Yesterday, November 3, was World Jellyfish Day, a day to celebrate and learn about the fascinating invertebrates called Jellyfish.
Here is some info about jellyfish from a diary we wrote long ago — www.dailykos.com/...
- Jellyfish are invertebrates, not fish.
- Jellyfish go back over 500 million years.
- There are over 2,000 known species of jellyfish.
- Jellyfish lack bones and brain. They have a network of nerves, but no central nervous system.
- Jellyfish have no respiratory system; oxygen diffuses through the epidermis.
- Jellyfish have been shown to be the most energy efficient swimmers of all animals.
- When feeding, jellyfish use their tentacles to sting their prey; their favorite food is plankton.
- Many animals eat jellyfish including tunas, sharks, turtles, and of course humans.
- In Japanese mythology, the jellyfish are servants to the gods. They travel with the currents of the sea doing tasks for the gods.
- The Medusa from greek mythology is associated with the jellyfish because her gaze that turn people to stone and hair of writhing snakes represent the sting and tentacles of the jellyfish. Medusa is also the word for jellyfish in many languages including Greek, Hebrew and French.
- A group of jellyfish is called a smack, bloom or swarm.
One species of jellyfish possesses a property no other animal does - immortality!
Under conditions of starvation, sudden temperature change, reduction of salinity, and physical damage, young and adult Turritopsis dohrnii can transform back into polyps, through a process called cell transdifferentiation. The polyp colony can later develop into the adult form.
This process can go on indefinitely, unless individuals die due to predation or disease.
Now, let’s solve today’s puzzle composed in 1886 by noted American chess composer William Meredith (1835-1903). 100 of his puzzles are featured in the book “100 Chess Problems”, each with commentary by a different problemist.
P.S.
The chess puzzle is published on Sundays, Tuesdays and Thursdays at 6:00 p.m. ET.
It is customary for advanced players to wait till midnight ET before posting the full solution. Before then, they provide some stats about the solution (e.g., the minimum number of distinct checkmate moves), help guide others, and sometimes post hints. But there are no hard-and-fast rules; feel free to post comments as you please.
Online Board
Solution (shows first move only)
Full Solution
P.P.S.
The writexo.com site where we used to post solutions is no longer free. Any suggestions for some other site we can use for free?
