Way of preciving things

[Deleted]

So I will give you all a question, you should respond with the answer you think is right, and say why.



This is a rat with 2 heads. Each had controls the 1 body. It is 1 being as it's merged, but it is 2 beings as both heads think separate. It was once 1 cell, it tried to split into 2 but didn't split fully.

Is this 1 rat or two rats or something else entirely? Why?

Edit: 3 days after I made this topic, I belive it's time to tell the morale exactly, so without further notice, here it is:

Each person sees things in life differently, where one sees one rat, another sees two and another a whole new species for example. This doesn't only apply to this though, politics, beauty, religion, intelligence, history, importance of something, emotions, pain, love, computer games, virtually anything. Now I'm sure everyone knew this by now of course, however what I wanted to point out through this topic, and as I've seen it worked, was that sometimes we belive our opinion of something is better then someone else's.

I thought: if I could make people argue over something as small as a(some) rat(s) with 2 heads, then it would show to what extent some people would go just to make others "see things their way" so to say. And it worked, some people started telling others that they should redo biology classes and other crap. And this does make you wonder, if people go to these extents to try and make others see things their way about a trivial matter (let's be honest, no matter if it's one rat, two or a new species is kind of irrelevant and no matter who would be right if there was someone right, nothing would be won, now would it) as a simple picture of this animal (by the way, I chose this mutation simply because I was sure there wouldn't be a general consensus over it, although votes lean one way there's still lots of people who voted differently, and... nobody is actually wrong to be honest since everyone sees the matter differently) then what happens on larger matters? Well... we all see, don't we, both on these forums and in the real life. There's a reason why topics about politics and religion for example are not allowed here on the forums(no, this is not about neither, they are just examples) and this is because it's too controversial and people seem to not accept to even listen to the arguments of others.

However, there were lots of people who accepted that it could go either way and/or didn't start to claim they're surely right, good for you. Now this is what the thread is about, people perceive things differently in life and some things aren't universally correct. In fact many things could go either way, but the problem is when people attack others claiming their opinion is better then that of others. And here is where our society needs to work better, we need to learn to at least listen the claims someone else brings and think that maybe, just maybe, the problem could be tackled from their way too, just that we might not agree with it. Overall, this topic was not about an animal with two heads, it was about a problem we need to overcome, resistance to other people's opinions. Especially on controversial problems, thinking you know the absolute truth doesn't make you right, or better, it just makes you an extremist or a fanatic.

I hope you understand my point and that you let it grind into your head for some time thinking about it and, for those of you that may claim they have the absolute truth in anything, help you at least think that other people have different opinions and not attack them whenever you can on matters that are controversial anyway and nobody could know what's truth.

Thank you for reading. If you're too lazy to read: Be more accepting of other people's opinions(as in considering that, from their point of view, it could go that way, not accepting their opinions as your own) in matters that may be controversial, don't attack them at every chance since it doesn't make you smarter.

[Catta]

2 brains - two "personalities" - two rats

[Deleted]

1 organism (rat) with 2 consciousnesses.

[vizzle]

Most rats are street garbage, other rats are lab experiments, few rats are pets. Considering we mostly consider them bags of meat, I consider this one rat.

This isn't the first time a two-headed creature has been seen...

[Deleted]

In response to your poll the word "evolution" is mis-used, this rat is the same species as its parents, it just has a rather interesting mutation.
(Edit: If it were to reproduce, the offspring would be the same as if it were just a normal one-headed rat, assuming it's even fertile.)

Now, whether it is one or two rats is determined by how you view it; mentally it is two rats, physically it is one.

For more about this condition, see http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Polycephaly

It's happened in quite a lot of animals before, and has done for millenia.

The February 22, 2007 issue of the journal Biology Letters detailed the discovery of a 120 million-year-old fossil of a 2-headed Hyphalosaurus lingyuanensis, marking the earliest known occurrence of axial bifurcation.

[Deleted]

Most rats are street garbage, other rats are lab experiments, few rats are pets. Considering we mostly consider them bags of meat, I consider this one rat.

And you're a big piece of cake.

[Eorayn]

It is one rat, one organism.

[Elexo]

I've always wondered how they controll the body, how much control does one head have?

Also, 1 'rat'

[AdriWar]

2 brains (heads), 1 body, so 2 rats they just share a body.

That's like these teenagers, they have 2 heads, 2 different personalities, they just have 1 body, but the 2 heads think differently, so two people.

[pickley]

Ive played a lot of Viva Pinata, so my initial thought is that someone hit the Rat egg with a shovel during the final bounce....

Then i thought about how stupid that last thought was....
Then I picked the first option....

[Primernova]

It's one being with two conciousnesses. It moves, most likely, with one head controling certain parts while the other controls the rest. They work togerher and adapt to their situation. Thier is actually a human with two heads right now, "she's" pretty cute too.

It could be evolution, if it can feed, mate and increase it's numbers better than the rest; this mutation would be considered a success, but that's most likely not the case with this animal.

[Deleted]

I'd say it's one!

Your answer is your answer, but your argumentation in that I said it was once 1 cell is wrong. Same amniotic sac twins were once one cell yet they're two beings after birth.

That said, for others, this topic is not about the condition of the rat/rats or if rats in general are evil or useless (I first wanted to put a snake, but the rat picture had the full rat/rats in picture so picked this one, plus, there was one with a cow with 2 heads, but that was just disturbing), but rather if it's one rat, two, or a new species.

[Deleted]

but rather if it's one rat, two, or a new species.

It's not, if it reproduced successfully it'd have a usual one-headed rat offspring of the species it was born from.

[Asmekiel]

It was once 1 cell, it tried to split into 2 but didn't split fully.

One cell that failed to split. 1 mutated rat it is.

[Primernova]

It's one rat, two conciousnesses and not a new species.

[Fuzzzie]

1 delicious kabob.

[Deleted]

Twice as ugly, tbh

[vizzle]

It's one being with two conciousnesses. It moves, most likely, with one head controling certain parts while the other controls the rest. They work togerher and adapt to their situation. Thier is actually a human with two heads right now, "she's" pretty cute too.

It could be evolution, if it can feed, mate and increase it's numbers better than the rest; this mutation would be considered a success, but that's most likely not the case with this animal.

No it couldn't be evolution, that's not how evolution works. Rats aren't being forced to extinction, where their only hope is to grow two heads for some reason.

[Fuzzzie]

No it couldn't be evolution, that's not how evolution works. Rats aren't being forced to extinction, where their only hope is to grow two heads for some reason.

Evolution isn't only a product of the threat of extinction. TBH this seems looks like a pair of twins that are conjoined. This pair just happened to live long enough to grow up and be photographed.

[pickley]

No it couldn't be evolution, that's not how evolution works. Rats aren't being forced to extinction, where their only hope is to grow two heads for some reason.

You know thats only half of how evolution works?
Our DNA is slowly changing every one of us based on current situations.
Granted being born with two heads out of nowhere is way too fast to be considered evolution. But it doesnt happen as fast as you think.