A SQUIRMING sea creature has been branded The Blob, just like the classic movie monster, after experts challenged the public to identify the odd life form. Nothing is known about its origins, the natural habits of the species, or how common they are in the universe. Take your favorite fandoms with you and never miss a beat. In a small rural Pennsylvania town in July 1957, teenager Steve Andrews (Steve McQueen) and his girlfriend, Jane Martin (Aneta Corsaut), kiss at a lovers' lane when they see a meteorite crash beyond the next hill; Steve decides to look for it. Zoo staff named the creature the “blob” after a 1958 horror B-movie, in which a gloopy alien lifeform descends upon a Pennsylvania town and devours everything in its path. In the meantime, the blob just keeps on getting bigger. “It surprises us because it has no brain but is able to learn (...) and if you merge two blobs, the one that has learned will transmit its knowledge to the other”, Bruno David, the director of the Paris Museum of Natural History, told Reuters. (Credit: frankenstoen / CC BY 2.5). Although there is no known way to kill a Blob, it is known that the beast stays away from cold temperatures, as they cause the Blob to solidify. After the doctor devoured, the Blob escaped before Steve and Jane brought two cops, Dave and Bert over to Dr Hallen's place to investigate where they think those kids were vandalized the house when Mrs. Porter arrived while Steve try to convince them, but no one believes him. Although I look like a parrot, I am an evolutionary ecologist and ornithologist as well as a science writer and journalist. Slime molds are a group of microscopic organisms that are superficially similar to bacteria, except they’re bigger. An elderly transient discovers, within the sphere, a jelly-like substance (the Blob) that attaches itself to his hand. CONTAINS SPOILERS !! Slime molds are a group of microscopic organisms that are superficially similar to bacteria, … The Paris Zoological Park on Saturday will begin a first-of-its-kind exhibit housing a super-weird organism: a bright yellow slime mold it has dubbed "The Blob." Fourteen years later, the oil pipeline layer named Chester who return home after he brought a small frozen sample of the Blob where he uncovered by a bulldozer on a job site from the Arctic. The Blob Plasmodiums are unusual because each individual cell contains many nuclei (most animal cells have just one nucleus). The Blob is a Mammal species, making it much more basic. The blob is a unicellular organism that is neither plant, nor mushroom, nor animal. The Blob then enters the and devoured mechanic, bartender, janitor and every humans in its paths with until Steve and Jane located it in a grocery store. The organism moves without legs, wings or fins at a speed of up to 1.6 inches per hour. But that’s not all: blobs can learn and share their knowledge with other blobs, despite lacking a brain (ref). This minibeast’s remarkable abilities and behaviors clearly indicate that we must rethink how intelligence works, and what is required for it to form. “It behaves very surprisingly for something that looks like a mushroom (...) it has the behavior of an animal; it is able to learn.”. Steve and Jane picked him up out of the road and took him to Dr. Hallen's house. Several moments later, the Blob is shown to be slowing digesting the old man's arm and the rest of his corpse. The ‘blob’: Paris zoo unveils unusual organism which can heal itself and has 720 sexes. In pain and unable to scrape or shake it loose, the old man runs onto the road, where he is nearly struck b… Unlike humans and most creatures whose biological sex is binary, The Blob actually has 720 sexes. This creature has no definite shape or size, being able to change its form at will. He was voiced by Wally Wingert (who is also the voice of Almighty Tallest Red). It arrived in a meteorite that fell to Earth near Phoenixville/Downingtown, Pennsylvania. Homeworld Currently, taxonomists have classified the blob, Physarum polycephalum, and its other 900 or so relatives into the kingdom of protists (protozoa) because it shares some traits with those life forms. For successful reproduction to occur, two spores of different sexes should come into contact. Early shots of the blob were achieved using a modified weather balloon. According to a recent tweet, this peculiar creature will be on public display in Paris starting this weekend. The Blob. It shares traits with the three major kingdoms of life: it eats like an animal, breeds like a mushroom, and is colored like a plant. 'The blob' isn't something out of science fiction. The Blob (1988) is my second-favorite 1980s remake of a classic monster horror film, The Thing by John Carpenter being the first—and if the ALIEN Trilogy (yeah, I said ‘Trilogy’) didn’t exist, JC’s The Thing would be my all-time favorite film. They fled, cornering themselves in a freezer where the monster refused to enter. The NOAA scientists actually observed the new species—and genus—of blob in 2015 off the coast of Puerto Rico. A Paris zoo is showcasing a mysterious creature dubbed the "blob," a yellowish collection of unicellular organisms called a slime mold that looks like a fungus, but acts like an animal. What Is The Most Common Type Of Planet In The Universe? The Blob attaches itself to the old man's hand, causing him great pain and distress at it slowly dissolves his arm. The Blob reproduces by releasing spores, which eventually develop into sex-determining cells. His only appearance was in the episode "Abducted". The Meteorite cracks open, showing the Blob inside. We don’t know for sure. Sure enough, Eve recalled the creature moved even more when the stick prodded its meat. The Air Force send the biggest air-lifter and transported the frozen creature away where the plane dropped the frozen Blob in the Arctic Ocean. My specialty is long-form science journalism about evolution, ecology and behaviour in birds and animals. While it is indeed weird, don't get too excited. © 2021 Forbes Media LLC. When conditions are good and food is plentiful, a slime mold leads a solitary life as a single cell, but when conditions become more challenging, such as when food becomes scarce, individuals come together to form a bright yellow colony that resembles a thin layer of scrambled eggs. After devoured numerous of animals and people increasing in size, it was eventually frozen again when Bobby activates the rink's ice mechanism. All Rights Reserved, This is a BETA experience. Previously, my writing was hosted by a number of sites, including The Guardian, ABS-CBN, The Evolution Institute, BirdNote Radio, ScienceBlogs.com, Nature Network and BirdingBlogs.com. Written by Rob Hartill shows a colony of the single-celled protist, Physarum polycephalum. The underlying algorithms that guide these organisms’ movements are apparently hard-wired into each cell’s biochemistry. 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The Blob It’s also nearly impossible to kill. When the owner heard the impact and came to investigate, he saw a ball-sized meteorite still intact in the crater. As it grows bigger, it can engulf and smash things under its weight. It quickly consumes all living things it can capture, digesting its prey chemically and growing more and more as it feeds. The Blob is about to overrun them when the charge goes off, blowing up the canisters and covering the Blob in liquid nitrogen. Hallen go to his den and loading his gun while Kate begging him to come back. Steve and Jane quickly brought the old Man to Dr. Hallen, who sent the young couple to find any information about who the old man was and what was on his hand. “We know for sure it is not a plant but we don’t really [know] if it’s an animal or a fungus,” Dr. David told Reuters. It is not killed, though, and it will come back to life once the temperature is raised again. In captivity, slime molds are fond of oat flakes and detest anything that’s salty. Creature Features in Review: The Blob (1988)!! The old man tried to remove it, but to no avail, and screamed in pain, forcing him to retreat back into the woods and run across the roads where he almost got hit by Steve's car. A mysterious creature from another planet, resembling a giant blob of jelly, lands on earth. As a scientist, I have an extensive background in the biological sciences: I have a degree in Microbiology & Immunology (focus: virology) and I worked in a hospital medical microbiology lab. Unlike malaria – and unlike the blob’s sci-fi namesake – slime molds do not harm people. The creature must make a DC 16 Intelligence saving throw, taking 6d6 necrotic damage on a fail, or half as much on a success. But back to the almost 720 sexes that these beasties have. Moss Woodley has its remains stored in the town ice house. The Blob attacked him by crawling up and covering his right hand, attaching to him. “The blob is a living being which belongs to one of nature’s mysteries”, Dr. David told Reuters. Several astonishing abilities that the blob and its cousins, the slime molds, show are the ability to solve mazes, to mimic the layout of man-made transportation networks and to choose the healthiest food from a varied menu. Additionally, I write about conservation, citizen science, diversity-in-science issues, virology and cancer. The blob’s name was inspired by a 1958 sci-fi horror film with the same name where an alien life form goes on a rampage and consumes everything in its path in a small Pennsylvania town. Recognising the creature’s enigmatic appearance was likely to capture the public … The Blob Monster is a one-time villain from the Cartoon Network animated series, The Powerpuff Girls, only appearing in the episode "Catastrophe". Alien Species is a FANDOM Books Community. As the temperature rise, the Blob awaken and starts consuming fly, Chester's cat, Chester's wife, and Chester himself. The films stars Meagan Good, Drake Bell, Chandler Riggs, Jeremy Irons, Jennifer Connelly, Ving Rhimes, Morris Chesnut, Chelan Simmons, Chasty Ballesteros, Thomas Dekker, Holland Roden and Chelah Horsdal. If the creature fails by 5 or more, they suffer the effects of the feeblemind spell for 1 minute, and additionally suffering a new flaw for 1d4 days. A SQUIRMING sea creature has been branded The Blob, just like the classic movie monster, after experts challenged the public to identify the odd life … A pitiful blob-like creature of unknown species is one of the many captives of Mary and Fred, and the only one who has not managed to escape. Three high school students, Brian (Kevin Dillon), Meg (Shawnee Smith), and Paul (Donovan Leitch), encounter the man and take him to a hospital. CONTAINS SPOILERS !! 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