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Tag Archives: agriculture
Peak Potassium threatens crops
Potassium is one of the Big 3 essential plant nutrients that has allowed human population to soar to 8 billion people,as well as phosphorus and nitrogen. Potassium is a vital nutrient for plant growth that helps with photosynthesis and respiration, … Continue reading
Posted in Peak Fertilizer, Peak Food
Tagged agriculture, peak food, peak potassium, potash
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Lab-grown meat is energy intensive – and up to 25 times worse for the climate than beef
Preface. Meat production from animals uses a great deal of energy to produce, distribute, and refrigerate. Crops must be grown that erode soil and drain aquifers. Unfortunately, lab grown meat uses even more energy and also requires crops to extract … Continue reading
Posted in CO2 and Methane, Food production, Peak Food
Tagged agriculture, climate change, food, lab-grown meat
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Energy and potato crops. U.S. House Hearing 2011
Preface. We eat so many potatoes I thought it interesting how future oil shocks may reduce potato crops. Potatoes are very “oily” needing a great deal of diesel fuel over their life cycle of planting, harvest, delivery to sorting, grading, … Continue reading
Posted in Congressional Record U.S., Farming & Ranching
Tagged agriculture, energy, potato
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Prime movers of human evolution
Preface. The human brain and culture evolved at an astonishing rate, making scientists wonder what conditions and ecological pressures drove it, why we became homo sapiens so quickly. This is a post that will grow over time as I find … Continue reading
Posted in Books, Evolution, Human Nature
Tagged agriculture, ashkenazi jews, bipedal, brain size, evolution, homo sapiens, human, neanderthal, prime mover
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Can we grow enough food postcarbon? Irrigation needs water & electricity
Preface. Irrigated agriculture over 58 million acres consumes the largest share of U.S. water. And it’s shrinking as aquifers are drained, reservoirs evaporate, and drought reduces snowpack and rainfall at the same time population and the economy are growing. My … Continue reading
Posted in Interdependencies, Where to Be or Not to Be
Tagged agriculture, aquifer, electricity, irrigation
1 Comment
China is destroying itself
Preface. China has been destroying itself for many decades now. In Mao’s “great leap forward” about 35 to 50 million are estimated to have died from starvation from 1958 on, as you’ll read in my book review of” Shapiro J … Continue reading
Posted in Biodiversity Loss, Hazardous Waste, Mining, Soil
Tagged agriculture, chairman mao, mining, soil erosion
1 Comment
Book review of “Agrarian Dreams”
Preface. This is a book review of Guthman’s “Agrarian Dreams. The Paradox of Organic Farming in California”. Since world oil production likely peaked in 2018, and renewables can’t replace fossil fuels (read my books), there’s no choice but to go … Continue reading
Posted in Agriculture, Books, Farming & Ranching
Tagged agriculture, back to the land, california, organic farming
2 Comments
How past societies avoided the Agricultural trap
Preface. There’s a great deal of evidence that past tribes did grow food but deliberately chose not to make that the entirety of the way they lived, preferring a more seasonal styles of life with hunting and gathering, and governance … Continue reading
Posted in Dawn of Everything, Farming & Ranching
Tagged agriculture, dawn of everything
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Why were California & Pacific NW Native tribes so different from each other?
Preface. Why do many societies near each other have such different values, beliefs, mythology, and governance? In “Dawn of Everything”, the authors suggest that it’s because:
Posted in Dawn of Everything
Tagged agriculture, dawn of everything, slavery
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Dawn of Everything Conclusion
Preface. Clearly for their conclusion to make sense you’ll need to read the book and see the evidence for yourself. Since they challenge just about all of the ideas currently in fashion, you can find some pretty damning reviews of … Continue reading
Posted in Dawn of Everything
Tagged agriculture, cahokia, wendot
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