For many IRRI employees The Big Bus (“Ang malaking bus“) is how they get to and from work.

In 2014, it turns 30, and choices need to be made regarding its future.

Michael Joyce reports that one potential fate of the bus (actually there are two of the same model) is particularly intriguing.

This is an extended (14:50) interview with Dr. Dorian Fuller, an archeobotanist from University College - London. It was recorded at the 7th Annual International Rice Genetics Symposium in Manila, Philippines on November 5th, 2013.

For a shorter version:

https://soundcloud.com/irri-radio/the-origin-of-rice

For more information on Dr. Fuller:

http://www.ucl.ac.uk/archaeology/people/staff/fuller

To read his blog:

http://archaeobotanist.blogspot.com/

For more background on rice:

http://www.irri.org/index.php?option=com_k2&view=item&layout=item&id=9081

[This interview originally published on November 14th, 2013]

A deceptively simple question: where does rice come from?

The answer is understandably complex, incomplete, and mostly in the hands of two very different kind of scientists. On the one hand are archeologists - more specifically, 'archeobotanists' - whose modus operandi is still firmly rooted in excavations and exhaustive cataloging. On the other hand, geneticists,who work in one of the fastest growing and most technologic disciplines in all of science.

IRRI Radio's Michael Joyce caught up with archeobotanist, Dr. Dorian Fuller, and geneticist, Dr. Susan McCouch at the 7th International Rice Genetics Symposium in Manila in November, 2013. It seems Drs. McCouch and Fuller not only wanted to talk about where rice comes from, but also why the answer to the question matters so much to so many.

For the extended version of the interview with Dr. Dorian Fuller:

https://soundcloud.com/irri-radio/the-origin-of-rice-a

For more on Dr. Dorian Fuller:

http://www.ucl.ac.uk/archaeology/people/staff/fuller

For more on Dr. Susan McCouch:

http://plbrgen.cals.cornell.edu/cals/pbg/people/faculty.cfm?netId=srm4

Rice Basics:

http://www.irri.org/index.php?option=com_k2&view=item&layout=item&id=9081

[First published on November 12th, 2013 by IRRI Radio]

Just like wine, rice is consumed my millions. But unlike wine - although some might argue this - rice is a staple. It feeds over half the world.

We hear about wine tasters. But not rice tasters.

Dr. Rochie Cuevas of the IRRI Grain Quality & Nutrition Center (GQNC) wants to change that. She firmly believes that a bridge can and should be built between the biochemical characteristics of rice and what we smell and taste and savor when we eat rice.

Rochie is a dynamo. And worth listening to. It's fun trying to keep up with her as she bounces from the laboratory, to the grocery aisle, to a room full of rice tasters, and even to a garden table that holds two things: a bottle of wine and a bowl or rice ...

Related Article:

http://irri.org/index.php?option=com_k2&view=item&id=12609:in-search-of-the-perfect-grain&lang=en

Related Video:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K-z-YphZYSM&feature=c4-overview&list=UUxs-9zQb56L4ZJictrbCojQ

Related Images:

http://www.flickr.com/search/?w=86712369@N00&q=grain%20quality

The International Rice Genebank, maintained by IRRI, holds more than 117,000 types of rice, including modern and traditional varieties, and wild relatives of rice. It is the biggest collection of rice genetic diversity in the world. Countries from all over the world sent their rice to IRRI for safe keeping, and for sharing for the common public good.

Traditional varieties and the wild species of rice are being lost through genetic erosion. Farmers adopt new varieties, and cease growing the varieties that they have nurtured for generations and eventually lose these varieties.

Wild species are threatened with extinction as their habitats are destroyed by human disturbance. Future crop improvement needs the genetic variation from traditional varieties and related wild species to cope with the many biotic and abiotic stresses that challenge rice production around the world.

IRRI works to ensure the long-term preservation of rice biodiversity as a part of the global strategy for the conservation of rice genetic resources in partnership with national programs and regional and international organizations worldwide, including through the International Rice Genebank.

WEBSITE:

http://irri.org/index.php?option=com_k2&view=item&id=9960:the-international-rice-genebank-conserving-rice&lang=en

PHOTOS:

http://www.flickr.com/search/?w=86712369@N00&q=gene%20bank

VIDEO:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RdwcIF_cm5Y

The IRRI Genotyping Services Laboratory (GSL) has been created to support the needs of rice breeding programs within the Global Rice Science Partnership.

A primary goal is to optimize the sample preparation workflow to increase the efficiency of rice leaf tissue sampling, DNA extraction, and DNA quality control in preparation for SNP genotyping.

For more information:

https://sites.google.com/a/irri.org/snp-genotyping-mmal/home

The Bigas2 Hackathon brings together IT developers from around the Philippines to inspire innovations that help improve the livelihood of rice farmers.

This hackathon is unique not only because of its focus on agricultural technology, but also because it is driven by IRRI's mission:

• reduce poverty and hunger

• improve the health of rice farmers and consumers

• ensure that rice production is environmentally sustainable.

Winners: https://sites.google.com/a/irri.org/rice-hackathon/winners

"The best judge of whether or not a country is going to develop is how it treats its women. If it is educating its girls, if women have equal rights, that country is going to move forward. But if women are oppressed and abused and illiterate, then they're going to fall behind." ~ Barack Obama~

"Farming is a profession of hope." ~Brian Brett~

For more information on women in rice farming visit:

Philippine Commission on Women | pcw.gov.ph

CGIAR: Research on Gender & Agriculture

http://www.cgiar.org/our-research/research-on-gender-and-agriculture/

[First aired on SoundCloud: August 7, 2013]

The first-ever season of Rice Survivor at the International Rice Research Institute began in December of 2012, and finished in May, 2013. Now the second season (Wet Season 2013) is already underway.

We thought it would be fun to take a look back.

It could be argued that no disease reflects more about how we live than diabetes. It encompasses how we eat, how much we use our bodies, and hourly decisions regarding both. In many ways our blood sugar is as good an indicator of our health as is our blood pressure or body mass index.

To call monitoring your blood sugar a 'numbers game' is to belittle a threat. A very significant one. And to call diabetes an 'epidemic' is not hyperbole. Diabetes is increasing in prevalence in ALL countries; especially the developing world.

In Asia - where 90-percent of the world's rice is consumed - diabetes is particularly relevant. Yes, rice is a carbohydrate-rich staple, but its relationship to diabetes is far more nuanced than cause-and-effect.

In this podcast Dr. Michael Joyce, MD delves into not just the relationship between diabetes and rice, but also the bigger picture of what role rice plays in an emerging global predicament; that is, most of us are getting far too much to eat, or far too little.

For more information on rice and healthy eating habits visit:

http://irri.org/index.php?option=com_k2&view=item&id=12597%3Arice-and-a-healthy-diet&lang=en

{ This podcast was published July 4th, 2013, during National Nutrition Month in the Philippines }