The medicinal plants that chimpanzees feed on in the wild could hold the key in dealing with common diseases.
Different kinds of plants make different kinds of seeds. Some seeds grow into trees and other seeds grow into other kinds of plants.
www.shutterstock.com
This is an article from Curious Kids, a series for children. The Conversation is asking kids to send in questions they’d like an expert to answer. All questions are welcome – serious, weird or wacky! Why…
Utah prairie dog, Bryce Canyon National Park.
Donald Hobern
Congress is moving to cut back the Endangered Species Act and give more power to states. But a recent study shows that state laws are weaker and states have few resources to protect species at risk.
Most modern offices contain a surprising amount of harsh chemicals. If you’re heading back to work, check out our list of the best plants to clean the air (and reduce stress).
Diatoms - like those seen under a microscope here - can teach us a lot about harvesting light.
Rattiya Thongdumhyu/Shutterstock
Hua Lu, University of Maryland, Baltimore County and Linda Wiratan, University of Maryland, Baltimore County
Precisely calibrated timekeepers are found in organisms from all domains of life. Biologists are studying how they influence plant/pathogen interactions – what they learn could lead to human medicines.
Ferns are a very old group of plants that came along more than 200 million years before the dinosaurs walked the earth.
Marcella Cheng/The Conversation
Ferns came along more than 200 million years before the dinosaurs walked the Earth. They were food for plant-eating dinosaurs and they’re really great survivors. Heather, age 8, wants to know more.
Citizen scientists collecting soil and fine-roots from under unhealthy plants.
Cape Citizen Science
Humans - the very “carriers” who can spread dangerous microbes unthinkingly from their equipment and shoes - can instead become the first line of defence against a possible microscopic invasion.
The well-being of pollinators like bees have a direct impact on our lives.
Vida van der Walt
Pollination in South Africa’s ecosystems is extremely complex. However new advances such as pollen metabarcoding help us understand interactions between pollinators and pollen.
If you want to live on Mars, you’re going to need to grow food. Seeds are naturally equipped to handle challenging Earth environments, but how well can they survive what they’ll encounter off-planet?
Plants make proteins based on whatever genetic material you give them.
Carl Davies, CSIRO
Inserting a random DNA mishmash into a plant or bacterium directs it to make a novel protein. Sifting through the resulting molecules, researchers may find ones have medical or agricultural uses.
It was all the apple’s fault: we’ve been fascinated by poisoned fruit for a long time.
Jacob Jordaens (1593–1678), The Fall of Man, via Wikimedia Commons