Posted on 10/06/2018 2:02:35 PM PDT by BenLurkin
Pentagon research project called "Insect Allies." Funded by the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA), the project involves using gene-editing techniques like CRISPR to infect insects with modified viruses that could help make America's crops more resilient. If a cornfield were hit by an unexpected drought or suddenly exposed to a pathogen, for example, Insect Allies might deploy an army of aphids carrying a genetically modified virus to slow the corn plant's growth rate.
According to the DARPA website, these "targeted therapies" could take effect in a single growing season, potentially protecting the American crop system from food security threats like disease, flooding, frost and even "threats introduced by state or non-state actors.
… Insect Allies, is less concerned. "Anytime you're developing a new and revolutionary technology, there is that potential for [both offensive and defensive] capability," Bextine told The Washington Post. "But that is not what we are doing. We are delivering positive traits to plants… We want to make sure we ensure food security, because food security is national security in our eyes."
Insect Allies is still in the early stages of development, and at least four U.S. colleges (Boyce Thompson Institute, Penn State University, The Ohio State University and the University of Texas at Austin)have received funding to carry out research. Bextine told The Washington Post that the project recently achieved its first milestone — testing whether an aphid could infect a stalk of corn with a designer virus that caused fluorescence. According to the Washington Post, "the corn glowed."
(Excerpt) Read more at livescience.com ...
Maybe the wagon wouldn’t be a neighborhood problem, but the horses would.
Good morning! It’s cold here.
Tell me about your Marine.
As far as we know, she is currently camping out in the swamp with a lot of impressive ordnance. It’s sunny and cold today - could be a lot worse for swamp camping - and the potential for winter precipitation over the weekend doesn’t seem to go that far east.
It is currently planned that we will pick her up on December 21, the day before Pat’s birthday.
Greetings, humans.
Never know when a rather aggressive bullfrog will get funny ideas.
Too true. Also, alligators and black bears.
So, what about the rest of us?
Or am I the only one of the UTers who sent in a DNA swab to get a reply of "Are you pulling our leg? What kind of creature did you get this from?"
If you stay away from the alligator nest, you’re fine. I used to water ski with gators all the time when I was coming up in Florida. Even the cottonmouths left us alone if we left them alone.
Black bears - sorry, no experience. Do they even ski?
I'll bet that came as a relief to you.
Most of us feel that way as teenagers; {There's no way I'm related to these people!}
Those are the relief force for the frogs!
We are all humans here, everything is fine, nothing at all is going on, there are no terrible otherworldly creatures here.
Honest.
;-)
Amphibious forces always take the lead.
And don’t forget the mosquito aur cover.
Mosquito Squadron 52 has a presence at all military installations.
Mostly humans here, though there are some “people” who look a little questionable.
It will be nice to be in an area where folks are not quite so worldly and the clocks actually run slower. ;o]
It hasn’t been cold enough for them to go off duty yet.
GAH!!!
I called to cancel the TV and Interwebs effective Monday the 10th and I just opened an email saying it was for TODAY!!! ARGGGH!
Can you get by on your phone until tomorrow? Anyway, they might not actually cut it off immediately.
I would believe you if I didn’t have to get a leash for my right leg to keep it from wandering off.
Too bad I never thought of that for my mind.
SHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!
You’ll blow our cover thread, and then we’ll have to move before Face is finished moving, which might mean she’d never unravel enough to find us.
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