October 5, 2004

• Centipedes

  
  

  I saw a centipede the other day, and it produced in me a visceral sense of revulsion.  I’ve never been bitten by one, nor remember any childhood trauma involving them, so I wonder “Why do I find centipedes so repulsive?”  I don’t think it’s just me; video game designers routinely use insect forms for villians.  Movies, too: think Aliens or Starship Troopers.  Have we ever seen a hero who looks like a centipede?  Even among monsters the bad guy is a centipede (Monsters, Inc).

  
  

  So I think it’s hard-wired into human DNA.  Puppies, cute.  Centipedes, revolting.  Because of my prejudice against that extreme level of ugliness, I wondered if my belief in centipede poison was unfounded.  So I did a quick google and found an article that made me laugh out loud.  Am I the only one who thinks this stuff is funny?

  
  

  
  

  Most centipedes can only bite with their poison claws located directly under the head; however, Scolopendra can harm a person with the sharp claws of its many walking legs. Each walking leg is tipped with a sharp claw capable of making tiny cuts in human skin. A poison produced from the attachment point of each leg may be dropped into the wounds resulting in an inflamed and irritated condition. The best rule of thumb is NEVER HANDLE CENTIPEDES.
  …
  The house centipede, Scutigera coleoptrata, originally lived only in Mexico but is now found throughout the United States. It is the only species capable of reproducing in houses and is often seen in and around homes where dampness occurs. The house centipede is active at night, moving about in search of insects. When full grown it is about 1 1/2 inches in Iength and feeds primarily on small insects such as cockroaches, clothes moths, house flies and other insects it  may encounter in the house. The long back legs capture the prey with a “lassoing” action. Although centipedes are beneficial in that they destroy other insects, most people have an aversion to their presence in homes.

  
  

  And now a quote from C.S. Lewis about centipedes that has stuck with me for years — now I can finally release it in a xanga post:

  
  

  
  

  But the Nietzschean ethic can be accepted only if we are ready to scrap traditional morals as a mere error and then to put ourselves in a position where we can find no ground for any value judgements at all. It is the difference between a man who says to us: ‘You like your vegetables moderately fresh; why not grow your own and have them perfectly fresh?’ and a man who says, ‘Throw away that loaf and try eating bricks and centipedes instead.’  — The Abolition of Man

  • 10:11 am
  • 2 Comments