by Nicola | Sep 15, 2009
Beer enthusiasts, myself among them, were upset to read this week that our pints of pilsner lager might be the latest casualty of climate change. New Scientist reported the depressing news: it seems that the quality of Eastern European Saaz hops is going downhill each... by Nicola | Sep 13, 2009
IMAGE: “Endothelium”, by Philip Beesley Over on BLDGBLOG, Geoff speculates on the agricultural possibilities of “Endothelium”, an organic, automated geotextile designed by architect Philip Beesley, in which “low-power miniature... by Nicola | Sep 12, 2009
As any self-respecting locavore can tell you, many of us have forgotten how to eat seasonally, at least in the developed world. Nonetheless, the weather still exercises a huge effect on the food we choose to buy and eat. As British supermarket giant Tesco has... by Nicola | Sep 9, 2009
Shiitake logs on racks in the Mittagong mushroom tunnel. All photos in this post taken by the author. As Geoff Manaugh has already mentioned on BLDGBLOG, we spent our last full day in Australia touring the Li-Sun Exotic Mushroom Farm with its founder and owner, Dr.... by Nicola | Sep 3, 2009
Food publishing is a curious business: cookbook sales boom in lockstep with the rise of ready-meals, testifying to a fascination with food that elides the act of actually preparing it. Nonetheless, most follow a proven formula, leavening glossy photos of gorgeously... by Nicola | Aug 31, 2009
As early as the first century A.D., Western cartographers and geographers began to speculate that there must be a large continent in the southern hemisphere, to act as a counterbalance to the large known landmasses of the north. Beginning with Magellan, explorers...