水稻是世界将近一半人口的主要农作物。遗憾的是,稻田潮湿土壤的缺氧环境非常适合制造甲烷的微生物。就产生温室效应而言,甲烷的作用仅次于二氧化碳。稻米的产量将随着世界人口的持续增长而增加,从而带来更多甲烷。不过,新的研究结果显示,最大限度地增加作物产量不仅可以提供更多食物,令人惊讶的是还能减少甲烷的生成量。 Rice is the main crop of nearly half of the world’s population. Unfortunately, the oxygen-deficient environment of wet soils in paddy fields is well suited to the methane-producing microorganisms. The role of methane in the production of greenhouse gases is second only to that of carbon dioxide. Rice production will increase as the world’s population continues to grow, resulting in more methane. However, new research shows that maximizing crop yields not only provides more food, but surprisingly reduces methane production.