flow from genetically modified creeping bent-grass with CP4 EPSPS as a marker", Proceed.of The Nat. Academy of Sciences 101, p.14533.
The genetic transference is not an enemy: the possible enemy according its use done is the human-induced genetic transfer, when hidden, when unknown, when its purposes have not any logic. But is not considered like an interesting area of study: is considered interesting like human way of production of new species adapted to also human selected conditions. Another question overflies this matter: how many changed genes are needed, of what kind, what must affect to, in order to be able to name it as new species? Nowadays, the concept of specie yet is not completely defined...
We have had the genetic transfer naturally in nature, and we could have left it working. It is ridiculous to forgetting the work of Gregor Mendel, and annotate in the manuals only their mistakes, or primordial ideas, because what matters already evidenced: the genetic transfer operates continuously, but we have not taken advantage of, and what I find most painful is to know that we have not done it deliberately, with full awareness. Now we go approximate to world of genes.
Genes and genome, a sort of library of recipes.
Did you ever known those ancient drugstores managed by an apothecary, where a lot of shelves keep a large row of ceramic boats with plants and remedies? Well, easing the metaphor, let's go imagine that there are 10 shelves, and in each shelf there are 100 boats, thus we have 1,000 different boats... with plants or minerals. Our genetic code is a code for the genome, is an ensemble of 23 shelves doubled (two pairs of chromosomes, two copies of genome), each of them contains portions that can conduct the production of molecules (that can work as work those portions of code into your computer), influence in other portions, mutate, be inactive, become active in some conditions, to be a signal, and all sort of biological functions all of them developed in the cells of every beings: all the beings have the same genetic code (barring some little differences), and the differences that make the species different are the complete list of portions called genes and its activity: some gene what is there is not here, there are some gene here that is not there... There are more than 3,000 millions of base pairs, which form (still we do not know it exactly) 20,000-30,000 genes (plants have approximately 50,000). Proteins are able to implement almost all functions in cells.
Continuing with the story, the druggist inherited the pharmacy from his great grandfather, and he knows the use of just 200 hundred boats, between the 1,000. Once, he can only take up in his hands a bit of them, a bunch. That means, we know or believe to know the function of solely a limited number of genes, but we have observed some of them are not indifferent to cell processes: also we know sometimes act lonely, some times by couples, some of them belong to different part of vital processes, thus be able to make other different proteins indirectly. On the contrary to initially believed, the portions that were supposed junk material -do not codify proteins, do nothing-, a 98,5%, are active part in some degree, not very well understood. Among these genes are portions that formerly were viral material (Human endogenous retrovirus).
After all this, the neat drugstore usually issues recipes for its clients of only a plant, sometimes three plants, and other times a plant followed by other: he has a lot of recipes anyway. Simplifying, each gene has the ability to start or indicate the accurate production of one molecule of biological interest, a protein: these proteins can be an structural material, an agent defensive, a carrier for other compounds into the body, a catalyzer of reactions, a stabilizer of internal conditions, regulator of activities, a flexible link of tissues, a protection, and as you already guess, a signal, receptor or transmitter of signals.
In fact, a plant is a library with 50,000 boats as these ones. And its genes are talking with the same that we are using inside our body. Similar bricks of information relate Genes, chromosomes, proteins produced, tissues constructed, organs, and functions, all. And the way that our bodies are organized is by transmitting information between the parts, receptors, transmitters, chromosomes, tissues, organs, cells, every second it pass, gathering and balancing the inside information for the chemical functions, the aims of the whole organism, and the environmental information.
A simple change in only one gene, or as much five genes, seems to be an inoffensive change, but it implies not only the reach of the resistance to one harmful fungal (as example), but also other changes still unknown but sometimes all of a sudden discovered, possibly where is not expected, but in front of the number of other actors and processes in the cell level, statistically very high.
If you love the biology, start to watch up your own knowledge closely, very closely; you could become an isolated technician who does not know what is doing.
7. A big solar plant in the world.
An ancient mate in our life.
The wood in the world has given us a lot of goods, and also has suffered its reckless use for different purposes: first, for make space for the initial orchards and crops since the onset of our mankind; second, for the build of war fleets along some centuries, made with wood mainly; third, for the opening of big spaces for grazing of livestock, in our recent time; fourth, for the trade with noble or poor woods becoming industrialized materials, this last always; fifth, for the mining of underground materials, as shows the map of routes throughout the mines that the Romans made many years ago, where planted chestnut; sixth, as fuel wood for the appearing of stream engines.
But the manner to understand the forests as groups of stands (mass of trees with constant features), is a utility to extract goods with an economic aim, but that never is the manner that understands the nature. As other sciences and techniques, forestry has had a lack of connection with concepts of ecology. By other side, has been a way to manage and care forests, when it has been thus. Following with concepts and descriptions, forests have been divided according the uses have had: when are not used by the man, are considered as a pristine or primary forest.
But why this is so? The man is another animal more and forever, and we are using always every forest, each day, because we are breathing also thanks to it. This concept is pointless: actually, we must protect in some point every forest. We are already making use of all of them.
Forests conduct a portion of the hydrological cycle, control the runoff, retain water into soils and roots, slow and bridle the effect of wind erosion, balance the equilibrium of CO₂ and O₂, give support for all the creatures there, and stabilize the local climate, sending back the wet towards the environment. The landscape in the picture above is a beech forest, modified rather more than the most forests in Africa or South America. A common fact is the slow, continuous, unapparent disappearing of complexity, mammals, birds, reptiles, and arthropods. If you never knew these forests, you never would be able to notice these changes. That is the question. How could you understand what is happening if you cannot see anything?
Deforestation is a human-natural event that appears when farmers or miners clear the land of trees and shrubs, finding more surfaces for crops or diggings. It is largely the result of called slash and burn agriculture and mining exploitation, and nowadays, a little bunch of minerals gather the interests of industries: cassiterite (tin), gold, wolframite, platinum, and columbite-tantalite (coltan). Many of these areas were transformed along centuries, sometimes rightly, in farms or rice lands: from any point of view that we could state, including the economic, is an eyesore, when soils naturally determined the most suitable vegetation. Due to these actions, and the fragmentation of space, the lack of intelligent planning in construction, the whole drylands in the world almost have reached the 30% of global surface. This figure is at least one of the few that did reliably know.
This is not an issue of some countries, some cultures, or continents: the history shows that each former colony has been there before, has its unique story of loss of lands, and every action along years has been added and inherited into the next action. Thereby we are sharing a common plight, following a similar trend, and the
developing ones are making the same wrongs that the developed done.
Sustainability, a cool word vacuous.
Today, a new culture of seeming sustainability, is printed in many packs and goods, where a label which says things like "this was made by fulfilling strong environmental rules, that allow the strengthening of traditional villages and establish a fair trade with them,” do that you can breathe easy thinking you are a great person, and meet with others, with the jungle, with the birds ... with everything. I am sorry, the only way to make things a little more green or ecological could be as I make with this beautiful computer, which goes running eight years ago, and does very well.
A small group of standards from different organizations, promises good governance by implementing revisions, adequacy of working procedures and management of forests, but all that, as expected, refers to productive forests, either because they are -crops forest-, because are exploited, or because will be soon. That is necessary, however is not ever the way that the forests follow, even when managed with these standards. The environmental management systems seems to be a tool focused in the pursuit of a
An Invisible Chain of our Time Page 21