Pebrero 13, 2010

If we could only look closely enough...

... would we sympathize with the mosquito?

27 komento:

The Crack Emcee ayon kay ...

Nope. Not a chance.

The Macho Response.

Joe M. ayon kay ...

Hell no.

Unknown ayon kay ...

Us or them; besides, he's got about a billion replacements.

hdhouse ayon kay ...

I think gnat.

traditionalguy ayon kay ...

Don't let The Strict Anti Torture Commenters see this new weapon developed by Dick Cheney and only tested on insects, so far.

raf ayon kay ...

Sudden death to the vampire bugs. No mercy.

wv: imatere. I'm a terror? Surely not immature.

Hindi-nagpakilala ayon kay ...

Very fun video. Watch closely and you'll see that it boils inside and leaks. When I get ticks that aren't dead, I chase them around with a lighter until they succumb. Then they swell until their anuses rupture and they take off on a rocket flame. Vermin in Space.

rhhardin ayon kay ...

A tiny R/C video-equipped pursuit craft would be more entertaining than this star wars stuff.

Hindi-nagpakilala ayon kay ...

rhhardin -- One could combine the two. Cooler still if the laser could be made visible along its path. Pshew! Pshew! Scientifically accurate or not. Sound effects are a must.

Jason (the commenter) ayon kay ...

Mosquitoes have killed more people than Amy Bishop supposedly has. But they're insects so we have to consider giving them sympathy?

Hindi-nagpakilala ayon kay ...

Imagine sitting on the porch on a mild June evening and watching a dozen pursuit craft strafing down mosquitoes amongst the fireflies.

wv: menna - How menna skeeters your fighters get so far?

Hindi-nagpakilala ayon kay ...

OK. I been watching this thing for the last half hour LMAO (a couple of earlier Special Reserves probably helped) and I think I got it figured.

Adult insect wings are shaped by the insect gulping air immediately after its last shed. This fills the gut, forcing body fluid out the veins. The chiten hardens and the insect belches/farts itself back to normal size.

There is a trace amount of water left in the wings. The violet(?) laser heats this because it passes through the thin chiten and the vapor erupts through the wall. You can see this clearly in the last sequence. Several breaches.

The article title isn't quite accurate as you can see the mosquito still trying to fly after it's been shot in the first two sequences.

This leaves me with one last chuckle of the mosquito on the ground wondering what the hell it's gonna do with the ants closing in.

Sorry for the length. I'll resume watching and leave y'all in peace.

Hindi-nagpakilala ayon kay ...

I'm an entomologist. What further can I say?

Wince ayon kay ...

Instead, couldn't we just offer to give the mosquitos a certain amount of our blood before every cookout and, in exchange, they'd promise to leave us alone?

Kind of like our policy toward North Korea and Iran.

Hindi-nagpakilala ayon kay ...

I will not suffer skeetertude!

1775OGG ayon kay ...

The Frog objects, he's still hungry!

Wince ayon kay ...
Naalis ng may-ari ang komentong ito.
Wince ayon kay ...
Naalis ng may-ari ang komentong ito.
traditionalguy ayon kay ...

Query: If the new airborne ( in a Modified 747) laser shoots down the second stage of a missile launched using this energy beam, then what does the air to ground model of that laser do to tanks and people? And is that why the missile defense systems are no longer needed in Poland and Czechoslovakia?

Hindi-nagpakilala ayon kay ...

tradguy -

My understanding is the laser punches a hole in the skin, allowing wind turbulence to rip the missile apart.

Tanks, probably nothing. People, might burn or kill an individual.

Second part - no idea.

ken in tx ayon kay ...

Starship Troopers on the bug planet!

Jane ayon kay ...

I'm actually arguing at some Seattle newspaper that this isn't inhumane.

This is what I have learned from the Seattle people:

Birds do it, Bats do it, but Lasers doing it to mosquitoes is inhumane.

A mosquito bearing malaria kills a child every 46 minutes, but killing the mosquito is inhumane.

Deer can be torn apart by wolves, but if a human shoots it in the head, it's inhumane.

Fish can be swallowed by another fish and digested, but if a human catches it, it's inhumane.

Wince ayon kay ...

Very funny (and prescient!) video linked at the Wired article.

Watch for the "english translated testimonials," which are the best part.

PS-Edited but still not avoiding the YouTube ad, sorry. Any suggestions on how to dodge ad (e.g., with an embedded address, etc.)?

Penny ayon kay ...

Althouse asked a simple question.

My answer is "Yes".

rhhardin ayon kay ...

As flies to wanton boys, are we to the gods; They kill us for their sport.

blogging cockroach ayon kay ...

an now you know why i mostly
stay under the fridge

Jane ayon kay ...

it's a bug-eat-bug world, arch.

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