Editing 1471: Gut Fauna
Warning: You are not logged in. Your IP address will be publicly visible if you make any edits. If you log in or create an account, your edits will be attributed to your username, along with other benefits.
The edit can be undone.
Please check the comparison below to verify that this is what you want to do, and then save the changes below to finish undoing the edit.
Latest revision | Your text | ||
Line 12: | Line 12: | ||
In this comic, [[Cueball]] is visiting a doctor ([[Ponytail]]) for some unknown problem. The doctor informs him that his gut macrobiome is out of balance, which Cueball responds to with confusion over whether or not she meant the microbiome or macrobiome. A macrobiome, instead of being composed of small organisms such as bacteria, would be composed of larger organisms such as mammals. The phrase "gut fauna" would refer to any animals living inside a gut (as the word fauna refers to animals living in an ecosystem). | In this comic, [[Cueball]] is visiting a doctor ([[Ponytail]]) for some unknown problem. The doctor informs him that his gut macrobiome is out of balance, which Cueball responds to with confusion over whether or not she meant the microbiome or macrobiome. A macrobiome, instead of being composed of small organisms such as bacteria, would be composed of larger organisms such as mammals. The phrase "gut fauna" would refer to any animals living inside a gut (as the word fauna refers to animals living in an ecosystem). | ||
β | Cueball is right to be worried by the doctor's reference to his macrobiome, as normal humans shouldn't have large animals living inside them{{Citation needed}} with the exception of some parasites such as {{w|Helminths}} or {{w|Cestoda}}, or in some cases, the {{w|Eating live animals|consumption of live animals}} such as octopus, shrimp and eels. No animals belong natively in the {{w|human digestive system}}; all known cases of animals living permanently in the human digestive system are causes of disease. His fear is compounded when the doctor prescribes one wolf for Cueball to swallow, which is normally impossible for average humans and would, at the very least, result in major interior (or exterior) damage to [[Cueball]] and (possibly) [[Ponytail]] when the wolf resists being swallowed. Needless to say this is not common physician practice due to the likely death rate | + | Cueball is right to be worried by the doctor's reference to his macrobiome, as normal humans shouldn't have large animals living inside them{{Citation needed}} with the exception of some parasites such as {{w|Helminths}} or {{w|Cestoda}}, or in some cases, the {{w|Eating live animals|consumption of live animals}} such as octopus, shrimp and eels. No animals belong natively in the {{w|human digestive system}}; all known cases of animals living permanently in the human digestive system are causes of disease. His fear is compounded when the doctor prescribes one wolf for Cueball to swallow, which is normally impossible for average humans and would, at the very least, result in major interior (or exterior) damage to [[Cueball]] and (possibly) [[Ponytail]] when the wolf resists being swallowed. Needless to say this is not common physician practice due to the likely death rate.{{Citation needed}} |
The choice of a wolf echoes the {{w|Wolf_reintroduction#Yellowstone_National_Park_and_Central_Idaho|reintroduction of the animals}} into the macrobiome of {{w|Yellowstone National Park}} in the United States, where they have improved the balance by, in part, preying on {{w|elk}} and reducing the damage caused by their grazing. | The choice of a wolf echoes the {{w|Wolf_reintroduction#Yellowstone_National_Park_and_Central_Idaho|reintroduction of the animals}} into the macrobiome of {{w|Yellowstone National Park}} in the United States, where they have improved the balance by, in part, preying on {{w|elk}} and reducing the damage caused by their grazing. |