How to emphasize the 'wow' factor at your next trade show or event
By: TSNN / Trade Show News Network -- The live events industry is roaring back to life, but this trend is more than just the post-pandemic surge in attendance. Customers don't want the typical massive trade show or small business conference. They are increasingly demanding an experience.

Sustainable practices in the trade show industry: Carpet usage and beyond
By: TSNN / Trade Show News Network -- Sustainability is not just a trend within the trade show industry, it's a foundational aspect of our operations. A task force of exhibition industry leaders recently released a report, revealing significant data encouraging us to adopt more environmentally conscious practices.

68% of US event goers have attended a virtual meeting they wished was in-person
By: Hospitality Net -- After a surge in virtual meetings driven by the pandemic, nearly three-quarters of event goers now say they prefer in-person events to virtual ones, according to a recent Hilton survey.

Post-show recap: 3 takeaways from Meta Connect conference 2023
By: TSNN / Trade Show News Network -- Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg kicked off the 10th annual Meta Connect developer conference on Sept. 27 at the company's headquarters in Menlo Park, California. At the company's first in-person conference since the start of the pandemic, Zuckerberg told the audience of developers, employees and journalists that Meta is "focused on building the future of human connection."

Financial considerations for small-business owners pursuing growth
By: Forbes Magazine -- As a small-business owner, the allure of growth may appear deceptively straightforward, but before setting sail toward success through expansion, there are vital financial considerations.

Small businesses suffer record number of cyber-attacks
By: Infosecurity Magazine -- Nearly three-quarters (73%) of U.S. small business owners reported a cyber-attack last year, with employee and customer data most likely to be targeted in data breaches, according to the Identity Theft Resource Center (ITRC).

IRS unveils 'special withdrawal process' for small businesses that claimed pandemic-era tax credit
By: CNBC -- The IRS recently announced a "special withdrawal process" for small businesses that may have wrongly claimed the so-called employee retention tax credit or ERC.

Telling small businesses to buy cyber insurance isn't enough
By: Dark Reading -- The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) and the National Association of Insurance Commissioners (NAIC) have issued guidance suggesting companies consider cyber insurance as a means of resilience against cyberattacks. While essential, merely suggesting cyber insurance isn't enough.

The surprising benefits of switching to 'lamb mowers'
By: The Washington Post -- Sisyphus pushed a boulder for eternity. I had to mow my friend's lawn. Every summer, before heading to the beach, we'd have to ensure his grass was cut. We'd push a roaring lawn mower under the scorching Florida sun.

Don't (totally) clean up your garden this fall
By: The Washington Post -- Traditionally, autumn has been seen as cleanup time in the garden, a season for raking (or blowing), clipping and whisking away. But now we're getting a different message from environmentalists, who say we should "leave the leaves" and withhold pruning back seed heads until spring.

Hear that -- It's the sound of leaf blower bans
By: Grist -- For more than 100 million years, trees have dropped their leaves every fall, creating a protective layer of duff that provides cover for snails, bees, and butterflies. Decaying leaves fertilized the soil and gave nutrients back to the trees.

Later frosts could make new crops possible in Alaska. But climate change brings challenges, too.
By: Alaska Public Media -- In October, fall gives way to winter for much of Alaska. But each year, the first frost is arriving later and later. That could be a boon for Alaska farmers. University of Alaska Fairbanks professor Glenna Gannon says the longer growing season is making some types of crops possible for the first time.

These plants change color when exposed to a pesticide
By: WIRED -- Thanks to some genetic tricks, plants can now speak in color. A team of researchers at the University of California, Riverside hacked the natural stress response system in Arabidopsis thaliana, a small white-flowered plant from the mustard family that serves as a common model organism in plant biology labs.

Chloroplasts do more than photosynthesis: They're also a key player in plant immunity
By: UC Davis -- Scientists have long known that chloroplasts help plants turn the sun's energy into food, but a new study, led by plant biologists at the University of California, Davis, shows that they are also essential for plant immunity to viral and bacterial pathogens.

Insights for plant breeding: Arming wheat plants against climate stress with microorganisms
By: Phys.org -- Agriculture in Europe is increasingly affected by extreme weather conditions that lead to crop losses. In 2018, the damage in Germany alone amounted to around 770 million euros. Making wheat plants more resilient to these stresses could make a significant contribution to safeguarding global food production.

In US, invasive spotted lanternflies are devastating crops
By: Phys.org -- At first glance, the spotted lanternfly looks like an elegant butterfly, speckled with black spots on white wings with a splash of bright red. But the insect native to parts of Asia (Lycorma delicatula) is attacking plants and trees in the U.S., and officials are moving quickly to try to contain its spread.

How Idaho farmers are growing crops in a more sustainable way
By: Boise State Public Radio -- When it comes to potatoes, Idaho is the number one producer in the U.S., growing nearly 30% of the nations supply. Like many other areas of the country our state is feeling the impacts of climate change, experiencing shortages in the famous crop, as recently as last year.

Proposed tax credit could help landscapers transition to electric leaf blowers, lawn mowers in California
By: The Orange County Register -- When Sana Sirodan and her team launched Greenplace landscaping services out of Costa Mesa, California, earlier this year after immigrating from Ukraine due to the war, she said they opted for all-electric equipment from the start.

Can planting multiple crops in the same plot improve agricultural production and sustainability
By: Wiley via Phys.org -- Agricultural management has typically focused on increasing yields, but there is an increasing need for sustainable food production that limits negative impacts on the environment. A new study published in Grassland Research provides insights into the potential benefits of diversifying agricultural practices, revealing how different mixtures of plant species can improve production, quality and conservation.

How plants communicate with each other when in danger
By: The Washington Post -- It sounds like fiction from "The Lord of the Rings." An enemy begins attacking a tree. The tree fends it off and sends out a warning message. Nearby trees set up their own defenses. The forest is saved.