The blossoming of the almond trees throughout Israel signals the advent of Tu B’Shvat, Jewish Arbor Day. It is an opportunity to honor the fruit of the land, and nature as a whole, and give some thought to the environment.
It is impossible to talk about nature and plants without mentioning Charles Darwin and his faith and love for the natural world. Darwin, and his son Sir Francis, published a book in the late 19th century that demonstrates the diverse activity of plants and the way they sense and interact with their environment: “The Power of Movement in Plants”, which revolutionized the world of botany.

This is an opportunity for us to recall the fascinating session “What do plants know?” which was part of the third lecture series “Talking about Science in the 21st Century.” Prof. Oren Harman spoke to Prof. Daniel Chamovitz from Ben Gurion University of the Negev, following Chamovitz’s book about the way plants sense the world, as conceived by Darwin and based on genetic studies.

In his lecture Prof. Chamovitz spoke about the fascinating world of plants, about its scientific discovery, and about the language we must adopt when speaking about plants and why. And above all about the way they are the partners of humans and share the earth with them.

To view the discussion that was held with an audience. For all seasons of "Talking about Science in the 21st Century"