Pest

The agricultural pests known as plant bugs can be a farmer’s worst enemy. These winged insects—the size of a pea or smaller—suck the sap from apples, lettuce, and other crops, causing millions of dollars in damages globally each year. A Costa Rican flower has turned this foe into friend, however, according to a new study. One species of the so-called arum plant has evolved to attract a species of plant bug instead of a typical beetle pollinator, helping them…

Three years ago, forest scientists on the U.S. West Coast launched an effort to gather nearly 1 million seeds of the Oregon ash. The ecologically valuable tree, found from southern California to British Columbia in Canada, often grows along streams and in wetlands, anchoring rich ecosystems. In part, the collecting effort represented disaster insurance: The emerald ash borer, an invasive, iridescent green beetle that has wiped out ash trees throughout much of the eastern and…

It's only been a couple of weeks since Cre8Audio unveiled its first self-contained synth. But the company is back already with a companion to the East Beast, called the West Pest. As the name implies this is a West Coast style synth, made to complement the Beast's east coast flavor.  Just like the Beast this is an analog semi-modular synth built in collaboration with Pittsburg Modular. It has a 20-point patch bay, a one octave keyboard, a 32-step sequencer, an arpeggiator and a "digital multi-function tool" that can be an…