Episode 3 - Giant Praying Mantis Attack

This is the third episode in the storyline of "Humans-B-Gone!" You can watch it here.

### Episode Summary

The third episode starts with a action scene with hivers hiding in a brambly area. Sophodra finds them and using her claws to grab and capture these hivers. It then cuts to Rose in a depressing setting and her task is to assemble parts of mother of thousand and move them from one chute to another. It cuts back to Sophodra using fly traps to catch hivers and picking up any straglers. Meanwhile,The hivers use explosives to set up a trap to capture Sophodra, but she manages to escape. This causes Rose's machinery go wild and make her explore. Afterwards Gregorsa explains that they dont have gravity here, but an Unknown Nature that clings like the surface tension of water, which can be used to advantage, and later classes will discuss more about what makes them who they are. The episode ends with Gregorsa thanking the audience and dismissing the class.

### -Gregorsa's Notes-

Click the number to get the info for that citation marker. There are 29 points possible.

Toggle All Notes

**[1]**

From the Greek *sphodrós* and *mántis*, and Latin *viridis*, this name translates literally to "violent green mantis." Or, taking the translation a step further--"violent green prophet."

Mantises constitute the order *Mantodea*. Universally towering, vicious predators, the genus *Sphodromantis* stands out even among them. It comes by its common and scientific names honestly--not only is it large even for a mantis, but where other members of the order simply lie in wait for food, *Sphodromantis* will actively *chase* its prey.

Did you know? The closest living relatives of mantises are **roaches**, order *Blattodea*. Together, we constitute the superorder *Dictyoptera*.

Interestingly, you once considered *termites* their own order as well. This was until genetic evidence led you to realize that they were, in fact, roaches.Who knows? Perhaps one day you'll decide mantises, too, were roaches all along.

**3 pts** if you knew that Sophodra is, in a sense, related to me.

**3 pts** if you knew the etymology of "mantis."

**[2]**Human *(Homo sapiens)*
I assume you are familar with yourselves.

**[3]**
    Within mutualistic mycorrhiza, the plant gives carbohydrates
(products of photosynthesis) to the fungus, while the fungus gives the plant water and minerals in exchange.

It may surprise you to learn that plants communicate with one another--yes, in **your world!** Not only that, but they send nutrients to one another, engaging in complex barter and trade. In this way, they may nurture their children, or keep friends and family alive even when they've been reduced to stumps. They'll even spy on one another, or send poison to enemies!

All this is done with the help of *mycorrhiza*--associations with elaborate fungal networks (*hyphae*) which connect plants to one another by their roots. The fungi also do their part by gathering resources the plants would have trouble gathering, and vice versa.

In other words, plants and fungi have had the Internet far longer than you've even existed.

**In our world**, we use hyphae sort of like cables, to hook our "machines" up to one another.

**3 pts** if you're familiar with mycorrhiza.

**[4]**

In most mycorrhiza, the fungus penetrates the cells of its plant symbiotes to exchange nutrients directly. This forms structures called *arbuscules*.

In our world, this is also leveraged in our machinery. You can think of it as our answer to internal wiring and circuitry.

**5 pts** if you knew about arbuscules.

**[5]**
     I suspect you already know this cousin of the sundew. Like the sundew, the flytrap has been put to work for us as everything from traps for vermin, to security systems, to even being used as doors!

...Which does seem a little inadvisable, now that I think about it.

 **3 pts** if you were aware that flytraps and sundews are related.

**[6]**

Also known as **the devil's backbone**, the mother of thousands gains it name from the many small child plants that it grows along the edges of its leaves. When they drop off the mother plant, the plantlets need only take root, skipping the trouble of an intermediate seed stage. This strategy has worked well for the plant, as it is vigorously invasive.

In our world, the ants have found great use for this plant in constructing self-replicating factory machinery.

**3 pts** if you were acquainted with this plant's reproduction strategy.

**[7]**
    Some fungi are active predators. There are some nematode-eating (*nematophagous*) fungi which capture their quarry by forming nooses and waiting for an unsuspecting worm to crawl through.

Once caught, the fungus constricts, and the poor nematode is strangled to death.

When threatened, fungi of our world may recover traces of another self.

**5 pts** if you knew about nematophagous fungi.

#### -Our World-

**[8]**
Because any large enough object generates its own "surface tension," you may find it difficult to escape an otherwise trivial prison.

**[9]**
Unless specially coated, your electronics degrade rapidly in most parts of our world. This is due to high humidity, combined with a proliferation of airborne bacteria and fungi. Faced with a dearth of minerals, lichen in our world have also learned to form very quickly. Even then, the device's lifespan is short.

**[10]**
    The Unknown Nature holds humans down in more ways than one. Zero gravity already means your old standby--fire--does not spread the way you'd like. On top of that, the Unknown Nature dampens the force of explosions, rendering your traditional munitions inoperable.
But you are nothing if not persistent. I think we have that in common.

**2 pts** if you already knew about the effects of low gravity on fire.

**[11]**
Well, it's mostly negligible. At dense enough concentrations, the gravity-like effects of the Unknown Nature also begin to weigh down on us.

**[12]**

In zero gravity, friction is much lower. For those moments when you do escape the Unknown Nature's pull, you'll find yourselves having some trouble getting a proper grip... or foothold.

At times like that, you'll want something to help dig your heels in.

 **2 pts** if you were aware of the effects of gravity on friction.

#### "Secret" Quote

The end quote shows up very quickly for a brief moment, to reveal it Click "Reveal"

**Reveal**

"little by little,

she is breaking free"

### Sources for the Episode

Each episode has sources that are listed at the end of the episode, click "Sources" to show all the sources at the end of the episode.

Sources
* Merriam-Webster. (n.d.). *Dictionary by Merriam-Webster: America’s most-trusted online dictionary.* Merriam-Webster. https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary.

* Herrando-Moraira, S., Vitales, D., Nualart, N. ef al. Global distribution patterns and niche modelling of the invasive *Kalanchoe x houghtonii*(Crassulaceae). *Sci Rep* 10, 3143 (2020).

* Read, DJ. (1999). Mycorrhiza — The State of the Art. In: Varma, A., Hock, B. (eds) Mycorrhiza. Springer, Berlin, Heidelberg.

* Koide, R.T., Mosse, B. A history of research on arbuscular mycorrhiza. *Mycorrhiza* 14, 145-163 (2004).

* Liu, X., Xiang, M. & Che, Y. The living strategy of nematophagous fungi. *Mycoscience* 50, 20-25 (2009).

* Muhsin Ibn Al Azeez (https://physics.stackexchange.com/users/93280/muhsin-ibn-al-azeez), Zero gravity means zero friction?,URL (version: 2021-01-14): https://physics.stackexchange.com/q/211706

* leonbloy (https:/physics.stackexchange.com/users/1064/leonbloy), Flames with no gravity?,URL (version: 2021-08-13): https://physics.stackexchange.com/q/46327

1. ↑ Adamantios CC BY-SA 3.0
2. ↑ Nefronus CC BY-SA 4.0
3. ↑ MS Turmel, University of Manitoba, Plant Science Department CC 0
4. ↑ Beatriz Moisset CC BY-SA 4.0
5. ↑ Gmihail CC BY-SA 3.0 1s
6. ↑ Arthrobotrys oligospora trapping. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GSM7ZsTX\_xc