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Murmurations


“No one knows why they do it. Yet each fall, thousands of starlings dance in the twilight above Gretna, Scotland. The birds gather in magical shape-shifting flocks called murmurations, having migrated in the millions from Russia and Scandinavia to escape winter’s bite. Scientists aren’t sure how they do it, either. Even complex algorithmic models haven’t yet explained the starlings’ acrobatics, which rely on the tiny bird’s quicksilver reaction time of under 100 milliseconds to avoid aerial collisions—and predators—in the giant flock. Despite their show of force in the dusky sky, starlings have declined significantly in the UK in recent years, perhaps because of a drop in nesting sites. The birds still roost in several of Britain’s rural pastures, however, settling down to sleep (and chatter) after the evening’s ballet.”
Sonia van Gilder Cooke, Time LightBox, 3.11.2011












magyarul
Publicado por Studiolum en 11/17/2011
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5 comentarios:

walter dijo...

Amazing. I've seen this with starlings, and on a smaller scale with myna birds in Singapore, swarming in the sunrise for what seems like sheer fun, weaving at great speed through the gaps between high-rise towers. Maybe ideas too (memes?) also swarm through the social media?

18 de noviembre de 2011 a las 9:14
Araz dijo...

Wonderful! It reminded me Sūrat ul-Fīl, The Elephant Chapter of the Qur'an: Have you not seen how your Lord dealt with the People of the Elephant? [1] Has He not turned their plan into nullity? [2] And He sent upon them flying birds in flocks, [3] throwing upon them stones of baked clay, [4] and thus He turned them into an eaten-up chaff. [5]

18 de noviembre de 2011 a las 11:23
Studiolum dijo...

A wonderfully fitting parallel indeed! Don’t you know any visual representation of it? (ideally a Persian-style miniature?)

Walter: Yes, when looking for a good video, I have also found a few other kinds of birds dancing in the same way. It is an attractive idea indeed to think that it is spreading among birds like memes among humans.

18 de noviembre de 2011 a las 11:52
Araz dijo...

Interesting question, Studiolum. I don't remember any and brief search did not reveal any old illustrations about it, which is kind of strange. By the way the last 3D Hollywood blockbuster has a scene of birds attacking the machines to save the holy place. İnteresting parallel...

19 de noviembre de 2011 a las 19:26
Studiolum dijo...

I have found this (modern) calligraphy which contains the first verse of Sūrat ul-Fīl. But I do not know the blockbuster scene. Does it protect the Islamic holy place from invaders (perhaps elephant-shaped ones?) Should I say myself or you already guessed it yourself that you should write a brief post on these allusions? :)

19 de noviembre de 2011 a las 20:07

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