Earlier this week Joule Unlimited secured $70 million in funding.  The company happens to have algae facilities that turn carbon dioxide and sunlight into biodiesel and ethanol.  Meanwhile Bio Architecture Lab was able to get seaweed to create chemicals and biofuels.  Both processes use patented organisms to create the biofuel.

Two studies published this week, one from the University of Michigan and the other from the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution, show how nature is changing.  The effects of pollution on fish and excess CO2 on plants and insects are changing those elements of nature.

Tobacco farmers rejoice!  A new use has been found for tobacco and it doesn’t require a warning label.  Scientists have found that a tobacco virus can be used to make “tiny components” for future batteries.  Tobacco has also been found to be a good source of enzymes, sugar and oil for biofuel production.

According to research released by NASA, humans are using more and more plant life for “food, fiber, building and packaging materials and biofuels.”  That increase is happening not just overall as the world population increases but also per person.

TU Delft doctoral candidate and researcher Jean-Paul Meijnen has shown that bacteria can be “trained” to break down plant waste into the chemicals that are the basis of bioplastics.  The bacteria goes through a little gene therapy, a little evolutionary selection and finally training to achieve this feat.

Some environmentalists are looking at their previous stances and apologizing for them.  As if that isn’t a shocker, they are specifically saying that they were wrong to oppose genetically modified (GM) crops and nuclear power.  Give it a week and they will be called traitors by others in the movement and their apology will be seen as a victory for Global Warming deniers.

All biblical allusions aside, Michigan State University (MSU) researchers have a uncovered a gene in the burning bush shrub that could mean a lower calorie vegetable oil as well as fuel for your car.  The gene found in the burning bush when added to the mustard weed will generate a high quality oil in large quantities.

A University of Central Florida professor has found a clean cheap way of making ethanol using orange peels, tobacco and other waste.  By using tobacco plants to grow the necessary enzymes needed to break down waste products, a scorned crop may find redemption.

Cocoon, the fish and meat maker, is the winner of the Electrolux Design Lab 2009 competition.  The appliance will supposedly grow meat and fish from prepackaged “genetically modified” meat and fish.  Of course, we are talking about something in the future and not something that is expected to be sold anytime soon in your local Wal-Mart.