AgClips
Recent AgClips
Perdue defends USDA reorganization plans, outlines agency priorities
Agri-Pulse | Posted onMay 18, 2017 in Federal NewsAgriculture Secretary Sonny Perdue vigorously defended his reorganization plan for USDA, saying it would enable the department to move “quickly and nimbly” to address rural development needs, but he and aides later backed off some key descriptions.
Senate Ag Press USDA, USTR on Harmful Canada Dairy Pricing
Animal Agwired | Posted onMay 18, 2017 in Federal NewsU.S. Senate Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry Chairman Pat Roberts, R-Kan., and Ranking Member Debbie Stabenow, D-Mich., sent a letter to U.S. Agriculture Secretary Sonny Perdue and U.S. Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer, requesting continued engagement with the Canadian government regarding Canada’s implementation of dairy pricing changes as part of a new Canadian National Ingredients Strategy. “Since April of 2016, Canadian provinces have been modifying their pricing schemes for certain dairy products,” the Senators said.
Why did hunter-gatherers first begin farming?
Science Daily | Posted onMay 18, 2017 in Agriculture NewsThe beginnings of agriculture changed human history and has fascinated scientists for centuries. Researchers have now shed light on how hunter-gatherers first began farming and how crops were domesticated to depend on humans. The University of Sheffield researchers gathered seed size data from a range of crops and found strong evidence for a general enlargement of seeds due to domestication.They discovered domesticated maize seeds are 15 times bigger than the wild form, soybean seeds are seven times bigger.
3-D printed ovaries produce healthy offspring
Science Daily | Posted onMay 18, 2017 in Agriculture News3-D printed bioprosthetic mouse ovaries restored fertility in infertile mice and produced healthy mouse pups. The mothers also were able to nurse their pups. The research is targeted to women whose cancer treatments impaired their fertility and hormone production. The ovaries are constructed of 3-D printed scaffolds that house immature eggs and were successful in boosting hormone production and restoring fertility.
'Narco-deforestation' study links loss of Central American tropical forests to cocaine
Science Daily | Posted onMay 18, 2017 in Rural NewsCentral American tropical forests are beginning to disappear at an alarming rate, threatening the livelihood of indigenous peoples there and endangering some of the most biologically diverse ecosystems in North America. The culprit? Cocaine.
3-D-printed, soft, four legged robot can walk on sand and stone
Science Daily | Posted onMay 18, 2017 in Agriculture NewsThe breakthrough was possible thanks to a high-end printer that allowed researchers to print soft and rigid materials together within the same components. This made it possible for researchers to design more complex shapes for the robot's legs. The legs are made up of three parallel, connected sealed inflatable chambers, or actuators, 3-D-printed from a rubber-like material. The chambers are hollow on the inside, so they can be inflated. On the outside, the chambers are bellowed, which allows engineers to better control the legs' movements.
Veto saves Leopold Center, but maintains funding cut
Iowa Farmer Today | Posted onMay 18, 2017 in SARL Members and Alumni NewsA line-item veto by Gov. Terry Branstad on May 12 means the Leopold Center for Sustainable Agriculture at Iowa State University remains alive, but it has no money. Officials at Iowa State University and at the Leopold Center were left scrambling to figure out what happens next and how the center will change in the coming months and years.“It’s better than what it was before (the veto),” says Doug Gronau, a farmer who represents the Iowa Farm Bureau on the Leopold Center’s advisory board. “I think there definitely is going to be a reorganization.
What is the impact on the most vulnerable rural people?
Daily Yonder | Posted onMay 18, 2017 in Federal NewsThe other shoe dropped yesterday when Agriculture Secretary Sonny Perdue said he plans to eliminate the leadership position of Undersecretary of Rural Development. The reorganization follows President Trump’s earlier budget proposal recommending a 21% cut in USDA discretionary spending and the elimination of some rural development programs. The undersecretary position, which was structurally part of the Ag secretary’s executive leadership team, oversees dozens of programs.
Today's innovative farmers are getting down to earth
Daily Yonder | Posted onMay 18, 2017 in Agriculture NewsA global study of land and agricultural methods shows dramatic differences in soil quality between farms that employ some simple management tools and those that don’t.
Georgia's voter fraud investigations disproportionately focus on rural
Daily Yonder | Posted onMay 18, 2017 in Rural NewsIf Douglas, Georgia, City Commissioner Olivia Pearson lived in an urban county with better trained election workers, she might not be facing charges that threaten her public office and her freedom, a voting rights consultant said. Olivia Pearson is charged with illegally assisting a voter in the 2012 general election and falsely signing a form explaining her reason for doing so. The event occurred in Coffee County, a rural southeast Georgia county with a population of about 42,000.