Re: [Epic] Tyranids : good or evil?

From: Thane Morgan <thane_at_...>
Date: Fri, 15 May 1998 16:58:54 -0600

As a biochemist, I can shed some light on this aspect of bugs.

> So do you think that Tyranids need to destroy/assimilate the whole galaxy
> to survive? Can't they just assimilate a part of it? In addition, as
> someone already said it, they can't survive as they destroy all they need
> to survive. Tyranids don't act for their survival, they make a suicide.

It is perfectly acceptable for a species to evolve to devour/destroy everything
around them, so long as they can still get to a place where there is still food
around them. It is only when food becomes scarce will evolutionary pressure
begin to temper their development; groups which eat everything they can reach
eventually starve, while those that adapt to smaller breeding
cycles/sustainable eating habits survive. Maybe they learn photosythesis, or to
eat rocks. They could also create spore-type adaptions to stay dormant until
the galaxy repopulates. Maybe it already happened...

I any event, evolution has no forsight as to what possible future problems a
particular adaption will create (otherwise we would have stayed in the trees!).
A species can only respond to what it is dealing with at the time.

Thane
Received on Fri May 15 1998 - 22:58:54 UTC