Châtenay-Malabry (FR
- 92290), 4 April 2016
EFITA newsletter / 733 - European Federation for Information Technology
in Agriculture, Food and the Environment
To correspond with me (GW), please use this address: guy.waksman(a)laposte.net
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Next
Efita
Congress
2 - 5 July 2017
Please,
note these dates!
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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
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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
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
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
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The
Efita newsletter is sponsored by:
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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
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