How to (cleanly) solve the world's food problems

Posted by  Futurity to Holy Kaw!

Golden rice is a perfect example of the challenges surrounding feeding the world. The genetically modified rice could go a long way to solving the world's vitamin A deficiency problem, but its production has been held up by years of testing required by many countries.

Nina Fedoroff, professor of biology and life sciences at Penn State, says the key to feeding without polluting is being resourceful and efficient.

“We need to expand our ability to farm on land not considered farmable because it is eroded or desertified, using water not considered suitable for farming because it is wastewater or saltwater,” she says. “We need to adapt current crops to higher temperatures and less water and we need to domesticate plants that have evolved to grow at high temperatures and in salty soils.”

Full story at Futurity.

More research news from top universities.

Photo credit: Wikimedia Commons

 

Thomas wants you to see this article from HowStuffWorks.com

From: Thomas

Hello.

I found this on HowStuffWorks.com and thought you might find it of interest.

It's called: Could an extremely powerful solar flare destroy all the electronics on Earth?

Here's the link: http://science.howstuffworks.com/solar-flare-electronics.htm

If the link above doesn't work, then copy and paste this URL into your web browser:

http://science.howstuffworks.com/solar-flare-electronics.htm

See Could an extremely powerful solar flare destroy all the electronics on Earth? and many other cool topics at http://www.howstuffworks.com

-----------------------------------------------------------------

Here are some additional comments from Thomas:

check out this story

iPhone 4. Verizon. It begins.

Phones Plans Accessories Entertainment & Apps Messaging Support My Verizon iPhone 4. Verizon. It begins. 02.09.11 online 02.10.11 in stores iPhone 4 is here. Order your iPhone 4 from VerizonWireless.com and have it shipped free to your door. > verizonwireless.com/iphoneorder Or stop by a Verizon Wireless Retail Store starting at 7 a.m. local time on 02.10.11 to purchase iPhone 4 on a first-come, first-served basis. > verizonwireless.com/storelocator The phone that changed everything. Now on America's most reliable network. © 2011 Verizon Wireless Verizon Wireless | One Verizon Way | Mail Code: 180WVB | Basking Ridge, NJ 07920 This email was sent to tombeek@gmail.com. We respect your privacy. Please review our privacy policy for more information about click activity with Verizon Wireless and links included in this email. If you no longer wish to receive future emails, you may unsubscribe, or easily adjust your subscription preferences from your profile information. iPhone: TM & © 2011 Apple Inc. All rights reserved.

Authentication and Accreditation: State of the Industry

Authentication and Accreditation: State of the Industry

---

ESPC: Authenticate Now!

The Email Service Provider Coalition (ESPC), a group of companies that handle email transmission for over 250,000 email sending corporations and businesses around the world, is calling for increased authentication adoption. ESPC requires all members to authenticate outgoing client email. It also wants receiving ISPs to take harsher measures against those who don't authenticate, or who fail authentication checks due to a badly configured record or spoofing attempts.

MSN Recognizes Habeas

Habeas, an email accreditation company, announced its accreditation program, and the Habeas SafeList is now recognized by Microsoft. Using Habeas almost as an outsourced whitelist, Microsoft will be able to better target its spam filters to email not signed with the Habeas certification mark.

For the last 18 months, Microsoft has deployed Bonded Sender's whitelist in a similar capacity. It will use Habeas' SafeList in addition to Bonded Sender for both Hotmail and MSN. It's likely email marketers must only adopt one of these accreditation services for improved Hotmail and MSN delivery.

Recognition of email accreditation programs by a large consumer ISP can drive other ISPs to do the same, snowballing adoption. It isn't hard to imagine Yahoo or AOL outsourcing its whitelisting program to a provider with a more structured, standardized process.

Conclusion

E-mail is changing, as these developments demonstrate. ISPs and email senders alike are clamoring for an authenticated email system that relies on a certification standard. Spammers will find it more difficult to operate in such a system and be driven deeper underground, while legitimate email will remain on top.

If delivery rates are important to your company, take a look at the various accreditation companies such as Habeas and Bonded Sender. If you don't yet authenticate your email, either cryptographically or with Sender ID, now's a good time to start. Wait too long, and you'll leave money on the table and play catch-up with your competitors.

How beer saved the world [video]

Posted by  Annie Colbert to Holy Kaw!

Embedded media -- click here to see it.

Civilization owes a debt of gratitude to beer. Yes, beer. Scientists and historians share the fascinating tale of how beer contributed to the creation of math, poetry, the pyramids, modern medicine, labor laws and the good old U S of A. So grab a brewskie, and prepare for a beer-induced mind blowing.

Also check out Part 2 and Part 3.

Via TDW.