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- Write to: Charles Legge, answers to correspondents, Daily Mail, 9 Derry Street, London W8 5HY; Or e -Mail Charles.legge@dailymail.co.uk
ASK: Which animal Can the widest spectrum of colors see?
Mantis shrimps have a remarkable color view. They have no fewer than 16 types of photo receptor cone compared to the three people.
And while the human eye will react to wavelengths of light from approximately 380 to 700 nanometers, Mantis shrimp can perceive a range of deep ultraviolet (300 Nm) to a red red (720 Nm) and polarized light.
Mantis shrimps often inhabit coral reefs, where distinguishing subtle color variations can help them identify prey, predators and camouflaged threats. Instead of combining signals in the brain like people do to see colors, they let their eyes do the work.
Each photoreceptor type is tailored to specific wavelengths, making rapid decisions possible without extensive neural processing.
Polararized light photoreceptors enable shrimp to communicate predators invisibly through patterns on their bodies and to identify transparent or reflective prey.
Mantis -shrimps have a remarkable color view
Some stock market shrimps are also remarkable because of their powerful punch.
Their arm can speed up gravity through the water up to 10,000 times, creating a pressure wave that boils the water in front of it and eventually touches its prey with the power of a gun ball.
Many birds, such as pigeons and hummingbirds, have tetrachromatic vision.
In addition to red, green and blue, they can also see UV light. This helps them to identify friends, find food and navigate.
Dr. Ian Smith, Cambridge
Question: where did the term 'Hard suppressed' originated?
The Oxford English Dictionary quotes early applications of 'hard oppressed' from 1562, used in contexts in which people were under considerable stress, such as in the fight.
The term comes from the combination of the word 'Hard', which has been used to mean 'with difficulty' since the 14th century, and 'pressed', meaning under pressure.
Ultimately, the Latin 'Premere' eventually ends up, which means that they print, cover or compress.
Gerald Wills, Bath, Somerset
Question: What was the first smart watch?
Further to the earlier answer I bought one of the first smart watches, a Seiko RC-4000 and PC kit, for £ 20 in 1985.
I still wear it every day, because it contains all my telephone numbers, notes, different alarms and time zones.
The software supplied no longer works, but you can manually enter details via the watch itself.
Jeff Baker, Potters Bar, Herts
