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Ants... In... Space
Ant writes "The Fowler students picked an experiment with ants, rather than plants, because they wanted to see some activity in space. They have been following the ants' progress on the web. The students and their teachers also have learned that sometimes the best thought-out hypothesis does not pan out in reality. 'We predicted that the ants would tunnel a lot slower in microgravity, but we're finding out they're moving a lot faster,' said Golash. The students have a control group of ants at their school, living in a similar environment except with gravity. After the shuttle returns from its scheduled 16-day flight in early February, the young scientists will have 30 days to put together a preliminary report. Their "Ants in Space" experiment was sponsored by SPACEHAB, an aerospace company that has worked with NASA for many years to design and build hardware for space experiments."
*I wonder if it would even be possible for an ant to build a hive in low or no gravity situations* Bee's man .. BEE's have Hives
I have done some reading on this experiment. The ants are going to be living in a agar based colliodal suspension. The agar (red sweed) will be mixed with sucrose (sugar), and some antifungals and of course water. You can buy the similar habitat at http://www.beachworld.it/eng/antquarium.html Or you can mix your own.. agar.. sometimes (agar-agar) is used as a gelatin replacement.. and is often used in asian cooking..
The space shuttle is not in "microgravity." It is in orbit around the earth meaning everything can be considered to be in freefall indefinitely. More than 90% of the earth's gravitational field is maintained at that distance.
I think with most seeds, the stalk starts to sprout straight out from a cerain point on the seed, then the stalk aligns itself with with gravity. I think in space a plant yould just grow straight out from that point on the seed.
"Sic Semper Tyrannosaurus Rex."