Microbial coolness

Video of nematode-eating fungi.

Video courtesy of Tom Loynachan, Professor of Agronomy (and Microbiology) at Iowa State University. All of the videos (accessible via the second link) are informative and worthy of a view.

Newsflash: Bioethanol Still Bad Idea

According to this article at least.

Indeed, many livestock operations are getting hit with a double whammy. First, they’re paying more for each ton of corn-derived feed. At least as importantly, a new study finds, the corn product that’s they're feeding to their animals can be anticipated to carry triple the normal load of fungal toxins.

Because those fungal poisons — or mycotoxins — threaten the health of animals, farmers can look for reduced livestock growth, especially in swine.

The new analysis conservatively estimates the current cost to U.S. hog producers from just one of those toxins, fumonisin, at about $9 million a year.