I was typing a blog and firefox crashed.
so I'll summarize the unimportant stuff
I did ok in classes, but I procrastinated too much with reading sci-fi and watching internet television. Also, partying. But I've learned to moderate. Also, work sucks, but the money helps a lot. So I applied for a student chef position to make a little bit more money. It's easier to make friends now, too. Next year I'm moving to another dorm(Manzanita Village) that is closer to school, but has less amenities than FT.
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what I would like to talk about now is my new personal art-project, named Gyre, which is a uncommon word for a spinning or rotating mass, mostly associated with storms or hurricanes. Named after seeing the massive storm encompassing the Eastern Hemisphere as colonists neared the planet.
The project includes: the history of an alien planet colonized by humans; the lives of the people who live there now; the strange flora and fauna of the planet; and the interactions between man and the lifeforms of the Planet.
I know it is strange to say you don't know everything about your creation, but it's true in my case. I want to make my world unique without be ridiculous. I want to emulate various artists in my efforts without resorting to mimicry. The challenge is to identify the successes of the evolution of terrestrial organisms, and to theorize how organisms would develop without those advantages, or if such thing seems impossible, how such adaptations would (or could) evolve differently.
While I do not know a lot about my planet, I can share some of my more interesting ideas right now:
-animals that give birth to stunted, midget clones that serve as bodyguards, lookouts, fodder, and nannies. The clones would be born asexually from both the "male" and "female" (the truth being that their would be no gender between the two, but would compete with each other for the right to be the male) and would be sterile and loyal to their parent. The clones would serve as a herd for the parent.
-dimorphism between the young and adult members of a species which includes predatory young that occasionally feed on the adults of their species.
-males that mate by injecting/shooting females with sharp, projectile sperm-packets. inspired by male squids
-females that grow an extra layer of skin to house their young. Inspired by the Pipa Pipa
-A large brackish sea that has a sub-surface mud-lake with strange (well, stranger) burrowing/aquatic organisms. Think of it as a super-estuary.
-organisms rely on echolocation and smell more than sight. I'm currently at a crossroad: have no eyesight at all, or have it be a reduced and less important organ? I had an idea of lamprey-headed dimorphodon, which would fly in packs, ambush large animals, and bite chunks out of the animal before leaving the crippled animal. I think this would lead to an adaptation of light-(or in this case, shadow) sensitive skin or symbiotic plant (which would be justified by already being present) in order to detect the flying terrors before it is too late.
-colonial jellyfish that collect sand and nutrients of symbiotic plants that ride on top of them, creating actual floating islands. Some would be massive, supporting whole ecosystems on their backs. I am unsure what would happen in case of a storm, so I am doubting the presence of animals that are not adapted to swim or fly away in case of danger.
-the planet itself is not comfortable or suitable for normal humans, the gravity is a little off (unsure if more or less, just different) the atmosphere is more rich in oxygen and carbon dioxide, the air more humid, and the temperature higher. Humanity is sufficiently enough to artificially adapt humanity to this alien world. But the chemistry of the life is different enough so that it is impossible to live permanently off of native Gyre life, so humans have brought farm-animals and food-plants to provide a healthy diet.
-humans look pretty much the same, and can still breed with a normal human if one would be present. Some of the internal organs have been strengthened, especially the heart and lungs. Depending on my final decision on gravity, humans may be taller or stockier than Terran humans.
- also, I think I'll include some theropods (bipeds like t-rex and stuff) because their cool. But if gravity is higher, then it would be more unsafe to be bipedal (you fall harder). But whatever.
- most land organisms have six limbs (hexapods) or are tetrapods with adapted limbs. example of adapted limbs: a predator have adapted fore-limbs to serve as an additional jaw structure or fangs. another: adapted hind-limbs to serve as rear defense or a signaling device.
-(this one is not as fully thought out) animals that squirt an irritating substance out of gaping nostrils, and small birds that drink out of their noses like hummingbirds.
-carnivorous plants, including fanged mats of algae and bird-crushing trees.
-an apparent alien life-form that monitors the planet, and has taken an interest to humans: it would look like a gray, well-muscled ungulate that has a flat head full of different shaped eyes and other organs. There would be no obvious feeding organ. It is ludicrously fast and impossible to catch. If cornered, it has a weapon. . .
-lots of worms and worm-like animals. Also inclusion of a lot of symbiotic worms, which may include horn worms that serve as the teeth and intestines for some organisms.
-animals that have evolved to be like plants; that is, immobile and stunted "animal" using a light-absorbing organ. Nearly all of it internal organs, including brain, would be utterly reduced or absent.
now, for some pictures
I haven't sketched all my ideas yet, but I'll share them as they develop.
Please, please, tell me what you think about my project and my ideas. I really need input for this challenge.
I'll try to update more frequently, but I said that last time, too.
