Finally: An Answer

[rinue]

In the obscure comic book "Just A Pilgrim," a bunch of cowboys have a showdown with flying mutant sharks bred in the Marianas Trench, the lowest altitude on Earth. It should be noted that these sharks are in league with horribly disfigured jellyfish which have developed the ability to consume and then impersonate any scientists working for the good of humanity. Of course, this is precisely the sort of behavior one expects in a post-apocalyptic world where the environment has burned away and bands of ruffians roam the sea-floor looking for some remnant of civilization.

I mention this because it clears up a long-held series of questions that goes something like this:

-Is it true that if sharks stop swimming, even for a second, they die?
-No. While it's correct that sharks do not have the swimming bladders common to many aquatic creatures, this only means they sink to the bottom of the ocean floor until they resume motion.
-Hey, so what happens if a shark goes to sleep above the Marianas Trench?

Apparently, that shark grows lungs and wings and fights with gruff Clint-Eastwood lookalikes. Now we know, and just in the nick of time. God bless the great intellectual minds of science fiction.

Comments

Miss Biology at your Service

[swimcoyote.livejournal.com]

It is true that sharks do not have bladders like most fish. Some species depend entirely on their forward motion to keep fresh water moving over their gills. These species can stop moving for short periods of time (like you holding your breath for a few minutes), but the longest they can last is a few hours. That's where the myth came from that all sharks must constantly move.

So if a shark falls into the Mariana Trench and develops lungs, is it still really a shark?

Have fun.
Coyote.

Where are the Cows?

[rhys-k.livejournal.com]

Okay... that answers a few things that have been plaguing my mind for a few years. But if these mutant sharks are bred to fight Cowboys, then it stands to reason that these cowboys have something the jellyfish/scientists want. And if they are cowboys, then it also stands to reason that in this post-apocalyptic world cows have also survived. So then my question is... where did Jellyfish acquire a taste for cow flesh? And where are all the cows?
-Jesse