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Jan 25, 1999 |
SLIME MOLDS
Slime Molds: they're slimy; they're shapeless and they move to a beat. Animal, vegetable or mineral? Well, for some creatures, the answer is neither. I'm Jim Metzner, and this is the Pulse of the Planet, presented by the American Museum of Natural History. The slime mold a single celled organism which actually moves across the forest floor in search of the decaying leaves on which it feeds. But, like many fungi, it reproduces with airborne spores which hatch and develop in damp, woody areas. So classifying the slime mold is a tricky business. ambience: Slime Molds Morten Laane is a Professor of Biology at the Biological Institute in Norway. To bring slime molds to the public's attention, he developed slime mold music, which we're listening to right now. "Scientists prefer to classify slime molds among single celled primitive organisms. They are neither plants, fungi or animals. But a certain kind of organisms which originated very early in Earth history. In a certain part of their life cycle they grow as gigantic amoeba. They have no particular shape. Some of them may show vivid colors. Bright yellow or even red. The gigantic slime mold cell may be several centimeters across. The cell content pulsates forth and backwards in the pulse of about four times a minute. In some ways the pulsations resemble our own blood system." And it's by translating the rhythm of these pulsations into tones that Dr. Laane has created slime mold music that we've been listening to. We'll hear more in our next program. Pulse of the Planet is presented by the American Museum of Natural History. Additional funding for this series has been provided by the National Science Foundation. I'm Jim Metzner. FUNGI,Animals,Music Scientist: Morten Laane |
