How To Properly Label A Cleaning Product Container: Fill & Download for Free

Over the years, the consensus that harms of antibacterial soaps outweigh their benefits has indeed coalesced. But to understand how antibacterial soaps could harm, we first need to understand how they differ from regular soaps. Also referred to as antimicrobial or antiseptic soaps, they contain chemicals that regular soaps don't.Many liquid soaps labeled antibacterial contain Triclosan, a synthetic compound, specifically a phenylether or chlorinated bisphenol. While the US FDA classifies it as a Class III drug, i.e., a compound with high solubility and low permeability, Triclosan is also a pesticide. Triclocarban is another common chemical found in antibacterial soaps. Many of the concerns about Triclosan also apply to Triclocarban (1).Since it appeared on the scene in 1972, Triclosan has steadily permeated through the consumer landscape such that it's practically ubiquitous today (see lists below from 1 and 2).Triclosan's so ubiquitous it's even found embedded in medical devices such as catheters and sutures to prevent infections (3).As for its beneficial effect, a 2015 study compared bactericidal effect of plain versus Triclosan-containing soaps in conditions that mimic hand washing, and found no difference in their ability to reduce bacterial numbers during a 20 second exposure (4). In other words, dubious benefit when used for routine hand washing under normal circumstances, i.e., only washing hands for a few seconds. After all, most of us don't scrub as though preparing to do surgery every time we wash our hands.How Triclosan, A Common Antibacterial Soap Ingredient Inhibits/Kills MicrobesIn vitro studies show Triclosan can stop bacteria growing at low concentrations (bacteriostatic), and kill them at high concentrations (bactericidal). It also has some activity against some fungi (5) and even parasites such as those that cause malaria, Plasmodium falciparum, and toxoplasmosis, Toxoplasma gondii (6).Triclosan is able to target many different types of bacteria by blocking the active site for an enzyme essential for bacterial fatty acid biosynthesis (7, 8). Blocking the enzyme enoyl-acyl carrier protein reductase, Triclosan prevents bacteria from synthesizing fatty acid, which they need for their cell membranes and for reproduction.Problems With TriclosanI. Triclosan selects for antibiotic resistanceAs widespread Triclosan use increased, labs increasingly started finding cross-resistance to antibiotics. Under selection pressure from Triclosan, bacteria mutate to develop resistance mechanisms to it, which end up bestowing antibiotic resistance as well. In other words, studies show Triclosan selects for antibiotic resistance (see table below from 9).II. Discharged Widely Into The Environment, Triclosan Can Affect Biomass Such As Algae & Bacterial CommunitiesSince it's widely used in such a diverse array of products, Triclosan ends up in soil, ground water and municipal wastewater treatment plants. Such plants require proper functioning of microbes to break down sewage. Triclosan can inhibit methane production in wastewater plant anaerobic digesters as well as select for multidrug resistance in such bacterial communities (10). Triclosan's effects persist even beyond because it's discharged from wastewater treatment plants as effluent. Certain algae species in the vicinity of such plants have been found to be very sensitive to Triclosan (11, 12). Triclosan also affects bacterial communities in rivers (13). Potential environmental risk of Triclosan becomes even more relevant in areas of water scarcity where it doesn't get sufficiently diluted.III. Triclosan Can Alter Gut Microbiota In Fishes & Rodents, Potentially Alter Human Microbiota, & Even Promote Tumors In RodentsTriclosan could profoundly (14) and stably (12) alter fish gut microbiota as well as those of baby rats (15).While so far Triclosan doesn't appear to affect human gut microbiome, the data are far from conclusive, being based on just one study with 7 volunteers (16). OTOH, a study on nasal secretions from 90 healthy adults found a positive correlation between presence of Triclosan in nasal secretions and nasal colonization by Staphylococcus aureus (17). This suggests Triclosan indeed has the potential to influence, even alter human microbiota.One mouse model even found Triclosan capable of promoting liver tumors (18).IV. Triclosan Can Disrupt Hormonal FunctionTriclosan was found to disrupt thyroid hormone-associated gene expression and altered the rate of frog metamorphosis (19). It could also disrupt thyroid (20, 21), estrogen (22), and testosterone (23) function in rats.V. Triclosan BansGiven the increasing litany of concerns about Triclosan's deleterious effects on the physiology of a wide variety of species, which may also increasingly include humans, several governments are either considering banning it or have already done so.In March 2010, the European Union banned Triclosan from any products that may come into contact with food (2).On 16 May, 2014, the US state of Minnesota banned the sale of Triclosan-containing cleaning products (soaps), giving manufacturers time until early 2017 to phase them out (24).As of 2015, Health Canada was considering banning Triclosan. It's estimated ~1730 products including cosmetics, health and personal care products containing Triclosan were available in Canada in 2011 (1).The US FDA is mulling its regulation (25), with a report due in September 2016.Bibliography1. Dhillon, Gurpreet Singh, et al. "Triclosan: current status, occurrence, environmental risks and bioaccumulation potential." International journal of environmental research and public health 12.5 (2015): 5657-5684. Triclosan: Current Status, Occurrence, Environmental Risks and Bioaccumulation Potential2. Alliance for the Prudent Use of Antibiotics. "Triclosan." White Paper prepared by the Alliance for the Prudent Use of Antibiotics (APUA) (2011). http://emerald.tufts.edu/med/apua/consumers/personal_home_21_4240495089.pdf3. Stickler, David James, G. Ll Jones, and Allan Denver Russell. "Control of encrustation and blockage of Foley catheters." The Lancet 361.9367 (2003): 1435-1437. http://carambola.usc.edu/BiofilmReferences/FoleyCathedersLancet2003.pdf4. Kim, S. A., et al. "Bactericidal effects of triclosan in soap both in vitro and in vivo." Journal of Antimicrobial Chemotherapy (2015): dkv275.5. Vischer, W. A., and J. Regös. "Antimicrobial spectrum of Triclosan, a broad-spectrum antimicrobial agent for topical application." Zentralblatt für Bakteriologie, Parasitenkunde, Infektionskrankheiten und Hygiene. Erste Abteilung Originale. Reihe A: Medizinische Mikrobiologie und Parasitologie 226.3 (1974): 376.6. McLeod, Rima, et al. "Triclosan inhibits the growth of Plasmodium falciparum and Toxoplasma gondii by inhibition of Apicomplexan Fab I." International journal for parasitology 31.2 (2001): 109-113. https://www.researchgate.net/profile/Russell_Lyons/publication/12092002_McLeod_R_et_al_Triclosan_inhibits_the_growth_of_Plasmodium_falciparum_and_Toxoplasma_gondii_by_inhibition_of_apicomplexan_Fab_I_Int_J_Parasitol_31_109-113/links/004635204356975607000000.pdf7. McMurry, Laura M., Margret Oethinger, and Stuart B. Levy. "Triclosan targets lipid synthesis." Nature 394.6693 (1998): 531-532.8. Levy, Colin W., et al. "Molecular basis of triclosan activity." Nature 398.6726 (1999): 383-384.9. Schweizer, Herbert P. "Triclosan: a widely used biocide and its link to antibiotics." FEMS microbiology letters 202.1 (2001): 1-7. http://femsle.oxfordjournals.org/content/femsle/202/1/1.full.pdf10. McNamara, Patrick J., Timothy M. LaPara, and Paige J. Novak. "The impacts of triclosan on anaerobic community structures, function, and antimicrobial resistance." Environmental science & technology 48.13 (2014): 7393-7400. https://www.researchgate.net/profile/Patrick_Mcnamara2/publication/262977264_The_Impacts_of_Triclosan_on_Anaerobic_Community_Structures_Function_and_Antimicrobial_Resistance/links/54e364290cf2be54da85c5e7.pdf11. Reiss, Richard, et al. "An ecological risk assessment for triclosan in lotic systems following discharge from wastewater treatment plants in the United States." Environmental Toxicology and Chemistry 21.11 (2002): 2483-2492.12. Lawrence, J. R., et al. "Resilience and recovery: The effect of triclosan exposure timing during development, on the structure and function of river biofilm communities." Aquatic Toxicology 161 (2015): 253-266. https://www.researchgate.net/profile/Edward_Topp/publication/272625256_Resilience_and_recovery_The_effect_of_triclosan_exposure_timing_during_development_on_the_structure_and_function_of_river_biofilm_communities/links/553e3dad0cf20184050de010.pdf13. Ricart, Marta, et al. "Triclosan persistence through wastewater treatment plants and its potential toxic effects on river biofilms." Aquatic Toxicology 100.4 (2010): http://www.clipmedia.net/galera/ICRA/NdP/2010/120710_estudiS_SCARCE/TRI2010.pdf14. Narrowe, Adrienne B., et al. "Perturbation and restoration of the fathead minnow gut microbiome after low-level triclosan exposure." Microbiome 3.1 (2015): 1. Microbiome15. Hu, Jianzhong, et al. "Effect of postnatal low-dose exposure to environmental chemicals on the gut microbiome in a rodent model." Microbiome 4.1 (2016): 1. Microbiome16. Poole, Angela C., et al. "Crossover Control Study of the Effect of Personal Care Products Containing Triclosan on the Microbiome." mSphere 1.3 (2016): e00056-15. http://msphere.asm.org/content/msph/1/3/e00056-15.full.pdf17. Syed, Adnan K., et al. "Triclosan promotes Staphylococcus aureus nasal colonization." MBio 5.2 (2014): e01015-13. Triclosan Promotes Staphylococcus aureus Nasal Colonization18. Yueh, Mei-Fei, et al. "The commonly used antimicrobial additive triclosan is a liver tumor promoter." Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences 111.48 (2014): 17200-17205. http://www.pnas.org/content/111/48/17200.full.pdf?sid=9999ac99-d014-408e-9dd5-569e9e63ad6a19. Veldhoen, Nik, et al. "The bactericidal agent triclosan modulates thyroid hormone-associated gene expression and disrupts postembryonic anuran development." Aquatic Toxicology 80.3 (2006): 217-227. https://www.researchgate.net/profile/Rachel_Skirrow/publication/6783914_The_Bactericidal_Agent_Triclosan_Modulates_Thyroid_Hormone-Associated_Gene_Expression_and_Disrupts_Postembryonic_Anuran_Development/links/0deec524c3368a304f000000.pdf20. Crofton, Kevin M., et al. "Short-term in vivo exposure to the water contaminant triclosan: evidence for disruption of thyroxine." Environmental Toxicology and Pharmacology 24.2 (2007): 194-197. https://www.researchgate.net/profile/Joan_Hedge/publication/51516135_Short-Term_in_Vivo_Exposure_to_the_Water_Contaminant_Triclosan_Evidence_for_Disruption_of_Thyroxine/links/02e7e5277b274f2d27000000.pdf21. Zorrilla, Leah M., et al. "The effects of triclosan on puberty and thyroid hormones in male Wistar rats." Toxicological Sciences 107.1 (2009): 56-64. The Effects of Triclosan on Puberty and Thyroid Hormones in Male Wistar Rats22. Stoker, Tammy E., Emily K. Gibson, and Leah M. Zorrilla. "Triclosan exposure modulates estrogen-dependent responses in the female wistar rat." Toxicological Sciences (2010): kfq180. Triclosan exposure modulates estrogen-dependent responses in the female Wistar rat23. Kumar, Vikas, et al. "Alteration of testicular steroidogenesis and histopathology of reproductive system in male rats treated with triclosan." Reproductive Toxicology 27.2 (2009): 177-185.24. SF 2192 Status in the Senate for the 88th Legislature (201325. Kuehn, Bridget M. "FDA pushes makers of antimicrobial soap to prove safety and effectiveness." JAMA 311.3 (2014): 234-234.

Ants are social insects, so when one ant enters your home, others follow. Discover a few tips to help make sure ants get out and stay out of your house.Is it easy to learn how to get rid of ants?Unfortunately, ant control isn't always a simple fix. Some ant infestations have nothing to do with how clean or dirty your home is. Your property could simply be a haven for ants. This can create problems for homeowners as the late spring and early summer nuptial flights take place. Large swarms of winged ants set out to start new colonies, sometimes right in the voids of your walls.Other scenarios can be as easy to fix as getting rid of any ants that you see crawling around. Wipe down the area where the ants traveled with a regular kitchen disinfectant wipe. This will erase the scented trails they leave behind. Ants that have never been in your home can follow this trail directly to the food sources previous visitors have found.Do you need to know what type of ants you have in order to get rid of them?Knowing the species of ant you are dealing with is important. If you know your enemy, you will know where to find the nest, what sources of food are attracting them and which management methods will be the most effective.What's the best way to get rid of ants?The best way to learn how to get rid of ants in the house is to learn how to prevent them. Having an ongoing service plan with a pest management professional is the key to managing pest problems in your home. Your service technician will work with your specific scenario and profile to create the best approach for getting rid of ants and keeping them out of your house in the future. This can include interior and exterior treatments, sealing up entry points around the home and placing insect growth regulators around the property.For your part, it's important to practice proper sanitation techniques if you want to keep ants at bay. Most species of ants are simply in your home looking for food, so the harder you make it for them, the less time they are going to spend looking. In other words, if they aren't finding what they're looking for, they're going to look somewhere else (which is good news for you, but might be bad news for your neighbors).Unfortunately, achieving a spotless home can be difficult. What looks like a clean kitchen at first glance might include a few granules of sugar on the countertop, or a couple of crumbs that fell behind the stove, upon closer inspection. This seemingly insignificant portion of food is a feast fit for a king - or an ant queen once the workers bring it back. To avoid this, don't just wipe down surfaces. Vacuum every day, paying close attention to the baseboards, behind furniture and appliances as well as other areas you might typically miss.Additionally, ants will get in your trash, so waste management is vital to ant control. Remove garbage from the premises immediately. Use the garbage disposal rather than leaving food sitting around in a trash can.4. What are some quick ways to starve ants out?In addition to wiping down surfaces and vacuuming the floors, proper food storage is important. An ant can easily climb inside an open box of cookies, even if you've rolled the inside bag tightly and used the tabbed closing function on the box top. When in doubt, always remember that the average manufacturer's packaging is rarely made to withstand ant invasions.Instead, take it upon yourself to purchase airtight containers in order to store your food. The lids should lock tightly, providing no means for an ant or any other scavenger to gain entry. Wipe down the outside of storage bins and other containers after every use. Ants can feed on the "invisible" residue you leave behind, such as the outside of a sticky jelly jar or excess film from a spill you thought you had cleaned up. It goes without saying that you should keep as much food as possible stored in places that are harder to access (e.g., freezers, refrigerators, resealable plastic bags, mason jars, etc.).5. Do over-the-counter ant sprays work?Ant control that can be purchased at your local hardware store comes in many forms. It's important to remember that these substances may be harmful if the product label directions are not followed. Unfortunately, they usually won't solve an ant infestation. Sprays are meant to kill the ants you see and act as a deterrent. Most over-the-counter products have no residual (or lasting) effect. If the ants are still able to enter your home, they will simply find a way around the spray. Plus, their colony will still be intact, producing more and more ants, all of which will be hungry and headed for you.Additionally, some colonies are nearly impossible to reach without special equipment. If a colony or nest is located within your walls, a simple spray that anyone can buy will not be sufficient to properly treat the colony. Similarly, outdoor colonies can extend far below the surface, which is where most over-the-counter treatments stop working.6. Why do some colonies still survive after treatment?In addition to inadequate delivery of treatment, colonies can continue to thrive for one other simple reason: the queen ant survives. Ant problems don't start in your home, they start in the nest. You only recognize the problem once the ants have invaded your living space. And while you might think that the more ants you see, the more chance they'll be breeding, this is not the case.The one sole ant in charge of populating the entire nest is the queen. As long as she is unharmed, she can produce more ants to enter your home. The more she makes, the more they need to eat. Complicating the matter is that the queen ant never leaves the nest after she has established her colony, so there's no chance you'll get to her when you kill those ants in your kitchen.She creates worker ants to feed the young inside the nest, which she is continually populating. The worker ants are the ones you see in your house. Other ants in the colony include queens, soldiers and drones. So even if you learn how to get rid of ants in the kitchen, they'll soon be replaced with new workers by the queen. The only way to get rid of an ant colony that's causing problems in your home is to get rid of the queen. please more info

I took the live version of CS109 in Fall 2013 and am currently a data scientist.I still think that CS 109 is one of the best ways to learn the tools and the mindset of a data scientist (and would recommend it to any aspirational data scientist). I use python, pandas, ipython notebook, and matplotlib almost every day at work. However, there are some key differences that I want to illuminate.How I am EvaluatedIn CS109 problem sets I am evaluated on my process - how few mistakes I make and how well I can follow instructions. Everyone who tries on the pset makes sure they submit some sort of valid answer, so most people just end up losing points on forgetting to label their axes, not following instructions, or forgetting to answer a part of the question.This is helpful to help students use our tools properly, adopt best practices, learn syntax, and learn the process of data science. The unfortunate side effect of this form of evaluation is that students get frustrated at losing points for "silly" reasons, and over-optimize their process to make sure they're following all the instructions on the dot. This can unfortunately distract students from the true purpose of the problem sets - learning and generating insights.As a data scientist I am evaluated based on my impact - the insights that I generate, how I communicate them, and how well they can help drive decisions at the company. It is my own responsibility to make sure my process is clean and well-understood. The main deliverable for my work is not the process but the insights. My time is best spent not "perfecting" my process, but refining my insights. There is no pre-defined right answer to any analysis task as a data scientist, I just have to spend my time to find the best answer.How datasets are providedIn CS109 Problem Sets, the data is usually provided to you in the form of a clean, convenient CSV (or sometimes you have to scrape it, or pull it from an API).In data science, most of my time is actually spent getting the data and cleaning it. There's a lot of wisdom in sanity checking your columns, writing SQL queries to get the exact metric you need, and making graphs to peek at what data exactly you extracted.Kinds of datasets you get to analyzeThe datasets you get to analyze in CS109 are common, public, easily-retrievable data science datasets (election, baseball, restaurants, MNIST, iris, coauthorships of bills, movies, etc.). Not all of them will interest me, and the types of analyses that I get to do on them have been done many times before.The datasets you get to analyze as a data scientist are whatever proprietary datasets your company produces (and hopefully datasets that you are interested in!). Usually, you're extracting specific insights from datasets that no one else in the world has discovered before.Domain knowledge is very useful here, as your knowledge of your company's product and your previous experience with analyzing your company's datasets can give you additional intuition and hypothesis-making ability.The size of your datasetThe datasets you get to analyze in CS109 are usually well-contained in a static CSV file.The datasets that I get to analyze at Quora are continually growing, and I get to use ALL of them, not just a single table.In SummaryThere's a lot to data science that you can only learn from being in data science. This includes the proprietary or paid tools that your team has developed / bought, and getting access to the data infrastructure that has been put together to help make all stages of the pipeline better.See a related answer at How similar are Kaggle competitions to what data scientists do?