Scientist Says Octopuses Could Take Over the World If Humans Disappeared

Did it ever cross your mind which species will take over the Earth if humans suddenly disappear? The answer most probably will be plants and trees, but if there is an intelligent creature that can build another civilization just like us, then they will certainly take over the world. Well, according to one scientist, octopuses are the number 1 candidate.

What Did Scientists Discover?

Professor Tim Coulson from the University of Oxford suggests that if all humans on Earth suddenly disappeared from this planet, Octopuses are the next species most likely to dominate the world.

Their intelligence, which is often compared to humans of a young child or a smart dog, but in a very different way, will certainly be helpful in their way to rule the planet. Not only their sheer intelligence, but also their adaptability, makes them the best candidate for this hypothetical scenario.

If you think about it, one of the key features that made humans the dominant species is our ability to adapt and evolve to survive. Octopuses also exhibit the same behavior and capability, so if given the chance, there is a likelihood that Professor Coulson could be right.

Read more: New York Post

How Could Octopuses Build a Civilization?

Evolutionists Predict Octopuses… Will Rule the World?

The key to dominating the planet is to build a civilization just like ours, or you know, be freakishly big and strong just like the dinosaurs are. But octopuses are the intelligent type instead of the muscular ones, so if they hypothetically rule the world if would be through their skills and outsmarting every other specie.

Octopuses have nine brains, three hearts, and eight arms, and each of those things is capable of moving or functioning on their own. That is already a crazy feat compared to humans. They are also better multitaskers than we are because their nervous system is not centralized, which means each part could think for itself.

They also have the capacity to recognize humans, hold and manipulate objects, and escape captivity. All these traits combine are clues that suggest they could develop complex societies given enough time to evolve.

Read more: Popular Mechanics

What Challenges Would Octopuses Face?

Despite all their amazing features mentioned above, they will still face some hard challenges. This includes their short life span, which only ranges from one to five years.

That means they will have to learn and mature, along with passing all their knowledge to the next generation, to accumulate enough genetic data to create a civilization. It is a complex task that their lifespan will most likely not allow it, unless they evolve to live longer years.

Additionally, they don’t have any skeleton, so it will really be hard to take over the land. This means other animals could become dominant in that area, and whoever can build a civilization comparable to ours would win by then.

But again, they have remarkable adaptability, so if over a million years they can evolve to be able to walk on land, combined with their enhanced intelligence, should that evolve too, then Professor Coulson’s theory will most probably be right.

Could Octopuses Rule The World After Humans ? | WION Podcast

Author's Final Thoughts

While the idea that octopuses could take over the world might sound like a joke to others, the fact that we are talking about this topic, and a respected scientist providing that theory, just highlights how amazing octopuses are. What do you think would happen if they evolved just as mentioned above, but this time humans did not disappear?

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