I did this session in my backyard with my youngest son, right around twilight. The air was warm and humid and there was a lot of life around us. A small rabbit made its escape as we approached it. It seems to prefer our weed-filled lawn to the "greener" ones around us that has no weeds! We heard and saw a couple of big brown bats (I think that is the kind they were) flying around hunting for insects, but our main goal was to look at the fireflies and maybe catch one for further inspection. This proved to be fairly easy, and we held one of them in a glass jar for a while before releasing it. Unfortunately I did not get a good picture of it, but this one looks a lot like it:
The fireflies reflect a lot of life´s principles in their design.
1. Resourceful and opportunistic
Their light is among the cleanest light sources on earth, emitting almost 100% clean light, with no energy lost in unnecessary heat production.
2. Feedback loops (antenna, signal, response)
The flashing light communication between females in the grass and males in the air is a good example of this life´s principle. They communicate their willingness to mate to each other. Each species of firefly emits a specific wavelength of light unique to that species.
3. Feedback loops (learns and imitates)
Some fireflies have learned to imitate the mating signal of some firefly species to lure other species closer, but rather than mating, they become prey!
4. Using multifunctional design
Besides using the light as mating signal and imitation to lure prey, the light also serves the function of deterring predators. The Fireflies are filled with a chemical called lucibufagins, which makes them taste awful. The predators learn to associate the flashing light with this taste, which keeps them from trying to feed on the fireflies.
Whether the bats were feeding on the fireflies last night I am not sure, but there was a lot of activity going on from both the fireflies and the bats. Sometimes it is very cool to experience nature´s action going on right outside your door.
IMAGINE:
The species-specific mating signalling between the fireflies made me think of different areas where this could be used. Most obvious thought, of course is to think of human "mating", but I believe a similar techniques for filtering candidates to match your specific type, is already being used by various dating sites!
Another area I thought of was grocery shopping. What if the cart, or the aisles, or the markings on the products knew my preferences when I was shopping. Imagine shopping in a store where all the products you are interested in "light up" (maybe you wear electronic glasses, that communicate with markings on the products): "gluten free", "organic", "no garlic", "anything with artichokes", "whole wheat bread", "no artificial flavors or colors" etc. This is already widely used in online shopping (i.e. Amazon).
That would make my life easier, and probably my diet a little healthier!
/Christian
1. Resourceful and opportunistic
Their light is among the cleanest light sources on earth, emitting almost 100% clean light, with no energy lost in unnecessary heat production.
2. Feedback loops (antenna, signal, response)
The flashing light communication between females in the grass and males in the air is a good example of this life´s principle. They communicate their willingness to mate to each other. Each species of firefly emits a specific wavelength of light unique to that species.
3. Feedback loops (learns and imitates)
Some fireflies have learned to imitate the mating signal of some firefly species to lure other species closer, but rather than mating, they become prey!
4. Using multifunctional design
Besides using the light as mating signal and imitation to lure prey, the light also serves the function of deterring predators. The Fireflies are filled with a chemical called lucibufagins, which makes them taste awful. The predators learn to associate the flashing light with this taste, which keeps them from trying to feed on the fireflies.
Whether the bats were feeding on the fireflies last night I am not sure, but there was a lot of activity going on from both the fireflies and the bats. Sometimes it is very cool to experience nature´s action going on right outside your door.
IMAGINE:
The species-specific mating signalling between the fireflies made me think of different areas where this could be used. Most obvious thought, of course is to think of human "mating", but I believe a similar techniques for filtering candidates to match your specific type, is already being used by various dating sites!
Another area I thought of was grocery shopping. What if the cart, or the aisles, or the markings on the products knew my preferences when I was shopping. Imagine shopping in a store where all the products you are interested in "light up" (maybe you wear electronic glasses, that communicate with markings on the products): "gluten free", "organic", "no garlic", "anything with artichokes", "whole wheat bread", "no artificial flavors or colors" etc. This is already widely used in online shopping (i.e. Amazon).
That would make my life easier, and probably my diet a little healthier!
/Christian