Jan 9, 2018 The Associated Press

Prevention is the best way to manage greenhouse weeds

Weeds can be especially troublesome in greenhouses. They starve plants of nutrients, water and light. They also protect insects, mites, rodents and other pests. “Not only are weeds a problem in and of themselves … (but) many greenhouse weeds harbor other pests, including white fly, and may be an alternate host for important viral diseases,”… 

Jan 9, 2018 Semiconductor Engineering

Power/Performance Bits: Printing metal, flexible circuits

Researchers from North Carolina State University developed a technique, using multiple metals and substrates, for directly printing metal circuits to create flexible, stretchable electronics at a lower cost. “Flexible electronics hold promise for use in many fields, but there are significant manufacturing costs involved – which poses a challenge in making them practical for commercial… 

Jan 9, 2018 Coastal Review Online

Benefits of ORV Restrictions Outweigh Costs

An economic analysis by North Carolina State University, Oregon State University and RTI International finds that the economic benefits of biodiversity and habitat preservation significantly outweigh the costs of off-road vehicle, or ORV, restrictions at Cape Hatteras National Seashore. The study sheds light on the relative economic value of efforts to balance environmental protection with… 

Jan 9, 2018 CNBC

Trade, labor concerns hang over ag as Trump prepares to address top farm group

But scrapping NAFTA without a replacement could be devastating to U.S. agriculture and end up costing American consumers more for their food, including Mexican-grown avocados used to make guacamole. “The food chains of the three countries are very integrated, so without NAFTA it would have a massive displacement,” said John Beghin, a professor of agricultural… 

Jan 9, 2018 Supply Chain Dive

4 supply chain predictions for 2018

Robert Handfield, executive director of the Supply Chain Resource Cooperative at North Carolina State University, said machine learning capabilities will “grow significantly in 2018.” 

Jan 8, 2018 Carteret County News-Times

Cold-stunned turtles receive special care

On a chilly Friday morning, Dr. Craig Harms, N.C. State University Center for Marine Science and Technology’s professor of clinical sciences, was at his office preparing for a trip to the Karen Beasley Sea Turtle Rescue and Rehabilitation Center. Dr. Harms was going to the center to check on some patients at the center: cold-stunned… 

Jan 8, 2018 Deutsche Welle

Gene editing: The key to food security in a warmer world?

His colleague Heike Sederoff, a researcher at North Carolina State University, has used CRISPR to increase the amount of oil produced by oilseeds. She believes gene editing is the future of agriculture. “It will greatly enable us to engineer plants for better abiotic resistance against any environmental effect — from drought and flooding to temperature… 

Jan 8, 2018 North Carolina Health News

GenX Bills Expected During January Session

North Carolina State University water quality scientist Detlef Knappe and graduate student Catalina Lopez at work in Raleigh. Knappe’s investigations identified the presence of GenX in the Cape Fear. He will be working with other scientists to probe the extent of the problem and to attempt to identify methods for remediation. 

Jan 8, 2018 News & Observer

New books from NC authors include help for widowed dads and history-inspired novels

April brings “Swimming Between Worlds” by Elaine Neal Orr, a professor of English at NC State University. Orr was inspired by memories of growing up in Winston-Salem and Nigeria, where her parents were missionaries. The novel tells the story of three people – a former high school football star, a young woman whose parents have recently… 

Jan 8, 2018 WUNC-FM's "State of Things"

What Makes A House A Home?

What makes a house a home? Ask Tom Berry. He’s an architect and a professor at North Carolina State University, and he’s studied the question for years. In his new book “House and Home: Cultural Contexts, Ontological Roles,” Barrie delves deep into history of architecture and the human psyche to explain why people crave inhabitable… 

Jan 5, 2018 LiveScience

E. Coli Outbreak: Should You Really Avoid Romaine Lettuce?

Consumer Reports is recommending that Americans avoid all romaine lettuce for now, but other food safety experts say it may be too soon to blame romaine for the outbreak. “[To] say ‘avoid romaine for now,’ I don’t know if I have enough information to agree with that statement,” said Benjamin Chapman, an associate professor and… 

Jan 5, 2018 Winston-Salem Journal

Triad jobless rate climbs to 4.5 percent in November

Economists traditionally have considered an unemployment rate of 5 percent as full employment, meaning that everyone who wants a job has one, employers have the skilled workers they need and there is limited inflationary pressure on wages. The recent rate declines have Michael Walden, an economics professor at N.C. State University, saying that the “full… 

Jan 5, 2018 WRAL TechWire

2017 a banner year for North Carolina’s life science ecosystem, from IPOs to startups, deals and more

Locus Biosciences, a Morrisville-based spinout of North Carolina State University, raised $19 million from major investors including Tencent Holdings, the Chinese internet conglomerate, to develop precision antimicrobial drugs that can combat antibiotic-resistant infections. NCBiotech provided $325,000 in early loans to help Locus establish its technology and attract additional investment. 

Jan 5, 2018 The Epoch Times

Government Red Tape: The Hidden Tax on Growth

A 2013 study found a similar negative correlation between regulations and economic growth, with a gloomier outcome. Economists John Dawson of Appalachian State University and John Seater of North Carolina State University estimated that the past 50 years of federal regulations reduced the economic growth rate on average by two percentage points a year. And… 

Jan 5, 2018 Washington Post

How climate change could counterintuitively feed winter storms

Recent research on winter storms, or cyclones, affecting the U.S. East Coast does suggest the possibility of future intensification due to climate change. A 2014 study by Christopher Marciano and two colleagues from North Carolina State University found that these storms would develop lower pressures and feature stronger winds and more precipitation in a future…