Aliens in our Midst

Well, sort of. Ready for the new SETI blog here at Scienceblogs? They launched today.

I don't know if we have to look to the skies to find aliens. We've got some pretty strange terrestrial life around here:

(via @sfriedscientist of Southern Fried Science)

More like this

When I see the patterns a cuttlefish can create and the shapes a mimic octopus can achieve, it makes me want to teach these animals stupid tricks.

Can a mimic octopus raised in a lab imitate a human face? I believe they're endangered and a bit hard to find (haha) so I don't think we'll be seeing that anytime soon.

But why hasn't anyone tried to trick a cuttlefish or octopus of some kind into showing artificial-looking patterns? I'm sure there's limitations - no convincing right angles to be had perhaps. But I can't be the only person that's thinking like this.

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By CS Shelton (not verified) on 23 Jun 2010 #permalink