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'''Corn''' (''Zea mays''), also called ''maize,'' was first grown by Native Americans.  It is used as a food, and for many other uses.

'''Corn''' (''Zea mays''), also called ''maize,'' was first grown by Native Americans.  It is used as a food, and for many other uses.

Because of its tightly-packed kernels, corn is incapable of reproducing without human aid. This is a result of [[microevolution]].

Because of its tightly-packed kernels, corn is incapable of reproducing without human aid. This is a result of [[microevolution]], directed by human agriculturalists.

    

    

It can be grown for both a cash crop and nourishment for people and livestock.

It can be grown for both a cash crop and nourishment for people and livestock.

In the United States, in the 2000-2007 period there was a boom in the use of corn to produce [[ethanol]] as automotive fuel. The result has been a rise in the price of corn, affecting its use for food and livestock feed.<ref>''The New York Times,'' February 2, 2007[http://www.nytimes.com/2007/02/11/weekinreview/11egan.html?_r=1&oref=slogin&ref=weekinreview&pagewanted=print]</ref> By 2009 the ethanol [[economic bubble|bubble]] had burst.  It is not economical and the environmental advantage is small, because adding together the natural gas in the fertilizer, the fossil fuels it takes to make the pesticides, power the tractor and other machinery needed to dry, harvest and transport corn, every bushel of field corn needs about a quarter to a third of a gallon to grow it, around fifty gallons per acre. It therefore takes more than a calorie of fossil fuel energy to produce a calorie of food. It is not clear how sustainable the growing of corn for biofuel would be.<ref>, Michael Pollan, ''The Omnivore's Dilemma'' (2006) pp 45-46, </ref>

In the United States, in the 2000-2007 period there was a boom in the use of corn to produce [[ethanol]] as automotive fuel. The result has been a rise in the price of corn, affecting its use for food for humans and livestock.<ref>''The New York Times,'' February 2, 2007[http://www.nytimes.com/2007/02/11/weekinreview/11egan.html?_r=1&oref=slogin&ref=weekinreview&pagewanted=print]</ref> By 2009 the ethanol [[economic bubble|bubble]] had burst.  It is not economical and the environmental advantage is small, because adding together the natural gas in the fertilizer, the fossil fuels it takes to make the pesticides, power the tractor and other machinery needed to dry, harvest and transport corn, every bushel of field corn needs about a quarter to a third of a gallon to grow it, around fifty gallons per acre. It therefore takes more than a calorie of fossil fuel energy to produce a calorie of food. It is not clear how sustainable the growing of corn for biofuel would be.<ref>, Michael Pollan, ''The Omnivore's Dilemma'' (2006) pp 45-46, </ref>

Corn is a good subject for genetic studies. The offspring of a pair of gametes consists of the individual kernels on a single cob. These kernels may display easily observed phenotypic variation such as color. In an ear of corn with two colors of kernel, the number of kernels of each color will often display the classic 3:1 Mendelian ratio.

Corn is a good subject for genetic studies. The offspring of a pair of gametes consists of the individual kernels on a single cob. These kernels may display easily observed phenotypic variation such as color. In an ear of corn with two colors of kernel, the number of kernels of each color will often display the classic 3:1 Mendelian ratio.