Plant Behaviour and Intelligence

Softcover

ISBN 10: 0198753683 ISBN 13: 9780198753681

Publisher: Oxford University Press, 2015

This book provides a convincing argument for the view that whole cells and whole plants growing in competitive wild conditions show aspects of plant behaviour that can be accurately described as 'intelligent'. Trewavas argues that behaviour, like intelligence, must be assessed within the constraints of the anatomical and physiological framework of the organism in question. The fact that plants do not have centralized nervous systems for example, does not exclude intelligent behaviour. Outside the human dimension, culture is thought largely absent and fitness is the biological property of value. Thus, solving environmental problems that threaten to reduce fitness is another way of viewing intelligent behaviour and has a similar meaning to adaptively variable behaviour. The capacity to solve these problems might be considered to vary in different organisms, but variation does not mean absence. By extending these ideas into a book that allows a critical and amplified discussion, the author hopes to raise an awareness of the concept of purposive behaviour in plants.

About the Author:

Anthony Trewavas, Emeritus Professor, University of Edinburgh, FRS

Anthony Trewavas obtained his B.Sc and Ph.D from University College, London in Biochemistry and went to do post doctoral research at the University of East Anglia and the University of Edinburgh, where he became Professor of Plant Biochemistry, as well as undertaking numerous visiting professorships abroad. He has published 250 papers and two books, and is an elected Fellow of the Royal Society of London, the Royal Society of Edinburgh, and Academia Europea and has been elected as a Life Member of the American Society of Plant Biology.

Review:

"Trewavas provides a quite readable, highly personal, holistic approach to this unique, sometimes provocative book focused on plant behavior, particularly how plants respond to various stimuli and the many structures and processes involved in doing the things they need to do in order to survive and reproduce. Recommended." --Choice

"[E]ngaging, interesting, and thought provoking, with a deep commitment and introspection into the world of plant behavior and intelligence from a multi-disciplinary and multi-dimensional perspective and is, most possibly, the first volume of its kind. ... The volume will be useful for both undergraduate and graduate students of botany, plant science, forestry, plant ecology, and evolution. This could also be helpful for introductory courses in biology, biological sciences, life sciences, and environmental sciences and as an introductory resource for agriculture courses. Enthusiastic readers outside academia interested in plant life, ecology, and evolution will also find this volume engaging." --Plant Science Bulletin

"Trewavas ... encapsulates his life's work beautifully." --Nature

"The fact that the ideas presented in this book will probably not always be easy to accept gives it a unique value. There are oceans of data papers and books, but many fewer intriguing and inspiring ones. Given the, in general, historically wrong view about plants as almost inanimate creatures, they have not been studied as deeply as have animals. Therefore, there are many aspects of plant biology, especially those that can illuminate their behavior and intelligence, that have been left almost untouched. If this book stimulates researchers to address descriptively, theoretically, and experimentally these many overlooked or neglected aspects of plant biology, the book will be a great success, because it is certainly not a typical scientific book, but rather a manifesto." --Trends in Ecology & Evolution

"I recommend this volume to any student at any level, and any amateur or professional clinician or bench scientist who is interested in what living organisms do (and perhaps think about) to survive in the natural world." --Randy Wayne, The Quarterly Review of Biology