As the leaves start to pop out, it’s natural to look up and admire the trees. But actually, there’s a lot of action happening underneath your feet. Beneath you is a complex network of fungal trade routes carrying essential nutrients to the roots of plants, mined from the soil by fungus. It’s a subterranean supply chain.
But how exactly do these complex networks form? How does the fungus decide where to ship which resources, or where to build roads? Basically, how does a brainless thread make decisions?
Host Flora Lichtman is joined by Dr. Toby Kiers, an author on a recent study of those networks, and professor of evolutionary biology at Vrije University in Amsterdam. She’s also the executive director of the Society for the Protection of Underground Networks (SPUN).
Further Reading
- Read more about how SPUN’s research connects to a new TV show in our series “Science Goes To The Movies.”
- Learn more about SPUN on their website.
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Segment Guests
Toby Kiers
Dr. Toby Kiers is a professor of Evolutionary Biology at Vrije University and executive director of the Society for the Protection of Underground Networks in Amsterdam, Netherlands.
Segment Transcript
The transcript of this segment is being processed. It will be available early next week.
Meet the Producers and Host
About Dee Peterschmidt
Dee Peterschmidt is a producer, host of the podcast Universe of Art, and composes music for Science Friday’s podcasts. Their D&D character is a clumsy bard named Chip Chap Chopman.
About Flora Lichtman
Flora Lichtman is a host of Science Friday. In a previous life, she lived on a research ship where apertivi were served on the top deck, hoisted there via pulley by the ship’s chef.