Pamela C. Ronald is a Professor in the Department of Plant Pathology at the University of California, Davis and the co-author with her husband Raoul Adamchak of Tomorrow’s Table: Organic Farming, Genetics, and the Future of Food which argues that a judicious blend of two important strands of agriculture–genetic engineering and organic farming–is key to helping feed the world’s growing population in an ecologically balanced manner. In the post below Ronald responds to an editorial by Paul Krugman.
“Most Americans take food for granted”, reports the New York Times in an editorial last week. I would add that we also take abundant water, vast expanses of wilderness and clean air for granted. The price of oil, global warming and skyrocketing food prices are changing the way we think about land. It is about time. Have we forgotten that land and its resources are precious? Have we forgotten how to be good stewards?
In an editorial this week in the NYT, Paul Krugman places part of the blame on biofuels: “We need to push back against biofuels that turns out to have been a terrible mistake.” But this conclusion is premature and overly simplistic.
Whether biofuels offer carbon savings depends on how they are produced. If we destroy rainforests and grasslands to plant food crop–based biofuels, then Kurgman is right. This is a bad idea. Such an approach would release 17 to 420 times more CO2 than the annual greenhouse gas (GHG) reductions that these biofuels would provide by displacing fossil fuels. (Fargione et al, science 2008).
In contrast, biofuels made from waste biomass or from biomass grown on degraded and abandoned agricultural lands planted with perennials (so called cellulosic biomass) incurs little or no carbon debt and can offer immediate and sustained GHG advantages. Research on cellulosic biofuels have only just begun and there are tremendous opportunities. For example, plant biologists are working towards developing new and more productive non-food crops that can be grown on marginal lands. If we triple the yield of biomass we can use 1/3 less land. If we use the most ecologically responsible farming practices available (e.g. organic farming) to produce this new crop biomass, we can reduce the environmental impacts.
Nathanael Greene in an interview with Ira Flatow on Science Friday today said we need new innovations and we need to use them smartly. That is what should be done.
Now that is an extremely tall order. You could pee all over it and never even dilute the coffee. Pax et Amo. Bad Dog
Ha. What a good idea.
love this! you should do a series of tall things: lighthouses, windmills, etc.
Great idea! I think your illo is one of the best of this week theme! Truly!
Hi Val, as I'm sitting here drinking a cup of coffee, I'm thinking I need one of those in my back yard.
Love the perspective and colors!
I have been by that water tank! omg.
Oh cute. And gosh, so cretive.
that is really cute. and so true
love the perspective!
But this looks very cute and I would love my logo up there on that unique design. In fact I would love my logo on anything YOU design!
Very nice, Val! So when are we gonna get together? I was just at Starbucks in Malibu...
i am wondering if i can manage to climb up there!
"Anything"??? - well, it is a little bit extreme...
your illo has a peaceful warm mood - i liked it a lot.
Very cool concept! I agree, you shoudl do some more tall ones. :)
extremely wonderful ;)
nice work!
Nice, simple picture. I like the simple palette very much. I agree with you about the extremes of advertising. (Hello: cell phones-and those annoying blinking banners on web pages.)Around here a lot of the water towers around here have the local high school football teams. :)
Great concept you clever girl! I love the colors too, and I'm in agreement about a series of tall things. Maybe you could do water-tower penthouses!
every week i love to see what you come up with. this week you really came up!
:)
I love it!! That's right up there with Tom Robbins' turkey legs on the winnebago.
Great job!
smart idea! and somehow different from your usual style; great colours also...
very cool as always!
I love the contrast between the tallllll tower and the little house! Very cool! It must look great on the small ATC:>
awww if only it were so; an extra large freshly brewed pot of joe for the town
Wonderful as always!
ha! I Love how you played around with the type to enhance your illo
I don't drink coffee so often, but I will love one of those with hot chocolate.. :) I love the idea..
I love this one :)) Great idea!
dont drink coffee but tlov the idea behind this nice piece val
When Tom wasn't mechanicking, he was driving truck. In fact, we were both "in the truck" when he passed away.
I loved the different truck stops, and kept logs about them...comparing the service, the cleanliness, friendliness, etc.
We spent most of our time on the freeways, and I was misremembering the coffepot as a watertower in Nebraska. I remember now that these "watertowers" are erected at the Sapp Brothers Truck Stops.
I can remember that the folks inside were friendly. I don't have my journal handy. I'll hafta see what I wrote about the experiences.
The neatest watertank I've ever seen is one that's been painted yellow. I think it's in Iowa, on I-80... (again, i'll hafta look at that journal to be sure.) It's a smiley face. Very cute...and it would actually lift my mood any time we drove past it.
That's fabulous! Is it from a real tower? This is like a still from 'another world' computer game like Myst. You're so talented. xxx
Absolutely awesome, of course! And you should make sure people know, this exquisite little painting is only 2.5 by 3.5 inches! Woo!
wonder what it would look like with lights...???
now that would extremely upset the neighbours...
but maybe they already are upset...
que bello!! preciosa ilustración.
un beso
Ten million posts as usual on your site, I love this image, the colours are gorgeous, and I have seen this type of thing so often myself and thought the same thing.
Thanks for stopping by too!