This is a wonderfully done, very clear explanation of squid color, made using simple hand-drawn animation. See, this is communicating science!
CreatureCast Episode 1 from Casey Dunn on Vimeo.
(From the Creature Cast at the Dunn lab)
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PZ Myers is a biologist and associate professor at the University of Minnesota, Morris.
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More articles by PZ Myers can be found on Freethoughtblogs at the new Pharyngula!
Those lovely squiddy colors
Category: Cephalopods • Communicating science
Posted on: August 13, 2009 4:04 PM, by PZ Myers
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TrackBack URL for this entry: http://scienceblogs.com/mt/pings/117521
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Comments
Posted by: mus | August 13, 2009 4:18 PM
Brilliant!
This is exactly the kind of videos people should be making. It's good, interesting information given to you in a perfectly understandable way, but without patronizing you and treating you like an idiot.
Posted by: Glen Davidson
|
August 13, 2009 4:20 PM
I'd rather she didn't say that "squids figured out how" to vary the spacing of proteins in the iridophores. We know what she means, others would not.
Done picking that nit, it's great.
Glen D
http://tinyurl.com/mxaa3p
Posted by: Brownian, Most Vicious & Petty of Pharyngulites
|
August 13, 2009 4:22 PM
Can't be. I didn't detect religion getting a single reach-around in the entire piece
Posted by: Jim B | August 13, 2009 4:28 PM
Cool short.
She ends the video speculating how the squid knows what frequency and speed to pulse its color bands to camouflage itself.
The fact that it is very sensitive to touch and doing so causes it to shimmer in different colors seems to give away the answer. As it skims below the surface, it simply can feel the pressure waves along the surface and that causes it to synchronize its color shifting to the speed and direction of the wavefronts that sweep over it.
That seems far more plausible than it is eyeballing the situation.
Posted by: Joshua Fisher | August 13, 2009 4:30 PM
If the wave patterns can be generated by touch, then it seems unlikely that the goggles will make a difference.
Posted by: Joshua Fisher | August 13, 2009 4:38 PM
Here I had only 4 comments to read, and I just repeated what #4 said. Sorry about that.
Posted by: Don Terndrup | August 13, 2009 4:39 PM
Doing the goggle thing is still necessary - perhaps the eyes play some role in the phenomenon. Figuring out a way to verify that touch is the most important factor might be hard.
Posted by: TerilynnS | August 13, 2009 4:50 PM
I wish I had seen this two years ago. Wonderful short!
Posted by: Andrew | August 13, 2009 4:51 PM
If the wave patterns can be generated by touch, then it seems unlikely that the goggles will make a difference.
So, what you're saying is - The goggles, they (may) do nothing?
Posted by: Joshua Fisher | August 13, 2009 4:58 PM
#9 LOL!
Posted by: rath | August 13, 2009 4:59 PM
Nice. Maybe they would consider launching a YouTube channel like The Periodic Table of Videos (periodicvideos) or Sixty Symbols (sixtysymbols).
Posted by: Enri | August 13, 2009 5:16 PM
I kind of had the thought that the touching was *squishing* the ink back into the lower skin and that's why it left a white line.
Posted by: AdamK | August 13, 2009 5:34 PM
That was great!
Posted by: MJP | August 13, 2009 5:38 PM
That California accent is so irritating. They randomly pronounce vowels in a creaky voice, and shift half their ih's to ee's (and a very high-pitched ee at that).
Posted by: Daniel R | August 13, 2009 5:44 PM
That was so good. Thanks for pointing to it.
Posted by: 'Tis Himself, Quel Dommage
|
August 13, 2009 6:01 PM
Excellent video. It explained something I didn't even know existed (my squid knowledge is sadly lacking).
Posted by: Stark | August 13, 2009 6:21 PM
@ JimB #4 - Having had the pleasure and surprise of finding myself in the middle of several hundred Loligo while diving several years ago I must say that there is no small evidence of them having some visual system in play here. I say this because it was a partly cloudy day and while swimming along the pattern of flashing on the squid would change when the sun dipped behind the clouds - something that had to be visually cued. Anyhow - it was a singular experience... I've often found myself in herds of jellyfish but never before (or since) had I encountered a large group of squid at shallow depth in the middle of the day. Night diving for squid is a common practice (and quite enjoyable) but by day I thinks it is pretty unusual to see a clustered group like that... though I'm no expert so I could be wrong.
I'm will say I'm glad they were Loligo and not Humboldt! :)
Posted by: Eupraxsopher
|
August 13, 2009 6:25 PM
Seems almost a shame to eat the little squiddles. Tasty things though! Seriously good video. I think the posters that deduced pressure sensitivity are likely onto something.
Posted by: Brian | August 13, 2009 6:27 PM
I loved the casual and informal tone of both the speaking parts and the animation. Well done.
Posted by: SC, OM | August 13, 2009 6:56 PM
Very cute.
Keep the grants coming for stuff like that, NSF!
Posted by: Lynna | August 13, 2009 7:41 PM
[smiling] Liked that! Thanks to all the people that put it together, and to PZ for posting.
Posted by: PZ Myers
|
August 13, 2009 8:11 PM
MJP, I happen to know that the two women speaking here are from the Midwest and from New England. So what the hell are you talking about?
Posted by: Paguroidea | August 13, 2009 8:19 PM
What a very fun way to learn about squid colors! I'm looking forward to more videos from this group!!!
Posted by: Janet Holmes | August 13, 2009 8:22 PM
WANT!! When are the genetic scientists gonna figure out how to transfer these fabulous abilities into people? Especially the iridescence, I SO want iridescent skin! Just imagine it! If I wrote sci-fi I would write about people who could take a pill and have iridescent skin, fantastic! Beats boring old tattoos that's for sure.
Posted by: Eupraxsopher
|
August 13, 2009 8:35 PM
Sometimes I change colour under pressure. Iridescent red and green patterns would be much better signals though.
"I wouldn't push him any further Jim - he's turning plaid!".
Posted by: Denise Smith | August 13, 2009 8:50 PM
WOW. I have done a lot of Pharyngula sharing with my daughters lately! Who'd a thought?
My younger wants to be a marine biologist. My older loves calamari..
Posted by: RamblinDude | August 13, 2009 8:55 PM
Here’s another example of great communication. It’s a video explaining differential gearing. It’s a short film from the 1930’s, and it’s freakin awesome. There’s no step in the explanation process that isn’t very clear. If all of science was explained this effectively, the forces of ignorance wouldn’t stand a chance.
Posted by: tmaxPA | August 13, 2009 9:12 PM
That was really really incredibly awesome. Also, I think I'm in love.
Posted by: that_chris_guy | August 13, 2009 10:36 PM
That was awesome! It's like the squid version of "School House Rock."
Posted by: Desert Son, OM
|
August 14, 2009 12:19 AM
I don't suppose the poster that goes by the handle "Fundie" stopped by this entry? The same poster that continues to drop in and tell everyone how he/she is no longer going to visit Pharyngula because there's no science at this here science blog?
Fundie, just in case you do stop by having said you were no longer going to stop by, there's also:
http://scienceblogs.com/pharyngula/2009/08/ken_ham_on_the_air_lying_again.php#comment-1837807
Great video, cool stuff (I shudder to fancy what shades of mind-shattering iridescence Great Cthulhu might express!). A great day of video posts, PZ! Thanks!
No kings,
Robert
Posted by: A. Noyd
|
August 14, 2009 12:45 AM
RamblinDude (#27)
Good grief, I wish I could agree since it's a freaking fantastic video, but until videos like this develop the ability to crawl directly into the minds of the ignorant, they can do nothing to remedy that ignorance which is born of the determination to avoid any sort of reality-based education.
Posted by: Joshua Fisher | August 14, 2009 2:30 AM
Just a quick comment from an "educator" about #2 (Glen's) comment:
I'm not sure about that exact quote, so I'm trusting Glen here. But the point made is right on.
Communicating science to the layperson (like myself) must involve simplifications. But let's not be so doocey as to say that "squids figured out how" to do anything.
Posted by: Happy Tentacles
|
August 14, 2009 3:41 AM
What a delightful video! I shall spend the day blissfully contemplating just how fabulous our tentacled brethren really are..
Posted by: Quark | August 14, 2009 3:59 AM
"My younger wants to be a marine biologist. My older loves calamari.."
Excellent, one can provide the understanding necessary to keep the species around so the other can enjoy it.
I'd call that synergy.
Posted by: Alyson Miers | August 14, 2009 11:41 AM
Those "squid scientist" illustrations are so cute. Also, I want to be the biologist who glues goggles onto squid eyes. I suspect it'll annoy the heck out of the poor critters, though. "Who turned out the lights?! It's that hairless bipedal again, thinks she's SO funny..."
Posted by: Kris | August 14, 2009 11:56 AM
Looks like something from Reading Rainbow. I miss that show.
Posted by: BDearmore | August 14, 2009 1:51 PM
I agree the personificaton can be confusing to a few people and should be avoided. After all, I've had to correct a few people who really believed "genes just wanna make more genes" or "mice have sex to make babies."
Genes, of course, don't want anything. And mice presumably have sex because it's so much darn fun. Just as people do. I'm pretty sure they have no idea they're making baby mice.
But except for this minor criticism, it was great! Absolutely wonderful!
Posted by: KillerChihuahua | August 14, 2009 5:34 PM
Fabulous video. Is the iridescence at all related to that of dolphins (mahi)? I am ignorant; I ask this in seriousness in the hopes someone here can enlighten me.
Posted by: LeeLeeOne | August 14, 2009 6:51 PM
I must say that I have not found learning to be so much fun in a very long time. This was delightful and would love to be seeing more of this type. Easy to understand but not simplistic. There was enough terminology that made me do some searches to learn more. Fantastic way to educate the masses!
Posted by: Luna_the_cat | August 15, 2009 1:01 PM
Pressure sensing seems one possibility, but what if it *is* a sort of photosensitivity in the skin itself, the way they speculate? Drawing a finger across the skin might have the effect of disrupting the photosensitivity (depending on how exactly it works) or simply blocking all light; so you can't eliminate the possibility yet.
That is a GREAT little video, though!
Posted by: Tony | August 16, 2009 5:46 PM
Wow. So you're telling me that squid have a layer of variable absorption liquid crystals in their skin? /boggle
So many possibilities...
Posted by: Kevin (NYC) | October 28, 2009 8:10 PM
"So what the hell are you talking about?"
cue Nelson.. "HA HA"
I found the voices soothing and melodious.
and informative!