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Open Your Mind, and Your Mouth You might think of eating insects as something kids do on a dare. But some of these little animals are popular around the world for their nutritional value -- and they’re starting to catch on in the U.S. Not long ago, sushi and lobster didn’t seem all that appetizing to Americans, so it’s not as far-fetched as it sounds.

Abstract Global food production is anticipated to rise along with the growth of the global population. As a result, creative solutions must be devised to ensure that everyone has access to nutritious, affordable, and safe food. Consequently, including insects in diets has the potential to improve global food and nutrition security. This paper aims to share recent findings by covering edible termites as the main aspect, from their consumption record until consumer acceptance. A total of 53 termite species are reported as edible ones and distributed in 6 biogeographic realms. Generally, termites have a nutrient composition that is suitable for...

The climate control used by termites in their mounds could inspire tomorrow’s climate-smart buildings. New research from Lund University in Sweden shows that future buildings inspired by the termites could achieve the same effect as traditional climate control, but with greater energy efficiency and without its carbon dioxide footprint Termite mounds have a sophisticated ventilation system that enables air circulation throughout the structure. This helps to maintain and regulate temperature and humidity. “The digitalisation of design and construction processes creates enormous opportunities for how we shape architecture, and natural and biological systems provide an important model for how we...

As you sit there mulling a retirement in the South, approximately 1,000 people are already on their way to Florida today with all their household belongings. Should you join them?Like many baby boomers approaching retirement age and hunting for a warmer climate to call home in their golden years, my wife and I scouted cities and towns in Florida for a possible landing pad — so I had some skin in the game (we decided on elsewhere).But Florida isn’t all about the beaches, Disney World and the massive retirement community known as The Villages. I interviewed experts and residents for...

I woke up this morning and realized I had a nest of Termites hiding in the background and they were starting to spread. I thought I would try and bargain with them, but all they want is to destroy my house. I then tried to reason with them and it did no good, they just want to destroy my house. I considered trying to re-educate them but I can't get them to listen to me or even consider such a thing. I tried to compromise with them by giving them fresh wood shavings to eat instead of my house, but...

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu of Israel praised President Donald Trump for condemning anti-Semitism in the wake of the deadly synagogue shooting in Pittsburgh. Israel’s U.S. ambassador, Ron Dermer, also lauded Trump, citing the president’s prepared remarks made at a rally Saturday in Illinois hours after the attack, which killed 11. In a message sent to the Jewish community of Pittburgh on Sunday, Netanyahu said the Jewish people are “blessed” to have “many friends around the world who reject and fight anti-Semitism.” He wrote: “I want to express my appreciation to President Trump for unequivocally condemning this heinous crime and for...

There is no hiding the ugliness of Louis Farrakhan’s latest antisemitic comments, in which he likened Jews to termites. There is one thing you do with termites. Exterminate them! Termites are destructive. Termites are nasty. Termites survive by destroying. Termites do nothing good. Rid the earth of them! My good friend, Rabbi Shmuley Boteach, was therefore right to tweet this in response: “Louis Farrakhan calling Jews termites is a virtual call to genocide. The Nazis regularly referred to Jews as roaches and pests who needed to be exterminated. I call on African-American leaders like my close friend @CoryBooker to immediately...

Twitter said Wednesday that it will not suspend Nation of Islam leader Louis Farrakhan over a tweet comparing Jews to termites, the company confirmed to The Hill. Farrakhan, who has been accused of making anti-Semitic remarks for years, posted a clip to Twitter of a speech he gave captioned, "I'm not an anti-Semite. I'm anti-Termite." The tweet prompted backlash on the platform, with figures such as Chelsea Clinton blasting it as anti-Semitic. "The responsive laughter makes my skin crawl. For everyone who rightly condemned President Trump’s rhetoric when he spoke about immigrants 'infesting our country,' this rhetoric should be equally...

There are few surprises here. Just the inevitable descent of the Democrats into the fever swamps of hatred and extremism. According to the anti-Israel group behind the Congressional letter, “The effort to gather signatories to the letter was supported by a coalition of human rights organizations including U.S. Campaign for Palestinian Rights, CODEPINK, Jewish Voice for Peace, and American Muslims for Palestine.” American Muslims for Palestine has been linked to Hamas. Jewish Voice for Peace, which is neither Jewish nor peaceful, is a BDS group. This is what the Dems are mainstreaming. 32 Democrats in Congress signed on to a...

A Democratic member of the House Armed Services Committee compared Jewish Israeli settlers to termites on Monday while speaking at an event sponsored by an anti-Israel organization that supports boycotts of the Jewish state. Rep. Hank Johnson (D., Ga.) launched into a tirade against Israel and its policies toward the Palestinians, comparing Jewish people who live in disputed territories to “termites” that destroy homes. Johnson also compared Israeli Defense Minister Avigdor Lieberman to Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump, a remark that drew vocal agreement from those in the room. “There has been a steady [stream], almost like termites can get...

An elderly woman got a nasty shock when she discovered termites had eaten through her life savings. When the lady from southern China, who has not been identified, was given £42,000 by her children she decided to store it in a drawer in her residence rather than deposit it in a bank. This was to prove a costly mistake for the unfortunate woman as when she went to retrieve some of the cash six months later she found the pesky termites had munched into it. In desperation she took the notes to the bank in the hope she could save...

Rats or Humans? Inside Saddam's Extermination Plant(August 29, 2002)This story was found at: http://www.smh.com.au/ He was introduced as director of research and development at Falluja, one of the remote factories where the United States claims Saddam Hussein could be making chemical and biological weapons. Asked if he had worked on any of Saddam's chemical weapons programs, Dr Mohammed Frah played a straight bat: "In the early 1980s I worked for five years on the chemical and biological programs at Al-Muthanna." This is the name of a critical centre in Saddam's weapons program - a huge pesticide complex that produced...

Insects stockpile precious metal while gathering nest material, study says.Want to know if you're literally sitting on a gold mine? Get some termites, a new study suggests. New experiments in West Australia reveal that termites "mine" and stockpile the precious metal while they're collecting subterranean material for their nests. For the study, entomologist Aaron Stewart, with Australia's Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation, and colleagues took samples from several termite nests and compared the nest material to nearby soil samples from varying depths. By using a mass spectrometer—an instrument that measures molecules' chemical makeup—they discovered that the termite nests were...

A WAR hero's medals have revealed the untold story of a Scottish soldier who survived three years of suffering building the notorious Burma Railway. Kenneth McLeod, who has died aged 92, was captured by the Japanese in the Second World War and was one of the last surviving veterans who worked on the bridge over the River Kwai. Now his daughter and son are donating his war medals, Glengarry bonnet and sporran to the Argyll and Sutherland Highlanders museum at Stirling Castle, where he was based more than 70 years ago. Mr McLeod, of Bridge of Weir, Renfrewshire, was...

ACCRA, Ghana, Sep 23, 2002 (AP WorldStream via COMTEX) -- Former U.S. President Bill Clinton on Monday urged Africans to team up to fight poverty, saying boundary-less cooperation means boundless economic potential. "Through cooperation and collaborative efforts, termites have been able to pull down strong edifices," Clinton said. "Bees have been able to build houses for humans to tap heir honey from." Clinton, who is in Africa to promote efforts to fight AIDS and encourage economic development, was speaking to an assemblage of government ministers, traditional rulers and academics at the launch of Ghana President John Kufuor's Foundation for...

Researchers in the US have come up with a cheap, environmentally friendly way to kill termites and other pests. The method involves the applying a sugar derivative, which inhibits an anti-microbial protein normally secreted by the insects, thereby leaving them open to disease.Insects have efficient immune systems, although much of their workings are still unknown. Nevertheless, one aspect that is well-understood is the existence of proteins called pattern-recognition receptors, which can spot microbes that should not be present. Such receptors come under a class of 'gram-negative bacteria binding proteins', or GNBPs.Ram Sasisekharan of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, together with colleagues...

Mr Prasad had saved up for his old age (Pictures: Prashant Ravi) A trader in the Indian state of Bihar has lost his life savings after termites infesting his bank's safe deposit boxes ate them up.Dwarika Prasad had deposited currency notes and investment papers worth hundreds of thousands of rupees in a bank safe in the state capital Patna. The bank says it put up a notice warning customers of the termites. Mr Prasad says he did not see it in time as he did not go to the bank for months after the notice went up. Bank officials...

I would like to continue storing my scrap lumber in the garage, but my wife is worried about termites. I told her that as long as it is stored off of the ground and not touching the walls that it is safe from termites. I cannot find the definitive word on the internet on this subject. Can someone here help me out? Thank you.

BANGKOK (Reuters) - Across the globe, chickens and pigs are doing their bit to curb global warming. But cows and sheep still have some catching up to do. The farm animals produce lots of methane, a potent greenhouse gas that gets far less public attention than carbon dioxide yet is at the heart of efforts to fight climate change. Government policies and a U.N.-backed system of emission credits is proving a money-spinner for investors, farmers and big polluters such as power stations wanting to offset their own emissions of greenhouse gases, particularly carbon dioxide (CO2). The reason is simple: methane...

Headline reads: Humans' beef with livestock: a warmer planet American meat eaters are responsible for 1.5 more tons of carbon dioxide per person than vegetarians every year.