Now this is neat.
When I first heard about the Svalbard Global Seed Vault, I was confused. While a global seed depository sounds like a great idea on the surface, I had no idea what practical purpose it could actually serve.
The next day, I learned of one potential purpose for this Vault - located on the Norwegian island of Svalbard - should some form of bioterrorism eventually completely destroy any of Earth's crops, the SGSV (which has been built to withstand a nuclear attack) will be able to step in and save the farm, so to speak.
Then, after a little bit of web surfing, I found another use for it. Genebanks - the SGSV is one genebank - frequently lose samples of some seeds, either by accident or due to deliberate outside action. So basically, from now on, anytime somebody loses their last sample of a certain seed, they can just head to Norway and get a replacement! At least, I think that's how it works.
--Ryan
No comments:
Post a Comment