Jove
Visualize
Contact Us
JoVE
x logofacebook logolinkedin logoyoutube logo
ABOUT JoVE
OverviewLeadershipBlogJoVE Help Center
AUTHORS
Publishing ProcessEditorial BoardScope & PoliciesPeer ReviewFAQSubmit
LIBRARIANS
TestimonialsSubscriptionsAccessResourcesLibrary Advisory BoardFAQ
RESEARCH
JoVE JournalMethods CollectionsJoVE Encyclopedia of ExperimentsArchive
EDUCATION
JoVE CoreJoVE BusinessJoVE Science EducationJoVE Lab ManualFaculty Resource CenterFaculty Site
Terms & Conditions of Use
Privacy Policy
Policies

Related Concept Videos

Understanding Consciousness01:23

Understanding Consciousness

563
Consciousness can be defined as the state of being aware of and able to think about one's existence, sensations, and surroundings. It encompasses two major components: awareness and arousal. Awareness pertains to the recognition of environmental stimuli and internal states. At the same time, arousal refers to the physiological readiness to engage with these stimuli, which varies significantly between states like sleep and wakefulness.
Sleep, a crucial state, is characterized by reduced...
563
Tonicity in Plants01:20

Tonicity in Plants

31.4K
Plant cells maintain appropriate osmotic balance in extreme conditions. For instance, plants in dry environments store water in vacuoles, limit the opening of their stoma, and have thick, waxy cuticles to prevent unnecessary water loss. Some species of plants that live in salty environments store salt in their roots. As a result, water osmosis occurs in the root from the surrounding soil.
Tonicity
Tonicity describes the capacity of a cell to lose or gain water depending on the solute...
31.4K
Subconsciousness and No Awareness01:15

Subconsciousness and No Awareness

415
The concept of subconscious awareness refers to the processing of information below the level of conscious thought, which significantly influences both behaviors and decisions. It is also known as waking subconscious awareness. This complex level of cognition operates without the direct awareness of the individual, facilitating rapid and simultaneous handling of multiple information streams.
An illustrative example of subconscious processing is its role in problem-solving. Often, individuals...
415
Photoreceptors and Plant Responses to Light02:00

Photoreceptors and Plant Responses to Light

26.4K
Light plays a significant role in regulating the growth and development of plants. In addition to providing energy for photosynthesis, light provides other important cues to regulate a range of developmental and physiological responses in plants.
26.4K
Cognitivism01:17

Cognitivism

2.3K
Cognitive psychology emerged as a significant field in the mid-20th century. It focused on understanding humans' internal mental processes. This approach emphasizes how people perceive, remember, think, and solve problems—elements critical to human cognition.
Previously dominated by behaviorism, which prioritized observable behaviors and largely ignored mental processes, psychology transformed in the 1950s. Cognitive psychologists argue that understanding how we think and process...
2.3K
Introduction to Cognitive Psychology01:20

Introduction to Cognitive Psychology

1.8K
Cognitive psychology is the field of psychology dedicated to examining how people think. It attempts to explain how and why we think the way we do by studying the interactions among human thinking, emotion, creativity, language, and problem-solving, as well as other cognitive processes. Cognitive psychology studies how information is processed and manipulated in remembering, thinking, and knowing.
This field emerged in the mid-20th century, following a period dominated by behaviorism, which...
1.8K

You might also read

Related Articles

Articles linked to this work by shared authors, journal, and citation graph.

Sort by
Same author

Affordances are for life (and not just for maximizing reproductive fitness).

The Behavioral and brain sciences·2026
Same author

Don't jump the gun quite yet: aiming for the true target in plant neurobiology research.

Protoplasma·2024
Same author

The Development of a Stereo Vision System to Study the Nutation Movement of Climbing Plants.

Sensors (Basel, Switzerland)·2024
Same author

A case study of learning in plants: Lessons learned from pea plants.

Quarterly journal of experimental psychology (2006)·2023
Same author

Decision Making in Plants: A Rooted Perspective.

Plants (Basel, Switzerland)·2023
Same author

Identification of intelligence-related proteins through a robust two-layer predictor.

Communicative & integrative biology·2022

Related Experiment Video

Updated: Oct 19, 2025

Real-time In Vivo Recording of Arabidopsis Calcium Signals During Insect Feeding Using a Fluorescent Biosensor
08:21

Real-time In Vivo Recording of Arabidopsis Calcium Signals During Insect Feeding Using a Fluorescent Biosensor

Published on: August 15, 2017

13.1K

Consciousness and cognition in plants.

Miguel Segundo-Ortin1, Paco Calvo2

  • 1Department of Philosophy and Religious Studies, Faculty of Humanities, Utrecht University, Utrecht, The Netherlands.

Wiley Interdisciplinary Reviews. Cognitive Science
|September 24, 2021
PubMed
Summary

Plants may possess cognitive and conscious abilities, challenging traditional views. Research into plant neurobiology and signaling explores the biological basis for plant sentience and phenomenal experience.

Keywords:
adaptive behaviorcognitive scienceplant cognitionplant consciousnessplant neurobiology

More Related Videos

Wide-Field, Real-Time Imaging of Local and Systemic Wound Signals in Arabidopsis
06:50

Wide-Field, Real-Time Imaging of Local and Systemic Wound Signals in Arabidopsis

Published on: June 4, 2021

5.2K
3-D Time-Lapse Imaging of Cell Wall Dynamics Using Calcofluor in the Moss Physcomitrium patens
05:14

3-D Time-Lapse Imaging of Cell Wall Dynamics Using Calcofluor in the Moss Physcomitrium patens

Published on: February 10, 2023

1.7K

Related Experiment Videos

Last Updated: Oct 19, 2025

Real-time In Vivo Recording of Arabidopsis Calcium Signals During Insect Feeding Using a Fluorescent Biosensor
08:21

Real-time In Vivo Recording of Arabidopsis Calcium Signals During Insect Feeding Using a Fluorescent Biosensor

Published on: August 15, 2017

13.1K
Wide-Field, Real-Time Imaging of Local and Systemic Wound Signals in Arabidopsis
06:50

Wide-Field, Real-Time Imaging of Local and Systemic Wound Signals in Arabidopsis

Published on: June 4, 2021

5.2K
3-D Time-Lapse Imaging of Cell Wall Dynamics Using Calcofluor in the Moss Physcomitrium patens
05:14

3-D Time-Lapse Imaging of Cell Wall Dynamics Using Calcofluor in the Moss Physcomitrium patens

Published on: February 10, 2023

1.7K

Area of Science:

  • Cognitive Biology
  • Philosophy of Mind
  • Neuroscience

Background:

  • Traditionally, plant behavior is viewed as genetically or environmentally determined, classifying plants as noncognitive.
  • Empirical evidence increasingly suggests plants exhibit sophisticated cognitive capabilities, previously thought exclusive to animals.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To foster an empirically informed debate on plant cognition and consciousness.
  • To explore the potential for sentience in facilitating complex plant behaviors.

Main Methods:

  • Review of empirical literature on plant cognition.
  • Introduction to plant neurobiology and its relevance.
  • Discussion of electrical and chemical signaling in plants.

Main Results:

  • Growing body of research indicates cognitive functions in plants.
  • Plant neurobiology offers insights into biological bases for sentience.
  • Electrical and chemical signaling pathways are key areas of investigation.

Conclusions:

  • Plants may possess a form of consciousness or phenomenal experience.
  • The possibility of evolved consciousness in plants should not be dismissed.
  • Scientific investigation into plant consciousness is a viable and important pursuit.