Questions tagged [biology]
For questions about living things. Does not exclude aliens, but additional information is usually necessary (consider using "xenobiology" instead).
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What evolutionary pressures would lead to Goblins?
A long time ago homo floresiensis split off into two main groups Goblins and Halflings. Now Goblins are an odd little bunch (here's a rough mock up of what a goblin might look like) and I was ...
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Creating a scientifically semi-valid super-soldier, part 4: respiratory system
Previous parts here:
Creating a scientificly semi-valid super-soldier, part 1: Skeleton
Creating a scientificly semi-valid super-soldier, part 2: nervous system
Creating a scientificly semi-valid ...
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How to make chocolate safe for Keidran? (Basically Dog-people)
Backstory (skip if desired)
Let's take our cute and self-conscious protagonist, Jayden! (For the people that read and responded to the post about the genetics behind keidran and the colonization of ...
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What could cause rock formations (small stones, boulders, islands...) to levitate?
You see this in quite a bunch of movies / books (think avatar). What could be a reasoned physical explanation of such phenomenon? Would this explanation impact other things on a planet?
Like most ...
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How would the human body develop under a different gravity?
What would be the effects of high or low gravity on human body development? How would the human body develop under a different gravity? Many science fiction stories explore the idea that people from ...
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How might you detect a "life sign"?
It's a common trope in science-fiction: "scanning for life signs". A few taps on the screen, and you get an instant population count, often with the ability to distinguish species, and even personal ...
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The Centaur--Let's Get Real, Shall We?
Undoubtedly, one of mythology's most iconic creatures is the centaur, a human being with his or her waist glued to the torso of a horse. For this post, we are avoiding the question of how ...
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What's a plausible way for a three biological sexes setup to develop for a dominant intelligent species?
It's easy enough to figure out how a species might evolve a third biological gender in general (e.g. some sort of asexual drones/workers, ala insects).
But what I want to build is a system where the ...
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Would a magic-using society create living batteries?
Postulate
My world has functioning magic which is capable of exerting kinetic effect. (That is, move objects, or generate heat, since "heat" after all is just motion at the atomic level.) It can't ...
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What are the minimum set of physical characteristics to define an Earth like planet?
Introduction
I have a vague notion of building some sort of strategic space game. Similar to other strategic games, locations are assigned value based upon some abstract evaluation. Following in ...
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How would an astronaut conclude he's on Earth, but 600 million years in the future?
Say we have a group of space travelers who have been frozen inside a sleeper ship for an enormous amount of time that left when Earth was recognizable. When they thaw out and reach their destination, ...
user38070
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What would be the possible benefits of pointed ears?
The title fairly well sums up the question. We all know elves have pointed ears. Whether they be LotR style with slight tapers, or full blown foot long impracticalities, all elves have pointed ears.
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How do centaurs get enough calories to live?
This is a partner question to How do centaurs get enough oxygen to run
Centaurs are a common mythological figure, with the body of a man where a horses head would be. They usual exist in a fantasy ...
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How do centaurs get enough oxygen to run
This is a partner question to How do centaurs get enough calories to live?
Centaurs are a common mythological figure, with the body of a man where a horses head would be. They usually exist in ...
- 77.1k
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Is it a forgone conclusion that any exo-bacteria discovered on an alien, albeit Earth-like planet will be deadly to human life?
Would the discovery of alien bacteria found on even an Earth analog planet preclude the possibility of colonization due to the potentially deadly nature of bacterial/viral infections? Put differently, ...
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How can I make a net beneficial genetic trait occur only in a small fraction of the population, sustained?
For a species I am working on, there is a specific genetic trait that I want to introduce into the population. The exact nature of either is not important for the purposes of this question, but the ...
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A Human Hunter with Sonic Powers?
As part of Fortnightly topic challenge #3: Creature Design
I am looking for a realistic way to create a particularly nasty creature.
What I would like:
A creature that is capable of emitting a ...
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Plausibility of the Japanese Nekomimi
So I'm creating a world in which humans have a close sister species very similar to the Japanese Nekomimi seen in anime and manga. Eventually, the humans turn on Nekomimis, perceiving themselves as ...
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Sea creature moving via rotational motions
So we all know that the majority of sea creatures use fins that move either from side to side or up and down to propel themselves.
But our boats don't do that. Our boats use propellers - a rotational ...
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Is non-manmade pandemic a realistic threat to modern first world?
Inspired by this question, and my own answer to it: Avoiding galactic pandemics. World ending pandemics are a common disaster/after-the-end story trope, I'm trying to determine if plausible, and how ...
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Realistic sea humanoids
bucking the trend of mermaids I've decided to take a different approach with my mermaids. A long time ago a group of Australopithecus diverged from us taking to the sea. some characteristics of these ...
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Napalm-Breathing Dragon
The Leopard dragon is one of the fastest and smartest dragons out there. With four eyes, external ears, four legs, two wings, a long tail, and sleek black scales, this dragon is quiet and nearly ...
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Is petrifying vision plausible in an animal?
Note: this question is not a duplicate. The accepted answer to the question "Anatomically correct Medusa" explains the petrifying vision via calcifying toxins spat from the snake hair. This a) wouldn'...
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Can insects evolve their basic anatomy to grow in size?
In my fantasy world, there are several species - both sapient and non-sapient. They all originally evolved from a group of insects that, after millions of years of isolation and no competition, have ...
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Creating a scientifically semi-valid super-soldier, part 5: Heart and circulatory system
Previous parts here:
Creating a scientifically semi-valid super-soldier, part 1: Skeleton
Creating a scientifically semi-valid super-soldier, part 2: nervous system
Creating a scientifically semi-...
- 45.4k
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How would I evolve horns on humans?
How would I change the evolution of humans to result in horns on humans as a result of reproductive fitness, instead of social fitness. Meaning, NEITHER "Horns are sexy", or some strange infection.
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Figuring Out Giganto
Okay, so one of my monsters is a dinosaur called a Giganto, a Gigantosaurus mutated by Chaos Energy (more on that here). Like all my monsters, Gigantos have an Enchantment granted to whatever kills ...
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Would a 'World Tree' be feasible in real life?
A livescience.com article claims that trees can reach a theoretical height of 400 to 426 feet (122 to 130m). This is due to the tree being unable to carry water up to the top at that certain point due ...
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How does the Booze-Rat fuel its defensive mechanism?
Of all the creatures in Hatjörn's dominion, there is none as peculiar as the Murinae Spirita, the mean booze-rat. A vermin so resilient that has developed the most wondrous means of defence and thus ...
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Would charging unicorns survive the impact with a line of infantry?
The unicorns would be used to charge a line of infantry with their horn. They are as big as a horse and the horn is similar to this image:
The infantry is a standard medieval army made mostly of ...
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Lifeform - resistant to gunfire but vulnerable to melee
Is there a plausible makeup for a lifeform which is highly resistant to even very advanced firearms (or any ranged weaponry for that matter), but can be injured more readily (albeit still a major feat)...
user6415
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What would a planet spinning fast enough to allow geostationary orbit near the surface look like?
From an answer to a previous question of mine:
A planet spinning fast enough to allow geostationary orbit near the surface would result in odd side effects. Any object at rest on the equator would ...
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How could we time travel backwards without killing everyone with germs from the future?
Consider a world in which time travel has been made viable possibility. Initially, many are ecstatic at the new technology and the knowledge it will unlock. However, biologists and other scientists ...
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How could I scientifically explain ice breath?
I'm sure there have been questions on here about fire-breathing dragons, and I recently saw a question about a lightning-breathing dragon, but back in fifth grade I wrote a 150-page story about a ...
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Would armour made of spider silk work?
Would it be possible to use spider silk for armour, instead of metal?
I am not worried about how to obtain the silk. I know that spiders are not domesticable and that they are too aggressive to each ...
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Dietary Requirements of Giant Spiders
Giant Spiders are a traditional element of fantasy worlds. They prey upon most human's primal fears, and are easy to make as evil as possible.
(Note: Not to scale)
But are they actually plausible? ...
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How would tattoos fare on reptilian scales?
In a world with humanized (or at least tool using) reptiles, how long would a tattoo be able to last on the scales? Would the tools need to be much different than what we use today?
Would it be ...
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How would giant, secluded, underground-cave-dwelling insects get enough food?
In my world, there are underground ruins from an ancient civilization. There are giant insect creatures living in these underground cave-like ruins, ranging from the size of a large dog to the size of ...
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Could a human survive 5Gs for about two days using existing or near future technology?
For purposes of this question, assume whichever body position and/or axis of acceleration is most likely to provide a successful outcome. And if it is not possible at all, what is the maximum length ...
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Dragons that eat gems—digestion
Heads up—this is a pretty gross question.
The dragons in this world are not reptilian, but rather resemble huge borzois. I've not sure how large I want them to be yet, but they are capable of mining/...
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Humans as batteries; how useful would they be?
If you were to hook up a human being to a sort of syringe sized water wheel to generate power using the force of their blood flow; how much power could they generate?
Consider a human in a medically ...
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How could a sentient plant evolve and what conditions would be required for this evolution?
This is my entry for the fortnightly topic challenge
In Day of the Triffids, many people go blind and the basic summary is this:
virulent plague makes most of humanity blind
giant, semi-intelligent ...
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Could a human baby develop and grow into an adult under constant 3-4G?
Would that even be possible? Will the bones deform during early infancy? Will the cartilages between joints wear off faster? Will internal organs collapse under their own weight? I have no ...
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What would a habitable moon most probably look like?
We have a pretty good idea of what attributes a planet would need to sustain life and one can imagine how life might develop on a planet, even in difficult environments.
I find it extremely difficult ...
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How do I stop Bob the gigantic animal from overheating?
Specifically: what are some biological structures that could help subvert the square-cube law's effects on animal overheating?
Bob is a really, really big land-based ambush predator that's normally ...
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What is plausible biology of ocean-dwelling, tool-using, intelligent creatures?
I want to develop a water-dwelling, intelligent species that could ultimately reach space.1 My question here is about the biology of such creatures.
I want my creatures to live in the water, not ...
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How to make a viable flying mount?
In the real world, humans have tamed horses and use them as mounts. Horses have very specific characteristics that make them a viable mount, such as size, back-strength, stamina, diet, behavior, etc. ...
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The Physiology of people living on a world with 9 year days
I have a world with days lasting 9 years. The inhabitants of this world have taken to migrating across the globe to avoid the deadly night, keeping themselves in a sweet spot. One of the biological ...
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Is it possible for complex life to evolve on planets without oxygen?
*By complex life, I mean something more complex than microorganisms. Something closer to what we have on Earth.
Similar to this question: Is it possible for life to evolve on planets without water?
...
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How much blood does a vampire need?
Assuming that a vampire expends as much energy as a human of similar size how much blood would they need to consume a day?
My naive estimate is 2500 calories a day, there are (apparently) about 9 ...
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