Marijuana Genome Sequenced For Health

"The company hopes the data will help scientists breed pot plants without much THC, the mind-altering chemical in the plant. The goal is instead to maximize other compounds that may have therapeutic benefits."

"Cannabis sativa has 84 other compounds that could fight pain or possibly even shrink tumors. But anti-marijuana laws make it difficult for scientists to breed and study the plant in most countries."

http://www.npr.org/blogs/health/2011/08/19/139762352/cracking-the-marijuana-genome-in-search-of-therapeutic-highs?ps=sh_sthdl

Benoit Mandelbrot: Fractals and the art of roughness

Nature by numbers

The fibonacci sequence in trees

Nice work of a very young boy!!

http://www.amnh.org/nationalcenter/youngnaturalistawards/2011/aidan.html

Sharks!!

Acacia plant controls ants with chemical

This is an old topic, but it is really amazing!

In Africa and in the tropics, armies of tiny creatures make the twisting stems of acacia plants their homes.
Aggressive, stinging ants feed on the sugary nectar the plant provides and live in nests protected by its thick bark.
This is the world of "ant guards".
The acacias might appear overrun by them, but the plants have the ants wrapped around their little stems.
These same plants that provide shelter and produce nourishing nectar to feed the insects also make chemicals that send them into a defensive frenzy, forcing them into retreat.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/8383577.stm

Height matters more than size for dispersing seeds

Plant height rather than seed mass is a better predictor of how far seeds will be dispersed, a study has shown.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/science-environment-14076475