Category - Plants & People

Buttercups. Photo (cc) Marilyn Peddle.

How old is my meadow?

I was a bit fed up after hearing the UK government announce further cutbacks to the science budget today, so I thought I’d delve into the recent Free Access issue of Annals of Botany from Sept 2009 to see...

Image: Jeff Dahl, Wikimedia Commons.

Dating the Pharaohs

Image: Jeff Dahl, Wikimedia Commons. No, not a sensationalist virtual reality TV show for some so-called celebrities seeking to marry into the family of the ancient rulers of Egypt. Rather, work that attempts to ascribe...

Shocked, and I can't say I blame her.

Don’t Be So Cerebral?

I’m following my introduction to Don’t Be Such a Scientist with a look at the first chapter of the book. It opens with Randy Olson’s four organs model of communication based on the Head, Heart, Gut and...

Image: Dirk Ingo Franke, Wikimedia Commons.

It’s an ill wind …?

Wood (aka ‘the really hard stuff inside trees’) is as ancient a building material and engineering solution as they come, but new uses are still being found for timber in the most unlikely of applications. Take for...

Plants combat plants - cannons

Plants combat plants

Question: when is a cannon not a cannon? Answer: when it’s a ‘high-pressure long-range deodorant spray’(!). For such is the description of the cannons currently being deployed in China to combat the malodorous...