Why is a fish when it swims?
 

The answer to that question is supposedly "Because the higher it flies, the much."

That question was posed "years" ago and I, to this very day, deeply regret the reticence that I felt at the time regarding questioning the veracity of that answer. Until now.

Is anyone familiar with this issue who could perhaps step forth and offer clarification?

Many fishes swim by contracting and relaxing a succession of muscle blocks, called myomeres, alternately on each side of the body, starting at the head and progressing down toward the tail. The alternate shortening and relaxing of successive muscle blocks, which bends part of the body first toward one side and then toward the other, results in a series of waves traveling down the fish's body. The rear part of each wave thrusts against the water and propels the fish forward. This type of movement is quite clearly seen in the freshwater eel. Because movement of the head back and forth exerts drag, which consumes additional energy and slows travel, a great many fishes have modified this snakelike motion by keeping the waves very small along most of the length of the body, in some cases showing no obvious movement at all, and then increasing them sharply in the tail region. It is the end of the traveling waves that moves the tail forcefully back and forth, providing the main propulsion for forward motion. A simpler form of tail propulsion is seen in such inflexible-bodied fishes as the trunkfish, which simply alternates contractions of all the muscle blocks on one side of the body with those on the other side, causing the tail to move from side to side like a sculling paddle.

Some of the predatory bony fishes are the fastest swimmers; they can cruise at speeds that are between three and six times their body length per second and may be able to reach 9 to 13 body lengths per second in very short bursts. Some fishes, such as the blenny, which has been timed at 0.8 km/hr (0.5 mph), swim very slowly; others, such as the salmon, which may reach a sustained speed of 13 km/hr (8 mph), move much faster; and it has been estimated that tuna may reach speeds of 80 km/hr (50 mph), and swordfish, 97 km/hr (60 mph).

What are you on, and where can I get some?

pm your adress for a welcome/trial package

I dare not attempt to answer this one. A physicist might refute me.

As a physicist, a falling fish can be approximated as a point mass in a vacuum.

The falling physicist fish fable...right.

Like, physicist fish really exist.

We're not all fools here, you know.

How do lesbians figure in to this post?

Which "issue?" The question? The answer? Your regret? Your reticence? The veracity of the answer? Your questioning of the answer? Why you put "years" in quotes? You have to be much more specific before I cannot help you.

Excellent answer Adrian however I think you missed the point completely... you explain the how of a fish not the why.

I believe the why of a fish is to be served raw on a little piece of rice with some wasabei.

And does the fish know what water is if it surrounds it, provides its nurishment and a means of moving - when it doesn't have a point of reference? But I suppose it would miss it dearly once brought on deck only to be scaled, gutted, filleted, decapitated and consumed in all manner. Then the fish would understand clearly of this water and would miss it madly - that stuff that they know not of until it wasn't...

I like Fatty Tuna...Toro Thank You!

My query qualifies, quite quintessentially, as a quest for clarification and your attempt at obfuscation is...well, extremely obfuscating. To be specific.

Your "years in quotes" question is better left unaddressed. For now.

42

Actually its 42 and a third.

I wouldn't eat fish with ANY wasabei! It has nothing to do with race; I would break bread with a masai any day of the week (I don't think they eat fish).

The wasabei and the masai are verrrry different people.

I went to Africa once (one of my favorite countries) and asked a swahili why that was. He said "I have no idea. I'm only a language."

I thought this was the anti-phishing thread. Stoopid criminals.....

Now where did I put my keys?

If a fish were to be put in a bucket of water and spun in the deepest, darkest part of space with no stars for reference points, would it swim?

Man I wish I had some shrooms.

Its ok to eat fish, cause they don't have any feelings

only if it was given the promise of medical benefits - then it would only do so to pick up a 40oz and thats about it