Adventure Ausrama Blog

Wheat rust is continuing to destroy wheat crops. Up to 70 percent of a farmer's crop can wilt due to rust. A disaster is just around the corner as a third of the world's population in all climates relies on this commodity. Csiro, the University of Sydney, John Innes Centre (UK) and the National Institute of Agriculture Botany (UK) have identified three key genes that sustain the disease. Research has brought to light how the genes work in stripe rust. All three genes were cloned using mutational genomics. Editing of genes could make wheat genes that are susceptible to rust become active again. They could then fight the disease. Much more work needs to be done but the future looks bright. ch genes yu rust or wheat sh zhang fe resistance = an genes eh rust er wheat do zhang st resistance jo gene mi stripe al csiro re university = up genes by rust aa wheat so zhang ba resistance of gene bi stripe to csiro if university za research be sydney ob work et scientists l...

There is clearly something wrong with the Australian economy. We seem to in the same position of Indonesia several decades ago when it had oil and the high price was pushing up the value of the currency. A high currency makes it difficult for those producing "non-boom" products to export. That is why the US is printing more dollars to weaken the currency, improve the economy and create more jobs. Nothing much is happening for it though because the US dollar is the major international currency as gold used to be. Just why Australian shopkeepers are crying fowl is more difficult to understand. A strong currency means imports are cheaper. Australians are very import dependent in their spending habits and buying cheap imports is what they like to do. They buy such imports over more expensive Australian made products, but this shouldn't hurt the bottom line of retailers. They claim Australians are spending less. Though figures show this to be the case, spendin...

For the first time economic theory is being challenged by the Internet. Economics has always put forward the premise that the consumer was all-knowing, in that the "going price" for products was known. Of course, in the past this has been a lie. The demand curve was absolutely false. Buyers did not know where they could get the best price. Now, potential buyers can go to a store, try on a particular brand of clothing to find the correct size, then go and buy it on the Internet. Some shops are charging for such browsing. This will only drive consumers away to another store. There isn't much doubt that there are too many stores in the market selling the same goods. This is a problem caused by local councils allowing shopping center development even when it is contrary to local planning laws. Councils are too easily influenced by cashed-up big business. As chain stores move into populated centers of rural areas the future looks bleak for the corner store. The da...

Environmentalists launch a campaign to stop the sale of battery eggs.  This involves "pestering" consumers in supermarkets who are about to buy battery eggs.  The environmentalist will not win the war.  They will just make consumers angry.  Radio advertisements will have the same effect. If battery eggs are banned the price of supermarket eggs will increase from $2.50 to $10.00 a dozen.  The government will also have the burden of compensation for battery farms which are forced to close. The campaigners believe that consumers need to be educated about chickens living in tiny pens.  People already know this.  They don't need to be force-fed the truth.  They also know that cows must be kept alive for blood to be drained from the body after they are knocked out.  This doesn't stop them buying beef. European countries are trying to change, but the supply of free-range eggs is insufficient to meet demand.  Not enough businesses ar...

It seems odd than in a country with the brightest sunlight of just about any nation on earth that women could possibly lack vitamin D. But "experts" are squabbling over screening for vitamin D deficiency. The government is saying that the cost is far too high and the value of doing this has questionable benefits. At present obstetricians have to decide whether to test pregnant women who appear to suffer from a shortage of vitamin D. Australia's health system is already "cracking at the edges". Funding is a serious problem. With the Endocrine Society of Australia and the Australasian Paediatric Endocrine Group Assuming the government will take the advice and test all pregnant women, GPs are confused. The number of women tested for vitamin D has gone up by an incredible 5,000 per cent over the last decade. Idle claims that diabetes and heart disease are "caused" by not enough vitamin D in the body are not proven. Many health professionals still q...

Bread making companies who supply supermarkets are no longer adding calcium propionate (282) to their product. Have you noticed how your slices of bread are going stale along one side over the last month? This is due to the omission of this preservative. How can a company calling a product "Mighty Soft" possibly stay in business when its bread goes stale quick smart? Tip Top has also stopped adding 282. I have searched supermarket shelves looking at bread packaging for the additive. Unfortunately, all companies seem to have stopped using it. Consumers will not buy bread that is virtually stale when it is purchased. Even freezing the loaves has no effect because the bread is already "dry" before you put it in the fridge. Splitting a loaf into two halves, bagging it in a brown paper bag then putting it into a plastic sandwich bag will also not solve the problem. The only answer is to do what people did a half century ago - buy bread daily or have it delivere...