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Planting weeds to eliminate mines

Christian Science Monitor is reporting development of a weed that helps detect land mines. A Danish company, Aresa Biodetection, has developed a strain of Thales Cress, a fast growing ground weed, that turns red in the presence of nitrogen dioxide, which most land mines give off.

This is potentially fascinating technology for places like Angola, where the majority of arable land goes unused because it’s mined. Finally, genetic engineering we can all feel good about!