check the Label
Levels of trans fat in Americans’ bloodstreams dropped 58 percent between 2000 and 2008. Credit goes to Food and Drug Administration-required labeling of this unhealthful substance in foods.

More Than a Chore
Yasha and Jessica, two chimpanzees confined in a Russian zoo, watched zookeepers mop their cages, and began doing it themselves, using mops, rags, and trash bags to clean their enclosures.

It’s the Pits
At some Midwestern pig farms, a mysterious foam has formed on manure pits, reaching up to four feet high. The foam traps methane, and explosions have destroyed several farms, killing thousands of pigs, injuring humans, and causing millions of dollars in damage.

Staff Infection
MRSA, or methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus, has been found in about half of meat samples throughout the United States. The dangerous bacterial strain likely developed because of the copious use of antibiotics on factory farms, researchers say, infecting farm workers who come in contact with infected animals.

Hooked on Nuggets
A teenage girl in the United Kingdom has reportedly eaten nothing but McDonald’s chicken nuggets for 15 years. Stacey Irvine, 17, developed breathing problems and anemia and was rushed to the hospital after collapsing with swollen veins in her tongue.

Illustrations Doug Hall/PCRM