3 ms·
Could the opposite spiral directions be just roughly the same structure but one is turned inside out? I’m not up to speed on topology but generally turning thi
by frankus 5y ago
Could the opposite spiral directions be just roughly the same structure but one is turned inside out?
I’m not up to speed on topology but generally turning things inside out changes the “handedness” (cf. a glove).
- frankus 5y agoMaybe "turned inside out" isn't getting the right idea across, since the "inside" of an orifice is still a continuation of the outside surface of the organism. Instead picture one of those cabinets with the built-in gloves that are used for sandblasting or handing hazardous materials, and focus on the glove on the right side. Normally a person's right hand would fit inside the glove (which as before is just a continuation of the outside surface of the cabinet). Now pressurize the cabinet so that the glove pops out and inflates. The glove would now be in the shape of a left hand, and if you were to try and put a right-handed glove on it, it wouldn't fit. There isn't really a profound takeaway here, other than maybe they're crediting a a genital arms race for something that is just an accident of related reproductive organs (there's a long list of these types of structures: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_related_male_and_female_reproductive_organs https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_related_male_and_femal...).