Farming

Construction of the famous stone statues of Rapa Nui, called moai, was previously thought to have contributed to the island's population collapse.

Easter Island's Ancient Population Never Faced Ecological Collapse, Suggests Another Study

New DNA analysis adds to growing research indicating the famous Pacific island did not collapse from overuse of resources before the arrival of Europeans

Healthy little brown bats in Mt. Aeolus cave in Vermont in 2012

The Surprising Link Between Bats Dying and Human Infant Mortality

A new study finds that when bats in U.S. counties were decimated by the deadly white-nose syndrome, human deaths followed closely behind

So-called “corn sweat,” the water vapor released by the process of evapotranspiration, can raise humidity in corn-producing areas on the hottest days of summer.

Feeling Sticky This Summer? 'Corn Sweat' Could Be Raising the Humidity

The natural process of plant evapotranspiration is pumping moisture into an already hot and humid atmosphere, especially in the corn-growing areas of the Midwest

Start dates at schools across American range from mid-July to early September.

When Do Kids Go Back to School? It Depends on Where They Live

In some districts, students returned to their classrooms weeks before Labor Day

DCPA is used on crops such as broccoli, Brussels sprouts, cabbage and onions.

'Dangerous' Pesticide That Could Harm Fetuses Is Pulled From the Market in Historic Move by EPA

Often used to kill weeds around crops, DCPA poses a health risk to the unborn babies of pregnant farmworkers, according to the agency

A woman and her equine push a herd of horses on a hazy morning near Grand Teton National Park.

See 15 Photos of Real-Life Cowboys and Cowgirls Wrangling Cattle and Riding Bucking Broncos

Giddyap and get a look at these stunning selections from the Smithsonian Magazine Photo Contest

A little over a century ago, a limestone cave system north of Kuala Lumpur was reborn as a holy Hindu shrine, called Batu Caves.

From Cisterns to Temples, These Twelve Underground Worlds Are Open for Exploring

Some of these age-old subterranean spaces have even been transformed into amusement parks, art galleries and restaurants

A new butter alternative uses synthetic fat to create taste of dairy butter without the need for cows.

New 'Butter' Made From Carbon Dioxide Tastes Like the Real Dairy Product, Startup Says

The company, called Savor, uses a synthetic fat to approximate the taste of butter and is seeking regulatory approval

One of the complete skeletons analyzed in the new study

Did Plague Cause the Mysterious Collapse of Europe's Early Farmers 5,000 Years Ago?

A new study finds widespread DNA evidence that an ancestor pathogen of the Black Death helped bring about the end of an agricultural society responsible for megalithic tombs and monuments, like Stonehenge

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Keeping the Spirit of Maine’s Wild Blueberry Harvest Alive

In the far reaches of New England, an unusual convergence of farmworkers renews an ancient and increasingly threatened agricultural practice

Robert DiNapoli, co-author of a new study about population dynamics on Rapa Nui, stands in front of a rock garden on the island. People used rocks to make the volcanic land more suitable for farming.

Easter Island Did Not Collapse From Overuse of Resources After All, Study Suggests

A new paper contradicts the idea that people used up the island's resources and experienced a significant population decline, instead proposing that a small society lived there sustainably

Chickens on a poultry farm in Tepatitlan, Jalisco State, Mexico, on June 6, 2024. Outbreaks of H5N2 avian influenza have recently been reported in poultry in Mexico.

Man Infected With H5N2 Bird Flu in Mexico Dies. Here's the Latest on the Virus

The strain is not the same one that has infected U.S. cows and three dairy farm workers, and officials say the risk to the general public remains low

Bird flu was first detected in U.S. dairy cows in March. So far, infections have been detected in 33 herds across eight states.

Bird Flu Virus Detected in Pasteurized Milk, as U.S. Moves to Test More Dairy Cows

The FDA maintains that the commercial milk supply is safe, and it plans to report results of further tests in the coming days and weeks

Piles of coal sit in front of a power plant in Utah. Such coal-fired power plants emit greenhouse gases that drive climate change.

What Myths About the Anthropocene Get Wrong

These ten misconceptions underplay how much we have altered the global environment and undermine the new perspective we need to deal with a drastically changed world

Farmer Robert Tomlinson harvests forced rhubarb by candlelight on his farm in Pudsey, near Leeds in northern England, in January 2022. 

The English Farmers Who Harvest Rhubarb by Candlelight

The secret to the world’s sweetest rhubarb? Sealed sheds, total darkness and a little old-fashioned flair

Facsimile of an agricultural scene found in the tomb chapel of Nakht, a scribe and astronomer who probably lived during the reign of Thutmose IV

Stressed About Taxes? Blame the Ancient Egyptians

The civilization developed the world’s first known tax system around 3000 B.C.E.

A person has tested positive for the H5N1 strain of bird flu just days after livestock across four states were reported to be infected.

First Human Case of Bird Flu in Texas Confirmed, Following Infections in Cattle—Here's What to Know

This marks only the second time in U.S. history that a human has contracted the H5N1 strain of avian influenza

State and federal officials say the milk from the infected cows had been discarded and destroyed. This cow, photographed in 2016, is not one of those infected.

Bird Flu Confirmed in U.S. Dairy Cows for the First Time, but Milk Supply Is Unaffected, Officials Say

Tests detected the virus at two farms in Texas and two farms in Kansas, but officials and scientists stress commercial dairy products remain safe to consume

Leaves and roots analyzed by botanist Mason Heberling

These Researchers Are Digging Into the Understudied Science of Roots

After centuries of neglect, botanists are using new techniques to understand roots

The scientists studied more than 4,600 Burmese and reticulated pythons on farms in Vietnam and Thailand.

Python Meat Could Be a Sustainable, Nutritious Food Source, Scientists Say

The snakes may be some of the most resource-efficient animals to farm on the planet, a new study suggests

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