Everyone is familiar with the stacking of oranges in a pyramid on Market stalls and in green grocery shops.The simplicity and familiarity of this hides an interesting question about stacking theory.In two dimensions, if one wants to place the maximum number of circles e.g. coins of the same denomination around a central circle or coin,…
Read moreAll organisms reqire energy for their activity. Central to this is glycolysis . Glycolysis is the pathway in which glucose is metabolised before splitting into two interconvertible 3-carbon molecules . These reactions take place in the cell cytoplasm. The first three steps involve reactions which lead to a doubly phosphorylated fructose derivative, Glucose 1-phosphate, glucose…
Read moreGlobal Warming.The International Panel on Climate Change and the United Nations will publish predictions as to the effects of global warming in this coming wee. It is predicted that the earth’s temperature will increase by 3 degrees centigrade by the end of this century. What happens after this in subsequent centuries is not clear. The…
Read moreWhite and red grapes The wild grape is red. During the domestication of the grape a white cultivar developed. This may have occurred 3,000 or so years age. In 2005 Japanese scientists showed that this colour change occurred because of a mutation in the VvMYBA1 gene. This difference is consistent over the whole grape range,…
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