OK, so things suck at the moment, but sometimes it's good to see that in certain sciences we are capable of doing something positive for the environment or combat poverty.

Over in the Nature journal they are reporting on Japanese scientists who have spent years working on modifying rice plants that react to sudden flooding. Unlike standard rice plants, these specimens can rapidly grow another 3-4 metres and thus remain productive.

The knock-on effect of this project should it be successful, will be to dramatically reduce hunger and starvation in regions prone to flooding in Africa and Asia.

The simple link is on the BBC here:

BBC NEWS | Science & Environment | Snorkel rice could feed millions

Subscribers to the Nature Journal can get access here:

SNORKEL beats the monsoon : Nature