À quoi pensent les enfants ?

The Intelligence of Plants: A New Narrative? Notes on a Contemporary Cultural Phenomenon

“…Quand les arbres parlent" (The murmur of the forest. When the trees speak, 2019); some books (Wohlleben 2017, Tassin 2016, Mancuso and Viola 2018, and Chamovitz 2018; finally, an issue of the popular science magazine Science et Vie (Science and life, 2019). These supports were chosen because they are significant examples of the media production in French language (or translated in French and broadcasted in France) dedicated specifically to the theme of the intelligence and the sensitivity of plants between 2014 and 2020.…”

“…But, as we have seen previously, for several decades, academic research has attributed to plants capacities that are traditionally attributed only to humans or possibly to certain animal species, such as the ability to learn, memorize, and communicate (Calvo, Keijzer, 2009;Gagliano et al, 2012;Trewavas, 2016;Tassin, 2016;Chamovitz, 2018;Calvo et al, 2020;Parise et al, 2020). We can describe this change as the attribution to plants of a "form" (an essential identity) that includes interiority: this attribution is made through the application of an "intentionalist" lexical field of human and animal origin ( see section 4; Descola, 2005;Cholet, 2021).…”

“…Plants would also be gifted with tactile sensitivity. While touch is allowed in humans by multiple receptors, of which there is no known equivalent in plants, this does not prevent them from reacting to even the lightest "tactile stimuli" (Tassin, 2016).…”

“…For a few decades, scientific literature (Calvo, Keijzer, 2009;Gagliano et al, 2012;Trewavas, 2016;Calvo et al, 2020;Parise et al, 2020) and general public literature (Pollan 2001;Tassin, 2016;Chamovitz, 2018;Wohlleben, 2017;Mancuso & Viola, 2018) have been increasingly talking about a new way of looking at plants. Discussions have focused in particular on cognition (Segundo-Ortin & Calvo, 2021), intelligence (Trewavas, 2016;Calvo, Gagliano, Souza, Trewavas, 2020;Nick, 2021) and even consciousness (Segundo-Ortin & Calvo, 2021) of plants.…”

From Plant Behavior to Plant Intelligence?

“…20 Mycorrhiza are symbiotic structures resulting from the association of a plant's roots with a mushroom. Tassin, 2016) think this does not constitute authentic communication. According to Chamovitz, the purpose of emitting chemical messages in the air is to communicate information more rapidly to the same plant.…”