Our World — 26 December 2009 VOA ' s weekly science and technology magazineArt Chimes 25 December 2009 MUSIC : " Our World " theme This week on Our World : How farming fits in the global warming puzzle . .. a dinosaur that may have injected its victims with venom . .. and a car that finds a parking place , then parks itself . .. HANEY : once you say ' OK , activate it , ' you can sort of take your hands off the wheel and it , using lasers to figure out what the distances are to the other cars and to the curb , can just maneuver the car in there perfectly . " Innovations of the year , the future of fusion power , and more . I ' m Art Chimes . Welcome to VOA ' s science and technology magazine , " Our World . " Left in the Cold at Copenhagen , Farmers Look to FutureIn the run - up to the Copenhagen climate conference , many experts said agriculture should be a central issue in the discussions . After all , farmers are directly affected by climate change , they contribute up to a third of all man - made greenhouse gases , and they can also mitigate their impact by capturing excess carbon dioxide in the soil . As the dust settles in the Danish capital , VOA ' s Steve Baragona looks at what changes could be in store for agriculture . BARAGONA : Many farmers worldwide hoped that negotiators in Copenhagen would devise a way to shield them from the heat waves , droughts , floods , and other unpredictable weather predicted under climate change , and reward them for activities that trap greenhouse gases . But agriculture wasn ' t mentioned in the final accord signed December 18 by the United States , China , India , Brazil , and South Africa . That was a disappointment for Ajay Vashee , president of the International Federation of Agricultural Producers . VASHEE : " So it ' s basically back to the drawing board as far as agriculture is concerned . " BARAGONA : Vashee says at least negotiators agreed on a framework for a possible future agreement that could include farmers . And experts note that agriculture is a relative newcomer to climate negotiations . By comparison , it took several years of talks before reducing emissions from deforestation received a pledge of financial backing in Copenhagen . The details of that deal — how countries can earn credit for preserving and restoring their forests — are still sketchy , however . And the American Farm Bureau Federation , the largest farmers ' organization in the United States , warns that incentives to grow trees could backfire if they lead farmers to plant fewer crops . That ' s according to the Farm Bureau ' s director of regulatory relations , Russell Williams . WILLIAMS : " People need to understand that there [ are ] going to be some trade - offs here . If you ' re taking this much land out of production , what ' s that going to do to food prices ? They really need to find a way , if they ' re going to move forward with this stuff , to have these forestry and agriculture offsets harmonized so you don ' t have a perverse incentive to forest land that ' s going to feed people . " WASKOW : " There are circumstances in which they could be in tension . But I think there are also ways in which they can also be very mutually beneficial . " BARAGONA : That ' s David Waskow , climate change program director at the advocacy group Oxfam America . He says in some cases , introducing trees into cropping systems can improve yields while storing carbon . WASKOW : " We ' ve seen that in areas like the Sahel , where farmers have increased tree cover and that ' s really been beneficial in terms of natural fertilizers , in terms of water retention . So there ' s actually quite a bit of synergy there . " BARAGONA : Waskow says Oxfam is one of several organizations that prefer these kinds of ecologically - based solutions to the Western model of intensive agriculture using pesticides and chemical fertilizers . There is a deep philosophical rift within the agriculture community on this issue . Those who say organic agriculture is the only way to go drew fire in Copenhagen from the Farm Bureau ' s Russell Williams . WILLIAMS : " You just have to stand up and say , hey , wait a second ; it doesn ' t do anybody any good to denigrate Western agriculture . And no matter what you think , and no matter what you say , Western agriculture has become the most efficient land use for food . The United States feeds a whole heck of a lot of people . " BARAGONA : And the world will have to feed a whole heck of a lot more people in the coming decades , experts say , even as a changing climate makes growing food more challenging . As climate change negotiations move forward , expect to see more sparks fly over the best way to reduce greenhouse gases while continuing to feed a hungry planet . Steve Baragona , VOA News , Washington . Researchers See Fusion as Promising Clean Energy SourceBeyond agriculture , the Copenhagen conference on climate change left most environmental activists disappointed by what they considered its failure to agree on measures that would achieve the goal of limiting a global temperature increase to just 2 degrees Celsius . Proposals to reduce climate - changing carbon emissions has focused on renewable energy sources , such as wind and solar . But another alternative that has been just out of reach for decades is nuclear fusion power . Using fusion to generate electricity has , in theory , significant advantages over other sources , such as fission power , the kind of nuclear energy that comes from splitting the atom . Fission is the kind of reaction that powers today ' s nuclear power plants . Fusion is the kind that powers the sun and stars . BOYD : " This opens up the possibility for an incredible new energy source that has no carbon footprint . Richard Boyd is the science director at the National Ignition Facility in California . BOYD : " It ' s intrinsically safe , and furthermore the design parameters of this facility would burn up the leftover nuclear waste from weapons - grade plutonium or spent nuclear fuel or anything that we currently don ' t have a place to store , so it would be gone . " Fusion experiments at the National Ignition Facility are set to begin next year , when scientists will direct almost 200 super laser beams at a pellet of hydrogen fuel , compressing it so it becomes about seven times denser and hotter than the center of the sun , and triggering , they predict , an energy - releasing fusion reaction . The National Ignition Facility is a government - funded lab , and Congress is keeping an eye on fusion research . At a hearing of the House of Representatives Energy Subcommittee , Dr . Riccardo Betti of the University of Rochester said a demonstration of ignition , which sets off the fusion reaction , could set the stage for fusion power development . BETTI : " Ignition will prove the physics of fusion . We haven ' t proved the physics yet , and then we count on the technology to move a lot faster and turn this physics success into making electricity . " There are a lot of scientific and engineering challenges in harnessing the sun - like energy of fusion . How , for example , do you keep something at a temperature of millions of degrees from burning up the equipment ? The best approach seems to be a container that uses magnetic fields to keep the super - hot fuel suspended . That ' s what scientists plan to do at ITER , an international research collaboration being built in France . It will be home to the world ' s largest tokamak , as the magnetic confinement vessel is called . The goal is to demonstrate the commercial feasibility of fusion power . PRAGER : " In the past 30 years we ' ve progressed from producing one watt of fusion power for one - thousandth of a second to 15 million watts for seconds , and ITER will produce 500 million watts for 10 minutes and longer . " Stewart Prager heads the U . S . government - funded Princeton Plasma Physics Laboratory . He said high hopes for ITER rest on years of experiments , advances in material science , and computer simulations aimed at a sustained fusion reaction — something that has eluded scientists in the past . Congressman Rush Holt ( D - NJ ) , who is a physicist by training , says the potential benefits of fusion energy are too big to ignore . HOLT : " The promise of fusion , with essentially unlimited , globally available ingredients , with great environmental attractiveness , with no harmful emissions or high level radioactive waste , or connection to proliferation of weapons materials , -- in other words , a technology well worth undertaking . " Despite the optimism of those engaged in fusion research , there is still no guarantee that the process can be perfected to deliver safe , reliable , and economical energy in the foreseeable future . Website of the Week Features Trusted Drug InformationTime again for our Website of the Week , when we showcase interesting and innovative online destinations . The global pharmaceutical industry has developed a vast medicine cabinet full of drugs that save lives and keep us healthy . But there are so many that it ' s often hard to keep them straight . For years , doctors have consulted a book called the Physicians ' Desk Reference , or PDR , as a trusted reference , and now the publisher has adapted that go - to source for consumers online . FOTSCH : " PDRHealth . com is a consumer website that provides a trusted source of medical information , with a particular focus on pharmaceutical information . " Dr . Edward Fotsch heads the company behind PDRHealth . com , where you can get authoritative information about prescription drugs , over - the - counter medicines , and supplements , as well as reference material on diseases and other medical conditions , surgery , and interactive tools to help you learn more about your options . FOTSCH : " Those are tools that we provide so that consumers can educate themselves , either to be begin to start to get a sense of , perhaps , what kind of illness or malady they may have , and also so that they can sometimes get their arms around the fact that there ' s nothing terribly wrong with them in the first place . " PDRHealth . com is only a couple of years old , but already Edward Fotsch is looking forward to integrating the drug information that ' s on the site with patients ' electronic medical records . An authoritative source of information about medicines and medical conditions PDRHealth . com , or get the link from our site , VOAnews . com . MUSIC : Horace Silver — " A Prescription for the Blues " It ' s Our World , the weekly science and technology magazine from VOA News . I ' m Art Chimes in Washington . Bird - like Dinosaur Used Venom Against PreyScientists say a new analysis of the fossil remains of a small , feathered dinosaur discovered in China a decade ago indicates that the creature might have used venom to subdue its prey before eating it . Researchers say that finding suggests that venom may be a more ancient predatory weapon than previously thought . VOA ' s Jessica Berman reports . BERMAN : Sinonithosaurus was a creature that lived an estimated 125 million years ago . Paleontologists say this bird - like dinosaur , or raptor , was about the size of a turkey , covered in feathers and equipped with sharp talons , which it used for climbing trees . David Burnham , a paleontologist at the University of Kansas , says scientists discovered another interesting trait while studying a well - preserved fossil of Sinonithosaurus — sharp , fang - like teeth that would have enabled it to inject venom into its prey . BURNHAM : " Not only do we have the grooved teeth , we do have a channel for the duct work and then small areas where the venom may well up and feed the bases of these grooved teeth . " BERMAN : Burnham is part of a team of U . S . and Chinese paleontologists studying Sinonithosaurus . He says it appears the raptor did not kill its prey directly by injecting it with venom . Rather , Burnham believes the dinosaur ' s poison caused rapid shock , subduing birds with thick plumage after Sinonithosaurus plunged its fang - like teeth through their feathers . Burnham says researchers concluded Sinonithosaurus used venom after researchers studied modern venomous creatures . BURNHAM : " In light of recent work done on the Komodo dragon found to be venomous , iguanas have found to be venomous , we just all of a sudden said , ' Well , that ' s what the grooves are for . ' So , we did some research and published on it . " BERMAN : Paleontologists believe the appearance of venom began with the prehistoric ancestors of snakes and other reptiles . But Burnham says it now appears that a common ancestor may be responsible for venom use in ancient reptiles as well as bird - like dinosaurs , such as Sinonithosaurus . BURNHAM : " I was just totally amazed to find this . And I think this may mean that venom is actually more widespread and primitive than previously thought . " BERMAN : A description of the venomous dinosaur Sinonithosaurus is published this week in the journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences . Jessica Berman , VOA New , Washington . DNA Tracking May Help Save Threatened Vultures Vultures don ' t need venom — they ' re scavengers that feast on dead animals . Now , in some places , it ' s the vultures themselves who are dying . An American scientist is part of an international effort to save these massive scavengers , as we hear from reporter Ann Murray : MURRAY : It ' s hard to get too excited about an ugly bird that eats dead , rotting flesh . But vultures are amazing animals . They can eat 20 percent of their own body weight in one sitting . And they have digestive systems with special acids that will dissolve toxic bacteria and viruses . Meaning , vultures prevent the spread of killer diseases like rabies and anthrax when they scarf down the carcasses of sick animals . KATZNER : " With the meat goes the disease . " MURRAY : That ' s Todd Katzner , Director of Conservation and Field Research at the National Aviary in Pittsburgh . KATZNER : " Vultures are in dire conservation straits in much of the world because of things like habitat loss , poisoning and now these new problems like diclofenac . " MURRAY : Diclofenac is a medicine given to sick livestock in central Asia . Vultures that eat livestock carcasses with traces of the drug almost always die of immediate kidney failure . It took scientists some time to figure that out . Katzner ' s friend Vibhu Prakash , an Indian ornithologist , recognized the beginnings of this vulture die - off . PRAKASH : " This was almost 20 years ago that Vibhu started seeing vultures near Barrackpore , India . They were sitting in a tree with their heads hanging down . And eventually they ' d just fall out of the tree and die on the ground . " MURRAY : Since then , Indian white - backed vulture numbers have plummeted from 30 or 40 million birds to just thousands . This massive decline has left scientists scratching their heads about how many vultures are left in central and south Asia and other parts of the world . Because vultures move around a lot , it ' s been hard to keep track of individuals . There ' s never been an accurate total population count — anywhere . That ' s where Katzner and the National Aviary come in . For several years , Katzner and his field team have been traveling to mountainous grazing lands in Kazakhstan and the northern plains in Cambodia . Katzner says the one place vultures reliably congregate is at feeding sites . KATZNER : " We ask people if any livestock have died . We drive up to those sites . Usually the vultures have been there . When vultures feed on the carcass they leave feathers everywhere . And when we go to the carcass , we ' re able to pick up sometimes 500 or 1000 feathers . " MURRAY : once the feathers are collected , Katzner ' s team extracts DNA from them to identify individual birds . The scientists will use this information to create population models . This new counting method is faster and more reliable than capturing , marking , and recapturing birds . Before I leave the Aviary , Katzner points out an American black vulture . She ' s gobbling a breakfast of chick pieces and mice . Katzner hopes his work will help to keep other vultures happy and hungry . He says we all need ' em on the job as nature ' s cleanup crew . For The Environment Report , I ' m Ann Murray . Support for The Environment Report on VOA comes from the Park Foundation , and the Gaylord and Dorothy Donnelley Foundation . You can find more stories , and post your comments , at EnvironmentReport . org . Popular Science Magazine Highlights Innovations of the YearThe editors of Popular Science magazine are always on the lookout for cool products and technologies , and in their December issue they highlight 100 of the best innovations of the year . We spoke with the magazine ' s executive editor about some of their choices , starting with a high - tech version of one of medicine ' s oldest tools — the Littmann electronic stethoscope . HANEY : " Well , it ' s the first stethoscope that does more than rely on the doctor ' s ears . And so , built in to the stethescope is wireless , Bluetooth communication . And so , when the stethoscope listens to the heart , it can beam that information to a nearby computer , where software can analyze the sound signal and , within a minute , provide the doctor with that analysis . " Q : And because it ' s electronic , you ' ve got the ability to transmit that information to a specialist if need be . HANEY : " Exactly . And the hope is that this would cut down on the number of specialist visits that doctors have to prescribe now because they ' re just not sure whether or not the abnormality is something they should worry about . " Q : I ' m an urban guy , and I consider myself a pretty good parallel parker , but like everyone else , every so often you just can ' t get the car in the space . Ford has a a self - parking car , a better idea from Ford . How does that work ? HANEY : " Yeah , this is one of those straight - out - of - science - fiction kind of ideas . There have been a couple of other companies that have tried this . What Ford has done is , using a sonar - based system , it can actually find you a spot . So as you ' re driving down the street , it ' s scanning , and when it detects a spot that ' s big enough for it to be able to park into , it let ' s you know so there ' s no more of that pulling up next to a spot and guessing , is this car really going to fit in there ? And then , once you say ' OK , activate it , ' you can sort of take your hands off the wheel and it , using lasers to figure out what the distances are to the other cars and to the curb , can just maneuver the car in there perfectly . " Q : There are a lot of great products in the ' Best of What ' s New ' in December Popular Science , but there is one really great picture , and that ' s showing a wrecking ball going into a brick wall , and on the other side there ' s this thin wallpaper that is keeping the brick wall together and not smashed up by the wrecking ball . HANEY : " What the X - FLEX wallpaper is , is essentially a Kevlar weave . Kevlar is the very strong material that we ' re all familiar with ; it ' s in bulletproof vests and that kind of thing . So this is a weave of that material , sandwiched between elastic polymer films . And the net effect is that when something happens to a wall , either from an explosion or from something hitting it , the wall will still fail , but all the debris and the pieces won ' t actually come through the wallpaper , so the people on the inside are just that much safer . " Q : So in the 1967 film , The Graduate , Dustin Hoffman is pulled aside in this cocktail party and this older man has one word for him : plastics . Today I guess in our green world it ' s two words : ' mushroom styrofoam . ' HANEY : " Yeah , that doesn ' t quite have the ring to it that plastics did , but this is a pretty amazing product . The idea is that this would replace the kind of packing material , the styrofoam or polystyrene that we often see . And the way that this is made is with a mold that ' s filled with organic material like corn husks , any kind of waste that we have . And then on to that mold is sprayed these root - mushroom cells . " And they grow into this incredibly dense network of roots until they ' ve filled that mold . And then we can just take and bake that mold to stop the growth , and it just assumes whatever shape it ' s been in . So it ' s incredibly light , it ' s fireproof , and it ' s completely organic . And because of the process of making it , it actually takes about one - eighth the energy that normal polystyrene takes to manufacture . " Q : Well those are some of the ones I found of interest , Mike Haney . What interests you ? Do you have a favorite ? HANEY : " Well , the one that I ' m most intimately familiar with is the Somnio shoes , And I just did the New York marathon in a pair of these , and I can attest to , they are truly one of the Best of What ' s New things . What ' s great about the shoes is they are customizable ; they actually take parts of the cushioning out of the sole and make them swapable . " And so there ' s actually about 11 , 000 combinations and you can dial in just the absolute perfect shoe for your stride and your weight and your size and really run pain - free because that ' s really the key for a lot of people to getting rid of the joint they think might just come naturally with running is in fact just being in the wrong shoes . " You can read about the other 90 - plus Innovations of the Year as chosen by the editors at Popular Science magazine at their website . We ' ll have a link at our site , VOAnews . com . That ' s our show for this week . We ' d like to hear from you . You can email us at ourworld @ voanews . com . Or write us at - Our World Voice of America Washington , DC 20237 USAOur program was edited by Rob Sivak . Bob Doughty is the technical director . And this is Art Chimes , inviting you to join us online at voanews . com / ourworld or on your radio next Saturday and Sunday as we check out the latest in science and technology in Our World . Listen : Our World — 26 December 2009 MP 3