Cheesed to squeak you!

Professor Veronica Ratcliffe. I taught at a Peepers College for a year specifically to get the professor title. Why? Because I wanted a cool title and I'm not a medical doctor.

[ratticusinfernus]

Welcome to the Skullship Rat Emporium! (JK, not an emporium when you don't pay for anything.) Come grab lab rats, get stuff for your rats, and come back again when you've killed off all your test subjects!

My lab rats are bred to reduce variation that could skew data while minimizing inbreeding. I selected for docile personality traits to make them easier to work with.

The outliers and especially ornery ones get put into my second breeding stock: The Ratticus infernus Project. The RIP project aims to create the ultimate evil rat for...

...I'm still working on the justification. Rest assured whatever it is will be super ratical! As in rat radical. Because rats are rad and my ultimate rat will be double rad.

[fredersen]

a meba 🦠 is almost like a really really small anermal but not quite

[chemistwithslippers]

intern... where will I find an intern...

[ratticusinfernus]

Just find an Expendable Intern (check the name tag) who won’t be missed and grab them! They don’t get paid anyways so it really doesn’t make a difference! (^)

[chemistwithslippers]

feeling the dire need to extend my laboratory, should i conjur up a letter and send it on over to peepers ? i keep knocking stuff over accidently, and i continue to apply for grants, nothing yet !! :-(

for now, i rely on properties and finding out what chemicals can be properly acquired, ordering on the web, you know ? :-)

[mortisnothere]

Good luck. I’d ask the commander if I were you. I mean, If that rat-scientist gets good enough funding I don’t see why you wouldn’t.

[ratticusinfernus]

Um, EXCUSE YOU!?!?!? I am literally the source of every lab rat on this entire ship!

Heck, 96% of my funding goes to the ratporium! It’s a big operation! And I only have a single intern!

[follwrshep]

I am certain I could give ants anxiety if I felt like it

（╹◡╹）Given they were specifically ants raised in a glorn less environment

[ratticusinfernus]

Me too! It’s easy to do!

[follwrshep]

( ´∀｀) if only there were some ants raised in an environment with a severe lack of glorn nearby… I would love to test my capabilities!

[albertbutyoucancallmebert]

My ants will crush you and nibble off your flesh until you are nothing but bones. Which my ants would then keep as trophies in their enclosure.

[follwrshep]

Evilness me! So needlessly violent, why, I never even knew you had ants! Why in Glorn’s name would I be referring to your pets? That would be utterly ridiculous..!

[ratticusinfernus]

Try getting them! I wanna see what would happen!

[follwrshep]

Try getting what? (^з^)-☆ Why, I would never consider harming scientist watchdog’s ants! Did I not reiterate this?

[ratticusinfernus]

Of course not!

[follwrshep]

I am certain I could give ants anxiety if I felt like it

（╹◡╹）Given they were specifically ants raised in a glorn less environment

[ratticusinfernus]

Me too! It’s easy to do!

[follwrshep]

( ´∀｀) if only there were some ants raised in an environment with a severe lack of glorn nearby… I would love to test my capabilities!

[albertbutyoucancallmebert]

My ants will crush you and nibble off your flesh until you are nothing but bones. Which my ants would then keep as trophies in their enclosure.

[follwrshep]

Evilness me! So needlessly violent, why, I never even knew you had ants! Why in Glorn’s name would I be referring to your pets? That would be utterly ridiculous..!

[ratticusinfernus]

Try getting them! I wanna see what would happen!

[follwrshep]

I am certain I could give ants anxiety if I felt like it

（╹◡╹）Given they were specifically ants raised in a glorn less environment

[ratticusinfernus]

Me too! It’s easy to do!

[detective-fez]

do you guys think ants have social anxiety?

[ratticusinfernus]

It’s far more likely than you think! According to this article,

“...The mushroom bodies [brain structures related to learning and memory] were reduced almost by half in isolated ants compared to ants raised in groups," lead study author Marc Seid of the University of Scranton said. And there were behavioral changes as well. Isolated ants became seemingly less suited to interact with the group. “The ants that grew up alone were up to 10 times less aggressive than their socially groomed friends." And like those primates, Seid said, they were socially inept – they would retreat from other ants they encountered. It seems likely that shrunken brains and bad behavior are related in these two very different animals, as the shrunken mushroom bodies of the ants mirrored the tiny hippocampi observed in primates.

Anyways, the rule of thumb is: If it has a brain, it can go wrong. And there are many, many ways for the minds of social creatures to go wrong!

[detective-fez]

thank you, professor! (^)

[albertbutyoucancallmebert]

My ants do not have social anxiety. For I have enhanced their brains to move past such things. Not to mention I raise them lovingly.

[ratticusinfernus]

It’s a matter of statistics where even the most loving environment will have someone who gets the good ’ol genetic curse!

[ratticusinfernus]

It’s funny how the last article I read ended with, “If you want a big brain, grow up with friends.”

LOL! If that were left for the individual to decide our society would be far less complex!

[detective-fez]

do you guys think ants have social anxiety?

[ratticusinfernus]

It’s far more likely than you think! According to this article,

“...The mushroom bodies [brain structures related to learning and memory] were reduced almost by half in isolated ants compared to ants raised in groups," lead study author Marc Seid of the University of Scranton said. And there were behavioral changes as well. Isolated ants became seemingly less suited to interact with the group. “The ants that grew up alone were up to 10 times less aggressive than their socially groomed friends." And like those primates, Seid said, they were socially inept – they would retreat from other ants they encountered. It seems likely that shrunken brains and bad behavior are related in these two very different animals, as the shrunken mushroom bodies of the ants mirrored the tiny hippocampi observed in primates.

Anyways, the rule of thumb is: If it has a brain, it can go wrong. And there are many, many ways for the minds of social creatures to go wrong!

[smallestbubs]

like whack a mole

[rat-council-official]

official they can't win against us all post

[sweet-tea-skitty]

new mouse just dropped

[ratticusinfernus]

I'm still amazed that there is only a single police officer onboard.

Does anyone know if the rumor that the "forensics department" has but one watchdog is true?

[ratticusinfernus]

Can you ask your rats what the glornists are up to for me?

Why, I'm flattered that you think my rats are capable of understanding our language well enough to comprehend complex orders, and then convey equally complex information back to me! But no.

Although Lola does like to go on about them when she visits the Ratporium. Sooo my best guess is:

Juvenile squabbling and interchurch bullying, seeing what they can get away with before our huge, competent crime department comes after them, and celebrating wacky holidays! ( ^ )

Oh how I wish I could join them in throwing knives at the ceiling until I'm forced to seek medical attention...

[ratticusinfernus]

It's soooo weird when scientists call themselves doctors! What, are you gonna show off your title whenever someone asks for a doctor before saying, "Actually my doctorate is in mathematics" or whatever?

[watchdogsworld]

Doctor meant teacher first. Medical professionals should change their name.

[ratticusinfernus]

Hmmmmmm... Fair. Very fair. But to what?

[watchdogsworld]

Medical professionals or medics for short

[ratticusinfernus]

If I was a doctor I would stick with squatting over doctor because it sounds a lot cooler than medic. And medical professional? Well, that doesn't quite flow well...

[watchdogsworld]

You're the only one here complaining about it.

[ratticusinfernus]

So?

[watchdogsworld]

So do you just like to complain? Why don't you just tell your complaints to your rats instead of putting them up for everyone to see?

[ratticusinfernus]

Nobody forced you to look at my blog.

[ratticusinfernus]

It's soooo weird when scientists call themselves doctors! What, are you gonna show off your title whenever someone asks for a doctor before saying, "Actually my doctorate is in mathematics" or whatever?

[watchdogsworld]

Doctor meant teacher first. Medical professionals should change their name.

[ratticusinfernus]

Hmmmmmm... Fair. Very fair. But to what?

[watchdogsworld]

Medical professionals or medics for short

[ratticusinfernus]

If I was a doctor I would stick with squatting over doctor because it sounds a lot cooler than medic. And medical professional? Well, that doesn't quite flow well...

[watchdogsworld]

You're the only one here complaining about it.

[ratticusinfernus]

So?

[ratticusinfernus]

It's soooo weird when scientists call themselves doctors! What, are you gonna show off your title whenever someone asks for a doctor before saying, "Actually my doctorate is in mathematics" or whatever?

[watchdogsworld]

Doctor meant teacher first. Medical professionals should change their name.

[ratticusinfernus]

Hmmmmmm... Fair. Very fair. But to what?

[watchdogsworld]

Medical professionals or medics for short

[ratticusinfernus]

If I was a doctor I would stick with squatting over doctor because it sounds a lot cooler than medic. And medical professional? Well, that doesn't quite flow well...