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What I meant that sometimes it's assumed the discussion must be about what could be useful for most places in the country, instead of "there other ways places can function even if not relevant to most places in the US". For example, this argument.
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Originally Posted by Katiana
I have real "issues" with these charter and magnet schools that provide a few good schools, accessible (in this state) by lottery, and a lot of mediocre ones.
Magnet schools I'm familiar with have admission entirely by test not lottery. Also, I'm not sure how common this is, but in New York City, if you don't like the high school in your district you can apply to a high school elsewhere in the city, but a test is required. A large fraction of public high schools (at least 1/3 ?) require a test. London has a similar system. I'm not sure if this improves public schools, or not but it does give more options.
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It is not necessary for everyone to participate in every thread on here; there are many I don't even look at. But I do think as mod you should encourage this topic.
I personally feel like this done has been done quite a bit, for example this thread:
Your link to another thread doesn't work. Your post refers to a study specific to the city of Phoenix? How many walkable neighborhoods does Phoenix have? Seemed like a driving city when I was there.
I have seen several studies showing that urban residents of walkable neighborhoods are less obese. the about.com link referenced a real study.
They talk a lot about sidewalks in the article. It would be interesting to see if sidewalks are a key to reduce obesity, especially in kids. My burb has sidewalks on nearly every street where we go and I think it keeps our kids more active, as they can bike on the sidewalks without worry. It also allows them to easily walk to the park and school in our hood.
They talk a lot about sidewalks in the article. It would be interesting to see if sidewalks are a key to reduce obesity, especially in kids. My burb has sidewalks on nearly every street where we go and I think it keeps our kids more active, as they can bike on the sidewalks without worry. It also allows them to easily walk to the park and school in our hood.
That's the key, you have to have somewhere to walk to in order for sidewalks to be functional and to make the difference.
Personally, I don't see how anyone can argue that obesity and natural activities such as walking (in-line with daily activities) aren't connected. In fact, when I was in college, I was overweight because I drove to school, to dinner, to work, etc. and didn't frequent the gym. I went abroad to London for a semester, and when I came back, I had lost 40 pounds because I had walked everywhere. I hadn't modified my diet or went to a gym once, I just walked everyplace.
That's the key, you have to have somewhere to walk to in order for sidewalks to be functional and to make the difference.
Personally, I don't see how anyone can argue that obesity and natural activities such as walking (in-line with daily activities) aren't connected. In fact, when I was in college, I was overweight because I drove to school, to dinner, to work, etc. and didn't frequent the gym. I went abroad to London for a semester, and when I came back, I had lost 40 pounds because I had walked everywhere. I hadn't modified my diet or went to a gym once, I just walked everyplace.
The research shows otherwise, your personal experience notwithstanding.
The research shows otherwise, your personal experience notwithstanding.
So, are you saying there's no research that shows that walking burns more calories than sitting in a car? My point being that if you flattened the socioeconomic issues between the burbs and the city, which inevitably lead to obesity for multiple reasons, then you might see different research outcomes.
So, are you saying there's no research that shows that walking burns more calories than sitting in a car? My point being that if you flattened the socioeconomic issues between the burbs and the city, which inevitably lead to obesity for multiple reasons, then you might see different research outcomes.
No, I am saying there is no research that shows that living in a "walkable" neighborhood results in decreased BMI.
I gave one earlier here. At least for non-disadvantaged grouops.
And white non-hispanics (according to your source. What is the source, BTW?).
I'm not going to do a bunch of research on this. The preponderance of evidence shows little, if any, effect on BMI for those who live in "walkable" neighborhoods.
And white non-hispanics (according to your source. What is the source, BTW?).
I'm not going to do a bunch of research on this. The preponderance of evidence shows little, if any, effect on BMI for those who live in "walkable" neighborhoods.
Most of the studies you've mentioned, don't control for demographic differences between neighborhoods. More interesting is if the same groups of people are in walkable and non-walkable neighborhoods, what is the effect?
Most of the studies you've mentioned, don't control for demographic differences between neighborhoods. More interesting is if the same groups of people are in walkable and non-walkable neighborhoods, what is the effect?
Oh, bull! I've only posted a few abstracts. These articles were accepted by peer-reviewed journals, including the one your article came from. A quote: CONCLUSIONS: built environment characteristics were less consistently associated with BMI among disadvantaged groups. This pattern may be explained by other barriers to maintaining a healthy weight encountered by disadvantaged groups.
Please quit trying to kill the messenger!
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