logo
episode-header-image
Nov 2023
58m 21s

Will Plants Stop Photosynthesis?

iHeartPodcasts
About this episode

Pretty much every living thing relies on plants. Through the superpower of photosynthesis, they function as the great translators of solar energy, powering the planet. Yet like any other living thing, they are vulnerable to changes in the world around them -- and scientists are increasingly concerned that, one day, plants may cease photosynthesis entirely. So... what happens when it stops?

They don't want you to read our book.: https://static.macmillan.com/static/fib/stuff-you-should-read/

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Up next
Today
CLASSIC: The Secret World of Chefs, with Richard Blais and Hugh Acheson
As anyone who's worked in a kitchen or the hospitality industry can readily attest, there's an entirely different world behind the doors of every kitchen, a world that most diners and restaurant patrons never see. Join the guys as they sit down with world famous chefs Hugh Acheso ... Show More
1h 6m
Yesterday
Strange News: New Statues on Rapa Nui (Easter Island), Plane Heists, Allegations of Brain Rot in English Dictionaries
Chinese scientists construct a robot capable of carrying a human fetus to term -- will the government allow this in the public sphere? A California man finds his recreational Cessna repeatedly stolen. Dictionary boffins are criticized for canonizing recent phrases and words. All ... Show More
1h 4m
Aug 23
Introducing: Law & Order: Criminal Justice System S2
Law & Order: Criminal Justice System is back with Season Two, turning its focus to a threat that hides in plain sight, harder to predict and even harder to stop: terrorism. Hear the real stories from those who lived it, worked it, and risked everything to confront it. Listen here ... Show More
2m 29s
Recommended Episodes
May 2021
BrainStuff Classics: How Can a Plant Outsource Photosynthesis?
Plants use photosynthesis to survive, but some plants outsource that job to other living things, like fungus. Learn how it works in this classic episode of BrainStuff, based on this article: https://science.howstuffworks.com/life/botany/underground-plant-outsources-photosynthesis ... Show More
3m 10s
Nov 2023
Can we hack photosynthesis to feed the world? | Steve Long
Photosynthesis is one of the most important processes on the planet, helping produce the food we eat and the air we breathe. Crop scientist Steve Long thinks it could be more efficient — and he's intent on giving it a boost. He shows how hacking photosynthesis could help feed the ... Show More
11m 31s
Oct 2018
From the Vault: Carnivorous Plants
Are humans truly safe from the hunger of meat-eating plants? Can we trust the trees that loom over us? In this episode of Stuff to Blow Your Mind, Robert and Joe discuss myths and fictions of killer trees, the science of carnivorous plants and the curious absence of mean-eating p ... Show More
1h 10m
Jul 2014
Plants, Photosynthesis, and Solar Energy
The planet is in trouble; fossil fuels are being depleted and are contributing to global warming. Plants, however, have been directly harnessing solar energy for as long as they have existed. A flash talk from Tomas Leijtens. 
13m 4s
Jan 2023
Carnivorous Plants Will Ruin Your Life
Inside the flourishing world of online plant fanclubs lies a deep, dark obsession: people who dedicate their entire lives to caring for Nepenthes, or carnivorous pitcher plants. On this week’s episode, Brian Howey, a former “Nephead” tells us about the carnivorous plant subcultur ... Show More
29m 16s
Aug 2023
Plant Migration
Climate change is having sweeping effects on our climate and this is changing the world, not just for humans and other animals, but plants too. Will the Earth’s flora manage to find safe refuge in time?    See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information. 
45m 19s
Feb 2021
How can plants hear?
As far-fetched as it may sound, some plants can actually hear. In fact, it has been scientifically proven by researchers that plants are perfectly capable of setting up defense mechanisms responding to sound. They discovered that when the sound of a specific predators is played n ... Show More
2m 28s
Jun 2024
FE5.10 - Everything Will Be Vine
Vision without eyes? Intelligence without a brain? Are plants more akin to us than we have been prepared to acknowledge? Or are they different in ways we will forever strain to imagine? One way or another, a vine with some unusual abilities is shaking the field of botany to its f ... Show More
47m 12s
Apr 2022
Plant Memories, Part 1
Do plants remember? Do they communicate? What is the extent of their interaction with their environment? In this Stuff to Blow Your Mind series, Robert and Joe dive into the amazing world of plant intelligence research. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information. 
49m 21s