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 ...
Morning...
Good morning, nully. You’re up early. Or late.
Broken back sleep, will go back to bed in a bit.
So, in a way, both early and late...
The Morning Floof looks all marmaladey today. Squeeful floof!
Good Holy Saturday Morning to you and yours. I take it all survived the previous evening’s events.
I’ll be going to Walmart, soon, looking for a pair of light-colored shoes that go with almost everything in my closet. I realized this morning that I have no such thing. Evidently, I haven’t for a long time.
New beginnings in a new place in a new year!!! ;o]
Morning, Nully. I can't do that. For some reason, if I "go back to bed," I consider it a nap.
However, with as many times as I wake up in the night from being cold and wet (night sweats) I consider it all "a night's sleep." But I might take a nap a couple of hours after I get up. ;o]
I hope the second half of sleep goes well!
Good morning. Kitteh is mad at you. Or me. Or the universe. You know how they are.
Everyone seems to be at home. All the vehicles are where they should be. I saw Tom when I took his laundry into his room. He and Elen, with a couple of other friends, are planning to go to the mountains today. I don’t know what that other resident plans to do with herself.
Whatever that other resident plans to do with herself, you can bet it won’t be going on the master calendar so others can be aware and plan accordingly.
And now, I’m off to Walmart.
I’ll be going to Walmart later. I have to talk to the teenaged boys about foods, first, and they’re not up yet. When I went to bed about 9:00 last night, they were just settling in to watch television with their dad and Elen.
That was the most disheartening, discouraging, disgusting shopping trip that never was. This Walmart has NO. Dress. Shoes. for women and the handbags went from monstrously hugh and ugly to extremely tiny and blinged out.
So unless I want to go into St George, there will be no shoes for Easter. If I’m lucky I’ll get my hair cut this morning, but I think it will end up waiting until Monday. I could always try to cut it myself, which I did all the time when I was younger, but I don’t know if the arthritis and bursitis in my shoulders and elbows will allow it. But wait...I still need to get the truck serviced and I don’t know what that will cost, yet.
I think I need to write to Charlie and then get some thank-you cods written. It seems my life has been on hold for the last month.
Try Walmart.com: they’ll have things delivered to your local store for free. Doesn’t help you for tomorrow, though, but probably nobody will notice your shoes.
Elen, USMC, found her missing wallet in the mess in her room (her mess and the other resident’s), just like I said she would. Am I completely right about absolutely everything, or what?
Absolutely! But then, you're the mom with Time In Grade in that household, and I would say you've always been right. :o])
I will look at Walmart.com but I may shelve the idea until payday as I have a few other necessary things that need to be gotten. The servicing of the BB SUV comes to mind, and though I got more of the necessary food things while I was at Wally's and some necessary underthings, I will hold off on the shoes and purse. For now, anyway.
Walmart.com has a “sorry no results” when I put in “women’s shoes, ladies shoes and shoes.” So I’ll check eBay and Overstock. The latter always has some very nice shoes.
Thank you for the cutie pie!
I went to “clothing,” typed in “shoes,” and got an array of what’s on the shelves at my store. They don’t have great shoes, though.
You’re welcome. It’s windy and a bit cold, here. My cats aren’t very happy. Also cloudy.
Haven’t stuck my hand out the door so I don’t know about the temp, but it’s no longer raining. Our church should be renamed, “The Church of the Perpetually Drenched.”
I went to Overstock and found the pair I wanted. For $37 + S&H. I couldn’t find a bag I liked that matched them so I went to eBay and found the perfect match. For $19.99. So they will have to wait, I’m afraid. The truck comes first, and that amount will probably cover the trip to Jiffy Lube.
Walgreen’s really tried to sell me more steroid, but I’m not going to get any of it for a while. I’m trying to wean myself off of it.
*tagline*
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