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She traversed the barren planet, running swabs of algae so gently across the surface. A slow process, terraforming, but someday, a new home.

Takayuki Kohchi, colleagues at Kyoto University, and 40 other researcher facilities and universities around the world have been studying the genes of the common liverwort. Within the genome of the liverwort lies an exceedingly simple genetic sequence. This sequence is the fundamental ancestral version of basic mechanisms used to keep plants alive. Researchers will now be able to trace the evolutionary history of these genes and gain more insight into how plants evolved. Inspired by this tale of life, Gabrielle Bleu imagines a new wold, where this history did not occur by accident.

//Gabrielle Bleu @BeteMonstrueuse deepest fears are dogs and the ocean. She enjoys talking about bats, and old things buried in archives.//