From jetpacks to teleportation and even cloning, humans have many ideas for the future. A fairly new idea is vertical farming. Vertical farming is a very promising idea, which could take off in the near future; however, the benefits do not currently outweigh the disadvantages. Dickson D. Despommier is a microbiologist, ecologist, and public health professor of environmental health sciences at Columbia University. In Despommier's book, The Vertical Farm: Feeding the World in the 21st Century, vertical farming is the idea of ​​growing commodities such as vegetables, fruits, and even some animals in a controlled environment (3). In other words, vertical farming is essentially the act of growing vertically inside a tall building. While some may laugh at the idea of ​​indoor farming, it is not an entirely new concept. Despommier states that “crops such as strawberries, tomatoes, peppers, cucumbers, herbs and a wide variety of spices have made their way into supermarkets around the world in ever-increasing quantities over the past fifteen years.” (Despommier, 4). However, Despommier's idea of ​​vertical farming stands in stark contrast to currently existing greenhouses. Despommier plans to have buildings at least 30 stories tall capable of producing enough food to comfortably feed 50,000 people (Despommier, Vertical Farming). So why should we consider vertical farming? Three main reasons listed by Despommier are climate change, very little agricultural land available and lower costs. Despommier believes that vertical farming can drastically help with climate change because once vertical farms are established, there will no longer be a need for traditional farms allowing them to convert back to forests and reduce carbon dioxide in the air (Chamberlain) . The rapidly growing po...... middle of the paper ......r, Dickso. Vertical farming. Environmental Information Coalition, April 8, 2008. Web. October 30, 2011. .Roach, John. High-Rise Farms: The Future of Food? Np, June 30, 2009. Web. October 30, 2011. .Cox, Stan, and David V. Tassel. Why planting farms in skyscrapers won't solve our food problems Np, 3 May 2010. Web. 30 October 2011. .Country lifestyles. Vertical Farming: what are the advantages and disadvantages of a vertical farm? . Np, nd Web. 30 October 2011. .Kuang, cliff. Agriculture in the sky. Np, 4 September 2008. Web. 30 October. 2011. .