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In the United States, there has recently been a boom in the use of corn to produce [[ethanol]] as automotive fuel. The result has been a rise in the price of corn, affecting its use for food and livestock feed.<ref>''The New York Times,'' February 2, 2007[http://www.nytimes.com/2007/02/11/weekinreview/11egan.html?_r=1&oref=slogin&ref=weekinreview&pagewanted=print]</ref>
In the United States, there has recently been a boom in the use of corn to produce [[ethanol]] as automotive fuel. The result has been a rise in the price of corn, affecting its use for food and livestock feed.<ref>''The New York Times,'' February 2, 2007[http://www.nytimes.com/2007/02/11/weekinreview/11egan.html?_r=1&oref=slogin&ref=weekinreview&pagewanted=print]</ref>
However, it is questionable how ecologically sound this practise is. When you add together the natural gas in the fertilizer, the fossil fuels it takes to make the pesticides, power the tractor and other machinery needed to dry, harvest and transport corn, every bushel of field corn needs about a quarter to a third of a gallon to grow it, around fifty gallons per acre. It therefore takes more than a calorie of fossil fuel energy to produce a calorie of food. It is not clear how sustainable the growing of corn for biofuel would be.<ref> 'The Omnivore's Dilemma', Michael Pollan, pp 45-46, pub. Penguin Press 2006 </ref>
Corn is a good subject for genetic studies. The offspring of a pair of gametes consists of the individual kernels on a single cob. These kernels may display easily observed phenotypic variation such as color. In an ear of corn with two colors of kernel, the number of kernels of each color will often display the classic 3:1 Mendelian ratio.
Corn is a good subject for genetic studies. The offspring of a pair of gametes consists of the individual kernels on a single cob. These kernels may display easily observed phenotypic variation such as color. In an ear of corn with two colors of kernel, the number of kernels of each color will often display the classic 3:1 Mendelian ratio.