this post was submitted on 07 Oct 2024
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Science Memes

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[–] over_clox 134 points 3 months ago (6 children)

Did they study the paint chemicals themselves to see if that by itself was a natural bug repellant?

Did they check if the paint chemicals are even safe for cows?

πŸ€”

[–] essteeyou 62 points 3 months ago (1 children)

What if it's just the white stripes (not the band)? Do white cows have the same number of flies? What if you paint them with black stripes?

Maybe those are answered in the article, but I'll never read it.

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[–] [email protected] 52 points 3 months ago (3 children)

Yes. They had a control group with only black stripes along with an unpainted group. I would have to assume they also checked the paints for potential repellents, but I only skimmed the article.

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6776349/

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[–] SmoothLiquidation 39 points 3 months ago (6 children)

I haven’t read the study, but most of these would need a placebo group, so divide the herd into thirds, one with no paint, one with stripes, and one fully painted white to get a baseline for each group. Also would be good to randomize which group each cow goes in each day so to rule out one cow who is especially tasty to flies.

[–] [email protected] 21 points 3 months ago

Also blindfold the scientists and the cows so it's double blind. We don't want the cows acting in a fly-attracting way because of placebo.

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[–] Semi_Hemi_Demigod 9 points 3 months ago (4 children)

I've not seen the study referenced, but if I were doing it I'd have cows I painted with white paint, white stripes, black paint, and a control I left unpainted.

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[–] [email protected] 8 points 3 months ago (1 children)

A control group where they mix the colors together and paint them grey would answer that

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[–] StaticFalconar 6 points 3 months ago

What if you actually read the study before asking questions πŸ˜…πŸ˜œπŸ€”

[–] wolfpack86 97 points 3 months ago (1 children)

Tha smartest mother fucker in the room

[–] LordWiggle 13 points 3 months ago (3 children)

What is the burger tie for? To repel hippies?

[–] chonglibloodsport 12 points 3 months ago (2 children)

No it’s to wipe the sauce off his chin after finishing a burger!

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[–] [email protected] 6 points 3 months ago* (last edited 3 months ago) (2 children)

What is America known for? Burgers and prisons

Little kids think haha funny burgler, adults shudder and cry

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[–] wieson 81 points 3 months ago

In the cited study with buckets, it was shown that striped and spotted surfaces attract fewer flies.

That makes me think if Nguni cattle Nguni cattle have an easier time with those pests.

If yes, that would be another plus for hardy landraces in place of overengineered, capitalmaxxed breeds.

[–] Holyhandgrenade 68 points 3 months ago
[–] [email protected] 48 points 3 months ago* (last edited 3 months ago)

So, I was able to convince a coworker that I had a friend who worked at our nearby zoo, and that my friend let me in on the secret that zebras aren't real, they're just horses painted to look like that, "big zoo is lying to us to get our money," you know.

Well, long story short I'm gonna need to steal this image from you and crop it, thanks.

[–] ummthatguy 39 points 3 months ago (2 children)

Good for their physical health, but not great for their personal goals and expectations.

[–] [email protected] 12 points 3 months ago (1 children)

Yup. Large creatures knows better than to wear stripes.

[–] ummthatguy 50 points 3 months ago (3 children)

Oh, I was thinking more along the lines of any aspirations to not be a cow.

[–] TheTechnician27 11 points 3 months ago

My Chemilkal Romance

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[–] LordWiggle 39 points 3 months ago (3 children)

I'm going on holiday to Cambodia in February. Guess I'll bring my body paint supplies and run around in war stripes over my body.

[–] [email protected] 11 points 3 months ago (2 children)

now that the song is playing forcefully in my brain i'm going to make you suffer with me

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-KTsXHXMkJA

[–] roguetrick 5 points 3 months ago

Don't forget to pack a wife.

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[–] [email protected] 28 points 3 months ago
[–] [email protected] 27 points 3 months ago (2 children)

Why has evolution let these cows down?

[–] InverseParallax 54 points 3 months ago (1 children)

I mean, we kind of hijacked evolution in favor of hypergrowth and ludicrous gazongas a long time ago.

[–] [email protected] 15 points 3 months ago* (last edited 3 months ago)

Hippity, hoppity. Your natural selection is now my property!

[–] [email protected] 6 points 3 months ago* (last edited 3 months ago) (1 children)

In most places flies are more nuisances than actual threats to large mammals. But then, there are the tsΓ©-tsΓ© flies...

[Edit : Had previously written "horses" instead of "flies" by accident]

[–] fubars 5 points 3 months ago (1 children)

tse-tse horses would be terrifying.

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[–] HootinNHollerin 23 points 3 months ago (2 children)

Reminds me of a donkey I saw in Mexico painted like a zebra trying to trick tourists

[–] [email protected] 43 points 3 months ago (1 children)

Sure, but there's also the secondary market of people who think it's hilarious to get a photo with a donkey painted like a zebra to trick tourists. Lean into it a bit, like wrestling, it could be fun.

[–] HootinNHollerin 17 points 3 months ago

After 10 Pacificos I will in fact be leaning

[–] Cort 20 points 3 months ago (1 children)

This is no donkey painted like a zebra, it's a majestic hybrid zonkey. Just 5 dollars to take a photo, or 3 for $10.

[–] HootinNHollerin 9 points 3 months ago (1 children)

I’ll come back after 10 Pacificos

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[–] gmtom 23 points 3 months ago

I'm about to start dressing like beetlejuice

[–] [email protected] 18 points 3 months ago

If they figure out if it's the white stripes or black stripes that do the trick they could reach 100%.

[–] bi_tux 13 points 3 months ago (1 children)

I first read function as in mathemetical function, now I wonder, what the avarege zebras stripes function is

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[–] [email protected] 12 points 3 months ago

Some horse fly blankets and hoods have a zebra pattern, probably for the same reason.

[–] [email protected] 11 points 3 months ago (1 children)

That's where Hershey's Cookies and Cream chocolate bars are from!

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[–] [email protected] 11 points 3 months ago
[–] Retrograde 10 points 3 months ago

What if the flies just hated the smell of the paint lol

[–] [email protected] 8 points 3 months ago* (last edited 3 months ago)

If you say Beeflejuice three times....

[–] pjwestin 6 points 3 months ago

Interesting. A while ago, I read that zebra stripes were meant to confuse predators. Basically, the idea was that when they ran as a herd, their stripes made it difficult to tell where one zebra ended and the other began. I wonder if that's considered bunk now or if this is supposed to be an additional benefit.

[–] [email protected] 5 points 3 months ago
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