Oneironaut

I wouldn't be so sure about that. How much lead do you think is in the soil adjacent to highways, from decades of using leaded fuels? As for pesticides/herbicides, these are largely surface contaminants of food. Nothing that a good wash with soap and hot water won't take care of. I've never seen any evidence that they are absorbed into the food in any sort of levels that I would be concerned with. Fertilizers, unlike pesticides and herbicides are not toxic per se (a little bit of nitrogen, potassium and phosphate isn't going to hurt you), but they have a huge environmental impact. When they leech into waterways they can cause algal blooms which lead to eutrophication (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Eutrophication). And the production of ammonia for fertilizers (through the Haber process) uses HUGE amounts of energy, which ultimately comes from fossil fuels. This is in fact the largest fossil fuel input into conventionally grown food, not harvesting, transportation, processing, etc. CO2, agreed. Heavy metals and other pollutants? Not so much. Ever heard of bioaccumulation (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Biomagnification)? "The knack to flying is to fall and miss the ground" -Douglas Adams

This appears to be a blatant rip off of Happy Tree Friends: http://youtube.com/watch?v=ABpbMPpWdP4&feature=related Nothing like the combination of fuzzy cartoon characters and gory violence... "The knack to flying is to fall and miss the ground" -Douglas Adams

Buffalo Trace is excellent (neat, of course). Out of the list I would say Jim Beam Black Label. "The knack to flying is to fall and miss the ground" -Douglas Adams

There are congenital nevi as well, but for the sake of simplicity I didn't want to get into that. I assumed the OP was asking about moles acquired after birth. "The knack to flying is to fall and miss the ground" -Douglas Adams

Both genetics and environment play a role. Your genes can make you more or less sensitive to damage from UV light, but ultimately it's UV light that causes damage to the DNA (mutations) in your skin. These mutations cause cells in you skin to multiply abnormally, eventually leading to a mole. If you are not exposed to UV (ie. sunlight) you will not develop moles, regardless of you genetic predisposition. Unfortunately, a lot of the DNA damage that eventually leads to moles comes from sun exposure as a young child. But if you want to stop from developing further moles, as well as skin cancer, make sure to protect yourself from the sun! "The knack to flying is to fall and miss the ground" -Douglas Adams

And don't forget the risk of diabetes from eating all of the free jellybeans at manifest. I always figured that they should include that on the waiver as well... "The knack to flying is to fall and miss the ground" -Douglas Adams

Actually, you might want to avoid stevia. Several studies have shown steviosides to be mutagenic, for instance: Pezzuto et. al. (Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci., 1985, 82:2478-2482). Hence why stevia is banned as a food additive in Canada, the US, and Europe (but still allowed to be sold as a "supplement" in many places). The health effects of both aspartame and steviosides are likely negligible in the tiny amounts we consume, but personally I'd rather avoid them both and consume sugar in moderation. "The knack to flying is to fall and miss the ground" -Douglas Adams

Some of you may find this comic amusing: http://pbfcomics.com/?cid=PBF028-Today_I_am_Going_to_Fly.gif#18 Next time try a FJC, buddy. "The knack to flying is to fall and miss the ground" -Douglas Adams

You just made me shoot tea out of my nose. "The knack to flying is to fall and miss the ground" -Douglas Adams

Found this beauty in my hotel room in Dharamsala, India. Needless to say, I switched hotels pretty quick. "The knack to flying is to fall and miss the ground" -Douglas Adams

Can you think of any other activities where the cost of the basic equipment to participate is higher? Assume we are talking about non-motorized sports, and buying the cheapest new gear on the market. Just for comparison, let's take rock climbing. In 10+ years of rock climbing, I've accumulated quite a bit of gear. Yet I've probably spent less on climbing equipment (which includes some very specialized pieces of gear, not just the basics) than it would cost me to buy the cheapest new rig on the market. Climbing and skydiving equipment are similar in terms of their usable lifetime, and I would guess that the material cost and amount of engineering that goes into each is similar. Admittedly, the jumping market is smaller than the climbing market, but is this alone enough to explain the difference in price? That being said, I feel that the costs of participating in this incredible sport are well worth it, or else I never would have started jumping in the first place. "The knack to flying is to fall and miss the ground" -Douglas Adams

Are you insane??? NINJAS of course! Ninjas are mammals. The purpose of a ninja is to flip out and kill people. Except when they're a ninja AND a doctor... Then they're constantly torn between their dual urges to kill and to heal. See http://drmcninja.com/ --- "The knack to flying is to fall and miss the ground" -Douglas Adams