Reading Update for Furry Logic | Chapter 3

Furry Logic: The Physics of Animal Life

by Matin Durrani & Liz Kalaugher

~ Goodreads ~


Chapter 3: Fluids: When Things Get Stickier

Chapter 3 of Furry Logic started off pretty strong, but I think I lost my way around the aerodynamics section of the fluids topic.  Not that it all wasn't very interesting, but I found myself more drawn to talk of the pond skaters walking on water, and the dwarf seahorses hunting copepods.  The latter half of the chapter found the debate on the bumblebee's impossible flying capabilities to be amusing, as well.

While still kind of tacky in some aspects, I think the humor is starting to grow on me, as I chuckled a few times on two or three different occasions, even as I rolled my eyes.  I particularly found the study of how quickly certain animals emptied their bladder quite fun, as it truly does "make people laugh, and then make them think."  I surely would have never thought that calculating how quickly animals urinate could be so thought-provoking.  Though as the book states, an animal in the wild needs to do the deed quickly as it's a rather vulnerable position, and the last thing it wants is to get jumped while relieving itself.

The transition in this chapter from liquid to gas, and from one animal to another, was a bit easier to follow than the transitions in the previous chapters, though it didn't escape my notice that it somehow still felt like two different topics.  Nonetheless, this was quite an enjoyable chapter and I really learned a lot of new things.

Finally, I leave you all with two things I found that tickled me in this chapter.

This quote, because it made me snort:

Flap your hand about underwater at the swimming pool and you'll feel the water push back.  Flap your hand in the air in the changing room and all you'll feel is disapproval.

And these photos, because, well Bumbledore...

... another old term for bees and noisy insects, the dumbledore, gave its name to the music-loving headmaster in a series of books about a schoolboy wizard...

Is that right...?

Obviously my take away from this book may be a little juvenile different from everyone else...