Even the ancient human activity of farming is being remade by makers. Caleb Harper of the MIT Media Lab has developed “food computers,” or enclosed environments of various sizes for growing crops. The energy, water, and mineral use of each computer can be precisely monitored and controlled, as can parameters including humidity, temperature, and levels of carbon dioxide and dissolved oxygen. Growers can experiment with different “climate recipes” to produce characteristics they want in their crops, share the recipes they come up with, and work to improve others’ recipes. The goal of Harper’s
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