You may remember a post I did last summer on sedges called tules. Although not domesticated, tules have (or had) a lot of interesting uses among the Native Americans of California, including in the construction of boats. People still build tule boats, mainly for fun. I bring all this up because of a recent article on some fascinating new thinking about how people spread around the world. It seems that there is increasing evidence that they may have done so by boat, including perhaps during the initial peopling of the Americas from Asia. In which case they could well have gone from kelp bed to kelp bed in tule boats. Incidentally, the oldest boat in the world is a pine dugout made by the Bog People of NW Europe in about 8500 BC.
Nibbles: Khush, Reindeer, Rice, Truffle, Quince
- Legendary rice breeder sets example for Punjab students.
- Sami worried about what climate change will mean for their reindeer, try to do something about it.
- Rice tillering gene deconstructed.
- Truffle pirated.
- Ağzınız şirin olsun!
Fowl play
The Rai3 TV programme Geo&Geo had a great little piece last night on AIRPA, which stands for Allevatrici Italiane Razze Pregiate Avicole. That translates as Italian Rearers of Esteemed Breeds of Fowl. But the word for “rearers” is in the feminine form, which means the society is open to women only. The rationale for this is as follows, according to the website: “le donne cercano di vedere le cose dal punto di vista dell’animale, applicano un allevamento compassionevole, solidarietà , maggiore delicatezza.” That is, women try to see things more from the point of view of the animal, and are more compassionate and delicate towards them. That was certainly obvious from the interviews in the programme. Anyway, if you’re interested in a list of fowl breeds in Italy, here it is.
Living Labs videos online
Television for Education-Asia Pacific (TVEAP) has a series of five-minute videos on YouTube highlighting the work of the CGIAR Challenge Program on Water and Food in some of the more important river basins of the world:
With water scarcity emerging as a global concern, we simply cannot continue the water-intense methods of the past. Yet, as human numbers increase, more food needs to be produced with the same — or shrinking — land. This calls for smarter, thriftier ways of using freshwater and increasing water’s productivity in agriculture, without damaging the environment, or undermining food security, jobs or health.
Local food systems deconstructed
A bunch of French research organizations have got together into a Groupement d’Intêret Scientifique on “Local Agri-Food Systems.” And the latest volume of Cahiers Agricultures is dedicated to the subject. The articles are free and in French, but with summaries in English.