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every homunculus is sacred

Unread postPosted: Sun Jan 28, 2007 6:08 pm
by pd Rydia
[url]http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Homunculus[/url] wrote:"The term homunculus was later used in the discussion of conception and birth. In 1694, Nicolas Hartsoeker discovered "animalcules" in the sperm of humans and other animals. Some claimed that the sperm was in fact a "little man" (homunculus) that was placed inside a woman for growth into a child; these later became known as the spermists. This seemed to neatly explain many of the mysteries of conception (for instance, why it takes two). However it was later pointed out that if the sperm was a homunculus, identical in all but size to an adult, then the homunculus may have sperm of its own. This led to a reductio ad absurdum, with a chain of homunculi "all the way down." This was not necessarily considered a fatal objection however, as it neatly explained how it was that "in Adam" all had sinned: the whole of humanity was already contained in his loins."
So someone mentioned that they'd met people who believed that the fetuses were 'perfectly formed infants from the instant of implantation, just getting bigger' with a suggestion to look up the word 'homunculus.'

I don't know whether to laugh or not. The idea of tiny men in sperm containing tinier men in their sperm, who contain even yet tinier men in their sperm...and so on. It's...like the mirrors at the barber shop, only not at all.

Unread postPosted: Sun Jan 28, 2007 7:20 pm
by Idran1701
Even better, if I remember right, during the early days of microscopic observation many folks claimed to actually spy these homunculi within the sperm. :D

Unread postPosted: Sun Jan 28, 2007 8:19 pm
by pd Rydia
Oooh, cloud watching in the sperm!

Unread postPosted: Sun Jan 28, 2007 9:49 pm
by Capntastic
Homonculi are my favorite alchemical monstrosity :3

Unread postPosted: Sun Jan 28, 2007 10:00 pm
by KingOfDoma

Unread postPosted: Mon Jan 29, 2007 6:22 am
by FlamingDeth
KingOfDoma wrote:I'm full of tinier men!


Don't make me turn this into a spam thread!

Cause it'll happen. Completely on accident.

Unread postPosted: Mon Jan 29, 2007 4:26 pm
by pd Rydia
Spam it is!

Unread postPosted: Mon Jan 29, 2007 5:26 pm
by Justice Augustus
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Image:HomunculusLarge.png

Saw a more detailed picture in a manuscript in the library once, but this image is pretty cool too.

Unread postPosted: Mon Jan 29, 2007 5:56 pm
by Archmage

Unread postPosted: Mon Jan 29, 2007 7:08 pm
by Nick Shogun
Very unsettling, Brian.

Unread postPosted: Tue Jan 30, 2007 3:46 pm
by PriamNevhausten
You misspelled 'awesome.'

Unread postPosted: Sat Feb 03, 2007 5:14 pm
by Ganonfro
Priam made me lawl...