Category Archives: Agriculture

Muscle Power

Posted on March 1, 2014 by

Steven Vogel   Prime Mover: A Natural History of Muscle    W. W. Norton Reviewed in June 2004. Natural History Magazine Today we have machines for making people move in place: run, walk uphill, push pedals back and forth or up and … Continue reading →

Posted in Agriculture, Energy, Muscle Power, What to do | Leave a comment

Electric Agriculture. Turning electricity into food.

Posted on November 22, 2013 by

Agriculture is one of the main users of fossil fuels in our society.  As fossil fuels decline, food prices will increase.  How can we plant and harvest crops without fossil-fueled equipment? Ugo Bardi, et al., discuss the use of renewable … Continue reading →

Posted in Agriculture, Energy and Food prices, Food | 2 Comments

Book Review of Paleofantasy: What Evolution really tells us about sex, diet, and how we live

Posted on August 3, 2013 by

Alice Friedemann’s review of: Marlene Zuk. 2013. Paleofantasy: What Evolution really tells us about sex, diet, and how we live. My first introduction to Evolutionary Psychology was “The Adapted Mind” which posited we’re unhappy because of the tremendous difference between … Continue reading →

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Northern California marijuana harms ecosystem, has huge carbon footprint. Legalize ASAP!

Posted on July 30, 2013 by

A book review by Alice Friedemann of Emily Brady’s 2013 book: “Humboldt. Life on America’s marijuana frontier.” The tales I hear from my friends in Mendocino and Humboldt counties fascinate me.  There are stories of mayors and sheriffs on opposite … Continue reading →

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Science book review of Vaclav Smil’s “Approaching the Limits”

Posted on July 14, 2013 by

Steven W. Running  Science 15 March 2013: Vol. 339 no. 6125 pp. 1276-1277 DOI: 10.1126/science.1235886 Approaching the Limits Harvesting the Biosphere What We Have Taken from Nature by Vaclav Smil MIT Press, Cambridge, MA, 2012. 315 pp. $29, £19.95. ISBN … Continue reading →

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Mao’s War Against Nature

Posted on March 21, 2012 by

Mao’s War Against Nature: Politics and the Environment in Revolutionary China by Judith Shapiro. 2001.  Cambridge University Press (book review by Alice Friedemann) The main thesis of this book is that when free speech is squelched, the consequences can be … Continue reading →

Posted in Agriculture, Books | 1 Comment

The Back to the Land Movement: Why it Failed and Why we Need to Try Again Anyway

Posted on December 19, 2011 by

A review of: Back from the Land: How Young Americans Went to Nature in the 1970s, and Why They Came Back  As oil and natural gas decline, many of us will have to go back to the land. There is … Continue reading →

Posted in Agriculture, Books | 1 Comment

After the Harvest – Keeping foot from rats, mold, insects, fire, and bacteria

Posted on November 28, 2011 by

Peter Golob, et. al. 2002. Crop Post-Harvest: Science and Technology. Volume 1 Principles and Practice. Volume 2 Durables. Volume 3 Perishables.  Blackwell Science. Introduction It is amazing farmers can grow anything — crops can be destroyed by drought, wildfire, flood, … Continue reading →

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Agrarian Dreams. The Paradox of Organic Farming in California.

Posted on September 20, 2011 by

Fifty million farmers –  how can we make this happen?  By Alice Friedemann A review of:  Julie Guthman. 2004. “Agrarian Dreams.  The Paradox of Organic Farming in California”.  University of California Press. Introduction Guthman writes brilliantly and has important insights … Continue reading →

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