So, two different species of octopus have now been observed walking on two legs

[xiphias]

Researchers are CLAIMING that this is merely a way for them to maintain camoflauge as, respectively, a floating coconut and a clump of algae, while still managing to sidle away from predators.

But see, what I percieve is that this leaves six limbs free for tool use. . .

And I, for one, WELCOME our new octopod overlords.

Comments

[vvalkyri.livejournal.com]

then there's the octopus who learned to get out of the tank in order to go into other tanks for snacks. Ask badmagic.

[the-editor.livejournal.com]

octopi are amazingly smart....
I saw a documentary where one learned to open a twist off lid on a jar with some sort of favorite food in it.

I think they may have a capacity for serious reasoning... maybe even smarter than parrots...
or floridians..

[vvalkyri.livejournal.com]

wow.

[mattblum.livejournal.com]

Hey, as long as they haven't figured out how to get out of the water and still taste good in sushi, I'm not scared.

[merlinpole.livejournal.com]

The 11 PM news commentator on Boston's WCVB Channel 5 mentioned that the other six legs could be used for looking like a coconut or imitating weather forecasters who predicted a foot of snow when the actual amount turned out to be two or three inches.... (alluding to the predicted snowstorm that dumped snow on the ground 24 hours before and then nearly all of which was melted by the middle of Thursday.

Jerome Lettvin who taught at MIT for many years, was of the opinion that very large squid and octopus are sophonts, and I think wrote about in one of his books, that has a title that include "the Shield of Pallas Athena" --it's one of the books that someday I mean to track down a copy of....

[copperpoint.livejournal.com]

I've already got their insignia tattooed on my arm.

[rmjwell.livejournal.com]

Now we just need to find them an octopod engenue or two.

Bonus points if you know the song lyric where "octopod engenue" appears.

Overlords!

[ailbhe]

Whee! Thank you darlin' for the best laugh of the day! I feel so good now.

Maybe they'll finally make me clean up my house.

A.

[lietya.livejournal.com]

That's pretty neat!

[navrins]

And I, for one, WELCOME our new octopod overlords.

Considering the current alternative...

[rosefox]

Link?

[cheshyre]

UC Berkeley press release (includes Quicktime films): http://www.berkeley.edu/news/media/releases/2005/03/24_octopus.shtml

Otherwise, I found a whole buncha articles on Google News: http://news.google.com/news?ie=UTF-8&q=octopus+algae+coconut

[rosefox]

That video made my day. Thank you!

[theletterelle.livejournal.com]

That is the first good laugh I've had in a month. Thank you.

[beardedone.livejournal.com]

All hail Cthulhu!!!