Were Carl Linnaeus’s taste buds functional? In the 1700s, Linnaeus, the “father of taxonomy”, named the Irish Strawberry as Arbutus unedo meaning, “eat only one”, implying that this fruit is not palate-pleasing. We strongly disagree: this project aims to redeem the Irish Strawberry as tasty, nutrient-rich fruit. By barcoding three DNA markers, assessing mutation rates of multiple individuals within three species, and analyzing relevant soil chemistry, microbiome, and fruit nutritional content, we spotlight the Irish Strawberry as the lab’s favorite fruit and the molecular biology model on the phylogenetics “Tree of Life”.

*For more information about these projects please contact: goran@bozinstitute.org

The Boz Lab’s Favorite Power Snack

Even better than coffee at boosting joy and productivity in the lab

Recipe

• One slice of gluten free toast
• 10 grams of almond butter
• As many Irish Strawberries as you can fit