Do plants have DNA?
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From the brains behind Brains On, this is the moment of um. Um.

Moment of Um comes to you from APM Studios. I'm Astrid. Okay, all right, everybody. That's it for today's plant yoga class. Thank you, everybody, for coming. Okay, bye, bye. Hi there. I'm Astrid. I'm a daisy, and I just got done teaching yoga to all the other plants in the garden.

Oh, um, excuse me. Trees? Uh, you can get out of tree pose now. Yeah, class is over. Okay, thank you, thank you, thank you. Sorry about that. Anyway, this year I feel like I've been on this journey of like finding myself, you know? Sometimes when I want to be super chill, I like to get real quiet. I close my eyes, I take a deep breath, and I try to clear my mind of all the thoughts.

And for like 10 seconds, everything is quiet. One by one, all these little questions start to creep back in my head. Like, what's that tickle? Is that a bug on my stem? Or am I just imagining it?

Do bugs ever crawl on other bugs? Why do bugs have to be so buggy? And why am I the way I am? Why are my petals so white? Why am I short instead of a hundred feet tall like a great big tree?

I was asking my friend Sandy about all this. She's a dog. And she said if I really want to understand why I am the way I am, I should get a DNA test. And I was like, what's that? And she told me that DNA is this teeny tiny spirally stuff inside of cells that acts like an instruction manual for your body.

She said that bodies read the DNA kind of like a book to figure out how it's supposed to grow and what it's supposed to be doing. And those instructions are what makes you, you. She said that her humans gave her this DNA test and she found out she's got golden retriever DNA, which is probably why she has such gorgeous long hair. And I was like, that's cool and all, but I'm just a plant.

Do I even have DNA? My neighbor Xavier was wondering about the same thing. Do plants have DNA? I guess we should talk to someone who knows about plants. And the answer is yes. All plants and animals have DNA. My name is Candace Hagler. I'm a professor and teacher at North Carolina State University, and I study plants.

DNA is a small set of instructions within every cell of every living organism. The set of instructions looks like a coiling ladder, sometimes called a double helix.

But that set of instructions tells every plant cell and every plant to be what it is going to become. The instructions are slightly different, and that's why we can see a tomato plant or a daisy or an apple tree. It's because of the DNA and the specific instructions it contains for that plant.

But DNA is everywhere in the plant. So when we eat vegetables or fruits, we're actually eating a lot of DNA that was originally there because it was important to allow the plant to come into being. Plants do have DNA. The little strings of DNA in my cells hold all these instructions for making all the little pieces that make up me.

DNA is what makes a human different from a beetle, and a beetle different from a tomato plant, and a tomato plant different from a daisy, like me. I feel like I understand myself so much better now. You know? Hmm. My mind is much quieter. Seems like a perfect time to close my eyes and have a moment of home. Hmm.

If you liked this episode, take a second to subscribe to Moment of Um wherever you listen to podcasts. And if you're delighted with DNA, check out the Brains On podcast where we have a full episode about genes. Want to see our shows come to life? Head to YouTube where we've got awesome animated Brains On episodes. Search Brains On Universe on YouTube and subscribe. If you have a question, we'd love to help you answer it. Drop us a line by going to brainson.org slash contact.

Moment of Um is produced by Molly Bloom, Rachel Brees, Rosie DuPont, Anna Goldfield, Ruby Guthrie, Mark Sanchez, Anna Weigel, Nico Gonzalez-Whistler, and Aaron Moldeslossi. We had editing help from Shayla Farzan and Sandin Totten, and engineering help from Alex Simpson. Our theme song is by Mark Sanchez. Our executive producer is Beth Perlman. The executives in charge of APM Studios are Chandra Kavati and Joanne Griffith.

Special thanks this week go to Sarah Lohman, Kenji Lopez-Alt, and Candice Hagler. See you next time, and the next day, and every weekday. Until then, um... Oh my... Ah! There is a bug on my stem. Get off! Get off, bug! Shoot! Hey friends, Molly, Sandin, and Mark here with some very big news. Drumroll, please. Drumroll.

We're hitting the road in search of adventure, fresh air, and you. That's right. We're going to be live at the Boulder Theater in Boulder, Colorado on Sunday, April 27th. Our science-themed live stage show takes the audience on an adventure through the brain, complete with magic tricks, dance moves, out-of-body experiences, mystery sounds, and a game show. Molly, you almost left out the most important part.

Yeah, Molly, don't forget the big party. Oh, right. After the shows, we're throwing a brain-tastic bash. Join us afterward for a VIP party where we'll play games, guess mystery sounds, pose for photos, and give as many high fives as humanly possible. Snag a spot by purchasing a VIP pass when you buy your show ticket. Oh, that reminds me. I've got to start training. These hands aren't going to high five by themselves. Five and five. Good idea.

And remember, spots are limited, so grab your tickets today at brainson.org slash events.