Questions tagged [life]
For questions about the characteristics of living beings in different settings. This tag is not for questions about the daily life of characters.
113
questions
2
votes
1answer
48 views
Could complex Precambrian life be possible?
I have a really good question. Could it be possible for complex life to have existed in the Precambrian? I’m aware that only the fossilized remains of bacteria have been discovered from that time ...
0
votes
0answers
42 views
How would planet Earth reason with people? [closed]
Let's say that...Planet Earth has a soul, and is a little more than a fat rock floating in space. And that around the begining of the carboniferous period, Earth was very curious to know what this ...
4
votes
3answers
713 views
Would scanning solar systems/planets for carbon concentrations be a viable way to search for alien life?
Working on a story about a crew of astronauts on a mission searching for evidence of alien life, either still living or long extinct. Not a biologist or chemist, but from my elementary understanding I ...
2
votes
2answers
88 views
How to plausibly reanimate a person?
What hypothetical scientific procedure could be used to reanimate someone who is brain dead. I am aware that it is possible to bring someone back if they are clinically dead which is where a vital ...
4
votes
2answers
123 views
Bending bones like metal bars
Any person who was once a stupid teen knows how it feels to break a bone and be stupid enough to pretend like nothing happened to hide the injury for weeks on end until their parents notice.... It is ...
1
vote
1answer
75 views
Lifespan of Plutonians [closed]
Honestly, I think my questions about a fictional Pluto are by far the interesting to me, so I have another question.
Now that I’ve got my humanoids pinned down, and what protects them from the cold, ...
2
votes
5answers
167 views
In what way would a regenerating undead be “undead”?
We all know an undead is a reanimated corpse, something rotten and decomposing yet still animated. Normally an undead (if made of flesh) will have an expiration date after which it won't be able to ...
9
votes
2answers
128 views
Could life generate twice on a planet using slightly different materials?
Extremely low possibility, but if life synthesizes from scratch after life has existed on a planet for a few million years, would the two separate lineages be able to co-exist?
15
votes
12answers
3k views
Habitable Planet with Highly Eliptical Orbit
Would it be possible for life to develop on a planet with a highly elliptical orbit? (Similar to a comet, but possibly less extreme.) If so, what conditions would be necessary and what would the life ...
8
votes
2answers
1k views
Could bacteria survive on a star?
If the right requirements are met, could bacteria survive on the Sun?
The bacteria would spend most of their time in hibernation and reproducing, and when the time comes, they spread out on plasma ...
5
votes
3answers
192 views
Living machines. At which point can machines be considered a life form or organic?
I found this definition of life. Life is a thing that can adapt to its environment, grow and replicate. But mechanical, electrical, and electro-mechanical machines are never called alive.
People ...
-1
votes
2answers
156 views
What would life be if humans had a healing factor? [closed]
The main premise is that since homo sapiens evolved, humanity has possessed a healing factor similar to wolverine, but lesser.
How would modern-day life be different?
1
vote
1answer
68 views
I'm building a fantasy world with three large moons and orbiting a distant sun. I need help with the following: [closed]
1 - What might the days and nights be like, in terms of comparative temperatures and length, with three moons gravity and a massive orbit?
1
vote
3answers
168 views
Reason/Mechanism for seemingly randomly lengthened lifespans in characters in a roughly viking-age world [closed]
So here's the deal. I'm working with the idea that in my world, people can have very different lifespans. Most people live a normal lifespan - the book is set in a fantasy world roughly equivalent to ...
5
votes
1answer
135 views
Plausibility of Hexapodal Aerial Megafauna
How plausible is a six-limbed flying animal roughly the size of hatzegopteryx to be aerial? In this case, an aerial animal will be defined as a creature that solely inhabits the sky. I will call the ...
2
votes
2answers
124 views
How long until land life can return after the impact?
So, it finally happened. The Earth was hit by a comet, and anyone outside of a research station at the bottom of the Atlantic is now dead, or dying. So, here's what we need to know:
How big would a ...
6
votes
2answers
189 views
Hanging World - Trees
Scenario
A civilization is living on an ancient super structure, they don't know much about it, they just live there and have lived there for as long as they know. For our current situation we can ...
6
votes
1answer
96 views
Environment/Ecosystem for a “Sunfall” colony
I've read a lot of posts about moons around large gas giants and I think I have fairly good idea about basics to them. I'm not super great with all the science parts myself but they give me lots of ...
7
votes
2answers
263 views
If humans evolved on Mars instead of Earth, how quickly would we have detected life on Earth?
Suppose that both Earth and Mars was booming with life in a similar way. Except that, on Earth, there was no hominid family, and no humans evolved. Instead, humans evolved on Mars.
Assuming we had ...
4
votes
2answers
294 views
How Would Ammonia-Based Life Evolve? [closed]
EDIT:
The planet/moon has a high mass, and has a similar atmosphere to Jupiter or Saturn. These organisms will be silicon-ammonia based, and breathe hydrogen. There will be very little oxygen in the ...
7
votes
5answers
187 views
Adapting to a sonic world
A planet much like Earth orbits a star much like the Sun, but with one difference: the energy from the star is magically transformed into sound within the planet's atmosphere. There is no longer ...
10
votes
2answers
160 views
Algae using UV light from auroras for photosynthesis
I was reading some questions on Quora and I found this claim:
The polar regions have a very odd reason for them to have so much oxygen production. You see the Polar aurora run day and night in the ...
6
votes
5answers
166 views
Planetary neighbors
Let's say there is another planet in our solar system that harbours sentient life and this sentient life can build castles, buildings, and other such structures.
When would we notice that?
We can ...
4
votes
1answer
130 views
How much of our solar system can you change without breaking the science of life on earth? [closed]
I am making a near-future setting that takes place in an alternate solar system that's similar to ours (one planet with life, a moon, and other planets without life and their associated moons).
And ...
3
votes
3answers
142 views
Planet with two independent forms of life? [duplicate]
Suppose there is a planet fertilized with Earth-like life (characterized by proteins, nucleic acids, DNA, RNA) and a completely independent form of life, but also water and carbon based with different ...
4
votes
2answers
191 views
Born and raised on a world with longer days and years - would it impact life expectancy
If humans found a habitable world and access to it, what would the effects be of a longer day to those who were subsequently born and raised there?
Is there any evidence that a longer day cycle (of ...
6
votes
1answer
185 views
How could a foam habitat support animal life?
Knowing foam is formed by trapping pockets of gas in a liquid or solid, what could a foam able to support life on an earth-like planet be made of?
This foam ought to be stable enough and large enough ...
2
votes
6answers
205 views
Life on land, sea, and what else? [closed]
On earth there are two main media that support complex animal life. One is the sea, with creatures living both on the seabed and the water; Another is the land, with animals that live both on it and ...
9
votes
3answers
697 views
Appropriate liquid/solvent for life in my underground environment on Venus
Partly inspired by this question
My Venusians are happy in their cloud top city when a small group somehow (with lots of handwaving) crashes to the surface, falls underground, and ends up in a hidden ...
24
votes
13answers
5k views
How would fantasy dwarves exist, realistically? [duplicate]
I've never ever seen even a suggestion of an idea of how dwarves actually can live how they are most often depicted - underground without handwaving or magic (which is just a fancy word for "...
4
votes
1answer
148 views
Would life be possible on a planet that has an axis of rotation that always “pointed” directly at the sun? [duplicate]
Preface: I'll be calling call the orbit described in the question title a "solar-oriented orbit" for the sake of convenience, as "a planet that has an axis of rotation that always pointed directly at ...
3
votes
9answers
1k views
Realistic Necromancy? [closed]
In my fantasy world, necromancy exists and it is considered "evil". I try to base my world on science, so how would realistic necromancy work? Dead bodies decompose fast, and souls don't exist in my ...
3
votes
7answers
754 views
What items from the Roman-age tech-level could be used to deter all creatures from entering a small area?
Please assume the following:
There is a item on the ground and I want nothing but bare earth touching it.
I cannot move the item myself.
The item is impervious to fire.
I cannot afford to guard ...
11
votes
10answers
6k views
Is there enough fresh water in the world to eradicate the drinking water crisis?
Lets assume, by the means of some advanced scientific discovery, scientists find a way to teleport simple matter to any part of the world and use this process to teleport fresh water and/or small ...
1
vote
6answers
280 views
How can one manipulate elementary particles to make a person live forever?
Assuming that a person has the power to manipulate all elementary particles in any way (i.e. changing them from one elementary particle to another, nuclear transmutation, moving groups of them at a ...
2
votes
1answer
154 views
Life evolving on a artificial Floating Island on a ocean world [closed]
I'm having troubles with developing my ocean world. Same size as Earth, same atmosphere and gravity.
The idea is that on a planet with an endless ocean with no continental landmass.
The only form of ...
-1
votes
2answers
125 views
How would gravity affect a torus-shaped planet? [duplicate]
My planet is a Super Earth about twice the mass of Earth. I'm not asking how it formed, although that would be nice to know. I mostly just want to know how long it would stay a torus shape, and how it ...
4
votes
2answers
166 views
Could fruit (specifically oranges) evolve into intelligent life? [closed]
Is it possible for oranges to become intelligent life while still retaining some of their essential qualities such as skin that can neatly be peeled off and reproduction through seeds and growth off ...
5
votes
3answers
221 views
How would a world evolve with regular blizzards? [closed]
Imagine there are severe magical blizzards coming from the south pole at regular intervals.
Since they're magical, let's assume they can cross the equator and don't lose strength over time.
They are ...
2
votes
2answers
181 views
How long a human being could live with stem cells?
I once saw an experiment with mice, where they connected the bloodstream of a younger mouse to the bloodstream of an older mouse. And the older mouse became "younger", or at least healthier.
If I ...
7
votes
3answers
2k views
Life on a gas giant?
I know of the conceptualized "Sinkers", "Floaters" and "Hunters" that Carl Sagan and Edwin Salpeter of Cornell conceived of - as possible life forms that might inhabit a gas giant. At the time they ...
5
votes
1answer
755 views
Iron based life
Lately I have been thinking about possible forms of life on planets that would have radically different experiences than here on Earth. I was wondering if life based on transition metals was possible ...
18
votes
5answers
2k views
Would carbon-based lifeforms be able to eat silicon-based lifeforms?
In the South Galaxy, the overwhelming majority of life lives on planets, breathes air, and is carbon-based. All sentient life is carbon-based. However, in the vast reaches of space, there are some ...
6
votes
2answers
422 views
Planet Orbiting a Red Dwarf
I'm trying to create my planet orbiting a red dwarf, honestly I've thought other scenarios but it's like every answer opens new questions. I'll just say what I want my planet to be and I'd like your ...
3
votes
4answers
221 views
Can I make the carbon cycle shorter - by metamorphosis from plant to animal and vice-versa
EDITED to address the above suggestion. See below.
Most animals breathe in oxygen and breathe out carbon-dioxide.
Most plants take in carbon-dioxide and release oxygen.
Waste products from animals ...
4
votes
2answers
112 views
Planet Blob - variable gravity
On the planet Blob there is an unusual phenomenon. It is known to emanate from the planet's core but 2018-level scientists have no understanding of it.
The phenomenon
Gravity isn't constant. It ...
9
votes
1answer
3k views
What amount of forrest-fire in square km or metric tons, would be necesary to bring oxygen levels below 19.5% that humans require to stay alive? [closed]
I read that oxygen makes up 21% of the Earth's atmosphere. I'm guessing it would take a lot of burning to decrease that level, but I am not sure how to calculate that.
The problem is: Roughly 400 ...
2
votes
6answers
4k views
If humans were biologically immortal, but had an average lifespan of 100 years, what would the distribution of ages be?
Let's say that humans were biologically immortal. Once they reach adulthood, they effectively stop aging. Due to disease though, the average lifespan is 100 years. (In practice, your access to ...
3
votes
1answer
146 views
Could this moon of a gas giant orbiting a neutron star support life?
Making the following assumptions:
1. The three moons of the Gas Giant are safe enough distances from and massive enough not to pull each other apart or send themselves careening into the void.
2. ...
1
vote
2answers
227 views
What would happen to us if animals, excluding human being, were mute? [closed]
Most of us live in big cities where we hear unnatural (mostly unpleasant) sounds, created by things we've made ourselves. We hear less natural sounds like birds' songs or other animals making sounds, ...
