To celebrate Fascination of Plants Day (FoPD) in New York, members of the Ware Lab (Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory) brought a little amazement to the young and bright minds of kindergarteners at Bayville Primary School, as well as to a number of children from various elementary schools in the Locust Valley area who are members … Read more
Sex, maize and how to feed the world (despite herbicide tolerance) Balticon 49 – Established in 1967, Balticon is the annual convention sponsored by the Baltimore Science Fiction Society. This year’s version (May 22-25) offered everything surrounding science fiction including comic books, movies, kids’ programs, the presentation of the prestigious “Robert A. Heinlein” and the … Read more
What do plants do? Why are different types of plants important? These were the central questions for two plant day activities in Hopewell, NJ. Leeann Thornton, a plant biology professor at The College of New Jersey, taught third graders about plant diversity and identification. The students learned a few characteristics for identifying tree leaves and … Read more
Earlier this year we announced a competition for proposals for the “Teaching Tools in Plant Biology” series of educational articles published by The Plant Cell. We had many excellent proposals submitted from which we selected three for further development. Sound intriguing? The competition has additional submission deadlines of August 31 and December 31 2015, and … Read more
In this letter I would like to address two interlinked problems and offer possible solutions to both of them: (1) the relatively long duration of PhD graduate studies in many countries and (2) the increasing time it can take from research advance to publication. In the latter case, I will also address innovations that are … Read more
The latest Teaching Tool in Plant Biology explores the theme of “Micronutrients and Metals”. By definition, the micronutrients (Fe, Cu, Zn, Mn, Mo, Ni, B, Si and Cl) are essential for plant life, and most are also essential for human and other animal life. About a quarter of cellular proteins are metalloproteins that associate tightly … Read more
This post is part of the Recognizing our Authors series. York-Dieter Stierhof The Plant Cell York-Dieter Stierhof is the head of the central facility for electron microscopy at the Center for Plant Molecular Biology ZMBP at the University of Tübingen. He studied biology at the University of Tübingen and got his PhD in zoology/parasitology. During … Read more
Practical Learning for Bright Young Minds: The Master Plant Science Team (MPST) program is a mentoring program under the aegis of PlantingScience sponsored by National Science Foundation and supported by several professional societies, including ASPB. The goal for MPST is to facilitate more robust learning experiences among middle and high school students in United States. … Read more
The Hua Lu lab successfully hosted a plant-centric study break for the Fascination of Plants Day on May 18th on UMBC campus. Over 100 students were attracted to the FoPD Study Break hosted by 18 volunteer hosts (15 undergraduates and 3 graduates). Over the course of the ~3-hour event, the hosts presented posters, fun facts, … Read more
Some of us visit botanical gardens for aesthetic enjoyment, exercise, or to get ideas about what to plant in our own gardens. Rarely do most of us consider what goes on behind the scenes or just how critical plant research is to our daily lives. Botanical Society of America members got a chance address these … Read more
As part of Fascination of Plants Day, over 60 1st grade students at Beall Elementary School in Frostburg, MD were treated to hand-on activities centered on how plants use their senses to explore and respond to their environment. The budding scientists were asked to voice and write their ideas about whether or not plants can … Read more
As US National Coordinator, ASPB hosted four contests for Fascination of Plants Day-USA. Congratulations to the winners! I. Petunia Cultivar Naming Contest The new RevolutionBio’s coloring-changing Petunia hybrida cultivar is: Petunia hybrida “Oz” by LAURIE MARX, Lotusland in Santa Barbara, CA Laurie explains, “The horse of a different color from ‘The Wizard of Oz’ amazed … Read more
This post is part of the Recognizing our Authors series. David Casero The Plant Cell, Plant Physiology David Casero is an assistant researcher in the Department of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine, UCLA. He earned his BS in theoretical physics and PhD in applied mathematics at Complutense University in Spain. David conducted postdoctoral research in Matteo … Read more
This year’s Fascination of Plants Day, a plant scientists’ initiative launched in 2012, has been already adopted by 54 countries worldwide. All information about this initiative can be accessed via www.plantday.org and is supported world-wide by a network of National Coordinators who voluntarily promote and disseminate the activity within their countries. Already over 509 scientific … Read more
Gramene researchers are sharing their passion for plants and plant science in the community and online: On May 19 of 2015, Dr. Marcela Karey Tello-Ruiz, project manager for Gramene, will present an interactive demonstration for kindergartners at Bayville Elementary School in Bayville, NY on the subject of “Plants in our every day lives”. On May … Read more
Our day-to-day life here at Western Institute for Leadership Development (WILD) is infused with the study and appreciation of plants. Several school-wide, year-round projects reflect our belief that the study of botany, ecology, and the environment is fundamental to an education that provides young people with the knowledge and skills needed to become leaders and changemakers … Read more
Students from Dr. Hua Lu’s class and lab are celebrating Fascination of Plants Day by hosting a midday study break on campus. All are invited to enjoy activities, prizes, food (plants), and free plants to take along. Plant fans are welcome to present a favorite plant or to swap or donate a plant at the … Read more
The following letter was sent to our USA members in regards to the Cornell Alliance for Science petition. This issue is extremely important regarding transparency concerning publicly-funded research and scientific investigations. Please read below to help support the plant science and research community with this issue. On January 28th, 2015, 14 scientists from four universities were targeted … Read more
Get out and enjoy the diversity of plants at the Missouri Botanical Garden with a botanist-led plant walk on May 18th as we celebrate Fascination of Plants Day! Scientists will lead plant walks on a variety of topics with tours on topics from Native American Ethnobotany to behind-the-scenes at the research greenhouses. All walks depart … Read more
Multi-sensory Explorations Imagine picking your favorite fruits and vegetables at the market – blindfolded! What about selecting one Golden Delicious apple from a truckload of 40,000 Red Delicious apples – again blindfolded! Might make you think how important one of our senses, sight, is to our everyday activities. That’s why lessons and activities in the … Read more