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Oni2:Slaves of War/Neo-Biology: Difference between revisions
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*[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2hGbYMqM3zM Dancing grass] | *[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2hGbYMqM3zM Dancing grass] | ||
====[[wp:Carnivorous plant|Carnivorous plants]] | ====Carnivorous plants==== | ||
The very idea of a plant that eats meat is so bizarre that we would refuse to believe in such a thing if we hadn't all seen Venus fly traps on TV. It seems that carnivory is a viable practice in areas that are too nutrient-poor for regular plants to grow. | [[wp:Carnivorous plant|Carnivorous plants?!]] The very idea of a plant that eats meat is so bizarre that we would refuse to believe in such a thing if we hadn't all seen Venus fly traps on TV. It seems that carnivory is a viable practice in areas that are too nutrient-poor for regular plants to grow. These plants dispel the notion that an organism needs to be [[wiktionary:motile|motile]] in order to catch food. (And the section after this dispels the notion that all plants are [[wiktionary:sessile|sessile]]!) | ||
*Everyone's seen the [[wp:Venus fly trap|Venus fly trap]] catch a fly. It's actually the most primitive and slowest plant carnivore, as you'll see. But here's some interesting nuances that you probably didn't know: | *Everyone's seen the [[wp:Venus fly trap|Venus fly trap]] catch a fly. It's actually the most primitive and slowest plant carnivore, as you'll see. But here's some interesting nuances that you probably didn't know: | ||
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====Resurrection plants==== | ====Resurrection plants==== | ||
*Here's a [http://www.types-of-flowers.org/pictures/resurrection_plant.jpg Rose of Jericho]. Here's a [[wp:File:Rose_of_Jericho.gif|Rose of Jericho on water]]. | *Here's a [https://web.archive.org/web/20100621160148/http://www.types-of-flowers.org/pictures/resurrection_plant.jpg Rose of Jericho]. Here's a [[wp:File:Rose_of_Jericho.gif|Rose of Jericho on water]]. [http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nl5gBJGnaXs Any questions?] | ||
*The waterwheel plant above is also a resurrecting plant, by this same definition of the word. (It might be more accurate to say that they are hibernating plants or sleeping plants rather than "resurrecting plants", but I didn't invent the term.) | *The waterwheel plant above is also a resurrecting plant, by this same definition of the word. (It might be more accurate to say that they are hibernating plants or sleeping plants rather than "resurrecting plants", but I didn't invent the term.) | ||
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**Pilobolus is [http://www.demaravillas.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/03/Pilobolus-sp-07.jpg pretty gorgeous] for something that grows in cow dung, isn't it? The bulbs are called sporangiospheres. | **Pilobolus is [http://www.demaravillas.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/03/Pilobolus-sp-07.jpg pretty gorgeous] for something that grows in cow dung, isn't it? The bulbs are called sporangiospheres. | ||
==== | ====Air plants==== | ||
Who says that plants need minor things like roots, and soil to put them in? [[wp:Spanish moss|Spanish moss]] and other epiphytic plants can be found hanging from trees. They aren't parasitic; they absorb all their minerals and water from run-off that rain brings down the tree, as well as from rain itself. They may absorb moisture directly from the air as well. Spanish moss hardly performs any photosynthesis, appearing as a dead gray or pale green mass of hair-like leaves. Somehow this plant can still manage to put out small flowers, and it positively thrives in the southern U.S., where it can weigh down oaks and other trees. | Who says that plants need minor things like roots, and soil to put them in? [[wp:Spanish moss|Spanish moss]] and other [[wp:Epiphytes|epiphytic plants]] can be found hanging from trees. They aren't parasitic; they absorb all their minerals and water from run-off that rain brings down the tree, as well as from rain itself. They may absorb moisture directly from the air as well. Spanish moss hardly performs any photosynthesis, appearing as a dead gray or pale green mass of hair-like leaves. Somehow this plant can still manage to put out small flowers, and it positively thrives in the southern U.S., where it can weigh down oaks and other trees. | ||
====Parasitic plants==== | ====Parasitic plants==== | ||
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*Oriental hornets are apparently partly [https://www.newscientist.com/article/dn19709-zoologger-the-solar-powered-electric-hornet/ solar-powered], generating electricity from the sunlight that falls on them, though we still don't know how exactly they use it. | *Oriental hornets are apparently partly [https://www.newscientist.com/article/dn19709-zoologger-the-solar-powered-electric-hornet/ solar-powered], generating electricity from the sunlight that falls on them, though we still don't know how exactly they use it. | ||
*Some ants [[wp:Aphid#Symbioses|farm other animals]]. | *Some ants [[wp:Aphid#Symbioses|farm other animals]]. Also see the complex web of interactions with ants known as [[wp:Myrmecophily|myrmecophily]]. | ||
*Ants can be completely fooled by [http://scienceblogs.com/notrocketscience/2009/02/06/butterflies-scrounge-off-ants-by-mimicking-the-music-of-quee/ sound mimicry]. | *Ants can be completely fooled by [http://scienceblogs.com/notrocketscience/2009/02/06/butterflies-scrounge-off-ants-by-mimicking-the-music-of-quee/ sound mimicry]. | ||
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*The [[wp:Emerald cockroach wasp|emerald cockroach wasp]] finds a cockroach and stings it in the precise thoracic ganglion which controls the roach's front legs. This allows the wasp to then sting the roach in its brain. The venom it injects disables only the roach's escape reflexes (not altering abilities like flight or flipping over). The wasp then chews off half of each antenna, possibly to allow it to regulate the amount of venom in the roach so it stays alive but under control. The wasp then leads the roach by an antenna to the wasp's burrow, lays an egg on it, and closes the burrow's entrance so nothing can prey on the roach, which is incredibly complacent about all of this thanks to the venom. Over the course of a few days, the wasp larva is born and feasts on the living roach. | *The [[wp:Emerald cockroach wasp|emerald cockroach wasp]] finds a cockroach and stings it in the precise thoracic ganglion which controls the roach's front legs. This allows the wasp to then sting the roach in its brain. The venom it injects disables only the roach's escape reflexes (not altering abilities like flight or flipping over). The wasp then chews off half of each antenna, possibly to allow it to regulate the amount of venom in the roach so it stays alive but under control. The wasp then leads the roach by an antenna to the wasp's burrow, lays an egg on it, and closes the burrow's entrance so nothing can prey on the roach, which is incredibly complacent about all of this thanks to the venom. Over the course of a few days, the wasp larva is born and feasts on the living roach. | ||
*[[wp:Glyptapanteles|Glyptapanteles]] is another amazingly specific wasp parasite. It infects a caterpillar, which hosts its eggs until they are ready to emerge and pupate. The caterpillar then ''guards the pupae'' until it starves to death. [http://www.plosone.org/article/fetchFirstRepresentation.action?uri=info:doi/10.1371/journal.pone.0002276.s001 Don't believe me?] | *[[wp:Glyptapanteles|Glyptapanteles]] is another amazingly specific wasp parasite. It infects a caterpillar, which hosts its eggs until they are ready to emerge and pupate. The caterpillar then ''guards the pupae'' until it starves to death. [http://web.archive.org/web/20080928122544/http://www.plosone.org/article/fetchFirstRepresentation.action?uri=info:doi/10.1371/journal.pone.0002276.s001 Don't believe me?] (3MB; rename that file to end in .avi after it downloads) | ||
*The [[wp:Hymenoepimecis argyraphaga|Hymenoepimecis argyraphaga]], which infects a specific kind of spider, forcing it to build a stronger-than-normal web, then makes the spider sit at the center of the web until the wasp larva emerges and consumes the spider, then pupates on the web which has been strengthened to support the pupa. | *The [[wp:Hymenoepimecis argyraphaga|Hymenoepimecis argyraphaga]], which infects a specific kind of spider, forcing it to build a stronger-than-normal web, then makes the spider sit at the center of the web until the wasp larva emerges and consumes the spider, then pupates on the web which has been strengthened to support the pupa. | ||
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*Psychology Today: [http://www.psychologytoday.com/blog/animals-and-us/201006/are-humans-the-only-animals-keep-pets Are Humans the Only Animals to Keep Pets?]. | *Psychology Today: [http://www.psychologytoday.com/blog/animals-and-us/201006/are-humans-the-only-animals-keep-pets Are Humans the Only Animals to Keep Pets?]. | ||
*[http://abcnews.go.com/blogs/technology/2012/01/dogs-use-subway-cat-takes-bus-and-other-adventures-in-animal-intelligence/ How smart] [http://blogs.discovermagazine.com/notrocketscience/2012/02/28/when-meeting-up-at-sea-bottlenose-dolphins-exchange-name-like-whistles/ are] [http://abcnews.go.com/blogs/technology/2012/01/who-needs-words-crows-you-wild-gorillas-alison-krauss/ animals], [http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0GOb3nFpewM really]? Their language use shouldn’t be underestimated, seeing as even prairie dogs seem to possess a highly-specific way to describe threats. Exceptional individuals: [ | *[http://abcnews.go.com/blogs/technology/2012/01/dogs-use-subway-cat-takes-bus-and-other-adventures-in-animal-intelligence/ How smart] [http://blogs.discovermagazine.com/notrocketscience/2012/02/28/when-meeting-up-at-sea-bottlenose-dolphins-exchange-name-like-whistles/ are] [http://abcnews.go.com/blogs/technology/2012/01/who-needs-words-crows-you-wild-gorillas-alison-krauss/ animals], [http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0GOb3nFpewM really]? Their language use shouldn’t be underestimated, seeing as even prairie dogs seem to possess a highly-specific way to describe threats. Exceptional individuals: [[wp:Kanzi|Kanzi]] ([http://www.smithsonianmag.com/science-nature/10022981.html 2nd article]), [[wp:Cholla_the_painting_horse|Cholla]], [[wp:Washoe_(chimpanzee)|Washoe]], [[Alex_(parrot)|Alex]], [[wp:N%27kisi|N'kisi]], [[wp:Koko_(gorilla)|Koko]]. See also [[wp:Tool_use_by_animals|tool use by animals]]. | ||
*Dolphins play by making bubble rings, and whales can hunt using bubble nets. Green Herons [http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=7AyBLJy0jMc use bait] to catch fish. | *Dolphins play by making bubble rings, and whales can hunt using bubble nets. Green Herons [http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=7AyBLJy0jMc use bait] to catch fish. | ||
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===Intelligence=== | ===Intelligence=== | ||
If the Daodan organism infects all life on Earth, and it auto-evolves its hosts mentally and not just physically, what effect would this have on animals as they try to out-evolve competitors? | If the Daodan organism infects all life on Earth, and it auto-evolves its hosts mentally and not just physically, what effect would this have on animals as they try to out-evolve competitors? A few thoughts: | ||
*These factors have been suggested in the evolution of human intelligence: climate change (forests turning into more complex and dangerous savannahs), sociality (leading to complex group dynamics), the EDSC hypothesis (once mastery of environment is mostly achieved, a species begins competing with itself, leading to an IQ arms race), increased consumption of dopamine from meat/shellfish (leading to the development of reward pathways that fueled greater intellectual experimentation). | *These factors have been suggested in the evolution of human intelligence: climate change (forests turning into more complex and dangerous savannahs), sociality (leading to complex group dynamics), the EDSC hypothesis (once mastery of environment is mostly achieved, a species begins competing with itself, leading to an IQ arms race), increased consumption of dopamine from meat/shellfish (leading to the development of reward pathways that fueled greater intellectual experimentation). | ||