For hundreds of years, plant taxonomists have worked to understand how species are related. Until relatively recently, their only reliable source of information about these relationships was the plants' morphology—traits ...
Plants & Animals
Mar 4, 2013
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Researchers at the University of Florida and Oberlin College have developed a sequencing method that will allow potentially hundreds of plant chloroplast genomes to be sequenced at once, facilitating studies of molecular ...
Biotechnology
Jan 31, 2013
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The polymerase chain reaction (PCR) is a common technique used to amplify, or copy, pieces of DNA. Amplified DNA is then used in genetic analyses for everything from medicine to forensics. In plant research, PCR is a vital ...
Biotechnology
Jan 3, 2013
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Botany is plagued by the same problem as the rest of science and society: our ability to generate data quickly and cheaply is surpassing our ability to access and analyze it. In this age of big data, scientists facing too ...
Other
Aug 20, 2012
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Floral displays, such as the color, shape, size, and arrangement of flowers, are typically thought to have evolved primarily in response to selection by pollinators—for animal-pollinated species, being able to attract ...
Plants & Animals
Jun 8, 2012
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Seaweeds are important foundational species that are vital both as food and habitat to many aquatic and terrestrial shore organisms. Yet seaweeds that cling to rocky shores are continually at risk of being broken or dislodged ...
Ecology
May 10, 2012
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One hundred years ago on the brink of WWI, American botanists changed the course of plant science with the founding of a national publication, the American Journal of Botany. The journal not only endured through the Great ...
Other
Mar 19, 2014
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Ever wonder what plants do when you're not around? How about an entire forest or grassland? Not even the most dedicated plant researcher can be continuously present to track environmental effects on plant behavior, and so ...
Other
Sep 25, 2013
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We often ignore what we cannot see, and yet organisms below the soil's surface play a vital role in plant functions and ecosystem well-being. These microbes can influence a plant's genetic structure, its health, and its interactions ...
Biotechnology
Sep 18, 2013
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Tree growth is measured to understand tree health, fluxes in carbon sequestration, and other forest ecosystem functions. It is one of the most essential and widely collected woody plant traits. Yet, the traditional method ...
Ecology
Aug 26, 2013
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