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The Pacific Northwest Tree Octopus

zapatopi.net

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Re: The Pacific Northwest Tree Octopus

#31

Post by beej71 »

blamazon wrote: post #2

I don't mean to spoil the fun, downvote me if this is not in the spirit, but it took me way too long to figure this out and others may be as slow as me and save some time by reading this comment: > The Pacific Northwest tree octopus is an Internet hoax created in 1998 by a humor writer under the pseudonym Lyle Zapato. Since its creation, the Pacific Northwest tree octopus website has been commonly referenced in Inter…

It was good! I got to the end thinking, "I don't know if I've been had or not."

The WP article is a great read--recommend.

Re: The Pacific Northwest Tree Octopus

#33

Post by BaseballPhysics »

replygirl wrote: post #26
oatmeal1 wrote: post #18

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> I don't mean to spoil the fun, downvote me if this is not in the spirit, but it took me way too long to figure this out and others may be as slow as me and save some time by reading this comment: I believed it too. The thing is, this is something no one is really incentivized to lie about. If some website says "politician did X", then your lie detector turns on, because it's worth it for lots of websites to lie or…

i know enough about octopuses and forests that i don't have to care about the author's motives--i just have to skim the text or look at the photoshop. thinking a tree octopus is real because you saw a lot of words and can't relate them to a nexus of disinformation is a perfect example of gullibility

There are large crabs that climb trees and eat coconuts.

There are fish that can survive on dry(-ish) land for extended periods of time.

And don't get me started on the utterly bizarre slime mold.

The number of species that defy our expectations is countless.

Bluntly, there's a lot of arrogance in the claim that anyone should be able to easily and automatically rule out the existence of some species based on their personal knowledge, and that anyone who fails to do so is "gullible".

Re: The Pacific Northwest Tree Octopus

#34

Post by freitzkriesler2 »

blamazon wrote: post #2

I don't mean to spoil the fun, downvote me if this is not in the spirit, but it took me way too long to figure this out and others may be as slow as me and save some time by reading this comment: > The Pacific Northwest tree octopus is an Internet hoax created in 1998 by a humor writer under the pseudonym Lyle Zapato. Since its creation, the Pacific Northwest tree octopus website has been commonly referenced in Inter…

It's the Washington Oregon version of the Dropbear.

Re: The Pacific Northwest Tree Octopus

#35

Post by alwaysbeconsing »

oatmeal1 wrote: post #18
blamazon wrote: post #2

I don't mean to spoil the fun, downvote me if this is not in the spirit, but it took me way too long to figure this out and others may be as slow as me and save some time by reading this comment: > The Pacific Northwest tree octopus is an Internet hoax created in 1998 by a humor writer under the pseudonym Lyle Zapato. Since its creation, the Pacific Northwest tree octopus website has been commonly referenced in Inter…

> I don't mean to spoil the fun, downvote me if this is not in the spirit, but it took me way too long to figure this out and others may be as slow as me and save some time by reading this comment: I believed it too. The thing is, this is something no one is really incentivized to lie about. If some website says "politician did X", then your lie detector turns on, because it's worth it for lots of websites to lie or…

> The thing is, this is something no one is really incentivized to lie about

I don't think it's lying in the sense of trying to make someone else actually believe it. It's just a form of creative fiction writing. It can be a lot of fun to write in this mode; when well done it's a pleasant kind of erudite humor because to produce it (and get it) you have to be somewhat knowledgeable in the topic. Mockumentaries might be the film/TV equivalent. Unfortunately (especially for certain subjects) it also confuses and causes strife if readers take it too seriously.

Re: The Pacific Northwest Tree Octopus

#36

Post by replygirl »

BaseballPhysics wrote: post #33
replygirl wrote: post #26

Earlier quoted context omitted.

i know enough about octopuses and forests that i don't have to care about the author's motives--i just have to skim the text or look at the photoshop. thinking a tree octopus is real because you saw a lot of words and can't relate them to a nexus of disinformation is a perfect example of gullibility

There are large crabs that climb trees and eat coconuts. There are fish that can survive on dry(-ish) land for extended periods of time. And don't get me started on the utterly bizarre slime mold. The number of species that defy our expectations is countless. Bluntly, there's a lot of arrogance in the claim that anyone should be able to easily and automatically rule out the existence of some species based on their pe…

> there's a lot of arrogance in the claim that anyone should be able to easily and automatically rule out the existence of some species based on their personal knowledge

some, certainly yes.

i don't think anyone would disagree that some claims are more plainly ridiculous than others. i'm replying to someone who let themselves be convinced the tree octopus was real by a page picturing an octopus climbing a tree. let's not abdicate our regard for common sense.

Re: The Pacific Northwest Tree Octopus

#37

Post by AndrewKemendo »

blamazon wrote: post #2

I don't mean to spoil the fun, downvote me if this is not in the spirit, but it took me way too long to figure this out and others may be as slow as me and save some time by reading this comment: > The Pacific Northwest tree octopus is an Internet hoax created in 1998 by a humor writer under the pseudonym Lyle Zapato. Since its creation, the Pacific Northwest tree octopus website has been commonly referenced in Inter…

Had it not been for your comment it would’ve definitely taken me longer to figure out, and I would’ve most likely made a fool out of myself by telling people about it.

I was extremely susceptible to this story, because I absolutely love octopuses, and everything related to them. However I’m not an expert and it would not surprise me at all (given how surprising octopuses are generally) that there was a octopus group that could adapt to an extremely high humidity area, so it seems plausible!

I like getting fooled like this occasionally cause it keeps you on your toes and shows you how vulnerable and easily fooled we all are.

Re: The Pacific Northwest Tree Octopus

#39

Post by BaseballPhysics »

replygirl wrote: post #36
BaseballPhysics wrote: post #33

Earlier quoted context omitted.

There are large crabs that climb trees and eat coconuts. There are fish that can survive on dry(-ish) land for extended periods of time. And don't get me started on the utterly bizarre slime mold. The number of species that defy our expectations is countless. Bluntly, there's a lot of arrogance in the claim that anyone should be able to easily and automatically rule out the existence of some species based on their pe…

> there's a lot of arrogance in the claim that anyone should be able to easily and automatically rule out the existence of some species based on their personal knowledge some, certainly yes. i don't think anyone would disagree that some claims are more plainly ridiculous than others. i'm replying to someone who let themselves be convinced the tree octopus was real by a page picturing an octopus climbing a tree. let's…

I think you'll find your idea of "common sense" is perhaps not so universal as you think.

For example, why is a tree octopus any less likely than the platypus, a venomous aquatic mammal that has a beak, lays eggs, and detects prey by sensing electric fields like a shark?

Re: The Pacific Northwest Tree Octopus

#40

Post by corndoge »

BMc2020 wrote: post #32

Let's not forget the ice worms: Ice Worms and Their Habitats on North Cascade Glaciers https://glaciers.nichols.edu/iceworm/ and the Australian Drop Bear https://australian.museum/learn/animals/mammals/drop-bear/

Devilish

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ice_worm

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