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Dominant life form on Earth
Posted: 2003-05-02 08:17pm
by Colonel Olrik
The Imperium of Mammals - Main players are:
humanity, who on a good day manages to have things somewhat under control. Advantages: Top of food chain, average brain power. They can also fuck up most of the other empires, if needed be (or even not). Great adaptability to all terrain conditions, not so good underwater.
Dolphins and whales: Underwater is pretty much their only area of activity. Excellent philosophers, they lack however the body organs necessary to produce tools. Lately, dolphins have been successfuly fighting alongside Men using men-made weapons. It is rumoured that they are further using those weapons to exterminate the sharks, the Big Bosses of the fishies.
The Kingdom of the Fishies - main players are
The big boss Shark: Big jaws, big brains, eat dolphins for breakfast (although there are rumours of a strange turn of tide. Surviving sharks have reported dolphins from hell, lauching strange cylinders of steel at high veloicty from something on their backs).
The fucking giant Squide: Just cool.
Rumoured beings from hell which lurk in the deepness.
The Lost Realm of the Reptiles
Crocks and alike. Reptiles basically lie around telling tales of times long gone, where they ruled and ate all the flimsy mammals. Nowadays just try to lay low and play dead.
The Birdies
Eagles and alike can easily rip an human eyball, if they really feel the need to. There are fucking loads of them. There are rumours of a possible old association with the Lost Realm of the Reptiles. Not yet 100% confirmed, though.
The Insects
One word: ants.
The Microbes
They're fucking evil and out to get us all. One of the domains that would surely outlast an all out confrontation with the Imperium of Mammals.
Those weirdos that suck sulphur
Basically, that's what they do, I think..
So, who's the more powerful?
Who can claim true ownership of the Earth?
Posted: 2003-05-02 08:19pm
by Admiral Valdemar
The power has and always will be with the microbes.
Posted: 2003-05-02 08:23pm
by Gandalf
Long live the Imperium!
Go humanity!
Posted: 2003-05-02 08:29pm
by Frank Hipper
Insects. Despite all efforts, we have yet to cause the extinction of a single species of insect.
Posted: 2003-05-02 08:32pm
by Admiral Valdemar
Frank Hipper wrote:Insects. Despite all efforts, we have yet to cause the extinction of a single species of insect.
Nature has though, don't think extinction by man is the key factor. In anycase, microbes still make insects their bitch.
Man may only just be making micro and even nao scale machinery, but we've been using microbes as organic nanotech for ages.
Re: Dominant life form on Earth
Posted: 2003-05-02 08:40pm
by Andrew J.
Colonel Olrik wrote:
The fucking giant Squide: Just cool.
Rumoured beings from hell which lurk in the deepness.
Uh...squids are mollusks, not fish.
Oh, and the perfect organism is the cockroach, giving insects the victory by default.
Re: Dominant life form on Earth
Posted: 2003-05-02 08:42pm
by Admiral Valdemar
Andrew J. wrote:Colonel Olrik wrote:
The fucking giant Squide: Just cool.
Rumoured beings from hell which lurk in the deepness.
Uh...squids are mollusks, not fish.
Oh, and the perfect organism is the cockroach, giving insects the victory by default.
Not unless the bacteria in its gut outlive it, which they surely will.
Re: Dominant life form on Earth
Posted: 2003-05-02 08:42pm
by Colonel Olrik
Andrew J. wrote:Colonel Olrik wrote:
The fucking giant Squide: Just cool.
Rumoured beings from hell which lurk in the deepness.
Uh...squids are mollusks, not fish.
I know that. They're obedient subjects of the Fish Kingdom, that englobes pretty much all the oceanic species except the mammals. My thread
Re: Dominant life form on Earth
Posted: 2003-05-02 08:43pm
by Admiral Valdemar
Colonel Olrik wrote:Andrew J. wrote:Colonel Olrik wrote:
The fucking giant Squide: Just cool.
Rumoured beings from hell which lurk in the deepness.
Uh...squids are mollusks, not fish.
I know that. They're obedient subjects of the Fish Kingdom, that englobes pretty much all the oceanic species except the mammals. My thread
Red Tide > Fish.
Posted: 2003-05-02 08:44pm
by irishmick79
You can't trace votes back to the people who cast the votes, right? Is this just some sick, underhanded attempt of yours to purge those unfortunate members who don't vote for Olrik in this poll?
Posted: 2003-05-02 08:47pm
by Frank Hipper
Admiral Valdemar wrote:Frank Hipper wrote:Insects. Despite all efforts, we have yet to cause the extinction of a single species of insect.
Nature has though, don't think extinction by man is the key factor.
In determining who's dominant, the fact that we can't wipe out any plays a major roll. And of course, Nature wins EVERY time.
Posted: 2003-05-02 08:47pm
by Colonel Olrik
irishmick79 wrote:You can't trace votes back to the people who cast the votes, right? Is this just some sick, underhanded attempt of yours to purge those unfortunate members who don't vote for Olrik in this poll?
If anyone can do that, is only Mike. I was actually going to put his name, but didn't do it for fear that a reasonable amount of the board would vote for him, in a big session of idolatrism.
Posted: 2003-05-02 08:50pm
by BrYaN19kc
FEAR
INSECTS
ALWAYS
Posted: 2003-05-02 08:52pm
by Alyrium Denryle
The reptiles shall rule all!
Posted: 2003-05-02 08:55pm
by Admiral Valdemar
Frank Hipper wrote:Admiral Valdemar wrote:Frank Hipper wrote:Insects. Despite all efforts, we have yet to cause the extinction of a single species of insect.
Nature has though, don't think extinction by man is the key factor.
In determining who's dominant, the fact that we can't wipe out any plays a major roll. And of course, Nature wins EVERY time.
I beg to differ, mankind is wiping out thousands of species from each kingdom every year, we are actually the single most destructive force species wise other than that giant rock that hit 65 million years ago. This is why, unless we control our insatiable craving for resources, we will lose most of our beneficial species within the next hundred years.
And believe me, as much as some think "screw Nature, what did she do for us?!" let me remind you that without Nature and our biosphere, we aren't going to be doing jack shit.
Posted: 2003-05-02 08:58pm
by Howedar
Microbes by far. It is only their benevolence that keeps the others alive.
Posted: 2003-05-02 09:00pm
by Admiral Valdemar
Howedar wrote:Microbes by far. It is only their benevolence that keeps the others alive.
*Gives Howedar a cookie*
Posted: 2003-05-02 09:03pm
by Alyrium Denryle
I go with reptiles and Amphibians out of principle....
Though the microbes will win in the end.
Posted: 2003-05-02 09:05pm
by Howedar
Admiral Valdemar wrote:Howedar wrote:Microbes by far. It is only their benevolence that keeps the others alive.
*Gives Howedar a cookie*
Not just benevolence actually, but sheer kindness. If every microbe in the world just took a week or two off and sat there dormant, then every large organism would be dead. Digestion is important.
Posted: 2003-05-02 09:06pm
by Admiral Valdemar
Alyrium Denryle wrote:I go with reptiles and Amphibians out of principle....
Though the microbes will win in the end.
Reptiles had their chance, had it not been for that rock I previously mentioned, they could be sitting where you and I are and talking about how mammals could've been here instead.
But they aren't, they are still unique, but so is everything else. Not warm blooded and usually slow to evolve much else, I doubt reptiles, as cool as they are, will outlive others. It was that fact that killed the larger dinosaurs off eventually.
Posted: 2003-05-02 09:08pm
by Alyrium Denryle
That is why I voted for them out of PRINCIPLE.
In RL the microbes do have everything beat.
Posted: 2003-05-02 09:10pm
by Admiral Valdemar
Howedar wrote:Admiral Valdemar wrote:Howedar wrote:Microbes by far. It is only their benevolence that keeps the others alive.
*Gives Howedar a cookie*
Not just benevolence actually, but sheer kindness. If every microbe in the world just took a week or two off and sat there dormant, then every large organism would be dead. Digestion is important.
The amount of symbiotic integration in species is staggering. Hell, the amount of microbes that work for us in industry is amazing, pick up a can of soft-drink or beer and I can guarantee that only the carbonated water and one or two other ingredients aren't made by vats of microscopic organisms.
If they were to suddenly and inexplicably get pissed off at every other species on the planet, there wouldn't be much left this time next year. Infact, it'd make a good book or film provided you hated happy endings.
Posted: 2003-05-02 09:18pm
by Rye
Microbes, easily, if we managed to wipe them out, the dead wouldn't decompose, we'df need to cut everything up and feed it to fish or something.
Plus they outlasted everything else because they're hard bastards.
Posted: 2003-05-02 09:22pm
by Admiral Valdemar
Rye wrote:Microbes, easily, if we managed to wipe them out, the dead wouldn't decompose, we'df need to cut everything up and feed it to fish or something.
Plus they outlasted everything else because they're hard bastards.
I think the fact that your body would function a lot less well in digesting would hit you long before the stench of not-so-well-decaying-bodies did.
Of course the question is asked, how do you stop something that is a real-life nanoplague essentially? Shoot it? Nuke it? Produce another virus or bacteria to counter it? They'll adapt to the strategies that you could use and the others would cause more damage than the problem, there is a reason they still exist with us and as badass as they can be, I'd like to keep them here too.
Posted: 2003-05-02 09:23pm
by Darth Garden Gnome
The platypus. Only because it looks so CRAZY will it survive. Microbes might be tough, but the platypus is just too weird for them. It is composed of...Platyputi ('cause I said so!)...So once the end of the world comes, all that will be left is the mighty platypus, who happened upon their magical ability to breathe in space; thereby becoming the first animals to ever colonize another solar system.
All in days work for these magestic creatures.