One day, “supercharged plants” may help feed people around the world. Supercharged plants are ones that grow faster than normal plant life. Scientists can speed up the growth by modifying, or changing, the structure of plants’ genes. The modifications make them react quickly to changes in light. This all has to do with photosynthesis, the process in which plants turn sunlight, carbon dioxide and water into food. Steve Long is a plant biologist with the University of Illinois. Arguably, photosynthesis is the most important process on our planet. It is the driving force behind all of life. Plants grow fastest in the sun. That is when they make the most food for themselves. But their rate of growth can slow when things like clouds or trees block sunlight. But when the sun returns, it can take many minutes for growth to speed up again. This can be a problem because it means some of our most important crop plants are not as productive as they could be.
Title: Supercharged Plants May Mean More Crop Production
Content: <div id='article-page'><div id='article-content' data-media-url='//news-app-staging.s3.amazonaws.com' data-base-url='//news-app-staging.herokuapp.com' data-sound-name='https://news-app-production.s3.amazonaws.com/articles/1543/Supercharged_plants.m4a' data-capture-url='//staging.analytics.lingraphica.com/events/capture_news' data-article-title='Supercharged Plants May Mean More Crop Production' data-article-id='2058'><script src='//news-app-staging.herokuapp.com/javascripts/getscripts.js'></script><link rel='stylesheet' href='//news-app-staging.herokuapp.com/stylesheets/article.css' type='text/css' /><div class='article'><p><span data-start-time='0' data-end-time='9021'>One day, “supercharged plants” may help feed people around the world.</span> <span data-start-time='9021' data-end-time='16104'>Supercharged plants are ones that grow faster than normal plant life.</span> <span data-start-time='16104' data-end-time='25896'>Scientists can speed up the growth by modifying, or changing, the structure of plants’ genes.</span> <span data-start-time='25896' data-end-time='32458'>The modifications make them react quickly to changes in light.</span> <span data-start-time='32458' data-end-time='45188'>This all has to do with photosynthesis, the process in which plants turn sunlight, carbon dioxide and water into food.</span> <span data-start-time='45188' data-end-time='51521'>Steve Long is a plant biologist with the University of Illinois.</span> <span data-start-time='51521' data-end-time='56396'>Arguably, photosynthesis is the most important process on our planet.</span> <span data-start-time='56396' data-end-time='60021'>It is the driving force behind all of life.</span> <span data-start-time='60021' data-end-time='63479'>Plants grow fastest in the sun.</span> <span data-start-time='63479' data-end-time='67979'>That is when they make the most food for themselves.</span> <span data-start-time='67979' data-end-time='76792'>But their rate of growth can slow when things like clouds or trees block sunlight.</span> <span data-start-time='76792' data-end-time='84500'>But when the sun returns, it can take many minutes for growth to speed up again.</span> <span data-start-time='84500' data-end-time='95438'>This can be a problem because it means some of our most important crop plants are not as productive as they could be.</span> </p></div><div class='control-buttons-sticky' style='display:none;'><div class='control-buttons'><button title='Back' class='back' disabled='disabled'></button><button title='Play' class='play' disabled='disabled'></button><button title='Pause' class='pause' style='display:none;'></button><button title='Forward' class='forward' disabled='disabled'></button><button class='finished-reading' style='display:none;'>Done</button></div></div></div><div id='article-media'><div id='media-image'><img src='https://news-app-production.s3.amazonaws.com/articles/1543/supercharged_plants.jpg'/></div></div><div id='question-content' style='display:none;'><div class='vocabulary_question question-container' data-question-id=7684 data-hint-location='32458' style='display:none;'><div class='question' data-sound-name='https://news-app-production.s3.amazonaws.com/articles/1543/what_does_photosynthesis_mean.m4a'>What does photosynthesis mean?</div><div class='choices' data-correct-choice='the process plants use to make food using sunlight, carbon dioxide and water'><div class='choice' data-sound-name='https://news-app-production.s3.amazonaws.com/articles/1543/when_the_roots_of_a_plant_grow_above_the_soil.m4a'><span>when the roots of a plant grow above the soil</span></div><div class='choice' data-sound-name='https://news-app-production.s3.amazonaws.com/articles/1543/the_process_plants_use_to_make_food_using_sunlight_carbon_dioxide_and_water.m4a'><span>the process plants use to make food using sunlight, carbon dioxide and water</span></div><div class='choice' data-sound-name='https://news-app-production.s3.amazonaws.com/articles/1543/when_a_plant_is_torn_from_the_ground.m4a'><span>when a plant is torn from the ground</span></div><div class='choice' data-sound-name='https://news-app-production.s3.amazonaws.com/articles/1543/when_a_plant_grows_at_a_rapid_rate.m4a'><span>when a plant grows at a rapid rate</span></div></div></div><div class='multiple_choice_question question-container' data-question-id=7685 data-hint-location='67979' style='display:none;'><div class='question' data-sound-name='https://news-app-production.s3.amazonaws.com/articles/1543/which_one_of_these_items_can_slow_the_rate_of_growth_in_plants.m4a'>Which one of these items can slow the rate of growth in plants?</div><div class='choices' data-correct-choice='clouds'><div class='choice' data-sound-name='https://news-app-production.s3.amazonaws.com/articles/1543/oxygen.m4a'><span>oxygen</span></div><div class='choice' data-sound-name='https://news-app-production.s3.amazonaws.com/articles/1543/clouds.m4a'><span>clouds</span></div><div class='choice' data-sound-name='https://news-app-production.s3.amazonaws.com/articles/1543/rain.m4a'><span>rain</span></div><div class='choice' data-sound-name='https://news-app-production.s3.amazonaws.com/articles/1543/sunlight.m4a'><span>sunlight</span></div></div></div><div class='sentence_completion_question question-container' data-question-id=7686 data-hint-location='60021' style='display:none;'><div class='question' data-sound-name='https://news-app-production.s3.amazonaws.com/articles/1543/plants_grow_fastest_in_the__blank_.m4a'>Plants grow fastest in the <span class='blank'>sun</span>.</div><div class='choices' data-correct-choice='sun'><div class='choice' data-sound-name='https://news-app-production.s3.amazonaws.com/articles/1543/ocean.m4a'><span>ocean</span></div><div class='choice' data-sound-name='https://news-app-production.s3.amazonaws.com/articles/1543/sand.m4a'><span>sand</span></div><div class='choice' data-sound-name='https://news-app-production.s3.amazonaws.com/articles/1543/sun.m4a'><span>sun</span></div><div class='choice' data-sound-name='https://news-app-production.s3.amazonaws.com/articles/1543/dark.m4a'><span>dark</span></div></div></div><div class='question-buttons'><button class='skip-button'></button><button class='hint-button'></button><button class='speak-button'></button></div></div></div>
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