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Wednesday, July 1, 2009

Science News From the Animal Kingdom

Posted by Charles Mudede on Wed, Jul 1, 2009 at 2:58 PM

The globalization of Argentine ants: cb3a/1246484171-3055479103_6558fd75fb-2.jpg

A single mega-colony of ants has colonised much of the world, scientists have discovered.

Argentine ants living in vast numbers across Europe, the US and Japan belong to the same interrelated colony, and will refuse to fight one another.

The colony may be the largest of its type ever known for any insect species, and could rival humans in the scale of its world domination...

...While ants are usually highly territorial, those living within each super-colony are tolerant of one another, even if they live tens or hundreds of kilometres apart. Each super-colony, however, was thought to be quite distinct.

But it now appears that billions of Argentine ants around the world all actually belong to one single global mega-colony.

The more I read about ants, the more I think about Hegel. If the first chapters of Logic explain the existential situation of ants, then the last chapters of Phenomenology explain their domination of the world.

This post owes everything to Melanie, and the image of the ants owes everything to Matthew Townsend.

Comments (12) RSS

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Charles, not everybody has read Hegel. Or cares to.

If the only thing you could come up with on this topic is that it reminds you of Hegel, perhaps you should have picked another topic.

Or at least paraphrased Hegel so you could make a point.

Posted by Ackham on July 1, 2009 at 2:58 PM

Yeah Charles, this has been known for 7 or 8 years*, and still continues to have nothing to do with Hegel.

*http://www3.interscience.wiley.com/journ…
http://www.pnas.org/content/99/9/6075.ab…

Posted by anarchy burger on July 1, 2009 at 3:35 PM

Sweetie, the more you read the backs of cereal boxes, the more you think of Hegel.

Posted by merry on July 1, 2009 at 3:42 PM

I wonder why humans aren't all part of the same mega-colony.

Posted by pox on July 1, 2009 at 3:51 PM

@4, because we don't have the sense God gave geese, let alone Argentine ants.

Posted by rob!

on July 1, 2009 at 4:28 PM

you can still melt them with a magnifying glass

Posted by Gordon Werner on July 1, 2009 at 4:30 PM

I, for one, welcome our new Formic overlords.

Posted by q on July 1, 2009 at 4:55 PM

Is this you doing a parody of you? Because, if so, nicely done.

Posted by Violet_DaGrinder

on July 1, 2009 at 6:07 PM

CHARLES,

Hegel is BULLSHIT.

Stop saying everything reminds you of Hegel.

Hegel Hegel Hegel.

Hegel.

Posted by douchus on July 1, 2009 at 10:57 PM

When the ants start actively killing larger animals and communicating to us in geometric languages, then I'll be concerned.

Phase IV: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0070531/

Posted by veo_ on July 2, 2009 at 2:14 AM

HOW CANZ POST WIF NO ORIGINAL CONTENTZ OWE TO OTHERS? U MEAN U HAZ ASSIST-ANTS TO FIND U STUFF TO REPOST NOW? NO GETTIN' IT KARLES, BUT HUSTLE WHATEVER.

Posted by LaRiiiiM0RrrHAwtiiii696969