A concept: 2D life not as in 'can only see/interact with flat planes and cross sections' but as in 'binary perception' (I know we hate binaries but stay with me)
Sunlight versus shade. Warm versus cool. Wet versus dry. Soft soil versus hard rock. Safe versus threat. Nutrient-rich versus barren, clean vs contaminated. On/off, yes/no.
Like yeah, we've known for ages that plants naturally seek out their preferred environments and circumstances, growing towards the sun, but we always kind of just assumed it was some sort of automatic mindless process fueled by basic survival and nothing else.
But even without 'brains' and 'eyes' and 'mouths/vocal cords' as we understand them, we're now learning that plants can see, some to the point of mimicking the shape and color of other plants around them -- things that require not only the ability to observe, but the ability to process information. Trees communicate and trade resources to support each other through the mycelium. Plant life responds to stimuli and can even warn neighbors of threats and predators. Stressed plants 'cry' or 'scream' chemically, happy plants chemically attract pollinators and friendly species.
If you've ever seen a weird tree or bush or flower that grew at an odd angle or in unusual conditions like out the side of a crack in a wall, you've seen an organism that consciously, in a way alien to us but not mindless, grew towards the light around an obstacle (shade, barriers, even gravity or wind) or away from a threat (predators, chemicals like herbicides/pesticides) or into/through better conditions (structural support, better resources). Mindless growth wouldn't promote survival or even be evolutionarily useful; it would result in organisms that couldn't react to stimuli let alone communicate it with others, which would just grow 'normally' regardless of circumstances and would quickly die from inability to adapt to their environment.
And sure, plants are 3D organisms to our perception and understanding, but to them, they're rooted in place and there is only the presence or lack of stimuli to either be attained or avoided: warm or cold, sun or shade, wet or dry.
anyways yeah, consider: 2D life as a binary perception system instead of a mathematical plane-based system
