# Change in species **URL:** \ **Category:** The BBQ Pit\ **Created:** [August 10, 2026, 9:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/change-in-species/1032282 "2026-08-10T21:16:45Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 9
**Author:** ![scudsucker](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/scudsucker/32/14101_2.png) [@scudsucker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/scudsucker)\ **Post date:** [August 16, 2026, 6:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/change-in-species/1032282/161 "2026-08-16T18:30:17Z")
> [@Andy\_L](#): > > Performance, maybe. Art, not so much Well, art is subjective. Here is the tale of a young lady who allegedly managed (and had photographed at regular stages during excretion) a 26 foot long shit: > **[Was the World's Longest Human Poop 26 Feet Long?](https://www.snopes.com/fact-check/worlds-longest-human-poop/)** > > The world record was supposedly set at a bowling alley. Unfortunately for connoisseurs, and art galleries throughout the world, this story is not true. The artist, Michelle Hines, was not, in fact, “pushing putty”, her genre is basically “shock”. But she has established a lead for others to follow… and here we all are, contemplating a simllar performance. ---
**Author:** ![kaylasdad99](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kaylasdad99/32/3398_2.png) [@kaylasdad99](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kaylasdad99)\ **Post date:** [August 16, 2026, 7:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/change-in-species/1032282/162 "2026-08-16T19:19:59Z")
> [@Euphonious\_Polemic](#): > > I still say this is performance art. Word. I just scrolled past seven (!) of their posts in a row. The only consolation is that they had to put up with the algorithm scolding them for posting so many times. ---
**Author:** ![thorny\_locust](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/thorny_locust/32/431_2.png) [@thorny\_locust](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/thorny_locust)\ **Post date:** [August 16, 2026, 7:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/change-in-species/1032282/163 "2026-08-16T19:26:10Z")
> [@Jihi](#): > > And @cladking if you think brow beating people into agreement is how you “win arguments” this board is just going to disappoint you. Those tactics won’t work with this group They’re not working with the other people they’ve dealt with, either; not according to cladking’s own description. Those people have just decided cladking’s not worth dealing with and walked away. ---
**Author:** ![cladking](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/4af34b/32.png) [@cladking](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/cladking)\ **Post date:** [August 16, 2026, 7:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/change-in-species/1032282/164 "2026-08-16T19:59:56Z")
> [@RitterSport](#): > > This isn’t very artful, honestly. No such thing as species, a couple of posts later, here’s something about species. What word would you suggest I use to describe how individuals differ from their own ancestor in definable and repeatable ways? We use language and our language comes with a great deal of baggage such as the assumption that everything that looks and hops like a rabbit is a rabbit is a rabbit is a rabbit. We call it a “species” because this is the term by convention. I could use another word but then you might not understand when I referred to Darwin’s “Origin of There’s no such Thing As Species”. Just because “rabbits” don’t really exist does not mean that there is no actual referent for the abstraction in some instances. Those things we call “rabbits” are all equally fit and they change as a group change suddenly because nature (physical constraints) sort them by behavior at bottlenecks. No fitness, no evolution, not even any “species”. Reality looks so alien because we categorize everything but neglected to categorize everything important; volition, reality, and life. ---
**Author:** ![Locrian](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/locrian/32/14146_2.png) [@Locrian](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Locrian)\ **Post date:** [August 16, 2026, 8:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/change-in-species/1032282/165 "2026-08-16T20:12:10Z")
I keep reading “bottlenecks” as “packets” in Mike Lindell’s voice. 🤣 ---
**Author:** ![Johnny\_L.A](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johnny_l.a/32/1084_2.png) [@Johnny\_L.A](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Johnny_L.A)\ **Post date:** [August 16, 2026, 8:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/change-in-species/1032282/166 "2026-08-16T20:54:37Z")
I keep wondering if the Time Cube is involved. ---
**Author:** ![cladking](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/4af34b/32.png) [@cladking](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/cladking)\ **Post date:** [August 17, 2026, 1:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/change-in-species/1032282/167 "2026-08-17T01:07:57Z")
> [@Locrian](#): > > I keep reading “bottlenecks” as “packets” in Mike Lindell’s voice “Bottlenecks” are population crashes. It’s because these tend to wipe out typical behavior that species change. If every bee that lived in a hive died the new species would be very very different. Bottlenecks are ongoing as well because even when individuals die it’s the entire population of individuals with that exact DNA and a very large percentage of the population with extremely similar DNA. Reality is always sorting individuals by behavior. If your car car goes into a skid and you turn the wheel away from it then you are likely to be sorted out of the population. Those with similar DNA have lost a representative. Species don’t much change unless there’s a large decrease in populations but there is necessarily a little shift with every bottleneck. There ids no linear progress or survival of the fittest so this shift forms a random walk rather than species change. ---
**Author:** ![DSeid](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dseid/32/20194_2.png) [@DSeid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DSeid)\ **Post date:** [August 17, 2026, 2:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/change-in-species/1032282/168 "2026-08-17T02:22:51Z")
> [@cladking](#): > > If every bee that lived in a hive died the new species would be very very different C’mon people … this _is_ funny. ---
**Author:** ![Darren\_Garrison](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/darren_garrison/32/92_2.png) [@Darren\_Garrison](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Darren_Garrison)\ **Post date:** [August 17, 2026, 2:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/change-in-species/1032282/169 "2026-08-17T02:29:17Z")
[![](https://i.ibb.co/kb1SbJm/Gemini-Generated-Image-vzal93vzal93vzal.jpg) ](https://i.ibb.co/kb1SbJm/Gemini-Generated-Image-vzal93vzal93vzal.jpg) ---
**Author:** ![puzzlegal](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/puzzlegal/32/3827_2.png) [@puzzlegal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/puzzlegal)\ **Post date:** [August 17, 2026, 2:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/change-in-species/1032282/170 "2026-08-17T02:49:56Z")
> [@DSeid](#): > > > [@cladking](#): > > > > If every bee that lived in a hive died the new species would be very very different > > C’mon people … this _is_ funny. yes. Yes it is. ---
**Author:** ![Mighty\_Mouse](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mighty_mouse/32/7776_2.png) [@Mighty\_Mouse](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mighty_Mouse)\ **Post date:** [August 17, 2026, 2:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/change-in-species/1032282/171 "2026-08-17T02:57:03Z")
Am I stupid or is Cladking just posting nonsense? ---
**Author:** ![puzzlegal](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/puzzlegal/32/3827_2.png) [@puzzlegal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/puzzlegal)\ **Post date:** [August 17, 2026, 3:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/change-in-species/1032282/172 "2026-08-17T03:08:12Z")
I keep looking at this thread title and seeing “change in spices”, and wondering who is changing what spices, and whether that might be tasty. Oh, and no, you aren’t stupid. ---
**Author:** ![BigT](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bigt/32/12044_2.png) [@BigT](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BigT)\ **Post date:** [August 17, 2026, 3:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/change-in-species/1032282/173 "2026-08-17T03:17:04Z")
And I see it correctly, but think someone is being pitted for changing species. Like maybe they changed the name of a species, perhaps for some unscientific reasons. ---
**Author:** ![Great\_Antibob](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/e47c2d/32.png) [@Great\_Antibob](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Great_Antibob)\ **Post date:** [August 17, 2026, 3:32am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/change-in-species/1032282/174 "2026-08-17T03:32:05Z")
> [@Mighty\_Mouse](#): > > Am I stupid or is Cladking just posting nonsense? The latter does not necessarily preclude the former 😉 , but any stupidity on any of our parts is irrelevant compared to the density of nonsense on display ---
**Author:** ![wolfpup](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wolfpup/32/10618_2.png) [@wolfpup](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/wolfpup)\ **Post date:** [August 17, 2026, 3:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/change-in-species/1032282/175 "2026-08-17T03:38:29Z")
> [@Mighty\_Mouse](#): > > Am I stupid or is Cladking just posting nonsense? It’s the latter. Cladking is the exact opposite of a scientist. He’s lacking in subject matter knowledge, holds opinions that are completely delusional, and rejects objective evidence in preference to crazy internalized fantasies. He may actually be a nice person IRL for all I know, but he’s not completely sane. ---
**Author:** ![Mighty\_Mouse](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mighty_mouse/32/7776_2.png) [@Mighty\_Mouse](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mighty_Mouse)\ **Post date:** [August 17, 2026, 3:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/change-in-species/1032282/176 "2026-08-17T03:44:25Z")
Okay, thanks. I’m not a biologist, but I’m a fairly well read person for a Finance/IT/Stats guy 😉 and this word salad thing was making me feel like I had gotten dense in my middle age. ---
**Author:** ![Darren\_Garrison](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/darren_garrison/32/92_2.png) [@Darren\_Garrison](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Darren_Garrison)\ **Post date:** [August 17, 2026, 3:45am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/change-in-species/1032282/177 "2026-08-17T03:45:25Z")
> [@Mighty\_Mouse](#): > > Am I stupid or is Cladking just posting nonsense? It is jumbled and self-contradictory. I would call it gibberish but he uses real words, they just aren’t arranged in a sane way. ---
**Author:** ![Darren\_Garrison](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/darren_garrison/32/92_2.png) [@Darren\_Garrison](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Darren_Garrison)\ **Post date:** [August 17, 2026, 4:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/change-in-species/1032282/178 "2026-08-17T04:00:37Z")
> [@Mighty\_Mouse](#): > > Okay, thanks. I’m not a biologist, but I’m a fairly well read person for a Finance/IT/Stats guy 😉 and this word salad thing was making me feel like I had gotten dense in my middle age. Taking just a small segment of nonsense from his keyboard spew: “Species don’t much change unless there’s a large decrease in populations” As you might expect, besides his being completely wrong, speciation is a complex process, which he clearly knows jack-shit about. You might be interested in reading a little on, for example > **[Sympatric speciation](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sympatric_speciation)** > > Sympatric speciation is the evolution of a new species from a surviving ancestral species while both continue to inhabit the same geographic region. In evolutionary biology and biogeography, sympatric and sympatry are terms referring to organisms whose ranges overlap so that they occur together at least in some places. If these organisms are closely related (e.g. sister species), such a distribution may be the result of sympatric speciation. Etymologically, sympatry is derived from Greek συν (su... and > **[Allopatric speciation](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Allopatric_speciation)** > > Allopatric speciation is a mode of speciation that occurs when biological populations become geographically isolated from each other to an extent that prevents or interferes with gene flow. Its name comes from Ancient Greek ἄλλος (állos) 'other' and πατρίς (patrís) 'fatherland', and is also called geographic speciation, vicariant speciation, and its earlier name the dumbbell model.: 86  Various geographic changes can arise such as the movement of continents, and the formation of mountains, isla... ---
**Author:** ![pjd](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pjd/32/3009_2.png) [@pjd](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pjd)\ **Post date:** [August 17, 2026, 8:12am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/change-in-species/1032282/179 "2026-08-17T08:12:43Z")
> [@BigT](#): > > but think someone is being pitted for changing species I think I am being pitted because I was a rabbit, but I’m now a bee. Which kind of makes sense when you consider the basic premise that everyone else is wrong. ---
**Author:** ![Der\_Trihs](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/der_trihs/32/233_2.png) [@Der\_Trihs](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Der_Trihs)\ **Post date:** [August 17, 2026, 9:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/change-in-species/1032282/180 "2026-08-17T09:38:33Z")
It’s pretty standard pseudoscientific behavior, including the urge to foist “the Truth” on an unappreciative audience. 50 years ago they’d probably be badgering some well known biologist to help popularize their groundbreaking insights instead of trying a forum. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/change-in-species/1032282.md?page=8) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/change-in-species/1032282.md?page=10)