WHAT A PLANT KNOWS

What A Plant Knows A FIELD GUIDE TO THE SENSES A captivating journey into the lives of plants—from the colors they see to the schedules they keep How does a Venus flytrap know when to snap shut? Can it feel an insect’s spindly legs? How do flowers know when it’s spring? Can they actually remember the weather? And do they care if you play them Led Zeppelin or Bach?   From Darwin’s early fascination with stems and vines to Little Shop of Horrors, we have always marveled at plant diversity and form. Now, in What a Plant Knows, the renowned biologist Daniel Chamovitz presents an intriguing and refreshing look at how plants experience the world. Highlighting the latest research in plant science, he takes us into the lives of different types of plants, and draws parallels with the human senses to reveal that we have much more in common with sunflowers and oak trees than we may realize. He explains how a willow knows when its neighbors have been taken over by a group of hungry beetles, and why an avocado will ripen in a paper bag with a banana (it’s the pheromones). He shows how plants know up from down, and settles the debate, once and for all, over whether or not plants appreciate that music you’ve been playing. Covering touch, sound, smell, sight, and even memory, Chamovitz considers whether it’s too much to ask if plants are aware.  What a Plant Knows is a rare inside look at what life is really like for the grass we walk on, the flowers we sniff, and the trees we climb. It is a true field guide to the senses for science buffs and green thumbs, and for anyone who seeks a greater understanding of our place in nature. WHAT A PLANT KNOWS is published in the USA by Scientific American / Farrar, Straus and Giroux Purchase from the USA: From    or   Purchase from the UK: From The Book Depository.UK (free worldwide shipping)     UK Version: WHAT A PLANT KNOWS will also be published soon in Japanese, Chinese, Portuguese and Hebrew! BACKUP YOUR FILES FOR FREE!  About the Author Daniel Chamovitz is Director of the Manna Center for Plant Biosciences at Tel Aviv University. His research has appeared in leading international journals. He lives in Hod Hasharon, Israel. Reviews “Just as his groundbreaking research uncovered connections between the plant and animal kingdoms, Daniel Chamovitz's insights in What a Plant Knows transcend the world of plants. This entertaining and educational book is filled with wondrous examples that underscore how the legacy of shared genomes enables plants and animals to respond to their environments. You'll see plants in a new light after reading What a Plant Knows."--Gloria Coruzzi, Carroll & Milton Petrie Professor, Center for Genomics and Systems Biology, New York University "Just like us, a plant that aspires to win the rat race must exploit its environment. Even a daffodil can detect when you're standing in its light, and a rhododendron knows when you're savaging its neighbor with the pruning shears. With deftness and clarity, Chamovitz introduces plants' equivalent of our senses, plus floral forms of memory and orientation. When you realize how much plants know, you may think twice before you bite them." Hannah Holmes, author of Quirk and Suburban Safari "Chamovitz walks the homo sapiens reader right into the shoes—or I should say roots—of the plant world. After reading this book you will never again walk innocently past a plant or reach insensitively for a leaf. You will marvel and be haunted by a plant’s sensory attributes and the shared genes between plant and animal kingdoms." Elisabeth Tova Bailey, author of The Sound of a Wild Snail Eating "If you've ever marveled at how and why plants make the choices thatthey do, WHAT A PLANT KNOWS holds your answer. Chamovitz is a master at translating the science of botany into the language of the layman." Michael Malice, subject of Ego & Hubris, author and succulent enthusiast "This is a lively eloquent account of research on plant physiology, succinctly written, scientifically accurate as well as easy to read. From the ground-breaking botanical experiments of Charles Darwin to those prosecuted by leading contemporary plant science laboratories, evidence abounds that plants are aware, in their own way, of light, aromas, touch, gravity and their past. Understandably, as the author explains, plants are not responsive to sound, so we all can be reassured that playing our favourite music to them is not essential. I commend this engaging text to all who wonder about life on Earth, and seek a compelling introduction to the lives of plants revealed through centuries of careful scientific experimentation." Prof. Stephen D. Hopper, Director, Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew “By comparing human senses to the abilities of plants to adapt to their surroundings, the author provides a fascinating and logical explanation of how plants survive despite the inability to move from one site to another. Backed by new research on plant biology, this is an intriguing look at a plant's consciousness.” Kirkus Reviews