Agriculture: Past, Present and Future

Posted on May 22, 2013 by admin

Since the first civilizations, people have known how to produce the food they’ve needed to feed themselves. However, creating the agriculture technology that allows us to produce mass quantities of food for others has been an evolving process that continues even today. Agriculture has evolved a great deal as new technologies have been introduced, allowing for food production at much higher rates even with fewer acres of arable land.

With the invention of many of the pieces of equipment used by today’s farmer, they have learned to work smarter not harder. The future of technology in the agriculture world will lead to more improvements in efficiency and productivity, giving Farmer Brown the edge he needs to maintain and exceed his current abilities to keep the community fed.

EARLY TIMES WITH FARMER BROWN – BACK BREAKING CHORES AND ALL

The earliest farmer had very primitive equipment that made food production a long and difficult process with few rewards. His first tool for harvesting grain was a long handled implement known as a scythe, although it was well engineered to harvest wheat and other grains it was also time consuming and rough on the back. Threshing was equally burdensome. Beating stalks of grain with a heavy stick to separate the grain from the chaff made farm work even more labor intensive than it is now. Farmers had to be physically fit to even survive this work. Finally, the grain was taken to the mill, brewery, or market depending on what the product was to be used for.

HEY FARMER BROWN, ARE WE THERE YET?

With the start of the Industrial Revolution, machines dramatically streamlined the process of growing, harvesting, and transporting produce offsetting the need for farmers to work so hard for their bounty. Today’s combines take the place of needing separate machines to do the harvesting and threshing. Headers harvest the wheat and drop it into a drum to be threshed. The chaff, or outer covering of the wheat grain, is discarded behind the combine to fertilize the land for future crops. A belt conveyor carries the grains to the bed of a following truck.

Irrigating practices rely heavily on machines such as pumps and automated sprinkler systems to provide water; airplanes called crop dusters greatly improve a farmer’s ability to deliver fertilizer and pesticides to large crops. Seeding the fields is a fairly easy task with the invention of the planter which evenly lays down seeds in rows two to three feet apart or by a drill that practically blankets the field with much more seed in one foot rows. Specialized belt conveyors make the job of sorting, shipping, and storing produce faster than ever.

THE FUTURE FOR FARMER BROWN – READY OR NOT

Current agricultural processes have done a wonderful job of feeding swelling populations even with shrinking arable farm land. But future challenges will test the limits of our farming prowess even more. And technology will have to rise to meet those challenges. Future tractors will be driverless, guided by GPS to efficiently plow fields without the need of human interaction. Satellite imaging will be able to use infrared light to determine where a field is most in need of watering. Computerized systems will then direct sprinkler systems to where they are needed. The result of all these technologies will be higher yield and more efficient use of farmland.

Food production has come a long way over the centuries, and is owed a great deal for our modern standard of living. With these and more future technologies, the agricultural industry will hopefully be able to keep up with world food requirements for an even faster growing population.

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The 3 Most Addictive Android Puzzle Games

Posted on February 27, 2013 by admin

It takes a special combination of characteristics to make for a great game for smartphones. It should ideally be something you can pick up and play for a few minutes at a time, something you can enjoy in small amounts when you don’t have time to play for very long. It also needs to be something with pretty simple controls, something that doesn’t make you feel like you’re limited by playing it on a smartphone instead of on a console or PC. And, of course, it needs to be challenging and satisfying. Puzzle games fit these descriptions perfectly, and that’s why puzzle games are continually some of the hottest apps available on Google Play. Here are three of the best puzzle games you can find for your Android phone.

Angry Birds Star Wars

You’ve probably played or heard of Angry Birds, one of the most popular games from the early days of the smartphone. There’s something so satisfying about launching birds to topple structures and smash pesky pigs. Angry Birds Star Wars takes all the fun of the original Angry Birds and combines it humorously with the most epic space saga of all time, Star Wars. You’ll use familiar Star Wars characters in bird form to smash pig stormtroopers and other villains from a galaxy far, far away. Each of these birds has a special ability, such as Luke Skywalker’s lightsaber slash, Han Solo’s laser blaster, and Obi-Wan Kenobi’s Force push. Things get particularly interesting when the war between birds and pigs heads into zero-gravity fields and multiple-gravity fields in space. This free game is a delightful challenge that’s perfect for picking up whenever you have a spare moment.

Where’s My Water?

Bathing alligators has never before been this much fun—if bathing alligators has ever before been a thing at all. In Where’s My Water?, you solve fun puzzles to figure out how to direct water to the subterranean bathtub of a friendly and extremely hygienic alligator, progressing through a series of increasingly difficult levels as you go. Whether you’re simply clearing tunnels through dirt or using complex moving machinery to jet water where you need it, seeing that alligator’s tub fill up is immensely rewarding. And to add to the fun, this is a free app.

Cut the Rope

Cut the Rope is similar in many ways to Where’s My Water?, except in this case you’re trying to get pieces of candy into the waiting mouth of a hungry little monster. This candy is suspended from ropes that you can manipulate and cut to move the candy through the puzzle to the mouth of the monster. Like Angry Birds and Where’s My Water?, you progress from one level to another and encounter a variety of uniquely challenging situations. For the thinking skills involved, the ability to pick it up and play or put it down at a moment’s notice, and for the fact that you can get this app for free, this is a very solid puzzle game you’re sure to enjoy.

Finding the Best Games

These are three absolutely addicting puzzle games for your smartphone. To find other great Android games, you should also check out the Hooked app. It’s a free app that offers you personalized recommendations on what apps you should check out. Based on your gaming habits, your current apps, your ratings, and even your friends’ favorite games, Hooked offers game suggestions that are right in line with the type of games you love most. Instead of meandering through Google Play trying random apps, let Hooked lead you directly to the apps you’ll love most.

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Why Sedation Dentistry is Safe and Suggested By Your Dentist

Posted on February 9, 2013 by admin

Do you feel a lot of anxiety about going to the dentist. Maybe you feel like the Ramones and you want to be sedated. Well, GOOD NEWS! Now you can be sedated. That might sound a little scary and if you are as afraid of needles as you are of the dentist then you just might be out of luck. But sedation dentistry is making a lot of things easier for patients and dentists.

Safe

The first thing most people want to know when they hear about sound sedation dentistry is how safe is it? Well, you can relax. It is perfectly safe. Only highly trained staff members are allowed to administer the drug. So you have nothing to worry about.

Second, many people, when they hear the word sedation recall urban legends about people who have gone to sleep for a surgical procedure and never woken up. They just remain in a coma. Again, don’t worry. Sedation dentistry does not put you all the way to sleep. They only give you enough medication to help you relax. you will still be awake and aware of what is going on. You just won’t feel the stress that you normally might.

Third, there are not many side-effects to sedation. You won’t feel groggy and uncomfortable as the drugs wear off. Although you will need to bring someone with you who can drive you home since you should not be driving yourself.

Easy

Not only will the sedation make you feel better about your visit, it will also make it easier for your dentist to treat you. Any local professional cosmetic dentist can tell you that it is difficult to work on an anxious patient. A tense patient means that the dentist has to work harder to keep them relaxed. It also means that the procedure will probably hurt more because not only will the patient have to deal with the side effects of the procedure but they will also have to deal with strained neck and back muscles that have been clenched for an hour or more.

The only bad thing about sedation dentistry is that not everyone does it. So if you don’t live close to a dentist then you might be out of luck again.

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How Sunlight Naturally Brightens Your Teeth

Posted on February 9, 2013 by admin

A recent study shows a direct correlation between sunlight exposure and healthy teeth, which leads directly into a paragraph giving tribute to the sun. Don’t worry, your locally trusted dentist in Orlando wants you to know.

The glorious star at the center of our solar system. It’s radiant hot plasma beautifully interwoven with magnetic fields, casting down its rays upon us to lighten our days. Well, it does a lot more than that, one minor application being sustaining life as we know it on our water-ridden planet. While the general idea of what the sun accomplishes in its daily rotation is taught in science class, the additional benefits are still being discovered on an almost daily basis. While it’s true that one can survive with only the occasional venture into the solar influence of this red dwarf, simple facts point to human beings greatly benefiting from exposure to sunlight. It is true that too much exposure cause certain risks against certain diseases, but until we directly pinpoint why it only happens to certain individuals, I’m going to say that it is vital to go outside and experience the sunny dreamscape daily.

Now down to the nitty gritty. Teeth are made of calcium and are, for all intents and purposes, bones. Since they are growing and infused with nerves at their center, they can be classified as living bones. Now, if we were to keep in mind the bonehood of our teeth, what could be conclude regarding proper practices to maintain healthy teeth? That’s right, there are many different ways beyond brushing and bleaching to whiten and strengthen your teeth. I, of course, am not trying to understate the importance of proper teeth care, but simply adding to the scope of possibilities regarding improving teeth conditions.

So to put it in layman’s terms, GET OUTSIDE AND GET SOME SUNLIGHT!!! Our skin absorbs Vitamin D as our body is exposed to sunlight. Now, you may think that simply taking a calcium supplement is enough, but you are mistaken. Calcium absorption is directly linked to maintaining sufficient levels of Vitamin D, so without the D, your calcium is not as effective.

Other Ways to Healthify Your Teeth

By natural deduction you may be able to determine the other often overlooked ways of improving dental health, but I’ll list them anyways.

  • Proper FOODSTUFFS! – Eat healthy, enough said.
  • Strength Training with Heavy Objects – A not so fancy way of saying lift weights. Work out your body in all areas to strengthen your bones, and increase calcium absorption.
  • BE HAPPY! – Letting the stress slide off your shoulders and maintaining a positive outlook WILL help your health. Your brain is an organ, and stress on your brain due to worrying can have a negative effect on health, just as stress on any organ will.

If reading this has only increased your stress levels because of the incredible lack of healthy food, happiness, or weight lifting in your life, don’t worry! Today is a great day, and tomorrow is a new one. What isn’t happening today can easily happen later on that day, or tomorrow. Of course, still visit your experienced full service dentist, if it’s in Orlando, then getting sunshine should be easy on the way to their office!

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3 Ways to Get the Most out of Android’s App Market, Google Play

Posted on February 8, 2013 by admin

Google Play, the app market for Android devices, is a huge and ever-growing collection of fun, helpful, and occasionally useless applications that can help you get the most out of your phone. While it’s great to have so many apps available to help with so many different situations, it can also be difficult to sort through all the possibilities and find what’s great for you. Here are three ways to find the best apps for your needs.

Use a Discovery App

A discovery app is an app that helps you find other apps. Think of Pandora or Netflix, but for apps instead of music or movies. Based on your preferences and feedback you provide, discovery apps help you find the specific apps you’ll like most. For example, the Hooked app is a great way to find the best Android games for you. This discovery app provides personalized recommendations based on several sources of data, including how much time you spend on each game you already have and what games your friends are playing. Hooked also helps you manage all your downloaded games, and best of all, it’s a free app. Discovery apps like this make finding apps much, much easier. Instead of browsing through endless apps and trying out ones that look interesting, discovery apps bring great apps to you.

Check In Regularly on Trending Apps

One great way to find good apps without getting swept away in the flood of all the new apps rushing into Google Play daily is to just check in on the trending apps lists periodically. You can see which new apps are getting the most attention, including the best free apps. Poorly made apps or apps that are just junk won’t make it into these lists of popular apps, making it easier for you to find quality apps that will actually be valuable to you.

Weed Out Unwanted Apps

Ideally, your apps should be a continually adapting pool of diverse programs. Of course, you’ll find a number of staple apps that will always be a part of your repertoire, but other apps will come and go as you try out new ones and weed out the ones you no longer have much use for. Letting too many apps build up can clutter your phone and take up needed memory space. Be sure to regularly go through your apps and delete the ones you don’t use. This will keep your app garden trim and beautiful.

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Dental Technology – Preparing Yourself for Tooth Loss and Replacement

Posted on January 10, 2013 by admin

Preparing yourself for a change of life is no easy feat. Often we find ourselves clinging to the past with no hopes for what could happen in the future. This may be the case if you ever lose a tooth. There may seem like there is no real option out there to replace a tooth. It’s important to know that long-lasting dental implants are a real option for those who aren’t aware.

Before you consider getting teeth implants, make sure you’re the right candidate, and that you have the right local cosmetic dentist. The area that will receive the implant will need to have enough bone to allow the anchorage of the implants. An implant will last a lifetime but the crown on top will only last ten to fifteen years. The implants are always surgically placed in your jaw bone while you are under local anesthesia. It can take a long time, but the result is absolutely worth it. As with any surgery, bruising and minor swelling develop shortly after the end of the procedure.

Identifying the different types of implants:

  • Plate Form Implants – A screw type implant in the shape of a tooth. Known as the most common type of implant. Typically if your jaw is too narrow for a bone graft, the plate form implant is used.
  • Root Form Implant – The most commonly used implant, used where width and depth in your jawbone are in aplenty. Like other implants, your jawbone is exposed and the number of incisions that are made are dependent on how many implants you need.

While it’s true that dental implants are a very permanent solution, there are other tooth replacement options available:

  • Bridges – A bridge is a simple solution for a single missing tooth. This procedure involves fusing a false tooth to caps placed on the two adjacent teeth. The false tooth is not connected to the root at any point — it simply spans the gap like a … bridge. A bridge is an inexpensive replacement for a tooth, but there are drawbacks. The teeth next to the gap will have to be filed down to take the crowns even if they’re completely healthy. Additionally, bridges are not permanent solutions. They’ll have to be remade every few years.
  • Dentures – This is a common procedure for people who have lost multiple teeth. Full or partial dentures have traditionally relied on suction and sometimes a fixative agent to hold in place. Unfortunately, this is an imperfect solution as anyone who has tried to eat an apple with dentures knows. Increasingly, denture wearers are opting for greater stability and functionality of mounting their dentures with dental implants.
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    When Should You Consider Dental Implants?

    Posted on January 10, 2013 by admin

    There are more options for reconstructive dentistry than ever before. And trained dental implant specialists are always required for long lasting implants. Dental implants can help with minor to severe reconstruction, but they’re not right for every case. Here are the details.

    Dental implants replace missing teeth with false ones that are sturdy and look and bite like natural teeth. They can serve as anchors for bridges spanning single tooth gaps or the entire jaw. Dental implants don’t require damaging other healthy teeth like bridges often do. Be sure to do your homework and find a good highly experienced cosmetic dentist to do your work. It shouldn’t be too difficult.

    There are two types of dental implants: (information taken from Perio.org)

    • Endosteal (in the bone): The most commonly used type of implant, endosteal implants include cylinders, screws, or blades that are surgically placed into the jawbone. Every implant holds one or more prosthetic teeth. Most often used as an alternative for patients with bridges or removable dentures.
    • Subperiosteal (on the bone): Placed on top of the jaw with the metal framework’s posts protruding through the gum to hold the prosthesis. These types of implants are used for patients who are unable to wear conventional dentures and who have minimal bone height.

    A bridge is a relatively cheap solution to cover a single tooth gap. Bridges anchor a false tooth to two healthy adjacent teeth or implants. Bridges are effective as shorter term solutions but they aren’t as realistic looking as implants. Also, the natural teeth they are anchored to must be filed down in order to be crowned and fused. The long term gap left between the roots of the teeth with a bridge can lead to tooth migration over time, which is one reason dentists seek other solutions when possible.

    Of course, dental implants have their own downsides. Because they require surgery to install artificial roots in your jaw bone, recovery time is significantly longer than for a bridge. Because the surgery requires a minimum mass of healthy bone to securely anchor the implant, this procedure is not an option when severe damage to the jaw is sustained. Lastly, implants are more expensive than most other options.

    Every mouth and circumstance is unique, so you should talk to a cosmetic dentist when deciding if dental implants are right for you.

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    Improving Mineral Chelation Through Elemental Analysis

    Posted on January 7, 2013 by admin

    In recent years, studies regarding mineral nutrition have focused on reducing mineral excretion. Results reached by an elemental analysis service have shown that if certain levels of minerals remain intact after leaving the body, then the body is not absorbing the mineral. In pharmacology, absorption is the movement of a substance into the bloodstream. In cases of malabsorption, the nutrient is passed through the body without having been properly digested via the gastrointestinal tract. As a result, the body may become undernourished.

    The main purpose of the gastrointestinal tract is to absorb nutrients such as fat, carbohydrates, protein, fiber, vitamins, minerals, electrolytes, and water. The gastrointestinal tract is lined with epithelial cells, which line the cavities and surfaces of the body’s internal structures. Their function is three fold: To protect the tissues underneath it, to regulate and exchange chemicals between the body cavity and the underlying tissue, and to secrete hormones into the blood system. Substances and nutrients must pass through these epithelial cells in order to be absorbed into the circulatory system for use by the body.

    The epithelial cell membrane, or the walls of the cell, may be responsible for the prevention of absorption of a given drug or nutrient. Cell walls are thin polar semi-permeable membranes which generally only let small and uncharged solutes into the cell. However, solubility favors charged molecules, so whether or not a molecule is ionized, positive or negative, will affect its absorption. To allow an ionized molecule of a nutrient to dissolve, permeate, and be absorbed, a balance between the opposing properties of solubility and permeability must be reached. If chelated mineral supplements are introduced into the diet, this necessary balance can be achieved.

    Chelation creates a neutral compound which protects the mineral while it is in the stomach, until it reaches the gastrointestinal tract. Since the chelation process has made it neutral, the cell walls are able to let the uncharged particle through its membranes. Recent mineral chelation excretion studies show chelation helps the body reach an optimal level of nutrition through successfully absorbed mineral supplements.

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    3 Ways to Get More Out of Your Smart Phone

    Posted on December 31, 2012 by admin

    You may have heard that a typical smart phone today “has more computing power than Apollo 11 when it landed a man on the moon.” Well, have you landed on the moon lately? With this amazing technology literally in our hands, are we doing amazing things? Chances are your phone can do far more than you realize. To help you get more out of your phone’s impressive capabilities, here are three ways to take your phone usage to the next level.

    1. Find and Use Great Apps

    In many ways, your phone is only as good as your apps. Apps are what takes all the computing power of your mobile device and turns it into something practical (or not so practical). There are apps out there for pretty much anything you can think of and also plenty of things you’d never think of. Whether you want to link up your phone to control your Xbox, cut down on data usage to get the most out of your plan, or just streamline your grocery shopping experience, there are some great apps out there that will help unlock your phone’s potential.

    In fact, there are so many apps out there that there is an entire category of apps dedicated to helping you weed out the apps you don’t care about and find the ones that will be most beneficial to you. These “discovery apps” make it easier to navigate the ever-growing collection of apps flooding smart phone app marketplaces. For example, Hooked is a free app that helps you find the best Android games available for you. Based on a huge variety of metrics, including what types of games you have installed already, what games you play most, and even what games your friends play, this app makes recommendations of what new game apps you’ll love. After all, sometimes you’d rather use all that computing power to play a great game rather than orchestrating a lunar landing.

    2. Read the Manual (Or at Least Skim Through It)

    If you’re like many people, reading the manual is simply not something you do when you get a new phone. After all, modern user interfaces are designed to be extremely intuitive, so reading a manual usually just isn’t necessary. Well, if you really want to get to know your phone and learn more about what it can actually do, reading the manual is a great way to go. You don’t have to read it from cover to cover, but open it up and scan through the contents. Chances are you’ll find something that catches your eye and lets you know about some feature or capability you had no idea existed. And if you flat-out refuse to read a manual, check out these apps that offer helpful tips for using your phone to its fullest capacity.

    3. Plug into Awesome External Hardware

    No phone is an island. There are some great pieces of external hardware out there that let you dramatically increase what you can do with your phone. For example, Square is a great tool that can turn your phone into a mobile business platform. You can even get a portable printer for your phone. Of course, there are also more typical things like Bluetooth keyboards and bigger speakers and monitors. Finding something great to plug into can really extend your phone’s functionality.

    That’s One Small Step for a Phone

    If you’re only using your phone for calls, texts, and Words with Friends, you’re missing out on—dare I say?!—limitless possibilities. The sky is not the limit, and neither is the moon. Make your phone everything it can be.

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    2 Reasons Websites Fail

    Posted on December 31, 2012 by admin

    Many business owners these days think having a website is a surefire way to be more successful and get more customers. This is only true if you qualify that statement a bit. It’s not enough just to have a website. You have to have an effective website. Effective how? Effective as in your website directly contributes to turning site visitors into customers. Effective as in conversions—people calling you, filling out contact forms, clicking the “Buy now!” button.

    Optimizing your website for conversions is an elaborate process that requires a lot of testing and a careful balancing of several factors. To really know how your specific website is doing requires direct analysis, something this article can’t give you. What this article will give you, however, is a couple common reasons websites fail.

    Out-of-Date Design

    An ancient-looking website immediately makes the visitor wonder about the trustworthiness of the site. Is this business still active? Is this some cheap, flimsy scam website hurriedly pieced together? Even if you have amazing content, a bad site design can prevent a visitor from ever even reading any of that content. When a visitor comes to your website, you want to present them with a polished, modern-looking design that will immediately let them know you’re serious professionals with desirable goods or services.

    It’s hard to describe exactly what we’re talking about, so here are some links to help you get a feel for the differences between a bad site design and a modern site design:

    YourNew.com vs. Infogenix.com

    Zimbabwe vs. Germany

    When you compare sites, it’s pretty easy to spot a bad, old-looking site, and you immediately feel better about a site with a fresh, sleek design. Would you rather purchase web design services from a site with a boring, generic, stock-photo look to it (YourNew.com) or a sleek site that actually showcases the company’s design skills (Infogenix)? Would you be more likely to trust information from a site with cheesy scrolling text, cheap-looking animations, and a pixelated logo (Zimbabwe) or a site with stylish font, a nice image slideshow, and a professional look to it (Germany)? Like it or not, people definitely do judge books by their covers.

    Too Much or Too Little Info

    Unless your website is Wikipedia, it’s very important to remember that your website is not Wikipedia. Your website should not be a comprehensive, encyclopedic rundown of every possible bit of information about your company.

    Opening a web page and finding oneself assaulted by a mind-derping sledgehammer of overwhelming information is a big turnoff. Does your navigation menu feel like a choose-your-own-adventure book with no end? How many levels of pages are in your site structure hierarchy?

    When somebody visits your site, they want to feel like they can quickly and easily find the information they’re looking for. That’s why it’s important to streamline your site, including the most important information while not overwhelming the visitor. At the same time, not including enough information may limit your ability to earn the visitor’s trust. It’s a careful balancing act of providing relevant information that will lead to sales without tangling up the visitor in a jungle of too-much information.

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