this post was submitted on 06 Dec 2024
484 points (99.4% liked)

Science Memes

15164 readers
1872 users here now

Welcome to c/science_memes @ Mander.xyz!

A place for majestic STEMLORD peacocking, as well as memes about the realities of working in a lab.



Rules

  1. Don't throw mud. Behave like an intellectual and remember the human.
  2. Keep it rooted (on topic).
  3. No spam.
  4. Infographics welcome, get schooled.

This is a science community. We use the Dawkins definition of meme.



Research Committee

Other Mander Communities

Science and Research

Biology and Life Sciences

Physical Sciences

Humanities and Social Sciences

Practical and Applied Sciences

Memes

Miscellaneous

founded 2 years ago
MODERATORS
 
top 50 comments
sorted by: hot top controversial new old
[–] Corno@lemm.ee 39 points 6 months ago (2 children)
[–] voracitude@lemmy.world 17 points 6 months ago (3 children)

Man, what the fuck did the roly polys do the the Netherlands?!

[–] Honytawk@lemmy.zip 9 points 6 months ago (1 children)

They piss in our beds! grrr

[–] SkaveRat@discuss.tchncs.de 3 points 6 months ago

"I swear, it was these bugs!"

[–] Robust_Mirror@aussie.zone 6 points 6 months ago (1 children)

https://thimsternisse.com/healing-magic/

Apparently they fed them to kids as a cure for wetting the bed.

[–] voracitude@lemmy.world 3 points 6 months ago

Yeah fair, I'd have a bit of anger too if I'd been force-fed woodlice as a child.

load more comments (1 replies)
load more comments (1 replies)
[–] jabathekek@sopuli.xyz 34 points 6 months ago (3 children)

What's with all these weird names for a pill bug.

[–] ReplicantBatty@lemmy.one 75 points 6 months ago (6 children)

It's called a roly-poly and I will tolerate no disagreement, good day to you

[–] TwoBeeSan@lemmy.world 36 points 6 months ago (1 children)

They roly and they poly. No better names exist.

[–] SadSadSatellite@lemmy.dbzer0.com 12 points 6 months ago

I would've been with you until I saw Grumper Pig.

[–] lemmyng@lemmy.ca 17 points 6 months ago (1 children)

I'll accept carpet shrimp.

load more comments (1 replies)
[–] yozul@beehaw.org 3 points 6 months ago

Roly-poly is correct, but I'll also accept potato bug.

[–] AngryCommieKender@lemmy.world 3 points 6 months ago (1 children)

Re: your username: Is a Replicant Batty Coda just a normal Batty Coda? He's already a cyborg with crappy/ intermittent reception.

[–] ReplicantBatty@lemmy.one 2 points 6 months ago (1 children)

I had to look that up lol, I've never seen Fern Gully. The username is a reference to Roy Batty, the character from Blade Runner.

[–] AngryCommieKender@lemmy.world 3 points 6 months ago* (last edited 6 months ago)

Ahh, gotcha. It's a good movie. Kinda sad looking back. They played it in schools in the '90s and drilled the message in that we were already doing clear cutting of forests without "The Leveler." This was back when they "cared about global warming, and we will have to do something about it soon." Rather than just claiming it doesn't exist.

Robin Williams played Batty Coda, so I remember the character fondly.

load more comments (2 replies)
[–] smeg@feddit.uk 15 points 6 months ago (2 children)

This is the first time I've heard anyone call them anything other than a woodlouse

[–] jabathekek@sopuli.xyz 15 points 6 months ago

You must be referring to the Woodlouse Hunter which hunts... *checks notes ...Granny Grunters.

[–] Kolanaki@yiffit.net 7 points 6 months ago* (last edited 6 months ago) (1 children)

I only ever called them woodlouses when I learned that name as a teenager because everyone here always called them "roly-polies" or "potato bugs."

load more comments (1 replies)
[–] someacnt_@lemmy.world 2 points 6 months ago (1 children)
load more comments (1 replies)
[–] protist@mander.xyz 29 points 6 months ago (1 children)

Their family name is Armadillidae (arm-a-dill-a-dee) which also just sounds silly

[–] Metostopholes@midwest.social 21 points 6 months ago

Aww, tiny armadillos!

[–] TheEEEdiot@sh.itjust.works 28 points 6 months ago

It's a Roly Poly btw.

[–] Heavybell@lemmy.world 24 points 6 months ago (1 children)

Probably the cutest insect, and they do us no harm. Unshocking they have a collection of amusing names.

[–] mindbleach@sh.itjust.works 4 points 6 months ago (1 children)
[–] Syd@lemm.ee 4 points 6 months ago (1 children)

This would have made the Spanish version of A Bugs Life interesting.

[–] mindbleach@sh.itjust.works 3 points 6 months ago

... on consideration, it is the same joke.

[–] OlPatchy2Eyes@slrpnk.net 19 points 6 months ago

It's because they roll up into a cute little ball and it tickles us in a way nothing else does

[–] Fjern@lemmy.world 16 points 6 months ago* (last edited 6 months ago) (1 children)

Norwegian, a loved one goes by many names..

Melkedyr: Milk bugs

Benkebitere: Bench biters

Kaffetroll: Coffee trolls

Munkebiller: Monk beetles

Kaffelus: Coffee lice

Munkelus: Monk lice

Moldokser: Mold oxen

Kaffedyr: Coffee bugs

Tusselus: Goblin lice

Paddelus: Toad lice

Potetroll: Potato trolls

[–] mindbleach@sh.itjust.works 3 points 6 months ago

Mold oxen

Because of the antennae! That's adorable.

[–] Catoblepas@lemmy.blahaj.zone 14 points 6 months ago (4 children)

This is a weird question but everyone else could smell these, right? Like a weird bitter, musty smell. That post about people smelling ants a while back made me wonder what other bugs not all people smell.

[–] Corno@lemm.ee 24 points 6 months ago (1 children)

They excrete ammonia through their exoskeleton because they don't actually pee! I've only noticed a smell from them when they're in large groups. They may be a bit smelly, and a lot of people mislabel them as insects, but they're actually terrestrial isopods and are related to crabs and shrimps!

[–] zalgotext@sh.itjust.works 6 points 6 months ago

Welp, that explains why the Netherlands calls these bugs "bedpissers"

[–] Glimpythegoblin@lemm.ee 5 points 6 months ago (1 children)

Yeah they smell like stinky wood/almonds to me.

[–] Boxscape@lemmy.sdf.org 4 points 6 months ago

stinky wood/almonds

Isn't almonds also the scent reported by those genetically-equipped to smell cyanide?

[–] Rai@lemmy.dbzer0.com 4 points 6 months ago (1 children)

Not me! Do you smell ants? I think it’s a genetic trait.

[–] Catoblepas@lemmy.blahaj.zone 4 points 6 months ago (3 children)

I’ve never noticed an ant smell, if I had to guess I’d assume it’s some different chemical I’m picking up on from the pill bugs.

load more comments (3 replies)
[–] cholesterol@lemmy.world 2 points 6 months ago

Doesn't ring a bell. Earwigs have a distinct smell, though.

[–] Sam_Bass@lemmy.world 8 points 6 months ago (1 children)
[–] ZeffSyde@lemmy.world 2 points 6 months ago (1 children)

I'm my head a doodle bug is more like a beetle with long segmented legs that kind of bobs around as it doodles along.

[–] Sam_Bass@lemmy.world 2 points 6 months ago

Yeah, we all have our own tags for critters. Went looking online for doodle bugs and most all of the links pointed to ant lions. We called those sand diggers when I was a kid.

[–] SpaceNoodle@lemmy.world 8 points 6 months ago (1 children)
[–] Rai@lemmy.dbzer0.com 3 points 6 months ago

They’re good lil guys

[–] Robust_Mirror@aussie.zone 6 points 6 months ago (1 children)

Me in Australia: Now that's a real Butchy boy.

load more comments (1 replies)
[–] TastyWheat@lemmy.world 5 points 6 months ago

Forbidden boba

[–] RebekahWSD@lemmy.world 4 points 6 months ago

I was taught they were called pill bugs. Although I knew them as also roly polys. My mother called them pill bugs, the other kids called them roly polys.

She told me it was an east coast versus west coast name and clearly is more "every group of people had decided they wanted to name this thing themselves" XD

I mean I have a pair of aquatic sowbugs I've been keeping in an empty yogurt cup. They look like regular sowbugs but they're underwater, hence aquatic sowbug.

hey Smooth Randy

[–] DragonsInARoom@lemmy.world 2 points 6 months ago

It does have a hard back

load more comments
view more: next ›