Meet Your Inner Fish—and a few other animals left inside you

A miniseries airing on PBS tomorrow shows how evolution made us out of old parts.

Read the whole story

 

[qzjul]

What's wrong with a partially dissected cadaver for children? It's not like it's violent. Gotta learn some time, no?

As a kid I'm sure that would have fascinated me, probably accompanied by "gross!".

 

[MoonShark]

Oh man this is sweet. Neil Shubin is awesome. I'm sure I've posted this a dozen times since 2008 but here's an excellent (and entertaining) lecture on the Tiktaalik discovery. I'm sure much of the same material is covered in his book (also titled "Your Inner Fish") and in this new miniseries, but hey, Youtube is free and available any time.

 

[axia777]

Here come the Fundies.....

Lurch[/url]":2u9zp6xl]Have you seen a partially dissected cadaver? They can look quite stark and unnatural and please note that I'm commenting only on their appearance. Anyhow the article just warned about it, so go ahead and force your kid to watch if you must.

Man, I was watching PBS way back in the 70's and 80s. I saw my first boobs on PBS from tribal women. I used to watch animals tear each other apart on PBS's nature shows. Kids are too sheltered these days. LOL

 

[longhairedboy]

anything that gets people interested more in the science of our origins and less in the mythology of it is something I can get behind. also, cadavers are awesome, and when i die one day, i can only hope that some kid gets to see my useless husk and learn something from it.

 

[Wheels Of Confusion]

The book itself, Your Inner Fish, is something I can't recommend highly enough. Seriously, grab a copy somehow (buy, beg, borrow, check out from the library) and let 'er rip.

 

[mcmnky]

MoonShark[/url]":5q8zqvqu]Oh man this is sweet. Neil Shubin is awesome. I'm sure I've posted this a dozen times since 2008 but here's an excellent (and entertaining) lecture on the Tiktaalik discovery. I'm sure much of the same material is covered in his book (also titled "Your Inner Fish") and in this new miniseries, but hey, Youtube is free and available any time.

Wow. Imagine being known as the first species to have a neck. How does that go over at the evolution reunion?

"I developed photosynthesis."
"I was first to walk upright."
"I invented sexual reproduction."
....
"I had the first neck." :/

 

[brianpmack]

As a parent with young children, I would have no problem with my 10 year old watching this. I just need to give him a simple warning before the show starts that goes something like this:
"You will see a dead body in this show. Before the person died, they decided to donate their body to science so people could learn from it."

My 5 year old would probably be thoroughly bored with the show and would want to go build with Legos.

 

[dugbug]

First cosmos returns, now this. Some good stuff on tv lately.

 

[Sarad]

So is "Connections" going to get a reboot as well?

 

[Quiet Desperation]

You can troll creationists by telling them to watch the show that will make a monkey out of them.

 

[Quiet Desperation]

Wheels Of Confusion[/url]":3awjylsn]Seriously, grab a copy somehow (buy, beg, borrow, check out from the library)

Gosh, if only there were some straightforward way to obtain books in this day and age.

 

[FredAT]

I thought creationists were OK with the fish thing.

 

[axia777]

Quiet Desperation[/url]":3quai0r4]You can troll creationists by telling them to watch the show that will make a monkey out of them.

That is so hilarious. LOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOL

 

[kengi]

longhairedboy[/url]":3taezdo7]anything that gets people interested more in the science of our origins and less in the mythology of it is something I can get behind. also, cadavers are awesome, and when i die one day, i can only hope that some kid gets to see my useless husk and learn something from it.

Awesome idea!

Make sure you register in your state, and make your intentions known to your family. In my area, my estate will only be responsible for paying for initial transportation of my cadaver, then the institution using it will cover cremation expenses.

It's not only valuable to science and education, but also reduces funeral expenses to a minimum.

 

[donlo]

Sarad[/url]":1lbleye1]So is "Connections" going to get a reboot as well?

This is sorely needed especially while James Burke is still alive!

 

[dugbug]

Sarad[/url]":eyuognnt]So is "Connections" going to get a reboot as well?

Loved that show. I still recall the exploding pool balls.

 

[Berial]

Sarad[/url]":24scurju]So is "Connections" going to get a reboot as well?

Funny every time I hear about some 'good' old science show getting re-booted this is what I think too. Loved the original 'Connections'. Worked great in the hour format. The second series at 30 minutes just didn't hang together as well.

 

[Deleted member 192806]

The human anatomy has deep roots in the evolutionary past, and some of our key features date back to an odd-looking fish called Tiktaalik that Shubin found high in the Canadian Arctic.

Would have been more fun if it had been called Wanda.

 

[dlux]

mcmnky[/url]":2i9rn67v]"I had the first neck."

<grumbles at mcmnky>

 

[matthewslyman]

To anyone interested in this subject, I recommend the "Lattice" BOINC project, which seeks to map the evolutionary networks of pathogenic viruses.

 

[wyrmhole]

matthewslyman[/url]":1u1fd9da]To anyone interested in this subject, I recommend the "Lattice" BOINC project, which seeks to map the evolutionary networks of pathogenic viruses.

Maybe it's just me, but the name BOINC seems wasted on a project involving non-sexually-reproducing things.

 

[mcmnky]

dlux[/url]":2b7xu6gs]

mcmnky[/url]":2b7xu6gs]"I had the first neck."

<grumbles at mcmnky>

Touché.

 

[Quiet Desperation]

axia777[/url]":13c197w1]

Quiet Desperation[/url]":13c197w1]You can troll creationists by telling them to watch the show that will make a monkey out of them.

That is so hilarious. LOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOL

I KNOW, RIGHT?!

 

[CraigJ ✅]

First the Cosmos reboot, now this. Poor creationists. Facts are certainly inconvenient things.

 

[zitajm]

longhairedboy[/url]":3dmt60rg]anything that gets people interested more in the science of our origins and less in the mythology of it is something I can get behind.

Mythology is a fascinating and worthwhile subject IMHO. Generally it's much more helpful in answering questions like 'Who am I?' and much more revealing when one tries to understand her/his culture than biology. The whole problem starts EXACTLY when a myth is being misunderstood and is taken as a factual description. I mean, to believe that a great movie/play is so great because it shows historical figures and happenings is plain stupid but to discredit a great movie by stating that the plot is not historically correct is a bit silly too, c'mon!

 

[bonob]

A propos computer-generated animations in Cosmos, do you know who made the merging of the Milky Way and Andromeda? Is it Fuzzy Door Productions?
That animation is an absolute killer, and it seems to require a very advanced simulation.

 

[mhac]

Although I really hope PBS delivers this series to some of the popular streaming services, it appears that it will at least be available to stream online from the source (for those of us that have cut the cord).



-mhac³

 

[rpgspree]

mhac[/url]":2j8g5oob]Although I really hope PBS delivers this series to some of the popular streaming services, it appears that it will at least be available to stream online from the source (for those of us that have cut the cord).

-mhac³

And there's always the antenna and DVR option too, especially if you need to watch it off-line later.

 

[daarong]

I admire the guy.. personally I would not go into a field that was feared and hated by literally 50% of the country I was living in... much less be publicly enthusiastic about it! It's astounding the growing divide between those with knowledge and those without... even in places like the USA.

 

[wyrmhole]

Watched the show last night; it was quite enjoyable.

 

[Wheels Of Confusion]

Even more enjoyable without the commercial interruptions every 7 minutes that the new Cosmos is saddled with. Also, the material is discussed in more depth with this series, which I really appreciate.

 

[mudlock]

bonob[/url]":37306qf2]A propos computer-generated animations in Cosmos, do you know who made the merging of the Milky Way and Andromeda? Is it Fuzzy Door Productions?
That animation is an absolute killer, and it seems to require a very advanced simulation.

NASA.

http://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/hubbl ... llide.html

Although the video seems broken at the moment, so here's the copy from Wikipedia.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Andro ... lision.ogg

 

[Wheels Of Confusion]

mudlock[/url]":3fajh0n5]

bonob[/url]":3fajh0n5]A propos computer-generated animations in Cosmos, do you know who made the merging of the Milky Way and Andromeda? Is it Fuzzy Door Productions?
That animation is an absolute killer, and it seems to require a very advanced simulation.

NASA.
http://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/hubbl ... llide.html
Although the video seems broken at the moment, so here's the copy from Wikipedia.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Andro ... lision.ogg

A) The Youtube embed is broken, but the download versions at the NASA page still work.
B) That's not really the same animation, though it depicts the same event. The one in Cosmos looked a lot sharper, with more distinct clumps of stars.
C) Thanks anyway! There's also this simulation of what it would look like from Earth (assuming we hadn't been swallowed up by the dying sun, of course).

 

[shannim]

I'm watching the first episode of this series right now and what do you know??? I've got the same little pit on my left ear as Molly. I have a deformed/not-fully-developed gill arch!

 

[Wheels Of Confusion]

shannim[/url]":1ecswpi3]I'm watching the first episode of this series right now and what do you know??? I've got the same little pit on my left ear as Molly. I have a deformed/not-fully-developed gill arch!

Oh dear, another one with The Innsmouth Look...

 

[bikeamtn]

Yes, an entertaining show.
Nice animated creatures but the 'we think’ answers and one quite large detail was left out; most authorities on the Gr. Canyon will acknowledge these facts; 1st – the ‘Coconino shelf’ seen throughout the Gr. Canyon is the earth’s fossiliferous limestone layer revealing all the activities of the beginnings for marine life on earth. Above this layer, further development of life species is seen but the marked region right below this layer all life ceases to be (all life), as if life only began in a moment, although that moment being a period of time but is revealing a period of sudden appearance of all types of species. 2nd – the evidence of water that cut the Gr. Canyon was not that of the Colorado River during the Pleistocene ice age (as not having sufficient force for its size and depth) but the forces of a global deluge.

On the subject of Gene Coding (which doesn't actually disprove creation but contributes to it; you see isn’t that not unlike data programmers who reuse a basic code then ‘remark-out’ portions of code depending on which options they will enable. Or not unlike assembly line workers that retool the metal press by adding or removing plugs in the form again dependent on options. All that by guess work? No, not at all, it is by design that the code programmer and auto worker retools the presses which is evidence of intelligence. Or will many just bush that off saying over billions of years of random chance occurrences, one fluke pattern of jaw-born fragments found its way to forming the inner-ear (sound like, by design to me). But it was nice looking video with music.

A modern truth: I will not say religion (as it is too broad, encompassing and frankly an incorrect application here) but theology and science are not at odds but actually in support of one another and this fact escapes many. Modern science has in fact compiled evidence that’s been stripping away at the veil of creation for some time, for it has now become translucent in revealing the finger prints much like one can identify a Da Vinci when you see one by its style and brush stroke. So to, by design in subatomic structures on to the macrocosmic matters of the cosmos, all have the same finger print. When one scientifically judges Evolution, one finds a real contradiction to science. Physics proves all matter (all inanimate matter) decomposes, deteriorates the moment after creation (apposed to animate matter, life). The core principle of Evolution is that ‘life’ came from inanimate matter which you can see is utterly impossible, a contradiction to physics itself. That is why evolutionist always begin their debate from a point after life had already began. (Cosmos - definition: the universe considered as an ordered and integrated whole… of life and matter).

To the trolls who may follow citing grammar corrections, etc; thank's but please stick to sharing real knowledge in explanation of facts like the evidence within the Coconino shelf.

 

[jbode]

bikeamtn[/url]"8z5k5vz]Yes, an entertaining show.
Nice animated creatures but the 'we think’ answers and one quite large detail was left out; most authorities on the Gr. Canyon will acknowledge these facts; 1st – the ‘Coconino shelf’ seen throughout the Gr. Canyon is the earth’s fossiliferous limestone layer revealing all the activities of the beginnings for marine life on earth. Above this layer, further development of life species is seen but the marked region right below this layer all life ceases to be (all life), as if life only began in a moment, although that moment being a period of time but is revealing a period of sudden appearance of all types of species.

The Coconino layer is sandstone, not limestone.

The layers of the Grand Canyon, from top to bottom, are

• Kaibab Limestone - Permian - brachiopods, mollusks, coral, fish teeth
• Toroweap Limestone - Permian - similar fossils
• Coconino Sandstone - Early Permian - tracks, burrows, other secondary or trace fossils
• Hermit Shale - Early Permian - ferns, conifers, reptile and amphibian tracks
• Supai Group - Penssylvanian - amphibians, reptiles, plants to the east, marine fossils to the west
• Redwall Limestone - Mississippian - brachiopods, clams, snails, coral, fish, trilobites
• Temple Butte Limestone - Devonian - marine fossils to the west
• Tonto Group - Cambrian - brachiopods, trilobites
  • Muav Limestone
  • Bright Angel Shale
  • Tapeats Sandstone
• The Great Unconformity - Missing layers that were eroded away before the above layers were deposited
• Chuar Group - Late Precambrian - stromatolites
  • Sixtymile Formation
  • Kwagunt Formation
  • Galeros Formation
• Nankoweap Formation
• Unkar Group - Late Precambrian - algae, stromatolites
  • Cardenas Lavas
  • Dox Sandstone
  • Shinumo Quartzite
  • Hakatai Shale
  • Bass Formation
• Precambrian Unconformity
• Vishnu Schist and Zoroaster Granite - Early Precambrian

Stromatolite fossils are found all the way down to the Bass Limestone layer, the oldest sedimentary layer above the Vishnu Schist and Zoroaster Granite (which, being schist and granite, wouldn't contain any fossils) from 1,250 mya.

2nd – the evidence of water that cut the Gr. Canyon was not that of the Colorado River during the Pleistocene ice age (as not having sufficient force for its size and depth) but the forces of a global deluge.

No. It's pretty clear that the canyon was carved over time, not in a single event. The Colorado carries a lot of sediment (up to and including boulders during floods), which helped it carve through the rock.

On the subject of Gene Coding (which doesn't actually disprove creation but contributes to it; you see isn’t that not unlike data programmers who reuse a basic code then ‘remark-out’ portions of code depending on which options they will enable.

Bad programmers do that; good programmers use separate configuration files to enable/disable features.

Not to mention that we occasionally throw the whole thing out and start over from scratch (doing that right now on one project).

Or not unlike assembly line workers that retool the metal press by adding or removing plugs in the form again dependent on options. All that by guess work? No, not at all, it is by design that the code programmer and auto worker retools the presses which is evidence of intelligence. Or will many just bush that off saying over billions of years of random chance occurrences, one fluke pattern of jaw-born fragments found its way to forming the inner-ear (sound like, by design to me).

No sane designer would repurpose jaw bones for hearing; no sane designer would have a quadraped stand on two legs without making a number of adjustments to the neck, back, and knees.

But it was nice looking video with music.

A modern truth: I will not say religion (as it is too broad, encompassing and frankly an incorrect application here) but theology and science are not at odds but actually in support of one another and this fact escapes many. Modern science has in fact compiled evidence that’s been stripping away at the veil of creation for some time, for it has now become translucent in revealing the finger prints much like one can identify a Da Vinci when you see one by its style and brush stroke. So to, by design in subatomic structures on to the macrocosmic matters of the cosmos, all have the same finger print. When one scientifically judges Evolution, one finds a real contradiction to science. Physics proves all matter (all inanimate matter) decomposes, deteriorates the moment after creation (apposed to animate matter, life). The core principle of Evolution is that ‘life’ came from inanimate matter which you can see is utterly impossible, a contradiction to physics itself. That is why evolutionist always begin their debate from a point after life had already began. (Cosmos - definition: the universe considered as an ordered and integrated whole… of life and matter).

To the trolls who may follow citing grammar corrections, etc; thank's but please stick to sharing real knowledge in explanation of facts like the evidence within the Coconino shelf.