It's pushing the concept of serial homology a bit far
Category: Weirdness
Posted on: October 5, 2008 10:33 AM, by PZ Myers
(via Hemant)
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PZ Myers is a biologist and associate professor at the University of Minnesota, Morris.
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Comments
Posted by: MRL | October 5, 2008 10:37 AM
What a strange creature...but at least it's intelligent enough to be modest (and to find a sign with which to declaim its abomination-of-nature status), somehow.
Posted by: Lynnai | October 5, 2008 10:55 AM
okay my knee jerk reaction to that is, if an elephant had tenticles for legs but thost tenticles were very like the typical trunk surely say beast would have more tusks too.
No I don't expect that to make sense to anybody as I'm not sure it makes sense to me, but I think it would look nifty with an ivory tu-tu.
Posted by: Cuttlefish, OM | October 5, 2008 11:08 AM
And how would one frighten such an elephant? You might not have seen, but I found this cute little guy just a few months ago in Greece:
It's slimy, yet furry and squeaky;
I think you'll agree that it's freaky;
But beyond all dispute
Is the fact that it's cute--
And I found it in Thessaloniki!
Posted by: co | October 5, 2008 11:16 AM
Whalezykrill and rayzykrill and liddle lamzy divey,
octophants lack ivory tutu, wouldn't you?
Where's our poet laureate?
Posted by: co | October 5, 2008 11:18 AM
Oh, there he is.
Posted by: jima | October 5, 2008 11:21 AM
The Octophant is the work of Chicago artist Phineas X. Jones, who has been coming out with an astounding series of screen print posters. More stuff like this at octophant.us.
Posted by: Masks of Eris | October 5, 2008 11:29 AM
"See! A mixture of elephant and octopus! This proves evolution false!"
"Uh, Bob? It's just a picture."
"How dare you insult me --- of course I know it is a picture. What of it, the holy Gospel is a text, and it's still infallibly true --- why should a picture be any different?"
"Well ---"
"Don't answer rhetorical questions. Now, did you see the dread biologist himself was struck speechless by this Thing? Not a word of comment on it!"
"Um ---"
"Silence! It is a great Thing! Though I think the title tries to imply I am gay, which I don't like."
Posted by: Richard Harris | October 5, 2008 11:38 AM
Wait till PETA hears about this.
Posted by: JenWolf | October 5, 2008 11:43 AM
Oy, Cuttlefish! I am good friends with the artist who created the squid-rat. The original artwork is here. I'm not sure he knows about this sign in Greece, I'll have to show it to him. I don't know if he'll be pleased or pissed.
Posted by: Dahan | October 5, 2008 12:02 PM
Finally! Proof positive of an intermediary species.
Posted by: Cuttlefish, OM | October 5, 2008 12:06 PM
JenWolf @#9--
Thank you very much!
I see there are more there, too--
The "squow" is lovely.
Posted by: Ooparts | October 5, 2008 12:38 PM
"I should not be"
Hahaha
Posted by: Ted Dahlberg | October 5, 2008 12:53 PM
That's the most awesome (in any sense of the word you care to name) thing I have seen in a year and a day.
Posted by: Nick Gotts | October 5, 2008 12:54 PM
This genetic engineering stuff is really getting out of hand - I mean trunk - I mean tentacle - erm, trunkacle?
Posted by: No BS | October 5, 2008 12:56 PM
This idea came to me on the way to see Religulous. PZ if you see this and like it, grab it.
http://www.postyourimage.com/view_image.php?img_id=2rrbLj2DjyFplh1223224857
Posted by: rufustfirefly | October 5, 2008 1:19 PM
Octophant? This looks like something Ray Comfort and Kirk Cameron would come up with; they're famous for the "crocoduck.
Posted by: David Marjanović, OM | October 5, 2008 2:18 PM
My day is saved.
Posted by: kereng | October 5, 2008 2:40 PM
It started long ago with the huge GIGANT.
The TWELPHANT was still bigger than the ELEPHANT of our days.
The OCTOPHANT is an animal of the future, about the size of an octopus. The succession of phants will come to an end with the tiny NULLPHANT.
(according to Christian Morgenstern)
Posted by: amon | October 5, 2008 2:58 PM
If it's gluing animals together you're after - i have a bit of a history
But, shhh, don't tell PZ - there are one or two biological inexatitudes :)
Posted by: Laurel | October 5, 2008 4:35 PM
Ooparts, I'm pretty sure "I should not be" is a reference to the Simpsons ep called HOMR, which contained the following:
Homer: Please, turn me back into the blissful boob I was.
Scientist: Sorry, we don't play god here.
Homer: Huh? You do nothing but play god! And I think your octo-parrot would agree with me.
Octo-Parrot: Awk! Polly shouldn't be!
Posted by: JHS | October 5, 2008 4:42 PM
I think I'm going append "The Improbable" to my name, too.
Posted by: One Eyed Jack | October 5, 2008 7:17 PM
Octophants would be tooooo cool!
If the universe were created by a designer, how could He/She/It not make something so simply awesome!
The fact that we don't have octophants speaks strongly that there is no designer.
Posted by: Bubba Sixpack | October 5, 2008 7:44 PM
That should be the logo of our current unregulated Wall Street. A multi-tentacled monster grasping at tax-payers' money, via their sponsors, the Repub elephants. A monster that that has no logical basis for existence, but exists nonetheless.
Posted by: Brad D | October 5, 2008 9:57 PM
Something went wrong with the HOX genes right?
Posted by: DrFrank | October 6, 2008 9:33 AM
Something went wrong with the HOX genes right?
Or wonderfully right, depending on your viewpoint ;)
Posted by: Ticktockman | October 6, 2008 9:38 AM
I like the sound of "octopotamus" better, a creature coined by a friend's 4 year old. Rolls right off the tongue (and over your station wagon).
-TTm