Lifeboat Foundation

Here’s my latest Opinion piece just out for Newsweek. Check it out! Lifeboat Foundation mentioned.

We need to remember that universal distress we all had when the world started to shut down in March 2020: when not enough ventilators and hospital beds could be found; when food shelves and supplies were scarce; when no COVID-19 vaccines existed. We need to remember because COVID is just one of many different existential risks that can appear out of nowhere, and halt our lives as we know it.

Naturally, I’m glad that the world has carried on with its head high after the pandemic, but I’m also worried that more people didn’t take to heart a longer-term philosophical view that human and earthly life is highly tentative. The best, most practical way to protect ourselves from more existential risks is to try to protect ourselves ahead of time.

Continue reading “We Need a Far Better Plan for Dealing With Existential Threat” »

Dr. Jean Ristaino: “We searched those descriptions by keywords, and by doing that we were able to recreate the original outbreak maps using location coordinates mentioned in the documents. We were also trying to learn what people were thinking about the disease at the time and where it came from.”

Can plant diseases be tracked through analyzing past reports? This is what a recent study published in Scientific Reports hopes to address as a team of researchers at North Carolina State University (NCSU) attempted to ascertain the causes behind blight disease on plants, known as Phytophthora infestans, that resulted in the Irish potato famine during the 1840s. This study holds the potential to help scientists and farmers not only better understand the causes of blight disease in plants, but also how they might be able to predict them in the future.

Image of a blight lesion on a potato leaf. (Credit: Jean Ristaino, NC State University)

Continue reading “Tracking the Trajectory of Late Blight Disease: A Text Mining Study from 1840s to Modern Times” »

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An often-overlooked water plant that can double its biomass in two days, capture nitrogen from the air—making it a valuable green fertilizer—and be fed to poultry and livestock could serve as life-saving food for humans in the event of a catastrophe or disaster, a new study led by Penn State researchers suggests.

Native to the eastern U.S., the plant, azolla caroliniana Willd—commonly known as Carolina azolla—also could ease food insecurity in the near future, according to findings recently published in Food Science & Nutrition. The researchers found that the Carolina strain of azolla is more digestible and nutritious for humans than azolla varieties that grow in the wild and also are cultivated in Asia and Africa for livestock feed.

The study, which was led by Daniel Winstead, a research assistant in the labs of Michael Jacobson, professor of ecosystem science and management, and Francesco Di Gioia, assistant professor of vegetable crop science, is part of a larger interdisciplinary research project called Food Resilience in the Face of Catastrophic Global Events conducted in the College of Agricultural Sciences.

The Cocoa Press isn’t an easy 3D printer — but how many let you eat the results?

I hate to be the bearer of bad-for-the-waistline news, but yes — you can now buy a 3D printer that prints chocolate.

The Cocoa Press is a 3D printer that prints chocolate. It costs $1,499 as a DIY kit, and $3,995 prebuilt. It’s shipping now.

Apply to live in NASA’s Mars simulation for one year, where a four-person crew grows crops, practices “Marswalks,” and exercises diligently.

The cultivation of triploid genetics could be the game changer for the cannabis industry, as it promises to deliver higher THC levels, larger yields, faster growth, and seedless flowers.

The application of triploids is not a new concept in agriculture. Consuming seedless fruit generally enhances the eating experience for most people.

Consider bananas, for instance. Bananas lack seeds because the parent banana tree is triploid, even though pollination normally occurs.

Studies show that physical activity is actually a mental health exercise. One article that states just 15 minutes of walking, especially in the out-of-doors, can boost mood and reduce feelings of depression.

People seem to think more clearly after a brisk walk as well. It makes sense. As the heart pumps oxygen and nutrients to working muscles, the brain gets the same benefits.

Are there foods that might help our brains stay focused? In 2015, scientists reported on a diet that was found to help slow the gradual decline in cognitive function we may experience as we age. It was a hybrid of the Mediterranean diet and the DASH diet (Dietary Approaches to Stop Hypertension) cutely named the MIND diet (Mediterranean-DASH Diet Intervention for Neurodegenerative Delay).