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That's a good point. It can feel a bit wishy-washy that you've glossed over bad science with a hand wave; but at the same time Tyranids were born in the 80s with school/local level understanding of science.

Even if in the last nearly 50years we've learned a LOT more about DNA and genetics and even if at the time scientists did; the basic idea of DNA is still fairly rudimentarily understood by the common person.

Remember this is the same person that can grasp that you take DNA from dinosaurs and fill in the holes with frog DNA which later lets dinosaurs change gender after birth (and not just one strain, all the strains that were created)

Yeah when I grumble about this stuff I'm very aware that it's a niche thing that only bothers me because I teach biology and the popular sci fi ideas definitely leech into kids understanding before I get them, and I have to deprogram them!

It's really difficult to get kids to understand how evolution works, even with a lot of effort they'll often default back to an essentially Lamarckian perspective. (Not helped by people bigging up epigenetics to make it seem like Lamarck was right).

When I paint my Tyranids I don't give them any bone colours and make all their chitin and so on purples and blues. Claws are a greenish black, so are teeth. I like to imagine they don't really have bones like us at all, and it's made of entirely different compounds.

 NorthernXY wrote:

JNAProductions wrote:

 NorthernXY wrote:
I'm a biochemist. I've thought about this.

But did GW?

There's not much point using real science in 40k-not just because it's unrealistic, but also because there's not a single actual scientist on GW's writing staff, to my knowledge. Not only is a lot of actual science going to be wrong (owing to the Warp and such), science that's meant to be accurate could ALSO be wrong, because GW employees don't know better.

I can generally get behind "The Rule of Cool", but when I give something any sort of thought, I at least make an attempt at "giving things a reason"/using logic. It's very hard for me to see bad science, even for a second and the science really handwaved, and just let it go. Like I said in another thread, when I first started getting into 40k, I saw the unit "Centurion" and thought "Oh! Does he also not command 100 men?" Then I found out the answer was sadly far. I mean, at least the Romans could argue a "centurion" be called a "centurion". The Empire, not so much.

Man and Machine!

Praise The Omnissiah!

Charax wrote:

 NorthernXY wrote:

Tyran wrote:Maybe you should have read the lore in which Tyranids being extragalactic is one of their foundational traits before thinking about it.

Not sure if you're serious.

Makes perfect sense. Your thinking about it is directly contradicted by what GW have said previously.
Tyranids have DNA & DNA Analogues
Tyranids are also extragalactic
GW Own the IP
So you can "Think about it" as much as you want, for as long as you want, but You. Will. Never. Be. Right.

Turn brain off, accept what GW have said about it, and if your real-world knowledge contrdicts that, either write GW a missive proclaiming your correctness and demanding change or...tough? this is a background discussion, that is the background

 NorthernXY wrote:

JNAProductions wrote:

 NorthernXY wrote:
I'm a biochemist. I've thought about this.

But did GW?

There's not much point using real science in 40k-not just because it's unrealistic, but also because there's not a single actual scientist on GW's writing staff, to my knowledge. Not only is a lot of actual science going to be wrong (owing to the Warp and such), science that's meant to be accurate could ALSO be wrong, because GW employees don't know better.

I can generally get behind "The Rule of Cool", but when I give something any sort of thought, I at least make an attempt at "giving things a reason"/using logic. It's very hard for me to see bad science, even for a second and the science really handwaved, and just let it go. Like I said in another thread, when I first started getting into 40k, I saw the unit "Centurion" and thought "Oh! Does he also not command 100 men?" Then I found out the answer was sadly far. I mean, at least the Romans could argue a "centurion" be called a "centurion". The Empire, not so much.

"Look at another, previous situation where I have also been wrong by applying real world logic to 40k" is not exactly the flex you seem to think it is.

Okay... I wasn't bitching that they got it wrong, I was just stating a fact.