Marvel of Peru (Mirabilis jalapa)

Marvel of Peru or four o'clock flower (Mirabilis jalapa) is a plant species in the Nyctaginaceae, herbaceous perennial, 20-80 cm high, thick stem, quadrangular with many branches and rooted in knots and postures often flat, tubers blackish brown with a white filling and elongated round shape with a size of 7–9 cm and 2–5 cm in diameter

M. jalapa has blackish brown tubers, white inside, elongated round shape, 7-9 cm long and 2-5 cm in diameter. Leaves are heart-shaped, green, 2-11 cm long and 1-7 cm wide. Leaf base rounded, tapered tip and flat edge. Leaf stalks are 1-6 cm long.

The flowers are trumpet-shaped and come in many colors including red, white and yellow. Single seeded fruit, round, hard, wrinkled, yellow-green when young and black when ripe. Fruit can be made as a powder.

It is called the four o'clock flower because it usually blooms at four o'clock in the afternoon due to light stimulation or photonasty. This plant is included in the Dicotyledones class because it has two pieces of seeds, petals with multiples of 4-5 and finger veins.

The flower contains eight betaxanthins (indicaxanthin, vulgaxanthin-I, miraxanthin-I, II, III, IV, V and VI). The root contains rotenoid (mirabijalone A, B, C and D, 9-O-methyl-4-hydroxyboeravinone B, boeravinone C and boeravinone F, and 1,2,3,4-tetrahydro-1-methylisoquinoline-7,8-diol ). The seeds contain fatty acids (8-hydroxyoctadeca-cis-11,14-dienoic acid). The methanol extract produces β-sitosterol, stigmasterol, ursolic acid, oleanolic acid and brassicasterol.

The plant extract has antimicrobial activity against Candida albicans and moderate activity as an inhibitor of multidrug-resistant Staphylococcus aureus.

Flowers are processed into fresh drinks. The content of betaxanthis, fatty acid substances and oil acid substances can be used as drugs to improve blood circulation and diuretics. Plants are also used to relieve tonsillitis, sore throat, coughing up blood, cancer, kidney stones, gallstones and diabetes, dysentery, infected wounds, bee stings and scorpions.

The leaves are used to reduce inflammation, treat abscesses and treat wounds. The seeds are considered toxic but can be powdered as a cosmetic and dye. The dried flower powder is used to treat headaches and the root decoction is used to wash wounds and treat skin conditions such as leprosy. The juice extracted from the flowers is used for herpes lesions and earaches. The juice extracted from the root is used to treat earaches, diarrhoea, dysentery, syphilis, liver infections and as a laxative.

Kingdom: Plantae
Phylum: Tracheophyta
Subphylum: Angiospermae
Class: Magnoliopsida
Order: Caryophyllales
Family: Nyctaginaceae
Genus: Mirabilis
Species: Mirabilis jalapa
Variety: Mirabilis jalapa var. jalapa, Mirabilis jalapa var. oaxacana

Dry Valleys on Antarctic continent is the driest place in the world

The Sahara Desert is the largest desert in the world, rainfall is very low, only stretches of sand and rocks without rivers and plants further strengthen the view of drought. However, it turns out that the place is not the driest place in the world. Dry Valleys in Antarctica, although the continent is covered in ice, but has one part that is completely dry. Although the average rainfall in most of the Sahara Desert is less than 20 millimeters per year, there are still drier places. Dry Valleys in Antarctica is much drier where the average rainfall is 0 millimeters per year and gets the title of the driest place in the world. The valleys have so low humidity that there is almost no ice. This is the largest ice free place on the Antarctic continent. The area is surrounded by mountains that block ice from flowing into the valley. Drought is also caused by strong katabalic gusts from mountain peaks where cold air blows down the hill due to gravity. The wind has speeds of up to 322 k...

Humpback whales (Megaptera novaeangliae) manufacture bubble-nets as tools to increase prey intake

NEWS - Humpback whales ( Megaptera novaeangliae ) create bubble net tools while foraging, consisting of internal tangential rings, and actively control the number of rings, their size, depth and horizontal spacing between the surrounding bubbles. These structural elements of the net increase prey intake sevenfold. Researchers have known that humpback whales create “bubble nets” for hunting, but the new report shows that the animals also manipulate them in a variety of ways to maximize catches. The behavior places humpbacks among the rare animals that make and use their own tools. “Many animals use tools to help them find food, but very few actually make or modify these tools themselves,” said Lars Bejder, director of the Marine Mammal Research Program (MMRP), University of Hawaii at Manoa. “Humpback whales in southeast Alaska create elaborate bubble nets to catch krill. They skillfully blow bubbles in patterns that form a web with internal rings. They actively control details such ...

Javanese grasshopper (Valanga nigricornis)

Wooden grasshopper or Javanese grasshopper ( Valanga nigricornis ) is an animal species of Acrididae, grasshoppers that have at least 18 subspecies, insects with very wide diversity in color and size, sexual dimorphism in which females are larger in size and paler in color. V. nigricornis in males has a length of 45-55 millimeters and females 15-75 mm. The head is square and green or yellow or brown or black in color. A pair of antennas has a black color. The eyes are large and gray or white or brownish. The hind legs are very large and have a green or yellow or brown or black color, plain or brindle. The limbs have two rows of large and long spines with black tips facing backward. The wings have a length exceeding the belly, a rough surface and are brown or green or yellow or black in color with pulse lines forming spaces filled with black color. The hind wings are rose red which will be visible when flying. Nymphs are pale green or yellow or brown or blackish in color. Javanese gr...

Dlium