Agricultural Research and Technology

California leads U.S. in record first quarter for solar installation

2013-06-12 17:30:00

The U.S. had a record quarter in solar installation during the first three months of the year, installing 723 megawatts of photovoltaic capacity for a 33% increase over the same period last year. That represents nearly half of all new generation...

Turning cow dung into electricity

2013-06-07 20:21:00

Dairy farmer Ron Koetsier's 1,200 cows produce roughly 90 tons of manure daily, and for the last three decades, he has tried unsuccessfully to turn the stinky dung into energy to power his 450-acre farm in Visalia. He installed a nearly $1-million...

Genetically modified cotton helps farmers escape malnutrition

2013-06-06 06:30:00

People opposed to genetically modified organisms often insist that the plants are no good for anyone except the companies, like Monsanto Co., that sell GMO seeds. A new study may force them to come to terms with�the idea that GM crops can benefit...

Cattle grazing can promote cheatgrass dominance, study finds

2013-05-13 14:53:00

Ranchers often argue that cattle grazing is the best way to combat cheatgrass, an aggressive invader that has taken over vast areas of the Great Basin, destroying the native sagebrush ecosystem and fueling huge wildfires. But a study published today...

Silicon Valley uses growing clout to kill a digital privacy bill

2013-05-03 05:00:00

Silicon Valley has wielded its growing political clout at the state Capitol to kill a digital privacy bill that would have given consumers access to information about them being collected online. Had the Right to Know Act become law, California would...

Rep. Lamar Smith defends tentative changes to research funding

2013-05-01 15:25:00

Republicans in Congress, long skeptical of the value of some taxpayer-supported research, have taken aim at the National Science Foundation with a bill that seeks to limit the scope of its grants. A draft bill by House Science Committee Chairman Lamar...

Good fences make safe lions

2013-04-25 00:00:00

During the 1960s, when most African nature reserves were being established, lions tended to be born free. But today, freedom doesn't always serve them well. Fifty years ago, human population densities were low in the areas where lions roamed. But...

Disease threatens critical population of gray bats

2013-04-08 15:06:00

Federal biologists on Monday confirmed the presence of a lethal fungus known as white-nose syndrome at Alabama’s Fern Cave National Wildlife Refuge, home of the largest wintering colony of endangered gray bats. With more than 1 million hibernating...

Natural Products Expo lays out the latest, with an emphasis on what's real and what's absent

2013-03-16 00:00:00

Things seemed simpler this year at the enormous annual trade show for the natural products industry. There was a bit of a back-to-the-old-days vibe among the thousands of things to eat or drink, to use to clean your person or your house, to improve your...

Transcript: Rand Paul's filibuster of John Brennan's CIA nomination

2013-03-07 11:21:00

Sen. Rand Paul (R-Ky.) delivered a nearly 13-hour filibuster Wednesday of John Brennan’s nomination to lead the CIA. Paul used his time on the floor to question the legality of the White House's policies on drone use, beginning at 11:47 a.m. EST and...

Nutrition group petitions for federal regulation of sugary drinks

2013-02-13 13:39:00

A nutrition advocacy group joined with scientists and health agencies Wednesday to ask the federal government to decide just how much sugar is “safe” in sodas, raising the bar in its crusade to curb the “dangerously high” amounts...

Is it time for the National Book Awards to change? Yes.

2013-01-16 10:46:00

As a member of the board of the award-bestowing National Book Critics Circle, I tend to look to the National Book Awards as a popular big brother: They are the football to our field hockey, the Oscars to our Independent Spirit Awards, the prizes that tend...

Oscar statuettes on display at the Museum of Science and Industry in Chicago.

2013-02-22 12:23:59

Aveline Bubnis, 3, of Hainesport, New Jersey, tries one of the activities at the new Polar Science Adventures at the Da Vinci Science Center in Allentown on Sunday. Polar Science Adventuresincludes two rooms of activities and a series of stage shows.

2012-12-23 00:00:00

A general view of the Museum of Science and Industry's gift shop.

2012-12-12 14:40:00