Futurama season 1
The new Planet Express crew receives their first mission:
a delivery to an amusement park on the Moon. Fry is enthusiastic
about the idea of going to the Moon, but is disappointed that
people only go there for the amusement park and wants to see the
"real Moon." He hijacks one of the rides with Leela, but gets
them both stranded on the Moon's surface. Low on oxygen, they
take refuge in a hydroponic farm, but Bender, who was kicked out
of the amusement park, makes advances on one of the farmer's
robot daughters, forcing the three to flee from the angry
farmer.
Vectorman Day 9: Hydroponic Lab
Four blobs who look like they belong in a Gumby cartoon is your next boss. The first shape they'll change into is a slinky-like creature that goes up
and down in an arch pattern (You'll recognize it), then it'll crawl along the ground. In both cases, jump. After that, it'll take the shape of a man
that walks back and forth. Jump over it and let loose. The pattern repeats from there. They can't be damaged when they are not combined into a form,
so wait until they take shape first.
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What is it with robots and hydroponics? Does the land of the future the only place to find soilless greenery? Maybe not after browsing a few historical records. The in the biblical story of Babylon, hanging gardens bloomed with food crops if to be believed.
Centuries later, Italian traveler Marco Polo commented on what he called the “Floating Gardens.” The Aztec Empire of Mexico near Tenochtitlan built a type of early hydroponic system that cultivated plants on the surface of the water. Since arable land was scarce, these chinampas were actually small artificial islands built from marsh mud held together by tree roots.
http://ezinearticles.com/?Ancient-Hydroponics-Gardens&id=751556
http://www.experiencefestival.com/wp/article/ancient-hydroponics-gardens
The EPCOT center in Walt Disney World technological center "Future World" has a hydroponic garden that grows many food crops, and sells the fresh produce. Israel produces much of its produce hydroponically, since the area is generally arid and rich investors can afford the increased costs.
Hydro what?
Yes, many cannabis connoisseurs grow their own, swearing that their high-intensity-bulbs and nutrient solutions can produce a finer and faster product than anything under the real sun. Computer-controlled lights turn on and off according to complex schedules that maximize vegetative growth and trigger blooms in the shortest time. People in glass houses shouldn't throw stones, or invite stoners who will blab. Paranoia will destroy ya, keep your grow down on the low-down.
Superabsorbent polymers (SAP) are synthetic polymers that absorb many times their weight in water and release it as they dehydrate. Inert sodium acetate and polyacrylate both make great diapers and can also be found in cosmetics and some foods. They are also good soil conditioners, holding water in otherwise arid soil. Adding a few teaspoons of sodium acetate crystals to the soil in my office pepper plant containers lets me water them once before leaving each weekend. Now, the soil is still moist and the plants are still perky when I return each Monday. No more capsized capsicums to kick off the week.
Introduction
1. Soak the crystal-soil in water by the percentage of 1:100 for
12-14 hours. Pour it out and filter away excess water.
2. Take the plant clean the roots and cut the rotten roots and
leaves, put the plant into glass vase and pour the soil into
the vase, and some water when. The surface comes dry.
3. This product is no poisonous, no pollution. It will no go
bad or color fade, contain fertilizer.
4. You should place this product where there is no direct
sunshine. Make sure that children cannot get it. It cannot
be eaten.
-from “The color no fade Crystal Soil, a top substitute soil for planting”
My first experience with superabsorbent hydroponic soil started at the
state fair, where seasonal sellers stock booths full of affordable thrills. Imagine Asia's finest
knockoff goods, available for you to browse in a huge
warehouse, only once a year!
Laser pointers with huge ergonomic grips are marketed as 'cat chasing toys.' Food-grade concentrated
sodium acetate solutions provide portable, reusable heat packs. Who says that only Frito-Lay can sell it on
salt and vinegar chips?
Rayon fabric from superabsorbent shammies will scrub even your dirtiest dishes clean! Wonder mops from the same (but differently shaped) material will clean up many times their weight in any soda you can pour on them. Solidified soybean oil doubles as fuel for votive candles and as a soothing hand lotion!
Pink paraffin sticks promise to banish fog from glasses and shine your car's panels to a mirror finish. Rows full of neatly aligned replica zippo lighters all at fire-sale prices greet juvenile firebugs!
Mounds of freshly chopped vegetables decorate brightly illuminated booths selling food processors. Browsing around, you will discover every type ranging from manual boards bearing diagonal blades to fully automated, computer controlled blenders that can be programmed according to any recipe. Like salsa?
To complete the scene, shoppers squeeze past each other, bearing screaming children and bags full of overpriced merchandise.
After watching a fast-paced demonstration that rehydrated a spoonful of water crystals into a pile of glistening jelly, I purchased a bag and took it home. Following the directions carefully so as not to waste any of my granular goodies, I repeated the process and filled a hemispherical glass cup with the gel. A freshly cut philodendron sprout would thrive in this soil-less planter for many weeks, before it started turning yellow from lack of nutrients. This was my oversight, since I'd seen the demonstration run for plants and assumed there would be no need to add fertilizer.
Plants need nitrogen. Fish need to pee. Combining aquaculture with plants gives farmers a chance to produce both valuable crops and a tasty captive catch while recycling nutrients that would otherwise need to be added or removed.
Some hydroponic farms do away with solid media altogether, in aeroculture. Here, water and dissolved nutrients drips or is sprayed over roots, to keep them moist, fed and aerated. Other times, the plants grow in tanks as air bubbles from below from stone diffusers like the fine bubbles in aquariums. Aeroponic setups are more dependent on constant electrical power, since turning off the water or air pumps will leave plant roots hanging out to dry or drowning in stagnant water. Also, the water needs to be filtered constantly as it cycles through the system.
Hydroponics offers several advantages over conventional farming. First, the plants devote more of their energy to fruits and seeds, since they don't require the elaborate root systems of their soil-bound siblings. They can also mature faster, since the media provides more than enough nutrients. Next, there are rarely pests to distract them. Even though parasites or disease can also attack hydroponically grown plants, they generally receive more intense attention from gardeners, who quickly treat any diseases and pick off critters.
Headed back to nature? there are no truly 'organic' hydroponic grow systems, since synthetic nutrients need to be added to the growth media or water. Soilless doesnt mean soulless, and gardeners can can still use natural materials to root their plants. Volcanic stone like lava rocks, perlite and vermiculite make good growth media. They're inert and their many pores hold water for thirsty roots. You might have trouble finding these last two, since they abrade into a powder that can become airborne when dry. Growers inhaling this powder have been shown to increase their cancer risk a bit from tiny tiny silica particles that lodge in their lungs. Sand is an old standby for filling in extra space and providing good drainage. Lastly, clay or ceramic balls are another alternative, reminiscent of the old days of Babylon and its vertical verdant gardens.