Illumination 2.0

For all of you that could not see the Biotech Literacy Day talks in real time- here are the links!  If they don't work on the click, cut and paste! You may have to download the small SilverLight Plugin! 1. Dr. Kevin Folta  UF/IFAS Horticultural Sciences Department     Genetically Engineered Crops in 2014:  What Are They and How Do They Work?  -  24 minutes http://mediasite.video.ufl.edu/Mediasite/Play/b3980f891e9445f881fdbe8a09fdb0301d 2. Dr. Bruce Chassy  University of Illinois@Urbana-Champaign               "Risks vs. Benefits  Health, Safety and Environment"   - 36 minutes  http://mediasite.video.ufl.edu/Mediasite/Play/4789e14d844c4a74aba2d7df829b132a1d 3. Dr. Val Giddings  Innovation Technology & Information Foundation       "Public Policy, Testing, Labeling, Patents"  -   27 minutes http://mediasite.video.ufl.edu/Mediasite/Play/e29938267e744894a15b99ef2eb427881d 4. Tamar Haspel  The Washington Post 

One of the most lame complaints levied by those opposed to trangenic technology is that scientists just can't get seeds to do the independent research.  I've noted 3-4 ways that seeds may be obtained in this blog over time. It is the laziest complaint- a sure sign of people not even willing to do cursory leg work, and simply parrot the junk people tell them.  I can get seeds in a few days- they are as close as your local seed catalog.  Just for fun, I looked in Hummert's catalog today. The 2014 catalog has transgenic seeds for sale.   They only sell 'roundup ready' sweet corn, but that's still something.  Anyone wanting to seriously examine the product certainly could, and any of the half-dozen or so scientists that claim that this is evil technology could do it too-- if they wanted to.  Top of page 16- Oh, I guess it is pretty easy to get.  Of course, there are a few technical issues at play.  First, you'll have to sign a contr

One of the most important parts of my job is connecting science to the children of our community.  I was fortunate to have parents and teachers that fostered and encouraged my participation from the beginning, and some of the most memorable times in school were based on a simple experiment with curious results.  Here's a video of one of my visits to a local elementary school with two PMCB graduate students. 

On May 31, 2013, I planned on writing this blog but I could not do it. I figured I'd give it a year. So now it is posted on May 31, 2014.  Every time I actually sat down to do it, emotions grabbed me and stopped me.  It was one of the worst days ever- but one of the best days ever.  Two extremes at one time and a harsh ride in between. I'll explain.... My dog Xeenah was exceptional.  Humans keep dogs, or they keep us, they are beasts in our home.  But Xeenah is a dog that became one of us.  She was sweet, strong, smart, funny.  She was with us through some of the worst of times and an ever present contributor to the best of times. The whole story of how I got her  and my first farewell was posted on this blog a year ago, the day she died.  I couldn't write about what I'm preparing here- no way.  here it is 365 days later. This is a story of putting a dog to sleep.  I was not "putting her to sleep".  She was not going to sleep, as she did 10,000 times b

Since the dawn of the internet I've been blown away by the beautiful writing, wonderful pictures, and more photos of monkeys smoking than I can browse in a good afternoon. Over the last few weeks I think the crazy people have dialed it up. Can't believe the junk I'm reading! But on the other hand, I've been so excited to read the poignant, concise and beautiful words on Twitter.  The last week was awesome. Thanks Hank, Kellie and Sanjay for these gems...  " Arrogance is the full-bellied 'protecting' the starving from # frankenfoods ." @KellieRyanB "The anti-GMO folks just hate corporations more than they love people." @HankCampbell " anti-GMO come across as privileged urbanites who show startling lack of compassion for the poor and rural." @Sanjaybhatikar "Full belly, full wallet, empty skull=bad food science decisions." @ (well, me)

Here's a story that starts with a simple comment on a website.  It ends with insults, anger, and delusional defiance. A graduate student funded by NSF (the same folks that have funded my work over the years) libeled me in a harsh way.  Complete lies and nonsense.  I got nowhere with her kindly through private correspondence, and therefore just want to make the conversation public. I didn't want it to come to this. There is a level of professionalism that is lost and an unacceptable breech of ethics for an academic.  She overstepped many lines, refuses to correct her falsehoods, and I feel it necessary to tell my story to protect myself from libelous accusations that are simply not true.  I never wanted her to experience any harm or negative effects from her indiscretions.  She refuses to correct her libelous statements, she stands by them, so I'm happy to post my interactions with Valerie Goodness here for all to enjoy. I also contacted her Dean.  His response was lim

Why is labeling GMOs a bad idea?  Here's why!  It actually makes us less informed. Labels can be used deceptively to imply danger where none exists, forcing competitors to play defense against false notions.  The creator of this sign at a local Ace Hardware (thanks Dr. Dave Clark!) states clearly that their herb and veggie starts are "NON-GMO".  This implies that there are herb and veggie starts that are GMO, when there are not. I like, "remineralized with 70 trace minerals"... I'm guessing that 65 of these trace minerals are more toxic than any pesticide, herbicide, fungicide, or certainly a transgene! And "open pollinated" ensures that you have no guarantee of the genetic integrity of the "heirloom" you are purchasing- so it is not necessarily an heirloom. Chances are that these plants are the typical garden tomato, pepper, cucumber starts sold everywhere. They are not GMO, they never have been GMO. It is really sl