Skunk cabbage is one of the first plants to sprout in the springtime in the Northern Hemisphere. The plant itself is 20?C (76?F) warmer than the surrounding air, and it melts the snow around itself so that the shoots can sprout upwards.
Some like it hot
Some like it hot In recent years, scientists have discovered
micro-organisms that have added a third branch to the tree of life.
Along with bacteria and eukarya, there are now archaea. Archaea
resemble bacteria, but they also share genes with eukarya. The do
not have cell nuclei, but the do have DNA and amino acids. What
makes them really interesting though, is that they can live in
places that scientists didn't think anything could. Archaea live
in, and thrive in, some of the most hostile places on earth. Some
live only in freezing temperatures, while some require temperatures
of more than 80C to grow and die when exposed to oxygen.
Microbiologists believe that these hyperthermophiles (heat lovers)
may be some of the oldest organisms on earth, ones that evolved
when the earth was still hot and had no oxygen. They also reveal a
possibility that they may be life on other planets - ones with
extreme temperatures and no oxygen. MAY 7, 2001
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