PLANTS: The apple and potato of desire

THE banana plant can 'walk' up to 40 centimeters in its lifetime. Many herbal plants can warn each other chemically when predatory herbivores are nearby. The sunflower is able to extract radioactivity from water.

Plants really aren’t appreciated enough in our hi-tech, modernised world. Many humans like to believe that we somehow exist outside the web of nature rather than living within it. From an evolutionary point of view, plants are just as advanced as humans. Time and time again nature proves that it is stronger than any of our designs as we constantly try to control it.

A friend of mine who has just come back from the United States told me about a fantastic book by bestselling author, Michael Pollan, called The Botany­ of Desire. The book tells the story­ of human desire and is about the domestication of four specific plants from the plants’ perspectives (metaphorically speaking). The apple, tulip, cannabis and the potato have all been integral to the human tale and have influenced history, economics, politics, religion and technology and raised debate over genetically modified food.

The Apple of Desire

Apples have evolved to gratify our desire for sweetness — an innate, hardwired desire that is simply a part of our biology. From an early age we learn that bitter plants are often poisonous while sweet ones are calorie-rich and therefore good for us.

The apple first sprouted into existence in Kazakhstan. To migrate to all four corners of the globe and spread its genes, it had to appeal to mammals as a sweet food source. This brought the apple to the New World.

However, what was unknown to the early pioneers is that every apple seed within an apple contains different genetic material and will produce a completely different variety of apple if planted from seed. These tend to be very bitter and New World apples were primarily used to make hard cider, which put rural America into a great binge.

Today there are thousands of apple­ varieties and it is still arguably the universal fruit. It even influenced artists of the Renaissance to imagine the forbidden fruit in the Garden of Eden as being an apple.

The Potato of Desire

The potato represents our desire to control nature and cultivate a staple food source. It led to the rise of the Incan Empire and helped fuel the Industrial Revolution. It changed the course of European­ history and led to a huge population­ boom. For civilisations in and around Europe potato crops freed more people from tilling the fields and allowed them to focus their attention on other pursuits.

The potato was also a godsend for the Irish who were unable to grow much of anything. This was until a fungus caused the great potato famine in the 19th century — killing over a million people.

The potato has taught us a valuable lesson in biodiversity and illustrates the risk of monocultures. Growing just one species of an edible plant makes entire crops vulnerable to disease and infection. However, the demand today for a certain kind of McDonald's potato chip has resulted in farmers once again growing mostly just one kind of elongated potato.

Attempts to prevent another potato famine has led several farmers to genetically modify their potatoes. Splicing a gene from a bacterium that lives in the soil with the potato leaf kills insects, but has also led to huge consumer uprisings against genetically modified foods.

• Read The Botany of Desire Part 2 here

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BOTANY: The tulip, marijuana and human desire

** Read the first part of this article here **

Cannabis

MARIJUANA gratifies the human desire to experience an altered state of consciousness. We are all born with an innate drive to experience other mind states periodically, whether this manifests into singing, dancing, experimenting with substances or jumping out of an aeroplane.

The genius of marijuana is to appeal to this human desire and it has mastered the art of biochemistry. Through it we have discovered a wealth of information regarding how memory, emotion and consciousness all work.

Marijuana’s world domination strategy involved producing more of the chemical (THC) that appeals to the human creature in order to be spread its genes and be given more habitat in which to thrive. Anthropologists posit that the only human culture never to have been influenced by this plant were the Inuit.

Most cultures have historically used cannabis to relieve pain. In Western culture marijuana was the driving force behind the jazz era and set alight the social revolution of the sixties.

The banning of marijuana in the United States led people to splice the genes of Mexican­ and Indian marijuana to produce a short, resilient and fast-growing plant that could be produced indoors. This has resulted in an almost entirely new species of plant, which now largely lives a cushy existence removed entirely from nature and the foothills of Mongolia and China where it originated.

The Tulip

The tulip, like many flowers, has evolved to gratify our desire for a certain kind of beauty. Flowers have been flaunting their beauty for more than 100 million years since the rise of the angiosperms. These plants form fruit and seed and have male and female types, which allows for the mixing of genes. This creates greater variety, which means greater adaptability and ability to survive.

When the tulip caught our attention and began to be cultivated, this plant underwent some startling changes. Its new forms bewitched the sultan of the Ottoman Empire and engulfed the Dutch in “tulip mania” during the 17th century. The tulip fast became one of the most valuable commodities in the world and spurred one of the biggest investment bubbles in human history.

The tulip came to denote wealth and status and it became fashionable for the prosperous to grow flower gardens. One tulip variety, the Semper Augustus, fetched as much as R70 000 in today’s money. Soon there was more money outstanding on tulip bulbs than there was in circulation, which caused economic collapse.

It was later discovered that the most sought-after tulip varieties were actually infected by a plant virus. Today, more than 19 million tulips leave Holland for flower shops around the world.

In a nutshell, plants are pretty amazing. The central lesson we can take from these four species is that we need to stop trying to control nature­ and rather learn to work with it.

• Video footage, interviews with Michael Pollan and more about The Botany of Desire can be explored online at www.pbs.org

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MARINE CONSERVATION: Using tech to replenish our oceans

FLIPPING through a National Geographic magazine the other day, I came across some statistical information regarding our depleting ocean populations. They were quite depressing to say the least. There are literally entire sections of the ocean that have been fished dry and several more marine species have recently been added to the “protected” or “endangered species” lists.

It’s a no-brainer that we need to conserve marine ecosystems which have sustained and fed us for so long. It needs to firmly sink into human consciousness that we, in fact, live on a blue planet. The oceans have much to teach us too. I recall an episode of The Blue Planet where divers dove the deepest they had ever gone — further than the sun’s rays could reach — and discovered underwater volcanic activity that had spawned a vibrant coral reef simply teaming with life. Until this discovery, it was believed that all energy for life was derived from the sun.

The oceans are also a force to be reckoned with and demand our respect. With all the floods and tsunamis of late, the oceans could spell the end of life as well as be the source if it. There is growing incentive to be able to accurately predict natural disasters before they happen. Considering that the majority­ of the world’s population lives on or near the coastline, studying the ocean floors should be of utmost priority­.

Natural disasters aside, there are also the lives of marine species to consider. A unique aspect of the human species is that we are the first creatures on the planet that have developed an awareness of our impact on the Earth. If this doesn’t dictate some sort of responsibility on our part, then I’m afraid to say that we may not have much of an exciting future to look forward to.

GOAT ISLAND BAY

On the northern island of New Zealand live a dedicated team of scientists and researchers who are taking the oceanic crisis to heart. Around 30 years ago, the area known as Goat Island Bay was a wet desert — decimated by overfishing. Since the establishment of the Goat Island Marine Reserve, the area has been transformed into a rich ecological paradise­ that is alive with possibility.

While divers from around the world flock to visit such rich waters, scientists are able to observe and study marine life in their natural environment. Marine life is left in peace to survive and multiply­ in harmony with people, while scientists are left free to investigate the health of the ecosystem. They now also provide a field-base for Masters students at Auckland University.

Of the many discoveries made to date is the unexpected taming of certain fish species in their protected natural environment due to increased interaction with people and bans on fishing. Snapper fish have been documented to occasionally swim alongside bathers, seeing them as neither food nor foe. Not only have several fish species become tamer, but many are also growing to record sizes, with Snapper fish growing up to a full metre.

Researchers have also discovered methods of naturally attracting marine species to the area and ensuring greater survivability during spawning season. Divers have found that several marine species can orientate to sound and are using beacons that emit natural reef sounds to direct larval fish and crustaceans to newly protected areas.

Goat Island Bay is a living example to the world. It demonstrates that we have what it takes to replenish our life-giving oceans and live in harmony with nature. We have the technology to fix the damage we have caused and can even improve habitats such as coral reefs, which, in turn, will attract even more life. Let’s respect our blue planet and remember that if it weren’t for fish we wouldn’t even be around.

Related Articles:

• One fish, two fish - reef fish
• Why Scuba Diving Could Soon Become Extinct
• In a Scrape: Seafloor Trawling Threatens Deep Ocean Life

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MOTHER NATURE: Treat her with respect or face her wrath

I'M sure we've all experienced cases of "nature gone mad". While some fauna tends to wait for the most opportune moment to attack, others are just trying to protect their turf. Cross some animals the wrong way and you may be attacked my a murder of crows, or involved in a kangaroo punch-up! These animals don't take too kindly to people toying with nature.

Whether you're trying to go for a jog, scale a mountain, enjoy a game drive or simply photograph nature, danger may be lurking around the corner. One can't help feel that the animals are in the right and take sides with them. I wonder what caused these attacks of nature...

When birds attack

Bird Attack

Monkey mugging

Monkey Mugging

Kangaroo punch-up!

Kangaroo punch-up!

Hippo Attack

Hippo Attack!

Eagle Attack

Eagle Attack!

Pigeon bomber

Pigeon poop attack

Polar Bear Attack! Eish...

Swan Attack

Swan Attack! lol

Weird goat thing attack

Weird goat thing attack

Crocodile Attack

Croc attack

Enraged Elephant Attack

Enraged Elephant Attack

Hungry lions waiting for dinner...

Hungry lion waiting for dinner...

Monkey car assault

When monkeys attack!

Don't you just love animals?

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FUTURE DESIGN: Applying technology intelligently for a better future

IMAGINE living in a house that is permanently dust free, driving a car that automatically repairs itself, traveling at two thousand miles an hour in absolute comfort, and having the chances of getting ill significantly reduced by living in a city that self regulates it’s air and water by design. These idealistic-sounding goals are more possible than you might imagine.

Future by Design is quite honestly the most inspiring documentary I have ever seen that illustrates just how possible and practical such things are. There is, however, a bittersweet quality to the film: on the one hand it shows how technologically advanced and capable we are – illustrating how the world could be today rather than tomorrow or in the future. On the other hand, it describes how behind we are politically and how future progress is painfully halted due to certain systems set in place.

Thomas Edison had to actually make an electric light bulb before anyone took him seriously and backed him up. The same scenario can be said of Jacque Fresco – the man behind Future by Design. Fresco has been a social and industrial engineer and inventor all his life. Now in his 90s, he still invents and implements his ideas for a new, re-designed society – focusing his attention on The Venus Project - a small 25 acre ‘futuristic’ society located in Venus, Central Florida.

Developed since the late 1970s, The Venus Project is a living model of how hi-tech and nature can co-exist. The small society consists of a scattering of dome shaped homes co-existing in a lush, natural environment. You cannot see one house when you’re in another and the entire project represents how sustainable communities could be created worldwide.

“The Venus Project has a vision of what the future can be if we apply what we already know to achieve a sustainable world civilization, says Fresco. It calls for a scientific redesign of our culture in which war, poverty, hunger, debt, and unnecessary human suffering are viewed as not only avoidable, but unacceptable. Anything less will result in a disastrous continuation of the problems inherent in today's world."

Jacque Fresco

And it isn’t necessary for one to have studied science or design in order to understand Fresco and his working concepts. I found my jaw on the floor as he presented designs (in all fields) that simply made so much practical sense.

Even more appealing was the social philosophy behind each idea – that being to improve the standard of living for all people while simultaneously saving the planet. As an engineer, Fresco’s ideas are not part of his own view of how the world should be, but rather how the world could be today and what it takes to start progressing towards it.

Some Future by Design concepts:

• A dome-shaped home requires the least amount of material to build and offers the maximum protection against the elements due to its shape.
• By increasing the air pressure slightly inside the home, dust will not be able to enter it. Cleanliness will be a major factor in the future home environment.
• There is a type of memory alloy that reshapes itself when heated. Cars made from this material will straighten out any dents when heated (assuming that accidents will even happen in the future).
• Sensors installed in the front of vehicles can detect how far away other objects are and keep a constant distance between them.
• Travelling underwater is likely to become the future of sea travel as it is far more economical than travelling on the surface of the ocean where one is confronted by wind and waves.
• A long, thin boat that breaks the surface tension of the water by rapidly releasing air bubbles at the front while simultaneously drawing water towards the rear (propelling it forward) will be able to travel very economically at remarkable speeds.
• Having computers and machines continuously regulate the air and water supplies of cities and eliminating contaminants will significantly reduce viruses and disease.

The real appeal of Future by Design is the idea of creating harmony between people and nature. The Earth is far more abundant that what we are made to believe and there are even ways of making the planet more abundant by improving nature and applying design technology intelligently.

It is a sad reality that we live in an age where more time and technology is devoted to destroying humanity rather than advancing it; where global equality is greater than it has ever been; where more resources are invested in making a bigger, better bomb rather than providing clean drinking water where it’s needed.

"Social designs must be based on the carrying capacity of the Earth's resources, and not on the philosophy, desires, aesthetics, or advantages of particular people" - Jacque Fresco

The standard of living proposed by Fresco and films such as Future by Design is by no means perfect; it is just significantly better. After all, the blunt truth is that no one knows what the future might bring, only that we can do a lot better with regards to the intelligent management of the Earth’s resources for the benefit of all the world’s people and protection of the environment.

What can be accurately predicted is that the future of communication lies in 3D imaging, and I would therefore urge everyone to give Future by Design a watch. It should appeal to anyone who has an interest in technology, ecology, people, design and society, and the possible future of our civilization.

Related Articles: A Resource-Based Economy

1. Part 1: The power of the planet
2. Part 2: A world without money
3. Part 3: Incentive to work in a moneyless society
4. Part 5: Smart Homes
5. Part 6: Automated governance?

For more info check out the following:

• Q+A with Jacque Fresco - Meta Magazine
• Alternative view - The Venus Project hoax
• Overview - The Venus Project and The Zeitgeist Movement

BIOLUMINESCENT PETS: Glowing creatures that light up your life

BIOTECHNOLGY is a fascinating field. It has so much to offer society. It is not inaccurate to say that it will inevitably be the salvation of our planet. Advocates can immediately point to its beneficial uses in agriculture and the production of eco-friendly fuels.

However, it seems that a very fine line is crossed when science begins to toy with nature. In fact, it is almost impossible to utter the term “genetic engineering” without raising several ethical questions and rallying its opponents.

The world today would be a very different place if science was unregulated. In many instances, control over its application is necessary for there is such a thing as mad scientists who will stop at nothing to test their latest scientific experiments. However, the more level-headed scientists become frustrated when practical and theoretically beneficial applications are simply dismissed on ethical grounds.

Bioluminescent biotechnology is one seemingly innocent branch of science that has brought some interesting ideas to the table. Bio-geneticists in this field have spoken about glowing trees that light up highways, agricultural crops that glow when they need watering, and even bioluminescent methods of detecting dodgy meats and other foods. Yet the real controversy arose when they began speaking about bioluminescent pets.

Bioluminescent pets: GloFish sparks debate

Pet stores in the United States have been under the spotlight since 2004 over the sale of genetically-modified fish that glow in the dark. Sold under the name GloFish, these creatures carry a lofty claim to fame: they are the nation’s first officially sanctioned genetically-modified pet, and scientists say that they won’t be the last.

The GloFish is a Zebra Danio that is made to glow red by the insertion of a gene found in sea coral. Naturally black and white, the new GloFish has gone from curiosity to a focal point in the debate over biotechnology and bioluminescent pets.

There are valid points to be made on both sides of the debate. The central ethical concern centers on the idea of altering the genetic make-up of an animal when there’s no purpose besides our own pleasure. However, most bio-geneticists will argue that this has already been occurring for years.

Bioluminescent Pets: The Eighth Day

The pet industry is in many ways a peculiar venue for such a heated debate over the wisdom of genetic modification. The whole notion of a pet, after all, is based on generations upon generations of selective breeding aimed at drawing out certain characteristics that make animals more suitable companions.

Think about dog breeding and all the breeds of dog that wouldn’t be around without human interference. These pooches may not glow in the dark, but the fact that their genes were somehow manipulated can still be used in favour of genetic engineering.

The scary part is that geneticists could very well create an alien-looking, glow-in-the-dark dog. They’ve done it with mice and fish — the latter being the more popular. In fact, the GloFish has absolutely opened the floodgates to a whole new pet trade in genetically engineered animals.

Bioluminescent pets: Upsetting the natural balance of the wild

People who are opposed to the idea may also bring up the risk of unregulated gene-altered or bioluminescent pets upsetting the natural balance of nature and the wild. However, the idea of a rogue GloFish escaping its aquarium and spawning an army of mutant glow-fish in the wild that ultimately wipe out other species of fish, does not presently have a lot of backing.

Yet the question remains: How will a glowing fish benefit society? What’s interesting is that the GloFish was not originally engineered to be a pet. In fact, its creation was rather strange. According to a Washington Post article:

"... glowing fish of a related species were originally developed in a Singapore laboratory for use as a modern-day canary in a coal mine. The fish were supposed to indicate, by glowing, if a given body of water is polluted."

Although this practical use of glowing fish failed, there still seems to be more weight on the side of the debate that argues that genetic modification of animals in general can be advantageous to both people and pets. Researchers are already at work trying to create a cat that won’t aggravate its owner’s allergies. Other possible creations include a dog that isn’t as susceptible to hip dysplasia - an ailment common among German shepherds and Labradors that is associated with over-breeding.

Proposed applications of engineered bioluminescence

Some other proposed applications of engineered bioluminescence include:

• Detecting bacterial species in suspicious corpses.
• Novelty pets that bioluminesce (rabbits, mice, fish etc.)
• Agricultural crops and domestic plants that luminesce when they need watering.
• Bio-identifiers for escaped convicts and mental patients.
• Glowing trees to line highways, thus saving on government electricity bills.
• Christmas trees that do not need lights, reducing danger from electrical fires.
• New methods for detecting bacterial contamination of meats and other foods.

So will (or should) biotechnology be left to genetically modify our future pets? It seems that this is already the case. Whether they will be bioluminescent remains a question of personal taste and will ultimately be left to public demand. There will always be a market for the bizarre. Would I ever add a GloFish to my aquarium? Sure. You can get them in the U.S. for $5.

Related posts:

• Exotic animals: to pet or not to pet?
• A beginners guide to keeping tropical fish

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What happens when you introduce 500 volts to the rear end of a horny black rhino - A factual account by Wilbur Smith

The Electrician and the Horney Rhinoceros

THE plight of the Black Rhinoceros is, of course, due mostly to the value of its horn and the ferocious poaching that this engenders. However, a contributory factor to the declining rhino population is the animals disorganised mating habits.

It seems that the female rhino only becomes receptive to the male's attentions every three years or so, while the male only becomes interested in her at the same intervals, a condition known quite appropriately as "Must". The problem is one of synchronisation, for their amorous inclinations do not always coincide.

In the early Sixties, I was invited, along with a host of journalists and other luminaries, to be present at an attempt by the Rhodesian Game and Tsetse Department to solve this problem of poor timing.

The idea was to capture a male rhino and induce him to deliver up that which could be stored until that day in the distant future when his mate's fancy turned lightly to thoughts of love.

We departed from the Zambezi Valley in an impressive convoy of trucks and Landrovers, counting in our midst none other than the Director of the game department in person, together with his minions, a veterinary surgeon, an electrician and sundry other technicians, all deemed necessary to make the harvest.

The local game scouts had been sent out to scout the bush for the largest, most virile Rhinoceros they could find. They had done their job to perfection and led us to a beast at least the size of a small granite koppie with a horn on his nose considerably longer than my arm.

The trick was to get this monster into a robust mobile pen
which had been constructed to accommodate him.

The Electrician and the Horney Rhinoceros continued...

The Pursuit of Happiness

With the Director of the Game Department shouting frantic orders from the safety of the largest truck, the pursuit was on. The tumult and the shouting were apocalyptic. Clouds of dust flew in all directions, trees, and vegetation were destroyed, game scouts scattered like chaff, but finally the Rhinoceros had about a litre of narcotics shot into his rump and his mood became dreamy and benign.

With forty black game guards heaving and shoving, and the Director still shouting orders from the truck, the rhino was wedged into his cage, and stood there with a happy grin on his face.

At this stage, the Director deemed it safe to emerge from the cab of his truck and he came amongst us resplendent in starched and immaculately ironed bush jacket with a colourful silk scarf at this throat. With an imperial gesture, he ordered the portable electric generator to be brought forward and positioned behind the captured animal. This was a machine which was capable of lighting up a small city, and it was equipped with two wheels that made it resemble a Roman chariot.

The Director climbed up on the generator to better address us. We gathered around attentively while he explained what was to happen next ...

Enter Electrician

It seemed that the only way to get what we had come for was to introduce an electrode into the rhino's rear end, and to deliver a mild electric shock, no more than a few volts, which would be enough to pull his trigger for him.

The Director gave another order and the veterinary surgeon greased something that looked like an acoustic torpedo and which was attached to the generator with sturdy insulated wires. He then went up behind the somnolent beast and thrust it up him to a full arms length, at which the Rhino opened his eyes very wide indeed.

The veterinary and his two black assistants now moved into position with a large bucket and assumed expectant expressions. We, the audience, crowded closer so as not to miss a single detail of the drama. The Director still mounted on the generator trailer, nodded to the electrician who threw the switch and chaos reigned.

In the subsequent departmental enquiry the blame was placed squarely on the shoulders of the electrician. It seems that in the heat of the moment his wits had deserted him and instead of connecting up his apparatus to deliver a gentle 5 volts, he had crossed his wires and the Rhino received a full 500 volts up his rear end.

His reaction was spectacular. Four tons of rhinoceros shot six feet straight up in the air. The cage, made of great timber baulks, exploded into its separate pieces and the rhinoceros now very much awake, took off at a gallop.

We, the audience, were no less sprightly. We took to the trees with alacrity. This was the only occasion on which I have ever been passed by two journalists half way up a Mopane tree.

Chariots of Desire

From the top branches we beheld an amazing sight, for the chariot was still connected to the Rhinoceros per rectum, and the director of the game department was still mounted upon it, very much like Ben Hur, the charioteer.

As they disappeared from view, the rhinoceros was snorting and blowing like a steam locomotive and the Director was clinging to the front rail of his chariot and howling like the north wind which only encouraged the beast to greater speed.

The story has a happy ending for the following day after the director had returned hurriedly to his office in Salisbury, another male Rhinoceros was captured and caged and this time the electrician got his wiring right.

I can still see the Rhinoceros's expression of surprised gratification as the switch was thrown. You could almost hear him think to himself. "Oh Boy! I didn't think this was going to happen to me for at least another three years".

- The Electrician and the Horney Rhinoceros by Wilbur Smith

Best Happy Friday post yet: If historic people had Facebook

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