tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5821098719340852065.post3755818818681992220..comments2024-03-25T09:31:36.926+01:00Comments on Furahan Biology and Allied Matters: The Interplanetary Zoo IIISigmund Nastrazzurrohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16449461215427527447noreply@blogger.comBlogger1125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5821098719340852065.post-26570954924835341572012-12-01T06:55:43.963+01:002012-12-01T06:55:43.963+01:00I love ballooning animals too. I would be very sa...I love ballooning animals too. I would be very sad to see such "air beasties" struck for existence by physical limitations or lack of Darwinian fitness. Still, with a large enough air beastie and some unlikely mode of survival, perhaps these things could work...<br /><br />Speaking of "air beasties", I have just begun reading <i>Leviathan</i>, a novel by Mr. Scott Westerfeld in which the Austro-Hungarian empire and Germany employ diesel-powered fighting machines to combat the British Darwinists, who use fabricated animals as weapons. The British Air Service uses living balloon beasties as airships. It is as awesome as it sounds.<br /><br />As all these unlikely monstrosities were fabricated by Darwinists, we don't need to worry about whether natural selection would actually produce them. : )<br /><br />A fairly large air beastie lifts a skinny teenage girl early on in the book- the illustration is <a href="http://keithwormwood.deviantart.com/gallery/?offset=0#/d2n8arp" rel="nofollow">here</a>. The balloon beast is pretty large (many meters across, I would estimate), and the girl is skinny, so maybe there is a chance they could pull this off. ; ) Imagine- flight with an air beast, instead of any mechanical device!! <br /><br />The air beast the girl rides beneath is the smallest in the book, I believe- the living airships are much larger, as the name "Leviathan" suggests. An artist named Mr. Keith Wormwood illustrated these books with wonderful line art- you can see his work at his DeviantART <a href="http://keithwormwood.deviantart.com/" rel="nofollow">gallery</a>. I thought you might be interested in his artwork if you haven't seen it yet, as he has some odd creatures.Christopher Phoenixnoreply@blogger.com