کد مقاله کد نشریه سال انتشار مقاله انگلیسی نسخه تمام متن
783936 1465364 2011 11 صفحه PDF دانلود رایگان
عنوان انگلیسی مقاله ISI
The growth of giant pumpkins: How extreme weight influences shape
موضوعات مرتبط
مهندسی و علوم پایه سایر رشته های مهندسی مهندسی مکانیک
پیش نمایش صفحه اول مقاله
The growth of giant pumpkins: How extreme weight influences shape
چکیده انگلیسی

Great morphological differences exist among fruits and vegetables. In this combined experimental and theoretical study, we predict pumpkin shape evolution and maximum size based on their material properties. Using time-lapse photography and measurements collected by volunteer farmers, we show that as pumpkins grow, they morph from spherical to pancake shapes, flattening up to 50% in height-to-width aspect ratio. By compressing whole pumpkins in material-testing machines, we find that the elastic response of the pumpkin is insufficient to account for the large deformations characteristic of large pumpkins. We hypothesize that pumpkin flattening is caused by the weight of the pumpkin retarding its normal growth processes. We test this hypothesis using a mathematical model that assumes plant growth is stimulated in response to a tensile yield stress. We are able to predict pumpkin shapes consistent with those observed. The observed growth plasticity allows the fruit to redistribute internal stresses, thereby growing to extreme sizes without breaking.

ناشر
Database: Elsevier - ScienceDirect (ساینس دایرکت)
Journal: International Journal of Non-Linear Mechanics - Volume 46, Issue 4, May 2011, Pages 637–647
نویسندگان
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