Swiss mired in poisonous row over pesticides
The idyllic image of peaceful Swiss Alpine pastures is being shattered by upcoming votes on pesticides which have sharply divided opinion in rural Switzerland......»»
Monarchs evolved mutations to withstand milkweed toxins; so did their predators
Monarch butterflies and their close relatives thrive on poisonous milkweed, thanks to genetic mutations that block the effects of the plant's toxins while allowing the poisons to accumulate in the caterpillar or adult insects as deterrents to hungry.....»»
Sri Lanka ends farm chemical ban as organic drive fails
Sri Lanka abandoned its quest to become the world's first completely organic farming nation on Sunday, announcing it would immediately lift an import ban on pesticides and other agricultural inputs......»»
"It"s killing us": Delhi"s smog-choked roads take their toll
Stinging eyes, an unrelenting cough and chronic lung disease have taken their toll on Bhajan Lal, an auto rickshaw driver navigating the Indian capital's chaotic roads and poisonous air......»»
The Next Big Thing for RNA? Fixing Moldy Food
Covid vaccines alerted to the world to RNA's potential. Now the technology is being used as an alternative to pesticides......»»
Co-formulants used in commercial fungicide affects the health of bumblebees
Researchers from Royal Holloway, University of London have found for the first time that a co-formulant found in commercial agricultural pesticides used across the UK significantly affects the health of bumblebees......»»
You can now build your own USB-C iPhone thanks to this open source mod
Last month, we learned that an engineering student from Swiss Federal Institute of Technology, EPFL, had successfully modded an iPhone X to change the charging port from Lightning to USB-C. This was a great accomplishment, since the USB-C port was fu.....»»
As-needed pesticide use brings wild bees, increases watermelon yield without reducing corn profits
Many farmers rent bee hives to pollinate crops, but they could tap into the free labor of wild bees by adopting an as-needed approach to pesticides, a new proof-of-concept study shows......»»
New photonics sensor to quickly spot bacteria and pesticides on fruit and vegetables
Researchers supported by the EU-funded GRACED project are developing a novel sensor that could drastically improve food safety monitoring in Europe. The ultrasensitive photonics sensor will be able to reliably detect microscopic traces of harmful che.....»»
Smart farming: AI technologies for sustainable agriculture
Changing climatic conditions, the shortage of skilled workers, the use of pesticides—a wide range of factors have an impact on the quality and flow of agricultural processes. Researchers at the Fraunhofer Institute for Telecommunications, Heinrich.....»»
Protonmail Celebrates Swiss Court Victory Exempting it From Telco Data Retention Laws
Encrypted email provider Protonmail has hailed a recent Swiss legal ruling as a "victory for privacy," after winning a lawsuit that sees it exempted from data retention laws in the mountainous realm. From a report: Referring to a previous ruling that.....»»
No to the re-approval of glyphosate – Large aerial dispersal confirmed
The EU authorities' assumption that glyphosate does not spread through the air has been disproven. The results of the German study "Pesticide pollution of the air" prove that glyphosate and dozens of other pesticides are traveling through the air for.....»»
Toxic algae blooms are getting worse, but oversight is lacking
Poisonous algae blooms are becoming more common in the US, threatening water supplies and public health. But so far, there are few state or federal guidelines, and local water managers could use some help, a UConn-led team of researchers reports in t.....»»
UK permits development of gene-edited crops in climate fight
Britain's government plans to allow researchers to use gene-editing techniques to develop crops that can increase yields, reduce the need for pesticides and cut greenhouse gas emissions as the U.K.'s exit from the European Union allows it to deviate.....»»
Using dendrochronology to date old musical instruments
Dendrochronologists, Paolo Cherubini with the Swiss Federal Institute for Forest, Snow and Landscape Research, has published a Perspective piece in the journal Science outlining the use of dendrochronology to determine the approximate age of old wood.....»»
Personality traits may drive our ideas about fairness and sharing
Disputes over fairness can create conflict. Families squabble over inheritances, societies polarize around the question of how to distribute wealth fairly, and nations become mired in territorial quarrels......»»
Crop-eating moths will flourish as climate warms
Climate change in this century will allow one of the world's costliest agricultural pests, the diamondback moth, to both thrive year-round and rapidly evolve resistance to pesticides in large parts of the United States, Europe and China where it prev.....»»
The Perl Foundation is fragmenting over Code of Conduct enforcement
"I'm fresh out of ideas with regards to handling toxicity in the Perl community." Enlarge / One of the Perl programming language's best-loved nicknames is "the Swiss Army chainsaw." The nickname also seems unfortunately applicable to Perl's rece.....»»
Tunable "metasurface" is akin to optical swiss army knife
MIT engineers and colleagues report important new advances on a tunable metasurface, or flat optical device patterned with nanoscale structures, that they compare to a Swiss army knife while its passive predecessor can be thought of as just one tool,.....»»
Pesticide threat to bees likely "underestimated": study
Exposure to a cocktail of agrochemicals significantly increases bee mortality, according to research Wednesday that said regulators may be underestimating the dangers of pesticides in combination......»»
Alternating magnetic field-responsive nano-platform developed for controlled pesticide release
Pesticides play a key role in controlling weeds, pests, and diseases in modern agriculture to promote crop yield. As one of the most extensively used neonicotinoid insecticides, imidacloprid can effectively kill insects. However, such pesticides tend.....»»