1 00:00:03,800 --> 00:00:06,680 Speaker 1: Welcome to Stuff to Blow your Mind from how Stuff 2 00:00:06,720 --> 00:00:13,960 Speaker 1: Works dot com. Hey, welcome to Stuff to Blow your Mind. 3 00:00:13,960 --> 00:00:16,800 Speaker 1: My name is Robert Lamb, and I'm Julie Douglas. Julie, 4 00:00:17,000 --> 00:00:19,560 Speaker 1: if you knew that you were going to be reincarnated, 5 00:00:19,720 --> 00:00:22,239 Speaker 1: and you were going to be reincarnated as a plant, 6 00:00:22,920 --> 00:00:28,639 Speaker 1: what plant would you choose? Yeah, beautiful blooms, nice thick leaves, 7 00:00:28,840 --> 00:00:32,200 Speaker 1: it's you know, it's hardy, ornamental, and yet it has substance. 8 00:00:32,360 --> 00:00:34,159 Speaker 1: Described this one to me? What does it look like? 9 00:00:34,680 --> 00:00:36,880 Speaker 1: You know? I mean sort of a plant with nice 10 00:00:36,960 --> 00:00:41,199 Speaker 1: glossy green leaves, so you know, the spade shaped right 11 00:00:41,880 --> 00:00:45,280 Speaker 1: and as I say, a beautiful pink blooms or red 12 00:00:45,400 --> 00:00:48,000 Speaker 1: or I don't know. It's something that I look out, 13 00:00:48,040 --> 00:00:51,159 Speaker 1: you know, from my window a lot. Just why it 14 00:00:51,200 --> 00:00:53,640 Speaker 1: came to mind so quickly, and you, um, I would 15 00:00:53,680 --> 00:00:57,240 Speaker 1: I would go with moss, some some some form of moss. 16 00:00:57,040 --> 00:00:59,680 Speaker 1: That's so gothic, that's so you it's not really gothic 17 00:01:00,280 --> 00:01:03,240 Speaker 1: like I think moss is a moss is very happy 18 00:01:03,600 --> 00:01:07,840 Speaker 1: type of plant. I mean plant. I don't know. I 19 00:01:07,840 --> 00:01:09,840 Speaker 1: can't think of a god. Plants are very god for 20 00:01:09,880 --> 00:01:12,640 Speaker 1: the most Actually, there are golf gardens, and they're beautiful. 21 00:01:12,680 --> 00:01:15,920 Speaker 1: I'm not kidding there these deep purple's. Um. Yeah, you 22 00:01:16,400 --> 00:01:18,480 Speaker 1: should go online and look up golf gardens. Okay, so 23 00:01:18,600 --> 00:01:21,800 Speaker 1: they're just like a lot of dark purple plants and 24 00:01:21,800 --> 00:01:24,360 Speaker 1: things of that nature. Yeah, Moss. I think of moss 25 00:01:24,480 --> 00:01:27,560 Speaker 1: is rich and vibrant, growing in the depths of woods 26 00:01:27,959 --> 00:01:31,240 Speaker 1: where never a goth has tread so um, you know, 27 00:01:31,280 --> 00:01:34,280 Speaker 1: and just living peacefully far from everything, and just you know, 28 00:01:34,400 --> 00:01:38,440 Speaker 1: soft and moist aesthetic about it. I will say that 29 00:01:38,600 --> 00:01:41,960 Speaker 1: monk like about moss. Yeah, yeah, yeah, you're right, not 30 00:01:42,240 --> 00:01:45,320 Speaker 1: just trying to just living there hanging out moss. Yeah, 31 00:01:45,600 --> 00:01:47,640 Speaker 1: you know, for taking it easy in the next life 32 00:01:47,920 --> 00:01:50,000 Speaker 1: as a plant. But that's one of the things we're 33 00:01:50,000 --> 00:01:54,120 Speaker 1: really going to discuss in our podcast today. Plants really 34 00:01:54,120 --> 00:01:58,040 Speaker 1: have this stereotype. It's easier to dismiss plants as being 35 00:01:58,120 --> 00:02:01,320 Speaker 1: this passive not even really an organism. You just think 36 00:02:01,320 --> 00:02:04,400 Speaker 1: of like plants as stuff that grows elsewhere in the 37 00:02:04,440 --> 00:02:06,880 Speaker 1: world that I have to cut back in order to 38 00:02:07,040 --> 00:02:10,760 Speaker 1: see across my lawn, that has to be maintained to 39 00:02:10,760 --> 00:02:13,680 Speaker 1: a certain degree, but otherwise isn't really a player on 40 00:02:13,720 --> 00:02:15,960 Speaker 1: the planet. Yeah, I mean especially when you think about 41 00:02:16,520 --> 00:02:19,799 Speaker 1: invasive types of plants like kudzu in the South when 42 00:02:19,800 --> 00:02:22,760 Speaker 1: it was introduced, just took over everything. So if you're 43 00:02:22,880 --> 00:02:26,320 Speaker 1: driving along the highway, you'll see kudzoo covered buildings. It's 44 00:02:26,360 --> 00:02:28,880 Speaker 1: just pretty monstrous looking, and so you look at it 45 00:02:28,919 --> 00:02:30,720 Speaker 1: more like, oh, man, that's such a past I gotta 46 00:02:30,760 --> 00:02:33,400 Speaker 1: I need to maintain this. But but even then, we 47 00:02:33,440 --> 00:02:35,720 Speaker 1: just think of it as this some morphous force that's 48 00:02:36,120 --> 00:02:38,200 Speaker 1: sort of coming at us. It's it's it's easy to 49 00:02:38,240 --> 00:02:40,200 Speaker 1: dismiss it and not think of it as something that 50 00:02:40,360 --> 00:02:43,799 Speaker 1: is actually highly sensitive bunch of organisms. I mean, yeah, yeah, 51 00:02:43,840 --> 00:02:46,600 Speaker 1: there's a secret life to plants. Yeah, and they're actively 52 00:02:46,880 --> 00:02:50,280 Speaker 1: competing for environmental resources both above the ground and below 53 00:02:50,280 --> 00:02:53,280 Speaker 1: the ground. They're assessing their surroundings and they're estimating how 54 00:02:53,360 --> 00:02:55,840 Speaker 1: much energy they need to expand granted, all of this 55 00:02:55,919 --> 00:02:59,440 Speaker 1: is taking place at a much slower pace than with 56 00:02:59,600 --> 00:03:01,840 Speaker 1: us and mols, but it's happening. And one of the 57 00:03:01,919 --> 00:03:04,720 Speaker 1: key things that we're gonna look at today is communication. 58 00:03:04,840 --> 00:03:09,000 Speaker 1: Ye specifically whether or not plants actually have a language 59 00:03:09,040 --> 00:03:12,720 Speaker 1: in the form of chemical compounds. Language what you say, 60 00:03:12,840 --> 00:03:14,799 Speaker 1: but wait until you hear from the stuff that we're 61 00:03:14,800 --> 00:03:17,920 Speaker 1: about to lay on you. We're specifically talking about chemical communication. 62 00:03:18,360 --> 00:03:20,720 Speaker 1: You see this in between plants, so inside plants, but 63 00:03:20,720 --> 00:03:22,840 Speaker 1: also between other plants. In fact, there are more than 64 00:03:22,880 --> 00:03:26,680 Speaker 1: twenty different groups of molecules related to communication in plants 65 00:03:26,680 --> 00:03:29,959 Speaker 1: that we've identified. Those are groups, So for instance, they're 66 00:03:30,040 --> 00:03:33,679 Speaker 1: up to one hundred thousand different substances that are actively 67 00:03:33,840 --> 00:03:36,800 Speaker 1: used for communication in the root zone of plants alone. 68 00:03:37,160 --> 00:03:40,240 Speaker 1: You have things like mechanical contact that are responsible for 69 00:03:40,400 --> 00:03:42,880 Speaker 1: setting off some of this communication. For instance, you'll have 70 00:03:42,960 --> 00:03:45,200 Speaker 1: a plant that reacts to an animal is trying to 71 00:03:45,240 --> 00:03:48,520 Speaker 1: eat it, or something touches it and discards pollen, so 72 00:03:48,560 --> 00:03:51,480 Speaker 1: that whatever's touching it will carry that pollen elsewhere, or 73 00:03:51,560 --> 00:03:54,360 Speaker 1: it is growing in such a way as to intersect 74 00:03:54,520 --> 00:03:57,560 Speaker 1: with a beam of sunlight is coming into the canopy above. 75 00:03:57,680 --> 00:04:00,440 Speaker 1: And you see these interactions between plants and other plants, 76 00:04:00,480 --> 00:04:04,840 Speaker 1: between plants and other species, other families, even the whole 77 00:04:04,840 --> 00:04:08,680 Speaker 1: other kingdoms. And most of these are symbiotic or parasitic relationships, 78 00:04:08,680 --> 00:04:11,120 Speaker 1: but but they exist. They're not again, they are not 79 00:04:11,320 --> 00:04:15,240 Speaker 1: passive members of the environment. They're active members of the environment. Yeah, 80 00:04:15,320 --> 00:04:16,720 Speaker 1: and let's put a little bit of rubber to the 81 00:04:16,839 --> 00:04:19,600 Speaker 1: road and giving an example of this. Okay, that fresh 82 00:04:19,640 --> 00:04:22,640 Speaker 1: cut smell of grass okay that you smell on a 83 00:04:22,640 --> 00:04:26,599 Speaker 1: Saturday morning that reminds you of summer and whatever else 84 00:04:26,640 --> 00:04:30,599 Speaker 1: summer reminds you of. That actually is a very intentional 85 00:04:30,640 --> 00:04:35,240 Speaker 1: smell and it is a cry of anguish. Yeah. Yeah, 86 00:04:35,279 --> 00:04:40,960 Speaker 1: so the blades have cut that ground were but yeah, 87 00:04:40,960 --> 00:04:43,560 Speaker 1: I mean this is what happens. Actually, there's something called 88 00:04:43,600 --> 00:04:46,559 Speaker 1: green leaf volatiles, and this is released when plants suffer 89 00:04:46,600 --> 00:04:49,640 Speaker 1: tissue damage, and as you say, it can signal to 90 00:04:49,880 --> 00:04:53,360 Speaker 1: plants of the same or different species, or even insects. Yeah. 91 00:04:53,400 --> 00:04:56,880 Speaker 1: So these are chemical signal substances and they are really 92 00:04:56,960 --> 00:05:01,560 Speaker 1: the oldest form of language. You see them use by microbes, fungi, animals, 93 00:05:01,600 --> 00:05:04,839 Speaker 1: and plants and leaves are always emitting these volatiles in 94 00:05:04,920 --> 00:05:07,719 Speaker 1: small doses, but it's when those parasitic insects move in 95 00:05:07,760 --> 00:05:10,880 Speaker 1: that you see great quantities admitted. So some of these 96 00:05:11,040 --> 00:05:14,560 Speaker 1: definitely they actually attack a parasite by producing substances that 97 00:05:14,680 --> 00:05:19,039 Speaker 1: disagree with them, or they're indirectly attracting other insects that 98 00:05:19,040 --> 00:05:21,200 Speaker 1: are natural enemies of the parasites. So you can think 99 00:05:21,240 --> 00:05:23,320 Speaker 1: of think of it. On one level, it's like an 100 00:05:23,320 --> 00:05:25,920 Speaker 1: immune system that we have where something's messing with it, 101 00:05:25,920 --> 00:05:27,880 Speaker 1: it's going to release things to fight it. But then 102 00:05:27,920 --> 00:05:30,720 Speaker 1: it's also not afraid to send out that alarm signal 103 00:05:31,000 --> 00:05:34,120 Speaker 1: and say, hey, something bad going down here, like somebody 104 00:05:34,240 --> 00:05:37,080 Speaker 1: screaming in a dark alley, to say, hey, I'm being attacked, 105 00:05:37,240 --> 00:05:40,000 Speaker 1: sending the forces. Yeah. I think A really extreme example 106 00:05:40,040 --> 00:05:42,360 Speaker 1: of this was what German scientists found when they were 107 00:05:42,360 --> 00:05:46,640 Speaker 1: publishing their research in science. They studied wild tobacco planets 108 00:05:46,680 --> 00:05:50,680 Speaker 1: and they witnessed the hornworm caterpillars tobacco planets. Did I 109 00:05:50,720 --> 00:05:54,520 Speaker 1: say that I'm not making fun because I accidentally wrote planets? Yeah, 110 00:05:54,640 --> 00:05:57,760 Speaker 1: I know you meant plants. But I like the idea 111 00:05:57,760 --> 00:05:59,920 Speaker 1: of a wild tobacco planets. Okay, I do too. Well, 112 00:06:00,040 --> 00:06:02,160 Speaker 1: I don't know for everybody's health. We'll see about that. 113 00:06:02,240 --> 00:06:08,000 Speaker 1: But while tobacco plants, we're actually being attacked by horned 114 00:06:08,000 --> 00:06:10,760 Speaker 1: worn caterpillars. And what they found was that the caterpillars 115 00:06:11,000 --> 00:06:13,800 Speaker 1: saliva caused a chemical change in the g l V 116 00:06:14,000 --> 00:06:17,800 Speaker 1: compounds the plants produced. And it's that the interaction of 117 00:06:17,800 --> 00:06:22,000 Speaker 1: the saliva with the chemical compounds that then transmitted out. Hey, hey, guys, 118 00:06:22,000 --> 00:06:26,560 Speaker 1: guess what We're being attacked by? Delicious, juicy hornworn caterpillars, 119 00:06:26,720 --> 00:06:28,960 Speaker 1: come and get them. And those g lvs again are 120 00:06:29,000 --> 00:06:32,440 Speaker 1: green leaf volatiles, which are those chemicals we're talking about earlier. 121 00:06:32,760 --> 00:06:34,919 Speaker 1: And I think it's also fun to point out that 122 00:06:34,960 --> 00:06:37,719 Speaker 1: in the name for these caterpillars, Manduca sexta, it sounds 123 00:06:37,720 --> 00:06:43,960 Speaker 1: like a DJ, specifically like a Mexico City DJ somehow. Okay, well, 124 00:06:43,960 --> 00:06:46,400 Speaker 1: now we have the soundtrack to this bit. What's interesting 125 00:06:46,400 --> 00:06:48,880 Speaker 1: about this is that, of course we look at this 126 00:06:48,920 --> 00:06:50,960 Speaker 1: as human beings and say, how can we harness this 127 00:06:51,040 --> 00:06:54,000 Speaker 1: knowledge for our own use? And scientists think that we 128 00:06:54,040 --> 00:06:56,520 Speaker 1: may be able to induce the same sort of change 129 00:06:56,839 --> 00:07:00,719 Speaker 1: via genetic engineering, which might protect plants against pest without 130 00:07:00,800 --> 00:07:05,440 Speaker 1: encouraging the resistance that pests develop in response to pesticides. Okay, 131 00:07:05,440 --> 00:07:07,120 Speaker 1: so that we may be able to do the same 132 00:07:07,160 --> 00:07:11,280 Speaker 1: sort of distress call to protect our crops and whatnot. 133 00:07:11,880 --> 00:07:14,520 Speaker 1: But more interesting though, is the question of whether or 134 00:07:14,560 --> 00:07:17,559 Speaker 1: not plants have this rudimentary form of language. Lima beans 135 00:07:17,560 --> 00:07:20,920 Speaker 1: are another interesting example to join across this one. So 136 00:07:21,200 --> 00:07:24,360 Speaker 1: lima beans they're attacked by red mites First they change 137 00:07:24,400 --> 00:07:27,680 Speaker 1: their scent to make them unattractive to the mines. Then 138 00:07:27,920 --> 00:07:31,040 Speaker 1: the plants emits sense that are perceived by other plants 139 00:07:31,120 --> 00:07:32,920 Speaker 1: and they do the same thing. So all the other 140 00:07:33,000 --> 00:07:36,040 Speaker 1: line of bean plants in the area start making themselves 141 00:07:36,160 --> 00:07:38,680 Speaker 1: unattractive to these mites before they can even move in. 142 00:07:39,040 --> 00:07:41,840 Speaker 1: And then some of the emitted substances have an added 143 00:07:41,880 --> 00:07:44,960 Speaker 1: effect that they bring in other mites that will eat 144 00:07:44,960 --> 00:07:47,480 Speaker 1: the red mites. So they're kind of unleashing two volatile 145 00:07:47,480 --> 00:07:50,640 Speaker 1: weapons on these parasites. They're saying, hey, you don't like 146 00:07:50,680 --> 00:07:53,120 Speaker 1: me after I'll see smell gross. And they're saying, oh, 147 00:07:53,160 --> 00:07:55,240 Speaker 1: by the way, we're in conviting some friends over to 148 00:07:55,280 --> 00:07:58,040 Speaker 1: eat you. So it's a two tiered defense system they 149 00:07:58,080 --> 00:08:00,000 Speaker 1: have going on there. Yeah, I mean it's pretty hard, 150 00:08:00,360 --> 00:08:02,760 Speaker 1: and there have been people who have actually been using 151 00:08:02,760 --> 00:08:05,320 Speaker 1: this strategy it is called push pole strategy to put 152 00:08:05,520 --> 00:08:09,160 Speaker 1: certain kinds of plants around their crops to either attract 153 00:08:09,440 --> 00:08:11,040 Speaker 1: something that they knew is going to be eaten that 154 00:08:11,120 --> 00:08:14,320 Speaker 1: may have eaten their crop, or to repel them as 155 00:08:14,360 --> 00:08:17,840 Speaker 1: you just talked about, are actually in that instance is 156 00:08:17,920 --> 00:08:22,560 Speaker 1: taking both repel and the attracting. But there's another really 157 00:08:22,600 --> 00:08:25,360 Speaker 1: interesting thing that came up in an Ion nine article 158 00:08:25,560 --> 00:08:31,000 Speaker 1: and is called plants can think and perform computations, say scientists, really, oh, well, 159 00:08:31,120 --> 00:08:33,680 Speaker 1: there you go, let's define computations. Well, I will, I 160 00:08:33,720 --> 00:08:36,880 Speaker 1: will um. But it is predicated on what you brought up, 161 00:08:36,920 --> 00:08:40,000 Speaker 1: This idea that plants are trying to protect themselves and 162 00:08:40,160 --> 00:08:44,800 Speaker 1: immunize themselves against pathogens. Right. In this case, there are 163 00:08:44,840 --> 00:08:47,560 Speaker 1: a group of researchers who believe they've found the plant 164 00:08:47,640 --> 00:08:51,720 Speaker 1: equivalent of the nervous system, which functions by translating light 165 00:08:51,760 --> 00:08:55,920 Speaker 1: into chemical reactions and remembering those reactions over time. So 166 00:08:56,000 --> 00:08:58,200 Speaker 1: what they're saying is that plants need to analyze and 167 00:08:58,280 --> 00:09:01,559 Speaker 1: remember different wavelengths of light in order to prepare for 168 00:09:01,920 --> 00:09:06,720 Speaker 1: seasonal variations and pasts and pathogens. And Professor Karpinsky from 169 00:09:06,760 --> 00:09:10,000 Speaker 1: the University of Leeds says, every day or week of 170 00:09:10,040 --> 00:09:13,800 Speaker 1: the season has a characteristic light quality, so the plants 171 00:09:13,840 --> 00:09:17,160 Speaker 1: perform a sort of biological light computation. There you go 172 00:09:17,679 --> 00:09:22,200 Speaker 1: using information contained in the light to immunize themselves against 173 00:09:22,320 --> 00:09:24,880 Speaker 1: diseases that are prevalent during that season. I think that's 174 00:09:25,000 --> 00:09:27,400 Speaker 1: fascinating and we are talking about that taking that that 175 00:09:27,520 --> 00:09:29,920 Speaker 1: quality of light because we talked about this last week 176 00:09:30,160 --> 00:09:33,719 Speaker 1: about how white light is composed of different wavelengths, and 177 00:09:33,800 --> 00:09:37,280 Speaker 1: of course this varies depending on what that season is. Yeah, 178 00:09:37,360 --> 00:09:39,959 Speaker 1: and again it just it drives home how plants are 179 00:09:40,000 --> 00:09:43,640 Speaker 1: not this passive member of the environment. They are active 180 00:09:43,679 --> 00:09:46,400 Speaker 1: members that are computing things, that are figuring things out 181 00:09:46,480 --> 00:09:50,400 Speaker 1: and fighting off attackers. Speaking for resources, I suppose we 182 00:09:50,400 --> 00:09:52,120 Speaker 1: should take a quick break. We should, and when we 183 00:09:52,160 --> 00:09:54,800 Speaker 1: get back, we're going to talk about a plant that 184 00:09:54,880 --> 00:09:57,880 Speaker 1: has the stench of a big, glorious hunk of rotting meat. 185 00:09:58,040 --> 00:10:01,160 Speaker 1: Oh yeah, yeah, this is a favorite of it hanging there. 186 00:10:01,160 --> 00:10:07,760 Speaker 1: We'll be right back. We have returned, and now it's 187 00:10:07,760 --> 00:10:11,520 Speaker 1: time to discuss the titan arum on the street. It 188 00:10:11,559 --> 00:10:15,679 Speaker 1: also goes by well in Indonesia Bunga bang Kai, which 189 00:10:15,800 --> 00:10:19,600 Speaker 1: translates into corpse flower, and its Latin name is actually 190 00:10:19,720 --> 00:10:24,400 Speaker 1: a morpho thallast titanium. And uh, just in case you 191 00:10:24,480 --> 00:10:27,160 Speaker 1: picked up that fallast part in there, Yes, there is 192 00:10:27,440 --> 00:10:29,640 Speaker 1: a bit of a penis reference in here. That is 193 00:10:29,760 --> 00:10:35,160 Speaker 1: Latin for giant misshapen penis. Yes, it is because if 194 00:10:35,160 --> 00:10:37,199 Speaker 1: you look up a picture of the planet, does it 195 00:10:37,240 --> 00:10:40,959 Speaker 1: looks like a giant grotesque fallust. So yeah, well, actually 196 00:10:41,000 --> 00:10:43,480 Speaker 1: it's it's quite I mean, it's a weird thing to 197 00:10:43,480 --> 00:10:46,000 Speaker 1: follow that. It's actually stunning. It's kind of beautiful in 198 00:10:46,000 --> 00:10:48,640 Speaker 1: a way, because we're talking about is a plant that 199 00:10:48,720 --> 00:10:52,400 Speaker 1: grows to eight feet tall and it's wrapped in the 200 00:10:52,600 --> 00:10:56,160 Speaker 1: chartruse colored leaves, and when it blooms, the leaves unfurl 201 00:10:56,240 --> 00:10:58,520 Speaker 1: and you can see the interior of the leaves and 202 00:10:58,559 --> 00:11:02,400 Speaker 1: they look kind of marooney and satin ball gown looking. 203 00:11:03,000 --> 00:11:05,680 Speaker 1: And in the middle is that pale yellow that was 204 00:11:05,720 --> 00:11:08,080 Speaker 1: called the sphatics that rises up. This is the big 205 00:11:08,280 --> 00:11:10,520 Speaker 1: shape and penis that we're talking about. It's also interesting 206 00:11:10,520 --> 00:11:13,839 Speaker 1: that the titem Arum is not a flower technically, it's 207 00:11:13,880 --> 00:11:16,720 Speaker 1: what we call an inflorescence, which is a group of 208 00:11:16,720 --> 00:11:20,840 Speaker 1: flowers clustered around a central fleshy column. Like you said, 209 00:11:21,240 --> 00:11:23,160 Speaker 1: and I found this interesting as well. There's a little 210 00:11:23,160 --> 00:11:25,200 Speaker 1: bit of mimicry that goes on in this particular plant 211 00:11:25,600 --> 00:11:28,560 Speaker 1: because that stalk is very fleshy, it's really not doesn't 212 00:11:28,600 --> 00:11:30,600 Speaker 1: have a lot of substance to it. So what it 213 00:11:30,640 --> 00:11:34,719 Speaker 1: does is it mimics lien growing on that shaft so 214 00:11:34,760 --> 00:11:37,920 Speaker 1: that it looks rugged and harder than it actually is 215 00:11:38,120 --> 00:11:42,000 Speaker 1: to keep things from plowing into it. Right, Imagine this guy, 216 00:11:42,040 --> 00:11:45,839 Speaker 1: this Italian botanists a Duad Bicari, in eight seventy eight, 217 00:11:45,880 --> 00:11:49,480 Speaker 1: stumbling upon this corpse flower. He was actually trekking through 218 00:11:49,520 --> 00:11:52,280 Speaker 1: the rainforce of Sumatra where these are indigenous and at 219 00:11:52,320 --> 00:11:54,400 Speaker 1: first he thought that there was a dead monkey and 220 00:11:54,440 --> 00:11:57,000 Speaker 1: that was the source of the stench. But he saw 221 00:11:57,080 --> 00:11:59,960 Speaker 1: this magnificent eight foot tall flower in The closer he got, 222 00:12:00,240 --> 00:12:04,440 Speaker 1: the more he realized that this is what smelled. People 223 00:12:04,440 --> 00:12:08,720 Speaker 1: say sometimes of rotting garbage, rutting meat, uh feces, rotting 224 00:12:08,760 --> 00:12:11,600 Speaker 1: fish with burnt sugar was one description that I ran across. 225 00:12:13,240 --> 00:12:16,160 Speaker 1: And so he discovered this thing, and he's like, they've 226 00:12:16,160 --> 00:12:18,880 Speaker 1: got to have this in England. I'm they need this 227 00:12:19,080 --> 00:12:20,800 Speaker 1: in the UK. I'm going to send this back to 228 00:12:20,960 --> 00:12:24,200 Speaker 1: the Royal Botanic Gardens, and he did and they started 229 00:12:24,200 --> 00:12:27,520 Speaker 1: cultivating it. Because it's absurd. It is absurd. That's a 230 00:12:27,520 --> 00:12:30,320 Speaker 1: really good word for but also pretty wonderful and awful. 231 00:12:30,720 --> 00:12:34,080 Speaker 1: So let's talk about why it smells, and why is 232 00:12:34,400 --> 00:12:37,600 Speaker 1: not just smells, but it's incredibly pungent. Well, it needs 233 00:12:37,600 --> 00:12:40,200 Speaker 1: pollinators in the same way that you have sweet smelling 234 00:12:40,240 --> 00:12:44,040 Speaker 1: flowers that are attracting bees and whatnot to help spread 235 00:12:44,080 --> 00:12:47,920 Speaker 1: their pollen. This particular plant wants to achieve the same goal, 236 00:12:48,520 --> 00:12:50,679 Speaker 1: but it's going to find a slightly different way of 237 00:12:50,679 --> 00:12:52,559 Speaker 1: doing it. You know, a lot of competition for all 238 00:12:52,559 --> 00:12:55,920 Speaker 1: those bees and loss and butterflies, But old Titan here 239 00:12:56,040 --> 00:12:58,160 Speaker 1: as a different game in mind. It's going to reach 240 00:12:58,200 --> 00:13:01,520 Speaker 1: out to the carrion beetles and the flesh flies, these 241 00:13:01,600 --> 00:13:05,360 Speaker 1: insects that love nothing more than the scent of a 242 00:13:05,559 --> 00:13:08,160 Speaker 1: rotten monkey in then in the jungle. Yeah, and it's 243 00:13:08,200 --> 00:13:10,760 Speaker 1: got to go big or go home because it's such 244 00:13:10,800 --> 00:13:12,679 Speaker 1: a large plant, and it can take a year or 245 00:13:12,720 --> 00:13:15,280 Speaker 1: more for that plant to store enough energy to bloom. 246 00:13:15,320 --> 00:13:19,480 Speaker 1: In fact, when it's then cultivated botanical gardens, sometimes it 247 00:13:19,520 --> 00:13:22,240 Speaker 1: takes six to seven years to bloom. Yeah, you mentioned 248 00:13:22,280 --> 00:13:23,520 Speaker 1: all the energy it has to use. One of the 249 00:13:23,600 --> 00:13:26,079 Speaker 1: reasons is that it has to heat itself up in 250 00:13:26,200 --> 00:13:30,640 Speaker 1: order to really get that perfume cranking properly. Yeah, there's 251 00:13:30,679 --> 00:13:33,559 Speaker 1: this idea that it is mimicking almost like a human 252 00:13:33,600 --> 00:13:37,920 Speaker 1: body flesh fahrenheit of ninety eight point six and making 253 00:13:37,960 --> 00:13:41,360 Speaker 1: itself more attractive. Specifically, the tip of the spadix is 254 00:13:41,520 --> 00:13:45,080 Speaker 1: about human body temperature when it's really in full bloom. Yeah, 255 00:13:45,200 --> 00:13:47,880 Speaker 1: and so now think about that, it's really hot. It's 256 00:13:47,920 --> 00:13:51,000 Speaker 1: presenting itself as a hot hunk of meat high up 257 00:13:51,000 --> 00:13:53,200 Speaker 1: in the air, and it's telegraphing that for up to 258 00:13:53,320 --> 00:13:56,400 Speaker 1: a half mile. So all these carrying eaters and flesh 259 00:13:56,400 --> 00:13:58,520 Speaker 1: flies they come in, they're attracted to it. They want 260 00:13:58,520 --> 00:14:00,199 Speaker 1: to they want to consume it, they want to their 261 00:14:00,200 --> 00:14:03,000 Speaker 1: eggs there. They end up inadvertently carrying the pollen out 262 00:14:03,040 --> 00:14:05,840 Speaker 1: and spreading it, which is the whole goal here. You 263 00:14:05,840 --> 00:14:09,960 Speaker 1: had mentioned this, the carryon flies, dung beetles, the sort 264 00:14:10,000 --> 00:14:12,599 Speaker 1: of plant that this actually belongs to, or excuse me, 265 00:14:12,640 --> 00:14:14,720 Speaker 1: a should say that the species that belongs to is 266 00:14:14,800 --> 00:14:18,000 Speaker 1: a category of carrying flowers. Yours are perking up the 267 00:14:18,040 --> 00:14:21,320 Speaker 1: word carrying, which of course is referring to a carcass right. 268 00:14:21,960 --> 00:14:24,560 Speaker 1: And not only do carrying flowers smell like rotting meat, 269 00:14:24,600 --> 00:14:26,960 Speaker 1: they also tend to look at part. For instance, the 270 00:14:27,120 --> 00:14:30,920 Speaker 1: Stepelia asterious flower is coated with fine hairs that make 271 00:14:30,960 --> 00:14:34,600 Speaker 1: the flower resemble molgi meat. It's really deceptive in its 272 00:14:34,600 --> 00:14:37,160 Speaker 1: own way. I mean, it's it's brilliant and it is again, 273 00:14:37,200 --> 00:14:39,320 Speaker 1: it's a kind of language. I mean, what is it saying, 274 00:14:39,400 --> 00:14:44,080 Speaker 1: come over and come over here and eat my fleshy stock, 275 00:14:44,200 --> 00:14:46,360 Speaker 1: which is not flesh. Yeah, in a way, they're like 276 00:14:46,400 --> 00:14:48,640 Speaker 1: if you imagine a dinner party and you have all 277 00:14:48,640 --> 00:14:52,200 Speaker 1: these boisterous individuals having a conversation, and those are those 278 00:14:52,200 --> 00:14:54,680 Speaker 1: are the animals, you know, and they're loudly discussing this, 279 00:14:54,760 --> 00:14:56,240 Speaker 1: that and the other. But then you have these smaller 280 00:14:56,320 --> 00:14:58,920 Speaker 1: voices that are perking up. They're not saying much, and 281 00:14:58,920 --> 00:15:01,480 Speaker 1: they're speaking in a much lower voice, but in their 282 00:15:01,560 --> 00:15:05,000 Speaker 1: own way, they're really dictating the entire conversation. And that's 283 00:15:05,000 --> 00:15:08,160 Speaker 1: what's so fascinating about the odorous language of plants. Yeah, 284 00:15:08,200 --> 00:15:10,440 Speaker 1: so think about that next time you step on grass, 285 00:15:10,920 --> 00:15:13,760 Speaker 1: whether or not you're getting some tissue damage there and 286 00:15:13,800 --> 00:15:17,520 Speaker 1: there's a cry out for help. Yeah, there's not you 287 00:15:17,720 --> 00:15:20,400 Speaker 1: to think about that. There was an amusing track from 288 00:15:20,400 --> 00:15:23,040 Speaker 1: the Land Tool years and years ago and the album Sober, 289 00:15:23,080 --> 00:15:25,000 Speaker 1: which I know we have a few Tool listeners that 290 00:15:25,040 --> 00:15:27,800 Speaker 1: are listeners to this podcast, and it started off with 291 00:15:27,840 --> 00:15:29,880 Speaker 1: this kind of skip where it's like a preacher preaching 292 00:15:29,920 --> 00:15:32,640 Speaker 1: to a congregation and he's revealing that he has had 293 00:15:32,640 --> 00:15:36,640 Speaker 1: this revelation that the carrots have souls and have a consciousness, 294 00:15:36,960 --> 00:15:40,960 Speaker 1: and that whenever we're harvesting carrots, it's like a holocaust 295 00:15:41,000 --> 00:15:44,160 Speaker 1: of carrots. I remember finding that particularly amusing back in 296 00:15:44,200 --> 00:15:45,920 Speaker 1: the day. But it's not too far off the mark. 297 00:15:46,000 --> 00:15:48,880 Speaker 1: I mean, it's not that difficult to anthropomorphize all these 298 00:15:48,880 --> 00:15:51,240 Speaker 1: plants when you start looking at just how involved they 299 00:15:51,280 --> 00:15:53,600 Speaker 1: really are and how active they are in the environment. 300 00:15:53,640 --> 00:15:56,720 Speaker 1: That doesn't mean that we're going to stop stepping on grass, right, 301 00:15:56,920 --> 00:15:59,160 Speaker 1: but it does give it an insight or change our 302 00:15:59,200 --> 00:16:02,440 Speaker 1: perspective a little. But about communication, like what communication is 303 00:16:02,480 --> 00:16:05,560 Speaker 1: and what language is, and we so often think that 304 00:16:05,600 --> 00:16:07,600 Speaker 1: it has to do with our own mother tongue, but 305 00:16:07,720 --> 00:16:10,520 Speaker 1: obviously there are all these things going on behind the 306 00:16:10,560 --> 00:16:13,000 Speaker 1: scenes that we don't get a glimpse into it with myself, 307 00:16:13,080 --> 00:16:16,400 Speaker 1: that's that's new stuff. That's it's a trend that not 308 00:16:16,440 --> 00:16:20,480 Speaker 1: everyone's even picking up. That's true. I'm actually putting together 309 00:16:20,600 --> 00:16:24,040 Speaker 1: a slide show of the corpse flower of Old Titan. 310 00:16:24,720 --> 00:16:27,240 Speaker 1: So yeah, the lookout for that will post it on Facebook, 311 00:16:27,320 --> 00:16:29,240 Speaker 1: but we can also put it in the search bar 312 00:16:29,400 --> 00:16:31,440 Speaker 1: of how stufforks dot com and you can get a 313 00:16:31,440 --> 00:16:33,680 Speaker 1: better look at what this thing looks like. Excellent, Yeah, 314 00:16:33,680 --> 00:16:35,280 Speaker 1: that should be awesome. Do check it out. See what 315 00:16:35,360 --> 00:16:38,400 Speaker 1: this gigantic mutated ballast is all about, and how it's 316 00:16:38,440 --> 00:16:42,000 Speaker 1: actually resembling rotten need a little indeed, All right, well, 317 00:16:42,040 --> 00:16:44,080 Speaker 1: let's call over the robot and see what kind of 318 00:16:44,120 --> 00:16:47,840 Speaker 1: listener mail we have heard from a listener by the 319 00:16:47,880 --> 00:16:50,720 Speaker 1: name of Zach. Zach right soon and says, hi, everyone, 320 00:16:50,840 --> 00:16:54,120 Speaker 1: after you guys mentioned that we have multiple behavior altering 321 00:16:54,160 --> 00:16:56,440 Speaker 1: parasites in us. What would it be like if you 322 00:16:56,520 --> 00:16:59,000 Speaker 1: could get a person that was completely devoid of not 323 00:16:59,080 --> 00:17:02,360 Speaker 1: just behavior altering parasites, but anything that altered their behavior? 324 00:17:02,600 --> 00:17:05,320 Speaker 1: Would they still be them? At some point? We might 325 00:17:05,359 --> 00:17:08,880 Speaker 1: not be so much individual but more of a compositive parasites. 326 00:17:09,080 --> 00:17:11,560 Speaker 1: Maybe to be human you need to be this host 327 00:17:11,640 --> 00:17:14,520 Speaker 1: and not one single organism. The Taxo episode is great 328 00:17:14,560 --> 00:17:16,440 Speaker 1: and really got me thinking. I think it's one of 329 00:17:16,480 --> 00:17:18,840 Speaker 1: your best episodes, even if it creeps me out thinking 330 00:17:18,880 --> 00:17:21,720 Speaker 1: about these parasites that one deed, it is one of 331 00:17:21,720 --> 00:17:23,639 Speaker 1: those topics that really turns what it is to be 332 00:17:23,720 --> 00:17:26,840 Speaker 1: human on its head and makes you reanalyze exactly what 333 00:17:26,960 --> 00:17:28,720 Speaker 1: the human experience is all Well, I think that is 334 00:17:28,800 --> 00:17:31,400 Speaker 1: Zach's point is awesome too, that is there any sort 335 00:17:31,400 --> 00:17:36,040 Speaker 1: of pure example of non infested people running around right 336 00:17:36,080 --> 00:17:38,600 Speaker 1: like how this is very much when we talked about 337 00:17:38,600 --> 00:17:40,760 Speaker 1: this in terms of bacteria. To have this very much 338 00:17:40,760 --> 00:17:44,119 Speaker 1: informs the way that we perceived the world, like you know, 339 00:17:44,160 --> 00:17:47,960 Speaker 1: the guttn or bacteria we know affects our mental state. 340 00:17:48,160 --> 00:17:51,000 Speaker 1: So bravo Zac. All right, here's a little listener mail 341 00:17:51,080 --> 00:17:54,720 Speaker 1: from Anne and she's responding to our recent seven Deathly 342 00:17:54,720 --> 00:17:57,600 Speaker 1: Sends episode on lust. She says, Hi, Julian Robert, you 343 00:17:57,600 --> 00:18:00,600 Speaker 1: guys do a great job to mystifying many interesting, indelicate 344 00:18:00,640 --> 00:18:03,000 Speaker 1: topics for listeners of all ages in a really matter 345 00:18:03,040 --> 00:18:05,919 Speaker 1: of fact way. Love the Wrath podcast. So why do 346 00:18:05,960 --> 00:18:08,359 Speaker 1: you have such a problem with the proper words for genitalia? 347 00:18:08,440 --> 00:18:11,119 Speaker 1: Penis is not a four letter word, nor is vagina. 348 00:18:11,280 --> 00:18:14,439 Speaker 1: Especially for younger listeners. Just using those words instead of 349 00:18:14,440 --> 00:18:18,440 Speaker 1: a euphanism makes it less scary flash titializing subject. Frankly, 350 00:18:18,520 --> 00:18:20,760 Speaker 1: if you can't use clear language, maybe you shouldn't be 351 00:18:20,760 --> 00:18:24,240 Speaker 1: covering the topic. The more you couch information using expressions 352 00:18:24,280 --> 00:18:26,439 Speaker 1: like frank and pens, the more you make it a 353 00:18:26,480 --> 00:18:29,240 Speaker 1: forbidden area. As an adult with lots of relatives and 354 00:18:29,320 --> 00:18:32,840 Speaker 1: friends with growing and mostly now adolescent kids. It's obvious 355 00:18:32,920 --> 00:18:36,080 Speaker 1: that those parents who use and always have used direct 356 00:18:36,160 --> 00:18:40,240 Speaker 1: terminology also have the most open discussions about sex, sexual health, 357 00:18:40,440 --> 00:18:43,000 Speaker 1: and birth control with their kids. Hope this isn't harsh. 358 00:18:43,280 --> 00:18:45,400 Speaker 1: This has been irking me, and I really do love 359 00:18:45,400 --> 00:18:49,199 Speaker 1: the podcast. Thanks and well, I really appreciate that feedback, actually, 360 00:18:49,240 --> 00:18:51,719 Speaker 1: because I think that it's important to note that obviously 361 00:18:51,800 --> 00:18:53,760 Speaker 1: don't have a prom saying penis from a shape and 362 00:18:53,800 --> 00:18:57,159 Speaker 1: penis um. But in the context of that podcast that 363 00:18:57,200 --> 00:18:59,199 Speaker 1: we did, because it was about virtual sex, we were 364 00:18:59,200 --> 00:19:01,359 Speaker 1: trying to be really carefu all about the language. Mainly 365 00:19:01,400 --> 00:19:03,640 Speaker 1: that's because the power of it be don't necessarily want 366 00:19:03,720 --> 00:19:07,840 Speaker 1: us describing graphic acts. When I say, frankm Bean's a 367 00:19:07,960 --> 00:19:10,560 Speaker 1: I like that be. I'm also trying to tamp down 368 00:19:10,600 --> 00:19:13,040 Speaker 1: a little bit of the more of the graphic aspects. 369 00:19:13,119 --> 00:19:16,000 Speaker 1: So that's just to make sure that that podcast gets 370 00:19:16,000 --> 00:19:18,919 Speaker 1: delivered to your ears and we don't have any problems 371 00:19:19,119 --> 00:19:21,520 Speaker 1: if it getting red flagged. But to your point, and 372 00:19:21,560 --> 00:19:25,200 Speaker 1: I think that you're absolutely right about being forthright and 373 00:19:25,440 --> 00:19:29,440 Speaker 1: using correct Sandletelia names. I kind of actually rue the 374 00:19:29,480 --> 00:19:31,080 Speaker 1: day that I told my three year old about the 375 00:19:31,320 --> 00:19:34,280 Speaker 1: word volva because she uses it a lot. But yeah, 376 00:19:34,320 --> 00:19:37,160 Speaker 1: I think that it's important to demystify that as well. 377 00:19:37,280 --> 00:19:39,720 Speaker 1: But there was actually a reason why we tried to 378 00:19:39,720 --> 00:19:42,480 Speaker 1: go gentle on the language for that podcast. And here's 379 00:19:42,480 --> 00:19:45,440 Speaker 1: one from listener Alex. Alex says, high, I just heard 380 00:19:45,440 --> 00:19:48,119 Speaker 1: your podcast god Delivers his Calling versus Barbie and is 381 00:19:48,160 --> 00:19:51,000 Speaker 1: a Godzilla fan who has seen all twenty eight films. 382 00:19:51,320 --> 00:19:53,920 Speaker 1: I feel obligated to add some details and correct some stuff. 383 00:19:54,200 --> 00:19:55,800 Speaker 1: First of all, I have to say that you forgot 384 00:19:55,840 --> 00:19:58,600 Speaker 1: some detail to Godzilla's history. After he became a hero 385 00:19:58,720 --> 00:20:00,679 Speaker 1: like character in the six season seven these, he returned 386 00:20:00,680 --> 00:20:02,800 Speaker 1: to his darker roots back in the eighties and nineties 387 00:20:02,840 --> 00:20:05,240 Speaker 1: and became an anti hero. Next, you guys said that 388 00:20:05,280 --> 00:20:07,760 Speaker 1: Godzilla's veins would have to be as strong as steel. 389 00:20:08,119 --> 00:20:10,879 Speaker 1: That's not that improbable in the Godzilla universe, considering how 390 00:20:10,960 --> 00:20:13,520 Speaker 1: durable he is. You also mentioned that his body is 391 00:20:13,560 --> 00:20:17,240 Speaker 1: two hundred meters long. Godzilla at his largest is one 392 00:20:17,480 --> 00:20:20,240 Speaker 1: tall while standing. However, he might be two hundred meters 393 00:20:20,280 --> 00:20:22,480 Speaker 1: if he was laying down, and you include his tail. 394 00:20:22,960 --> 00:20:25,640 Speaker 1: This is excusable because you've got his mass of sixty 395 00:20:25,640 --> 00:20:28,600 Speaker 1: thousand tons. Right. Finally, I have to say that it 396 00:20:28,760 --> 00:20:30,879 Speaker 1: is mentioned in movies that Godzilla's heart is said to 397 00:20:30,880 --> 00:20:34,960 Speaker 1: act like a nuclear reactor, meaning that Godzilla is powered 398 00:20:34,960 --> 00:20:39,200 Speaker 1: by nuclear power. Since this would generate more power than 399 00:20:39,520 --> 00:20:42,440 Speaker 1: cellular respiration, his blood would not have to circulate as 400 00:20:42,520 --> 00:20:45,840 Speaker 1: much because his cells would be powered longer with nuclear 401 00:20:45,880 --> 00:20:49,000 Speaker 1: power and with cellular respiration, this means that his blood 402 00:20:49,000 --> 00:20:51,480 Speaker 1: pressure would not have to be as high. Sorry for 403 00:20:51,560 --> 00:20:54,000 Speaker 1: making you read through my ranting. Anyways, thanks for doing 404 00:20:54,000 --> 00:20:58,240 Speaker 1: a podcast on my favorite giant monster by Well, there 405 00:20:58,240 --> 00:21:00,960 Speaker 1: you go. No, I mean that's that's awesome. On Alwa's impressive. Yeah, 406 00:21:00,960 --> 00:21:02,760 Speaker 1: I mean, certainly he's seen all twenty eight films, so 407 00:21:02,800 --> 00:21:05,760 Speaker 1: he has he does have a deeper understanding of the 408 00:21:05,840 --> 00:21:09,639 Speaker 1: fictional physics and biology of Godzilla, and certainly having an 409 00:21:09,640 --> 00:21:12,520 Speaker 1: atomic heart which change things. But it doesn't mean your 410 00:21:12,520 --> 00:21:16,439 Speaker 1: heart would be more susceptible to being broken. Yeah, I 411 00:21:16,480 --> 00:21:19,879 Speaker 1: don't know. Yeah, that's stuff being a giant monster in 412 00:21:19,880 --> 00:21:22,800 Speaker 1: this world. So if you would like to reach out 413 00:21:22,800 --> 00:21:25,359 Speaker 1: to us, if you would like to share something with us, 414 00:21:25,440 --> 00:21:27,240 Speaker 1: you can find us on Facebook. You can find us 415 00:21:27,280 --> 00:21:29,720 Speaker 1: on Twitter, on Facebook and search for stuff to blow 416 00:21:29,760 --> 00:21:32,440 Speaker 1: your mind, and on Twitter, our handle happens to be 417 00:21:32,520 --> 00:21:34,480 Speaker 1: blow the Mind, and you can always drop us a 418 00:21:34,520 --> 00:21:42,600 Speaker 1: line at blow the Mind at Discovery dot com. Be 419 00:21:42,720 --> 00:21:45,280 Speaker 1: sure to check out our new video podcast, Stuff from 420 00:21:45,359 --> 00:21:48,199 Speaker 1: the Future. Join the House Stuffwork staff as we explore 421 00:21:48,240 --> 00:21:51,400 Speaker 1: the most promising and perplexing possibilities of tomorrow.