article thumbnail

Can soil microbes improve agricultural sustainability?

Futurum

Can soil microbes improve agricultural sustainability? Dr Nathaniel (Nate) Boyer is focused on the role nitrogen plays in agriculture. At Washington State University in the US, Dr Nathaniel Boyer is a biochemist working to find a more environmentally friendly solution. Is there another solution?

article thumbnail

How are control engineers improving the sustainability of irrigated agriculture?

Futurum

How are control engineers improving the sustainability of irrigated agriculture? Feedback control — achieving desired behaviour by measuring what is happening and using this information to adjust the control inputs. On the other hand, climate change and competing uses for water outside agriculture impact the supply side.

educators

Sign Up for our Newsletter

This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply.

article thumbnail

Plant polymers as plastic alternatives

Futurum

© Gorodenkoff /Shutterstock.com Graduate students in Penn State’s College of Agricultural Sciences Parisa Nazemi Ashani (left) and Wei-Shu Lin (right) are working on a project to support the Chesapeake Bay. Traditionally, it has focused on areas like agriculture and biomedicine, but it has since become much broader.

Biology 84
article thumbnail

Keep calm and carrot on: how can we breed better carrots?

Futurum

At the US Department of Agriculture Vegetable Crop Research Unit at the University of Wisconsin-Madison , USA, Dr Bill Rolling and Dr Jenyne Loarca are investigating what influences carrot germination and growth, helping plant breeders to cultivate more successful carrot varieties. Keep calm and carrot on: how can we breed better carrots?

article thumbnail

Fields and fungicides: mixing microbiology and social science

Futurum

AZOLE – a group of chemical compounds often used as agricultural or medicinal fungicides. Together, they investigated how fungicide use in agriculture could potentially lead to antimicrobial resistance in human diseases. ANTIBIOTIC – any compound that combats or destroys bacterial microbes. mould, mildew or mushrooms).

article thumbnail

Engaging with the science behind food

Futurum

At North Carolina Agricultural and Technical State University in the US, Dr Salam A. In the Food Microbiology and Biotechnology Lab at North Carolina Agricultural and Technical State University (NC A&T), Dr Salam A. Engaging with the science behind food Published: The preparation of food is biochemically complex. Dr Salam A.

Science 73
article thumbnail

Protecting crops from nematodes

Futurum

Based at Clemson University’s College of Agriculture in South Carolina, Paula’s FINDMe project has the broad task of understanding this nematode in detail, and using this knowledge to develop management strategies and crop varieties that show resistance to this species.