• Question: Why did you decide to be specialised in agriculture? How much sunlight can a sunflower cope with before it starts to wither?

    Asked by to James, Jennifer, Kim, Liam, Ricardo on 19 Jun 2014. This question was also asked by , , , , , , , , , , , .
    • Photo: Jennifer Stephens

      Jennifer Stephens answered on 19 Jun 2014:

      Hi dumbledore

      Agriculture affects every part of our lives from what we eat to what we wear and can even be used to power our cars. Medical research may be good at finding cures for diseases but agricultural research is what is needed to feed the world’s growing population. That’s what makes it an exciting area to specialise in.
      Sunflowers can cope with lots more sunlight than most plants but there’s probably a limit. I guess if it goes on for too long the plant will get stressed and if there’s not enough water around it will start to wither. But sunflowers are pretty good at coming back to life if you give them water after a drought.

    • Photo: James Taylor

      James Taylor answered on 20 Jun 2014:

      Agriculture is really applied science (biology) and I like doing things that have targeted outcomes – like producing more food with less outputs. Agriculture lets you work on a farm, in a lab or in an office. it is so diverse and interesting as a subject.

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