Stronger Plants, Stronger Science, and Stronger Communication
Scientists claim GM cowpea could generate US$1 billionBusani Bafana, SciDEv net1 October 2010 The cowpea is emerging as an important food crop [SALY, SENEGAL] A pest-resistant version of the black-eyed pea, a subspecies of the cowpea, is on track for commercial introduction, promising higher yields and claimed savings of up to US$1 billion on a…
Read More “African GM cowpea potentially huge boost for local farmers” »
Paraphrasing Johan Norberg at the big ideas forum, CIS For Eastern European satirist and Nobel prize winner, Czeslaw Milosz the object lesson of the years of Eastern European socialism was resistance against stupidity.
Genetic escape podsMicrobes share and preserve their genetic material by releasing bodies that resemble viruses into the environment [Published 1st October 2010 02:49 PM GMT at The Scientist] Packaging random snippets of DNA into virus-like capsules known as gene transfer agents, or GTAs, may be a key way for marine bacteria to exchange genetic information,…
American Institute of Biological Sciences Genetically altered trees, plants could help counter global warming Study evaluates prospects for boosting carbon sequestration from the atmosphere by modifying natural biological processes and deploying novel food and fuel crops Forests of genetically altered trees and other plants could sequester several billion tons of carbon from the atmosphere each…
Read More “GM and GW added together mean action on climate change fears” »
Growth of biofuel industry hurt by GMO regulations: studyOctober 1, 2010 Physorg.ComFaster development of the promising field of cellulosic biofuels – the renewable energy produced from grasses and trees – is being significantly hampered by a “deep and thorny regulatory thicket” that makes almost impossible the use of advanced gene modification methods, researchers say.
Crisis in Australia’s seed banks30 September 2010by Elizabeth Finkel Cosmos Online Australia’s seed banks are hitting the dust, one by one, which may be violating an international treaty and could damage Australian agriculture down the track. (more at link)
Soy products are in the news due to an impending class action suit against a soy milk substitute distributer, but the culprit is seaweed. Kelp and its extracts can contain toxic amounts of iodine that can affect the thyroid. Thankfully Greenpeace is not issuing demands for the banning of all seaweeds in food. Hopefully the…
Read More “Suspicious seaweed source of serious serial soya sickness saga” »
Food Is FrighteningPaul Rozin” The frightening part of food, in the past, was largely the prospect of no food. There were also the possibilities of foods contaminated by micro-organisms or with high levels of toxins. A few things have happened in the middle to late 20th century that have turned the tables on food. First,…
Read More “Food is fundamental, fun, frightening, and far-reaching” »
“The reservoir is in India, Pakistan, and Bangladesh, and is due to factors that are not controllable — overuse of antibiotics, poor hygiene, and diarrhea in an overcrowded overpopulated country.” From Medscape Medical NewsNDM-1 Gene Spreading to Multiple Bacteria Species, Making Them Antibiotic-ResistantAlice Goodman September 22, 2010 (Boston, Massachusetts) — The gene that encodes for…
MONSANTO AND ILLUMINA REACH KEY MILESTONE IN SEQUENCING OF COTTON GENOME. Press release Companies Will Donate Info to the Public Domain; Texas A&M Professor to Lead Effort on Cotton Genome Sequencing ST. LOUIS and SAN DIEGO (Sept. 22, 2010) – The complicated cotton genome is one step closer to having its genetic threads unraveled, thanks…