Dogs may protect against childhood eczema and asthma.

Dogs may protect against childhood eczema and asthma. Two studies being presented at the American College of Allergy, Asthma and Immunology (ACAAI) Annual Scientific Meeting show there may be even more reason to love your dog. The first study shows babies born in a home with a dog during pregnancy receive protection from allergic eczema, though the protective effect goes down by age 10. A second study shows dogs may provide a protective effect against asthma, even in children allergic to dogs. "Although eczema is commonly found in infants, many people don't know there is a progression from eczema to food allergies to nasal allergies and asthma," says allergist Gagandeep Cheema, MD, ACAAI member and lead author. "We wanted to know if there was a protective effect in having a dog that slowed down that progress." The study examined mother-child pairs exposed to a dog. "Exposure" was defined as keeping one or more dogs indoors for at least one hour daily. "We found a mother's exposure to dogs before the birth of a child is significantly associated with lower risk of eczema by age 2 years, but this protective effect goes down at age 10," Dogs may protect against childhood eczema and asthma.

Protein can be switched on to conduct electricity like a metal.

Protein can be switched on to conduct electricity like a metal.When pushing the boundaries of discovery, sometimes even the most experienced of scientists can get a surprise jolt from a completely unpredictable result. About four years ago, Stuart Lindsay's research team got a lab result that even he couldn't quite believe. As with most scientific surprises, it goes against all conventional wisdom: the first evidence of a protein that could conduct electricity like a metal. Lindsay's research team has learned a thing or two about how single molecules behave when tethered between a pair of electrodes, which is the foundation for how his DNA readers work.The technology, called recognition tunneling, threads single molecules down a nanopore like a thread through the eye of a needle.

Charge your phone by SHOUTING at it.

Charge your phone by SHOUTING at it. Gadget converts sound waves from speech into five volts of energy for your mobile phone.Researchers in London have created a new technology that uses sound, such as chants at a football ground or chatter in a coffee shop, to charge up mobile phones. Their prototype device, which is about the size of a mobile phone, uses zinc oxide to convert vibrations caused by sound into electricity

The Mango Irrigation Challenge in West Ethiopia.

The Mango Irrigation Challenge in West Ethiopia. Mango is one of the main fruit crops produced in Ethiopia, both for domestic consumption and exportation. The fruit has significant importance amongst Ethiopian farmers as well as for the whole country. It has potential to act as an economic safety net by generating employment and enabling processing and marketing opportunities. According to FAO stat. 2014, over 15,000 hectares of mango are harvested in Ethiopia every year, with an average yield of 6,000 kg/ha. The crop requires tropical or subtropical conditions with high humidity. Mango is considered to be a "sensitive" crop, meaning it has a low tolerance to salinity of irrigation water. In west Ethiopia, a large scale farm owner of an existing rain-fed mango plantation of 1,700 hectares, was faced with a problem. Although the farm is located in a rainy area receiving about 1,200mm of rain per year, 9 months of the year the crops would receive water, while during the remaining 3 dry months, precipitation is close to zero.

How high-tech is integrated into the Israeli dairy industry.

How high-tech is integrated into the Israeli dairy industry. Milk production in Israel is carried out under a quota system that exists in only two other nations—Canada and Norway. “In case of an increase or expected increase in the demand for milk products, the Dairy Board lifts the quota… The Dairy Board advises the farmers, considering the expected high demand for holidays and summer months, allowing the farmers to plan and get organized accordingly,” says Dr. Ephraim Maltz, a senior researcher emeritus at the Volcani Center, the Israeli Ministry of Agriculture’s research arm . Demand is particularly high for Shavuot (marked May 30-June 1 this year), when eating dairy is a holiday tradition. With the government’s support, Israeli farmers have learned to breed cows by better utilizing the natural environment, despite the nation’s arid climate and chronic water shortages. The farmers’ methods include feeding cows with recycled natural foods, using recycled water to grow fodder and reusing manure in agriculture. Several delegations from other countries have visited Israel to learn from these techniques. To obtain the necessary metrics, a majority of Israel’s dairy cows are “equipped with electronic individual identification, and almost all the milking parlors are equipped with electronic milk meters,” Maltz says. Most Israeli dairy farms use electronic methods to detect a cow’s estrous cycle—the reproductive cycle of mammals such as cows—“by using individual cow activity as an indication for insemination time,” he says. Special sensors measure cows’ daily body weight and milk composition for protein, fat, lactose and more. Many farmers also measure daily rumination and eating times.

Intelligent Technology Smart Farming: Papaya, Passion fruit, Pineapple, Lemon juice extraction.

Intelligent Technology Smart Farming: Papaya, Passion fruit, Pineapple, Lemon juice extraction.The process of making orange juice, Papaya juice, Passion fruit, Pineapple juice.

How Israeli Agricultural Technology is Transforming India.

How Israeli Agricultural Technology is Transforming India. Israeli agricultural technology is transforming the way millions of farmers across India cultivate and harvest. Almost 25 years after the establishment of diplomatic relations, agricultural cooperation has undoubtedly emerged as the cornerstone of India-Israel ties. In 2008, Israel launched the India-Israel Agriculture Project (IIAP) aimed at setting up specialised agriculture centres across India. Today, 15 such Centres of Excellence (CoE) are operational in India, being jointly run by MASHAV, Israel’s agency for international development and India’s Ministry of Agriculture. Additionally, 12 more centres are expected to be launched in coming years, taking their number to 27. In one such centre, located in the northern Indian state of Rajasthan, experts have come up with 24 new varieties of oranges created by combining the traits of selected Israeli and Indian varieties, promising high yield and longer shelf life.