Thu, 13 Dec 2007 03:15:01 GMT

Conostylis setosa

A new contributor today – thank you to Western Australian UnclePedro@Flickr for sharing a photograph with BPotD (original image via the BPotD Flickr Group Pool). It''s always appreciated to get a blend of photographic styles.

The Haemodoraceae, or bloodroot family, is divided into two subfamilies: the Haemodoroideae are found in the tropical Americas (including se USA), southern Africa, parts of Australia and southeast Asian islands; the Conostylidoideae, to which today''s species belongs, are exclusively found in the southwest of Australia. The eighty or so species within the Conostylidoideae contribute significantly to the nearly 3000 endemic species found within this biodiversity hotspot.

Conostylis setosa, or white cottonhead, has a limited range centred mostly around Perth, though this is not surprising given the endemic-to-southwest-Australia nature of the entire subfamily. Smoke and heat from fire is part of the southwestern Australia climatic regime, and both play a role in the germination of the seeds of this species; Conostylis setosa was the first Australian non-leguminous plant shown to require smoke- and heat-treatment for germination. Many plants have subsequently been shown to have similar requirements.

Botany resource link: Learn about a rare ecosystem, inland rainforests, via the Northern Wetbelt Forests of British Columbia web site. “The Northern Wetbelt of east-central British Columbia contains outstanding examples of globally rare ecosystems — inland temperate rainforests and subalpine forests located more than 500 km from the ocean.” Click on More -> Where to See for details about trails where you can visit these intriguing plant communities. Posted by: Daniel Mosquin      Read more     Source

December 11, 2007, 10:33 PM CT

Student identifies enormous new dinosaur

The remains of one of the largest meat-eating dinosaurs ever found have recently been recognized as representing a new species by a student working at the University of Bristol.

The new species is one of the largest carnivorous dinosaurs ever to have lived. Carcharodontosaurus iguidensis was probably 13-14 metres long, making it taller than a double-decker bus. It had a skull about 1.75 metres long and its teeth were the size of bananas.

Steve Brusatte, an MSc student the University of Bristol who identified the theropod said: The first remains of Carcharodontosaurus were found in the 1920s, but they only consisted of two teeth which have since been lost. Other bits of Carcharodontosaurus were found in Egypt and described in the 1930s, but these were destroyed when Munich was bombed in 1944. Since then a skull of Carcharodontosaurus saharicus turned up in the Moroccan Sahara, and was described a decade ago. So as you can see, evidence for this dinosaur is very rare.

The new fossils come from a different part of Africa, the Republic of Niger, and show many differences from the Moroccan material, allowing Brusatte to name it as a new species: Carcharodontosaurus iguidensis.

The fossils include several pieces of the skull parts of the snout, lower jaw, and braincase as well as part of the neck. They are described in the current issue of the Journal of Vertebrate Paleontology, published recently......... Posted by: Beverly      Read more         Source

Sun, 09 Dec 2007 19:52:31 GMT

Field Guides To Evel Knievel's Injuries

Evel Knievel was perhaps the most famous daredevil in the world. His death on November 30, 2007, was preceded by years of constant battle against the persistent pain of broken bones and severe trauma after jumping and crashing motorcycles.

In his 16 years of performing Evel Knievel broke about 37 bones in his body. He spent more than half the years 1966 to 1973 in hospitals. By the time he quit performing in 1981, he had undergone 14 major operations, with several steel plates and metal pins set into him. Posted by: Gerard      Read more     Source

Sun, 09 Dec 2007 10:40:59 GMT

Ricinus communis cultivar

Anne from Alberta (aka annkelliott@Flickr) shares another of her great images with BPotD (original | BPotD Flickr Group Pool). Thank you, Anne!

As a child, I thought castor oil was an extract from animals (beavers, specifically). I suppose I can blame that on childhood logic after learning the French name for beaver. It was only much later when I learned that it was a plant derivative from the species in today''s photograph, Ricinus communis, or the castor bean plant. Wikipedia provides a detailed summary of the chemistry and uses of castor oil. In particular, the use as an instrument of intimidation is both interesting and disgusting.

Despite the many uses of castor oil, Ricinus communis also happens to contain a deadly poison, ricin. The entire plant is poisonous if ingested, but the seeds are particularly potent; one chewed seed may be enough to kill a child, see: ricin toxin. The Cornell web site also contains a page about the plant itself, Ricinus communis, where it explains that ricin is water-soluble and hence will not find its way into castor oil during the production process provided proper precautionary measures are taken (thanks to Anne for the link, as well).

The widespread tropical and subtropical cultivation of Ricinus communis has made it difficult to determine its original distribution. The Handbook of Energy Crops, in addition to providing extensive details about cultivation and production, suggests Ricinus communis is African in origin. The comprehensive photographs of the species available on MissouriPlants.com are accompanied by a write-up suggesting an Asian origin. Posted by: Daniel Mosquin      Read more     Source

Mon, 03 Dec 2007 03:25:30 GMT

Seed banks: the ultimate seed savers

In case of a global catastrophe, what happens to our plants? What would happen if a plant species was wiped out due to global warming, epidemics, species extinction, or a weather disaster? What if genetically modified seeds contaminate the last strain of  an important heirloom crop? Some smart scientists figured out a long time ago that seed banks might save us from ourselves. Like fallout shelters for plant DNA, seed banks are doomsday vaults that protect seeds against natural and human-caused disasters.

Photo courtesy of the University of Illinois Extension Urban Programs Resource Center.

Seed banks store duplicates of seeds from seed collections from around the world, allowing protected species to be reestablished using the stored seeds. Seeds saved may be of historical interest or economic importance (such as food crops), or they may be conserved to protect plant biodiversity.

Nikolai Vavilov started one of the world’s first seed banks in Leningrad during the 1920s. He organized a series of global expeditions, collecting seeds from all over the world to create the world’s largest plant seed collection. In WWII, when the 28-month long Blockade of Leningrad resulted in a dramatic reduction of the city’s food supply and the starving of city’s population, Vavilov’s staff faithfully guarded the edible seeds–one of them starved to death in the process.

Shown at right is the University of Illinois Extension Urban Programs Resource Center., a new seed bank located on the Svalbard archipelago in Norway. A partnership between the Norwegian government, the Norway Gene Trust, and the Global Crop Diversity Trust, the Svalbard vault is built into an Arctic mountainside. The temperature will be maintained at -18 Celsius (about 0 Fahrenheit) once the facility opens in February 2008.

Photo courtesy of the University of Illinois Extension Urban Programs Resource Center..

There are already about 1,400 seed banks in the world–nearly every country has one. Seed banks are not always indestructible–Iraq and Afghanistan seed banks have been destroyed in the wars, and the Phillipines’ seed bank was destroyed last year in a typhoon. The facility in Svalbard is intended to be a backup vault for all countries.

To store seeds, they must be dried to have a moisture content of no more than six percent and stored at -18 Celsius or lower. Some seeds are called orthodox seeds, which means they become naturally dormant in cold, dry environments. They can remain viable for decades. Recalcitrant seeds, on the other hand, can’t be stored at low temperatures without being damaged, so they can’t be stored in seed banks. Even the viability and DNA of orthodox seeds degrades over time, so they need to be taken out of storage and exchanged before on a regular basis.

I’m glad scientists invented seed banks, but let’s hope we never have to use them. Posted by: Caroline Brown      Read more     Source

Mon, 03 Dec 2007 03:19:46 GMT

The Future of Genetics

Forget about the recent hype around the first personalized genetic companies. These girls tell you the future of genetics: Posted by: Bertalan      Read more     Source

Mon, 03 Dec 2007 03:12:42 GMT

Eryngium creticum

Eryngium creticum, or Crete eryngo, is native to southeast Europe, western Asia and Egypt. This photograph is from mid-August in the E.H. Lohbrunner Alpine Garden. Posted by: Daniel Mosquin      Read more     Source

December 2, 2007, 9:10 PM CT

Aging Improves Parent, Child Relationships

The majority of relationships between parents and their adult children improve as parents transition to old age, a Purdue University researcher has found.

Karen Fingerman, an associate professor of developmental and family studies in the College of Consumer and Family Sciences, examined relationships adults 70 and older have with at least one of their adult offspring. The parents in the study also suffered either vision or hearing loss or were seeking help with general health care from one of their children.

"Much has been written about relationships between adult children who are in a care-giving relationship with their older and dependent parents," Fingerman said. "This time when parents are transitioning to old age and still living without major assistance has not been looked at as closely".

Fingerman said the study, which was recently reported in the journal Advances in Life Course Research, showed that a majority of parents and children mentioned positive changes in their relationship, even as parents experienced declines in health.

"Both parents and children reported significantly less ambivalence than we originally expected," Fingerman said. "Generally, there was a feeling on both sides that this was as good as the relationship had been, and both sides felt appreciated and nurtured"......... Posted by: Beverly      Read more         Source

December 2, 2007, 9:04 PM CT

How Materials Enter Cells

Scientists has captured a key step in the metabolic process that allows materials, such as nutrients and drug therapys, to move in and out of cells.

A research team led by Jue Chen, an associate professor of biological sciences, obtained a snapshot of the tiny protein gate complex that opens and closes pathways through the protective cellular membrane. The gates, operated by small protein machines that push them open and closed, bring nutrients into the cell and flush out waste.

The Purdue-led team was the first to achieve an image of the middle step of the process, capturing the molecular interactions as material passes through the membrane.

"By understanding the mechanisms of this process, scientists may be able to design more effective therapys for diseases that involve this group of proteins, such as cancer and cystic fibrosis," said Chen, who also is a member of Purdue's structural biology group within the College of Science. "With this knowledge, scientists may be able to inhibit or activate this mechanism, depending on what is needed to counteract the disease. For instance, a number of cancer cells are resistant to drug therapys because the cells pump the drugs out through these channels before they can work".

Amy Davidson, who collaborated on this work with Chen, said capturing an image of the intermediate stage is a giant step toward learning the complete process......... Posted by: Beverly      Read more         Source

November 27, 2007, 10:22 PM CT

First observation of 'persistent flow' in a gas

Using laser light to stir an ultracold gas of atoms, scientists at the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) and the Joint Quantum Institute (NIST/University of Maryland) have demonstrated the first persistent current in an ultracold atomic gas a frictionless flow of particles. This relatively long-lived flow, a hallmark of a special property known as superfluidity, might help bring to the surface some deep physics insights, and enable super-sensitive rotation sensors that could someday make navigation more precise. The scientists report this feat in an upcoming Physical Review Letters.*.

To carry out the demonstration, the scientists first created a Bose-Einstein condensate (BEC), a gas of atoms cooled to such low temperatures that it transforms into matter with unusual properties. One of these properties is superfluidity, the fluid version of superconductivity (whereby electrical currents can flow essentially forever in a loop of wire). Eventhough BECs in principle could support everlasting flows of gas, traditional setups for creating and observing BECs have not provided the most stable environments for the generally unstable superfluid flows, which have tended to break up after short periods of time.

To address this issue, the NIST scientists use laser light and magnetic fields on a gas of sodium atoms to create a donut-shaped BECone with a hole in the centeras opposed to the usual ball- or cigar-shaped BEC. This configuration ends up stabilizing circular superfluid flows because it would take too much energy for the holecontaining no atomsto disturb matters by moving into the donutwhich contains lots of atoms......... Posted by: Beverly      Read more         Source