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Dead snake kills chef!

3K views 57 replies 22 participants last post by  CloudForest 
#1 ·
#41 ·
You very clearly know what you are talking about, and I'm very ill equipped to argue human physiology with you. I'm also ready to concede, but I want to put one last thing out there....

...reptiles are completely different to humans, and it's humans that you continue to discuss.

Reptiles have a very different metabolism, this different metabolism allows them to function at a very low respiration and heart rate. So why is it not possible for the brain, spinal cord and the peripheral nerves in reptiles to be much more tolerant of a lack of oxygen supply? They have been documented to withstand long periods of abnormally low blood pressure and a complete lack of oxygen.

I know you'll probably be answer these questions quite eloquently, but how do you explain a severed snake head reacting to a perceived threat?
 
#42 · (Edited)
Alright, i will answer this and then thats it LOL :Na_Na_Na_Na:
The reason i keep coming back to humans is because we are talking about the brain. The brain of a reptile maybe a different size and different areas may be proportioned different but the histology is the same...its made from the same stuff. It requires just as much oxygen as we do. The difference is the rest of the snake dosnt require as much oxygen. The snake dosnt have to maintain its core tempreature so burns less calories and thus needs less oxygen. It's oxygenated blood will therefore stay oxygenated longer and as such is can survive on less oxygen. The brain of the snake is still being fully supplied with oxygenated blood however, its brain has same tollerance levels as we do....its the rest of it that dosnt....It has more oxygen left over to supply the brain. Cut that supply off though and its going to stop functioning just as fast as a human brain.
A severed head acting to a percieved head is just autonomic nervous response...not cognitive function. The brain is not percieving threat...its like the knee jerk reflex on humans...its autonomic function, its more widespread low brain function and is more resilient to hypoxia.
Ok thats it. I cant think of any other way of explaining this :lol2: :Na_Na_Na_Na:


Also I apologise if I came across condescending. Its obviously not as fundamentally clear to everyone as it is to me. Theres no reason why it should be, Ive spent my life doing this, it second nature to me, I shouldnt scoff at others.
 
#57 ·
Alright, i will answer this and then thats it LOL :Na_Na_Na_Na:
The reason i keep coming back to humans is because we are talking about the brain. The brain of a reptile maybe a different size and different areas may be proportioned different but the histology is the same...its made from the same stuff. It requires just as much oxygen as we do. The difference is the rest of the snake dosnt require as much oxygen. The snake dosnt have to maintain its core tempreature so burns less calories and thus needs less oxygen. It's oxygenated blood will therefore stay oxygenated longer and as such is can survive on less oxygen. The brain of the snake is still being fully supplied with oxygenated blood however, its brain has same tollerance levels as we do....its the rest of it that dosnt....It has more oxygen left over to supply the brain. Cut that supply off though and its going to stop functioning just as fast as a human brain.
A severed head acting to a percieved head is just autonomic nervous response...not cognitive function. The brain is not percieving threat...its like the knee jerk reflex on humans...its autonomic function, its more widespread low brain function and is more resilient to hypoxia.
Ok thats it. I cant think of any other way of explaining this :lol2: :Na_Na_Na_Na:


Also I apologise if I came across condescending. Its obviously not as fundamentally clear to everyone as it is to me. Theres no reason why it should be, Ive spent my life doing this, it second nature to me, I shouldnt scoff at others.
No worries.
 
#54 · (Edited)
Jeez one day you may get off that high horse!!! I've been reading this thread since the start and now feel the need too at least comment on your attitude!!!


I have worked in construction (mainly concrete structures) for some time....... If I took your attitude towards queries from others towards what I specialise in in the same manner.... I'm pretty sure I would have gone out of Buisness years ago!!! Our fellow member asked a specific question without the B/S!?! Is that really that hard??

You state you have a degree in this field? Surely it would be more beneficial too use this too help others understand, after all we all joined this forum with one common interest.... Or at least i'd thought!!! Just seems we have the general open minded majority who are here too learn in order too benefit their animals, but then you've got the small minority who prefer too use there "extensive knowledge" in the many fields that herpin touches on, too mentally demoralise the rest!!!! Quite sad really!!
 
#45 ·
Regardless of whether the snake was dead or alive at the time, I'm just glad it got the chance to take its killer to the grave.
 
#46 ·
I have just cut the head off my boa - it died
 
#48 ·
Two hunters are out in the woods when one of them collapses. He doesn't seem to be breathing and his eyes are glazed. The other guy whips out his phone and calls the emergency services. He gasps, "My friend is dead! What can I do?" The operator says "Calm down. I can help. First, let's make sure he's dead." There is a silence, then a gun shot is heard. Back on the phone, the guy says "OK, now what?"
 
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#49 ·
Two hunters are out in the woods when one of them collapses. He doesn't seem to be breathing and his eyes are glazed. The other guy whips out his phone and calls the emergency services. He gasps, "My friend is dead! What can I do?" The operator says "Calm down. I can help. First, let's make sure he's dead." There is a silence, then a gun shot is heard. Back on the phone, the guy says "OK, now what?"
There will probably be a post in a minute asking you if that is a true story :whistling2:
 
#51 ·
if only i could write actual essays featuring 'LOL', :Na_Na_Na_Na: and stating my apparent academic superiority to anyone who couldnt understand my point.

for the record, i understand your point perfectly well, and you are indeed correct, but in putting your point across like a self righteous eejit, you're coming across as, well, a self righteous eejit.

to put it in slightly less condescending terms: once an animal has been totally decapitated (important distinction with some animals, and in some special cases), they're dead. the body cannot function without the brain, and the brain cannot function without oxygen. following decapitation in the vast majority of species, you're looking at seconds before the brain dies, if that, especially when combined with stress and shock. however, nerve ending take slightly longer to die off, and can go into spasms before hand which often imitate actual movement. hence why decapitated human heads can appear to blink or move their mouths in the seconds after death. also, fact fans, why executioners used to hold up the heads of people who had been beheaded to the crowds. they believed the people were still alive in those few seconds and wanted them to see the reaction to their deaths.

the snake is not still 'alive' in a technical sense, but its nerve endings are firing, causing movement. had the chef left it another few minutes, he could've stuck his hand in the snakes mouth with little chance of anything going wrong. his death is a combination of bad luck and idiocy. nothing to do with the snake getting its revenge.
 
#52 ·
there isn't actually any way we can for sure that this is true /\ and this isn't about nerves firing in the body, this is about brain activity


the brain can survive for quite some time (30-90 seconds, days, weeks and months in some animals - remember the infamous chicken?) without oxygen before it dies in mammals with relatively fast metabolisms, we have no way to measure the suffering during that time, take for eg "Phantom Pain" of soldiers who have lost limbs, it can be horrific, how could that translate to an entire body being cut off? even if its just for 30-90 seconds, and even if its just a possibility rather than a proven fact, that is far too much imo

given that reptiles brains are known to be active for longer, I'm not sure how we can possibly accept this method of killing, if we have any sense of ethics or empathy for the suffering of an animal
 
#53 ·
for the record, i understand your point perfectly well, and you are indeed correct, but in putting your point across like a self righteous eejit, you're coming across as, well, a self righteous eejit.
I know Im coming across as self righteous, its hard not too. Ive already apologised for being condescending. As far as stating I'm superior I've done no such thimg, I've stated I have a degree in this field, my point being I'm not just looking stuff up from the internet and quoting it.
Its big of you to say I'm correct, dosnt that make you condescending as well.
And as far as explaining it..I was dumbing it down. I don't think your explaination is going to cut much ice here but good luck :2thumb:
 
#56 · (Edited)
As with the conceit displayed by some people (ok, ok - many people!) who doggedly insist that their beliefs to be the correct ones, it's one of the great many obnoxious tendencies of the human species to envision itself in the center of pretty much absolutely anything and everything. The source from which all understanding comes.

Thus we believe that it is acceptable to compare all physiological and psychological properties of other species to our own and be able to draw accurate conclusions without ever seeming to have the humility to ask ourselves if there might be aspects to those properties which we are simply unable to observe or comprehend.

Humans - bunch of arrogant gits. Grumble... :banghead:
 
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