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 ...
Doing good here, thanks for your support!
That does not sound safe. Can you call and reschedule, explaining that it’s not safe for you to drive?
If my tires were better I would consider making the drive, but I don’t trust them in a split-second decision-making event. I DO know how to drive in snow. It’s like riding a bike or roller skating — you never forget. But would the tires hold up if I had to brake or swerve or both? I don’t know. I wouldn’t think so, since they’re five years old. They will have to be replaced this year or I won’t even get to Walmart.
Between the tires and the defroster issue, maybe another day would be better.
I’m torn because I need to get my prescriptions in place and St George is the only place to find a doctor. But maybe staying home would be better because I’m so wicked tired. Being cold and being tired at the same time don’t make for alert drivers. The tired isn’t going to get much better for a while, but it is what it is, and I have to deal with it.
I’ll call them at 0800.
I understand, but having your prescriptions in order does no good if you’re splat on the highway.
“Fred! You were a good dog! Now you’re flat out on the freeway and dryin’ in the sun!”
Or freezing in the snow.
65 on the highway driving in the snow as it falls LOL; I too was brave in my younger days. Stay Safe, please
Thanks, NtI. I happen to like me, so I’m taking good care of me.
Next week, I have an appointment with the optometrist to get a referral to have the cataract removed from my left eye. Yes, it grew back!
https://www.nationalreview.com/2019/02/national-cowboy-poetry-gathering-elko-nevada-dust-devils/
If you have some free time this morning, you might enjoy these articles about Jay Nordlinger’s visit to Elko, Nevada. You might even have relatives there!
This link is part 4, and it has links to 1-3 at the top.
Yes, even that will fit the song (by Ray Stevens)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UEmWd7G23eU
This is a song mentioned in Jay’s article. It’s atmospheric!
I have relatives all over the West, and a few east of the Mississippi. Its what happens when one of your Great-Grandads has a wife in Canada and one in Mexico. I think that’s why genealogy is so important here: No one wants to marry a relative so they share genealogies before they pop the question. ;o]
My emphathy for the regrowth of the cataract. May all go well with the operation. Enjoy the winter weather
Thanks!
I haven’t been in snow for a very long time, so this is refreshing. I would like it better if there were new tires on the truck and a working defroster, but I can deal with it.
The cataract is just a minor nuisance.
That there song is a real toe-tapper, that is! Thanks!
In a weird way.
Headed out on some errands with the Young Parties. We will go by the USPS and mail a package of sparkly items to Utah.
Wow. Utah has a lot if sparkly items falling from the sky right now. I’m on hold at AmEx.
Unngh!
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