Have you ever experienced hypothermia? As far as experiences go it certainly isn’t that bad. And the transition from mild hypothermia to severe hypothermia isn’t so much painful as it’s exhausting. Speaking from experience here.
Being cold sucks for sure, but for humans used to it it’s really more of an inconvenience (I.E. Whim Hoff and my personal experience). Considering shrimps are cold blooded, they absolutely don’t feel the same sort of pain warm blooded animals do from the cold. For us any temperature below normal basically means you’re on a timer for how long you have to live. For cold blooded animals this isn’t so, and many apparently comfortably live at body temperatures approaching freezing.
Considering shrimp are in abundance in Antarctica, where the water is quite cold, and they seemingly don’t mind living there, I’d wager death by hypothermia for a shrimp is probably one of the most humane and least painful methods we have available. Considering a shrimp has about the heat capacity of a quarter, they would also go from normal to hypothermic/unconscious in a very short period of time.
I’m undecided on that. I lean heavily towards “no” or “almost none”, but I’ve never been a shrimp as far as I can remember, and so far as anything can be experienced by a living being, pain seems like a pretty fundamental one for survival.
People care more about orcas than shrimps because orcas have brains and shrimps don’t. Duh.
Also the “babies are stupid” argument is stupid. At the moment of birth, babies have a more developed cognitive system than shrimp or lobsters. But even if they didn’t, babies are part of a species that has such a system and they will have one shortly. A shrimp can live for a hundred years and it will never have a brain.
Thanks Glenn, I’m sold. Will sign up for a recurring donation to the Shrimp welfare project in the new year
I disagree about the ice slurry.
Have you ever experienced hypothermia? As far as experiences go it certainly isn’t that bad. And the transition from mild hypothermia to severe hypothermia isn’t so much painful as it’s exhausting. Speaking from experience here.
Being cold sucks for sure, but for humans used to it it’s really more of an inconvenience (I.E. Whim Hoff and my personal experience). Considering shrimps are cold blooded, they absolutely don’t feel the same sort of pain warm blooded animals do from the cold. For us any temperature below normal basically means you’re on a timer for how long you have to live. For cold blooded animals this isn’t so, and many apparently comfortably live at body temperatures approaching freezing.
Considering shrimp are in abundance in Antarctica, where the water is quite cold, and they seemingly don’t mind living there, I’d wager death by hypothermia for a shrimp is probably one of the most humane and least painful methods we have available. Considering a shrimp has about the heat capacity of a quarter, they would also go from normal to hypothermic/unconscious in a very short period of time.
That’s true, to the extent that shrimp have consciousness at all.
I’m undecided on that. I lean heavily towards “no” or “almost none”, but I’ve never been a shrimp as far as I can remember, and so far as anything can be experienced by a living being, pain seems like a pretty fundamental one for survival.
Thank you! More valuable than a thousand tweets from a certain bearded #resistance member.
Wait a second, what about the sea lice? Why doesn't anyone care about their welfare? What will happen to them once we end factory farming?
People care more about orcas than shrimps because orcas have brains and shrimps don’t. Duh.
Also the “babies are stupid” argument is stupid. At the moment of birth, babies have a more developed cognitive system than shrimp or lobsters. But even if they didn’t, babies are part of a species that has such a system and they will have one shortly. A shrimp can live for a hundred years and it will never have a brain.
Lame
Worrying about the poor baby shrimps is actually pretty lame.
Sad
I’m having sushi tonight, in your honor.
Excellent. Make sure it’s Vegan. I love me some avocado sushi.
Really liked your topline summary, except that bullet points two and three are actually saying the same thing.