Posted by: AGelbert
« on: November 08, 2023, 06:41:34 pm »November 6, 2023, 6:29 AM by David Coppedge
The Superior Programming that Makes Plants Look Smart
SNIPPET:
Wesley Smith has warned more than once against anthropomorphizing plants and ascribing intelligence — even personhood — to flowers and trees. But like responsive robots, plants can have smarts programmed into them. “So sure, investigate how plants interact with their environment,” he advises. “But use proper, non-personal language. They are plants.” Let’s do that, and look at some of the superior programming that makes plants look smart because their design is smart.
Oregon grape leaves
🍃 Leaf 🍂 Recycling
Science Magazine notes that “leaf recycling is a two-step process.” Leaves don’t just curl up and die on a cold day. That algorithm would be too simplistic, and potentially harmful to the tree if warm sunny days follow. Actually, two signaling molecules — strigolactone and ethylene — can work independently to begin the process of leaf senescence (pictured above), but together, they work in synergy. “This multistep process probably preserves leaves when possible, only carrying through to leaf senescence when the stress becomes too much.” (Emphasis added.)
Nitrogen Fixing
Separating molecular nitrogen’s triple bond requires a lot of energy and pressure when humans do it, but some plants do it with ease, utilizing the capabilities of nitrogen-fixing bacteria. These bacteria have an enzyme called nitrogenase that so far has defied our attempts to understand it or duplicate it. Even though legumes outsource the work, they regulate their symbiotic partners’ activity depending on nitrogen availability in the soil, according to researchers at Chapman University. This does not require plants to be sentient. We are all familiar with machines like thermostats, rheostats, and governors that can adjust their work depending on environmental conditions.
Climbing
Some plants and animals produce tentacles (in plants, tendrils) that can grab things. At Iowa State University, scientists are attempting to create (so far with only partial success) artificial tentacles that can wrap around delicate objects. The tendrils in ivy and other climbing plants are touch-sensitive. Contact changes the concentration of hormones in the tendril so that growth is accelerated on the far side, producing curvature. As a result, the tendril wraps around the object so that the plant can anchor itself to something firm. Time-lapse photos of ivy growing up a wall might look like the action of an intelligent agent. We see from Iowa State’s biomimetic experiments, though, that the intelligence is imposed by the agent. It’s a matter of programming with the right materials.
Watching the Clock
Every living thing keeps time, and plants are no exception. In fact, they have two clocks, says Duke University:
Continue Reading:
https://evolutionnews.org/2023/11/the-superior-programming-that-makes-plants-look-smart/