Category: Longevity

Bonsai at 14

January 24, 2026 By arne hendriks Off

Bonsai are an ongoing fascination of The Incredible Shrinking Man. They both show the resilience and beauty of smallness and represent some of the paradoxical aspects of human/nature relationships. Bonsai are creatures that teach us ways forward while reminding us of the delicate relationship between…

Tithonus the Cicada

October 5, 2025 By arne hendriks Off

Tithonus was a hero of the Trojan war and boyfriend of Eos, goddess of the dawn. Since Tithonus is mortal and she’s not, Eos convinces Zeus to grant Tithonus eternal life. Unfortunately, in the spur of the moment, she forgets to also ask for eternal…

Pruning

July 25, 2015 By arne hendriks 0

Plants grow towards the light. And because getting to the light first is so important for plants, their endocrinological system, especially just after germination, is all about favouring the top branch to grow fast at the expense of other branches. The cells in the top…

Japanese Miniatures: Hara Hachi Bu

November 20, 2014 By arne hendriks 0

In the west we start a meal by saying  “Have a nice dinner” or “Bon appetite”. We refer to the quality of the eating experience but never to the quantity. In contrast, on the Japansese island of Okinawa, they say “Hara Hachi Bu” which means…

FOXO3a

June 20, 2014 By arne hendriks 0

Recent studies have identified the FOXO3a (Forkhead Box 3a) transcription gene as an important regulator of morphological scaling. It’s a key regulatory gene in a nutrient- and energy-sensing biological pathway (insulin/IGF-1 signalling pathway),that throughout our evolution was conserved from yeast to humans. FOXO3a anticipates food scarcity…