The distribution of carbon from a branch setting pod in alfalfa was investigated during the seed development of seeds to determine the relative contribution of pod and leaf photoassimilates to the total C balance and to investigate the partitioning of these photoassimilates to other plant organs. A 13Clabeling procedure was used to label C photoassimilates of pods and leaves in alfalfa, and the...

We quantify mechanical processes common to soil penetration by earthworms and growing plant roots, including the energetic requirements for soil plastic displacement. The basic mechanical model considers cavity expansion into a plastic wet soil involving wedging by root tips or earthworms via cone-like penetration followed by cavity expansion due to pressurized earthworm hydroskeleton or root r...

Risk and reliability analysis is increasingly being used in evaluations of plant safety and plant reliability. The analysis can be performed either during the design process or during the operation time, with the purpose to improve the safety or the reliability. Due to plant complexity and safety and availability requirements, sophisticated tools, which are flexible and efficient, are needed. S...

Natural abundance is shaped by the abiotic requirements and biotic interactions that shape a species' niche, yet these influences are rarely decoupled. Moreover, most plant mortality occurs during early life stages, making seed recruitment critical in structuring plant populations. We find that natural abundance of two woodland herbs, Hexastylis arifolia and Hepatica nobilis, peaks at intermedi...

Decision making as a part of nuclear power plant operations is a critical, but common, task. Plant management is forced to make decisions that may have safety and economic consequences. Formal decision theory offers the potential for a structured approach capable of taking into account risk-related aspects (plant and worker safety, for instance) and, at the same time, important factors like eco...

In the face of an increasing world population and climate instability, the demands for food and fuel will continue to rise. Plant science will be crucial to help meet these exponentially increasing requirements for food and fuel supplies. Fundamental plant research will play a major role in providing key advances in our understanding of basic plant processes that can then flow into practical ad...

Plant transformation is now a core research tool in plant biology and a practical tool for cultivar improvement. There are verified methods for stable introduction of novel genes into the nuclear genomes of over 120 diverse plant species. This review examines the criteria to verify plant transformation; the biological and practical requirements for transformation systems; the integration of tis...

Genetic diversity in viruses is shaped by high rates of recombination and is constrained by host defenses and the requirements of transmission. Recent studies of insect-transmitted plant viruses demonstrate highly conserved molecular motifs in viral genomes that regulate the specificity of insect transmission. In contrast, advances in our understanding of host plant response to virus infection ...

The identification of a widespread contaminant of plant cell cultures is reported. Mycobacterium scr~luhtceum Prissick and Masson appears as yellow colonies on the medium and plant tissues of many ornamentals being propagated in vitro. It is a Gram positive and acid fast bacterium and requires a specifically formulated medium for growth in pure culture. Many laboratories have alluded to this co...

As the title implies the article describes actuality of algorithm development of positioning industrial wares in-plant based on radio frequency grid for the construction of the products tracking systems. Requirements of international standards regulating the processes of traceability and identification are analysed. The article offers a system hardware solution for positioning of industrial war...