Octocopter! Experimental drone for agricultural research

Following the revelation that English Premiership football club Everton FC is using drones to monitor player training sessions, it seems there's nothing these Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAVs) aren't being primed to do: everything ...

Soil microbes accelerate global warming

More carbon dioxide in the atmosphere causes soil to release the potent greenhouse gases methane and nitrous oxide, new research published in this week's edition of Nature reveals. "This feedback to our changing atmosphere ...

Hidden green skills

What have plant scientists learned in the laboratory in the past three to five years that could be used to reduce inputs of water, chemical fertilizers and herbicides to agricultural fields?

Researchers suggest plan to address hypoxia in Gulf of Mexico

Despite a 12-year action plan calling for reducing the hypoxia zone in the Gulf of Mexico, little progress has been made, and there is no evidence that nutrient loading to the Gulf has decreased during this period. University ...

Reusing failed bee colony resources may curb rearing of queens

As pollinators of flowers, trees and more than 50 crops, whereby they add an estimated $34 billion per year to the U.S. economy, honey bees offer value both ecological and economic—even before accounting for their signature ...

Research shows most bird feed contains troublesome weed seeds

Many millions of homeowners use feeders to attract birds. But a two-year study featured in the journal Invasive Plant Science and Management suggests there may be one unintended consequence to this popular hobby. Bird feed ...

Using the sun and agricultural waste to control pests

Farmers spend a lot of time and money controlling weeds and other pests, and often have to turn to chemical fumigants to keep the most destructive pests at bay. Farmers also wrestle with what to do with low-value byproducts ...

Solving the bottleneck in biogas production

Agro-biogas plants produce renewable energy, extracting gas produced in the anaerobic fermentation of animal manures mixed with organic wastes from the food sector. One by-product of this fermentation process is a thick liquid ...

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