olive tree

(Newser) - Nine scientists—plus one public official—tasked by the EU with preventing the spread of a plant-killing disease in Italy have been accused of actually spreading the disease, polluting the environment, and "disfiguring natural beauty" by Italian authorities, Nature reports. "We are shocked," one scientist says. "...

(Newser) - How do you get rid of a population of bugs destroying your crops? Scientists are trying out a controversial method: spreading a gene that prevents females from reproducing. Males can live with the lab-inserted gene, but females die in the larval stage—which doesn't leave a lot of options...

(Newser) - Brad Pitt had best produce something a little nicer than an "I Choo-Choo-Choose You" card tomorrow, if the British tabloids are to be believed. Partner Angelina Jolie has extended the Inglourious Basterds star no ordinary olive branch—the Sun reports it's a 200-year-old olive tree that she scored for...