What kind of plant is corn?
Corn is an annual grass of the Poaceae family, and the grain-like fruits on the ear are used as food crops. It is the most cultivated crop in the world, and it is familiar to Japanese people as popcorn and corn soup. However, there is an amazing urban legend about corn. It is that corn is a plant that came from space. Is that really true? In this article, we will introduce the urban legend that corn is a plant from space.
Why the ancestor of corn is unknown
One of the reasons for the urban legend that corn is a plant from space is that the ancestor of corn is unknown. Generally, plants are improved by humans from wild species and become crops. For example, rice is derived from wild rice, and wheat is derived from wild species such as Triticum turgidum and Triticum monococcum. However, no clear ancestor species has been found for corn. Corn is a crop native to Central America, and there is a plant called teosinte that is considered to be an ancestor species. However, teosinte looks completely different from corn, and there are no close relatives of teosinte. Also, even if teosinte and corn are crossed, only infertile individuals are born. These things raise doubts about the theory that corn evolved from teosinte.
The mysterious features of corn
Another reason for the urban legend that corn is a plant from space is the mysterious features of corn. Corn is a plant of the Poaceae family, but it has many differences from other plants of the Poaceae family. For example, plants of the Poaceae family have male and female stamens in one flower, but corn has male flowers at the tip of the stem and female flowers in the middle of the stem. This female flower part is what we eat. Also, plants of the Poaceae family have various devices to disperse seeds, but corn wraps seeds that need to be dispersed in husks. The seeds do not fall even if they are wrapped in husks, and they do not fall even if they peel off the husks and expose the seeds. In other words, corn cannot leave offspring without human help. It is a plant that seems to have been made to be eaten as a crop from the beginning. Therefore, it is rumored that corn was given to ancient people as food by aliens.
The relationship between Maya civilization and corn
The relationship between Maya civilization and corn also has something to do with the urban legend that corn is a plant from space. Maya civilization was an ancient civilization that flourished in Central America and had advanced astronomical knowledge and calendar system. Maya civilization left ancient texts and ruins that suggest a connection with the existence of space. For example, the Maya calendar consists of cycles of 260 days and 365 days, which coincide not only with the sun and moon, but also with the orbital periods of planets such as Venus and Saturn. Also, the temples and pyramids of Maya civilization were built according to the sunrise and sunset and position of celestial bodies, and were used for astronomical observation. Maya civilization cultivated corn as an important crop, and corn was revered as a gift from the existence of space. According to Maya legend, gods created humans by kneading corn. Corn came first and humans came later. From this, some people have theorized that corn may be a plant from space.
This article explained the amazing urban legend that corn is a plant from space. Corn has an unknown ancestor species, mysterious features, and a relationship with Maya civilization.
