Creature Languages, 2/16, Period 3

[game-of-you.livejournal.com]

"We are now transitioning to the language of cats.

The cat, also called the domestic cat or house cat, is a small feline carnivorous mammal of the subspecies Felis silvestris catus. Its most immediate pre-domestication ancestor is the African wild cat, Felis silvestris lybica. The cat has been living in close association with humans for at least 3,500 years; the Ancient Egyptians routinely used cats to keep mice and other rodents away from their grain, and also believed that cats were sacred to the goddess Bastet. The history of the domestic cat may stretch back even further, as 8,000-year-old bones of humans and cats were found buried together on the island of Cyprus. Because the domestication of the cat is relatively recent, cats may also still live effectively in the wild, often forming small colonies. The cat's association with humans leads it to figure prominently in the mythology and legends of several cultures, including the ancient Egyptians, Vikings, and Chinese.

The unique sound a small cat makes is written onomatopoeically as "meow" in American English; "meow" or "miaow" in British English; "miaou" or "miaw" in French; "miao" in Mandarin Chinese and Italian; "miau" in German, Spanish, Finnish, Lithuanian, Polish, Croatian, Romanian and Portuguese; "miau" or "מיאו" in Hebrew;"miyav" in Turkish; "mjäu" in Estonian; "mowa'a" in Arabic; "nyaa" or "nyan" in Japanese; "meong" or "ngeong" in Bahasa Indonesia; "ngiau" in Malay; "nyau" in Swahili; "yaong" or "nyaong" in Korean; and various ways in other languages. The cat's pronunciation of this call varies significantly depending on meaning. Usually cats call out to indicate pain, request human attention (to be fed or played with, for example), or as a greeting. Some cats are very vocal, and others rarely call out. Cats are capable of about 100 different vocalisations, compared to about 10 for dogs. And that is only the vocal language that humans can detect; when combined with gestures and other means of expression, cats have a vocabulary and culture that nears that of many humans."

Consider this all the next time you encounter a feline. I am playing a documentary on jungle cats with subtitles, so that you may learn to recognize their language."

"Miss Hopeless-Savage, Miss Matthews -- I will expect you in my office on Wednesday to discuss next Thursday's class."

Comments

Classwork, creature, 02/16

[game-of-you.livejournal.com]

Listen to the lecture and watch the video.

Re: Classwork, creature, 02/16

[swerval_zero]

Zero listens to the lecture and watches the video surprisingly attentively, all things considered. Perhaps she is refreshing her memory before she has to actually teach on this.

Re: Classwork, creature, 02/16

[walter-n-wires.livejournal.com]

Walter pays close attention to the lecture and video, which probably has something to do with the scars on his ankles and a strong desire to get Nadia's cat to be less painfully attached to them.

Re: Classwork, creature, 02/16

[lovechildblair.livejournal.com]

Blair watches the video and takes notes, and is especially interested when the jaguar appears.

Re: Classwork, creature, 02/16

[swerval_zero]

Zero whispers to him, "That cameraman is so lucky he's not getting eaten."

Re: Classwork, creature, 02/16

[lovechildblair.livejournal.com]

"You really think so? He looks scary, but I think he's probably nice."

Re: Classwork, creature, 02/16

[swerval_zero]

"Haha. I know so. You see that, right there? That's, 'If I hadn't just ate, you'd make a nice lunch.' I remember from the first video. The lions are worse, though. They have a whole little conversation about what the camera crew might taste like."

Re: Classwork, creature, 02/16

[walter-n-wires.livejournal.com]

"That's brilliant," Walter whispers. "That's what people deserve when they think wild creatures are harmless."

Re: Classwork, creature, 02/16

[the4thsister.livejournal.com]

Paige listens to the lecture looking happy, she knew this stuff and felt pretty happy not to feel compeletly out her depth for a change.

She also enjoyed the video and recognised the 'I'm hungry' sounds some of the big cats were aming even if she was better at domestic cat than wild cat. It also makes her miss Lancelot her kitten.

Re: Classwork, creature, 02/16

[pure-blooddraco.livejournal.com]

Draco takes notes on the lecture but by the time the video comes on he has completely zoned out.

Re: Classwork, creature, 02/16

[anole-x.livejournal.com]

Victor watched the video and took a few notes. The lion was easiest to read; Doctor McCoy looked like one, and their expressions were similar.

Re: Classwork, creature, 02/16

[soldtoarmenians]

Xander does not think, 'KITTY!' at all as he watches the flick, because he's a boy, and boys don't think, 'KITTY!' Even if the tiger cubs are really, really cute.

Re: Classwork, creature, 02/16

[game-of-you.livejournal.com]

Dream also does not think 'KITTY!,' because he is all broody and serious and nigh-immortal.

He does look a little doofy as he tracks the tiger cubs with his eyes, though.

Re: Classwork, creature, 02/16

[strongestgirl.livejournal.com]

Pippi Listens to the lecture taking notes

She watches the video with a doofy grin.

Pippi does, indeed think "KITTY".

Re: Classwork, creature, 02/16

[upforachase.livejournal.com]

Cordelia is a little spacey during the lecture and video, because she's just given this class some thought.

It's kinda weird to be learning how to understand Cat.

Re: Classwork, creature, 02/16

[aka-vala.livejournal.com]

Vala watches the film closely, for once giving class her complete attention. One might even suspect she was trying to avoid thinking about anything else right now.

Re: Classwork, creature, 02/16

[stykera]

Stark listens to the lecture, then watches the video which he enjoys. He likes the tigers more than anything else.