Chloroplast Memes

The perfect visual representation of every biology student's journey through photosynthesis. First day of class: "Sunlight makes plant go brrr!" Mid-semester: "Something about chloroplasts and ATP, I guess?" Final exam: *internal screaming at electron transport chains and thylakoid membranes* Nothing quite captures the existential dread of realizing that what seemed like a simple "sun + water = plant food" equation is actually a biochemical nightmare with more moving parts than the department's funding requests. And they wonder why we drink so much coffee.

The most accurate depiction of endosymbiotic theory I've ever seen. Nature really said "oops, I accidentally ate this bacterium... might as well do it again to make it look intentional." First a primitive cell swallows an alpha-proteobacterium and—surprise!—gets mitochondria as a participation prize. Then, not wanting to look like a one-hit wonder, it gulps down a cyanobacterium and boom: chloroplasts! Two billion years of evolution explained by the same logic we use when accidentally liking someone's Instagram post from 2014 and then liking two more to make it seem deliberate. Cellular evolution: the original "fake it till you make it" strategy.