800,000 jellyfish

Although the number 800,000 only has one significant figure, in the context of the following article-

http://www.rsc.org/Publishing/Journals/cb/Volume/2009/10/Lighting_biology.asp

800,000 is a very significant figure. In short, Osamu Shimomura along with two associates recieved the Nobel Prize for their research of jellyfish, encompassing thirty years of strong dedication to the marine creature. Their discovery had all to do with special proteins within jellyfish that have light-emitting properties- aequorin, which emits blue light, and green fluorescent protein,(GFP), which absorbs the blue light and is emitted as green light. The latter has been extremely useful in, among others, neuroscience, as a tracking device for locative purposes. The combination of judging those jellyfish by their content, not their covers, initially, makes Osamu Shimomura a very significant figure as well.

In case you were hungry for some more chemistry, I found this interesting article about blue bananas at this website:
http://www.int.iol.co.za/index.php?art_id=nw20090907223515181C828584&click_id=29&set_id=1

Posted by Charlie Moore