crops – Impact Lab

Agriculture, AI, Artificial Intelligence, Driverless vehicles, Farming, Farms

The AI farm experiment

May 8, 2018

Major companies are bringing together new machine learning algorithms, better and cheaper sensors, and increased computing power in hopes of addressing growing global demand for food and agriculture’s diminishing labor force.

The big picture: Alphabet’s X and John Deere, startups and universities are looking to AI-based agriculture to address these problems. But farming presents hard problems for AI that, if solved, could ultimately help it be deployed in more structured places (think: homes).

Continue reading… “The AI farm experiment”

Biotech, Cooking, Farming, Food

In the future, you could eat this edible goo you grow in your kitchen

November 10, 2017

This “bioreactor” is a concept design for a new kind of food production–where we just grow the nutritious cells, not the whole plant or animal.

Continue reading… “In the future, you could eat this edible goo you grow in your kitchen”

Agriculture, Analysis, Food, Globalism, People Making a Difference, Plant Life, Science & Technology News

Scientists reinventing photosynthesis to feed the world

September 23, 2014

If we could make the process more efficient, scientists estimate we could increase yields by 36 to 60 percent.

What if we ended up with 50% more rice and wheat by using the same amount of water and fertilizer? Sound impossible? No, just some chemistry and genetic engineering. Scientists have recently figured out the second of three steps to make photosynthesis a whole lot more efficient in plants.

Continue reading… “Scientists reinventing photosynthesis to feed the world”

Agriculture, Business, Latest Trend, Plant Life, Science & Technology News

‘Prescriptive planting’ technology is set to disrupt the farming industry

May 29, 2014

Tractor-mounted computers help farmers make decisions about planting crops.

The word innovation usually brings to mind small startups doing clever things with cutting-edge technology. But it is also vital in large, long-established industries—and they do not come much larger or older than agriculture. Farmers can be terrible managers, so it is no surprise that they are nervous about a new idea called prescriptive planting, which is set to disrupt their business.

Continue reading… “‘Prescriptive planting’ technology is set to disrupt the farming industry”

Analysis, Latest Trend, People Making a Difference, Science & Technology News

Precision agriculture moves farmers into the high tech age

May 17, 2013

A variable rate irrigation system installed to water crops saves hundreds of thousands of gallons of water.

The U.S. has seen record-setting drought in recent years. The drought has pushed everyone to look for new ways to save water. So, the The Nature Conservancy (TNC) has joined forces with America’s beer brewers to change how farmer irrigate their crops. For the non-profit, conserving America’s rivers meant growing America’s barley, one of the primary ingredients in one of our favorite cold beverages, with less water.

Continue reading… “Precision agriculture moves farmers into the high tech age”

Analysis, Food, Latest Trend, Science & Technology News

Transgenics – next wave of genetically modified crops could ease concerns over ‘Frankenfoods’

May 3, 2013

Transgenic canola

When the first genetically modified (GM) organisms were being developed for the farm, says Anastasia Bodnar, “we were promised rocket jet packs” — futuristic, ultra-nutritious crops that would bring exotic produce to the supermarket and help to feed a hungry world.

Continue reading… “Transgenics – next wave of genetically modified crops could ease concerns over ‘Frankenfoods’”

Analysis, Food, Science & Technology News

Three myths about genetically modified crops

May 2, 2013

GM crop technologies have seen dramatic uptake in the past 20 years.

It can be hard to see where scientific evidence ends and dogma and speculation begin in the debate over genetically modified (GM) foods and crops. In the almost 20 years since they were first commercialized, GM crop technologies have seen dramatic uptake. Advocates say that they have increased agricultural production by more than US$98 billion and saved an estimated 473 million kilograms of pesticides from being sprayed. But critics question their environmental, social and economic impacts.

Continue reading… “Three myths about genetically modified crops”

Big Problems, Historical Perspectives, Latest Trend, Science & Technology News, Weather

2012 drought reaches proportions not seen since the ‘Dust Bowl’ era

July 16, 2012

Over 50% of the U.S. is under drought conditions.

More than half of the United States is under drought conditions right now, putting 2012 in the same category with some of the worst droughts in the nation’s history. This makes 2012 the sixth worst drought on record with a 54.6 percent figure (not counting Alaska and Hawaii) in terms of area covered, behind only the brutal droughts of the mid-1950s and the “Dust Bowl” era of the 1930s. Other more recent droughts — such as 2000, 2002, and 1998 — saw a greater percentage of the country suffering from the “severe” or “extreme” drought categories. However, even by that standard, June 2012 still ranks among the top 10 worst droughts of all-time.

Continue reading… “2012 drought reaches proportions not seen since the ‘Dust Bowl’ era”

Analysis, Big Problems, Food, Globalism, Latest Trend, Science & Technology News

Food crops harmed by air pollution crossing continents: study

January 30, 2012

Ozone pollution generated in each of the Northern Hemisphere’s major industrialized regions damages six important agricultural crops.

Europe loses 1.2 million tons of wheat a year due to man-made pollution from North America, an new study has found.

Continue reading… “Food crops harmed by air pollution crossing continents: study”

Analysis, Business, Latest Trend, Plant Life, Science & Technology News

Tapping into the Secret Language of Plants

October 8, 2011

Futurist Thomas Frey: Over that past week I’ve had the great honor of working with both the good people at the North Dakota Bankers Association in Bismarck, ND and the good people at Rabobank in Napa, CA on the rapidly evolving topic of the future of agriculture.

Continue reading… “Tapping into the Secret Language of Plants”

Analysis, Economy, Money Talk

Why North Dakota May Be the Best State to Live In

April 3, 2011

North Dakota has a budget surplus.

While many states are confronting severe budget shortfalls and dragging economies, North Dakota has a different sort of problem. It’s stuck deciding how best to deal with a budget surplus. Yes, a surplus. North Dakota’s balance sheet is so strong it recently reduced individual income taxes and property taxes by a combined $400 million, and is debating further cuts.

Continue reading… “Why North Dakota May Be the Best State to Live In”

Big Problems, Great Videos, Insects, Science & Technology News

Stink Bug Epidemic Spreads to 33 U.S. States

March 31, 2011

Stink bugs

Stink bugs, the smelly scourge of the mid-Atlantic, are hitch-hiking and gliding their way across the country. Officially known as the brown marmorated stink bug, sightings of the pest have been reported in 33 states, an increase of eight states since last fall. (video)

Continue reading… “Stink Bug Epidemic Spreads to 33 U.S. States”