Free Republic

'Octopuses are among the most intelligent, complex life on Earth. Farming them is not only inhumane but poses significant environmental risks.'It's officially illegal to farm octopus in the state of California. On Friday, Gov. Gavin Newsom signed the bipartisan bill (which had zero opponents) that criminalizes the farming of octopuses for human consumption, based on the ideas that the aquatic animals are "highly intelligent," have "long-term memory," and have "have a well-developed nervous system." And, as the Los Angeles Times importantly noted, the bill also bans business owners and operators from "knowingly participating" in the sale of an octopus that...

Octopi are incredibly smart. Living in coral reefs, where predators are abound, requires them to make split second life-or-death decisions. As a result, they’ve evolved to become quite brainy. Some species can even change color. But this little octopus is a real prankster. Last week, at the Santa Monica Pier Aquarium in California, a female California two-spotted octopus flooded her aquarium home with at least 200 gallons of seawater. Some scientists say octopuses are the perfect combination of smarts, strength, curiosity and manipulative ability, all of which helped this foot-long octopus swim to the top of her tank, disassemble a...

A new study published in Nature Ecology & Evolution lifts the veil on what happens when octopuses and fish hunt together. As it turns out, this cross-species relationship is more complex than anyone expected. Animals of the same species often cooperate—work together to reach some kind of goal. But it's relatively rare to find cooperation between individuals from different species. A classic example you'll be familiar with is the close relationship between dogs and humans, whether in the context of herding sheep or hunting. In these situations, the dog and the human work together to achieve a goal. That's mammals....

..... Speaking during a visit to the Ramat David Airbase, Gallant said, "The action of the Air Force in all sectors is very impressive, and it is appropriate that the roar of the jets drown out the unnecessary chatter and allow the IDF soldiers to carry out their mission quietly and safely." Bennett, in his op-ed, mentioned that during his term as Prime Minister, Israel destroyed a UAV base on Iranian soil, thwarted an attempted Iranian terror attack on Israeli tourists in Turkey, and shortly afterwards "the commander of that very unit was assassinated in the center of Tehran." Responding...

Greta Thunberg received a lot of heat after posting a picture with some fellow "activists" holding up signs such as "Stand with Gaza" and "Free Palestine." However it wasn't the signs that upset people the most. It was the object balanced on the knee of the girl behind Thunberg. (It was a stuffed octopus toy. I can't tell its color).

SANTA CRUZ, Calif. (KRON) — A deep-sea mystery involving thousands of octopuses found off the coast of Central California was recently solved by a team of ocean researchers.The mystery appeared three years ago, when the largest known “Octopus Garden,” in the world was discovered two miles underwater on the seafloor.In 2018, researchers discovered thousands of octopuses near the base of an extinct volcano, Davidson Seamount, 80 miles off the coast of Monterey.“It is the biggest aggregation of octopuses ever discovered, and the only one off the coast of the U.S.,” a San Jose State University spokesperson wrote.

Pink Octopus Arm (Micro Discovery/Getty Images) Ocean bays that pinch West Antarctica are home to two distinct populations of Turquet's octopus (Pareledone turqueti). The shared secrets of their ancestors do not bode well for the future health of our planet. A recent DNA analysis of the two geographically separated octopus populations, published earlier this year ahead of peer review, indicates they were once part of one big family. This "direct historical connection" suggests that around 125,000 years ago, the massive 2.2 million cubic kilometer (530,000 cubic mile) West Antarctic ice sheet that separates the two bays had fully collapsed into...

Whether for his controversial comments on private property seizure by governments and corporations or his coming testimony in the JPMorgan-Jeffrey Epstein case, Jamie Dimon – the CEO of JPMorgan – has been in the news a lot lately. While Dimon’s comments often receive media attention by virtue of the power he wields on Wall Street and the U.S. banking industry at large, most know very little about Dimon’s time before JPMorgan and how he came to lead one of the largest, most powerful banks on Wall Street and in the world. As detailed in Part 1 of this series, Dimon’s...

Argonauta argo The shell-like egg case of Argonauta argo. Credit: Genome Biology and Evolution New research indicates that a type of octopus appears to have evolved independently to develop something resembling a shell, despite having lost the genetic code that produced actual shells in its ancestors and relatives. The study was presented in a new paper in Genome Biology and Evolution, a journal published by Oxford University Press, Argonauta argo, also known as the greater argonaut, is a species of octopus that lives in tropical and subtropical open seas. Female argonauts have a protective, spiral, shell-like egg case, which protects...

width =65% The California two-spot octopus displaying its blue eyespot. (Judit Pungor/UC Berkeley) Squishy cephalopods never cease to amaze with their clever features, including brained arms, color-shifting camouflage, escape artistry, and puzzle-solving skills. New analyses of squid, octopus, and cuttlefish (coleoid) genetics reveal their genomes are just as deliciously weird as the animals themselves. The cephalopod genome "is incredibly churned up," says developmental biologist Caroline Albertin, who led one of two new studies identifying strange twists in these cephalopods' genetic histories. In a massive effort, Albertin and colleagues sequenced three soft-bodied cephalopod genomes: the California two-spot octopus (Octopus bimaculoides) –...

On a rainy afternoon in April, Union Square Park was, as is often the case, home to a band of protesters. This time, the cause was not inequality or political oppression, it was a mollusk — an octopus to be precise. Protesters held signs reading “let’s stop this cruelty” and “#stopoctopusfarm” beneath images of the leggy creature. Amidst rising demand for the tentacled delight, Spanish company Nueva Pescanova has announced that it will open the world’s first octopus farm in 2023. But the plan is mired in controversy with environmentalists, zoologists and animal lovers decrying that it would be a...

The fossilised remains of the animal were discovered in what is now Montana back in 1988 but it has only been identified as a new species of vampyropod now. This group of soft-bodied cephalopods was previously believed to have eight arms, but the new species actually has 10. 'This is the first and only known vampyropod to possess 10 functional appendages,' said Dr Whalen. During their new analysis of the fossil, the researchers found that the species had 10 arms with suckers, and dated back 328 million years – 82 million years older than the previous earliest record. 'The arm...

Consider the octopus arms in my analogy to be different functionality segments and sub-systems in a vehicle. ... industry has grown up and real new innovation does not happen anymore, each of these sub-systems has been outsourced to suppliers who offer it better, faster, and with lower costs. 90% of all Volkswagen software today is outsourced. A true win-win situation. Welcome to the world of low vertical integration and low pace of innovation. ...all systems are working just in their own little box and do not communicate with a central computer or, to use my analogy again, the central brain...

Larry Ellison, ranked 12th on the Forbes 500 list with a net worth of $25 billion, has bagged a $3 million tax break after arguing that his flamboyant Japanese-style estate in Woodside is functionally obsolete. The chief executive officer of software giant Oracle Corp. will be paid from San Mateo County property taxes collected this year, which otherwise would have gone to schools, the county general fund and cities, among other things, Deputy Controller Kanchan Charan said. The hit to schools alone will be nearly $1.4 million. Ellison's Octopus Holdings LP acquired the 23-acre site in May 1995 for $12...

A bald eagle on Canada’s west coast has learned that its eyes may be bigger than its stomach after it was nearly drowned by an octopus it tried to eat. After hearing shrieks coming from the water on the north-western tip of Vancouver Island, employees at a fish farm investigating the noises happened upon a bird and cephalopod locked in battle. The giant Pacific octopus, which had turned a deep crimson, had wound its tentacles tightly around the eagle, which was floating helplessly at the surface. Ilett maneuvered a pike pole in the water to pull the octopus over to...

TACOMA, Wash. - When Jamie Bisceglia met up with some fishermen who had hooked an octopus during a fishing derby in the Tacoma Narrows August 2, she saw an opportunity for an unusual picture. "It was a photo contest in the derby. So, crazy me, hindsight now and looking back, I probably made a big mistake," Bisceglia said. Bisceglia put the octopus on her face and posed. At first, it grabbed with her with its suckers, and then did something she didn't expect. It bit her on the face. "It had barreled its beak into my chin and then let...

When Octavius, a female common octopus at the University of Georgia’s Marine Education Center and Aquarium, went into hiding for roughly a month, officials at the aquatic center were baffled. Normally a present creature, Octavius would greet visitors by sticking her tentacles on the inside of her tank. But in recent weeks, the sea animal — formally known as an Octopus vulgaris — spent more time hiding in a rock cave inside her tank, the Savannah Morning News reported. Early last week, officials finally figured out why: Octavius was pregnant and eventually laid her eggs, which hatched into “tens of thousands” of...

Did the octopus evolve its unique intelligence by playing fast and free with the genetic code? Elizabeth Finkel investigates -BIG snip- How did the octopus get so smart? Some 400 million years ago, cephalopods – creatures named for the fact that their heads are joined to their feet – ruled the oceans. They feasted on shrimp and starfish, grew to enormous sizes like the six-metre long Nautiloid, Cameroceras, and used their spiral-shaped shells for protection and flotation. Then the age of fishes dawned, dethroning cephalopods as the top predators. Most of the spiral-shelled species became extinct; modern nautilus was one...

FULL TITLE: The one result he didn't see coming: Rabiot the octopus - who correctly predicted every outcome of Japan's World Cup group matches - is chopped up and eaten before knockout stages An octopus who had predicted all three of Japan's group stage results at the World Cup has been turned into seafood.  Rabiot, a giant Pacific octopus, correctly tipped the result of Japan's games against Colombia, Poland and Senegal, but will not have the chance to predict the team's results in the knockout stages.  Despite his 100 per cent record so far Rabiot, who was caught in Obira,...

It's raining octopus! Sea creatures fall from the sky after being 'sucked from the ocean by a waterspout and carried into coastal city' during powerful storm in ChinaThe pictures were taken in Qingdao city in east China's Shandong Province Qingdao Meteorological Administration posted images of the sea creatures An octopus, mollusks, shellfish and other marine life can be seen in the images The hurricane-force wind speeds generated during the storm set a new recordIncredible photos have emerged from China that show octopus and other sea creatures raining from the sky after being sucked out of the ocean by a violent...