Latest Benjamin Blonder Stories

University of Arizona Leaves shrink when they dry out. What sounds straightforward has far-reaching consequences for scientists studying how ecosystems work or reconstructing past climates, a team of 40 middle school students led by a UA graduate student has discovered. A research team consisting of a University of Arizona graduate student, about 40 middle school students and a UA research lab has undertaken the first systematic study looking at how much plant leaves shrink when they...

By Shelley Littin, University of ArizonaUniversity of Arizona researchers have uncovered evidence in ant colonies that suggests that social networks may function differently than previously assumedBe it through the Internet, Facebook, the local grapevine or the spread of disease, interaction networks influence nearly every part of our lives.Scientists previously assumed that interaction networks without central control, known as self-directed networks, have universal properties that make them...

By Shelley Littin, NASA Space Grant intern, University of ArizonaNew University of Arizona research indicates that leaf vein patterns correlate with functions such as carbon intake and water use "“ knowledge that could help scientists better understand the complex carbon cycle that is at the heart of global climate warming."Leaves have very different networks of veins. They have different shapes, different sizes, different thicknesses," said Benjamin Blonder, a doctoral student in...