Tag Archives: Botany

Strange Science: Living Chandelier

An EU inventor has come up with a way to craft a chandelier with algae to clean the air while it lights the room. The chandelier has glass leaves containing algae, which can help to process carbon dioxide and produce … Continue reading

Posted in Strange Science | Tagged , , | Comments Off on Strange Science: Living Chandelier

Strange Science: Butterflies That Thrive at Military Installations

Scientists have found that once-endangered butterfly species are thriving at military installations, and the explanation behind it is truly unexpected. Historically, these butterflies were present in areas where roaming animals and intentional fires kept the plant life managed in such … Continue reading

Posted in Strange Science | Tagged , , | Comments Off on Strange Science: Butterflies That Thrive at Military Installations

Strange Science: Correcting a Photosynthetic Glitch

Plants have gotten too good at photosynthesis, resulting in poorer crop yields, particularly in hotter weather. As climate change drives temperatures higher in parts of the world, scientists are working on a way to engineer a shortcut for plants so … Continue reading

Posted in Strange Science | Tagged , , | Comments Off on Strange Science: Correcting a Photosynthetic Glitch

Strange Science: Plants Listen to Animals

It’s long been believed that plants don’t hear and are also silent. But scientists at Tel Aviv University believe they’ve found evidence that plants can hear and create sound. In the first case, plants listen for the sounds of pollinators … Continue reading

Posted in Strange Science | Tagged , | Comments Off on Strange Science: Plants Listen to Animals

Strange Science: Weaponizing Insects

Our Monday story from Rick Tobin hypothesized about weaponizing insects, but he recently ran across an article that suggests that some believe that the United States Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) could be doing just that. DARPA spearheads a … Continue reading

Posted in Strange Science | Tagged , , | Comments Off on Strange Science: Weaponizing Insects

Weed of Ill-Omen

An essay by Dr. Abderrafie Alhazred, as provided by Sarah Yasin Art provided by Luke Spooner Some drug dealers keep big dogs to scare the cops. I always found that tactic to be labor intensive. Who wants to poop-scoop those … Continue reading

Posted in Fiction | Tagged , , , , , , | Comments Off on Weed of Ill-Omen

Strange Science: Ripening Fruit

Many fruits have a literal sweet spot–that point when they’re just the right amount of ripe to taste their most delicious. Eat them before then, or after then, and you might be disappointed. Ethylene is the naturally occurring chemical that … Continue reading

Posted in Strange Science | Tagged , , | Comments Off on Strange Science: Ripening Fruit

Strange Science: Sleeping Trees

By surveying trees via a 3-D technique known as terrestrial laser scanning, scientists have determined that trees have sleep cycles. These sleep cycles have to do with the transport of water from the ground into the leaves, something that was … Continue reading

Posted in Strange Science | Tagged , | Comments Off on Strange Science: Sleeping Trees

Strange Science: Sweet Potatoes All Over the World

Sweet potatoes come from Central and South America. Or maybe they come from Polynesian Islands. Or maybe they come from both! Historical accounts place sweet potatoes in these disparate locations, without any clear evidence of cross-cultural contact in the same … Continue reading

Posted in Strange Science | Tagged , | Comments Off on Strange Science: Sweet Potatoes All Over the World

When Bluebells Die

An essay by Sidney Bover, as provided by Iris Wright Art by Justine McGreevy Stranded in fields of ultramarine flowers, I was paralyzed. The delicate blooms decorated the forest understory, so I, who was unable to swim, could drown in a … Continue reading

Posted in Fiction | Tagged , , , , | Comments Off on When Bluebells Die