This is a most excellent place for technology news and articles.
Wonder if I would grow some extra inches, if I made bread out of this yeast?
Does it work for all bee species or only the honeybee species we usually use for producing honey? Wild populations are getting fucked and, last I checked, outcompeted by invasive honeybees we keep introducing to new areas for increased honey production...
The article suggests that if the farmed honey bees get this engineered food, that would leave more wild forrage for native bees.
I suspect native bees would also benefit from eating it too.
Abstract: Scientists have developed a breakthrough “superfood” for honeybees by engineering yeast to produce the essential nutrients normally found in pollen. In controlled trials, colonies fed this specially designed diet produced up to 15 times more young, showing a dramatic boost in reproduction and overall health. As climate change and modern agriculture reduce the availability of natural pollen, this innovation could offer a practical way to support struggling bee populations.
Humans: oh sure, let's not change our insane agricultural system that is the major killer of biodiversity but instead create yet another technonfix by now in 2026™ fiddeling with the genes of another species.
When will we finally learn: there are no technological solutions to 'manage' the living. The living is not 'manageable'./We've tried this approach pretty much since 100 years and every one 'solution' created two new problems. Look where we are guys, our planet is FUCKED. 50 years ago it was DDT, now it's Crispr-CAS9...
1000 likes for this celebration of technical human dominance, we're doing quite right, do we? Not our 'dysfunctional' ecosystem is the problem, but our approach to it that is based on control and (technoligical) dominance, instead of humility and respect.
