Stronger Plants, Stronger Science, and Stronger Communication
Editor’s note: The following post was part of an April Fools Joke. Go here for more details. Biofortified is sharing server space with several other sites that I manage, and the time has rolled around again to renew the account. It doesn’t sound like much when you divide it by 12 months, but when it…
I just read yesterday that Monsanto has just started blogging, using WordPress too! (Shake of the ol’ tassel bag to Jeff at sustainablog) Well, not just now, but about two months ago, the new Monsanto blog put up its first post, Monsanto according to Monsanto. Taking a jab with the title at a recent documentary…
The Obamas have started planting their garden with 55 varieties of vegetables — from a wish list of the kitchen staff — grown from organic seedlings started at the Executive Mansion’s greenhouses. “The Obamas will feed their love of Mexican food with cilantro, tomatillos and hot peppers. Lettuces will include red romaine, green oak leaf,…
Hi, Frank N. Foode™ here. Last week I went on a special trip. I was invited to the 51st annual International Maize Genetics Conference in St. Charles Illinois, an opportunity I couldn’t pass up. So many scientists, all working on the genetics of… me! Well me and my brothers and sisters in the great Zea…
Volker Brendel, professor of bioinformatics at Iowa State, spoke at the Maize Genetics Conference about the need for a better system of community annotation of the maize genome. The genome of the popular maize inbred line B73 is sequenced, but we don’t actually know what a lot of the code stands for. It’s going to…
Friday was the first full day of the 51st Maize Genetics Conference, and it was filled with all kinds of genetic fun. When I saw the program, I knew I would be up for the first talks of the morning at 8 am, because they were about transposons. The rest of the day was filled…
For years, journalists, television producers and newspaper reporters that write about genetically engineered crops, have used the term “GMO” (genetically modified organism) to describe these new crop varieties. The marketing industry has taken to writing “GMO-free” on their products, as a way to increase sales to consumers fearful of the genetic engineering process. The problem…
Pam Johnson, Chair of the Research and Business Development Action Team of the National Corn Growers Association, presented a briefing at the Maize Genetics Conference. She has words of frustration, words of hope, and words of encouragement for the maize genetics community. Pam, a 5th generation farmer from Iowa, is the voice of 300,000 corn…
The 51st Maize Genetics Conference is just as overwhelming as I remembered from the the 49th (50 was in Washington DC and was too expensive for me to go). We have 480+ maize geneticists all in one resort in St. Charles, IL, presenting 244 posters, 4 plenary talks, 35 short talks, and innumerable conversations about…
The NCCC-167 meeting is over, and I’m very glad to have had the opportunity to attend. The acronym stands for North Central Communications Committee, and 167 is the USDA-ARS project number. It turns out that there are hundreds of projects, some of which are designated for conferences and communications, such as this one. Apparently this…