17 October 2007

Pop quiz! Put your browsers away.

UPDATE: answers posted at the end.

Which of these plant specimens doesn't belong? (Images will be properly credited in a forthcoming article which will explain why they're so interesting.)

The images are all the same magnification, but have been colorized so that the color won't give you any clues. Focus on the structure of each specimen, and pick one that doesn't belong with the others. (Insert Sesame Street reference here.)
1
2
3
4
Want a hint? One word: teosinte (tay-oh-SIN-tay).

ANSWER: Picture number 1 is wheat. The rest are Zea mays. See next post.

2 comments:

Unknown said...

Well, the hint suggests that the corn doesn't belong. I'm guessing that it's because kernels are considered to be fruit, not seeds.

Stephen Matheson said...

Here's a bigger hint. Three of the specimens are of the same species, and the exception is not the big ear of corn.