Bizarre Self-Destructing Palm Tree Found

Smivs writes "A giant self-destructing palm tree has been discovered in Madagascar. The palm is 20m (60ft) high with leaves 5m (16ft) long, the tallest tree of its type in the country, but for most of its life — around 100 years — it appears fairly unremarkable apart from its size. However, when it flowers, it puts so much energy into an impressive flower-spike, that it eventually collapses and dies. Dr John Dransfield, who announced the tree in the Botanical Journal of the Linnean Society, is baffled as to how it came to be in the country. It bears a resemblance to a species of palm found in regions of Asia; 6,000km away. It is thought that the palm has gone through a remarkable evolution since Madagascar split with India some 80m years ago."

Comments

Re:Malagaworld

[Doc Ruby]

So the great ancient seafaring people of the Mediterranean named their seaports "Malaga", while their rough contemporaries, the other great ancient seafaring people of the Indian Ocean, called themselves "Malaga". And out of all the possible sounds, including the different phonemes in the Mediterranean and the Indian, especially the "l" sound, it's just a coincidence? Seems improbable.

Re:Malagaworld

[Doc Ruby]

If you understand comparative linguistics, you'll see that it's all fairly fuzzy. And that "Malaga" and "Malaka" are nearly exactly the same. In Indoeuropean, they're within the variation of accents, and not even different words. It's just the Roman script that makes them look at all different. 'G' is a recent invention (about 230BC), as a variation of 'C' distinguished from K. All of which postdates the naming of those ports.