Do plants possess a consciousness? – A philosophy of science professor at the University of Murcia, in Spain, is trying to devise new ways to answer this seemingly unanswerable question. Although they lack something like the brain and nervous system that animals possess, many plant species physically react to theirread more
Having been on earth for about as long as animals, plants have evolved numerous senses similar to our own that allow them to perceive their environment and react accordingly: plants sense light to better gather energy from the Sun, pick up on the sound of a buzzing insect, and evenread more
The US Food and Drug Administration has granted a group of researchers approval to proceed with the use of the controversial drug psilocybin, a psychedelic compound naturally produced in about 200 species of mushrooms, to treat patients suffering from treatment-resistant depression. This comes as welcome news for researchers that study psychedelic drugs, as current drug laws inhibit the study into the potential medical effects that the forbidden fungus may have to offer.
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Researchers in Sweden have created what they are calling an electronic plant, a machine-plant hybrid that has electrically conductive wiring integrated into it’s internal structure. The research team sees a wide variety of applications for this development, including plants that can react to environmental changes, or plants that could act as electrical batteries, using photosynthesis as a power source.
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