Samuel Gander

Samual Gander
Mr. Dunham
English 102
April 25, 2012
Farming on a Whole New Level Although people have worked in agriculture for more than 10,000 years, advance in technology assist with maintaining and protecting land, crops, and animals. The demand to keep food prices affordable encourages those working in the agriculture industry to operate as efficiently as possible (Newman and Ruiz 33-47). Almost all people and companies in this industry have many acres of land they must maintain, and it is not always feasible for farmers to take frequent trips around the property to perform basic tasks such as watering soil in the absenence of rain. The number of people-hours required to water soil manually on several thousand acres of land might result in businesses spending thousands of dollars in labor and utility costs. If the irrigation process is automated, sensors detect how much rain has fallen recently, as well as whether the soil is in need of watering. The sensors then send this data to a computer that processes it and decides when and how much to water. In addition to keeping the soil moist and reducing maintenance costs, computers also can utilize sensors to analyze the condition of crops in the field and determine whether pests or diseases are affecting the crops. If sensors detect pests and/or diseases, computers send a notification to the appropriate individual to take corrective action. In some cases, according to

Brewster, the discovery of pests might trigger a pesticide to discharge in the affected area automatically (Agriculture: Expanding and Growing). Many farmers use technology on a daily basis to regulate soil moisture and to keep their crops pest free. With technology, farming can be much more convenient and efficient.

Work Cited
Barton, Blake. "Computers in Agriculture." Agriculture Today and Tomorrow. (2012): 53-86. Print.
Brewster, Letty. "Agriculture: Expanding and Growing." (2012): n. pag. Web. 9 Feb 2012.
Newman, Albert D, and Carmen W Ruiz. The Agriculture Industry Today. New York: Alabama Press, 2012. Print

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[ 1 ]. Barton states that many automated home irrigation systems also are programmable and use rain sensors (67-73).

Cited: Barton, Blake. "Computers in Agriculture." Agriculture Today and Tomorrow. (2012): 53-86. Print. Brewster, Letty. "Agriculture: Expanding and Growing." (2012): n. pag. Web. 9 Feb 2012. Newman, Albert D, and Carmen W Ruiz. The Agriculture Industry Today. New York: Alabama Press, 2012. Print -------------------------------------------- [ 1 ]. Barton states that many automated home irrigation systems also are programmable and use rain sensors (67-73).