Schools of Fish Turning at Same Time

[metaphysics101]

I heard Alex a few times on the podcasts questioning as to how schools of fish know to turn at the same time.
I found the following answers in a few different places:
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"The movement, which confuses predators, happens because fish detect pressure changes in the water. The detection system, called the lateral line, is found along each side of the fish's body. Along the line are clusters of tiny hairs inside cups filled with a jellylike substance. If a fish becomes alarmed and turns sharply, it causes a pressure wave in the water around it. This wave pressure deforms the "jelly" in the lateral line of nearby fish. This moves the hairs which trigger nerves, and a signal is sent to the brain telling the fish to turn
Read more: http://www.answers.com/topic/how-do-fish-swimming-in-a-school-change-their-direction-simultaneously-science#ixzz1ubm9R9w9"
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So I guess in this case it has nothing to do with some type of conscious awareness or telepathy. Of course this doesn't explain how flocks of birds know who to turn at the same exact time however. Now sure what the answer for that one is.

[Paul C. Anagnostopoulos]

The Straight Dope: How does a flock of birds wheel and swoop in unison?

The trick with fast wheeling is to anticipate the maneuver before the wave reaches you.

Flocking (behavior) - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

~~ Paul

[metaphysics101]

Thanks paul, of course I guess we don't really know if the reasons presented in those links are true or not or are just given because it's the only reasons they can come up with that make sense... Just saying...

[Paul C. Anagnostopoulos]

Originally Posted by metaphysics101

Thanks paul, of course I guess we don't really know if the reasons presented in those links are true or not or are just given because it's the only reasons they can come up with that make sense... Just saying...

Is this your feeling about all of science?

~~ Paul

[porker]

Originally Posted by metaphysics101

Thanks paul, of course I guess we don't really know if the reasons presented in those links are true or not or are just given because it's the only reasons they can come up with that make sense... Just saying...

You are quite right. Rather than accepting blindly cmpletely sensible, testable, modelled, replicated and falsifiable ideas that fit within our existing and robust understanding of the world, we should instead invent an entirely new paradigm.

[really]

Originally Posted by porker

You are quite right. Rather than accepting blindly cmpletely sensible, testable, modelled, replicated and falsifiable ideas that fit within our existing and robust understanding of the world, we should instead invent an entirely new paradigm.

[porker]

snigger

I note that I again seem to have ended a few threads. Is it just me?

[Paul C. Anagnostopoulos]

I think you just came in late on this one.

~~ Paul

[Johann]

Yes, science has found a way to explain those pesky "elliptical" orbits; they're clearly just circles within circles! Look, I have even invented this model which sorta fits; it just needs a bit of adjustment. No need to switch paradigms people. All things in the heavens still move in perfect circles. There's nothing to see here... *whimper*.... go away!

Of course, it would still be premature for those of us with materialist tendencies to celebrate, as a mechanism for swarming, flocking, etc may have already been found in the biophoton field.

A striking example is the measurements on Daphnia [water flea]. Daphnia magna Strauss were put in darkness into water at 81 degrees Celsius within the quartz cuvette of the biophoton measuring equipment. We altered the numbers n of daphnia from 1 to 250, always selecting animals of about equal size. After each alteration the intensity of the biophoton emission was registered. Since every one of the inbred animals emits almost the same intensity, one expects a dependence of biophoton intensity on the number of animals like that displayed in Fig. 10a. After correction for self absorption, it should not significantly deviate from that of Fig. 10a. However, careful measurements showed evidence of the results displayed in Fig. 10b.
The results from the interference patterns of biophotons between the animals under investigation were as expected. There is a tendency for destructive interference resulting in a lower intensity than expected from linear increase. The most efficient destruction of the biophoton field outside of the animals is obtained at about 110 animals, corresponding to the population density of daphnia in free nature. This zone of most efficient destruction according to the energy conservation law is at the same time the zone of the highest efficacy in “storing” light within the animals.
To some extent one is justified in saying that living systems “suck” the light away in order to establish the more sensitive platform of communication. A more detailed description of this phenomenon has been presented elsewhere. Actually, this bicommunication by means of mutual interference of the biophoton field provides necessary information about the equality or difference of species, since similar animals have similar wave patterns. The signal/noise ratio becomes optimized as soon as the wave patterns interfere under maximum destruction between the communicating systems, since every perturbation leads then to an increase (signal) that the connected systems have to become aware of.
This rather ingenious means of biocommunication provides the basis for orientation, swarming, formation, growth, differentiation, and “Gestaltbildung” in every biological system.
On the other hand, as soon as this capacity for coherent superposition of modes of the biophoton field (where longer wavelengths may also be included) breaks down, in the first stage of destruction one expects consequently an increase in biophoton emission (or delayed luminescence) with increasing numbers of living units with a biological population. This was first confirmed by Schamhart and Van Wijk and Scholz et al.

http://www.anatomyfacts.com/research...rtiesBioph.pdf

- Johann

[sparky]

Originally Posted by porker

snigger

I note that I again seem to have ended a few threads. Is it just me?

Maybe , exept ...

Originally Posted by Johann

Yes, science has found a way to explain those pesky "elliptical" orbits; they're clearly just circles within circles! Look, I have even invented this model which sorta fits; it just needs a bit of adjustment. No need to switch paradigms people. All things in the heavens still move in perfect circles. There's nothing to see here... *whimper*.... go away!

Of course, it would still be premature for those of us with materialist tendencies to celebrate, as a mechanism for swarming, flocking, etc may have already been found in the biophoton field.



http://www.anatomyfacts.com/research/PropertiesBioph.pdf

- Johann

... I bet you didn't see this coming.