5 ms·

I have to agree - the live butterfly shape is clearly more aerodynamic and realistic, but that long leading edge perpendicular to the body just makes me think o

I have to agree - the live butterfly shape is clearly more aerodynamic and realistic, but that long leading edge perpendicular to the body just makes me think of a stealth bomber or 747 for some reason. The dead butterfly shape is delicate and elegant. Besides identification, maybe that's another reason that they mount them that way.

vacri 9y ago
It's not identification or elegance; they're mounted that way so that you can see all of the wings. The live butterfly position has overlapping wings, and you can't see all of the detail.
murbard2 9y ago
Yes! A B2-A is exactly what it evokes for me too. There's something not aerodynamic, and thus "inefficient" about the dead butterfly shape that makes it pretty and sophisticated.
- rhaps0dy 9y ago
  To me, the aerodynamic butterflies are more aesthetically pleasing.
taneq 9y ago
I wonder how tightly tied your perception of 'delicate' and 'elegant' is with 'impractical' / 'less capable'? It reminds me of this blog post on the topic of 'cuteness' in Japanese culture: > Female protagonists in Japanese genre productions have to be cute, apparently. And cuteness is, I’m told, context-dependent. Big anime eyes and tiny pointed noses may be necessary but they are not sufficient. There must also be jeopardy. Source: http://www.rifters.com/crawl/?p=4843 http://www.rifters.com/crawl/?p=4843
- farnsworth 9y ago
  'delicate', yes I think it's absolutely tied to 'impractical' in my mind. 'elegant' maybe isn't the right word for what Im' feeling here. As an engineer, I see elegance in practicality, efficiency, and straightforwardness.
  - taneq 9y ago
    'artistic' or 'aesthetic', maybe, for the second one? Like you, I tend to see efficiency as most beautiful, especially when one simple structure fulfills several complex requirements simultaneously. A tiger or a gazelle is beautiful because it's very close to optimal for the niche it's evolved to fill.
    - murbard2 9y ago
      The Gazelle, perhaps, but what's optimal about orange fur for a jungle dweller?
      - taneq 9y ago
        I dunno but maybe it's the equivalent of countershading camouflage? Tigers are ambush predators that attack from above. If a tiger's fur only accounts for a small percentage of the sky above you, and orange and blue are complementary colours, then small bits of orange fur plus blue sky shouldn't stand out.

vacri 9y ago

It's not identification or elegance; they're mounted that way so that you can see all of the wings. The live butterfly position has overlapping wings, and you can't see all of the detail.

murbard2 9y ago

Yes! A B2-A is exactly what it evokes for me too. There's something not aerodynamic, and thus "inefficient" about the dead butterfly shape that makes it pretty and sophisticated.

rhaps0dy 9y ago
To me, the aerodynamic butterflies are more aesthetically pleasing.

taneq 9y ago

I wonder how tightly tied your perception of 'delicate' and 'elegant' is with 'impractical' / 'less capable'? It reminds me of this blog post on the topic of 'cuteness' in Japanese culture: > Female protagonists in Japanese genre productions have to be cute, apparently. And cuteness is, I’m told, context-dependent. Big anime eyes and tiny pointed noses may be necessary but they are not sufficient. There must also be jeopardy. Source: http://www.rifters.com/crawl/?p=4843 http://www.rifters.com/crawl/?p=4843

farnsworth 9y ago
'delicate', yes I think it's absolutely tied to 'impractical' in my mind. 'elegant' maybe isn't the right word for what Im' feeling here. As an engineer, I see elegance in practicality, efficiency, and straightforwardness.
- taneq 9y ago
  'artistic' or 'aesthetic', maybe, for the second one? Like you, I tend to see efficiency as most beautiful, especially when one simple structure fulfills several complex requirements simultaneously. A tiger or a gazelle is beautiful because it's very close to optimal for the niche it's evolved to fill.
  - murbard2 9y ago
    The Gazelle, perhaps, but what's optimal about orange fur for a jungle dweller?
    - taneq 9y ago
      I dunno but maybe it's the equivalent of countershading camouflage? Tigers are ambush predators that attack from above. If a tiger's fur only accounts for a small percentage of the sky above you, and orange and blue are complementary colours, then small bits of orange fur plus blue sky shouldn't stand out.