Thirty years ago, the polio virus was rampant in more than 120 countries, responsible for the paralysis of about 350,000 people each year. Today, there are only 12 documented cases of the disease in just two nations — and, according to the Bill and Melinda Gates. (Wednesday October 25th, 2017 — HuffPost - USA)

An artefact excavated from a shipwreck off the coast of Oman has been found to be the oldest known example of a type of navigational tool. (Tuesday October 24th, 2017 — BBC online - UK)

The principles of biodynamics were created in 1924 by a man who had never farmed a day in his life. That fact plus some of its seemingly odd practices have caused many people to consider the approach mystical voodoo, but adherents say Rudolf Steiner — an Austrian philosopher and social activist — was just codifying some of the oldest and simplest methods of farming. (Friday October 20th, 2017 — The San Luis Obispo Tribune - San Luis Obispo, California USA)

In the 1960s, German ornithologists Franz and Eleanore Saver discovered that birds navigate the night sky by using the stars. A decade later, a Cornell scientist was able to identify the specific star patterns used by the indigo bunting. For indigo buntings, orientation to the night sky develops as the young birds observe the stars. When star patterns are reversed in a planetarium, buntings will change their orientation 180 degrees, showing that they use the stars to guide themselves. (Wednesday October 18th, 2017 — The Old Farmers Almanac - Dublin, New Hampshire USA)

For a long time, Japanese anthropologists and officials tried to bury the Ainu. It didn’t work. (Wednesday October 18th, 2017 — Smithsonian online - USA)

Built upon the ethos of former organic movement visionaries, including J.I. Rodale and Dr. Rudolf Steiner, the goals of the certification are to increase soil over time, better animal welfare, provide fair wages and economic stability for farmers, ranchers and workers, in addition to developing resilient regional communities and ecosystems. Rodale Institute said the certification will support existing standards incorporated by USDA Organic and similar programs and facilitate widespread adoption of regenerative agricultural methods. (Tuesday October 17th, 2017 — Sourcing Journal Online - )

Most historians have credited the Greeks with creating the study of triangles' sides and angles, but this tablet presents indisputable evidence that the Babylonians were using the technique 1,500 years before the Greeks ever were. (Tuesday September 5th, 2017 — distractify.com )

The Pfeiffer Center, a New York organization that practices, teaches and promotes Biodynamics, describes it as “an approach to plant and land care that combined novel techniques of building up healthy soil with a renewed awareness of all the forces at work in the farm organism: among and between the soil, plants, animals and humans, as well as the cosmos itself.” (Tuesday September 5th, 2017 — OregonWinePress.com - McMinnville, Oregon USA)

... you may consider this to be the biggest load of plonk, but when I heard Gérard Bertrand - a former rugby player who looks more rock star than Mystic Mick - explain how this ensures a balance between the vines and the soil, my mind was opened to the possibility that quite a bit of this just might make sense. (Sunday September 3rd, 2017 — Independent.ie - Dublin, Ireland)

In the 1940s ... J.I Rodale coined the term organic to describe his system of agriculture based on the works of Sir Albert Howard in England, Rudolf Steiner in Germany and doctor William Albrecht of the University of Missouri. Around the same time, Lord Northbourne also adopted the term organic to describe the idea of the farm as an organism. All of these progenitors of the organic movement shared the same values as those people who embrace organic food today. (Friday September 1st, 2017 — Born2Invest - London, UK)

Not far from the city of Mysuru, in Halasuru village of Kote Taluka in Karnataka, Anjali Rudraraju and Kabir Cariappa have created their own little slice of paradise – Yarroway Farm. ... Although biodynamic farming methods are practised at Yarroway, Anjali and Kabir also make other compost such as panchagavya and ash nutrients, depending on the crops, season and soil situation. (Tuesday August 29th, 2017 — YourStory.com - Bengaluru, Karnataka, India )

“It is a long journey that takes time. At first most of my staff said the boss has gone crazy, but now they will leave if we go back to conventional [winemaking].” Everyone I met had an almost evangelical belief in the project and in biodynamics. “I tell you, it works,” argues Bertrand. (Saturday August 26th, 2017 — Irish Times)

At Polyface Farm, Sheri Salatin, daughter-in-law of Joel Salatin and marketing director at the farm, has seen firsthand the growing interest in sustainable farming from the youngest generations. (Friday August 25th, 2017 — BillMoyers.com )

Thousands of Atlantic salmon escaped from a fish farm pen off the coast of Washington late last week, threatening native Pacific salmon and causing officials to enlist the help of citizen fishers in an effort to catch them. (Thursday August 24th, 2017 — Smithsonian online - USA)

That innovation is the small-scale Oasis Aquaponic Food Production System. It’s a practical method to grow fish and vegetables, using “aquaponics,” a little-known form of integrated aquaculture. (Wednesday August 23rd, 2017 — Michigan Today - University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, Michigan USA)

Alternative schools come as a big relief, away from a system obsessed with exams and unhealthy competition (Sunday August 20th, 2017 — The Hindu - India)

Masanobu Fukuoka was a Japanese farmer and philosopher who spearheaded natural farming, and began what is widely acknowledged as a revolution in the history of conventional agricultural practices. (Saturday August 19th, 2017 — The Better India )

Biodynamic agriculture involves unusual practices, but producers stand by their results (Thursday August 17th, 2017 — Capital Press )

Do you know your natural from your biodynamic? Our new series aims to clear up a muddy topic. (Wednesday August 16th, 2017 — Wine-Searcher )

The Lightfoots have a rich heritage farming in the Annapolis Valley over eight generations, four of those developing a certified biodynamic farm that had been focused on commercial poultry. Biodynamic means that every aspect of the farm is used toward sustainable production. Even the yeast that grows on the vines is used in the wines’ fermentation process. (Monday August 14th, 2017 — TheChronicleHerald.ca - Nova Scotia, Canada)