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Week 11 [13.01-19.01.20] Scientifical approach to the dragons


     Dragons are usually described as mighty, powerful creatures. But have you ever wondered, how they would fit in our world, if they really existed? Or even how would they look like? Afterall, we have lots of examples of dragons in myths or folklore, and nowadays in books, movies and many other medias as well. There are many possibilities, from fluffy dragons, which we meet in fairy tales for children, to dangerous creature, from for ex. Tolkien's universe. Although it turns out that dragons in clash with how our world works, would be very restricted and prove to be mostly a thing of fantasy.

Questions:
  1. What's your favorite dragon?
  2. Do you think that dragons, in form we know today, could really ever exist?
  3. Do you know any dragon/dragon type, that would be more fit to be winner of this video?

Comments

Roman Dubovyi said…
1. Strange question. But if I have to choose something - I would say it’s probably Smaug from LOTR. Because he is smart.

2. The kind of dragons that has two legs, two wings and doesn't breathe fire - maybe. But having 6 limbs(4 legs 2 wings) or breathing fire is quite unrealistic...

3. So the video is about the most realistic dragon. I think that dragons that were mounted by Nazguls are pretty realistic. They had 2 legs 2 wings, didn’t breathe fire and made creepy noises. So why not the most realistic I’d ask?
Maciej P s16488 said…
It is tought question as I've never had strong feelings towards any dragon. I like all dragons from Heroes 3 (Crystal dragons were dope). I like chinese dragons with their length and strange faces. All in all i guess I'd have to choose Dragon Lords from Tibia as my favourite dragons because back then I've killed too many of them.
There are things about dragons that are observable in other species but I'd doubt that it would be possible for them all to be contained in one living organism. Even the ration between their weight and energy they'd use for flying is impossible to happen.
I am not sure about the winner but I think they are all wrong about these dragons. Dragon without front legs is not dragon but wyvern: https://data.whicdn.com/images/327078221/original.jpg
1. This is quite a strange question fot me because I have never thought about it. I've seen a lot of dragons in movies and have always made a huge impression but I liked Drogo form Game of Thrones the most.
2. In my opinion definitely yes, maybe not as surreal as they are sometimes shown in movies, but in the style of Drogo or Smaug I am able to believe that they lived on our planet.
3. This film did not show Drogo mentioned by me. It is known for the needs of the film, he was endowed with magical skills, but I think that all his creation, the way he is presented, all the details associated with it are fantastic.
1. Oh my, that's a tough question. As a Tolkiens fan, I would probably choose Smaug to be my favourite one. However, I also liked Sapkowskis depiction of Golden Dragon, who was able to appear in a human form.

2. Isn't Pterodactyl kind of like a dragon? Sure, it (probably) didn't breath fire, but it was a huge reptile with wings that roamed the skies of the Jurrasic era. To me, this animal could be considered a real dragon moreover it could be a start of the myths. Maybe some of our ancestors found some fossils while building mines or some tectonic forces could have risen it to the ground level. Although, what they didn't realise is that the species was already extinct so they started a rumour about dragons?

3. I don't believe the video mentioned the dragons from Game of Thrones. Those dragons had 4 limbs, huge wings and a keel what could make them winners of this study.
1. I honestly don't have any favorite dragon. He is completely not interested in this topic. Although, in total, my favorite dragon is the Wawel dragon. Like me, he liked to eat meat.

2. It seems to me that if dragons ever existed, they had a completely different look. I can't describe it exactly, but I think so. However, in my opinion, dragons never existed, it's a fantasy invention.

3. I don't know, I think all these dragons are the same. Besides, you can't describe something that doesn't exist.
1. I don’t have a favorite dragon but all of them are usually the memorable characters of their universes, even if their role is rather modest. I like Dragon Aspects from Warcraft, as they’re beautiful and powerful creatures, facing tragic fate one by one. Aside form them, now I can remember Firkraag from “Baldur’s Gate 2” – such a self-confident and bored creature that when meeting him for the first time he lets us go, bragging about his own might and saying it would be too easy to kill our group now, just to contact us later and summon us when we are stronger.
2. In a form we know today? No. Having huge, presumably reptilian beasts that could fly? Yes, and it was even showed in the video – pterodactyls were like that. Unfortunately, they were more of a bird than of a flying crocodile.
3. Not really, even the ones mentioned in the video are there just because someone had to make it there – creatures of that size and weight could be lifted in the air only by some kind of magic, which is, to be honest, quite popular solution to such problem.
Kyrylo said…

What's your favorite dragon?

Wywern probably, It is the biggest one ever known to science :)
Do you think that dragons, in form we know today, could really ever exist?
Quite possible. All mythologies and those seemingly non existing creatures are not completely made up. People long time ago were seeing things -- perhaps you were a farmer coming back home after trading in the nearest town, and saw a strangely shaped thing with bright glowing eyes somewhere in the woods, told about that to your fellow villagers, and surprisingly, several people also saw exactly that. And boom, the legend of a mysterious thing of the woods is born. Although each time it was simply a wild cat, deer, an owl or any other living thing that human eye could not detect in the dark. So, dragons might be based on something as well. Perhaps a hypertrophied lizard seen in one of the areas with methane gazers, and hence, the huge looks, the fire breath, etc.
Do you know any dragon/dragon type, that would be more fit to be winner of this video?
Khaelodraune, maybe. The is an old legend about devourer of the worlds. I would not honestly mind this world to be devoured.
PIOTR PAWLAK said…
1. What's your favorite dragon?
I never thought about it but if I had to choose I would choose Smaug or the golden dragon from the witcher.
2. Do you think that dragons, in form we know today, could really ever exist?
I thnik yes but I don't see then to breathe fire. For sure they could exist earlier.
3. Do you know any dragon/dragon type, that would be more fit to be winner of this video?
I do not know, maybe becuse I never thought about it.
My favorite dragon is Balerion, called the Black Dread, was a dragon of House Targaryen. He was ridden by King Aegon I Targaryen during his Conquest. It was the largest and most powerful dragon in the history of the Targaryen family. I don't think dragons would have had a chance to live in man's time, because it would have been too much of a threat to man and would have killed them all. I don't think I know of any other type of dragon but I can think of dragons from World of Warcraft that could transform themselves into humans, so maybe they would take first place in this ranking.

1.What's your favorite dragon?
I don't have a favorite dragon, but I have to choose a dragon, I would choose the beloved dragon Daenerys.

2.Do you think that dragons, in form we know today, could really ever exist?
hahahahaha please No . We have a dragon-like species of lizard but there is nothing more similar.

3.Do you know any dragon/dragon type, that would be more fit to be winner of this video?
Yes, I mentioned him above. I would like to see him live someday but they are dangerous creatures.
https://podroze.smcloud.net/t/photos/t/140216/waran-z-komodo_1066015.jpg
s15052 said…
1. This is a difficult question. The only dragon I can think of is Pokémon Charizard.
2. But dragons do exist. That's what I've heard. I really don't lie. Apparently a dragon lives in Krakow.
3. I never thought about it. I'm not a dragon specialist, I don't think so. All in all, they are quite similar.
1. If I had to choose my favorite dragon from the ones that I have encountered as characters in cultural texts, it would probably be Toothless from the animated movie “How to Train Your Dragon” because I think the creators made him overall very likable and entertaining.

2. Well, despite the fact that our projections of dragons vary in different cultures, I think it is safe to say that a creature resembling any of them actually existing is highly doubtful, since it’s next to impossible for such an organism to evolve.

3. I think that the authors of the video took into consideration all essential aspects while choosing the winner, therefore in my opinion this ranking is pretty accurate and believable.
1. My favorite dragon is Deathwing from World of Warcraft. He was so powerful that he could destroy the whole planet, and even have his dedicated game expansion.

2. I don't think dragons could exist. In any form that was presented in the video, I don't believe that they could exist.

3. When I was watching this video, I had some presumptions, but at the end, I would guess wrong.
Pawel Bluszcz said…
1. My favorite dragon is Charizard from Pokemon. To be honest I don't really follow fantasy and I stopped at this level, level of kids cartoons.
2. I think dragons may have existed. However, as mentioned in the film, their weight to length ratio may be a problem to fly. But who said dragons had to fly? They could only walk.
3. I think I could fit some kind of butterfly. Maybe as a result of evolution they lost the possibility of breathing fire. You have to check it out.
Marta Matysik said…
1. I love Toothless from How to train your dragon. This very good animation. I saw not much movies with dragons, so it’s hard to say something more about others dragons.

2. Probably no. But dragons in ‚The Witcher’, ‚Harry Potter’ and probably ‚Game of throne’ looks similar to each other no matter what. So there must be the reason, why this picture of dragons Is repeated.

3. I have no idea. Maybe Gold Dragon from ‚The Witcher’? But I don't know if his wings would be too small.
Kgajewska said…
1. I 'd go for dragons from Skyrim or Toothless. Thoothless is so cute that I think about him more as a pet than some dangerous creature like Skyrim's dragons., which on the other hand, could be very useful in getting rid of anybody I dislike.

2. I think, if they could, they would live in modern world. Unfortunately, we only have some dragon-ish lizards and nothing more.

3. No, I don't know, but I appreciate efforts taken into making this video. It looks like the authors really considered most common known dragons .
Jakub Kisiała said…
1.Eragon
2. I doubt it.
3. No.
1. What's your favorite dragon?
I don't have my favorite dragon right now. When I was little on TV about 8 times on Sunday, at program 1, there was a fairy tale about a dragon who helped everyone. I don't remember his name, but I liked him a lot.

2. Do you think that dragons, in the form we know today, could really ever exist?
I think dragons have never existed before. No excavations discovered so far indicate this.

3. Do you know any dragon/dragon type, that would be more fit to be the winner of this video?
I do not think so. Unfortunately, I don't know many dragons. The last time I was sitting outside the room waiting for classes, one of the girls at the sight of a drinking friend said "What a dragon!" She was so surprised that I think that recruitments could be made at our university ...
1. It's a very hard question. I mostly like dragons for their aggressive and varied appearances so it is not easy to choose only one of them. The variety of the way there are presented to us is probably limited only by our imagination and thats the most beautiful and inspiring. However if i had to choose i would pick 3 out of them. The first one Ukrainian Ironbelly (from Harry Potter series) probably for amazing look. The second one would be Smaug from Middle-earth mythology because of his personality. And the last one but not as unit but more as species the way dragons were shown in "Reign of Fire".

2. I think that some dinosaurs were very close to the way we imagine dragons these days so we can consider them to be almost real. Of course it's not exactly the 100% canonical dragon but for me it's close enough.

3. It may sound very trivially compared to other examples but i also consider the series "How to Train Your Dragon" as very interesting, beautiful and nice done visualisation of dragons. Surely they are a bit exaggerated as befits a cartoon characters but they are also very varied and their body build as well as appearance features depend on the environment in which they live. Their varied temperaments are also cool.
Anton Chechel said…
What's your favorite dragon?
Hmm... not an ordinary question. In general I really like dragons, but to single out one particular species... well, let it be Ryū - the Japanese snake-like dragon that fulfills wishes.
Do you think that dragons, in the form we know today, could really ever exist?
Judging by the fact that in many cultures there is a creature resembling a dragon in one way or another, I would say yes. People who lived far enough apart could not invent the same thing.
Do you know any dragon / dragon type that would be more fit to be the winner of this video?
The video provides such a detailed analysis of dragons that I do not know what I can add. And I don't know the specific names, types of dragons and their differences to name better species.
1. I'm big fan of LOTR franchise. So my pick is Smaug from Hobbit movie. I love how old school dragon he is. He got treasure which he loves sickly, he is greedy and smart beast. Benedict Cumberbatch's role was awesome!

2. I think they could exist in the age of dinosaurs but without fire. I cannot imagine how it biologically could work. If we look closely to dinosaurs' skeletons it look similarly to some dragons.

3. I think dragons from The Elder Scrolls V Skyrim are similar to this one from Harry Potter. They got all stuff needed to be "realistic".

1. My favourite dragon is Charizard from Pokemon. It was my childchood tv series. It a ideal dragon and only possible to be alive in the past :). Red skin, fire and big wings thats how dragon should looks like.

2. I dont think so. It is just a story image. Probably it is like mithology. This all creatures never existed.

3. As I said, The charrizard should win this competition. I know only few dragons, but I am not disapointed. I think the dragon from Harry Potter is also a good winner. Congratulations for him/her?.
Mehmet KONUK said…
What's your favorite dragon?
May be the smaug in the lord of the rings. The most charismatic and fascinating he had come
Do you think that dragons, in form we know today, could really ever exist?
It may not be in the form we know, but I know that distant relatives of known dragons are still alive.
Do you know any dragon/dragon type, that would be more fit to be winner of this video?
Yes I know:) Komodo dragon is the largest lizard variety in the world. Komodo dragons have a maximum length of 3 m and their average weight is around 70 kilos. Although it is called dragon, it is actually a variety.
dominik.samsel said…
What's your favorite dragon?
From my love to pokemons I must say Charizard, if it counts of course. It really represents for me how animated dragon should look like.

Do you think that dragons, in form we know today, could really ever exist?
Not really, I think all of these things are only creations of someones' minds. People tend to believe in dragons way before and today we just know they don't exist.

Do you know any dragon/dragon type, that would be more fit to be winner of this video?
To be more patriotic I will say Wawelski dragon. I think he had potential to be quite strong between them.
Anna Moskalenko said…
The one from the Shrek animated movie, obviously. Sorry, were there other options to choose from ? Yeah, whatever, this one is still the most adorable one :)
No, I don’t think so. The fact that other cultures for ages were describing something really close to our understanding of dragons made me think for a moment, but I still don’t believe that giant flying fire-breathing creatures like that could ever exist in our world. I do believe though that people might pass along through ages stories about some real ancient animals, but every person will add some details, like in chinese whispers game, and it could evolve into some dragon-like form with time.
I think the one that looks more like lizard with wings. Like small, skinny lizard with big wings. And it could live in a cage maybe. Actually, I just realised that I imagine it looking very similarly to bats - so lizard without long tail and with bat-like wings :)
Well, this is really unusual question. First of all dragons non existent creatures at least in our planet. Second If we assume that they are still exists somewhere else, then I would say big yellow dragon like in Harry potter movie. I hope I answered to this "question"

From my point of view they are just myths and legend as well as, for example greek gods and nothing more. But as I know there are special type of lizars that looks like dragons but I feel hesitation that they used to be dragons.

Well, I don't know any name of dragons to be honest. Probably I think the larger the dragon, the stronger and more powerful it is but still I'm not sure. The only dragon comes to my mind it is the one from Harry potter Unfortunately.
1. I think my favourite idea of dragons was introduced by Christopher Paolini in The Inheritance Cycle (Eragon).

2. They would probably be just some leftovers after dinosaurs and they wouldn't be able to spill fire.

3. No, I don't have any strong candidate.
Ivan Mazuryk said…
This comment has been removed by the author.
Ivan Mazuryk said…
1. Unfortunattely, I do not have the favorite thing which does not exist. But If I would I agree with comments above and the dragon from Shrek is the best.
2. No. If they existed we would find at least a couple proofes, but we did not.
3. It is hard to answer this question, maybe Gold Dragon from witchers world?
What's your favourite dragon?

To be honest, I am a fan of dragons, so I like all of them. My favourite one is from LOTR - Smaug. But I like all of them, so I chose Smaug more because of this question.

Do you think that dragons, in a form we know today, could ever exist?

I think no. They are a great mythical creates, but no more. I don't think they could ever exist in such form as they are described.

Do you know any dragon/dragon type, that would be more fit to be the winner of this video?

No, I don't know anyone, who can fit for this video.
I am big fan of dragons. In fact, when I was younger, I was collecting dragon figures from all around the world. But if I have to choose what is my favorite dragon, I think I would say that it’s Deathwing from World of Warcraft Cataclysm. It is huge and looks cool plus the cinematic from the game shown him very epic. I don’t think that dragons we know today could ever existed. But in my opinion animal that actually existed on Earth and as a bit similar to dragons we know were dinosaurs. I don’t really know what other dragon would be more fit as a winner in this video because I have never really measured their wingspan or if they have a keel. So, I think the winner in video could actually be the most probable dragon ever invented. But still in my opinion Deathwing is definitely the coolest.
1. Unfortunately, I don't have favorite dragons. I don't like them at all.
2. I think dragons are a creating of a myth. Such creatures could not have existed in the past.
3. I am not very fond of them, but I think the video lacks dragon that is easy to transform into something else quite unexpectedly.
What's your favorite dragon?
My favorite dragon is Toothless, the others have no chance to win :D
Do you think that dragons, in form we know today, could really ever exist?
For sure there must be some prototypes of dragons that we know from legends. In other case how could we explain that each culture from each continent, which didn't communicate to each other, has legends about dragons?
Do you know any dragon/dragon type, that would be more fit to be winner of this video?
In my opinion, Drogon is the most realistic and impressive.

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