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 ...
Weaponized banana peel—took me awhile....
You thought about the bananagoose in terms of what it eats; I thought of weaponizing it. Beginning to understand how my mothering skills might have required some tweaking.
You’re welcome.
Depending on the one subway connection I make anywhere from 40 minutes to an hour. Or I could go the quick route and grab a cab, which would double that time in rush hour. Last night my connections were quick. I was home about 10:15.
At 9:00 I had a meeting followed by another meeting followed by ...
There was a lunch in there with a former cow-orker.
I just got back.
Now for some work (?)
Dis is da Morning Floof.
Morning Floof says, “Good morning!”
This morning, the ‘Face woke up tired again. That’s got to be the worst feeling. I used to wake up and hit the ground running, and kept up the pace all day. I’d like just one day like that. Just one.
Now I have to go slog myself in to make the bed and have a steroid. Then I’ll be bock. Tiredly, slowly, I’ll be back.
:o|
Kitteh either wants you to go back to bed and help keep him warm, or he would bite you if you tried.
Stop shedding on my white blanket, orange kitteh!
Tell the kitteh that he needs to write letters for me if I snuggle up with him!
Things have to be done today. And I need to stay warm. Also, my space heater is making weird noises so I think it will need to be replaced soon. I doubt it will make it through another year. *sigh*
Everything seems insurmountable today.
I have to take PatJamesVlad to camp this morning, and then I have more church meetings. I have apples to sustain me.
Off to put on more coats ...
I don’t think I have enough warm things. I can’t recall being so cold for so long. Summer most likely will be very short.
Maybe I need to invest in a sun lamp... The SAD is very pronounced, now.
Although the past few weeks-snowstorms aside-have been pretty decent in NYC.
I’ve seen snow up close and personal since my move, and it’s been 35+ years since I’ve had to clean snow off my vehicle. This same storm dumped snow in Las Vegas, too. I found a pic of snow on the Luxor while I was checking FB yesterday morning.
More rain here yet again. The Boy Scouts decided not to camp out.
I've seen snow so up close and personal that I could taste it!
Cool and wet, mostly. And very fleeting.
Snow is rare here.
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