May 2012
18 posts
“Remember, you cannot be both young and wise. Young people who pretend to be wise to the ways of the world are mostly just cynics. Cynicism masquerades as wisdom, but it is the farthest thing from it. Because cynics don’t learn anything. Because cynicism is a self-imposed blindness, a rejection of the world because we are afraid it will hurt us or disappoint us. Cynics always say no. But saying ‘yes’ begins things. Saying ‘yes’ is how things grow. Saying ‘yes’ leads to knowledge. ‘Yes’ is for young people. So for as long as you have the strength to, say ‘yes’.”
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"Thus began one of the weirdest feuds in the history of science." →
motherjones.com
Truth in advertising: Your bedtime reading for Monday is Dashka Slater’s #longread on what happened when a biologist discovered that a top-selling herbicide can cause frogs to change gender. (Yes, this was sort of a plot twist in Jurassic Park.)
The Triumph of the Co-Op Bookstore →
utne.com
A town without bookstores is like a town without churches or bars. Minus the hymnals and happy-hour specials, the best bookshops are vital community centers where patrons can gather, share ideas, and have grand revelations or quiet discoveries. When Buffalo Street Books in Ithaca, New York, began to fail, it tapped into the strength of its community with an inspired idea: cooperative ownership.
Last spring, rather than shuttering its doors, Buffalo Street Books sold shares of the independent shop to 600-plus local “co-owners,” raising more than $250,000, reports Christina Palassio in This Magazine. Less than a year later, the co-op bookstore is thriving.
Ghana Starts $10 Million Cocoa-Farm Rehabilitation Program →
bloomberg.com
Ghana, the world’s second-biggest cocoa producer, began a program to distribute higher-yielding trees to farmers in a bid to rehabilitate old plantations and boost output of the chocolate ingredient.
The 19 million-cedi ($10 million) program “will replace over-aged and unyielding trees and increase national output,” said Tony Fofie, chief executive officer of the state-run Ghana Cocoa Board, in the Brong Ahafo region town of Goaso today.
As many as 20 million seedlings will be sent to farmers and 2,000 jobs for youth who will nurse the young trees will be created, Fofie said in an interview.
Ghana has been seeking ways to boost output of the beans, the country’s second-biggest foreign-currency earner, including supplying farmers with fertilizer and pesticides to increase yields.
Production rose to a record high of more than 1 million metric tons last season and output is seen at 850,000 tons to 900,000 tons for the 2011-2012 year, according to the Accra- based cocoa board.
To contact the reporter on this story: Ekow Dontoh in Goaso, Ghana at edontoh@bloomberg.net
To contact the editor responsible for this story: Emily Bowers at ebowers1@bloomberg.net
Edible Landscaping & Gardening (Fruit, Nut, Vegetable, Herb) →
members.efn.org
This site has a comprehensive listing of edible perennials. The site’s author claims, “This database lists every perennial plant that is worth growing for the sake of its produce, and that is hardy in at least 3 USDA hardiness zones; it also contains a selection of the most popular perennial herbs. Every plant listed here will survive temperatures down to at least 15 F without special care, and to at least 10 F with special care.”
Listed, are trees, shrubs, vegetables, and herbs. Truly a wealth of information, if accurate!
