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question 3: how do flowers know when it's time to bloom?

Plants lack consciousness. They cannot "know", in our sense of the word, that it's time to bloom. A Swedish researcher has found the precise gene that controls plants' flowering, thus solving a mystery that has been baffling biologists ever since the time of Carl Linnaeus. So exactly what is it that makes flowers open?  Read more

question 7: what's so unique about humans?

Asked "what is a human being?" a biologist will answer "99% ape and 1% unknown". Only one single percent of our genetic material differentiates us from our nearest relative in the animal world, the chimpanzee. The latest research shows that this vital little one percent has to do with the brain...  Read more

question 23: nature versus nurture – what makes us the way we are?

What is it that makes you resemble your parents? How does the bear know when it's time to hibernate? What makes flowers of the same species bloom at the same time? Modern evolutionary biology is an exciting research field which will eventually help us answer many of the questions that puzzle us.  Read more

question 31: can stem cells cure Parkinson's disease?

What did the late Pope John Paul II have in common with former world boxing champion Mohammed Ali and actor Michel J Fox? Answer: Parkinson's disease. New stem cell research is giving the sufferers hope – but when will they get a treatment that works?  Read more

question 32: what is a human?

We are human beings. We breathe, we grow, laugh and cry. Biologically we are animals, as Linnaeus realized back in his time. But unlike all other animal species, we can reflect on why we are here. So what exactly is a human being?  Read more

question 52: which is the oldest plant?

Conifers are the oldest of all the plants that spread by seed. Pine and spruce have been around on Earth much longer than fruit like redcurrants and blackberries. These ancient inhabitants of the planet may well take on a whole new significance in the future. Forest genetics are today becoming a hotter subject than ever before.  Read more