00:00Why are so many fruits and vegetables round? In botanical terms, a fruit is what
00:07develops from a flower, usually pollinated. It's a structure that
00:11contains and protects the plant's seeds. So strictly speaking, lots of what we
00:18call vegetables are actually fruits, and fruits come in all kinds of shapes and
00:22sizes, but their final form? That's determined by its genes. Genes regulate
00:28things like the size of the plant's cells, or how they divide. Researchers have
00:34identified specific genes, for instance, that make a tomato grow to be pear-shaped,
00:41oval, or the classic sphere. And the same mechanisms might determine shapes of fruit
00:46in other plants as well. But why are so many fruits spherical? This is where we
00:53have to speculate a little. Still, scientists have a few compelling theories.
00:58First, efficiency. A sphere is the 3D geometric shape where the smallest surface area encloses
01:05the greatest volume. That means a round fruit plant has to produce less peel to cover more
01:11edible pulp. Less wrapper, more snack. Second, impact. When a ripe fruit drops
01:18from the plant, a spherical shape distributes the mechanical stress well when it hits the
01:23ground. And if it falls on an incline, a sphere rolls, carrying its seed payload farther away
01:30from its parent. Then any seedlings that grow from the fallen fruit don't have to compete
01:36as much with their progenitor for resources like sunlight and water.
01:41Finally, many plant species rely on animals for seed dispersal, offering a food reward in
01:47exchange for the service. Along with the fruit's color and scent, round shapes might have evolved
01:53as an easy-to-spot visual cue saying, here I am, eat me. So, it isn't just coincidence plants
02:01evolved round fruit. It's one of the most common shapes found in nature.
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