Technology has already had a huge impact on agriculture, from finding new ways to irrigate crops to developing new genetic crosses that produce better yields under less than ideal growing conditions. Yet agriculture continues to have a huge impact on the planet.

Today in The Conversation Canada Lenore Newman from the University of the Fraser Valley and Evan Fraser from the University of Guelph write about three technologies that are poised to make food production more sustainable and more plant-based in the near future.

Also today:

All the best.

Hannah Hoag

Deputy Editor | Environment + Energy Editor
Soon robotic smart tractors will drive themselves through fields and will use data to plant the right seed in the right place and give each plant exactly the right amount of fertilizer, cutting down on energy, pollution and waste. (Shutterstock)

3 technologies poised to change food and the planet

Lenore Newman, University of The Fraser Valley; Evan Fraser, University of Guelph

Year round local food production is within our grasp, and will slash agriculture's climate impact — but only if we embrace agricultural technology.
Those in remote communities struggle with connectivity issues due to having to rely on satellites to go online. Big tech companies can help them. Tatiana Syrikova/Pexels

Tech giants need to step up to help close Canada’s digital divide

Catherine Rosenberg, University of Waterloo; Andrew Lappalainen, University of Waterloo

It's time to create a special remote status for communities that struggle with connectivity challenges and lack access to high-speed internet.
The Hasidic community comprises several communities that take their names from the cities of Eastern and Central Europe where they originated. In Montréal, the Belz and the Satmar are the best known. (Philippe Montbazet)

Policing religious gathering limits during the coronavirus pandemic requires sensitivity

Frédéric Dejean, Université du Québec à Montréal (UQAM); Valentina Gaddi, Université de Montréal

Some Jewish prayers are not only about an individual connection with God. They have a community dimension that is essential to their conduct.
Asexual reproduction can — through cell division, or meiosis — take place without the need for sperm. (Shutterstock)

Cryptic sex: How female and unisexual animals reproduce ‘asexually’ — without males

Root Gorelick, Carleton University

Perceptions about the role of sperm have changed over time, but asexual reproduction doesn't need sperm for fertilization.
Given the observed and anticipated growth of telemedicine since the beginning of the pandemic, it would be a good idea to clarify and co-ordinate the rules applicable to it in Canada. Shutterstock

What the rise of telemedicine means for Canada’s legal system

Marco Laverdière, Université de Sherbrooke

The legal uncertainty surrounding telemedicine services is not without consequences. Patients may not have access to public protection remedies.

La Conversation Canada
Perseverance à l’œuvre. NASA/JPL-Caltech

Perseverance sur Mars : on cherche des traces de vie sur la planète rouge

Samantha Rolfe, University of Hertfordshire

La présence de méthane dans l’atmosphère est un indice intéressant qui suggère que la vie pourrait exister sur Mars.

Health

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