Scientists say plants 'scream' when stressed
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Plant lovers talk to plants to help them grow. Scientists believe plants may be able to talk back. Researchers found that plants emit sounds when they are stressed. The noises are similar to a human scream. The sounds are specific enough for us to be able to interpret and attend to a plant's needs. Unfortunately, the sounds are at a frequency that the human ear cannot hear. We can only hear frequencies of up to 16 kilohertz. Special AI algorithms detected ultrasonic sounds from plants that were up to 250 kilohertz. The AI also detected different types of plant sounds.
The research was done in an acoustic chamber in an adapted greenhouse in Israel. Scientists found that vibrations from stressed tomato plants turned into sound waves. A researcher said: "Plants usually emit sounds when they are under stress. Each plant and each type of stress is associated with a specific identifiable sound." She said animals and insects could hear the sounds. Understanding these sounds could help us understand when crops are dehydrated. Farmers could irrigate their fields more efficiently. This could conserve water.
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