cavendish

That, in fact, only a small portion of bananas are Cavendish grown for export, and that the non-cavendish (not cloned) bananas are also vulnerable to this fungus (not virus).

Also Cavendish is the dominant set of varieties world over and there are not many real substitutes for it, yet.

Like Panama disease wiped out Gros Michel banana and is now also threatening Cavendish banana.

The Cavendish Laboratory (which Bragg indeed headed) is/was the equivalent of a whole department or institute (of experimental physics, chemistry and biology).

Bananas, not the dessert Cavendish kind, are actually staples in many parts of Africa.

I believe that we will see a marked decline in the Cavendish varietals because of Race 4.

For reference sprinters like Mark Cavendish often reach speeds of 70 to 80kph (43mph to 49mph) in the final 200 metres of a road race.

Isn't the main benefit to Cavendish that it transports really well?

Actually, the article explains that 60% of Cavendish fruits are eaten locally - farmers grow the strain due to its high availability and very high yields.

If the Cavendish gets wiped out too, I'd say that would just be due to people not caring all that much about bananas.

It came out of the Cavendish Laboratory in Cambridge.

Windows, the IT world's Cavendish banana.

It's not "all bananas", but the Cavendish does have a vast majority, both locally and in export.

"scientists haven’t yet found a viable back-up banana to sub in for the Cavendish" What?

Up till about the early 20th century, ground breaking physics was largely "two guys in a garage" territory -- single individuals such as Newton or Cavendish tinkering in their own private laboratories using fairly modest equipment.

The variety of banana (Gros Michel) that was commonplace when the "slip on a banana peel" comedic device was invented was a different breed than the one that is commonplace today (Cavendish.) The Gros Michel peel was reportedly very slippery.

Many of the bananas today, including the Cavendish, are thus very vulnerable to diseases like the fungus mentioned.

For example, the 'Gros Michele' cultivar of banana has now been almost entirely superseded by the 'Cavendish' cultivar.

But the upside is that there are so many other delicious banana varieties that are currently excluded from the market place because of the commercially 'perfect' quality of the Cavendish.