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    A colony of cooperating jellyfish challenges conventional ideas of individuality

    What is an individual? In Siphonophores and Individuality, Dr Casey Dunn of Brown University tackles this question by examining a curious organism: the siphonophore. A colony of cooperating jellyfish which functions as a single animal, the siphonophore is a perplexing and paradoxical creature. By considering the siphonophore’s unusual biological characteristics, this two-minute documentary unites science and philosophy, approaching the concept of individuality from an unexpected – and enlightening – perspective.

    Directors: Casey Dunn, Sophia Tintori

    7 August 2014
    Close-up photo of two translucent, pink comb jellies with visible cilia and internal structures, set against a dark background.

    videoEvolution

    Take a shimmering, surreal swim with what might be the Earth’s oldest animals

    7 minutes

    Close-up of a hydra, with its translucent tentacles extending outward against a dark background.

    videoBiology

    Blend up a hydra, and its cells will coalesce back into a full creature. How?

    5 minutes

    Illustration of a person with glasses observing a row of small plants in water-filled containers.

    videoPhilosophy of science

    The hydra’s amazing resilience challenges ideas that all living things must die

    4 minutes

    Close-up of a colourful crab with a large claw on a muddy surface, displaying prominent eye stalks.

    videoEvolution

    Symmetry rules life on Earth – but it comes with many fascinating exceptions

    9 minutes

    A small orange seahorse blending in with coral of a similar colour, detailed texture and a blurred background.

    videoEvolution

    Pygmy seahorses survive by disappearing into the world around them

    2 minutes

    A man snorkelling underwater with jellyfish around him, wearing a snorkel and mask, surrounded by a blue-green sea.

    videoEvolution

    Nearly stingless jellyfish on a remote Pacific island are a wonder of evolution

    4 minutes

    Numerous birds flying in formation against a light sky above power lines and poles, creating a rhythmic pattern in the air.

    videoArt

    The inadvertent art of tiny bodies – stunning, hidden patterns of animal movement

    10 minutes

    Microscopic images of cells showing vibrant colours in various patterns against a black background.

    videoBiology

    For 3 billion years, life was unicellular. Why did it start to collaborate?

    4 minutes

    Microscopic view of transparent aquatic microorganisms among brown organic matter, set against a light background.

    videoBiology

    An ode to the humble rotifer – one of nature’s simplest and strangest creatures

    9 minutes