4 ms·

Ants are incredibly impressive creatures, that appear to have been engaged in activities we usually consider to be uniquely human. Their history of agriculture,

by M_Grey 10y ago

Ants are incredibly impressive creatures, that appear to have been engaged in activities we usually consider to be uniquely human. Their history of agriculture, "animal" husbandry and city building, not to mention some clever air conditioning solutions predates our existence as modern humans. Impressive little creatures when you get them in a group, and they're almost always in a group.

Red_Tarsius 10y ago
African termites' engineering is quite impressive as well. Their mound is a giant, self-cooling fungus farm! It was a source of inspiration for biomimetic architecture. You can read about it here: http://inhabitat.com/building-modelled-on-termites-eastgate-centre-in-zimbabwe/ http://inhabitat.com/building-modelled-on-termites-eastgate-...
- M_Grey 10y ago
  That's so impressive, not to mention that it actually looks pretty funky. Thanks for the link.
- arcticfox 10y ago
  The termite's task in temperature regulation almost seems impossibly difficult. You would need an extremely well educated and specialized human to develop something to match what they've done. Remarkable that they could evolve that behavior.
  - M_Grey 10y ago
    On the other hand, HVAC (I mean, that's what it is right?) must confer a huge advantage, even in its relatively early and primitive stages. You probably save loads of energy with even a degree in the right direction, especially when you're raising lots of larvae. Like the first critter to evolve a couple of photosensitive cells, it seems like a minute thing, but telling dark from light can be a huge leg up. Now we look at complex eye structures and are amazed, but of course they were once eye spots. I suspect that it might be the same with the termites, who have after all had a long time, and uncountable generations to select for these traits. No less remarkable for all of that though.
PeterWhittaker 10y ago
Not necessarily: The article states that ants are deliberately maintaining aphid herds, possibly for many seasons, by carefully selecting for a ratio of red and green insects. The wording of that statement implies intent and intention on the part of the ants. Except for the fact that we don't what the ants are doing at all. It may simply be (and likely more likely be) that over many, many generations of ants, evolution, a purely random, intentionless process, has resulted in ants with a preference for the 2-1 green-to-red ratio. The ants aren't selecting or managing or farming. They are pruning the herd to match the distribution encoded in ant DNA, an encoding arrived at over many, many generations, but simple random mutations conveying slight survival benefits.
- M_Grey 10y ago
  It's hard to beat insects in that way, because they can iterate generations so quickly, and a single beneficial mutation can turn into a mutant population almost overnight. Regardless though of how it comes to be, the behavior itself is impressive when you consider what an individual ant brings to the table.

by M_Grey 10y ago

Red_Tarsius 10y ago

African termites' engineering is quite impressive as well. Their mound is a giant, self-cooling fungus farm! It was a source of inspiration for biomimetic architecture. You can read about it here: http://inhabitat.com/building-modelled-on-termites-eastgate-centre-in-zimbabwe/ http://inhabitat.com/building-modelled-on-termites-eastgate-...

M_Grey 10y ago
That's so impressive, not to mention that it actually looks pretty funky. Thanks for the link.
arcticfox 10y ago
The termite's task in temperature regulation almost seems impossibly difficult. You would need an extremely well educated and specialized human to develop something to match what they've done. Remarkable that they could evolve that behavior.
- M_Grey 10y ago
  On the other hand, HVAC (I mean, that's what it is right?) must confer a huge advantage, even in its relatively early and primitive stages. You probably save loads of energy with even a degree in the right direction, especially when you're raising lots of larvae. Like the first critter to evolve a couple of photosensitive cells, it seems like a minute thing, but telling dark from light can be a huge leg up. Now we look at complex eye structures and are amazed, but of course they were once eye spots. I suspect that it might be the same with the termites, who have after all had a long time, and uncountable generations to select for these traits. No less remarkable for all of that though.

PeterWhittaker 10y ago

Not necessarily: The article states that ants are deliberately maintaining aphid herds, possibly for many seasons, by carefully selecting for a ratio of red and green insects. The wording of that statement implies intent and intention on the part of the ants. Except for the fact that we don't what the ants are doing at all. It may simply be (and likely more likely be) that over many, many generations of ants, evolution, a purely random, intentionless process, has resulted in ants with a preference for the 2-1 green-to-red ratio. The ants aren't selecting or managing or farming. They are pruning the herd to match the distribution encoded in ant DNA, an encoding arrived at over many, many generations, but simple random mutations conveying slight survival benefits.

M_Grey 10y ago
It's hard to beat insects in that way, because they can iterate generations so quickly, and a single beneficial mutation can turn into a mutant population almost overnight. Regardless though of how it comes to be, the behavior itself is impressive when you consider what an individual ant brings to the table.