Wasps and glasses

cdd · Sun 27 Jul, 2008 23.20

My murderous activities have led me to wonder:

When you trap a wasp in a glass and let it be, does it die first from lack of oxygen or lack of food?

Nick Harvey · Sun 27 Jul, 2008 23.30

As it's most unlikely that the junction between the probably imperfect glass rim and the probably not perfectly flat surface on which the glass has been placed would be one hundred percent airtight, I suspect the latter.

Sput · Sun 27 Jul, 2008 23.40

The former worked on a persistent bumblebee in my house a while back. It came back to life after we relented, though.

Alexia · Mon 28 Jul, 2008 07.53

I was going to write something similarly technical and intelligent....

....but then I realised....

...you're WRONG cdd.... you don't trap them with a glass, you twat the little buzzy fuckers with a rolled up Daily Mirror! Then wipe the entrails off on the edge of your bin and laugh mercilessly at the crushed evil twisted figure of doom you have vanquished....

...ahem...sorry - I hate wasps.

cdd · Mon 28 Jul, 2008 10.40

Alexia wrote:...you're WRONG cdd.... you don't trap them with a glass, you twat the little buzzy fuckers with a rolled up Daily Mirror! Then wipe the entrails off on the edge of your bin and laugh mercilessly at the crushed evil twisted figure of doom you have vanquished....

why would you want to give them the privilege of a quick and painless death?

on the matter at hand, I must say both seem unlikely, but the food suggestion seems less unlikely. The enjoyable bit is that they expend most of their energy buzzing around hopelessly and hitting the edge of the glass, which presumably injures them a bit as well. The theory can easily be tested by trapping the wasp in a glass and providing a supply of food. Stay tuned.

BTW: the average death time is about 24 hours, any less and it slowly recovers its strength.

Nini · Mon 28 Jul, 2008 11.33

Thought most of you guys got over this torturing insects hump when you were 12.

Alexia wrote:...you're WRONG cdd.... you don't trap them with a glass, you twat the little buzzy fuckers with a rolled up Daily Mirror! Then wipe the entrails off on the edge of your bin and laugh mercilessly at the crushed evil twisted figure of doom you have vanquished....

And what if you do not have a Daily Mirror (ptif) in your home? Can always use the G2 section but does it have the required swat power? I've killed a wasp once by somehow smooshing it against a window, still don't get how I did it but I did find out they do have blood.

Nick Harvey · Mon 28 Jul, 2008 11.40

Nini wrote:Thought most of you guys got over this torturing insects hump when you were 12.

Exactly. Hence my use of the word "suspect".

Nini wrote:And what if you do not have a Daily Mirror (ptif) in your home?

My weapon of choice is a rather old copy of "MS-DOS for Beginners".

Nini · Mon 28 Jul, 2008 12.53

Yeah, does seem like they'd be willing to put a wasp upto 24 hours of crazy torture. Hmm, nice choice for swatting material there, I'll say. wonder if my "Advanced Functions in Lotus 1-2-3 for DOS" tome is a fair match for a wasp.

cdd · Mon 28 Jul, 2008 15.07

Nini wrote:Thought most of you guys got over this torturing insects hump when you were 12.

Oh I can assure you that the wasp wins with this torturing lark.

Nini · Mon 28 Jul, 2008 15.20

I'm sure it does.

Nick Harvey · Mon 28 Jul, 2008 15.58

Nini wrote:"Advanced Functions in Lotus 1-2-3 for DOS"

Ah, another lover of the finer things in life.

Have you, like me, still got "Help for Lotus 1-2-3 Users" switched on in Excel, so when you hit the "/" key, it shows you how to do the function you know and love the new Bill Gates way?