During the 20th century, the yield of crop plants has increased dramatically thanks to new technologies and cultivation practices. Genetic engineering- the most powerful of these new technologies- has produced crops that are resistant to insects, viruses, and other pathogens. Within the next decade, scientists will have identified all of the genes necessary program the entire life cycle of crop plants and will understand their functions. We will soon be able to manipulate crops to grow under limiting conditions and to produce an abundance of food to feed an exponentially growing world population. Series: "UCLA Faculty Research Lectures" [5/2004] [Science] [Agriculture] [Show ID: 8695]