Comments on: Ancient MeFi Octopus Post Update

Ancient MeFi Octopus Post Update

stefnet — Wed, 30 Jan 2008 15:46:50 -0800

Back in 2003, I posted a link to a video that showed an octopus transforming itself to look like its surroundings. If you read the thread, there was some doubt about it and I think we all wished that web video was better at the time. Well, a friend posted a link to a TED talk recently that shows this same octopus at a much higher resolution.

I would have updated the original thread, but, well, it was 2003.

By: stefnet

stefnet — Wed, 30 Jan 2008 15:48:20 -0800

And I forgot to add that the specific clip comes in right near the end of the talk.

By: louche mustachio

louche mustachio — Wed, 30 Jan 2008 16:02:36 -0800

Wow. I think this is different enough from the original, and cool enough, that you could post it on the front page (with a link to your original fpp) and not a soul would call you out. I wouldn't - this is fascinating, and the quality of the footage is great. I love the TED talks, and cephalopods, so I'm very happy you posted anywhere. Wonderful.

By: BeerFilter

BeerFilter — Wed, 30 Jan 2008 16:08:58 -0800

Oh, I'm sure someone would call it out. Most likely someone laden with the sting of a recent double deletion. I'd bet on it, but I'm broke as a joke.

By: tula

tula — Wed, 30 Jan 2008 16:13:53 -0800

This is such an awesome planet.

By: Demogorgon

Demogorgon — Wed, 30 Jan 2008 16:15:07 -0800

This is awesome, share it!

By: louche mustachio

louche mustachio — Wed, 30 Jan 2008 16:15:47 -0800

Those are some pretty nice pants you've got there, BF. I think we can accept them as collateral.

By: salvomix

salvomix — Wed, 30 Jan 2008 16:16:51 -0800

That is just absolutely amazing..

The octopus at the end is better than any Hollywood efx.

By: misha

misha — Wed, 30 Jan 2008 16:17:20 -0800

I LOVE the talk and video. Its awesomeness is dimmed only by the shadow of comments like this:

"Evolution is NOT a given. In fact there is very little evidence of Evolution and an overwhelming amount of evidence of Creation. If you have even a cusory understanding of biology or astronomy you would understand the impossibility of Evolution."

:p

By: OmieWise

OmieWise — Wed, 30 Jan 2008 16:18:50 -0800

That's just about the most amazing thing I've ever seen. Just fabulous. Thanks.

By: rtha

rtha — Wed, 30 Jan 2008 16:19:06 -0800

Haven't listened to the talk yet, but I watched the relevent video bits: WOW. Unfuckingbelievably awesome.

Nature rules!

By: Blazecock Pileon

Blazecock Pileon — Wed, 30 Jan 2008 16:20:48 -0800

That's worth a double post.

By: OmieWise

OmieWise — Wed, 30 Jan 2008 16:22:34 -0800

Also it makes me want to reread the Rifter books by Peter Watts, which are all this and bio-engineered humans living down there.

By: heeeraldo

heeeraldo — Wed, 30 Jan 2008 16:35:50 -0800

i <3 hi-dephalopods.

By: scrump

scrump — Wed, 30 Jan 2008 16:39:30 -0800

This is an amazing talk.

By: maudlin

maudlin — Wed, 30 Jan 2008 16:48:31 -0800

OmieWise, oddly enough, Peter Watts linked to this video in his blog a few days ago.

And -- yes, it's awesome. Post the damn thing already.

By: Tehanu

Tehanu — Wed, 30 Jan 2008 16:48:58 -0800

Ooooooooo. I wasn't here in 2003, so I missed this wonderful example of awesome in video format. Thanks!

On the flip side, I'm pretty sure the chicken-eating spider photo is staged, but I missed the thread entirely while it was open.

By: theiconoclast31

theiconoclast31 — Wed, 30 Jan 2008 16:54:09 -0800

What a crazy video, I also thought it was SFX when I initially saw it.

By: purephase

purephase — Wed, 30 Jan 2008 17:50:13 -0800

That was so fucking cool. I love this planet, just wish we could do something about all the people on it.

By: goodnewsfortheinsane

goodnewsfortheinsane — Wed, 30 Jan 2008 18:23:24 -0800

Metafilter: matching pattern, color, brightness, texture of the algae.

Seriously, this is amazing.

By: stefnet

stefnet — Wed, 30 Jan 2008 18:31:22 -0800

Ok ok! Posted to the blue. Cephalopods for everyone!

By: maudlin

maudlin — Wed, 30 Jan 2008 18:34:39 -0800

*flings cephalopods about the room with great glee*

By: Phred182

Phred182 — Wed, 30 Jan 2008 18:43:03 -0800

awesome video, concur.

/prepares MeTa post complaining about double-posting.

By: jessamyn

jessamyn — Wed, 30 Jan 2008 18:55:26 -0800

optopops!

By: numinous

numinous — Wed, 30 Jan 2008 19:05:14 -0800

This is the most awesome thing I've seen in ages. Amazing x 10^{1283487918328479135}.

Thank you for posting this! I am now going to impress the pants out of my housemate...

By: danb

danb — Wed, 30 Jan 2008 19:26:51 -0800

Heh, just watched that video the other day. I've been on kind of a TED tear recently.

By: BeerFilter

BeerFilter — Wed, 30 Jan 2008 19:41:00 -0800

louche mustachio, I need these pants, else the flags fall like rain.

By: LobsterMitten

LobsterMitten — Wed, 30 Jan 2008 20:09:16 -0800

impress the pants out of

This, this I like.

By: davejay

davejay — Wed, 30 Jan 2008 22:07:01 -0800

Wonderful! THIS is the way in which the Internet will truly enrich the lives of my children. Not to mention mine.

By: Joseph Gurl

Joseph Gurl — Thu, 31 Jan 2008 04:32:44 -0800

THAT'S NOT A OCTOPUS THAT'S A ALIEN

You think that's cool, well they've also learned to climb trees

By: amro

amro — Thu, 31 Jan 2008 07:43:30 -0800

Octupi have got it all going on. I'm quite sure that they are going to rule the earth someday.

By: quin

quin — Thu, 31 Jan 2008 07:54:35 -0800

I like to think that it got it's scientific name, Octopus Vulgarus, by surprising researchers;

"Jesus tap-dancing Christ! Did you see that fucking thing? What the hell was that? I was just next to this coral and all of a sudden this thing leapt at my god damned face! It looked like a cross between a squid and the fucking devil! It's never been seen before? We get to name it? I say we call it the fucking-jump-out-and-scare-the-living-shit-out-of-people-octopus."

This was simply too long, and not Latin enough, so they changed it.

By: Guy_Inamonkeysuit

Guy_Inamonkeysuit — Thu, 31 Jan 2008 10:27:38 -0800

Seriously cool. I had no idea the things could mimic texture as well as color. I'll think twice about ever ordering tako again at the sushi bar... :-/

By: fijiwriter

fijiwriter — Thu, 31 Jan 2008 11:56:41 -0800

I'm quite sure that they are going to rule the earth someday.

I can't cite the source, but a few years ago I was struck by a marine biologist-type saying that if octopi didn't have such short life-spans (3 years, give or take) or die after spawning, they'd be the dominant underwater creature.

By: OmieWise

OmieWise — Thu, 31 Jan 2008 12:03:26 -0800

Really? Because my grandfather always says that if a frog had wings it wouldn't bump it's ass a'hoppin'.

By: [insert clever name here]

[insert clever name here] — Thu, 31 Jan 2008 15:53:30 -0800

Fijiwriter, I don't think its that simple. I seem to recall an explanation that the lack of spine causes a great deal of "disorganization" which prevents them from being the geniuses we expect them to be. Essentially, us vertebrates have a brain that can tell our hand "do this" and it does. Cephlapods have arms that do whatever the hell they want with a loose connection to the brain.

I wish I remember where I saw this, it was a much better explanation than what I'm saying here. The point being the way they're built is likely keeping all mankind safe. Fear the genetically engineered octo with a spine.

By: allkindsoftime

allkindsoftime — Sun, 03 Feb 2008 06:25:46 -0800

Freakin rad, thanks for pointing it out. Just blew my afternoon on more TED talks, which is always a good thing.

Re: Octopi. I was at the Monterey Bay aquarium last year with a family friend that happens to be a docent there. She took us on the most fabulous tour of it ever (I've been many times but never learned so many hidden gems).

They have a couple of Octopus tanks there and a few mollusks or something were disappearing from one of them so they move Mr. O into another tank. Except, at night, the stuff keeps disappearing. They finally had one of the employees stay the night right next to the tanks. Sure enough, he sees Mr. O climb out of the tank, crawl across the floor, and drop into the old tank for more late night snackage.

Now they have grates on the top of the Octopus tanks there.