Satellites and Crops

I thought that the description of satellite imaging in the case study of chapter eight was very intriguing. It seems that satellite images are like extremely detailed digital camera pictures. I also thought that the use of infrared bands to measure the brightness that needs to be recorded was interesting. I remember that when we were talking about maps in class, we learned that different plants reflect different infrared signals, and that because of this, satellite pictures can determine what is being grown where. For example, the police could use satellite imaging to determine if drugs are being grown among other crops in order to hide the drugs. Since, for example, corn and marijuana would reflect different infrared signals, police might be interested in searching a cornfield for marijuana if there was a patch in the corn that did not show up the same way as the rest of the field.
Besides determining what is being grown where, satellite images can help determine how well different plants of the same crop are growing. Healthy plants reflect infrared light much better than unhealthy plants do, so a darker spot on a satellite image could indicate that plants are not doing very well in a certain are. This information could be very useful for farmers, because they could then investigate to identify and solve the problem with their crops.

Food All Around the World

Over the years, especially recently, the world has become more globalized. When I think of globalization, I usually think about technology. However, this chapter describes globalization in agriculture. The increase in the ease of shipping over the years has meant that it has become easier and easier to ship crops all over the world. A trip to the grocery store would demonstrate this. It is no longer necessary to find a cultural food store in order to get ingredients for specific cultural dishes. Furthermore, there are more cultural food stores in a closer proximity to other stores, rather than being hard to find. Both of these instances show how globalization or agriculture is making foods that are not native to a specific area easier to find.
Interestingly, some crops can now be grown far away from their country and climate of origin. Although not necessarily a recent development, greenhouses demonstrate this option. Foods that cannot be grown in certain areas or at certain times of the year can now be grown all over the world because of technology that allows us to reproduce specific climates.

Urban Sprawl Solutions for Colorado Springs

I enjoyed reading about the various solutions to the problem of urban sprawl in Colorado in the case study of Chapter Eleven. As I read the solutions, I thought about which solutions I would prefer. I think that either the urban villages or the Northeast-Southeast extensions would be best. Urban villages would create nice suburbs around Colorado Springs. For people worried about air quality, urban villages could be beneficial because since the residential and commercial areas of the towns would be very close, there would be much less of a need for driving. Most commodities could be reached by walking or bike-riding, so there would be decreased auto-emissions. Furthermore, it seems that this option would be minimally invasive to the ecologically sensitive spaces, since the areas that would be developed are already “new-growth areas in the suburbs”. The other solution that I like would be that of the Northeast-Southeast extensions. This option also seems to be more environmentally friendly to the area, since it avoids expansion to the east, where the ecologically sensitive spaces are. I like this solution because it reduces urban sprawl by keeping the growth more contained, and in line with already developed areas. Also, there is a good diversity in the housing market, since the northeastern houses could be focused on serving the wealthier people that wish to move into the area, while the southeastern houses could be more affordable for everyone.