Tomatoes talk, birch trees learn – do plants have dignity? | Florianne Koechlin | TEDxZurich
Summary
TLDRThe TEDx Zurich talk unveils the astonishing communication skills of plants, highlighting how they use fragrances to warn neighbors of pests and attract beneficial insects. The speaker, an author, explores the complex underground networks of plants and their ability to remember and learn from past events, challenging the traditional view of plants as passive beings. The talk raises questions about the ethics of plant treatment and the potential for a more harmonious agricultural system that respects their social and cognitive abilities.
Takeaways
- 🌿 Plants communicate using fragrances to warn each other of pests and attract beneficial insects.
- 🚫 Female researchers were advised against wearing Chanel No. 5 to avoid confusing the tomato plants with the scent of predators.
- 🔍 Tomato plants can identify the type of predator attacking them by tasting their saliva and produce specific fragrances to attract the appropriate predatory insects.
- 🍎 Apple trees, when attacked by caterpillars, release fragrances to attract birds that can help control the pest population.
- 🌳 All plants communicate with each other using thousands of identified fragrance compounds, indicating a complex vocabulary.
- 🌱 Plants can perceive more than 20 environmental signals, including smell, taste, touch, sight, sound, and electromagnetic waves.
- 🌿 Underground, plants form a vast network called mycorrhiza, facilitating nutrient and information exchange among them.
- 🌳 Some plants, like marigolds, use the mycorrhizal network to release toxins to inhibit the growth of other plants, indicating a competitive aspect of plant communication.
- 📚 Plants can remember past events and learn from them, as demonstrated by the tomato plant's faster and more efficient response to a second attack by caterpillars.
- 🌱 Birch trees have been found to remember events for up to four years, suggesting a form of plant memory.
- 🌱 The Swiss constitution recognizes the dignity of living beings, including plants, which has led to discussions on the ethical treatment of plants and their dignity.
Q & A
What is the main topic of the TEDx Zurich talk?
-The main topic of the talk is the communication and networking skills of plants, particularly focusing on the tomato plant and its ability to interact with its environment and other plants.
How does a tomato plant communicate when it is under attack by caterpillars?
-When a tomato plant is attacked by caterpillars, it produces leaf toxins and releases a cloud of fragrances, specifically methyl jasmonate, to warn neighboring plants to start their defense mechanisms.
Why were female researchers instructed not to wear Chanel No. 5 during the experiment?
-Female researchers were told not to wear Chanel No. 5 because the fragrance contains methyl jasmonate, which could confuse the tomato plants and interfere with the experiment.
How does a tomato plant attract beneficial insects for its defense?
-The tomato plant produces different scents, or fragrance cocktails, to attract beneficial insects such as predatory mites or parasitic wasps, depending on the type of attacker it is facing.
How does the tomato plant identify the specific type of insect attacking it?
-The tomato plant can identify the type of insect by tasting the saliva of the insect, which allows it to produce the appropriate fragrance to attract the right bodyguard insects.
What is the term used to describe the underground network of roots and fungi?
-The term used to describe the underground network of roots and fungi is 'mycorrhiza,' which refers to the association between fungi and plant roots.
What is the 'wood wide web' and how is it related to plant communication?
-The 'wood wide web' is a term used to describe the mycorrhizal network that connects trees and plants underground, allowing them to exchange nutrients and information, similar to the way the internet connects people and devices.
How do plants communicate with each other about environmental signals?
-Plants can perceive about 20 environmental signals and communicate with each other through the mycorrhizal network, warning each other of danger and coordinating their behavior.
What is the concept of 'plant dignity' as discussed in the Swiss constitution?
-The concept of 'plant dignity' in the Swiss constitution refers to the idea that plants have a value of their own, independent of human interests, and should not be harmed in an arbitrary way.
What does the speaker suggest as potential implications of understanding plant communication?
-The speaker suggests that understanding plant communication could lead to better agricultural practices, such as using plant fragrances to warn of attacks, boosting plant immune systems, and developing mixed cultures that support plant communication and social context.
Why did the speaker's report on plant dignity win the Ig Nobel Prize?
-The speaker's report on plant dignity won the Ig Nobel Prize because it addressed a topic that was considered peculiar and thought-provoking, leading to laughter and subsequent reflection on the ethical treatment of plants.
Outlines
🌿 The Amazing Communication Skills of Plants
This paragraph introduces the fascinating world of plant communication, focusing on the tomato plant's ability to communicate through fragrances. When under attack by caterpillars, the plant emits specific scents to warn neighboring plants and attract beneficial insects for defense. The tomato can even identify the type of attacker by tasting the insect's saliva, producing different fragrance cocktails to attract the appropriate predators. The speaker's research journey across Europe, India, Kenya, Egypt, and her hometown reveals that plants communicate with a vast vocabulary of fragrances, respond to environmental signals, and have a complex underground network called mycorrhiza, which facilitates nutrient exchange among plants.
🌳 The Social and Ethical Implications of Plant Communication
The second paragraph delves into the implications of plant communication for agriculture and our relationship with plants. It suggests that by understanding and utilizing plant communication, we could develop more effective agricultural practices, such as using fragrances to warn plants of impending attacks or fostering beneficial insect relationships. The speaker also discusses the ethical considerations of plant dignity, as recognized in the Swiss constitution, and the ethical committee's deliberations on whether plants should be respected for their own sake. The paragraph concludes with the idea that plants are not mere objects but sentient beings with their own value, deserving of more than just respect—dignity.
🏵 The Ethical and Philosophical Debate on Plant Dignity
The final paragraph discusses the philosophical and ethical debate surrounding the concept of plant dignity. It reflects on the historical perception of animals as soulless machines and how society has evolved to recognize their dignity. The speaker shares the experience of being part of the federal ethics committee on non-human biotechnology, which grappled with defining dignity in relation to plants. The committee concluded that plants should not be subject to arbitrary harm, but disagreed on what constituted 'arbitrary.' The speaker argues against certain forms of genetic engineering that may violate plant dignity and advocates for recognizing plants' independence in adaptation and propagation. The paragraph ends with the speaker's hope for a future where humanity's arrogance is laughed at, indicating a shift in our understanding and treatment of plants.
Mindmap
Keywords
💡Communication
💡Fragrances
💡Methyl Jasmonate
💡Beneficial Insects
💡Saliva Identification
💡Micro Rissa
💡Environmental Signals
💡Learning
💡Dignity
💡Agro System
💡Genetic Engineering
Highlights
Tomato plants communicate using fragrances to warn neighboring plants of caterpillar attacks.
Plants produce leaf toxins and release specific fragrances when under attack.
The fragrances produced by plants, such as methyl jasmonate, are known in the perfume industry.
Tomato plants can identify the type of predator attacking them by tasting their saliva.
Plants release different fragrance cocktails to attract specific beneficial insects for defense.
Apple trees communicate with other trees when infested by caterpillars to attract birds.
Plants can perceive about 20 environmental signals, more than humans.
Plants communicate and exchange nutrients through a vast underground network called mycorrhiza.
The underground network is referred to as the 'wood wide web'.
Plants can build alliances and exchange information through the mycorrhizal network.
Plants remember past events and can learn from experience, such as producing toxins more efficiently after repeated attacks.
Birch trees can remember events for up to four years.
Plants are not passive but engage in lively relationships with their environment.
Plants should be considered as having dignity, with value independent of human interests.
The Swiss constitution maintains that the dignity of living beings, including plants, must be respected.
The concept of plant dignity challenges the traditional view of plants as mere objects.
Plants' communication skills and social context are overlooked in monoculture farming practices.
The Ig Nobel Prize was awarded to the committee for their report on plant dignity, sparking laughter and thought.
Transcripts
Oh
there have been great communicators here
at TEDx Zurich but the best one of them
all never has been on the stage yet and
that's not me that this lovely little
tomato plant so I want to tell you about
the plant's amazing communication and
networking skills and then look at
possible consequences the plant
communicates with fragrances so when a
caterpillar attacks a leaf the plant
starts to produce leaf toxins and at the
same time she releases a cloud of
fragrances to warn the neighboring
Tomatoes so they can to start without
defense the fragrances are methyl
Jasmine aids scent well known in the
perfume industry so the female
researchers were told not to use Chanel
5 because it would have confused the
tomatoes for us it's a lovely scent but
for the tomatoes it means attention
predators are attacking
a little later on this tomato produces
different scents and this time it is to
attract beneficial insects for her
defense and the amazing thing is that
the tomato not only knows that she is
being attacked but exactly who is
attacking her if she is attacked by
spider mites she produces a fragrance
cocktail to attract predatory mites they
eat the spider mites but if she is
attacked by caterpillars she produces a
slightly different cocktail of
fragrances to attract parasitic wasps
but how did the tomato plant know who is
attacking her she can identify the
saliva so the plant tastes the saliva of
the insect and then produces a fragrance
to attract the right bodyguard oh what a
great feat of communication another
example when a patrice are attacked or
infested by caterpillars such as a small
winter moth they release a fragrance
cocktail to attract great teeth birds
the birds smell the SOS signals of the
attacked apple tree and thus find
themselves a fat catch of caterpillars I
was fascinated by this world of plants
and I started a career as an author I
visited many researchers and experts all
through Europe and also in India Kenya
and Egypt and of course also in past in
my home town the researchers told me
that all plants communicate with
fragrances they warn each other of a
coming danger they allow beneficial
insects they send out SOS signals they
even coordinate the behavior among
themselves and their vocabulary is
immense so far about the thousand
fragrance compounds have been identified
five to ten of which are common
to all plants well plants can do more
they can perceive about 20 environmental
signals more than we humans like humans
they can respond to smell taste touch
sight and sound and like birds they
sense electromagnetic waves and under
the ground there is a communication - if
you look at the forest you see
individual trees an oak tree a fir a
birch tree but if you look underground
you see that the roots of the trees
connect with fungi to build a huge vast
dynamic net a net called micro Rissa
which means funghi roots and greed in
science this net is referred to as the
www the wood white web instead of the
worldwide web also most non forest
plants build my career
Nate's with fungi not visible force and
research has shown the plants even
exchange nutrients among themselves
within within the micro reason it so in
good mixed cultures as often seen in
traditional agriculture plants could
build something like a dynamic
underground marketplace where plants
with long roots contribute water to the
net other ones nitrogen or phosphate or
sugar compounds so it's a constant
give-and-take within the plant community
and sometimes it's a battle - for
example marigolds they sweat a toxic
substance through the roots into the net
to impede other plants to grow and thus
new studies showing the plants even
exchange information through this net so
it's like a internet under our feet
knowing all this when I'm walking
through a forest and there is a constant
whispering and murmuring
a whispering of fragrances I do not
understand and under my feet there is a
constant exchange of nutrients and
information and knowing all this gives
me a completely different feeling it's
not me here isolated on three and three
and three but there's a strong feeling
that I'm too connected in this intricate
web of life all around me plants can do
more they remember past events and learn
from experience well learning is a fuzzy
concept one definition goes that
learning occurs when a living being
remembers a past event and can change
later on its behavior accordingly
well this tomato plant can do exactly
that when attacked by a caterpillar she
starts to produce leaf toxins we already
know but the second time a few days
later she can produce them much faster
and more efficiently so she remembered
the first attack and learned how to deal
with it in a better way most plants
perhaps all plants can do that birch
trees were found to remember a past
event for as long as four years I have
trouble remembering something for four
days and it's getting worse but for
years well to sum up plants are by no
means passive living automatons always
reacting in the same way and following
the genetic program while this notion is
still held within the scientific
community the country's two plants
communicate above and below ground they
engage in lively relationship with their
peers in the environment they Harris
although they build alliances they
remember they learn and some scientists
even think they're intelligent and
philosophically speaking we could say a
plant is not an object and they
but rather a sensitive living being a
she so the more we know the more I will
pick our image of the plant is turned
upside down question is what are the
implications of these new insights I see
mainly two first aren't we on the wrong
track with agriculture shouldn't we use
these insights for a better agro system
we could warn plants with fragrances of
a coming attack help them build micro
returned's boost their immune system
develop good mixed cultures or with wild
flowers lure beneficial insect into the
fields so it's the plants themselves
that that offers a great hope for the
future if we observe them carefully and
help them develop their skills but by
growing them in monocultures we deprive
them on the social context and we
utterly neglect the communication skills
what about our relationship with plants
does it matter
I had ample opportunity to discuss this
question in Switzerland because
Switzerland the only country worldwide
whose constitution maintains that the
dignity of living beings has to be
respected plants are living beings so
they have a dignity but what does it
mean the Swiss government came to the
federal ethics committee on non-human
biotechnology of which I was a member
and asked us to clarify the meaning of
dignity in regard to plants difficult
but dignity could be a sign a metaphor
the plants have a value of their own
independent of human interests so if we
look at plan
as living automatons following a set
program and only satisfying our interest
in demands such a notion would be absurd
it doesn't make sense but if we look at
plants as excellent networkers even
capable of subjective perceptions having
a life of their own then it makes sense
to say yes they have dignity so you know
when we look at the animals for for a
long time
animals were regarded as soulless
machines too and it was just in the last
few decades that they escape this
mechanistic trap and to die today
society agrees yes animals have at least
some dignity with plants we are miles
away from this point so in the ethics
committee we concentrated on the
question whether we should respect
plants out for their own sake
independent of the usefulness that we
could call dignity well in the end we
agreed on one point plants should not be
harmed in an arbitrary way arbitrary
injury or destruction of a plant is a
violation of their dignity but we
couldn't agree on the arbitrary for some
it meant the senseless speaking of a
roadside down the lion for all of us
I among them the total and massive
industrialization of plants so after
four years of discussion in 2008 it was
we published the report and soon
afterwards we received the Ig Nobel
Prize for this report I G stands for
ignoble it's a price for particular
ridiculous research
which makes people laugh and then later
on think we were proud to receive this
price and the member of our commission
flew to Harvard to get it but that is
just the very very beginning and
convinced that we urgently need some
limit against their total
industrialization that we that we as
humans have some responsibility to our
plants and of course it doesn't mean
that we should not eat cut grow mower
graft plants or do research with them
that is not the point
similarly giving animals some dignity
didn't mean we take them out of the food
chain or with a bit or will forbid the
animal research but in my view some
forms of genetic engineering not all
violate their dignity for example
manipulations to render plants sterile
for mere commercial interests or patents
on plants violate the dignity
furthermore plants should have some
degree of independence regarding their
adaptation and propagation as well as
the survival of their own species after
having discussed dignity for such a long
time I came to love this expression it's
more than respect or value if I would
ask you for more respect for this tomato
plant nobody would bother uptake
particularly dignity as a provocation
and that is good and maybe maybe in a
few years we will all laugh together as
predicted by the Ig Nobel Prize and they
then will be a laugh about our arrogance
as humans ladies and gentlemen thank you
very much
you
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