Bennett Artman

Yeast makes heat rise, too
Independant variable: Amount of yeast on plant
Dependant variable: Heat produced
This was an experimant conducted by Spanish researchers and it was to find out if yeast helped to keep a plant warm. The scientists hypothesized that the yeast would create heat in the plant as it breaks down the sugars in the nectar. This is also true in producing things like bread with yeast. The experiment was conducted with a plant that was able to be regularly pollinated by a bee with yeast adhered to their body. There was also a plant that was protected from the invading bumblebees so as to see a difference in surrounding and internal air temperature for the plant. It turns out that the plant that was pollinated with yeast was recorded having a much higher and constant temperature than the plant with no yeast pollination.

I think the experiment could have been improved by using different types of plants, maybe fruits and vegetables. Fruits and vegetables used in the experiment could have determined a way of keeping them warm during cold snaps. For example, when Florida expiriences a cold snap and loses its stock of oranges, they could use yeast to pollinate the buds of the plant or other parts so death to the oranges may be prevented!