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How important are plants? Plants surround us all the time, from vegetables in our kitchens, lawns in our back gardens, and local woodlands for walking the dog. But just how important are these plants, and what impact will they have for the Earth and humans in the future? Tonight we will find out more about plants on our Planet Earth.
How do plants make decisions?
Professor George Bassel
(Professor of Plant Computational Biology at The University of Birmingham)
Like humans, plants make key decisions during their life. They are continuously watching their environment to guide the timing of these choices. How this is done without a nervous system is only now beginning to be uncovered. In this talk George will discuss how plants decide what to do, and how the way they process information is similar to different systems including the human brain, ant colonies and supercomputers.
How to make trees our friends in combatting air pollution
Professor Rob MacKenzie
(Professor of Atmospheric Science at The University of Birmingham)
Air pollution is a very serious health problem: across the UK, the mortality burden from outdoor air pollution amounts to around 40,000 deaths per year, with economic costs of over £20bn. Air pollution in the West Midlands affects some 2.8 million people, reducing average life expectancy by up to 6 months, and is responsible for economic costs estimated at £860m per year.
Reducing air pollution is easy in principle, but difficult in practice. Can trees and other urban vegetation come to our rescue?
Reducing air pollution is easy in principle, but difficult in practice. Can trees and other urban vegetation come to our rescue?
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