Sometimes you just wouldn’t Adam and Eve it. Reading the news stories that a spinach plant can now send an email - one is tempted to throw up one’s hands and say - that’s it.
Quotes like - “ plants are very good analytical chemists and environmentally responsive!” make one choke on the morning porridge.
Anyway, scientists at MIT have managed to engineer plants so their roots can act as sensors for particular organic chemicals. Modified plants are capable of emitting a signal when coming into close contact with nitroaromatics, chemicals in groundwater that are often found in explosives.
The signal is then detected by an infrared camera which then sends an email alert to scientists.
It is thought that uses of the technology involve plants detecting environmental changes or even infection by fungi or bacteria.
