Do Plants Use Math?

Mustard Plants - MorgueFile/citysafari

Earlier, we marveled at photosynthesis. But what happens at night? Plants still use food during the night. It involves using just the right amount of starch molecules. Still move evidence of a master Designer at work!

A new study came out showing how plants utilize an efficient form of mathematics to precisely calculate how much starch to consume as food during the night.

During the daytime, plants make carbohydrates through photosynthesis and store a portion of them as starch molecules. The cells then metabolize that starch as a food source during the night to fuel cell growth and development. One researcher said, "If the starch store is used too fast, plants will starve and stop growing during the night. If the store is used too slowly, some of it will be wasted."

However, the plant must use its food reserves judiciously and dynamically by controlling the rate of its metabolism along with the amount of starch used during the night. Researchers are now beginning to unravel how plants manage this process, and they were surprised to find that the mustard plant they studied followed principles of mathematical equations. Researcher Allison Smith said, "The capacity to perform arithmetic calculation is vital for plant growth and productivity."

Feed your mind by reading the rest of "Plants Use Math to Ration Food Use".



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