Watching carnivorous plants eat bugs is strangely therapeutic

There is just something unexplainably awesome about carnivorous plants eating things. It’s like nature’s revenge mixed with some alien imagination, like if these plants were grown from a different planet. Watch these carnivorous plants grow and chomp at bugs in this wonderful time lapse. Read more…

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Watching carnivorous plants eat bugs is strangely therapeutic

The First Man-Made Biological Leaf Turns Light and Water Into Oxygen

If humanity hopes to realize its dreams of exploring the stars, we’re going to need to find ways to recreate life on Earth aboard a spaceship. Simply stockpiling enough vital supplies isn’t going to cut it, which is what led Julian Melchiorri , a student at the Royal College of Art, to create an artificial biological leaf that produces oxygen just like the ones on our home planet do. Read more…

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The First Man-Made Biological Leaf Turns Light and Water Into Oxygen

University of Georgia stops plant photosynthesis to generate solar power

There’s a more efficient way to harvest energy from the backyard than by wiring up hapless critters . Researchers at the University of Georgia have proof: they’ve discovered a way to generate electricity from plants through hijacking the photosynthesis process. By altering the proteins inside a plant cell’s thylakoids, which store solar energy, scientists can intercept electrons through a carbon nanotube backing that draws them away before they’re used to make sugar . While the resulting power isn’t phenomenal, it’s still two orders of magnitude better than previous methods, according to the university. The protein modification method may have a rosier future, as well: the team believes that it could eventually compete with solar cells, producing green energy in a very literal sense. Filed under: Science , Alt Comments Via: Gizmag Source: RSC Publishing , University of Georgia

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University of Georgia stops plant photosynthesis to generate solar power