Excellent piece Michael, loved it. The whole time I was reading, I couldn’t stop thinking about slime moulds! Bizarre pulsating organisms that somehow feel both grotesque and sublime at the same time. They definitely unsettle our classical ideas of the body as fixed and coherent… they ooze (haha intended) between categories of organism and network, intelligence and instinct.. There’s something deeply beautiful to me about forms of life that reveal transformation itself as the natural state of existence ✨
Yes, exactly the direction I'm thinking of. Darwin would have loved slime moulds.
When he was studying in Edinburgh, still a teenager, he studied the flustra, a type of moss animal. They look much like seaweed but consist of tiny animals living in colonies.
Hey thanks @Deer Sabah, very happy you found it inspiring! And yes, let's circle back to the aesthetics of science one way or another, it's a rich field.
Thank you for sharing 💗
Excellent piece Michael, loved it. The whole time I was reading, I couldn’t stop thinking about slime moulds! Bizarre pulsating organisms that somehow feel both grotesque and sublime at the same time. They definitely unsettle our classical ideas of the body as fixed and coherent… they ooze (haha intended) between categories of organism and network, intelligence and instinct.. There’s something deeply beautiful to me about forms of life that reveal transformation itself as the natural state of existence ✨
Yes, exactly the direction I'm thinking of. Darwin would have loved slime moulds.
When he was studying in Edinburgh, still a teenager, he studied the flustra, a type of moss animal. They look much like seaweed but consist of tiny animals living in colonies.
The chapter on corals is still a bit rough around the edges, but you might enjoy it: https://www.darwinswonders.com/p/chapter-3-life-as-a-coral-updated
Interesting, thanks I’ll check it out ✨
Finally got around to reading this. I loved it! It expanded my view of the aesthetics and philosophy of natural science.
Hey thanks @Deer Sabah, very happy you found it inspiring! And yes, let's circle back to the aesthetics of science one way or another, it's a rich field.
Yes, most definitely! I'm rather committed to it. :)