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Speculative biology is simultaneously a science and form of art in which one speculates on the possibilities of life and evolution. What could the world look like if dinosaurs had never gone extinct? What could alien lifeforms look like? What kinds of plants and animals might exist in the far future? These questions and more are tackled by speculative biologists, and the Speculative Evolution welcomes all relevant ideas, inquiries, and world-building projects alike. With a member base comprising users from across the world, our community is the largest and longest-running place of gathering for speculative biologists on the web.

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Your Project Ideas; A place to share your ideas for projects
Topic Started: Oct 14 2015, 09:27 AM (65,411 Views)
LittleLazyLass
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Sayornis
Aug 4 2016, 09:46 PM
An alternate-universe idea that came to me while doing sweeping up seed hulls under my bird feeder: a garbage dump dimension, somewhat like this or this, to which various types of waste are somehow sent in enormous quantities (maybe sapients with interdimensional technology/magic use it as a dumping ground, maybe the stuff just teleports in on its own). So there could be a continent-sized mass of banana peels, a gargantuan version of the Pacific Garbage Patch, mountains of useless old computer parts... or everything in one truly gigantic and disgusting heap. The garbage would carry with it bacteria and perhaps macroscopic scavenging creatures (plus seeds that could sprout if local conditions are right), leading to a unique biota of garbage creatures.

Might also work, on a less gigantic scale, as a sublocation within The Library-- there's a Necropolis, so why not some dumps?

A little bit similar to an idea I had recently heavily lending itself to Chine Miéville's Un Lun Dun. It takes the book's idea of the moil, and brings it into a speculative evolution scenario. So sentient garbage competes with actual life in some sort of alternate world. Only problem might be that the garbage is static; it couldn't evolve, so would eventually be outcompeted.
I've had an idea for a long time based off of Xenoblade Chronicles; life lives on a giant humanoid titan, like the Mechonis/Bionis, in the middle of a giant ocean.
A more recent idea I had was about an largely land-based earth like planet, in an alternate universe, but with familiar earth life (elephants, crocodiles, insects, birds, etc). But right through the middle, cutting it in half, is an opaque barrier (hence being land-based, so the barrier isn't over much water). Touching it at all transports you to the other side (it's only a few meters thick), but it can be re-traversed at any time. The catch: the two sides on opposite timescales. So going off Library numbers, one day might be a hundred years on the other side. So if two types of crocodiles are competing, but then end up establishing themselves on opposite sides of the barrier, if one crossed, one would've been evolving for much longer. A mosquito could pick of a disease, cross the barrier, have that disease be eradicated on the hundred years side, cross later in the day, and have the disease come back.

This idea could get really cool with sapients. Do you go on the side of a day, to live "longer", and see what civilization becomes in a million years after your birth, or live on the hundred year side, and give your species an evolutionary edge over life on the day side? What happens if you stay on the day side to long, and find everyone you know passed away from old age? All the buildings from your childhood run-down, and destroyed? The language you spoke changed over the span of centuries? An empire come and gone in a week, you missed the whole shebang. You could run away from your problems on the hundred year side, hide on the day side for a little bit, and come back to find an opportunity to try all over again. New places, new people. Bullies could push a kid to the other side, and force him from coming back. Suddenly, the kid is "missing" for several years. You can't send a long expedition to find someone on the opposite side, because if they're on that side to long they've ruined their own lives as well.
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I don't even really like this song that much but the title is pretty relatable sometimes, I guess.
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GlarnBoudin
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The third one sounds quite interesting. Would there be extinct organisms as well?
Edited by GlarnBoudin, Aug 26 2016, 08:53 AM.
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Dr Nitwhite
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One day on SE-

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In Scandinavia in a world slightly different from our own, large trolls and tiny elves alike (both hominid groups) are forced to run from massive wurms of anguidaid descent into their hill dwellings (which they both live in, symbiotically. Also, I might turn this into a small project. Thanks Monster!).

Herons. In. Spaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaace!


I've been working on a thing.

http://imgur.com/a/LdbJU

(rivers + streams not shown)

While natural history is a major aspect of this project, the evolution bit takes a bit of a backseat, not because of some creationist bullshit but because the biology of this world mirrors ours very very closely, to the last few million years, despite a vastly differing geology. Sort of a "swords and sorcery" esque world, minus the sorcery. Culture is also important and is the partial focus of the world. I'm not sure whether or not to turn this into a project here, though you might see me talk about it in the worldbuilding reddit if I ever get off my ass and make an account, what with the evolution bit being less important. Cafe Cosmique? Depends on if anyone shows interest/I continue with it.

Long ago, the Welft Peninsula (as its natives reffered to it anyway) was forested all over. With the introduction of modern farming and the way of the eye, many welftwooders have given up their neolithic farms and hunting/gathering for a more civilized lifestyle, joined by colonists from the east and west. Welft peninsula took on a different name (one which I am yet to fabricate) and developed a unique culture all to its own, a combination of the three that had created it. Eastern ways seemed to have the most influence, made manifest through the way of the eye, a monotheistic religion that followed the eye in the sun. This Eastern way forbade the worship of any other god (or gods), new farming techniques where imported, and a social order developed. Though the peninsula is united under one king, it is split up among many lesser lords, counts, dukes, and so forth whose constant squabbles and skirmishes re-organize and change political boundaries. However, not all where comfortable with the domineering of the eye priests, the destruction of the trees, and the change of political climate. These tenacious individuals have accumulated in a province of their own, all that remains of the old-growth Welftwood. This remnant area lies on the most profitable harbor space on the whole peninsula, and several coordinated assaults on the Welftwood have been made in the name of exterminating the welftwooders. Whether to poor planning, infighting, or the away-team disadvantage, these efforts have always failed (the peninsula isn't the largest, coming up with any army at all is difficult. Uniting all the squabbling nobles to that singular purpose would lead to an easy victory, but you can forget that). As such, the Welftwood is here to stay. And just in-between that old forest and the county of Lapward the Wise lies Autumnbless. Once a forested section of the Welftwood, it was burned down to create farmland, but the irate natives would have none of it. Not all connections between the civilized and uncivilized are so violent, however. Autemnbless meadow is where trading between the welftwooders and the other peoples of the kingdom takes place. This is largely through the territory of the aforementioned Lapward the Wise, who sees both the futility of taking the Welfwood and the economic value of trading with them for fine meats, medicinal herbs, hides, and so-forth. His neighbor to the Northwest, Odo the Pious, is far less tolerant and sees these actions as blasphemous. The two often meet in small skirmishes and engage in raids on one another's villages and merchant caravans, largely out of sight and notice of the higher lords. Life in the Welftwood is not exactly dandy either, post-humans going back to nature, violent cultists, and a whole menagerie of dangerous wildlife await the incautious traveler at each turn. Come. Trolls, elves, wildlings, wurms, giant otters, and sapient wrens await.

That's it for now.
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trex841
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The AU sub-forum could work as well, depending on how much you want to go into the world biology.
F.I.N.D.R Field Incident Logs
A comprehensive list of all organisms, artifacts, and alternative worlds encountered by the foundation team.

At the present time, concepts within are inconsistent and ever shifting.

(And this is just the spec related stuff)
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Dr Nitwhite
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trex841
Aug 29 2016, 08:33 PM
The AU sub-forum could work as well, depending on how much you want to go into the world biology.
Quite a bit, actually, but culture is very important, taking more the center stage. I'll think on it.
Edited by Dr Nitwhite, Aug 29 2016, 08:39 PM.
Speculative Evolution Projects-

Other Relevant Work-

Final SE Lifelist standings

BREAKING NEWS
We interrupt your regular programming to bring you this cutting edge report.
ATTENDANCE DROPS DRASTICALLY ON SE SERVER
This past Monday on Discord, famous server Speculative Evolution took a hit in the attendance office when it's offline member list suddenly reappeared. Mods scrambled to rectify the situation, but unfortunately there was little anyone could do. Server member Ivan was asked what he thought of the situation. "So long as Flisch, lord of machines and scion of Urborg lives, all will be well". SE, (in)famous for it's eccentric userbase, has recently been spiraling downward, and now we have hard conformation of the decline. Moderator "High Lord" Icthyander states "There is nothing to be concerned about, Discord is merely changing its UI again", but members are beginning to suspect the honesty of their staff.
Stay tuned, we'll be back with more at 11.
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Corecin
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The world in five or seven billion years, with descendants of genetically modified animals, feral pets, and escaped zoo animals. And posthumans. Would be from the pov of a sapient post human.
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Akurian452
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Though I have several projects (some I've kinda neglected), I currently working on speculating what life on Proxima B would look like. I'm assuming the planet is tidally lock (most scientists seem to think it is) and that the band between the light and dark side is the habitable area and that area is divided into three main habitats defined by their proximity to the parent star's light.
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Coelophysoidea
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Aside from working on From the Ashes, I've thought about devoting some time to an Alternate Evolution project in which the Triassic/Jurassic extinction event is markedly less destructive and the general composition of ecosystems (at least for the early Jurassic) remains mostly unchanged from those of the late Triassic. I have a lot of ideas for such a project but I'm always afraid I'm biting off more than I can chew. Among some of the creatures I've imagined as being massively diverse successes in this world are coelophysoids, pterosaurs, pseudosuchians, sauropterygians, ichthyosaurs, and mammaliaformes.

Coelophysoids rapidly diversify into all sorts of predatory niches and take on roles as wading piscivores, socially complex pack hunters, robust-skulled brontophages, and fossorial animal specialists to name just a few. They're the most numerous and widespread carnivorous animals on the planet though they aren't always the biggest or baddest predators in any given location.

Sauropodomorphs do pretty well for themselves as browsers, being kept from grazing niches by competition with herbivorous pseudosuchians and synapsids. They don't come anywhere close to the size of our timeline's biggest taxa but 10-20 ton animals aren't uncommon. I imagine them diverging pretty heavily from the classic 'prosauropod' morphology with many clades developing stronger forelimbs for socio-sexual and food-gathering purposes. They may or may not survive as generalistic omnivores of a more primitive morphotype but I’ve also considered having pseudosuchians, ornithischians, or even mammaliaformes dominate those niches.

Pterosaurs would be far too diverse to elaborate on here. Suffice to say they would be very prominent worldwide. Same goes for the pseudosuchians.

Ornithischians would presumably be fairly widespread, but I’m not entirely sure how diverse they should be due to competition with pseudosuchians and mammaliaformes. That’s something I could use some help deciding on. Sauropterygians and ichthyosaurs are an interesting area I’d like to keep a surprise. Eventually you’ll see what I have for store in them. Same goes for mammaliaformes.

Of course, those are just some of the major vertebrate groups. I’d like to focus heavily on the plant, fungus, and invertebrate components of environments as well. In fact, I’d like the entire project to look at the world biome by biome rather than clade by clade.
Edited by Coelophysoidea, Sep 2 2016, 06:19 PM.
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peashyjah
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I have decided to go work on an upcoming project which is about an planet called Ceres which is actually dominated by descendants of primitive ancient prehistoric fishes that lived during the Paleozoic Era and they have gotten to this planet by being transported for unknown reasons. However, surrounding Ceres are actually other planets that are dominated by water-dwelling animal communities that are also descended from marine Paleozoic Invertebrates.
Edited by peashyjah, Sep 2 2016, 06:35 PM.
Discontinued projects:
The New Ostracoderms (i might continue with this project again someday)
The Americas (where in 58 million years from now in the future North and South America has both become isolated island continents)



All Expansions (my attempt at expanding the universe of All Tomorrows by Nemo Ramjet aka C.M. Kosemen, started June 6, 2018)
Anthropozoic (my attempt at expanding the universe of Man After Man and also a re-imagining of it, coming 2019 or 2020)
New Cenozoica (my attempt at expanding the universe of The New Dinosaurs and also a re-imagining of it, also coming 2019 or 2020)
All Alternatives or All Changes (a re-telling of All Tomorrows but with some minor and major "changes", coming June 10, 2018)
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TerrificTyler
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I had this idea of terraformed world, where the only vertebrate is the brown rat, jokingly calling it 'Dixonia'. Other organisms would be bacteria, algae, oak trees, wild cereals, grasses, earthworms, termites, and house flies. It would take place roughly 60 million years after their release. With no predators, they'd first go through a period of massive population growth during the first few million years, but gradually fill many niches seen by vertebrates today.

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trex841
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Had an idea for an alien river system, possibly fed by glacial poles, that can be measured in miles for length, width, and depth. Or maybe that's just a flooded canyon. Still needs work if I ever get it post ready.
F.I.N.D.R Field Incident Logs
A comprehensive list of all organisms, artifacts, and alternative worlds encountered by the foundation team.

At the present time, concepts within are inconsistent and ever shifting.

(And this is just the spec related stuff)
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LittleLazyLass
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Proud quilt in a bag

Here's an interesting idea: In-progress terraforming. Life is introduced to an unfinished planet. There's a line where it gradually becomes uninhabitable, whilst bots slowly move that line forward.
totally not British, b-baka!
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I don't even really like this song that much but the title is pretty relatable sometimes, I guess.
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Dapper Man
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My interest in Caenagnaths and kin has reimbursed,so I might just revive Psuedo-Cenzoic. And, due to there being cat sized pterosaurs, I might just include those in.
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trex841
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I set up a list of a few of the projects I've been mulling over, and made little hook blurbs for them. Because I like making them look nice.

  • Katiwala- The Guardian of the Lost
  • Aether- Filling in the Vacuum
  • Kralkfeln 3- Split Apart and Rejoined
  • замороженные- A World of Frozen Winds
  • Nabianica- The River that Cradles Life
  • New New Amsterdam- Survival, In Any Form
  • Las Islas de Perezosos- The Island of Sloths
    Edited by trex841, Sep 16 2016, 08:37 PM.
F.I.N.D.R Field Incident Logs
A comprehensive list of all organisms, artifacts, and alternative worlds encountered by the foundation team.

At the present time, concepts within are inconsistent and ever shifting.

(And this is just the spec related stuff)
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Dr Nitwhite
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New New Amsterdam- Survival, In Any Form


That sounds pretty interesting.
Speculative Evolution Projects-

Other Relevant Work-

Final SE Lifelist standings

BREAKING NEWS
We interrupt your regular programming to bring you this cutting edge report.
ATTENDANCE DROPS DRASTICALLY ON SE SERVER
This past Monday on Discord, famous server Speculative Evolution took a hit in the attendance office when it's offline member list suddenly reappeared. Mods scrambled to rectify the situation, but unfortunately there was little anyone could do. Server member Ivan was asked what he thought of the situation. "So long as Flisch, lord of machines and scion of Urborg lives, all will be well". SE, (in)famous for it's eccentric userbase, has recently been spiraling downward, and now we have hard conformation of the decline. Moderator "High Lord" Icthyander states "There is nothing to be concerned about, Discord is merely changing its UI again", but members are beginning to suspect the honesty of their staff.
Stay tuned, we'll be back with more at 11.
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