BeanAnimal
Premium Member
I am being twisted both ways here.... I suppose it comes down to a matter of perspective AND context.
<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=11698945#post11698945 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by Mishri
this reminds me of tape worms.. you have 1 6ft long tape worm, but if you segment it at all the new segment can operate and become a new worm.. but nobody thinks of it as 1,000 worms if you extract one from your digestive tract![]()
<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=11701888#post11701888 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by BeanAnimal
Very persuasive information from both perspectives. I feel somewhat enlightened now and am waiting for the whack on the skull to push me fully into enlightenment...
Thanks guys.
<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=11701842#post11701842 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by KingDiamond
"There are all sorts of similar problems within biology. Probably the biggest one being the definition of a species, but the definitions are blurry for just about every level from the individual all the way to kingdoms or domains. Ultimately, the root of the problem is that biology makes arbitrary distinctions that don't necessarily reflect the real world. We try to categorize things discreetly, when there's really a continuum."
A clone of something is still an individual. If anything, biology is usually specific about the distinctions it makes. Coral polyps may be connected by living tissue but the digestive system, nervous system, sexual reproductive capabilites and radial symmetry are contained within an individual polyp.
Brad
Hardly. What's the definition of a species and how do you tell what is and isn't one?If anything, biology is usually specific about the distinctions it makes.
Like Chris pointed out the gut and nerve nets are usually highly connected among polyps. Also, while the gonads are contained within the polyps, the ability to reproduce sexually depends on the colony as a whole. In many species, there is a minimum colony size for sexual reproduction. Small colonies won't spawn even if they were started from fragments of old corals that had spawned previously.Coral polyps may be connected by living tissue but the digestive system, nervous system, sexual reproductive capabilites and radial symmetry are contained within an individual polyp.
It wouldn't take a whole lot of convincing. Most of the community already realizes that it hasn't worked for the past 200 years. Pretty much all of my books already address the issue and there has been a lot of discussion about the need for new systems. The problem is that so far no one has come up with something better.It has worked for the passed 100 or so years.
Now all you have to do is right a paper and convince the Biological community and reprint every invertebrate zoology text written to date.
<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=11703029#post11703029 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by greenbean36191
Hardly. What's the definition of a species and how do you tell what is and isn't one?
Like Chris pointed out the gut and nerve nets are usually highly connected among polyps. Also, while the gonads are contained within the polyps, the ability to reproduce sexually depends on the colony as a whole. In many species, there is a minimum colony size for sexual reproduction. Small colonies won't spawn even if they were started from fragments of old corals that had spawned previously.
It wouldn't take a whole lot of convincing. Most of the community already realizes that it hasn't worked for the past 200 years. Pretty much all of my books already address the issue and there has been a lot of discussion about the need for new systems. The problem is that so far no one has come up with something better.
<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=11729308#post11729308 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by greenbean36191
I'm not sure how long the architecture of the nerve nets has been known, but it's been known for at least 40 years that the nerves run throughout the polyp and between polyps as well.
The gut connection within colonies varies a lot. It can be anything from multiple mouths with a common gastrovascular cavity all the way to no connection. In most cases there is a series of gastrovascular tubes that not only runs within polyps, but also forms direct connections between the GV cavities of nearby polyps. I'm not sure to what extent particulate food is shared within the GV tubes, but it's clear that they're used for transport of dissolved material, including nutrients from food.