Slashdot Mirror


The Geekiest Animals in History

Flipper writes "CNET has compiled a list of the geekiest animals throughout history. The entries include such peculiar characters as Ham The Astrochimp (the first chimp in space), Schrödinger's Cat (used to demonstrate quantum superposition) and Hans, a horse who could apparently do complex mathematics and read words. The classics are there too, Pavlov's dogs get a well-deserved mention, as does Dolly The Sheep. What sounds like a pretty bizarre list is actually strangely interesting — some of these animals are seriously geeky."

8 of 155 comments (clear)

  1. Not a chance by $RANDOMLUSER · · Score: 5, Funny

    Where's Mr. Peabody?

    "Sherman, fire up the wayback machine..."

    --
    No folly is more costly than the folly of intolerant idealism. - Winston Churchill
  2. Where is Laika? by lecithin · · Score: 5, Informative

    She would have had my first vote.

    Stolen from Wiki: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Laika

    Laika (from Russian meaning "Barker", as well as being a dog breed) was a Russian space dog that became the first living creature from Earth to enter orbit. She was found as a stray wandering the streets of Moscow. Originally named Kudryavka, she was renamed Laika after her breed type. After undergoing training with two other dogs, she was selected to be the occupant of the Soviet spacecraft Sputnik 2 and was launched into space on November 3, 1957.

    Laika died a few hours after launch from stress and overheating, likely due to a malfunction in the thermal control system. The true cause of her death was not made public until decades after the flight. Some former Soviet scientists have since expressed regret that Laika was allowed to die.

    (more in article)

    --
    It could be worse, it could be Monday.
  3. Geekiest extinct animal by LiquidCoooled · · Score: 5, Funny

    Has to be the long horse.
    It was the multicore processor of its day.
    Moores' law (not THAT Moore, his great grandfather) held that horses would double in length every 18 months.

    --
    liqbase :: faster than paper
  4. Lesser known by edwardpickman · · Score: 5, Funny

    Less is said about an alternative test called Schrödinger's lawyer. The test involved the gun discharging no matter what state the particle was in. Schrödinger himself admitted the proposed test was pointless but much more satisfying and humane than the cat test.

  5. The Very Definition of Geekiness. by o0OSABO0o · · Score: 5, Funny
    ScuttleMonkey wrote: What sounds like a pretty bizarre list is actually strangely interesting ...

    I would add:

    I think that finding this a strangely interesting article is the very definition of what it means to be a geek.

    --
    The Spice Must Flow!
  6. Re:Tux? by $RANDOMLUSER · · Score: 5, Funny

    Schrodinger's cat is NOT hypothetical. He exists... probably

    --
    No folly is more costly than the folly of intolerant idealism. - Winston Churchill
  7. Re:How about the Trojan Horse? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 5, Funny

    Nah, Trojan Horses are more greeky.

  8. Re:Tux? by PitaBred · · Score: 5, Funny

    You haven't observed him, have you?