Slide 1 Plants, Cognition, Time (& Philosophy) David Pierre Leibovitz September 26, 2008 26 September 2008 David Pierre Leibovitz (Carleton University) Plants, Cognition & Time - 1 • http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cognition Slide 2 My Research • http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dynamical_s ystem • http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Emergence Time • http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Philosophy_o f_mind – Relative scales of time and space • http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Process_phil osophy – Change, Processes, Motion • http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Recurrence_ relation – Tradeoffs between Time & Cognition • http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Recursion • http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Time Not in plants but in what they can teach us Emergic Behaviour – Process vs. Substance – Recurrence & Dynamic Systems Meta Cognition / Philosophy of Mind (what is:) – Thinking, Memory, Attention ... 26 September 2008 David Pierre Leibovitz (Carleton University) Plants, Cognition & Time - 2
Slide 3 Why Plants? Plants are ordinarily thought of as – “Dumb” stimulus/response systems However, by analyzing plant behaviour at – differing time scales, and – allowing for other complexities one can come to view Plants as smarter than we thought – as information processors! What can plants teach us about cognition? – Let’s take a computational approach – After all, hardware (knock on wood) does not matter 26 September 2008 David Pierre Leibovitz (Carleton University) Plants, Cognition & Time - 3 Slide 4 Purpose To entertain, inform, challenge & engage Meta Cognition (Philosophy of Mind) – What do we mean when we say... Can plants: – Process Information? Make Decisions? Plan? Compute? Think? – Have Free Will? – Sense? Perceive? Feel? Be Conscious? – Learn? Have Memories? Represent? Know? Have Intentionality? Communicate? How shall we clarify these terms for humans? 26 September 2008 David Pierre Leibovitz (Carleton University) Plants, Cognition & Time - 4
• http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Motility Slide 5 Plant Motion Categories Tropism – Directional – Positive: towards stimulus – Negative: away from stimulus Nastic – Non-Directional – Triggered by stimulus Rapid Plant Movement – Triggered by stimulus Circadian – Internal/External stimulus 26 September 2008 David Pierre Leibovitz (Carleton University) Plants, Cognition & Time - 5 • http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tropism Slide 6 Tropism • http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chemotropis m http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Che Summary mical • http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gravitropism – Directional movement or growth in response to stimuli http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gra – Positive: towards stimulus vity • http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hydrotropism – Negative: away from stimulus http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Moi sture Tropism Stimuli http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wat er • http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Heliotropism Chemotropism chemicals http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sunl Gravitropism gravity ight • http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Phototropism Hydrotropism moisture or water http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ligh ts http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Col Heliotropism sunlight (tracking) or_spectrum • http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thermotropis Phototropism lights or colors of light m http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tem Thermotropism temperature perature • http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thigmotropis Thigmotropism touch or contact m http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/So 26 September 2008 David Pierre Leibovitz (Carleton University) Plants, Cognition & Time - 6 matic_sensation http://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/con tact
• http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chemical Slide 7 Chemotropism • http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chemotropis m • http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pollen_tube • http://www.neurosci.tufts.edu/research_ asst_profs/lovy_wheeler/alenka.html • http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Axon_guidan ce • http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cellular_diffe rentiation Movement or growth in response to chemicals Likely the most significant tropism for all biological development E.g., Pollen tube growth towards the ovules – Nerve growth in animals – Cellular differentiation due to chemical signalling? 26 September 2008 David Pierre Leibovitz (Carleton University) Plants, Cognition & Time - 7 • http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gravitropism Slide 8 Gravitropism • http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gravity • http://plantsinmotion.bio.indiana.edu/pla ntmotion/movements/tropism/gravitropis Movement or growth m/rootgrav/graviroot.html in response to gravity • http://plantsinmotion.bio.indiana.edu/pla ntmotion/movements/tropism/gravitropis Positive Gravitropism m/coleus/coleusgravi.html Toward Stimulus Roots E.g., Corn Root Negative Gravitropism Away from Stimulus Shoots & Stems E.g., Coleus Shoot 26 September 2008 David Pierre Leibovitz (Carleton University) Plants, Cognition & Time - 8
• http://plantsinmotion.bio.indiana.edu/pla Slide 9 Phototropism ntmotion/movements/tropism/phototropis m/corn/cornworship.html • http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Phototropism Movement or growth in response to lights or • http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Color_spectr um colours of light • http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lights E.g., corn phototropism + gravitropism Decisions? Free Will? 26 September 2008 David Pierre Leibovitz (Carleton University) Plants, Cognition & Time - 9 • http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Heliotropism Slide Heliotropism 10 • http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sunlight • http://plantsinmotion.bio.indiana.edu/pla ntmotion/movements/tropism/solartrack/s Movement or growth in response to sunlight, olartrack.html specifically solar tracking E.g. Young sunflowers tracking east to west Circadian control “ anticipates ” sunrise by facing east Memory? Aboutness? 26 September 2008 David Pierre Leibovitz (Carleton University) Plants, Cognition & Time - 10
• http://www.gdaywa.com/wildflowers/trigg Slide Thigmotropism 11 erplants.php • http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stylidium Movement or growth in response to touch or contact Slow movement in vine growth shown later Rapid movement in Donkey Trigger Plant 26 September 2008 David Pierre Leibovitz (Carleton University) Plants, Cognition & Time - 11 • http://www.williams.edu/Biology/explodin Slide Pollen Ejection 12 gflower/movies.html • http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cornus_cana densis Dogwood (Cornus canadensis) • http://the- titan.deviantart.com/art/Trebuchet- – 10,000 Frames Per Second 90218221?moodonly=24 – 2000 Gs – 4m/s Smart Design, not Smart Execution 26 September 2008 David Pierre Leibovitz (Carleton University) Plants, Cognition & Time - 12
• http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nastic_move Slide Nastic Movements 13 ments • http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Response • http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stimulus_(ph Summary ysiology) • http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nyctinasty – Non-directional responses to stimuli • http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Circadian_cl ock • http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thigmonasty Nastic Movement Stimuli Chemonasty chemicals Gravinasty gravity Hydronasty moisture or water Nyctinasty onset of darkness, circadian clock Photonasty lights or colors of light Thermonasty temperature Thigmonasty touch or contact 26 September 2008 David Pierre Leibovitz (Carleton University) Plants, Cognition & Time - 13 • http://plantsinmotion.bio.indiana.edu/pla Slide Photonasty 14 ntmotion/flowers/flower.html • http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Moon_Flowe r Non-directional response to • http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Morning_glor y (colours of) lights • http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nightbloomin g_cereus – Morning Glory (5am) • http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Passion_flow er Often combined with Circadian Clocks – Passion flower (1pm) – Moon Flower (6pm) – Cereus (9pm) 26 September 2008 David Pierre Leibovitz (Carleton University) Plants, Cognition & Time - 14
• http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Photoperiod Slide Photoperiodism 15 • http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dianthus_car yophyllus Sensing length of days (nights) • http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Long_day_pl ant Used by some plants to decide when to flower – Long day plants (short nights), e.g., carnation – Short day plants (long nights), e.g., strawberry How computed? – Remember time of night start vs. night end – Combine with temperature What’s the difference between season start & end? – Decision making, memory, representation? 26 September 2008 David Pierre Leibovitz (Carleton University) Plants, Cognition & Time - 15 • http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thigmonasty Slide Thigmonasty 16 Touch response Smarter? – Plant or – Animal Note: animal well inside before trap springs 26 September 2008 David Pierre Leibovitz (Carleton University) Plants, Cognition & Time - 16
• Slide http://plantsinmotion.bio.indiana.edu Venus Flytrap Counts to 2 17 /plantmotion/movements/nastic/flytra p/flytrap.html Needs 2 critical touches Computationalism? Memory? – Current Count – Elapsed Time Representation? Aboutness? 26 September 2008 David Pierre Leibovitz (Carleton University) Plants, Cognition & Time - 17 • http://plantsinmotion.bio.indiana.edu/pla Slide Thigmonasty - Mimosa 18 ntmotion/movements/nastic/mimosa/mim osa.html • http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thigmonasty Two response – Leaf closing – Action Potential Information? Representation? Aboutness? Sense? – Perceive? – Feel? – Conscious? 26 September 2008 David Pierre Leibovitz (Carleton University) Plants, Cognition & Time - 18
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