Literature Reviews
1. Bibliography MLA Format: Sighmony , Rajiv. “Why Coffee Effects the Growth of Plants” Gomestic, 05 March 2009. Web. 9 February 2012. <http://gomestic.com/gardening/why-coffee-effects-the-growth-of-plants/>
Bulleted Notes:
· It’s not just the caffeine that affects the growth of the plant.
· Coffee can either help or hurt your garden, depending on how much you use.
· Many public gardens use coffee to make the plans look healthier and prettier.
· Nobody’s sure if caffeine even has any effect on plant growth; it might just be the other ingredients in the coffee that help the plants so much.
· Coffee not only helps the plants grow, it also technically cleans the garden.
· Potassium and phosphorus are also key ingredients in coffee that help plants grow.
Justification in paragraph form (Connect to the real world, applications, implications, background )
This would help a variety of people. It could help people like me that are researching to do an experiment on caffeine, coffee, or something of the sort. It could help gardeners learn how to garden better and more energy efficient. Also, it would help anyone who wants to learn more about how to make your grass grow in better. I found this as a pretty good resource, I had some parts that weren't the most helpful, but it gave me more information on the topic in question. It had helpful facts about the ingredients in coffee and which ones actually help the growth of plants.
Bulleted Notes:
· It’s not just the caffeine that affects the growth of the plant.
· Coffee can either help or hurt your garden, depending on how much you use.
· Many public gardens use coffee to make the plans look healthier and prettier.
· Nobody’s sure if caffeine even has any effect on plant growth; it might just be the other ingredients in the coffee that help the plants so much.
· Coffee not only helps the plants grow, it also technically cleans the garden.
· Potassium and phosphorus are also key ingredients in coffee that help plants grow.
Justification in paragraph form (Connect to the real world, applications, implications, background )
This would help a variety of people. It could help people like me that are researching to do an experiment on caffeine, coffee, or something of the sort. It could help gardeners learn how to garden better and more energy efficient. Also, it would help anyone who wants to learn more about how to make your grass grow in better. I found this as a pretty good resource, I had some parts that weren't the most helpful, but it gave me more information on the topic in question. It had helpful facts about the ingredients in coffee and which ones actually help the growth of plants.
2. Bibliography MLA Format: Grazian, Robert. “The Effect on Caffeine on Plant Growth.” The Flowers and Plants, 28 October 2011. Web. 14 February 2012. < http://www.thebeakretreat.com/2011/10/28/the-effect-of-caffeine-on-plant-growth/>
Bulleted Notes:
· There’s a myth that caffeine (in coffee) does help plants grow faster and better
· Nobody really knows whether caffeine helps plant growth or not
· Some believe that caffeine slows the growth of plants, and causes them to be abnormally small in size when don’t growing.
· It might not even be the caffeine making the plant grow at all, it might be the potassium and phosphorous.
Justification in paragraph form (Connect to the real world, applications, implications, background )
This shows how, even though some people have theories on whether caffeine/coffee really does affect plant growth or not. This is what I’m going to try and find out thought through my experiment. I hope to find out which myth is true, does caffeine/coffee effect plant growth or does it as an outcome make the plant abnormally small in size when done growing.
Bulleted Notes:
· There’s a myth that caffeine (in coffee) does help plants grow faster and better
· Nobody really knows whether caffeine helps plant growth or not
· Some believe that caffeine slows the growth of plants, and causes them to be abnormally small in size when don’t growing.
· It might not even be the caffeine making the plant grow at all, it might be the potassium and phosphorous.
Justification in paragraph form (Connect to the real world, applications, implications, background )
This shows how, even though some people have theories on whether caffeine/coffee really does affect plant growth or not. This is what I’m going to try and find out thought through my experiment. I hope to find out which myth is true, does caffeine/coffee effect plant growth or does it as an outcome make the plant abnormally small in size when done growing.
3. Bibliography MLA Format: Carini, Mario. “Why coffee affects the growth of plants”. Helium, 7 February 2009. Web. 16 February 2012. <http://www.helium.com/items/1329653-coffee-for-fertilizer-coffee-and-the-garden-uses-of-coffee-coffee-for-plant-growth-garden-tips>
Bulleted Notes:
· Using coffee grounds in soil only works if the plants can grow in highly acidic soil.
· Sprinkling coffee grounds around your plants will help rid your plants of bugs such as ants and other annoying pests.
· It’s the nitrogen in coffee that helps plants.
· Coffee can also be used for lots of other, non- plant related things.
Justification in paragraph form (Connect to the real world, applications, implications, background )
According to this website, coffee (most likely other caffeinated beverages as well) do improve the growth of plants. In this article it states that it works best on outdoor plants, but in the experiment the plants will be inside… this could be a contributing factor in the experiment. Coffee also helps keep pests out of the garden as well, which could also help them not be eaten and have a contributing help. Also, nitrogen is the leading factor in coffee that helps plants grow, so coffee may not be used in the experiment even though it also has lots of caffeine.
Bulleted Notes:
· Using coffee grounds in soil only works if the plants can grow in highly acidic soil.
· Sprinkling coffee grounds around your plants will help rid your plants of bugs such as ants and other annoying pests.
· It’s the nitrogen in coffee that helps plants.
· Coffee can also be used for lots of other, non- plant related things.
Justification in paragraph form (Connect to the real world, applications, implications, background )
According to this website, coffee (most likely other caffeinated beverages as well) do improve the growth of plants. In this article it states that it works best on outdoor plants, but in the experiment the plants will be inside… this could be a contributing factor in the experiment. Coffee also helps keep pests out of the garden as well, which could also help them not be eaten and have a contributing help. Also, nitrogen is the leading factor in coffee that helps plants grow, so coffee may not be used in the experiment even though it also has lots of caffeine.
4. Bibliography MLA Format: "Food Additives ~ CSPI’s Food Safety." Center for Science in the Public Interest. N.p., n.d. Web. 23 Apr. 2013. <http://www.cspinet.org/reports/chemcuisine.htm#caffeine>.
Bulleted Notes:
· Caffeine can help you stay up.
· Caffeine can help increase endurance.
· It is a mildly addictive substance commonly found in coffee, soft drinks and coffee flavored yogurts and desserts.
· Caffeine is only one of two drugs commonly added to foods and drinks.
· When coffee drinkers stop drinking coffee they sometimes have some withdraw symptoms, caused by the mildly addictive caffeine.
· Caffeine keeps many people from sleeping and causes jitteriness.
· Caffeine can help headaches go away.
· Caffeine helps reduce the risk of several diseases such as Parkinson’s disease, Alzheimer’s disease and even suicide.
Justification in paragraph form (Connect to the real world, applications, implications, background )
Caffeine has its good things and its bad things. As it does affect some peoples sleep and cause some other things on some people, for others it keeps them up, moving and helps the risk of certain diseases. Caffeine can be mildly addicting, but it also depends on your person. From this article I can conclude that because caffeine cannot sleep or get any of the things caffeine is said to help/hurt that it may or may not affect the growth of my plants.
Bulleted Notes:
· Caffeine can help you stay up.
· Caffeine can help increase endurance.
· It is a mildly addictive substance commonly found in coffee, soft drinks and coffee flavored yogurts and desserts.
· Caffeine is only one of two drugs commonly added to foods and drinks.
· When coffee drinkers stop drinking coffee they sometimes have some withdraw symptoms, caused by the mildly addictive caffeine.
· Caffeine keeps many people from sleeping and causes jitteriness.
· Caffeine can help headaches go away.
· Caffeine helps reduce the risk of several diseases such as Parkinson’s disease, Alzheimer’s disease and even suicide.
Justification in paragraph form (Connect to the real world, applications, implications, background )
Caffeine has its good things and its bad things. As it does affect some peoples sleep and cause some other things on some people, for others it keeps them up, moving and helps the risk of certain diseases. Caffeine can be mildly addicting, but it also depends on your person. From this article I can conclude that because caffeine cannot sleep or get any of the things caffeine is said to help/hurt that it may or may not affect the growth of my plants.
5. Bibliography MLA Format: “Caffeine.” The Gale Encyclopedia of Science. Ed. K. Lee Leamer and Brenda Wilmoth Leamer. 4th ed. Detroit: Gale, 2008. Gale Student Resources in Context. Web. 6 March, 2012.
Bulleted Notes:
· Scientific name is trimethylxanthine.
· It’s an alkaloid found in things like soda, coffee and even chocolate.
· Consists of bicyclic molecules from the purine ring system.
· In pure form, it is a white solid or long crystals.
· Melts at 458.2 degrees Fahrenheit.
· Part of the alkaloid family.
· Caffeine is found in many natural resources such as tea leaves and coffee beans.
· An average cup of coffee contains 100 to 150 mg. Of caffeine.
· Soda only contains about 35-55 mg. of caffeine.
· Molecular formula is C8H10N4O2.
· Scientists believe that an overdose of caffeine could cause certain kinds of cancer.
Justification in paragraph form (Connect to the real world, applications, implications, background )
From this research I have concluded that the caffeine will most likely stimulate the growth of the plants, but if I water the plants with too much caffeine, it would harm them just like an overdose on a human. Not giving the plants more that you would with regular water will probably be the best option.
Bulleted Notes:
· Scientific name is trimethylxanthine.
· It’s an alkaloid found in things like soda, coffee and even chocolate.
· Consists of bicyclic molecules from the purine ring system.
· In pure form, it is a white solid or long crystals.
· Melts at 458.2 degrees Fahrenheit.
· Part of the alkaloid family.
· Caffeine is found in many natural resources such as tea leaves and coffee beans.
· An average cup of coffee contains 100 to 150 mg. Of caffeine.
· Soda only contains about 35-55 mg. of caffeine.
· Molecular formula is C8H10N4O2.
· Scientists believe that an overdose of caffeine could cause certain kinds of cancer.
Justification in paragraph form (Connect to the real world, applications, implications, background )
From this research I have concluded that the caffeine will most likely stimulate the growth of the plants, but if I water the plants with too much caffeine, it would harm them just like an overdose on a human. Not giving the plants more that you would with regular water will probably be the best option.