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Ants Know When They're Going to Die

news.independent.co.uk — Researchers recently discovered that ants not only work hard and are prepared to lay down their lives for their fellow ants, they also take bigger risks for the good of the colony as they get older – and they can even assess how much time they have left in life.

Who dugg this? Made popular Oct 31, 2007

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  • Error601, on 11/04/2007, -8/+88About the 5th post with the same false headline. Age based instinctual behavior does not indicated an awareness of mortality.
  • afdlips, on 11/01/2007, -4/+61I wonder what else Dr. Moron knows.
  • kevyn, on 11/05/2007, -9/+66I for one welcome... nevermind.
  • Hobbes24, on 11/01/2007, -3/+59stil can't predict the magnifying glass...
  • inertic, on 11/02/2007, -3/+50And as humans get older, they feel as if the world owes them everything even if it means screwing over future generations.
  • nymphetamine, on 11/01/2007, -1/+35They should've just said Dr. M instead of using his whole last name. The whole time I was reading I kept asking myself if I can really trust what Dr. Moron is saying.
  • kenvsryu, on 11/01/2007, -2/+32As humans get older they tend to drive into busy fruit markets taking out young folks.
  • sockpuppets, on 10/31/2007, -3/+32Alzheimers?
  • sockpuppets, on 10/31/2007, -4/+27The older a human gets the more likely they're to pay in exact change, painstakingly dropping pennies on the checkout counter, thereby disturbing the rest of the hive in line behind them.
  • EvilDr.X, on 11/01/2007, -0/+22I think when you're saddled with a last name like Moron, you kind of have to grow up to be a doctor.
  • staticoranges, on 11/04/2007, -3/+24They know when they see the shadow of a foot hovering above their little bodies.
  • Toshibi, on 10/31/2007, -1/+17I work in a convenience store and person after person will say "Hold on, let me run out to the car and grab the change" while holding a fist full of ones and hold up the line for 5 minutes.

    I CAN MAKE CHANGE FASTER THAN YOU CAN DIG THROUGH YOUR POCKETS!

    /rant
  • phronq, on 11/01/2007, -1/+14Great article. I have to admit that I laughed at "Dr. Moron" though.
  • inactive, on 11/01/2007, -2/+15Well for once babyman might not have just stolen another digger's submission and resubmitted it as his own, relying on his blind fans to ensure it reaches the front page (again).
  • Rickler, on 10/31/2007, -1/+13Haha you're jobless and still live at your parents house.
  • carl25, on 10/31/2007, -4/+16HYPNO TOAD got him
  • asskey, on 11/04/2007, -6/+18Haha you work in a convenience store!
  • bbqsalad, on 11/01/2007, -2/+13My girlfriend wants to have Mr.BabyMans baby.
  • cerealjynx, on 10/31/2007, -1/+11legs, not heads :|
  • draebor, on 11/01/2007, -2/+9Moron is probably like Smith in Poland. ;)
  • ch3570r, on 10/31/2007, -0/+6R.I.P Mitch
  • iChainsaw, on 11/01/2007, -0/+5"Dr Moron believed that it might be possible to..." when i read that i lol'd bigtime.
  • inactive, on 10/31/2007, -0/+5At birth.
  • inactive, on 10/31/2007, -2/+7All will know that they gave their last breath for.. the Colony.
  • allaboutdatiki, on 10/31/2007, -4/+9Ah, but do they know when to pump more quarters into the machine?
  • RoyalPwner, on 11/04/2007, -3/+7Wow. Pretty cool.
  • IHaveCrayons, on 11/02/2007, -0/+4I can't stand the "Omg koodos :) :)!!!" holy ***** are you a little girl... freaking annoying
  • Saad85, on 10/31/2007, -1/+5what the ***** are you talking about? what if it needed more air? what the ***** is that based on? what if it didn't need more air and was doing what the experts think it was doing. do you have any reason to think that at all or are you just trying to be a dick?

    also, "There's a big difference between altruism and instinct."
    al·tru·ism (ltr-zm)
    n.
    1. Unselfish concern for the welfare of others; selflessness.
    2. Zoology: Instinctive cooperative behavior that is detrimental to the individual but contributes to the survival of the species.

    read #2 and tell me that there's a big difference between the two. altruistic instincts are a subclass of instinct.
  • ctrlv, on 10/31/2007, -0/+4I did a double take. Then i went back to the top of the article and reread his full name.
  • catalysis, on 10/31/2007, -2/+6The older a human gets, the more cynical and dismissive of new ideas they become.
  • inactive, on 11/02/2007, -5/+8You've got to say it because BabyMan paid you?
  • mashw, on 10/31/2007, -0/+3They don't know they're going to die, they just exhibit behaviour that makes them more altruistic.
  • Antwan718, on 10/31/2007, -1/+4Where/When does ignorance come into play?
  • orlyfactor, on 10/31/2007, -0/+3Hear hear! Down with Old Man Jenkins!
  • grimw, on 10/31/2007, -0/+3Read the article, son. He never said humans were altruistic with their monarchs. Also, the fact that ants come back to the colony under your premise that they might be suffering from lack of oxygen pretty much debunks your premise.
  • wooILL, on 10/31/2007, -2/+5Dugg for the guy with the last name "Moron"
  • o0adam0o, on 10/31/2007, -1/+4Weird. In our society its the young ones who are persuaded into taking bigger risks like going to war.
  • vwvan, on 10/31/2007, -1/+4That explains why my kitchen ants annually encircle the boric-acid laced fluid I freely provide only to return to their nest, die, and be eaten by their comrades. Hey little ants, its Kool-Aid time!
  • nick34, on 10/31/2007, -6/+8Plus, if i ripped off your heads, you'd look like snowmen.
  • jjmatt, on 10/31/2007, -2/+4@error601
    you may want to go back and actually read the article, as it clearly states the scientists determined their desire to take risks is more strongly correlated to how soon they are going to die (read: their life expectancy) and not their actual age.

    "As the scientists predicted, the worker ants in the colony began to forage further afield earlier than they would have done if they had been brought up in a low carbon dioxide atmosphere. 'This implies that ant workers adjust their threshold for engaging in risk foraging according to their life expectancy,' Dr Moron said."

    This still doesn't say that they know exactly when (and how) they're dying, it just says they know that its going to happen soon and thus they change their lifestyles as a result.
  • timjim31, on 10/31/2007, -1/+3buried for being the 4th person to say it.
  • jesuswuzanalien, on 11/01/2007, -0/+2If you love "Mrbabyman" so much why dont you just go ***** sick his dick off fanboy.
  • pjsk8, on 10/31/2007, -0/+2Me? I? US?
    Pantone riding on the short bus?

    Ah, did I just prove some kind of point? ........back to bed now.
  • AceLy, on 10/31/2007, -0/+2Someone comment on the carbon experiment.
  • inactive, on 10/31/2007, -0/+2Yes. We should toil endlessly to serve a superior ruler and be willing to die if anyone tries to steal our bread crumbs. OBEY.
  • Rushg60, on 11/01/2007, -1/+3Working mirror: http://www.godlikeproductions.com/news/item.php?ke ...
  • specialK16, on 10/31/2007, -0/+2Dugg for hypno toad.
  • NapalmNewt, on 10/31/2007, -0/+1Human old people are not nearly as altruistic as ants. Old ants go to the far reaches of the earth to collect savoury foods and usually die out there. They don't come back and drag people under a cadillac for a few miles.
  • o0adam0o, on 10/31/2007, -0/+1If grandpa supported the war...why not?
  • mstrebe, on 10/31/2007, -1/+2Oh, so pretty much nothing like humans.
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