| In Oil Inquiry, Panel Sees No Single Smoking Gun No one person or company has been implicated. Instead, several missteps and oversights by the crew are being explored by federal investigators as possible triggers of the emergency. feeds.nytimes.com |
'Dumb' pair wrestle python at fast food restaurant Stunned customers watched on as two men wrestled with a python in a McDonald's restaurant car park in Melbourne's north last night. abc.net.au |
Frederick Jelinek, Who Gave Machines the Key to Human Speech, Dies at 77 Mr. Jelinek unlocked human speech for computers by thinking like a computer. feeds.nytimes.com |
International space station crew blast off from Kazhakstan Rocket carries US and Russian cosmonauts to the international space station guardian.co.uk |
Plant diversity: the key to life on Earth | Andrew Wood Plants are a biological resource more valuable than all the money in all of our banks – let's work towards protecting themWhat wonderous life in this I lead! Ripe apples drop about my head; The luscious clusters of the vine Upon my mouth do crush their wine; The nectarine, and curious peach, Into my hands themselves do reach; Stumbling on melons, as I pass, Ensnared with flowers, I fall on grass. Meanwhile the mind, from pleasure less, Withdraws into its happiness: The mind, that ocean where each kind Does straight its own resemblance find; Yeh it creates, transcending these, Far other worlds, and other seas; Annihilating all that's made To a green thought in a green shade. Andrew Marvell (1621-78) Plants are an inspiration, and they are at the centre of our lives. For marriage we celebrate with a bouquet, and at a funeral we remember with a wreath. From the banana in our lunchbox, to the homes we construct, the fuels we burn and the air we breathe, plants are an integral part in our living world.We may have put humans on to the moon, yet we still don't have a definitive list of all plant species on Earth. In 2002, governments that were parties to the convention on biological diversity adopted the global strategy for plant conservation. Among the 16 adopted targets for 2010 was, first, a working list of all known plant species. Botanic gardens in the UK and US are leading in this research and the plant list currently stands at an estimated 380,000 species – and it's still not complete.Traditionally, botanic gardens have been considered as beautiful collections of exotic plants in greenhouses. Elsewhere, these "indoor plants" are wild, and many are under threat. The botanic gardens' collections act as an insurance policy, protecting a biological resource which is more valuable than all the money in all of our banks. For all life on Earth depends on plants. Plant diversity (rather than simply abundance) is critical: greater diversity gives greater resilience to disease and other threats while also preserving the complex interdependence of ecosystems.Negotiations in Nagoya, Japan involving 192 countries which are part of the convention on biological diversity open today. Under discussion are proposals for better plant conservation and higher targets than those adopted in 2002. The huge task of creating a definitive list of plants and building the capacity for conservation is onerous, but botanic gardens have played their part in working towards several of the 2010 targets. By working with international partners and especially those in the economically poorer countries (which are often much richer in biodiversity), we are progressing.An estimated one in five plants are under threat of extinction: prioritising their conservation and their associated habitats will also safeguard the future of animal and human life. Governments attending the Nagoya meeting must build capacity in all countries.The botanic gardens community is calling for all 16 of the proposed new targets to be adopted, and this would include at least 75% of threatened plant species in ex situ collections, preferably in the country of origin, and at least 20% available for recovery and restoration programmes. This target is particularly important in the face of climate change: we can't guarantee that plants can be conserved in their natural habitats.We must have a positive outcome from Nagoya meeting. Our biological inheritance is at stake, and so is the inspiration for so much in our lives.BiodiversityPlantsConservationWildlifeBiologyAndrew Woodguardian.co.uk © Guardian News & Media Limited 2010 | Use of this content is subject to our Terms & Conditions | More Feeds guardian.co.uk |