this post was submitted on 20 Oct 2024
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Science Memes

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[–] [email protected] 80 points 2 days ago (1 children)

Bro we eat literal corpses this ain't nothing

[–] [email protected] 5 points 2 days ago (1 children)
[–] [email protected] 13 points 2 days ago (2 children)
[–] [email protected] 5 points 2 days ago

Damn that's crazy

Anyway

[–] [email protected] 79 points 2 days ago* (last edited 2 days ago) (3 children)

Honey?

Ohh, figs

A small opening or ostiole, visible on the middle of the fruit, is a narrow passage that allows the specialized fig wasp, Blastophaga psenes, to enter the inflorescence and pollinate the flowers, after which each fertilized ovule (one per flower, in its ovary) develops into a seed. At maturity, these 'seeds' (actually single-seeded fruits) line the inside of each fig.

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fig

[–] [email protected] 101 points 2 days ago (1 children)

As someone who grows figs in their living room:

Most commercial (and even hobbyist) fig varieties are parthenocarpic, meaning they don't require pollination.

And fig wasps don't look like that. They're tiny little guys that most people would probably mistake for a very small ant.

And even if the fig was pollinated by a wasp, it uses enzymes to break down the insects body, to protect itself from mold and other pathenogens that such may cause.

Basically; fig waps are itsy bitsy wittle wupies, while figs are digesting their dead mothers corpses, because they are metal as fuuuuuck.

[–] [email protected] 7 points 2 days ago (1 children)
[–] [email protected] 13 points 2 days ago (1 children)

Not a fig wasp. In fact, the article for Apoica Pallens doesn't mention figs even once. It says that they're used in folk medecine in Brazil, but that's far from it being a popular food...

[–] [email protected] -5 points 2 days ago

That's the joke, hence the title. ;)

[–] [email protected] 15 points 2 days ago* (last edited 2 days ago) (1 children)

The journey to the center is pretty intense. She loses her wings on the way in and dies after laying her eggs.

iirc, the figs sold commercially were selectively bred to self pollinate. I think the FDA or USDA would have a major problem with dead animals in fruit, even if they're supposed to be there naturally.

[–] [email protected] 13 points 2 days ago (1 children)

You can think that, except If you want to think that, I wouldn't look up the allowable amounts of insect parts or other stuff in what you eat.

But here's the handbook straight from the fda if you want to anyhow. https://www.fda.gov/food/current-good-manufacturing-practices-cgmps-food-and-dietary-supplements/food-defect-levels-handbook

[–] [email protected] 5 points 2 days ago* (last edited 2 days ago)

I remember this from a high school science class. There was a girl in my class who was absolutely disgusted and mortified with the idea that grasshopper parts could be in bread. Maybe I'm wrong, but I reckon there's probably a difference between cooked prepackaged foods and fresh raw foods.

The idea of bug parts in food doesn't bother me much. Just a little protein. When I was a teenager during harvest, I'd climb on the trucks and stick a handful of wheat germ in my mouth when we were finished harvesting a field. I love the flavor and texture of wheat germ. Naturally, my favorite breakfast cereal is bran flakes.

Side note: if you do this, make sure they're golden brown, not pink. The pink ones are covered in poison.

[–] [email protected] 3 points 2 days ago (1 children)
[–] [email protected] 11 points 2 days ago (1 children)

this is what one of the most popular foods look like before harvest

And what food would that be?

[–] [email protected] 43 points 2 days ago (1 children)

If you go back far enough, all food was poop at some point. And will be again, that's the beauty of it.:-)

[–] [email protected] 19 points 2 days ago (3 children)
[–] [email protected] 13 points 2 days ago (2 children)

Pro-Tip: don't Google that phrase (learn from my mistake yo!:-)

img

[–] [email protected] 10 points 2 days ago (1 children)

This graphic is wrong corn doesn't turn into poop.

[–] [email protected] 1 points 2 days ago

Joke answer: are you sure that you are reading it going in the right direction? 😄

Real answer: maybe not... the first time, hey-oh! 👐

[–] [email protected] 2 points 1 day ago (1 children)

Thank you for your service!

[–] [email protected] 1 points 1 day ago

You are very welcome my good sir and/or madam! :-)

[–] [email protected] 7 points 2 days ago

Poopuna poopata!!

[–] [email protected] 5 points 1 day ago

"Most popular"

[–] [email protected] 27 points 2 days ago (3 children)
[–] [email protected] 22 points 2 days ago

It’s a Fig, before being Newtoned.

[–] [email protected] 16 points 2 days ago

Fried chicken obviously.

[–] [email protected] 7 points 2 days ago (1 children)
[–] [email protected] 11 points 2 days ago (1 children)

paper wasps are a popular food?

[–] [email protected] -1 points 2 days ago (1 children)
[–] [email protected] 1 points 23 hours ago (1 children)

then what is the popular food on the picture?

[–] [email protected] 1 points 22 hours ago

It's a forbidden food.

[–] [email protected] 16 points 2 days ago* (last edited 2 days ago) (1 children)

Either wasps, or AI hallucinated rubbish.

I'm guessing AI rubbish

[–] [email protected] 17 points 2 days ago
[–] [email protected] 5 points 2 days ago
[–] [email protected] 8 points 2 days ago (1 children)
[–] [email protected] 10 points 2 days ago* (last edited 2 days ago) (1 children)

Yes, figs are visited by wasps in the region figs are native to, ~~but only in the same way that flowers are visited by bees.~~ This picture is very much not what that would look like. This is, I'm certain, literally just a wasp nest.

Edit: I stand corrected, fig wasps are born and typically die in their figs. Fortunately, that still looks nothing like this picture because they are super tiny.

[–] [email protected] 6 points 2 days ago (1 children)

Fig wasps bury themselves in the fig and then are consumed by it. Very much not like flowers.

[–] [email protected] 3 points 2 days ago* (last edited 2 days ago)

Well, TIL. Thanks for the correction.