DOES IT PAY TO GROW GENETICALLY MODIFIED CROPS?
Whether or not Iowa farmers planted genetically modified crops in 1998, their bottom lines were basically the same, according to an analysis of 1998 farm costs and returns. The Leopold Center for Sustainable Agriculture funded the analysis of the USDA’s annual cropping practices survey. “Based on a cross-sectional examination of Iowa cropping practices in 1998, genetically modified crops provided farmers with no significant difference in returns,” said Mike Duffy, agricultural economist and Leopold Center associate director. Duffy’s analysis can be found on the World Wide Web at: http://www.leopold.iastate.edu/99-3gmoduffy.html. Contact Duffy at (515) 294-6160, or Anne Larson, Leopold Center, (515) 294-0626. BATS: THE TEENAGE DRIVERS OF THE AUTUMN SKIES With cooler temperatures, homeowners are discovering unexpected and often unwelcome houseguests. Bats follow air currents and often get pulled into chimneys. Young bats also like to explore, says Jim Pease, extension wildlife specialist
