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Old 08-26-2008, 08:42 PM   #1
Smalmslobby

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Default Breaking Science - Nobel Material !!!
There are actually a lot of creatures that seem to be able to align to the magnetic poles. No, I am not aware of any mechanism, and yeah, this does seem like something that could be us overthinking something.

M
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Old 08-26-2008, 08:44 PM   #2
Erossycuc

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Umm......

Given that grazing most often happens during the day, won't the cows know which way is which simply by the direction of something like the sun?
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Old 08-26-2008, 09:39 PM   #3
celddiskend

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I honestly think this study is crock... their causality is illogical, for example. "Cooling"?? It would be cooler to face east/west than north-south; less surface area directly in the sun (on average over all seasons). In the summer specifically (in areas where only summer is hot), facing northeast/southwest (or, in general, facing the sun directly) makes the most sense.

It sounds to me like a 'study' that was easy to publish and solid enough to pass first muster (peer review), but is really meaningless; it's far more likely correlation, something like "people usually make hills face a certain way, and that causes cows to go north/south", or something else.
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Old 08-26-2008, 10:08 PM   #4
Dr. Shon Thomson

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It's pretty easy actually to figure out where north is if you can see the sun. If you face the sun at noon, you will be facing due south in the northern hemisphere above the tropics, and due north in the southern hemisphere, below the tropics.

If it's before noon, the sun will be SE, if it's after noon, the sun will be SW.

It's a bit more complicated in the tropics, but the same idea is there. If you can figure out an arc, you can even tell time with the sun.
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Old 08-26-2008, 11:43 PM   #5
zCLadw3R

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Originally posted by Winston
Yes. If you ever stop to observe, they moo at 10 minute intervals within an accuracy of +/- 5 seconds. Now if Google Earth came with sound, it'd be that much more evident.
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Old 08-27-2008, 02:14 AM   #6
bestbyV

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I only want Southern facing Steak. How can I tell the difference in whether my steak came from a north facing cow or a South facing cow?

This is really concerning...
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Old 08-27-2008, 03:35 AM   #7
Endatrybeeddy

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They're just smart enough to poop downhill

hey, cows dont piss into the wind either
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Old 08-27-2008, 06:33 AM   #8
cholleyhomeob

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There might be an easier explanation other then cows can read the earth's magnetic field. Maybe it is cold and the cows turn with their sides facing east-west so they get the most sun or maybe the wind is blowing from the south so facing north gets their faces out of the wind and provides the smallest wind profile.
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