Claire Beverley
Dr. Claire Beverley Editor, Content Development (Crop Protection) My interest in biological control developed when I worked as an Assistant Entomologist for Horticulture Research International, after completing a degree in Applied Biology. Originally taken on for 3 months to collect data for a cucumber trial, my stint in the entomology department lasted 3 years! And…
Google Earth: Disappearing Forests
Most people who work at CABI know that I am a bit of a geek, especially when it comes to statistics and data visualisation, but now even more so since the release of the Google Earth API and thematic mapping. Anyway, back to the point, I was doing a search for new "environmental science" projects…
Forests in Flux
Forests play an integral role in the Earth’s climate, and each forest type – tropical, temperate and boreal – has varying impacts on the climate, serving to both cool and warm the Earth. Credit: Nicolle Rager Fuller, National Science Foundation. Last Friday Science published their special issue entitled ‘Forests in Flux’. The issue focuses on…
The taste of deliciousness
Taste was the theme of the 5th Tomato Conference held in the Netherlands. Most of us would identify salty, sweet, sour and bitter as tastes, but may be unaware of the fifth basic taste: umami. Described by Dr Kikunae Ikeda of the Tokyo Imperial University 100 years ago, umami is a dominant flavour in meat…
Is this really the future of food?
A few weeks ago we were discussing beer – or rather the lack of it expected as a result of climate change. This week, Chalmers University of Technology in Sweden has unveiled a new superfood. Even less appealing than no beer, this rather unappetising dish is the Swedish equivalent of tempeh and was brewed up…
Come up and look at my genes
While most geneticists may have a hard time convincing non-scientists to look at DNA gels, a company is offering DNA art portraits which allow customers to show off their own DNA bands to anyone. The “DNA portraits” point to bands which the company says are associated with particular characteristics as follows: “• Sport: Show off…
Could new biofuel crops become invasive?
According to a blog I read in the New York Times (NYT) online this could be the case. Following evidence that biofuel crops compete with food crops, defenders of farm grown crops say the eventual goal is to shift away from sources like maize toward plants harvested for their cellulose, which would end…
Perhaps some dinosaurs died of malaria
Back in January I wrote about the book ‘What bugged the dinosaurs? Insects, Disease and Death in the Cretaceous‘, by George and Roberta Poinar (click here to read what I said then). We have now obtained a copy for indexing for CAB Abstracts, and I have had a chance to take a quick look at…
Biodiversity – The more the merrier!
May 22nd is the International Day for Biological Diversity 2008. This year’s theme is ‘Biodiversity in Agriculture‘. According to the Convention on Biodiversity who are co-promoting the day’s festivities along with such luminaries of food and nutrition as the FAO, modern food production is responsible for both increasing and decreasing biodiversity. One of the things…
The International Day for Biological Diversity – 22 May 2008
Biodiversity and Agriculture is the theme for 2008’s International Day for Biological Diversity. Agriculture is a key example of how human activities have profound impacts on the ecosystems of our planet. This year’s day seeks to highlight the importance of sustainable agriculture not only to preserve biodiversity, but also to ensure that we will be…