Open-field trials of genetically modified (GM) crop-plants are implemented only sparingly. This is done with due transparency and in the respect of strict regulations. They are initiated to meet one or other of the following objectives: obtain and evaluate fundamental knowledge on the biology of the plants concerned, guarantee the quality of plant varieties sold in France and identify and evaluate the risks for the environment. Hence they provide input to national expertise on these questions

Claw complaints and lameness in dairy cattle are a considerable problem in livestock farming. Dutch research has shown that specific measures in the area of accommodation and management could improve the situation on dairy farms.

Joan Somers investigated the claw health of more than 7500 dairy cows on different stall floors. Four-fifths of the cows on a concrete stall floor, the most common accommodation, suffered from one or more claw problems. Cows in a straw yard had signifi

At the surface of Earth, life on a geologic scale is calm and peaceful save the occasional earthquake caused by the rub and slip of Earth’s tectonic plates. But below Earth’s surface, scientists are beginning to find a far more dynamic and tumultuous region than previously thought.

Deep inside Earth, where the mantle meets the molten iron core, researchers are finding telltale signs of what could be a highly active area filled with exotic forms and substances. “This layer is far

Historical study shows elevated aridity in periods of warming

Severe drought in western states in recent years may be linked to climate warming trends, according to new research led by scientists from the Lamont-Doherty Earth Observatory of Columbia University to be posted October 7 on Science magazine’s website, www.sciencemag.org. This research was supported by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) and the National Science Foundation (NSF).

University of York calculates huge economic impact of ozone

Increased ozone concentrations at ground level may be causing millions of pounds of damage to UK food crops, according to a University of York researcher. Building on a previous study on ozone concentrations in the environment, which estimated that in 1990 alone the UK lost £130million in crops due to ozone taken up by plants, Dr Lisa Emberson of the Stockholm Environment Institute has been developing new methods to calcul

MIT researchers have developed new metrics for assessing the performance of firms that recycle scrapped electronic equipment, a major source of toxic pollutants.

The metrics focus not just on how much of a firm’s incoming waste is processed but also on the quality and reusability of the materials produced from it, a consideration critical to overall resource efficiency.

To assess the performance of electronics recycling firms, people have focused mainly on the most e

What is actually a “good” oyster? How can we evaluate and grade ”quality”? And how can we produce the quality we wish?

The European flat oyster has been used as food as long as man has inhabited the European coastline. The ancient Romans established oyster farms, and oyster culture and harvest gradually developed as an important activity along the coasts of Europe. Today, the oyster industry is important. The Pacific oyster, which is now the dominant species, is cultivated all ove

Epsom-like salts believed to be common on Mars may be a major source of water there, say geologists at Indiana University Bloomington and Los Alamos National Laboratory. In their report in this week’s Nature, the scientists also speculate that the salts will provide a chemical record of water on the Red Planet.

“The Mars Odyssey orbiter recently showed that there may be as much as 10 percent water hidden in the Martian near-surface,” said David Bish, Haydn Murray Chair of Appli

While Antarctica has mostly cooled over the last 30 years, the trend is likely to rapidly reverse, according to a computer model study by NASA researchers. The study indicates the South Polar Region is expected to warm during the next 50 years.

Findings from the study, conducted by researchers Drew Shindell and Gavin Schmidt of NASA’s Goddard Institute of Space Studies (GISS), New York, appeared in the Geophysical Research Letters. Shindell and Schmidt found depleted ozone leve

A joint English Nature and RSPB scientific review comparing evidence about wildlife on organic and equivalent non-organic farms has concluded that organic farms are better for wildlife.

The review, published in the journal Biological Conservation, concludes that a wide range of wildlife including birds, bats, insects and wild flowers flourish on organic farms. In more than 50 comparisons it was usually, although not universally, true that organic farms had more individual wild ani

Study shows river water, sewer lines are possible sources

Viruses from human sources occur in the La Crosse, Wisconsin municipal drinking water supply prior to its chlorination, according to a study published today in the scientific journal Applied and Environmental Microbiology. Although the city’s treated water meets or exceeds state and federal standards for drinking water, researchers and public health officials agree that more study is needed to pinpoint sources of the viruses

The newly developed system makes sure that farm animals won’t run out of food. One of the largest companies in the EU animal feed sector, Suomen Rehu Oy, has developed a feed silo that places feed orders automatically.

In the Signal 24 mobile technology-based ordering service, the silo is equipped with a measuring transducer that senses when the silo is running out of feed. This takes place several days before the silo should receive new feed supplies. From the silo, the data is

Due for launch next spring, ESA’s ice mission CryoSat marked an important milestone last week when the innovative SAR/Interferometric Radar Altimeter (SIRAL) instrument was delivered to the prime contractor Astruim GmbH for integration into the satellite.

Developed by Alcatel Space, the SIRAL radar altimeter is the key instrument to be carried on the CryoSat mission. Its design is based on heritage from existing radar altimeters but with a number of sophisticated enhancements

Why is it that all the volcanic activity in the United States is targeted in the Northwest? Could such activity that we are now witnessing with Mount St. Helens in Washington happen on the East Coast?

That isn’t likely to happen anytime soon–even by geological standards–since the geological conditions on the East Coast lack key conditions necessary for volcanic activity, says R.J. Tracy, professor of geosciences at Virginia Tech.

According to Tracy, the following c

Autumn is marked out by spectacular changes in leaf colour as the greens of summer change into the yellows and reds of autumn. In parts of North American whole tourist industries are based on this change, but why do leaves turn these bright colours before falling off the trees?

New work by Dr Dave Wilkinson (an ecologist in the School of Biological and Earth Sciences at Liverpool John Moores University) and his colleague Martin Schaefer (University of Freiburg, Germany), published

Researchers at the University of Colorado at Boulder have found that the extent of Arctic sea ice, the floating mass of ice that covers the Arctic Ocean, is continuing its rapid decline.

The latest satellite information indicates the September 2004 sea ice extent was 13.4 percent below average, a reduction in area nearly twice the size of Texas, said Mark Serreze of CU-Boulder’s National Snow and Ice Data Center, or NSIDC. In 2002, the decline in arctic sea ice during Septemb