5 ms·

At least there aren't ever any spider outbreaks. I don't think my spirit could handle it.

dharmab 6y ago
... we've all heard the factoid that the average person supposedly eats 4 spiders per second. This statistic is misleading; it's based on a study examining on the peak rate of spider consumption in areas where the spider-streams are densest. The global average rate is probably closer to 1 spider per second (obviously higher while asleep than while awake) ... - https://what-if.xkcd.com/120/ https://what-if.xkcd.com/120/
- danaris 6y ago
  Nah, we all know it's just a statistical problem, and the real culprit is Spiders Georg https://knowyourmeme.com/memes/spiders-georg https://knowyourmeme.com/memes/spiders-georg
  - arthurcolle 6y ago
    I don't really get this meme.
    - danielheath 6y ago
      It's making fun of statistics which use mean (instead of median) to generate sensational-yet-unrealistic headlines.
- _ihaque 6y ago
  (For those who didn't click, note that What-If #120 is "Excerpts from What If articles written in a world which, thankfully, is not the one we live in")
nitrogen 6y ago
I feel like I've seen a video of tons of spiders flying overhead somewhere...
- quercusa 6y ago
  I saw that one time high (as in feet above sea level) on Mt. Lassen (N. California). The sky was full of little sparkly web-strands; it was very cool.
arcticfox 6y ago
I was just in the Brazilian Amazon, and there was a funny moment there re: spiders... I stepped out onto a small floating dock and my weight sank the bottom of the dock below water level. There were probably ~100 spiders of all sizes that immediately emerged around my feet from between the slats as they were forced out from their homes underneath the dock. Fortunately I don't mind spiders much, but it did look like a scene out of a horror movie.
- arthurcolle 6y ago
  Thanks for the details. I've now added a new entry to my list of places never to go. I do hope those little guys were able to resettle somewhere less prone to anthropogenic climate change ;) Places to Avoid, list written + maintained by Arthur Collé: [] Deep space [added: after seeing Gravity] [] Mariana Trench [added: after seeing Underwater] [] Amazon rainforest [NEW, added: 2021-01-20]
  - dwighttk 6y ago
    My brother told me to climb under an outdoor couch in Texas when I was about 6 and I was immediately covered by hundreds of harvestmen (aka daddy long legs.) I remember being startled and yelling for help but was not permanently scarred or anything. Spiders only creep me out the usual amount.
    - tomcam 6y ago
      On the plus side you have just named the next Stephen King novel: The Harvestmen
    - dreamcompiler 6y ago
      I love harvestmen. I've seen cave walls in Texas covered in thousands of them, doing pushups in unison. That's just what they do. Harvestmen are not even spiders. They're nonvenomous arachnids. Completely harmless.
      - dwighttk 6y ago
nanomonkey 6y ago
There are tarantula migrations during mating season in the fall. If you live in the Bay Area, you can see them up at Mount Diablo State Park.
- arthurcolle 6y ago
  Migrations, like, they are just walking across the ground or something?
  - nanomonkey 6y ago
    Yes, in some locations they are closer to swarming over the ground.
    - arthurcolle 6y ago
      Did you interact with them at all? How was that? My arachnophobic morbid curiosity has reached a new level just now
      - nanomonkey 6y ago
        As kids we would catch them and keep them in jars for a few days, then release them again. We also caught king snakes and fed them blue belly lizards...which may lead you to understand our fear response with wild animals. They are pretty gentle as far as things go.
    - dreamcompiler 6y ago
      In Texas 100 years ago tarantulas used to be so thick crossing highways that cars had to stop. I haven't seen reports of quite that many in the last few decades. These are always males looking for mates. They are venomous but rarely bite and their venom is no more dangerous to people than a bee sting (i.e. it can be dangerous if you're allergic). They make good pets although wild-caught ones don't live long.
rriepe 6y ago
They might just be using very high prime numbers.
howlgarnish 6y ago
Australia has joined the chat https://time.com/3882445/raining-spiders-australia/ https://time.com/3882445/raining-spiders-australia/
LargoLasskhyfv 6y ago
Then better not visit the "Hafen City" in Hamburg, Germany. Especially not the latest metro station "Elbbrücken" there, and especially not at night, because then they come out to hunt all the other insects which are caught in their nets, which they build over or near any light. Even over the touch screens of the ticket machines. They seem to be E-V-E-R-Y-W-H-E-R-E! BRRR!

... we've all heard the factoid that the average person supposedly eats 4 spiders per second. This statistic is misleading; it's based on a study examining on the peak rate of spider consumption in areas where the spider-streams are densest. The global average rate is probably closer to 1 spider per second (obviously higher while asleep than while awake) ... - https://what-if.xkcd.com/120/ https://what-if.xkcd.com/120/

danaris 6y ago
Nah, we all know it's just a statistical problem, and the real culprit is Spiders Georg https://knowyourmeme.com/memes/spiders-georg https://knowyourmeme.com/memes/spiders-georg
- arthurcolle 6y ago
  I don't really get this meme.
  - danielheath 6y ago
    It's making fun of statistics which use mean (instead of median) to generate sensational-yet-unrealistic headlines.
_ihaque 6y ago
(For those who didn't click, note that What-If #120 is "Excerpts from What If articles written in a world which, thankfully, is not the one we live in")

nitrogen 6y ago

I feel like I've seen a video of tons of spiders flying overhead somewhere...

quercusa 6y ago
I saw that one time high (as in feet above sea level) on Mt. Lassen (N. California). The sky was full of little sparkly web-strands; it was very cool.

arcticfox 6y ago

I was just in the Brazilian Amazon, and there was a funny moment there re: spiders... I stepped out onto a small floating dock and my weight sank the bottom of the dock below water level. There were probably ~100 spiders of all sizes that immediately emerged around my feet from between the slats as they were forced out from their homes underneath the dock. Fortunately I don't mind spiders much, but it did look like a scene out of a horror movie.

arthurcolle 6y ago
Thanks for the details. I've now added a new entry to my list of places never to go. I do hope those little guys were able to resettle somewhere less prone to anthropogenic climate change ;) Places to Avoid, list written + maintained by Arthur Collé: [] Deep space [added: after seeing Gravity] [] Mariana Trench [added: after seeing Underwater] [] Amazon rainforest [NEW, added: 2021-01-20]
- dwighttk 6y ago
  My brother told me to climb under an outdoor couch in Texas when I was about 6 and I was immediately covered by hundreds of harvestmen (aka daddy long legs.) I remember being startled and yelling for help but was not permanently scarred or anything. Spiders only creep me out the usual amount.
  - tomcam 6y ago
    On the plus side you have just named the next Stephen King novel: The Harvestmen
  - dreamcompiler 6y ago
    I love harvestmen. I've seen cave walls in Texas covered in thousands of them, doing pushups in unison. That's just what they do. Harvestmen are not even spiders. They're nonvenomous arachnids. Completely harmless.
    - dwighttk 6y ago

nanomonkey 6y ago

There are tarantula migrations during mating season in the fall. If you live in the Bay Area, you can see them up at Mount Diablo State Park.

arthurcolle 6y ago
Migrations, like, they are just walking across the ground or something?
- nanomonkey 6y ago
  Yes, in some locations they are closer to swarming over the ground.
  - arthurcolle 6y ago
    Did you interact with them at all? How was that? My arachnophobic morbid curiosity has reached a new level just now
    - nanomonkey 6y ago
      As kids we would catch them and keep them in jars for a few days, then release them again. We also caught king snakes and fed them blue belly lizards...which may lead you to understand our fear response with wild animals. They are pretty gentle as far as things go.
  - dreamcompiler 6y ago
    In Texas 100 years ago tarantulas used to be so thick crossing highways that cars had to stop. I haven't seen reports of quite that many in the last few decades. These are always males looking for mates. They are venomous but rarely bite and their venom is no more dangerous to people than a bee sting (i.e. it can be dangerous if you're allergic). They make good pets although wild-caught ones don't live long.

rriepe 6y ago

They might just be using very high prime numbers.

howlgarnish 6y ago

Australia has joined the chat https://time.com/3882445/raining-spiders-australia/ https://time.com/3882445/raining-spiders-australia/

LargoLasskhyfv 6y ago

Then better not visit the "Hafen City" in Hamburg, Germany. Especially not the latest metro station "Elbbrücken" there, and especially not at night, because then they come out to hunt all the other insects which are caught in their nets, which they build over or near any light. Even over the touch screens of the ticket machines. They seem to be E-V-E-R-Y-W-H-E-R-E! BRRR!