Introduction:
Irrigation has been used as tool by humans for over 8000 years. Irrigation started in the Nile valley where humans attempted to modify the way that the river seasonally flooded their fields in order to make cropland more productive (van Schilfgaarde, 1994). From 1940 to 1989 the amount of land being irrigated around the world has increased at a rate of 2.7% per year. In 1940 there were 95 M ha in irrigation while by 1989 there were over 280 M ha (van Schilfgaarde, 1994). This large increase in land under irrigation occurred at the same time as an exponential jump in human population, and increases in both are greatest in the arid and sub-arid regions of the Earth. Our population has therefore become reliant on irrigation to fend off large scale hunger (Abrol et al., 1988).
As rain falls it carries no dissolved salts. Once this water strikes the earth and travels as surface runoff or in ground water it will come into contact with and carry dissolved salts. Any water used for irrigation carries ions in solution and by depositing this water on our fields in the form of irrigation we can effect the concentration of salts in our croplands. If these salts become too concentrated it can lead to salinization. Salinization can reduce yields in it's earliest stages and eventually lead to the destruction of fertility in the soil. Currently the Earth is losing 3 ha of arable land a minute to the effects of salinization (Abrol et al., 1988). Can we stop this loss? Will we be able continue using arid lands to meet our food needs?
The Secondary Salinization Process
Salinization has a direct effect on both plant growth and the structure of the soil. If the soil is saline a plant will have to expend energy bringing water into it's cells because it is forced to work against osmotic potential. The cation exchange complex (CEC) effects the stability of colloid size particles in the soil. The cation's positive charge will be attracted to the negative charge found on clay particles which make up most of the colloid fraction. Di-valiant cations(Ca, Mg) will allow the colloidal particle to get close enough together that Van Dehr Wahls forces will cause the clays to flocculate, or form stable aggregates. Sodic soils, whose CEC is dominated by mono-valiant sodium cations, will tend to be dispersed and not form stable aggregates.
As Jensen points out, farming and industry accounts for the vast majority of total water usage in the world (477). The increasingly scarce resource is a necessary ingredient when growing food. Technology continuously improves to make it easier for farmers to grow crops while using less water. Scientists at the University of Georgia utilize what they term “variable rate irrigation” to let farmers automate the current systems of irrigation to water only the crops that need it (Gies). This is an example of retrofitting current farms, but there is a new way of farming coming to cities that reuses practically all of its water and stakes claim much less acreage in the process. The future of agriculture belongs to vertical and urban farming. These types of farms reduce the use of water, chemicals (such as pesticides, herbicides and fungicides), soil and space (The Economist). These farms are so cutting edge that they are mostly in the experimental stages. Firms like Famgro farms are testing “stackable” farming systems that can scale with demand, even further reducing waste. Famgro’s stackable farms are ideal for cityscapes where land is at a premium; furthermore, reaping the added benefit of being in close proximity to the customers that they serve. Customers will enjoy high quality, fresh produce at only a slightly
Agriculture and geography are very closely linked. In our modern civilization with advanced agricultural innovations, geography no longer plays as large of a role. In arid climates, crops can grow with the right irrigation systems and are now much more predictable with pesticides and genetic engineering. In ancient times however, if the landscape wasn’t farmable, it generally stayed that way. Irrigation has been around since 6000 BC but generally depended on the flooding of nearby river systems.
Crops can kill thousands and build millions. During the Potato Famine, an infamous crop failure, “1845 to 1947, more than one million people died of starvation or emigrated. Additionally, over 50,000 people died of diseases: typhus, scurvy, dysentery” (American University). For thousands of years crops have fueled large societies allowing for mass population growth and human expansion. But the transition from a hunter-gatherer lifestyle to an agricultural reliance bered many consequences along with its pros. Switching to an agricultural way of life provided health issues among humans, drastic changes socially and culturally, as well as ecological implications. This paper examines the changes accumulated by this transition including its enduring
Vickers, A. (2002). Conserving our finite water supplies in an era of chronic drought: Practical steps. Electronic Green Journal Issue 17.
Human beings appeared on this earth hundreds of thousands of years ago and eventually formed into tribes. They lived the life of hunter-gatherers and flourished at it, although not to our standards of population explosion, but they prospered nonetheless. The population of humans steadily grew at a very calm rate, “On the average, our population was doubling every nineteen thousand years. That's slow---glacially slow” (The Story of B 288). Then something happened. In the region of land between the Tigris and Euphrates rivers in what is now ancient Mesopotamia, and agricultural revolution was started bringing the practice of Totalitarian Ag...
As the empire expanded, there was a need for more farmland, but there was not always a water source available. The Incas grew corn, cotton and squash. Garciasco de la Vega, speaking about the farming in the Incan Empire, said, “The engineers showed great cleverness and skill in supplying water for the crops since only scattered sections of the land could grow corn” (Document 4). Their success with irrigation helped them expand their empire. Without it, it would be more difficult for them to subsist in a growing empire.
The 1950’s Cinderella created by world-renown Disney director, Clyde Geronimi, has been established as the most renown and generic story out of all. In comparison to Charles Perrault’s “Cinderella”, the standard storyline, both have the same concepts. Similarities such as the abuse, the magic, and the happily ever after is present in both exactly. Although, there are also horrifying aspects to discuss about Cinderella and their other versions. Certain acts such as the abuse and mutilation are considered to be unjust and not right, no matter the situation; but perhaps Cinderella was not as virtuous and kind as portrayed in the 1950’s film.
The origins of the Cinderella story date back around the beginning of the first century, or as far back as oral stories have been told. Many variations
Above, is a quote from a man recovered from an article of writing back in the ancient Egyptian times. Irrigation is a form of re-routing water, to parts of land that the water is needed, in farming terms. For Example, there are two crops, one crop is getting all the water, and it’s flooding. With irrigation, the farmer will re-route the water towards the other crop, as well as sharing the water with the crop that was being flooded. So now, both crops are getting enough water and they are not flooding nor suffering from drought.
In today 's society, it is normal for young children to believe in fairytales. These fairytales are normally seen throughout books and movies but also through parents reading them as bedtime stories. These tales in our society have unrecognized hidden guidelines for ethics and behaviors that we provide for children. One such children 's story is Disney’s Cinderella, this film seems to be a simple tale of a young woman whose wishes work out as to be expected. This tale reflects the expectations of women 's actions and beliefs of a proper women.
Regardless of how many versions of Cinderella there might be the story will be about a girl with a stepfamily who is evil and the girl will find her way to the ball and become one of the most prettiest girl, and soon enough the prince will come sweep her off her feet, which will soon become her life as she always wish for. Also, despite the time period it might be created or the title might be different the story will be connected to the original piece of Cinderella. There are similarities and differences in everything in life but the way we present it, is what it make it unique such as Cinderella story will be the Cinderella story but when one present it differently and it is single out from all the others then that is what it’s going to be famous for.
A Cinderella Story, released in 2004 by Warner Bros. Entertainment Inc., came into production as a direct adaptation from Cinderella under the direction of Mark Rosman. The film is a modernized version of the original story. Samantha Montgomery (Hilary Duff) is an average 18 year old girl who goes through the usual stages of high school and dreams of going to Princeton University. With the taunting of her family and the popular kids at school, the only escape Montgomery has is the Diner Staff, her best friend Carter (Dan Byrd), and an online friend. Soon enough, she is given the opportunity to meet him when he asks her to the Halloween dance at school. Her life takes a dramatic turn when she finds out the true identity of her online beau to be the popular Austin Ames
Water is on of the most precious natural resources that exist on our planet. “It is delivered from the atmosphere in the form of rain, snow, hail, fog, and condensation and returns to the atmosphere by evaporation and transpiration” (Hannigan 1969). Although many of us love activities that have to do with water, we disregard it and pollute out rivers, lakes and oceans. Slowly but surely we are going to harm out planet till no return. Protecting and conserving nature will secure a better future. 71% of earth is covered with oceans. Sounds like a lot right? Imagine ...
Poverty is one of the primary concerns the world faces in its road to development. Eradication of poverty tends to be the prime aims of governments worldwide. Lack of proper nutrition is a major cause contributing to poverty. Improving agricultural standards can help in producing more food and thus counter the lack of food factor. One way to improve agricultural standards is to develop the irrigation methods used. Irrigation is closely related to poverty. Irrigation benefits the poor through higher production, higher yields, low risk of crop failure and higher and year round farm and non-farm employment. Irrigation leads to high value market oriented agricultural production [1]. However, in developing countries like India, the agricultural sector is heavily dependent on the south-west monsoons. In view of the rising temperatures worldwide due to global warming and changes of weather patterns associated with it, dependence on rains is not always a possible solution. Failure of proper rains can cripple the agricultural sector which can lead to an overall rise in poverty. Thus...
Global warming is one of the main causes, which leads to the lack of water and drought. A drought-like condition exists in most of India’s part. Government of India states that 68% of the country is disposed to the drought, which (consequences are) leads to massive migration of people to more favorable places, famine, conflicts among inhabitants. India is known in the world as one of the biggest producers of water-intensive crops such as rice, sugarcane and wheat. According to a survey done by Grail Research, approximately 82% of total water is used for agricultural consumption and 90% of it is employed for irrigation of rice, wheat and sugarcane (Grail Research, LLC, 2009). There are several solutions which could lead to the decr...