Podcasts about Rothamsted Research

As the UN Ocean Conference continues in Nice, the Marine Conservation Society aims to remind us that all land and river-based pollution, including agricultural run-off, will end up in the ocean. They're calling for a more joined-up approach to farming and fishing more sustainably.Scientists at Rothamsted Research have genetically modified an oil seed plant with a red flax to create fish feed that provides antioxidants and the red colour in salmon and shrimp. Though not authorised in the UK, the GM crop would be an alternative to the chemicals currently used.And it's the second day in our journey of a UK loaf of bread from seed to slice. Today we're with a wheat farmer in Norfolk.Presented by Anna Hill and produced by Sally Challoner.

In this Supply Chain Focus edition of Inside the Pod, we speak to Mark Herriman, Head of Sales and Corporate Operations at PheroSyn, a start-up company spun out of Rothamsted Research supporting a new method of pest control in crops - pheromone-based monitoring, with the aim of reducing pesticide use in agriculture.

Cleaning and disinfecting dairy milking equipment, whether robotic or manual, uses large amounts of energy and significant quantities of chemicals. It's a necessary but expensive process. So farmers are watching with interest the team developing a system that claims to do away with both those things. Scientists at the UK Agri-Tech Centre are collaborating with a company called Oxitech on a method that uses electricity and oxygen instead. Theft of machinery, fly tipping, cattle rustling, hare coursing; these are all crimes farmers might have to face. Even though budgets are tight, some police forces have been bolstering their rural teams to help combat crime in the countryside. One area which has seen an increase in resources is Warwickshire. Our reporter joins officers there out on patrol. For the first time gene-edited tomato plants have been developed specifically for a vertical farm operation, where they have to produce a significant amount of fruit, from a very small plant, adapted for growing under artificial light. The miniaturised version of the gardener's favourite, Ailsa Craig, has been developed by Phytoform Labs at Rothamsted Research, but they are still at the development stage so not on supermarket shelves.Presented by Anna Hill and produced by Beatrice Fenton.

New physical checks have been brought in on some imports of food and plants from the EU. Products deemed high or medium risk now have to be inspected - including live animals, meat and some plant products. Inspections can be done either at Government run sites or at commercial facilities - we report from both to find out how it works.The major political parties are all competing for the rural vote ahead of the local elections. A combination of councillors, mayors and police and crime commissioners will be selected across England and Wales.And, blackgrass is a weed that can grow amongst fields of commercial crops, competing for nutrients in the soil, and reducing yields. We meet a team of scientists at Rothamsted Research who are looking into how to tackle this pernicious weed.Presented by Anna Hill Produced for BBC Audio in Bristol by Heather Simons

The Government has made legally-binding commitments to end nature declines and they've mandated local councils to propose actions and priorities for their areas through a Local Nature Recovery Strategy. Rob Smith speaks to Liz Milne who is developing the LNRS in Kent (called 'Making Space for Nature') and Emma Loder-Symonds of Nonnington Farms who is already Making Space for Nature on her 3000 acre farm.Rob also escapes Kent to travel to Rothamsted Research in Hertfordshire and speak to James Clarke about the oldest continually operating agricultural research station in the world founded as far back as 1843. Learn about some of the research that is helping farmers work with nature using some of the longest scientific field experiments in the world.Finally, Rob heads to Westminster to meet Sir Roger Gale, MP of North Thanet who is another voice in opposition of the Sea Link cable that National Grid wants to run through Sandwich and Pegwell Bay with a converter station in Minster Marshes. Save these internationally important sites by having your voice heard in our Rethink Sea Link campaign!Making Space for Nature website: https://www.makingspacefornaturekent.org.uk/Nonnington Farms: https://www.noningtonfarms.co.uk/LEAF Farming: https://leaf.eco/Rothamsted Research: https://www.rothamsted.ac.uk/Sir Roger Gale: https://members.parliament.uk/member/87/contactRethink Sea Link Campaign: https://www.kentwildlifetrust.org.uk/campaigns/rethink-sea-linkSave Minster Marshes: https://www.minstermarshes.com/ Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Welcome to this special episode of the Farmers Weekly Podcast – the Farmers Weekly Question Time event at Rothamsted Research in Hertfordshire.Recorded in front of a live studio audience, farmers, students and other guests quiz industry leaders on topical agricultural issues.Our panel is:Climate change minister Lord BenyonVictoria Vyvyan, president of the Country Land & Business Association Rothamsted Research scientist Jonathan Storkey Charlie Ireland, farm business consultant, Ceres Rural Liberal Democrat parliamentary candidate & Hertfordshire farmer Stuart Roberts Sponsored by The Institute for Agriculture and Horticulture, Lightsource BP, plant breeder KWS and Lantra, this Question Time event was recorded on Thursday, 22 February 2024.With grateful thanks to Rothamsted Research for providing the venue for this event.Hosted by Farmers Weekly Podcast editor Johann Tasker. To attend future FW Question Time events, visit fwi.co.uk/questiontime.

Welcome to this special episode of the Farmers Weekly Podcast – the Farmers Weekly Question Time event at Rothamsted Research in Hertfordshire.Recorded in front of a live studio audience, farmers, students and other guests quiz industry leaders on topical agricultural issues.Our panel is:Climate change minister Lord BenyonVictoria Vyvyan, president of the Country Land & Business Association Rothamsted Research scientist Jonathan Storkey Charlie Ireland, farm business consultant, Ceres Rural Liberal Democrat parliamentary candidate & Hertfordshire farmer Stuart Roberts Sponsored by The Institute for Agriculture and Horticulture, Lightsource BP, plant breeder KWS and Lantra, this Question Time event was recorded on Thursday, 22 February 2024.With grateful thanks to Rothamsted Research for providing the venue for this event.Hosted by Farmers Weekly Podcast editor Johann Tasker. To attend future FW Question Time events, visit fwi.co.uk/questiontime.

The shipworm is a bi-valve mollusc - like an oyster or a mussel - which is known as a marine pest because it eats through sea-water submersed wood. Now, scientists at Cambridge and Plymouth Universities have developed a system for farming them, in a highly controlled environment using waste wood for feed. To make them a more appealing meal, they're re-branding the shipworm as a Naked Clam! Rothamsted Research is renowned for its Broad Baulk field crop experiment which is celebrating its 180th anniversary this year. Now, a new long term field trial is being developed, looking at Regenerative Farming. There is no agreed definition, but generally speaking regenerative agriculture focuses on improving soil health by reducing or removing cultivation, growing cover crops and using fewer chemical inputs. It can also involve re-integrating livestock into an arable system. And the Welsh government has commissioned Natural Resources Wales to evaluate the case for a fourth national park, in the North East. Three Parks already exist - Eryri, The Pembrokeshire Coast, and Bannau Brycheiniog. We hear from people living and working in the proposed new park area about what it could mean for them. Presented by Anna Hill Produced for BBC Audio in Bristol

Following Government reviews into the dairy and pig sectors, there will now be a new inquiry into the fruit and veg supply chain later this autumn. It follows salad shortages on supermarket shelves and complaints from growers that the price they're paid doesn't always cover the cost of production. Agricultural research may be a little bit easier after the Government's announcement this week that the UK is to re-join the EU's flagship scientific research scheme, Horizon. We've been excluded from the scheme for the last 3 years because of disagreements with the EU over the Northern Ireland protocol. For the agricultural research institute, Rothamsted Research, that's meant a 20% a drop in EU funding, so the latest news brings fresh hope. And how do you keep a pig cool in this hot weather? The answer is - give it a bath. Presented by Charlotte Smith Producer for BBC Audio in Bristol by Heather Simons

What is the right choice when buying produce, the loose items, or the organic versions that are wrapped in plastic? Should we be worried about soil degradation and our ability to feed a growing global population? What are the trade-offs we need to make to increase crop yields whilst also protecting biodiversity? We all wear clothes and we all eat food, so if you're interested in the sustainability of one, it's likely you have questions relating to the other. In this episode, agricultural scientist and sewist Helen Metcalfe patiently answers all of mine! Support the podcast over on Patreon! Check out the fun new challenge/hashtag #scrapbustingseptember created by previous-guest Meg Grandstaff (@the_grand_stash). Find and follow Helen Metcalfe on Instagram @helenlivesslow Helen works at Rothamsted Research. My IG post that kicked off the whole debate over the validity and purpose of the ‘dirty dozen'. The Royal Horticultural Society website is a great source of information for those wanted to grow some of their own fruit and vegetables. The Food and Agriculture Organization of the UN has heaps of information if you wish to learn more about food security across the globe.

In early 2012  scientists at Rothamsted Research in England started an airfield trial of genetically modified wheat ( the first in the UK for many years ). THe research was publicly funded by a plant science centre based in the south of England. The genetically engineered wheat was sown behind a high fence and protected by 24-hour security. You will find out why all this security was needed in a second.  The aim of the research was to test and check whether an added gene would repel aphids.  The small sucking insects are commonly called greenflies and blackflies. The wheat would exude a pheromone that repels them. A pheromone is a chemical produced by an organism that influences other individuals of the same species. We also have pheromones, which are pretty useful for dating.  The theory was that if wheat could exude these unattractive pheromones, the insects would stop attacking it. And this way, we could save lots of pesticides. Actually, this is a great approach.  The stakes were high because a group of anti - GMO protesters had vowed to destroy the test site before the experiment could offer any results. In response, the scientists released a passionate YouTube video appeal. They talked to the media and pleaded that their effort was >actually< to reduce pesticide use.  One of the scientists, Toby Bruce, addressed the camera directly; he said: We have developed this new variety of wheat which doesn't require treatment with an insecticide, and it uses a natural aphid repellent which already widely occurs in nature and is produced by more than 400 different plant species. We have engineered this into the wheat genome so that the wheat can do the same thing and defend itself. Are you really against this? Because it could have a lot of environmental benefits. Or is it simply you distrust it because it's a GMO? Another Rothamsted scientist in the video was Janet Martin, who asked quite reasonably: ‘ You seem to think, even before we've had a chance to test the trial, that our GM wheat variety is bad. But how can you know this? ' She paused and uttered a weary, unscripted sigh before continuing. ‘ It's clearly not through scientific investigation because we've not even had a chance to do any tests yet.  Support Red to Green ⁠⁠ https://www.patreon.com/RedtoGreen⁠⁠ Get funding for your food science research: ⁠⁠https://en.raps-stiftung.de/foerderbereiche/lebensmittelforschung⁠⁠ More info and links to resources on⁠⁠ https://redtogreen.solutions/  ⁠⁠ Seeds of Science ⁠https://www.amazon.com/Seeds-Science-Why-Wrong-GMOs/dp/1472946987⁠ Connect with the host, Marina ⁠⁠https://www.linkedin.com/in/schmidt-marina/⁠⁠ Connect with the host, Frank ⁠⁠https://www.linkedin.com/in/frankkuehne/⁠⁠ Please rate the podcast on Spotify and iTunes!

At the Future Countryside Conference in Hertfordshire policy makers and farmers, land owners, conservationists and campaigners have been discussing how to make the countryside inclusive and meaningful for everyone. How can it deliver food, cleaner rivers and air, store carbon and offer people a place to visit and enjoy? We hear how this vision relies on a combination of personal will and public policy-making All week we're discussing gene editing - also known as precision breeding. It's been just over two months since The Genetic Technology (Precision Breeding) Act passed into law in England (but not in Wales, Northern Ireland or Scotland). The government says it's a major step in innovation and will help ensure food security in the face of climate change. The change in the law comes just as the results of Europe's first-ever field trial of a gene-edited wheat, are published. We report from the trial site at Rothamsted Research in Hertfordshire where scientists are developing a variety that will produce less harmful acyrilamide Presenter = Anna Hill Producer = Rebecca Rooney

The UK's National Willow Collection was set up in the aftermath of WWI when a War Office review identified there had been a shortage of willow to make containers for ammunition. 100 years on, plastic is now used to do many of the jobs willow once did. But the collection is now run by Rothamsted Research, where scientists are looking at the potential for new materials to be made from willow that could replace plastic. In this programme, Sarah Swadling visits the Collection, which has over 1500 different willows and celebrates it's 100th anniversary this year. Presented and produced for BBC Audio in Bristol by Sarah Swadling

Details of government's new plan for water in England. It says extra funding will give farmers more free advice from the Catchment Sensitive Farming scheme and promises more funding for constructing reservoirs on farms. It's also earmarked nearly £34 million pound to help livestock farmers improve their slurry storage. We speak to the farming minister Mark Spencer. A group in Devon is using bunds made from sheep's wool and moss to help restore peatlands on Dartmoor. The aim is to capture carbon - and make a statement about the climate emergency. It's part of a project called How to Bury the Giant. This week we're taking a look at labelling. A new study from Rothamsted Research examines whether food labels should take into account ‘the bio-availability' of the nutrients in different foods, and how that would affect their overall carbon footprint and sustainability. Presenter =Caz Graham Producer = Rebecca Rooney

The debate about where people can and can't go in the English and Welsh countryside is back on. The Labour Party says if it wins the next election it'll introduce a right to roam and will re-introduce wild camping on Dartmoor too, after a high court decision banned it. What do farmers think? We're talking about peat all this week on Farming Today and the Scottish Government wants to restore a quarter of a million hectares of degraded peat by 2030, under its Peatland Action programme. But it's reckoned 1,500 more peat restorers are needed, so Scotland's first course in peatland restoration has been launched. The genome of 19 insects which damage crops have been mapped by scientists at Rothamsted Research and their work has been made public. They hope it will lead to more targeted pesticides and other non-chemical methods of controlling crop pests. Presented by Charlotte Smith and produced by Beatrice Fenton.

In this episode, join host Matt Tilt down at the site of Cereals 2023 in Nottinghamshire to chat with several of the crop and chemical suppliers who are exhibiting at the event. In Part 1 we speak to Ben Robinson of Syngenta, Becky Howard of PGRO, William Davis of Ceres Rural , Steve Mowbray of BioNature UK and James Clarke of Rothamsted Research. Part 2 will be available in January 2023.

Nearly half of the world's population lives in an area that faces water scarcity for at least a month every year and one in three people globally do not have access to safe drinking water. Today we meet two women who are working on solutions to cope with droughts. Jimena Puyana is a sustainable development programme specialist with the UNDP Country Office in Colombia. She works on implementing nature and community-based solutions to fight climate change in La Mojana, a region with one of the most complex water deltas in the world. Smita Kurup is a scientist at Rothamsted Research, a non-profit organisation based in the UK. She leads research in seed developmental biology and has been working on developing drought-resilient and more sustainable rice crops. Produced by Alice Gioia (Image: (L) Jimena Puyana, courtesy of UNDP Colombia. (R) Smita Kurup, credit Alasdair Cross.)

There are fears Organic dairy farmers will leave the sector as they say the rising cost of production isn't being reflected in the price they're paid for their milk. Since the cost of production has risen, farmers have been getting much higher prices for dairy, but some who run Organic productions say their margins have risen even more - and that is not being taken into account. A new study suggests converting livestock farms into arable could see regular crops fail to grow. The study from Rothamsted Research and SRUC looked at land in the South West of England to see what might happen as society shifts towards more plant-based diets. And as we continue our week talking about goats, our reporter visits farmer Nicola Knott, who has developed a business selling rare types of goats for breeding. Presented by Charlotte Smith Produced in Bristol by Natalie Donovan

This month we talk about black grass - one of the biggest challenges to profitable arable farming in the main cereal growing areas of the UK. With its high seed production, variable dormancy and herbicide resistance, black grass has become a major headache to many farmers. We have been forced to adapt our way of working to manage the threat of black grass competition and in this episode of Agronomy Matter we are joined by three experts who help us to understand the best methods of black grass control. Firstly, we have Richard Hull, a research technician at Rothamsted. Richard talks to us about his current research including cultural controls. You can read more from Rothamsted Research here https://www.rothamsted.ac.uk/news/new-%E2%80%98early-warning-system%E2%80%99-finds-blackgrass-evolving-resistance-glyphosate. Our second guest is Stuart Kevis, Business Development Manager at BASF. It is widely accepted that we need to combine non-chemical control methods with herbicides to improve overall control, so Stuart speaks about the chemical options including resistance issues. Finally, we are joined by Paul Roche, Product Placement Lead at Syngenta, who brings it all together for us and adds a little bit about how we might incorporate the control of other problem weeds. Weed management including both IPM and herbicide programmes are covered in depth in the BASIS Certificate in Crop Protection so if you are interested in developing your knowledge in this area, please visit our website for more details.

For decades, there has been a fiery debate around Genetic Modification.   It's seen by many as a solution to some of the world's biggest food problems, but by others as a reckless scientific gamble, endangering human health and the environment.   Those of us with memories of the 1990s and 2000s will remember GM trial crops in East Anglia being trashed by protesters, with farmers defending them using tractors as battering rams. Genetically modified crops are effectively banned across Europe and the same applies to gene edited crops. And it's gene editing we're interested in because the UK Government is trying to pass a new law which could lead to these crops being grown commercially in England. Researchers hope gene editing might help solve global food and health problems, and be more palatable to the public than GM. So, will it be a game changer? To discuss its potential, we are joined by Professor Cathie Martin from the John Innes Centre, where she is leading a research project creating tomatoes which boost the body's vitamin D. And former Chief Scientific Adviser to the Food Standards Agency, Professor Guy Poppy. Cathie Martin, group leader at the John Innes Centre and Professor at the University of East Anglia Cathie researches the relationship between diet and health and how crops can be fortified to improve diets and address the global challenge of escalating chronic disease.  This work has involved linking leading clinical and epidemiological researchers with plant breeders and metabolic engineers to develop scientific understanding of how diet can help to maintain health, promote healthy ageing and reduce the risk of chronic disease. Cathie has recently initiated collaborative research in China to research on Chinese Medicinal Plants, particularly those producing anti-cancer metabolites used for complementary therapies. Cathie was Editor-in-Chief of The Plant Cell (2008-2014) and is now an Associate Editor for Molecular Horticulture. She is a member of EMBO, AAAS, a Fellow of the Royal Society, in 2014 she was awarded an MBE for services to Plant Biotechnology, in 2019 she was elected Janniki Ammal Chair of the Indian Academy of Sciences for outstanding women in science and in 2022 she will receive the Rank Prize for outstanding contributions to research on nutrition. Professor Guy Poppy, former Chief Scientific Adviser to the Food Standards Agency, Professor Guy Poppy served as the FSA's Chief Scientific Adviser from 2014 to 2020. His research on food systems and food security at the University of Southampton, is interdisciplinary and he has twice served as Associate Vice President for Interdisciplinary research. He was appointed Companion of the Order of Bath (CB) in the Queen's Birthday Honours 2021 and made a fellow of the Academy of Medical Sciences in 2022. Professor Poppy has significant research experience in food systems and food security and has advised governments around the world on these issues. He has published over 100 peer-reviewed papers including a number of highly cited articles on risk assessment, risk analysis and risk communication. He was a member of the Research Excellence Framework (REF2014 and REF2021) panel assessing the quality of agriculture, food and veterinary science in the UK. A graduate of Imperial College and Oxford University, Professor Poppy previously worked at Rothamsted Research, becoming Principal Scientific Officer. He left in 2001 to join the University of Southampton. As the FSA's Chief Scientific Adviser, Professor Poppy provided expert scientific advice to the UK government and played a critical role in helping to understand how scientific developments will shape the work of the FSA as well as the strategic implications of any possible changes. His series of CSA reports have reached a very wide audience and have had impact on issues ranging from AMR to Big data and Whole Genome Sequencing through to the Food Hygiene Rating Scheme (FHRS). He has focused on connecting science to those using it and has pushed for scientists to be intelligent providers to intelligent customers of science within the FSA and beyond. After completing his term of six years at the FSA, Professor Poppy became the Programme Director for the SPF Transforming the UK Food systems programme. This £47.5 million interdisciplinary research programme is supported by UKRI's Strategic Priorities Fund (SPF) and brings together researchers from almost 40 research organisations and over 200 private and public sector organisations including almost 20 Government Departments/Agencies.

Can we feed the world, get our carbon emissions to net zero and boost biodiversity? Scientists from Rothamsted Research think we can and they’re set to find out how in a major new research project. In this podcast, Dr Jonathan Storkey explains what they’ll be doing, how farmers themselves will be involved and why he’s ... Read more

Invisible air pollution affects all of us, and with Clean Air Day coming up we're being asked to step up to deal with one source of polluted air. And we hear from the Rothamsted Research scientist using her loaf to make our bread healthier. You can find out about the air quality near you at [...]

With Cereals just a month away, Farm Contractor magazine headed down to Cambridge to see the various crop plots and interview the exhibitors. In this special addition of Machinery Matters, we step away from the tractor cab to explore the latest in crop development and provide a preview for what will be at Cereals. In this episode you will be able to hear interviews with Cereals host farmer Robert Law, site agronomists Ceres Rural, the NIAB, Syngenta, Rothamsted Research, first time exhibitors LSPB, Corteva, Senova, Premium Crops and KWS.

Some 3 billion people in the world experience 'hidden hunger.' They might have enough rice, wheat and pulses to eat, for example, but the food lacks the vitamins and micronutrient minerals such as zinc, iron, selenium and iodine needed for normal brain development and strong immune systems. How can we use fertilizers to improve the micronutrient content of food crops? Ismail Cakmak, Professor of Plant Nutrition, Sabanci University, Turkey, and Martin Broadley, Professor and Science Director, Rothamsted Research, UK, sat down with IFA Chief Scientist Achim Dobermann to discuss how fertilizers can improve the micronutrient content of food crops - biofortification - and help tackle hidden hunger.

Global climate change, rapid population growth and shifting diets are creating intense pressures on agricultural systems. The recent advent of CRISPR/Cas as an additional tool for gene editing has spurred countless innovations in crops and livestock. From improved yields to enhanced drought tolerance, gene editing has enabled a range of promising improvements in a vast array of organisms. In this AfS Live webinar, three young scientists will discuss their work in gene editing for agriculture, their hopes for the technology and the role they seek to play in shepherding the next generation of agricultural biotechnology. Panelists include Nicholas Karavolias, a Ph.D. candidate at the Innovative Genomics Institute, home of CRISPR/Cas technology, at the University of California, Berkeley. His work seeks to provide an overview of how gene editing has been applied in agriculture for climate adaptation. He uses CRISPR/Cas9 in rice to generate varieties that are more drought-tolerant, and in cassava to improve nutritional attributes. Maci Mueller is a Ph.D. candidate at the University of California, Davis. Her work explores the relative advantages of gene editing and conventional breeding to drive the genetic improvement of cattle. Navneet Kaur is a Post-Doctoral Research Scientist at Rothamsted Research and a 2019 Alliance for Science Global Leadership Fellow. Her expertise is in the area of plant molecular biology and metabolic engineering, specifically focused on provitamin A biofortification of banana. Sarah Evanega, director of the Alliance for Science, will moderate.

The government plans to plant 30,000 hectares of trees each year by 2025. But how practical is it and what would the real impact be? Eleanor Rosamund Barraclough talks to Dr Julie Urquhart of the University of Gloucestershire about why we need more information about carbon capture to help select the best places and the best tree species to plant. William Macalpine is based at Rothamsted – his project explores how cutting back and coppicing willows as a crop encourages a rapid growth cycle and replenishment. His presentation Willow Power at the 2008 Chelsea Flower show demonstrated the versatility of willow and the number of varieties. He argues we need longer term funding and to break the 5 year funding cycle for farmers, and researchers. Dr Julie Urquhart is Associate Professor of Environmental Social Science at the University of Gloucestershire. She's an ambassador for the Future of UK Treescapes programme, a collaboration funded by UK Research and Innovation, the Scottish and Welsh government and DEFRA. William Macalpine is a willow breeder at Rothamsted Research, looking at shrub willows as a sustainable energy source. He is also a Chelsea Flower Show Gold Medal winner, for a display entitled ‘Willow Power'. You can find out more about William Macalpine here: https://repository.rothamsted.ac.uk/staff/841w0/william-macalpine&resultMode=3 and the National Willow collection here https://www.rothamsted.ac.uk/uk-national-willow-collection You can find more information about the Treescapes projects here: https://nerc.ukri.org/research/funded/programmes/future-of-uk-treescapes/ Dr Eleanor Rosamund Barraclough is a New Generation Thinker based at the University of Durham. The podcast series Green Thinking is 26 episodes 26 minutes long looking at issues relating to COP26 made in partnership with the Arts and Humanities Research Council, part of UKRI. It explores the latest research and ideas around understanding and tackling the climate and nature emergency. New Generation Thinkers Des Fitzgerald and Eleanor Barraclough are in conversation with researchers about a wide-range of subjects from cryptocurrencies and finance to eco poetry and fast fashion. The podcasts are all available from the Arts & Ideas podcast feed - and collected on the Free Thinking website under Green Thinking where you can also find programmes on mushrooms, forests, rivers, eco-criticism and soil. https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/p07zg0r2 For more information about the research the AHRC's supports around climate change and the natural world you can visit: Responding to climate change – UKRI or follow @ahrcpress on twitter. To join the discussion about the research covered in this podcast and the series please use the hashtag #GreenThinkingPodcast. Producer: Ruth Watts

Clive talks to local music technology student and club DJ Hannah about the development of music technology from vinyl records through CDs to downloads and streaming. Plus the development of pop and rock music into rap and electronic dance music enjoyed by Gen Z young people like Hannah.

Back in August, Rothamsted Research was granted permission by Defra to run a series of field trials of wheat that has been genome edited, and, very soon, that wheat will be planted. This will be the first trial of its kind in the UK or EU. Project Leader Professor Nigel Halford explains what makes this [...]

David Powlson, Lawes Agricultural Trust Fellow at Rothamsted Research and Joachim Lammel, VP of Sustainability and Strategic Research at Yara Farming Solutions talked to IFA Chief Scientist Achim Dobermann about soil health and carbon sequestration. Find out why interest in soil health is growing, how it can be measured, what can be done to improve it and the potential of soil to capture carbon from the atmosphere.

Could learning how to work with nature be the secret to success in your garden? Rothamsted PhD student, Tessa, shares her findings about beneficial soil bacteria and artificial fertilizer, and Steve Shelley of Earthworks explains how they keep the pests at bay in a holistic way sticking to organic principles. You can read about more [...]

No Number 9 a brilliant read out now.

The ancient art of silvopasture could be set for an explosion, quite literally changing the landscape of British farming. Currently the subject of a 12 year trial run by farmers, Rothamsted Research and The Woodland Trust, silvopasture (a traditional method of farming livestock with trees) is thought to sequester additional carbon, reduce flooding, increase drought-resilience, improve animal health and wellbeing and boost biodiversity. But will it work in the UK? Scientists at Rothamsted Research and farmers in Devon have combined forces to find out. We talked to two key people involved in the trial; Andy Gray, commercial farmer at Elston Farm in Devon and Dr Robert Dunn, a scientist at Rothamsted Research who specialises on reducing the environmental impact of agriculture.This episode is supported by global law firm Eversheds Sutherland. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

The government is to phase out the use of lead shot, in a bid to protect wildlife and nature. New evidence from the world’s longest running experiment at Rothamsted Research, shows the threat to food crops from weeds is greater than ever before. And Henry Dimbleby, the man currently leading the National Food Strategy, says the effects of the pandemic have had an impact on the whole food chain. Presented by Charlotte Smith and produced by Beatrice Fenton

New evidence from the world’s longest running experiment at Rothamsted Research shows the threat to food crops from weeds is greater than ever before. The future of the Agriculture and Horticulture Development Board is under growing scrutiny, after a second ballot of farmers - this time potato growers - recorded 64% in favour of ending their mandatory levy, which is paid to the board. And all this week we're looking at how the pandemic has affected food, farming and rural businesses, a year on from the first lockdown. Our reporter Bob Walker has been talking to Buck Beckett, a crab and lobster fisherman based in Newquay, Cornwall. Presented by Anna Hill and produced in Bristol by Beatrice Fenton.

Last year we took a look at the start-up environment for food and agri-tech post-COVID 19, and continuing the series we speak to two leading investors to get a sense of the outlook for food and agri-tech investment for 2021. What challenges and opportunities do investors see in this market, and where will they be looking to invest in the future as they focus on health, nutrition and sustainability? Joining host Stefan Gates are Paul Rous, Director, Open Data Exchange & co-founder, Shake Climate Change and Rogier Pieterse, Managing Director, PYMWYMIC. Together they debate how the investment community will help support the innovators creating solutions to support data-driven agriculture, plant-based meat alternatives, and more. About our panel Paul Rous, Director, Open Data Exchange & co-founder, Shake Climate Change Paul is a Director of the Open Data Exchange, a joint initiative between Yara and IBM to enable data sharing throughout the agriculture sector. He is also a co-founder of the UK’s first agritech investment programme, Shake Climate Change (http://www.shakeclimate.org/) , supported by Rothamsted Research, UCL, Hertfordshire and Cranfield Universities. Paul has been involved in investment, innovation, and agriculture for over a decade, having founded two venture capital funds, Fuel Ventures and Blackfinch Ventures focusing and investing in early-stage UK technology. He has also been involved in the launch and scale of tens of companies and had over five successful exits. After serving as an Officer in the Army and at Goldman Sachs, he took an active role in the family’s arable farm. Paul has been involved in the rural economy and farming whilst serving as Chairman and Committee Member for the Country Landowners Association, District Councillor – East Suffolk, and Board Member for the East of England’s tourism board. Paul holds an MBA from Imperial College London where he held a position on the Dean’s Advisory Council and was awarded the Dean’s award for sustainable business. He is currently undertaking a Ph.D. with Cranfield University and Rothamsted Research focussing on agricultural innovation ecosystems. Rogier Pieterse, Managing Director, PYMWYMIC As a former entrepreneur himself and being passionate about bringing change and support to those who want to do good, Rogier has been leading PYMWYMIC (https://pymwymic.com/) since 2016. Since then, Pymwymic has fully focussed on the required transition in our food system. Rogier has an investment background with extensive experience in evaluating, negotiating, structuring deals (equity and debt) and creating shareholder value by scaling and initiating successful businesses. Previously CEO of family owned Transmark Holdings Group, Founder/MD of Green Giraffe Investment Management, Investment Manager Ampere Fund/ Triodos and Investment Banker at NIBC. Rogier holds a M.Sc. in Economics from University of Amsterdam.

The Environment Agency has warned farmers in many areas of the country to prepare for flooding as storm Christoph hits. With melting snow in some areas and much ground already saturated ‘significant flooding’ is expected. We speak to Chris Alford who farms on land in a flood plain in Brecon about how he gets prepared. Research suggests that farmers doing the right thing for the environment are also doing the right thing financially. The study from Rothamsted Research, the University of Reading and Newcastle University analysed data gathered over 9 years in the Government’s annual Farm Business Survey. It found that subsidies paid to farmers for protecting the environment lead to more "stable" incomes compared with payments based purely on the area of land they farm. As we continue our week looking at the work vets do, we find out about a project that's looking to support farms to establish better antimicrobial stewardship, and we speak to the British Veterinary Ethnicity and Diversity Society about it's new survey which is aiming to find out how UK vets are affected by racism. Presented by Charlotte Smith Produced in Bristol by Natalie Donovan

The COVID pandemic has seen charities across the country face urgent funding crisis with many having to shut down, but farming charities have continued to offer their vital service to farming families in need of support. Their work is critical in supporting the farming industry, but how are these charities coping? This week on Over The Farm Gate, farming charities Royal Agricultural Benevolent Institution (RABI) and Addington Fund talk about how they are negotiating major funding gaps left by the COVID pandemic and the challenges that Brexit has brought on for both their organisations and the people they support. RABI also discuss the ‘Big Farming Survey'- its most ambitious survey in England and Wales to identify how challenges within the sector are impacting people's physical and mental wellbeing, as well as the health of farming businesses. Then in light of the new government announcement looking at the prospect of allowing gene-edited crops to be grown in the UK, we speak to Professor Johnathan Napier of Rothamsted Research to find out how farmers can benefit from better-performing crops and how they can help the industry adapt to climate change.LinksTake part in the Big Farming Survey now: https://rabi.org.uk/BigFarmingSurvey/Farming help from the Addington Fund - get support or support their work now: https://www.addingtonfund.org.uk/Our take on gene editing: https://www.fginsight.com/news/gene-editing-could-unlock-benefits-for-livestock-sectors-say-industry-bodies-115909Learn more about Professor Johnathan Napier of Rothamsted Research: https://www.rothamsted.ac.uk/our-people/johnathan-napier See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

We're resourceful, adaptable and the smartest thing this planet has ever seen. We got ourselves into this mess but we can get ourselves out of it. BBC Radio Four, in partnership with the Royal Geographical Society presents 39 ideas to relieve the stress that climate change is exerting on the planet. From tiny solar cells to the total transformation of the Siberian landscape, Tom Heap and Dr Tamsin Edwards from Kings College, London view the fundamental problem of our age from a fresh perspective. Small things that make a big difference. Big things that make a small difference. We're going to need every one of them. In the first programme Tom discovers the secret of low-carbon rice with Dr Smita Kurup from Rothamsted Research. Producer : Alasdair Cross

COVID 19 has come as a bit of a shock to us, but in the world of plants, they're nothing new. Dr.Jon West of Rothamsted Research explains how research on one can inform the other, why Rothamsted is a great place to investigate diseases affecting oranges and how our experience of COVID should alert us [...]

Adam reveals new research which overturns received wisdom about how sperm swim. More than three centuries after Antonie van Leeuwenhoek peered down his early microscope to observe human sperm or ‘animalcules’ swimming with a ‘snakelike movement, like eels in water’, high-tech observations now reveal that this was, in fact, an optical illusion. Hermes Gadelha from Bristol University used 3D microscopy, a high-speed camera and mathematics, to reconstruct the true movement of the sperm tail. Much to his amazement, sperm have a highly sophisticated way of rolling as they swim. They do this to counter the numerous irregularities in their morphology which would otherwise send them swimming in circles. In doing so, they are able to propel themselves forwards. This highly complex set of movements, seen in 3D, is obscured in 2D when sperm appear to use a symmetrical eel-like motion to swim. Also on the programme, Adam gets an update from Mark Miodownik on the Big Compost Experiment, the citizen science project that wants to know what you compost, how you do it and, most importantly, how quickly the stuff breaks down. Mark reveals how confused participants are, about what they can compost, and explains why items marked ‘compostable’ or biodegradable’ won’t compost at home. Staying with soil, healthy soil is being lost at an alarming rate due to intensive agricultural practices. In England and Wales, a recent survey found that nearly forty percent of arable soils were degraded. Inside Science reporter Madeleine Findlay visits Andrew Neil from Rothamsted Research who has devised a new way of thinking about soil. They’ve solved the mystery of why adding carbon through organic material, like compost, improves soil health. PRODUCERS: Beth Eastwood & Fiona Roberts

Catching up with Shameek of Farmizen, who we interviewed 2 years ago. So much has happened but their mission is still the same: providing high quality, organic produce from zero budget natural farms to people living in the larger Indian cities. ---------------------------------------------------------- SHAKE Climate Change Does your agritech biz tackle climate change? The SHAKE Climate Change programme is again open for applicants - early stage ventures targeting carbon footprint of agriculture or food production. This is a consortium-based programme led by Rothamsted Research which offers up to £140K in start-up funds + 3 yrs mentoring. Apply by May 15th on http://shakeclimate.org Linkedin page: https://www.linkedin.com/showcase/shakeclimate/ ---------------------------------------------------------- Welcome to Investing in Regenerative Agriculture and Food. Join our Gumroad community, discover the tiers and exclusive benefits here: gumroad.com/investinginregenag Other ways to support my work: - Share the podcast - Give a 5-star rating - Or buy me a coffee… or a meal! www.Ko-fi.com/regenerativeagriculture ----------------------------------------------------------- Join me in this episode where we discuss the zero budget natural farming status in India, the issues and opportunities of organic in India and the appetite of investors for this type of farmers. Previous interview with Shameek https://soundcloud.com/investinginregenerativeagriculture/interview-shameek-chakravarty Farmizen www.farmizen.com Farmizen Neighbourhood Tribes https://www.farmizen.com/tribes/ Zero Budget Natural Farming http://apzbnf.in ----------------------------------------------------------- For feedback, ideas, suggestions please contact us through twitter, in the comments below or get in touch through the website www.investinginregenerativeagriculture.com Join the Investing in Regenerative Agriculture and Food newsletter on www.eepurl.com/cxU33P The above references an opinion and is for information and educational purposes only. It is not intended to be investment advice. Seek a duly licensed professional for investment advice.

In today's episode we speak with John Dennis Liu on the large-scale disruption of ecosystems caused by human activity and the approach we must take to ecological restoration. Everyone likes to focus on CO2, but that's just one greenhouse gas indicator of an egregious problem. We need to shift our focus from placing too much value in material things and abiotic approaches like renewable energy to focus on climate regulation and restoring symbiotic relationships between living systems, starting with integrated water management.John Dennis Liu is a Chinese-American filmmaker and ecologist. He left journalism over 20 years ago to create and direct the Environmental Education Media Project, and in 2017 created Ecosystem Restoration Camps, a critical tool to build knowledge and skills for revitalizing large-scale damaged ecosystems. He is a Rothamstead International Fellow for the Communication of Science at Rothamsted Research, an agricultural research institution. He has won awards for his filmmaking, including Hope in a Changing Climate which is an inspiring documentary about the hope ecosystem restoration offers us.The post Episode 90: Interview with John Dennis Liu, filmmaker and ecologist appeared first on The Sustainability Agenda.

What would the British countryside look like if we all adopted the vegan diet recommended by many environmental campaigners? Tom Heap hosts a discussion with panellists from the National Farmers Union and the Vegan Society. We also hear from expert witnesses from Oxford University, Aberystwyth University, Harvard Law School and Rothamsted Research. Producer: Anne-Marie Bullock

How can better soil health and more efficient beef production reduce our carbon footprint? Dr. Taro Takahashi, research scientist at Rothamsted Research, discusses organic vs. inorganic fertilizers, proposed meat taxes and agriculture's overall quest toward sustainability.

Call them green manures or call them cover crops, they have so many benefits for the soil on farms, allotments or even in our gardens. But they may be even better than we previously thought. Waitrose sponsored Rothamsted PhD student Mandy Stoker is researching the possible benefits for climate change of cover crops on farms, [...]

Last week's Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change report said we need to change the way we use land and grow food if we are to tackle climate change. Rothamsted scientists are on to it. Hannah McGrath and Dr. Adriana Torres-Ballesteros give an insight into the report and explain what they're doing to help.

The SHAKE Climate Change programme of Rothamsted Research and partners will fund and train entrepreneurs and start-ups who have early stage science or tech-based solutions and aiming to have a significant impact on the emissions of the agri-food sector. ------------------------------------------------------------------------ Welcome to Investing in Regenerative Agriculture. Join our Gumroad community, discover the tiers and exclusive benefits here: https://gumroad.com/investinginregenag Other ways to support my work: - Share the podcast - Give a 5-star rating - Or buy me a coffee… or a meal! www.Ko-fi.com/regenerativeagriculture --------------------------------------------- In this short podcast, Professor Angela Karp, Director of Science Innovation, Engagement and Partnerships at Rothamsted Research and I discussed the SHAKE Climate Change programme aiming to make agriculture part of the solution. Deadline for applications is August 12th. PROGRAMME WEBSITE http://www.shakeclimate.org PRESS RELEASE https://www.rothamsted.ac.uk/news/£35-million-climate-change-fund-established-shake-agri-food-sector-0 --------------------------------------------- If you want to discover more visit www.investinginregenerativeagriculture.com If you want to receive an email when I upload a new episode, subscribe here eepurl.com/cxU33P The above references an opinion and is for information and educational purposes only. It is not intended to be investment advice. Seek a duly licensed professional for investment advice.

Trees have such an immense value for our landscapes, our climate, our wildlife, and our wellbeing - and you only need to visit Heartwood to see how many of us love our woods here in St.Albans - but they are under threat from diseases carried by trees coming into the country. Help is at hand [...]

In this week's Environment Matters hear about Rothamsted Research's 175th anniversary Festival of Ideas and the interactive Sustainability Zone at the St.Albans Street Festival. Plus, a great volunteering opportunity with Groundworks, and, of course, this week's Open Gardens. Oh, and strictly no football!

Rothamsted Research  Molecular Plant Pathologist Dr.Kim Hammond-Kosack explains how she had a brain wave to use the meat alternative Quorn to help fight an internationally serious crop disease. and Josh Kubale of Herts and Middlesex Wildlife Trusts talks about the wonders of the dawn chorus, and the best way to enjoy a bank holiday weekend [...]

What makes up our soil and maintaining its health is a MASSIVE subject. Liz Bowles, Head of Farming at the Soil Association and earthworm champion Jackie Stroud of Rothamsted Research both help us to try and understand the current situation and ways in which we can help improve it. Lucy Nixon, a Brighton community composter also joins us to highlight one way we can contribute.

This summer, the spaceship New Horizons sped past Pluto at 30,000mph, snapping photographs as it went. The pictures sent back this week have transformed our view of this former planet. It isn't a dead rock; it is geologically active, with ice volcanoes and plenty of terrestrial movement. Dr Cathy Olkin from the mission explains what has got her team so excited. The space elevator, first dreamt up in the 19th century, is a tower tall enough to reach space. The sci-fi concept took a step towards reality recently, when the Canadian engineering company Thoth were granted a patent for an inflatable tower 20 kilometres high. Adam speaks to Thoth's Chief Engineer Ben Quine about the viability and possibilities of this project. It's the season when 30 million European songbirds fly south for the winter. Lower profile and harder to study are the billions of insects that take a similar journey. Dr Jason Chapman from Rothamsted Research tells Adam how to study animals that are too small to tag Can you measure imagination? A team from the Hungry Mind Lab at Goldsmiths University in London thinks you can. The goal of their two year project is to produce an app that can improve imagination by training it. To improve it, first they need to reliably measure it. Adam tries out their new test.

Rothamsted Research in Hertfordshire has just finished trials of a new way to repel aphids from wheat. It's a clever system, that takes a gene for a pheromone, called E beta farnesene, from peppermint, and inserts it into wheat. Aphids let off E Beta Farnesene when they are under attack or when a dead bug is detected, and idea was to have the wheat produce the chemical alarm itself. In the lab, the plants had driven aphids away in their droves. But in the field, where controlled lab conditions are not present, there was no measurable reduction. So what's gone wrong? Adam speaks to spoke to plant geneticist to Dr Gia Aradottir who worked on the Rothamsted trial and Professor Mike Bevan of the John Innes Institute. Top biologists have recently met to launch the National Institutes for Bioscience, the N.I.B, a star-studded partnership of eight great British biological Institutes, such as the Roslin- former home of Dolly the Sheep - and the world's longest running agricultural research station Rothamsted Research. George Freeman MP, Britain's first Minister for Life Sciences, provided a bit of glamour to mark the occasion. Tracey Logan was there to meet the key scientists and to ask the Minister about the ambition and role of the N.I.B. A team of scientists has just revealed how they've used genetics to scan the peoples of the world - and amazingly of extinct people from prehistory - to see who can smell what. They've used one particular olfactory receptor, called OR7D4, to build up a global map of what people can smell. Adam Rutherford speaks to Professor Matthew Cobb, from Manchester University to discuss how the different peoples of the world - including long extinct humans - smell different things. Why are parrots such good copycats? A team in Duke University in the US thinks that they have uncovered the exact spot in the brain that gives the parrot this ability. Professor Erich Jarvis studies the genes involved in the structure of bird-brains, and discusses some ideas about how those neurons have developed through a combination of behaviour and genetics.

This Friedman Seminar features John Pickett, PhD, Professor, Michael Elliott Distinguished Research Fellow and Scientific Leader of Chemical Ecology at Rothamsted Research, Harpenden, speaking on the topic of "Sustainable Intensification of Food Production: A New Agricultural Revolution Using Agroecology and Genetic Modification." This seminar was held on April 8th, 2015. About the Friedman School of Nutrition Science and Policy: The Gerald J. and Dorothy R. Friedman School of Nutrition Science and Policy at Tufts University is the only independent school of nutrition in the United States. The school's eight degree programs – which focus on questions relating to nutrition and chronic diseases, molecular nutrition, agriculture and sustainability, food security, humanitarian assistance, public health nutrition, and food policy and economics – are renowned for the application of scientific research to national and international policy.

Rothamsted Research has achieved omega-3 levels comparable to fish oil in its first GM camelina harvest, something which has been surprisingly well received by the public, its senior researcher says. 

Rothamsted Research has achieved omega-3 levels comparable to fish oil in its first GM camelina harvest, something which has been surprisingly well received by the public, its senior researcher says. 

Rothamsted Research has achieved omega-3 levels comparable to fish oil in its first GM camelina harvest, something which has been surprisingly well received by the public, its senior researcher says. 

Y Chromosome We learn from a young age that if a fertilised egg carries XX chromosomes it will be a girl, but with XY it will be a boy. This male Y sex chromosome has lost many genes along its evolution over the past 180 million years and now only about 20 genes remain. Now two new studies in Nature journal have given clues into how the Y chromosome evolved into its current state by looking at the genetic make up of 15 species the team built an archaeological record of all the mutations that occurred over time - to trace the timing of how the Y originated.... Professor Henrik Kaessmann from the University of Lausanne in Switzerland explains that the genes that remain play a more important role than previously believed. Everest Avalanche Last week the biggest single loss-of-life event occurred on Everest: a huge avalanche killed 16 Sherpa guides. All were so-called "icefall doctors", possibly the riskiest job of all, which involves finding a route through the broken mass of icefall, and then securing ladders and ropes for mountaineer tourists to follow. The Himalayan Sherpas have abandoned the climbing season out of respect for the fallen. There are many questions about health and safety, but we want to know what could be done to help? BBC Science Reporter Victoria Gill has been looking at the science behind avalanches, Are avalanches predictable? And will global warming in the Himalayan region make them more common? Aphid Survey This month the Rothamsted Research in Hertfordshire's Insect Survey will have been monitoring national aphid populations for fifty years. Aphids, such as greenfly and blackfly, can cause extensive damage to plants and crops. The aphid season - as many gardeners will know - is just about to start. But how has the recent mild, wet winter affected their numbers? Lichens An Inside Science listener emailed in to ask about lichens - what are they and how do they live. We called in plant ecologist Professor Howard Griffiths, at the University of Cambridge to fill us in on these hardy, pioneering organisms. Longitude 300 years ago there was no way of knowing the position of a ship out on the high seas. The greatest scientific challenge of the age was navigation. Britain's response was to offer a large prize fund for the solution to the problem of Longitude. Richard Dunn, curator and head of science and technology at Royal Museums Greenwich tells Marnie Chesterton the story of John Harrison, a clockmaker and carpenter, who solved this seemingly impossible problem. Producer: Fiona Roberts.

Biofuels were hailed as the environmental solution to fossil fuels not that long ago. Made from living crops they take up carbon dioxide as they grow. So burning them shouldn't disturb the balance of warming gases in the atmosphere. But for the last few years the publicity about biofuels has been mainly negative. And for good reason – biofuels are made from crops such as oil palm - grown in place of food crops or even rainforests. In some cases using these crops actually produces more CO2 than burning fossil fuels. However research is being done into new kinds of biofuels that aren't in competition with food crops. Gaia Vince travels to Bavaria in Germany to meet Dr Markus Rarbach, head of biofuels at Clariant. This company has set up a demonstration plant that produces ethanol from sugars in the waste products of wheat grown nearby. Also on the programme is professor Gregory Tucker from Nottingham University who talks about research into new ways of getting sugars out of the inedible parts of crops; agricultural economist, Dr Paul Wilson, discusses what farmers think about making biofuels out of their straw; and Dr Angela Karp at Rothamsted Research, who is growing new willow varieties, which could be made into biofuels. Image Credit: Clariant

Scientists following in the footsteps of Edwardian explorer, Douglas Mawson, have been trapped in pack ice in the Antarctic. The Chinese vessel that came to their rescue also became "beset" in the ice. The BBC's Andrew Luck Baker talks to Adam Rutherford about the catacylsmic event that caused multi-year ice to break away and trap the Academik Shokalskiy and Professor John Turner of the British Antarctic Survey underlines the importance of differentiating between extreme weather events and the impact of climate change.A team at Rothamsted Research in Hertfordshire has succeeded in genetically engineering plant seeds to contain the Omega-3 oil usually found in oily fish. Seeds from Camelina sativa (false flax) plants were modified using genes from microalgae - the primary organisms that produce these beneficial fatty acids.The oil has now been incorporated into salmon feed to assess whether it's a viable alternative to wild fish oil. Dr Johnathan Napier tells Melissa Hogenboom that he hopes the plants will provide a sustainable source of long chain polyunsaturated fatty acids.From fossils we know an awful lot about the animals that walked on the Earth, swam in the sea and flew in the air. But fossils have never been good at revealing the colour of these animals. With increasingly sophisticated sampling techniques however, scientists are starting to get a much better, technicolour glimpse into these extinct fauna. And it turns out that colour played a much more important role than just camouflage and decoration. Johan Lindgren form Lund University in Sweden has been finding out how the pigment, melanin, allowed ancient marine reptiles to travel all over the oceanic globe.Show Us Your Instrument: Dr Andrew Polaszek, Head of Terrestrial Invertebrates at the Natural History Museum reveals his compound microscope (with Nomarski Differential Interference Contrast) which he uses to discover "hidden biodiversity", particularly in parasitoid wasps.Stephen Hawking threw a party for time travellers and issued the invitation after the event. Astrophysicists after a long poker game decided to use Twitter instead, to flush out the time travellers in our midst. Professor Robert Nemiroff from Michigan Tech University and his students mined social media for references to the Comet ISON and the naming of the new Pope Francis, before both those events had actually happened. Producer: Fiona Hill.

Sense About Science's trip to the GM wheat experiment at Rothamsted Research.

PHILADELPHIA—How populations of mosquitoes become insensitive to insect repellents has been researched by scientists at the London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine, in collaboration with Rothamsted Research, and discussed at the American Society of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine conference in Philadelphia. This was one of the many activities of Dr James Logan, who also runs a new service made available by the London School called: the Arthropod Control Product Test Centre, or ARCTEC. Dr Logan told Peter Goodwin about the results of an experiment in which volunteers were exposed to mosquitoes after being sprayed with the powerful insect repellent, DEET. Resistance developed among the mosquitoes with the proportion of DEET-insensitive mosquitoes rising from a normal level of 10 per cent up to 60 per cent in a single generation.

Willow, palm, miscanthus and other energy crops are being touted as a possible solution to our growing energy security problems. Some people are suggesting that they could help replace fossil fuels, plugging Britain's energy gap and cutting our carbon footprint.But before we go down that route, wouldn't it be sensible to find out how these crops affect the environment?That's the very question David Bohan from Rothamsted Research is trying to answer. He's researching how miscanthus and willow affect native biodiversity while looking at where these crops should be sited to have minimal environmental impact.Also in this week's podcast, we find out why 25 February will be a nail-biter for many scientists, not least for those from the Centre for Polar Observation and Modelling at University College London.Later we'll hear how British winters are ending an average of 11 days earlier compared with the 1970s, why red leg bands put male zebra finches in front of their rivals and what next for a group of scientists that has just returned from exploring volcanic vents in the Southern Ocean.

Back in August, Rothamsted Research was granted permission by Defra to run a series of field trials of wheat that has been genome edited, and, very soon, that wheat will be planted. This will be the first trial of its kind in the UK or EU. Project Leader Professor Nigel Halford explains what makes this wheat special and how it might make our toast safer.

Could learning how to work with nature be the secret to success in your garden? Rothamsted PhD student, Tessa, shares her findings about beneficial soil bacteria and artificial fertilizer, and Steve Shelley of Earthworks explains how they keep the pests at bay in a holistic way sticking to organic principles. You can read about more findings from Rothamsted Research scientists on their website. And check out the latest from Earthworks on their Facebook page

Invisible air pollution affects all of us, and with Clean Air Day coming up we're being asked to step up to deal with one source of polluted air. And we hear from the Rothamsted Research scientist using her loaf to make our bread healthier. You can find out about the air quality near you at www.addresspollution.org To register your interest or find out more about air pollution busting action on Clean Air Day email Helen Burridge on helen.burridge@eastherts.gov.uk