
English: 
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Follow us on Twitter (@amoebasisters) and Facebook!
Plants might not seem all that exciting and
you might wonder, ”Why must I learn about
plants?” But plants are so important for
life---they are producers which means that
they are the main support for food webs. Many
medications that we have today are derived
from plants. They produce oxygen for us to
breathe by the photosynthesis that they do.
Not to say that everything that does photosynthesis
is necessarily a plant, but plants play a
major role in oxygen production.
You know how there are many different types
of animals----well there are many different
types of plants as well. To get to plant structure,
we need to outline two major plant categories.
Vascular and nonvascular. Recall that in the
human body, your vascular system includes

Spanish: 
El subtitulado está activado. Haga clic en el botón CC en la parte inferior derecha para apagar.
¡Síguenos en Twitter (@amoebasisters) y Facebook!
Las plantas pueden no parecer tan emocionantes y
usted podría preguntarse, "¿Por qué debo aprender sobre
plantas? "Pero las plantas son tan importantes para
la vida --- son productores lo que significa que
Son el principal soporte para las redes alimentarias. Muchos
Los medicamentos que tenemos hoy son derivados.
de las plantas. Ellos producen oxígeno para que nosotros
Respira por la fotosíntesis que hacen.
No quiere decir que todo lo que hace la fotosíntesis.
es necesariamente una planta, pero las plantas juegan un
Papel principal en la producción de oxígeno.
Ya sabes como hay muchos tipos diferentes
de animales ---- bueno hay muchos diferentes
tipos de plantas también. Para llegar a la estructura de la planta,
Necesitamos delinear dos categorías principales de plantas.
Vasculares y no vasculares. Recordemos que en el
cuerpo humano, su sistema vascular incluye

English: 
Captioning is on. Click CC button at bottom right to turn off.
Follow us on Twitter (@amoebasisters) and Facebook!
Plants might not seem all that exciting and
you might wonder, ”Why must I learn about
plants?” But plants are so important for
life---they are producers which means that
they are the main support for food webs. Many
medications that we have today are derived
from plants. They produce oxygen for us to
breathe by the photosynthesis that they do.
Not to say that everything that does photosynthesis
is necessarily a plant, but plants play a
major role in oxygen production.
You know how there are many different types
of animals----well there are many different
types of plants as well. To get to plant structure,
we need to outline two major plant categories.
Vascular and nonvascular. Recall that in the
human body, your vascular system includes

English: 
arteries and veins. Well plants don’t have
arteries or blood… for that matter.
When we’re talking about a vascular system
in plants, we’re talking about two major
types of tubes---or vessels--- called the
xylem and phloem. The xylem carries water.
Xylem is found throughout a vascular plant---water
is absorbed from the roots of vascular plants
and carried upwards. Roots are specially designed
to help anchor plants and also to absorb the
water found in the soil that they are in.
The phloem carries sugars---which are typically
produced in the leaves of the plants during
photosynthesis. This sugar is their food source
that plants make In photosynthesis. It needs
to be carried throughout the plant. The phloem
might start with a p but it does have the
same “f” sound that food has so it helps
me remember that it carries the plant’s
food. If a plant is nonvascular, it does not

Spanish: 
arterias y venas. Bueno, las plantas no tienen
Arterias o sangre ... para el caso.
Cuando hablamos de un sistema vascular.
En plantas, estamos hablando de dos grandes
tipos de tubos --- o recipientes --- llamados
xilema y floema. El xilema lleva agua.
El xilema se encuentra en una planta vascular: el agua
Se absorbe desde las raíces de las plantas vasculares.
y llevada hacia arriba. Las raíces están especialmente diseñadas
Para ayudar a anclar las plantas y también para absorber la
Agua que se encuentra en el suelo en el que se encuentran.
El floema lleva azúcares --- que son típicamente
Producido en las hojas de las plantas durante el
fotosíntesis. Este azúcar es su fuente de alimento.
Que las plantas hacen en la fotosíntesis. Necesita
Para ser transportado a lo largo de la planta. El floema
podría comenzar con ap pero tiene la
El mismo sonido “f” que tiene la comida, así que ayuda.
Recuerdo que lleva la planta de
comida. Si una planta no es vascular, no lo hace

English: 
arteries and veins. Well plants don’t have
arteries or blood… for that matter.
When we’re talking about a vascular system
in plants, we’re talking about two major
types of tubes---or vessels--- called the
xylem and phloem. The xylem carries water.
Xylem is found throughout a vascular plant---water
is absorbed from the roots of vascular plants
and carried upwards. Roots are specially designed
to help anchor plants and also to absorb the
water found in the soil that they are in.
The phloem carries sugars---which are typically
produced in the leaves of the plants during
photosynthesis. This sugar is their food source
that plants make In photosynthesis. It needs
to be carried throughout the plant. The phloem
might start with a p but it does have the
same “f” sound that food has so it helps
me remember that it carries the plant’s
food. If a plant is nonvascular, it does not

English: 
have vessels like the xylem and phloem. However,
it still needs water and it still produces
sugar. It can’t carry water upwards in the
xylem because it doesn’t have one. That
means, nonvascular plants typically are limited
in size. A giant tree needs a xylem for water
transport; the water is being carried against
gravity. Nonvascular plants instead get their
water by osmosis. Kind of like soaking up
water like a sponge. A great example of a
nonvascular plant is moss.
Much of a plant’s structure is actually
designed to facilitate photosynthesis. Photosynthesis
is the ability to make sugar---the plant’s
own food source---from sunlight. We can’t
do this. Yeah, you might go in the kitchen
to make a sandwich but you are just preparing
your food. Wouldn’t it be amazing if you
could go out in your backyard and sunbathe

English: 
have vessels like the xylem and phloem. However,
it still needs water and it still produces
sugar. It can’t carry water upwards in the
xylem because it doesn’t have one. That
means, nonvascular plants typically are limited
in size. A giant tree needs a xylem for water
transport; the water is being carried against
gravity. Nonvascular plants instead get their
water by osmosis. Kind of like soaking up
water like a sponge. A great example of a
nonvascular plant is moss.
Much of a plant’s structure is actually
designed to facilitate photosynthesis. Photosynthesis
is the ability to make sugar---the plant’s
own food source---from sunlight. We can’t
do this. Yeah, you might go in the kitchen
to make a sandwich but you are just preparing
your food. Wouldn’t it be amazing if you
could go out in your backyard and sunbathe

Spanish: 
Tienen vasos como el xilema y el floema. Sin embargo,
Todavía necesita agua y todavía produce.
azúcar. No puede llevar agua hacia arriba en el
xylem porque no tiene uno. Ese
medios, las plantas no vasculares son típicamente limitadas
en tamaño. Un árbol gigante necesita un xilema para el agua.
transporte; el agua esta siendo transportada contra
gravedad. Las plantas no vasculares en lugar de obtener su
Agua por ósmosis. Algo así como absorber
El agua como una esponja. Un gran ejemplo de un
La planta no vascular es el musgo.
Gran parte de la estructura de una planta es en realidad
Diseñado para facilitar la fotosíntesis. Fotosíntesis
es la habilidad de hacer azúcar --- la planta
Fuente de alimento propia --- de la luz solar. Nosotros no podemos
hacer esto. Sí, podrías ir a la cocina.
para hacer un sandwich pero tu solo estas preparando
tu comida. ¿No sería increíble si
Podrías salir a tu patio trasero y tomar el sol.

English: 
and conjure up a sandwich in your stomach?
Our little analogy isn’t perfect but you
get what a big deal photosynthesis is. If
you understand the importance of this function
for plants, you can really understand many
structure adaptations that plants have. Photosynthesis
needs three reactants to work: water, light,
and carbon dioxide. Water--- we mentioned
already how a plant can obtain it in different
ways depending on whether they’re vascular
or nonvascular. So what about the sunlight----how
does plant structure deal with that? Well
plant cells have organelles called chloroplasts.
These amazing organelles are not found in
animal cells. They are the site of photosynthesis
so they help capture light energy for the
process of photosynthesis. This is a complicated
process that is made up of a light dependent
reaction and a light independent reaction
(also called the calvin cycle). It’s a big

Spanish: 
¿Y evoca un sándwich en tu estómago?
Nuestra pequeña analogía no es perfecta, pero tú.
Consiga lo que es una gran fotosíntesis. Si
entiendes la importancia de esta función
Para las plantas, realmente puedes entender muchas
Adaptaciones estructurales que tienen las plantas. Fotosíntesis
Necesita tres reactantes para trabajar: agua, luz,
y dióxido de carbono. Agua --- mencionamos
Ya como una planta puede conseguirlo en diferentes.
formas dependiendo de si son vasculares
o no vascular. Entonces, ¿qué pasa con la luz del sol ---- cómo
¿La estructura de la planta trata con eso? Bien
Las células vegetales tienen orgánulos llamados cloroplastos.
Estos increíbles orgánulos no se encuentran en
Células animales. Son el sitio de la fotosíntesis.
por lo que ayudan a capturar la energía de la luz para el
Proceso de la fotosíntesis. Esto es un complicado
Proceso que se compone de una luz dependiente.
Reacción y reacción de luz independiente.
(también llamado el ciclo de calvin). Es un grande

English: 
and conjure up a sandwich in your stomach?
Our little analogy isn’t perfect but you
get what a big deal photosynthesis is. If
you understand the importance of this function
for plants, you can really understand many
structure adaptations that plants have. Photosynthesis
needs three reactants to work: water, light,
and carbon dioxide. Water--- we mentioned
already how a plant can obtain it in different
ways depending on whether they’re vascular
or nonvascular. So what about the sunlight----how
does plant structure deal with that? Well
plant cells have organelles called chloroplasts.
These amazing organelles are not found in
animal cells. They are the site of photosynthesis
so they help capture light energy for the
process of photosynthesis. This is a complicated
process that is made up of a light dependent
reaction and a light independent reaction
(also called the calvin cycle). It’s a big

English: 
enough process that we’ll have to have another
video clip for that. Leaf structure is designed
to capture this light energy with their chloroplasts.
Last thing on our photosynthesis checklist
after the water and the light is carbon dioxide.
So how does the structure of plants help them
obtain carbon dioxide? First of all, please
realize that plants do something in addition
to photosynthesis called cellular respiration---just
like you----and they do need the gas oxygen.
Sometimes students get confused and think
that plants “breathe” carbon dioxide.
This is not true. Plants also need oxygen---but
they typically produce more oxygen than they
use which makes them so helpful as oxygen
producers. For photosynthesis, plants need
the gas CO2. Conveniently, this is the gas
that we exhale (which means, we breathe out).
Many plants have these fascinating little
openings—pores really---called “stomata.”
Stomata is the plural and stoma is the singular.
Stomata are typically found on the bottom

English: 
enough process that we’ll have to have another
video clip for that. Leaf structure is designed
to capture this light energy with their chloroplasts.
Last thing on our photosynthesis checklist
after the water and the light is carbon dioxide.
So how does the structure of plants help them
obtain carbon dioxide? First of all, please
realize that plants do something in addition
to photosynthesis called cellular respiration---just
like you----and they do need the gas oxygen.
Sometimes students get confused and think
that plants “breathe” carbon dioxide.
This is not true. Plants also need oxygen---but
they typically produce more oxygen than they
use which makes them so helpful as oxygen
producers. For photosynthesis, plants need
the gas CO2. Conveniently, this is the gas
that we exhale (which means, we breathe out).
Many plants have these fascinating little
openings—pores really---called “stomata.”
Stomata is the plural and stoma is the singular.
Stomata are typically found on the bottom

Spanish: 
proceso suficiente que tendremos que tener otro
video clip para eso. La estructura de la hoja está diseñada.
Capturar esta energía luminosa con sus cloroplastos.
Lo último en nuestra lista de fotosíntesis.
Después del agua y la luz es dióxido de carbono.
Entonces, ¿cómo les ayuda la estructura de las plantas?
obtener dióxido de carbono? Ante todo por favor
darse cuenta de que las plantas hacen algo además
a la fotosíntesis llamada respiración celular --- solo
como usted ---- y ellos necesitan el oxígeno del gas.
A veces los estudiantes se confunden y piensan
Que las plantas "respiran" dióxido de carbono.
Esto no es verdad. Las plantas también necesitan oxígeno, pero
Por lo general, producen más oxígeno que
Uso que los hace tan útiles como el oxígeno.
productores Para la fotosíntesis, las plantas necesitan
El gas CO2. Convenientemente, este es el gas.
que exhalamos (lo que significa que exhalamos).
Muchas plantas tienen estos pequeños fascinantes
aberturas, poros en realidad --- llamados "estomas".
El estoma es el plural y el estoma es el singular.
Los estomas se encuentran típicamente en la parte inferior

Spanish: 
de hojas, en algunas especies, se encuentran en el
parte superior. Los estomas tienen un papel importante en el intercambio de gases.
Los gases pueden fluir a través de estas aberturas,
y el CO2 que entra es realmente necesario para
fotosíntesis. Sólo hay un pequeño problema.
La planta no puede mantener esos estomas abiertos.
todo el tiempo. Si es así, el agua puede escapar. Y
Recuerda, las plantas también necesitan agua para la fotosíntesis.
Así que la planta tiene que determinar si abrir
o cerrar sus estomas, y lo hace con
La ayuda de las células de guardia. Si las celdas de guardia tienen
Los estomas se abren, obtiene los gases que necesita.
Pero puede perder agua. Si las celdas de guardia tienen
El estoma cerrado, consigue salvar su agua.
Pero entonces no puede obtener ningún gas. Por la noche,
La mayoría de las plantas (pocas excepciones que
hablar sobre hacia el final de nuestro clip) cerrar
sus estomas para que puedan conservar su
agua. ¿Por qué? Bueno por la noche, no pueden hacer.
Mucha fotosíntesis porque no hay

English: 
of leaves, in some species, they are on the
top. Stomata have a major role in gas exchange.
Gases can flow in through these openings,
and the CO2 that enters is really needed for
photosynthesis. There is only one little problem.
The plant can’t keep those stomata open
all the time. If so, water can escape. And
remember, plants need water too for photosynthesis.
So the plant has to determine whether to open
or close its stomata, and it does this with
the help of guard cells. If guard cells have
the stomata open, it gets the gases it needs
but it can lose water. If guard cells have
the stomata closed, it gets to save its water
but then it can’t get any gases. At night,
most plants (few exceptions which we’ll
talk about toward the end of our clip) close
their stomata so that they can conserve their
water. Why? Well at night, they can’t do
much photosynthesis because there’s not

English: 
of leaves, in some species, they are on the
top. Stomata have a major role in gas exchange.
Gases can flow in through these openings,
and the CO2 that enters is really needed for
photosynthesis. There is only one little problem.
The plant can’t keep those stomata open
all the time. If so, water can escape. And
remember, plants need water too for photosynthesis.
So the plant has to determine whether to open
or close its stomata, and it does this with
the help of guard cells. If guard cells have
the stomata open, it gets the gases it needs
but it can lose water. If guard cells have
the stomata closed, it gets to save its water
but then it can’t get any gases. At night,
most plants (few exceptions which we’ll
talk about toward the end of our clip) close
their stomata so that they can conserve their
water. Why? Well at night, they can’t do
much photosynthesis because there’s not

English: 
much sunlight…so what’s the point in keeping
them open? During sunny days, most plants
tend to open their stomata to get the gases
they need to do photosynthesis. But if the
day gets way too hot and the plant is low
on water, it may close its stomata. Different
plant species have all kinds of adaptations
in their structure to help them survive. Because
if one thing is true about plants---they are
survivors. Here’s some great examples of
plant structure adaptations that help them
with various functions. Plants that have to
conserve water tend to have very thin leaves
so that they don’t have much surface area
to lose water. Think about pine trees with
their skinny pine needle leaves…or think
about the plants that live in the desert.
Remember how we said most plants close their
stomata at night? Well some desert plants
have adapted by opening stomata at night----when
it’s not ridiculously hot---and they have
a specialized way to store the gases they
need for the daytime. This allows them to
close their stomata during the day to prevent

English: 
much sunlight…so what’s the point in keeping
them open? During sunny days, most plants
tend to open their stomata to get the gases
they need to do photosynthesis. But if the
day gets way too hot and the plant is low
on water, it may close its stomata. Different
plant species have all kinds of adaptations
in their structure to help them survive. Because
if one thing is true about plants---they are
survivors. Here’s some great examples of
plant structure adaptations that help them
with various functions. Plants that have to
conserve water tend to have very thin leaves
so that they don’t have much surface area
to lose water. Think about pine trees with
their skinny pine needle leaves…or think
about the plants that live in the desert.
Remember how we said most plants close their
stomata at night? Well some desert plants
have adapted by opening stomata at night----when
it’s not ridiculously hot---and they have
a specialized way to store the gases they
need for the daytime. This allows them to
close their stomata during the day to prevent

Spanish: 
mucha luz solar ... ¿cuál es el punto de mantener
ellos abiertos? Durante los días soleados, la mayoría de las plantas
Tienden a abrir sus estomas para obtener los gases.
Necesitan hacer la fotosíntesis. Pero si el
El día se calienta demasiado y la planta está baja.
En el agua, puede cerrar sus estomas. Diferente
Las especies de plantas tienen todo tipo de adaptaciones.
en su estructura para ayudarles a sobrevivir. Porque
Si una cosa es cierta sobre las plantas, son
sobrevivientes Aquí hay algunos grandes ejemplos de
Adaptaciones de la estructura de la planta que les ayudan.
Con varias funciones. Plantas que tienen que
Conservar el agua tiende a tener hojas muy delgadas.
Para que no tengan mucha superficie.
perder agua. Piensa en los pinos con
Sus hojas de aguja de pino flaco ... o pensar
Sobre las plantas que viven en el desierto.
Recuerda cómo dijimos que la mayoría de las plantas cierran sus
estomas en la noche? Bueno, algunas plantas del desierto.
Se han adaptado abriendo los estomas por la noche, cuando
no es ridículamente caliente --- y tienen
Una forma especializada de almacenar los gases que
Necesito para el día. Esto les permite
cierran sus estomas durante el día para prevenir

Spanish: 
Pérdida de agua bajo ese sol caliente del desierto. Plantas
que tienen un montón de acceso al agua --- pero tal vez
están sombreadas por una gran cantidad de plantas más altas en una
selva --- podría tener hojas muy anchas y anchas
para que puedan tomar tanto sol como sea posible.
Es difícil vivir en la sombra de alguien más.
Como hay mucha agua, estas grandes
las plantas con hojas no tienen que preocuparse
Toda esa área superficial perdiendo agua ya que hay
Mucha agua para todos. O tienes
oído hablar de las plantas carnívoras? Como el venus
mosca trampa o la planta de jarra? Estas plantas
Todavía hacen fotosíntesis para hacer su azúcar.
Pero las plantas carnívoras también tienen la habilidad
para digerir insectos típicamente utilizando especial
Las enzimas en un jugo que secretan. Estas plantas
Tienden a vivir en áreas donde el suelo es bajo.
en nitrógeno. Plantas, y otros organismos,
Utilizar nitrógeno en la construcción de proteínas.
Los insectos son una gran manera de complementar esto.
Necesidad de nitrógeno. Si alguna vez miras los ingredientes.
En abono vegetal, encontrarás muchos abonos.

English: 
water loss under that hot desert sun. Plants
that have lots of access to water---but maybe
are shaded by a lot of taller plants in a
jungle---might have really broad, wide leaves
so that they can soak up as much sun as possible.
It’s hard to live in someone else’s shadow.
Since there is plenty of water, these big
leaved plants don’t have to worry about
all that surface area losing water as there’s
plenty of water to go around. Or have you
heard about carnivorous plants? Like the venus
fly trap or the pitcher plant? These plants
still do photosynthesis to make their sugar.
But carnivorous plants also have the ability
to digest insects typically by using special
enzymes in a juice they secrete. These plants
tend to live in areas where the soil is low
in nitrogen. Plants, and other organisms,
use nitrogen in the building of proteins.
Insects are a great way to supplement this
nitrogen need. If you ever look at the ingredients
in plant fertilizer, you will find many fertilizers

English: 
water loss under that hot desert sun. Plants
that have lots of access to water---but maybe
are shaded by a lot of taller plants in a
jungle---might have really broad, wide leaves
so that they can soak up as much sun as possible.
It’s hard to live in someone else’s shadow.
Since there is plenty of water, these big
leaved plants don’t have to worry about
all that surface area losing water as there’s
plenty of water to go around. Or have you
heard about carnivorous plants? Like the venus
fly trap or the pitcher plant? These plants
still do photosynthesis to make their sugar.
But carnivorous plants also have the ability
to digest insects typically by using special
enzymes in a juice they secrete. These plants
tend to live in areas where the soil is low
in nitrogen. Plants, and other organisms,
use nitrogen in the building of proteins.
Insects are a great way to supplement this
nitrogen need. If you ever look at the ingredients
in plant fertilizer, you will find many fertilizers

English: 
are high in nitrogen. And you know when people
hang up mistletoe? So sweet, right, you’re
supposed to get a kiss under it? Is it terribly
ironic that you are hanging out a potentially
parasitic plant that uses its roots to steal
nutrients and water from its host plant? Hmm.
Probably the most fascinating parts of plant
structure and function have to do with plant
reproduction. But that’s a whole other subject---and
we have another clip for that. That’s it
for the amoeba sisters and we remind you to
stay curious.
Follow us on Twitter (@amoebasisters) and Facebook!

English: 
are high in nitrogen. And you know when people
hang up mistletoe? So sweet, right, you’re
supposed to get a kiss under it? Is it terribly
ironic that you are hanging out a potentially
parasitic plant that uses its roots to steal
nutrients and water from its host plant? Hmm.
Probably the most fascinating parts of plant
structure and function have to do with plant
reproduction. But that’s a whole other subject---and
we have another clip for that. That’s it
for the amoeba sisters and we remind you to
stay curious.
Follow us on Twitter (@amoebasisters) and Facebook!

Spanish: 
Son altos en nitrógeno. Y sabes cuando la gente
colgar muérdago? Muy dulce, cierto, eres
Se supone que recibir un beso debajo de ella? Es terriblemente
Irónico que estás colgando un potencial
Planta parasitaria que aprovecha sus raíces para robar.
¿Los nutrientes y el agua de su planta huésped? Hmm
Probablemente las partes más fascinantes de la planta.
Estructura y función tienen que ver con la planta.
reproducción. Pero ese es un tema completamente distinto --- y
Tenemos otro clip para eso. Eso es
para las hermanas amebas y te recordamos que
mantener la curiosidad
¡Síguenos en Twitter (@amoebasisters) y Facebook!
