Artistic License Biology: Difference between revisions

[[File:1038 12.gif|link=Chick Tracts|frame|By what, you might ask? [[Prehistoria|Spear-wielding hunters]], of course!]]

 

 

There are cases where the [[MST3K Mantra]] certainly applies, especially if the entire world of the work of fiction is pretty crazy and, thus, all bets are off in terms of good science. Therefore, most of the examples below are culled from series who were at least trying to be taken seriously (so please keep that in mind before adding an example on this page).

 

{{examples}}

== Advertising ==

* In an [http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XMoRw8IKcvk H2OH commercial], the narrator voice comments how cool it is that nature gave spikes to the hedgehog, instead of you (human). In the video, though, the guy ''shoots'' spikes all around. It's said that porcupines can shoot their quills—porcupines are not hedgehogs, however, and the popular belief is in fact false. Porcupines may have their spines dislodged while swinging their tails around because the spines are very loosely attached to the porcupine so that they'll come out once they've been lodged in another creature's skin; however, they don't deliberately shoot their quills at a target. They're much more likely to reverse into your leg and fill it with hooked barbs.

**** Of course, it's entirely possible Crichton knew, but bent things ''[[Art Major Biology|on purpose]]''. It's probably a good thing we don't know how to make living dinosaurs. That would be like giving five-year-olds dynamite.

** One more for the road: The Lysine plan. A plan to limit the growth of the dinosaurs by making them dependent on the amino acid Lysine, by taking away their ability to produce it themselves. ''Any'' first-year biochemistry student could tell you that Lysine is an essential amino acid, i.e., most modern-day vertebrates (including crocodiles and sharks; superorders who existed in the Jurassic period) can't produce it either. And we make do without it, because we get Lysine from our gut flora or by eating things containing Lysine (practically anything made from plant matter, or meat from things that have eaten plant matter, or who have eaten things that have eaten things that have eaten plant- oh, you get the point). The Lysine plan is a great way to limit growth of genetically modified bacteria, who depend on Lysine in the media if they can't make it themselves. For vertebrates, who obtains it from eating things anyway, it's not. The book at least acknowledges this as an in-universe whopper by InGen's scientists (who probably slept through their first-year classes), as it turns out it was no hindrance to the Dinosaurs whatsoever.

** The scientists imply that sex determination is a hormonal through a sex determining chromosome. While sex determining chromosomes are the decider in some species (such as homo sapiens), they are not the factor in crocodilians and turtles (in which case the sex of offspring is decided by incubation temperature).

* '50s B-movie ''[[The Amazing Colossal Man]]'' has one of the doctors tending to the eponymous rapidly-growing man describe the human heart as "one big cell." As [[Mystery Science Theater 3000|Tom Servo]] says, "You're not a ''real'' doctor, are you?"

* In another '50s B-movie, ''The Alligator People'', a physician uses hydrocortisone injections to induce accident victims to regenerate damaged body parts. While cortisones do reduce inflammation (swelling), and can therefore make injuries ''feel'' better, they actually ''slow down'' the healing process.

* The African exhibit in ''[[Night at the Museum]]'' includes an ostrich. Ostriches are African, so no problem, right? Except that the exhibit is specifically and prominently titled "The Hall of African '''Mammals'''."

* ''[[Push]]'' has the lead character {{spoiler|inject soy sauce directly in to his blood stream with no side effect at all.}}