Living Today: Issues of modern living

ONLINE GROCERIES

FreshDirect, an elaborate new online food delivery service in parts of New York City, provides groceries unlike other online supermarket delivery services, The New York Times reports.

What sets FreshDirect apart is that it is not just sending out boxes of merchandise pulled off supermarket shelves.

Eighty-three percent of FreshDirect's orders are for fresh food: produce, seafood, meat, dairy, delicatessen and prepared food from its own kitchens.

More than 1,000 men and women work from about 1 a.m. to 7 a.m., pull orders off computers, cut and pack the meat, bag the produce and put the orders in boxes. Customers select a two-hour delivery window and delivery is $3.95.

INTERNET SHOPPING TRUST

Despite the high volume of shopping done on the Internet, many consumers fail to make online purchases because of a lack of trust in revealing financial information, according to a University of Buffalo School of Management study.

"The perceived risk of consumers can be reduced considerably if the transaction is guaranteed by a familiar, trusted intermediary," H.R. Rao, UB professor of management science, says in a statement.

"Trustworthy institutions can be banks and other financial institutions, as well as thriving electronic identities like Amazon and eBay."

Another study finding is that Internet shoppers were more willing to risk their credit card information when presented with a financial incentive, such as lower prices.

HOUSING AIDS ECONOMY

Housing and owning a home accounts for an unprecedented share of the nation's gross domestic product, prompting Homeownership Alliance president Rick Davis to declare 2002 as "The Year of the Homeowner."

"New home construction and remodeling provide millions of jobs and generate billions of dollars in wages and tax revenues each year," Davis says in a release.

In addition to providing critical economic benefits, Davis added that owning a home strengthens families, provides neighborhood stability and reduces crime.

"For example, children raised by homeowners achieve higher scholastic results and enjoy higher lifetime incomes than those who do not."

'MEANS OF EGRESS'

Requirements for exiting buildings quickly during an emergency have been rewritten in a user-friendly format that is easier to understand, says the Occupational Safety and Health Administration.

"Having a clear plan and procedure for exiting a building as safely as possible is one of the most basic and important safety precautions," OSHA Administrator John Henshaw says in a statement.

OSHA's standard was over 30 years old and in need of updating. It now has been rewritten in simple, straight-forward, easy to understand terms.

For example, "Means of Egress" will now be referred to as "Exit Routes."