Dec 16 20141112/16/14The Other Magical, Medicinal Sticky BudRachel Mitchell36No, it's not marijuana. It's a close cousin, known as Humulus lupulus, better known as "hops." You know it as a key…
Aug 20 2014108/20/14A Plant that Survives by Stealing Genetic MaterialRachel Mitchell18Beneath our feet, plants are locked in a slow-motion struggle for the elements necessary for survival: water,…
Aug 18 2014228/18/14Why Did Plants Evolve These Weird and Horrific Flowers?Rachel Mitchell76Most people don't have very strong feelings about flowers, unless they are incredibly beautiful or smell really…
Space8/6/14Aug 6 20149Space8/6/14SpaceWhat Do Extreme Ecosystems Tell Us About The Nature Of Life?Rachel Mitchell42Our planet has some pretty intense environments, ranging from dense ice to molten rock — and they all play host to…
Jul 31 2014167/31/14Why Would Evolution Favor These Insane Adaptations?Rachel Mitchell70Life has been evolving on Earth for approximately 3.5 billion years. And in that time, to quote Jurassic Park's…
Jul 24 2014207/24/14Plants Are Actually Kind of EvilRachel Mitchell51Generally speaking, plants get filed under the "boring" category. Occasionally, they smell nice, look pretty, or…
Jul 11 2014177/11/146 Animals Shaped By Artificial Selection into Beautiful MonstersRachel Mitchell148Artificial selection, also known as selective breeding, is a nice way of saying that humans have guided the…
Jun 5 2014536/5/14You're Worrying About GMOs For the Wrong ReasonsRachel Mitchell236Scientists have demonstrated that genetically modified organisms have no measurable negative impacts on human…
May 23 2014575/23/14Genetic Manipulation: The First 50,000 YearsRachel Mitchell223Genetically modified plants and animals are often feared as "Frankenfoods," but is there really anything dangerously…
May 13 201445/13/14Has Humanity Carved the Earth into Many Islands?Rachel Mitchell10In 1967, biologists Robert MacArthur and E.O. Wilson developed a new ecological theory: Island Biogeography. It…