this post was submitted on 11 Nov 2024
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Science Memes

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507
Optimisation is a Slow Process (mander.xyz)
submitted 6 days ago by [email protected] to c/[email protected]
32 comments fedilink hide all child comments
 
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[–] [email protected] 67 points 6 days ago (1 children)

"Design is fine, is just user error"
- every designer ever

[–] [email protected] 30 points 6 days ago

I see the problem, you forgot to clear your browser cache before evolving. closes ticket

[–] [email protected] 52 points 6 days ago (2 children)

Efficiency is making the same structure work for dual purposes.....like garbage disposal + procreation.

[–] [email protected] 25 points 6 days ago (1 children)

I don't think you procreate if you stick it up the garbage disposal though.

[–] [email protected] 27 points 6 days ago* (last edited 6 days ago) (1 children)

Garbage comes in different states of matter...

[–] [email protected] 10 points 5 days ago (1 children)

I still don't think you procreate if you stick it up the garbage disposal.

[–] [email protected] 5 points 5 days ago* (last edited 5 days ago) (1 children)

Ever heard of a cloaca?

[–] [email protected] 1 points 5 days ago

chapeau.

[–] [email protected] 8 points 6 days ago

It’s more than just efficient, personally I think it feels pretty good too

[–] [email protected] 20 points 5 days ago

Last change made by Evolution, commit message "ehh good enough TODO fix in next release", 500 million years ago

[–] [email protected] 24 points 5 days ago (2 children)

You know what the alternatives are, right? either we have two mouths, or we speak with our nostrils and the silent, gaping hole below only unhinges for the consumption of organic matter.

[–] [email protected] 11 points 5 days ago* (last edited 5 days ago) (1 children)

I'd take that tbh.

[–] [email protected] 6 points 5 days ago* (last edited 5 days ago) (2 children)

Good luck speaking when they are clogged up. :/

Maybe the nostrils should be redesigned too.

[–] [email protected] 3 points 5 days ago

Maybe Voldermort was onto something?

[–] el_abuelo 1 points 5 days ago

That's how they kill the germs....very clever really.

[–] [email protected] 4 points 5 days ago

Silent? No no no. The gaping hole makes loud chewing noises while the nostrils merily chat away in a sing-songy, whistly voice!

[–] [email protected] 9 points 5 days ago (1 children)

identical unmarked doors

Bro I don't think you are supposed to look at it to determine which way food goes

[–] [email protected] 2 points 5 days ago (1 children)

I wonder what the implications would be, if every body part were labeled (including innards).

[–] [email protected] 2 points 4 days ago

It would raise some pretty interesting philosophical questions.

[–] [email protected] 16 points 6 days ago

Works well enough in most cases #wontfix

[–] [email protected] 6 points 5 days ago (2 children)

This is what allows you to hold your breath underwater

[–] [email protected] 5 points 5 days ago

All you can eat sinuses

[–] [email protected] 5 points 6 days ago

Sounds like we should optimize that.

[–] [email protected] 2 points 5 days ago* (last edited 5 days ago) (1 children)

Thinking about how smell might have developed is kind of cool. Some mutation allowing cells to detect smell (something modern science is kind of puzzled by) then just sending those signals to the brain and saying, you figure it out. I'd bet there is some other property of matter that exists that we have no ability to detect.

[–] el_abuelo 8 points 5 days ago (1 children)

Isn't smell just particulate matter hitting receptors not dissimilar to how taste receptors send taste signals to the brain? I thought science had this stuff nailed down now?

[–] [email protected] 1 points 5 days ago (1 children)

That's what they theorize. How do you prove it?

[–] el_abuelo 3 points 5 days ago (1 children)

Science shit?

I dont know....but I wouldn't say that's a good reason to doubt it, for example I don't know how they proved black holes exist but they seem pretty confident.

[–] [email protected] 1 points 5 days ago* (last edited 5 days ago) (2 children)

Ok, if it's just particles how does it distinguish the particles on a molecular level. This is important shit. The closest science can do is gas chromatography and that's an instrument which exists in any reputable lab. Also, using gas chromatography for this a far cry from the simple function of our sense of smell which can distinguish scents just by simply introducing a fragrence.

[–] [email protected] 2 points 5 days ago (1 children)

I believe the receptor cell responds to a particular part of the molecule in question. Artificial flavourings and scents have identical (or similar enough) parts to trigger the same response, but are otherwise different molecules.

[–] [email protected] 1 points 5 days ago

I think someone said the number of combinations for a key and lock receptor was insurmountable. Don't quote me.

[–] el_abuelo 2 points 5 days ago (1 children)

Maybe I'm misreading your tone, but I'm not trying to argue with you - I'm genuinely curious about this and if you have superior knowledge I'm open!

My understanding from a quick skim of Wikipedia citations suggests we understand what's involved (particles and receptors) but the actual mechanism around encoding of signals seems to be theory.

We also can't teach a computer to think, but we still have quite a good idea of how it works.

[–] [email protected] 1 points 5 days ago

https://pca.st/episode/835428d6-e13b-4f1b-866c-de9b6a74d660

If your interested this is a good episode of Unexplainable. They can do better then me.