You can also view the message online

EFITA


Châtenay-Malabry (FR - 92290), 4 April 2016


EFITA newsletter / 733 - European Federation for Information Technology in Agriculture, Food and the Environment

page facebook

To correspond with me (GW), please use this address: guy.waksman(a)laposte.net


To subscribe the efita newsletter (please ask your friends and colleagues to test this link)
See: http://www.informatique-agricole.org/efitas-newsletter-subscription/


Archives of the efita newsletters
See: http://www.informatique-agricole.org/efita-newsletters/

Next Efita
Congress
2 - 5 July 2017

Please,
note these dates!

Montpellier - France at SupAgro Ag University

See: https://www.supagro.fr/
See: http://www.agrotic.org/blog/


Contact : Jean-Pierre CHANET, Bruno TISSEYRE
Mél : jean-pierre.chanet(a)irstea.fr, tisseyre(a)supagro.inra.fr


Baltic Open (GEO) Data Hackathon 2016 - Minutes and voting
Thank you for participating! The hackaton is now over.
Please see for minutes from the organiser and a voting form for deciding the people’s choice awards.
The results of Baltic Open Data Hackathon are now available. Please vote for the Best Hackathon Result.
See: http://sdi4apps.eu/baltic-open-geo-data-hackathon-2016/
Information provided by Sarka HORAKOVA
E-mail: horakova(a)wirelessinfo.cz


MEDHACKATHON
13-15 July 2016 - PATRAS, GREECE
MED HACKATHON is the first hackathon combined with a workshop organised in Patras (Greece), with the aim to create the space, where those with the interest in potential of Open Data can meet, present their ideas, knowledge a discuss the possible ways of further cooperation or project ideas. It is organised by European Regional Framework for Co-operation (ERFC) & Computer Engineering and Informatics Department (CEID) of University of Patras.
For more detailed roadmap and updates in agenda, check regularly this website: http://www.medhackathon.eu/index.php#about
Information provided by Sarka HORAKOVA
E-mail: horakova(a)wirelessinfo.cz

Séminaires

Modelia / Afia

>>> Séance de l'Académie d'Agriculture de France "Réseaux sociaux et Agriculture" (23 mars 2016)
Voir : http://www.academie-agriculture.fr/seances/reseaux-sociaux-et-agriculture?230316


>>>
API Agro (10 février 2016)
La conférence "API-AGRO", organisée par l'Acta, a rassemblé plus de 150 personnes autour des API et de l'Agriculture Numérique... Revivez la conférence organisée par les partenaires du projet.
Voir : http://www.api-agro.fr/actes-conference/


>>> Réseaux sociaux et Agriculture (19 juin 2015)
Voir : http://www.informatique-agricole.org/base-documentaire/afia-colloque/2015_-_reseaux-sociaux/#wpfb-cat-87

>>> Open Data en Agriculture - 2ème partie (7 janvier 2015)
Voir : http://www.modelia.org/moodle/course/view.php?id=63


>>> Les nouveaux capteurs en Agriculture (19 avril 2014)
Voir : http://www.informatique-agricole.org/colloques-afia/afia-colloque/2014_-_capteurs/#wpfb-cat-5


>>> Open Data en Agriculture - 1ère partie : état des lieux et perspectives (12 novembre 2013)
Voir : http://www.modelia.org/moodle/course/view.php?id=63


>>> La modélisation entre recherche et développement agricole, allers et retours... Des modèles scientifiques aux outils logiciels : ambitions, expériences, réflexions, propriété intellectuelle (29 mars 2013)

Voir :
http://www.modelia.org/moodle/course/view.php?id=35


Contact : Jean-Pierre CHANET, François BRUN
Mél : jean-pierre.chanet(a)irstea.fr, francois.brun(a)acta.asso.fr

Spain: vitisFlower
The Televitis group has developed “vitisFlower”, a free Android Smartphone application that enables the assessment of the number of flowers per inflorescence in grapevines under field conditions, in an automated and reliable way, by image analysis of a simple photo. The acquired image with the detected and calculated number of flowers may be stored with a date-related code.
This is one of the first apps for Viticulture worldwide, and it has been developed by the University of La Rioja in collaboration with four SMEs of La Rioja, within the frame of theVinetics research project
See: http://televitis.unirioja.es/en/index.php/app-vitisflower/


Australia: New app to assess powdery mildew on grapes
Visual assessment of the grape and wine sector’s most costly disease, powdery mildew, will be easier with a new, free smart-phone app developed by University of Adelaide researchers and collaborators.
The recently released iPhone/iPad and Android app, PMapp, will help grapegrowers and wineries make informed decisions about the quality and price of grapes.
The development of PMapp has been supported by Wine Australia as part of a wider research project seeking to establish objective measures for quantifying powdery mildew. The app development has taken place in close consultation with a project reference group of viticulturists, wineries, independent assessors and researchers.
“Powdery mildew is a serious disease of grapevines worldwide and, in Australia, has an estimated annual cost of $76 million through yield loss and the cost of control,” says project leader Professor Eileen Scott, Professor of Plant Pathology in the University’s School of Agriculture, Food and Wine.
“It causes serious quality issues with bad flavours and aromas in wine and we’ve seen that with small amounts of the surface area of Chardonnay bunches affected by powdery mildew there is an oily ‘mouth-feel’ in the resulting wine.
“The wine sector therefore has a very low tolerance of powdery mildew on grapes with downgrading at 3–6% or rejection when disease is more severe. This is a costly disease for the grape and wine community.
“But powdery mildew is hard to assess – the disease is ubiquitous, but symptoms can be hard to see, or easily confused with dust or spray residue.
“PMapp is a simple tool that facilitates efficient assessment and recording of the severity and incidence of powdery mildew in the vineyard.”
Dr Liz Waters, Wine Australia Research Development and Extension Portfolio Manager, says tools such as PMapp help support decision making to build grape and wine excellence in the Australian sector.
“The ultimate aim of research and development in this area is to develop objective analytical methods to assess powdery mildew infection levels. Although visual assessment is subjective, this new app will facilitate these assessments and enable efficient and cost-effective vineyard practices,” says Dr Waters.
PMapp allows the user to quickly assess visually the severity of powdery mildew on each bunch of grapes (an estimation of the percentage of the surface area of the bunch covered) by matching it with a computer generated image. The app calculates the proportion of bunches affected (the disease incidence) and of surface area affected (severity) and reports the data in a spreadsheet for subsequent analysis. A key reference and browser of images built into the app also help the user familiarise themselves with various disease patterns and severities. A website to support the app is currently being developed and is scheduled for release at the end of January.
The PMapp is now available on Apple’s App Store or Google Play.
See: https://www.adelaide.edu.au/news/news82342.html

 

USDA study concludes neonics not driving bee deaths—As White House set to announce pollinator revival plan
Even as a special White House created task force is poised any day now to address concerns over supposedly vanishing honeybees, new research suggests that the very premise of the federal investigation may be misplaced.
Last summer, President Obama asked the Environmental Protection Agency to investigate conflicting reports that pesticides, and in particular a class of chemicals known as neonicotinoids, were the probable cause of mysterious bee deaths and declining numbers of beehives.
The latest headline on farmers’ critical pollinator? The numbers of beehives are actually growing, continuing a multi-year improvement—gradually repairing the damage wrought by the 2006 mass bee die off known as Colony Collapse Disorder.
See: https://www.geneticliteracyproject.org/2015/03/23/usda-study-concludes-neonics-not-driving-bee-deaths-as-white-house-set-to-announce-bee-revival-plan/


The Shocking Carbon Footprint of Compost
Most people think of composting as a very "green" thing to do, but few realize that composting actually generates a significant amount of the potent greenhouse gases (GHG), methane and nitrous oxide. Under current landfill regulations, requirements to exclude water minimizes the breakdown of organic matter and requirements to capture and burn methane mean that even that option has a better carbon footprint than composting (thanks to Fred Krieger for pointing out this advance in the landfill arena). The even better option is anaerobic digestion which I will describe at the end of this post.
See: http://appliedmythology.blogspot.fr/2013/01/the-shocking-carbon-footprint-of-compost.html


The splendid island of Mont Saint-Michel today is in Normandy because the river separating Normandy from Brittany moved a little bit. A farmer from Brittany is intending to move back (West) the island in Brittany

page facebook


Flax
Discover premium quality flax fibre through all its applications, from plant to finished products.
Dive into the flax experience and create your own video itinerary with the webdoc.
See: http://www.ultralin.fr/


Brexit (Efita newsletter n° 729 dated 4th of March, 2016)
Many thanks for your continuing work on the EFITA Newsletter. It is the most important technical news source for many of us.
Thanks also for strongly opposing the weakening of the EU. I'm an outsider, but I visited eight EU countries last year and spent a total of three months in the EU. I'm also old enough to remember pre-EU. I have a hard time imaging more stupid politics than weakening the EU. (It's as bad as our current USA presidential campaign.) Obviously, the EFITA Newsletter should generally not be political---but some things can't be ignored.
Contact: John K. SCHUELLER, Professor, University of Florida
E-mail: schuejk(a)ufl.edu


Donald Trump (and Le Pen): Britain will vote to leave EU
See: http://www.theguardian.com/politics/video/2016/mar/24/donald-trump-britain-will-vote-to-leave-eu-video


The Efita newsletter is sponsored by:
page facebook

Be bilingual English/Spanish

An Englishman went to Spain on a fishing trip.

He hired a Spanish guide to help him find the best fishing spots.

Since the Englishman was learning Spanish, he asked the guide to speak to him in Spanish and to correct any mistakes of usage.

They were hiking on a mountain trail when a very large, purple and blue fly crossed their path.

The Englishmen pointed at the insect with his fishing rod, and said, "Mira el mosca!".

The guide, sensing a teaching opportunity, replied, "No, senor, 'la mosca'... es feminina."

The Englishman looked at him, then back at the fly, and then said, "Good heavens... you must have incredibly good eyesight."


The distribution of this efita newsletter is sponsored by vitisphere.com
Please, contribute to the content of your efita newsletter, and advertise your events, new publications, new products and new project in this newsletter. Without your support, it will not survive!
Contact: Guy WAKSMAN
E-mail: guy.waksman(a)laposte.net


To read this newsletter on our web site
See: http://www.informatique-agricole.org/gazette/efita/efita_160404_733.htm


The archives of this newsletter

See: http://www.informatique-agricole.org/category/gazette-efita/


Jokes, Quotes and Anecdotes... an Anatomy of Wit
Mick Harkin, ex Secretary of EFITA, who has kept us amused with his Friday Jokes over the years, has published a book on Amazon entitled "Jokes, Quotes and Anecdotes... an Anatomy of Wit".
See: http://www.jokesquotesandanecdotes.com
Contact: Mick HARKIN
E-mail: mickjharkin(a)gmail.com


About the EFITA mailing list
You can use the efita moderated list (> 15000 subscribers) to announce any event / product / web site / joke (!) related to IT in agriculture, environment, food industry and rural areas.
If you want to subscribe a friend, please fill in his form.
If you do not wish to receive our messages, please fill in the following form...