How does a Vermonter, midwinter, find a ripe, organic tomato? It’s a trick question on several counts. The quest for an answer begins at a grocery store…The discussion of hydroponic-as-organic is an “almost-religious dispute,” because it traffics in hopes and fears, said Jack Rabin, the associate director of farm programs at Rutgers, N.J., Agricultural Experiment Station. In a recent email exchange, Rabin elaborated: “Some people have negative association of hydroponics with industrial farming. Yet, most future local and urban agriculture that becomes commercial will incorporate controlled environment practices due to land costs and protection,” he wrote.
Archives for February 2014
Change In Jet Stream Is the Likely Cause of Brutal Winter
Similar to team-assembling montages in action films, the American Association for the Advancement of Science comes together once a year to discuss developments and discoveries in the field of science, pouring each other green tea and playing mirthful pranks on the younger PhDs. Predictably, the topic of climate change was put on display this year, as 84% of AAAS members believe that humans are causing global warming…According to research performed by Professor Jennifer Francis at Rutgers University, this newly meandering jet stream is likely to continue taking a longer time to pass over Europe and North America. As temperatures in the Arctic warm, the jet stream slows down and finds difficulty pushing over obstacles in the atmosphere. Francis claims this year’s bitter winter is a result of this, and that in future, “We can expect more of the same and we can expect it to happen more frequently.”
Warming Arctic May Be Causing Jet Stream To Lose Its Way
Mark Twain once said: “If you don’t like the weather in New England now, just wait a few minutes.” He was making an unknowing reference to the , which drives the weather over North America and Europe like a high-altitude conveyor belt. But increasingly, the jet stream is taking a more circuitous route over the northern latitudes, meaning weather systems hang around longer than they used to. And a warming Arctic is probably to blame, says Jennifer Francis, a professor at Rutgers University’s Institute of Marine and Coastal Sciences. Francis – who says it’s too early to know if the well-established Arctic warming is caused by man or some natural phenomenon – was speaking during a session on Arctic change at the annual meeting of the American Association for the Advancement of Science in Chicago on Saturday.
Wavier jet stream ‘may drive weather shift’
The main system that helps determine the weather over Northern Europe and North America may be changing, research suggests. The study shows that the so-called jet stream has increasingly taken a longer, meandering path. This has resulted in weather remaining the same for more prolonged periods…According to Prof Jennifer Francis of Rutgers University in New Jersey: “This does seem to suggest that weather patterns are changing and people are noticing that the weather in their area is not what it used to be.” The meandering jet stream has accounted for the recent stormy weather over the UK and the bitter winter weather in the US Mid-West remaining longer than it otherwise would have. “We can expect more of the same and we can expect it to happen more frequently,” says Prof Francis.
Service to agriculture gets honor for agent at Rutgers Cooperative Extension of Cumberland County
Dr. Wesley Kline, agricultural agent at Rutgers Cooperative Extension of Cumberland County, was recognized with the 2014 Distinguished Service to New Jersey Agriculture Award on Wednesday, Feb. 5, at the 2014 Agriculture Conventions in Atlantic City. K…
Average US temperature for January ‘normal’ despite winter storms
For those who shivered through January, this may be hard to believe: Nationwide, the average temperature for the month was about normal because a warm west offset a cool east…And even though it seemed like it snowed a lot in the east, the snow on the…
More Native Biodiversity Supported By Cities Than Previously Thought
Researchers at UCSB’s NCEAS compile the largest global dataset of urban birds and plants, which shows world’s cities retain a unique natural palette The rapid conversion of natural lands to cement-dominated urban centers is causing great losses in biodiversity. Yet, according to a new study involving 147 cities worldwide, surprisingly high numbers of plant and animal species persist and even flourish in urban environments – to the tune of hundreds of bird species and thousands of plant species in a single city…”While urbanization has caused cities to lose large numbers of plants and animals, the good news is that cities still retain endemic native species, which opens the door for new policies on regional and global biodiversity conservation,” said lead author and NCEAS working group member Myla F. J. Aronson, a research scientist in the Department of Ecology, Evolution and Natural Resources at Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey.
Prof. Don Schaffner Elected Fellow of the American Academy of Microbiology
Rutgers Distinguished Professor Don Schaffner, an extension specialist in food science, was elected Fellow of the American Academy of Microbiology, the highly respected leadership group within the American Society for Microbiology (ASM), the world’s oldest and largest life science organization. Schaffner will be recognized along with his 2014 cohorts at the Academy Fellows Luncheon and […]
Green spaces in cities could restore species lost to urbanisation
A new study analysing the impact of urbanisation on biodiversity has found that protecting green spaces and restoring plant species in cities could allow developed areas to retain their flora and fauna. The work, published in the journal Proceedings of the Royal Society B, gathered lists of plants in 110 cities and lists of birds found in 54 cities from around the world. “We were interested in plants and birds that were found in all parts of the city – from buildings, roads, vacant lots, brownfields, managed green spaces, and natural green spaces – to understand how cities support biodiversity as a whole”, Dr Myla Aronson, study co-author and research scientist from Rutgers, the State University of New Jersey, told BBC News.
Study shows urbanisation’s impact on biodiversity
A dataset, described as the largest of it kind to date, has assessed the impact of urbanisation on biodiversity levels around the globe. It found that cities supported far fewer species of birds and plants compared with similar areas of undeveloped land. However, it showed the vast majority of flora and fauna in a city reflected an area’s “unique biotic heritage”…”While we show that urbanisation has caused cities to lose large numbers of plants and animals, the good news is that cities still retain endemic native species, which opens the door for new policies on regional and global biodiversity conservation,” said co-author Myla Aronson, a research scientist from Rutgers University, in the US state of New Jersey. “In particular, the study highlights the value of green spaces in cities, which have become important refuges for native species and migrating wildlife.”