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Bionicle Anatomy Theory


Paleo

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Despite Greg's little quote: "Real life physics don't apply in BIONICLE, unless scientists discovered Protodermis yesterday and I wasn't told about it."— Greg Farshtey I'm going to assume that Protodermis is the same basic elements of the real world, and simply refers to matter as a whole. Now for the theory (it's a little long) (please take the time to read it, I spent a whole lot of time on it): Muscular SystemThe ratio of mechanical to organic protodermis in the Matoran Universe is 85% to 15%, and factoring in organs, that leaves very little room for muscle. Yet Matoran are surprisingly strong compared to their size. My theory regarding this is 2 systems that can limit muscle mass.Muscle and Gears: Muscles attached to gears would transfer energy without the need for long muscles.Exoskeletal limbs: Insects use long muscles in their limbs, attached at both ends (in a human this would be wrist and shoulder) on the inside. This configuration is extremely efficient and accounts for the surprising strength of insects. Even quite thin muscles could supply Matoran-level strength. (Note: the gear system could not function to reduce muscle in this system) Respiratory SystemLets start with a fact: Matoran Universe inhabitants do not have blood. Therefore, how do MU inhabitants get oxygen/nitrogen/methane/etc. to their organic components? My theory is that on an inhale, air is sucked into the lungs. This air is passed into organic/metallic tubes which send the air to the tissues, which is absorbed. The unused gasses is then moved back to the lungs, Nervous SystemMost know that MU inhabitants have a Heartlight, a light that monitors SOMETHING. Although it seems to be a Heart, MU inhabitants (I think I’ll start abbreviating this as MUI) do not have a fluid that runs through them. So what is the Heartlight doing? I believe the Heartlight is a Nervous System monitor that checks the electrical activity of the Brain. If the Brain is slowly fading (e.g. when Turaga Lhikan dies) the Heartlight reflects the slowed activity with slower pulsations. Some of you readers of this theory might mention when the Toa Ignika speeds up Tahu Mistika’s life processes, and his Heartlight starts to flash quite quickly, while he is close to death. My explanation for this is that the monitor was sped up, checking much more frequently on the status of the Brain. This might also be simply caused by increased activity in the Brain (e.g. When Norik wakes up from a dream in The Dweller Report).Another thing you might bring up is why this Brain monitor would show as a light on the chest. My answer for this is that is would most likely be utilized as a system for the Great Beings to check on the mental processes of their creations. Digestive SystemIt is a little known fact (or maybe a widely known fact (I just learned it a few months ago)) that Matoran absorb food and nutrients through their hands. Yet that is all the details we get. Below in MY theory filling in the specifics.Matoran and other MUI’s hands are porous. Below this porous layer of metallic protodermis is a layer of cells. When digesting, say, a Bula Berry, the Matoran holds it. The layer of cells begins to produce enzymes that dissolve the Bula Berry cells. The dissolved cells are then moved through an organic/metallic tube system to an organ that extracts the nutrients from the broken down cells. This is then fed back to the organic tissue and absorbed. Edit: Wow, this, of all things, is a hot topic.

Edited by Paleo
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and what about the Elements? or the transformation process?Does your theory cover their ability to control, and manifest, various elements?aswell as the changing from Matoran to Toa to Turaga?Seeing as Matoran is a programming language, they would have more robotic qualities

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and what about the Elements? or the transformation process?Does your theory cover their ability to control, and manifest, various elements?aswell as the changing from Matoran to Toa to Turaga?Seeing as Matoran is a programming language, they would have more robotic qualities

I'm simply focussing on the internal organs (minus the brain) in this. I'm not tackling some of the big Bionicle ideas here, just everyday stuff.What do you mean by "Matoran is a programming language?"
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I agree with what knuckles chaotix said. Funny that you thought of it, but a good theory nonetheless. I'm a big Bionicle fan, but I couldn't really posit anything to this. I want to know how you came up with the ratio of 85-15.

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I want to know how you came up with the ratio of 85-15.

GregF mentioned in his blog that Matoran Universe residents were eighty-five percent robotic and fifteen percent organic, whereas Spherus Magnans were vice versa.I like your theory, Paleo, though I have to agree it does seem a bit like overthinking. Still, it is a useful exercise to test computer science and biology knowledge, is it not? :P
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Greg Farshtey said it himself, The Matoran Language is a programming code

Where does he say this? Can you give me a linke?

I do believe that this is all very uneeded. It IS a toyline, after all...Though it was an intriguing read.

Yeah, but keep in mind that we're all nerds here, and nerds' jobs are to overthink things. We changed the world by overthinking things. As for the theories themselves, they are quite interesting. I guess in a human body, the oxygen is transported throughout the body via a liquid, whereas in a matoran it is transported while still in a gaseous state. If it was liquid, then that would be called blood. But you mention tubes that feed the oxygen to the major organs, what would push the oxygen through those tubes? In a human body that function is carried out by the heart, but since matoran don't have blood, they don't have a heart (that sounds so wrong). -don't touch my pocket protector

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Hmmm... this is very interesting, but I seem to remember Greg saying that Matoran have bodily fluids like oil. Could be wrong, but if so, I don't see where that would factor in.

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Greg Farshtey said it himself, The Matoran Language is a programming code

but since matoran don't have blood, they don't have a heart (that sounds so wrong). -don't touch my pocket protector
That's not necessarily true. After all, we never got into too much detail on a Matoran's anatomy, so we wouldn't know. We know for sure they have lungs and muscle, and they might have nerves, unless they're body structure is almost completely different from ours. As far as we know, though, there are no fluids in their body whatsoever, since we have never seen a Matoran Universe character bleed anything when wounded. The Bara Magna inhabitants might be a different story, though. Anyways, it's a good theory. I like these type of things. :)
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Greg Farshtey said it himself, The Matoran Language is a programming code

but since matoran don't have blood, they don't have a heart (that sounds so wrong). -don't touch my pocket protector
That's not necessarily true. After all, we never got into too much detail on a Matoran's anatomy, so we wouldn't know. We know for sure they have lungs and muscle, and they might have nerves, unless they're body structure is almost completely different from ours. As far as we know, though, there are no fluids in their body whatsoever, since we have never seen a Matoran Universe character bleed anything when wounded. The Bara Magna inhabitants might be a different story, though. Anyways, it's a good theory. I like these type of things. :)
Well, the sole purpose of the heart is to pump blood throughout the body. If they don't have blood, then they don't have a heart. However, there might be some other organ or system that transports oxygen throughout the body. -don't touch my pocket protector

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Don't the Bahrag mention something about being able to "Chill the Toa's blood" or something? Maybe this "blood" refers to some fluid that channels through Matoran's body (not necessarily organic, perhaps it is a form of liquid protodermis). A Matoran's heart probably channels this fluid, and their heartlight moniters this.

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The heartlight is not exclusive to the nervous system. It merely acts like a normal heart, except utilizing electrical impulses rather than blood. And digestion is not enzyme based, I think it simply breaks the atomic bonds and extracts the chemical energy. Also, on transformations:Since real physics don't apply, I belive that a Toa Stone contains a form of energy that can be absorbed by Matoran. Once absorbed, it splits into 2 types:Toa Power: This is transformed into extra mass, reconfiguring a Matoran into a Toa. When a Toa becomes a Turaga, it is transferred back into energy, reducing the mass of the being. However, it is only half of the energy of a Toa stone, and therefore does not revert the Toa into a Matoran.Elemental Power: All beings have an organ inside them that stores excess energy. Humans have fat cells, and Bionicles have an organ that works like a battery. In becoming a Toa, a Matoran's battery is supercharged with Elemental Power. It can be drawn from the environment (e.g. Tahu gets power from heat) and the recharge rate depends on the environment (e.g Kopaka recharges faster in Ko-Wahi than in Ta-Wahi), and that energy can be channeled. In matter-based elements, it turns into matter that the Toa can control. In energy-based elements, it merely changes the form.

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Also we need to figure out how new beings are born.

Good luck getting an answer to that one :P . However, I would postulate that matoran aren't "born" so to speak. There are a lot of clues that matoran are actually "built". Wasn't it when the matoran returned to Metru-Nui that the turaga taught the matoran how to "re-build" themselves? -don't touch my pocket protector

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Well, how? Is there some matoran factory somewhere?

Don't the Bahrag mention something about being able to "Chill the Toa's blood" or something?

The quote was, "For we have powers thet will make your blood run cold...", and C.A. Hapka wrote that, so it may not fit with what Greg considers to be canon, after all, he's a writer, not a researcher, and probably forgot to fit that little quote into the part of the canon storyline that he wrote. Edited by Makuta Dralcax

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Well, how? Is there some matoran factory somewhere?

Don't the Bahrag mention something about being able to "Chill the Toa's blood" or something?

The quote was, "For we have powers thet will make your blood run cold...", and C.A. Hapka wrote that, so it may not fit with what Greg considers to be canon, after all, he's a writer, not a researcher, and probably forgot to fit that little quote into the part of the canon storyline that he wrote.
Keep in mind that Matoran don't speak english, so it's probably not a literal translation. It's likely some matoran expression that would be nonsensical in english (or any other human language). Edited by Visaru

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Well, how? Is there some matoran factory somewhere?

Don't the Bahrag mention something about being able to "Chill the Toa's blood" or something?

The quote was, "For we have powers thet will make your blood run cold...", and C.A. Hapka wrote that, so it may not fit with what Greg considers to be canon, after all, he's a writer, not a researcher, and probably forgot to fit that little quote into the part of the canon storyline that he wrote.
Keep in mind that Matoran don't speak english, so it's probably not a literal translation. It's likely some matoran expression that would be nonsensical in english (or any other human language).
Or it was probably just put in as a figure of speech, and then retconed when a bunch of blood-thirsty teenagers on BZPower started asking about blood in Bionicle :P. -don't touch my pocket protector

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The digestive hands bit is news to me. I prefer to think of protodermis as a single sucbstance that, depending on how it is treated, can take on many forms. I don't think protodermis being every earthly element really complies with the storyline. I do like you explamation of a heartlight, however. Perhaps at some point it can be canonized?

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I always love these kind of theories! I really like your take on the muscle system, that was ingenious and I can really see that working. However, as for the digestive system, I think they just absorb energy from the food rather than actually take matter into their bodies. Also, i think protodermis is supposed to be a new form of fundamental matter rather than a new combination of our matter (well thats the way I think of it anyway). Still, excellent theory, well done! :kakamanu: :t: :m_p: :n: :kakamanu:

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I find this a very good and needed topic because I've found that some times I'll be writing my epic and have not known enough about the anatomy to make certain parts precise. I think this should be accepted as canon since it is so precise. Great job.

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Nervous SystemMost know that MU inhabitants have a Heartlight, a light that monitors SOMETHING. Although it seems to be a Heart, MU inhabitants (I think I’ll start abbreviating this as MUI) do not have a fluid that runs through them. So what is the Heartlight doing? I believe the Heartlight is a Nervous System monitor that checks the electrical activity of the Brain. If the Brain is slowly fading (e.g. when Turaga Lhikan dies) the Heartlight reflects the slowed activity with slower pulsations. Some of you readers of this theory might mention when the Toa Ignika speeds up Tahu Mistika’s life processes, and his Heartlight starts to flash quite quickly, while he is close to death. My explanation for this is that the monitor was sped up, checking much more frequently on the status of the Brain. This might also be simply caused by increased activity in the Brain (e.g. When Norik wakes up from a dream in The Dweller Report).Another thing you might bring up is why this Brain monitor would show as a light on the chest. My answer for this is that is would most likely be utilized as a system for the Great Beings to check on the mental processes of their creations.

Could I suggest that MU's have energy as a circularly system? (what you suggested makes them sound too much like... robots).Since we have a measurable pulse from the outside (ie: wrist, neck etc) who says this couldn't be their kind of equivalent?(great to be back btw)
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Why can't my Biology classes be this interesting? :P Very, very excellent theory, I like it a lot. Since it's already been stated that the GB's modeled Matoran after Agori (who were, indeed, biological beings with mechanical parts attached) it makes sense that Matoran would reflect their biological "templates." :mirunu: Lewa0111 Nuva :mirunu:

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The stuff you put about Heartlights makes sense, but the other stuff seems very much just speculation. At the end of the day I feel that it could be more complex than that, I mean, how does Mata nui function, and what's to say the same isn't applicable to the Matoran? When Greg said that real life physics don't apply to Bionicle, I took it to mean 'Don't try and read to much into some things'. When you start to think about the anatomy of the beings in a story, I would feel that's looking at a story in too much detail. I suppose the knowledge might be necessary if you're thinking about viruses and such that do feature in the story, but I personally am of the school of thought that sayes 'this does this' without needing to know why, because it's only a story.

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The stuff you put about Heartlights makes sense, but the other stuff seems very much just speculation. At the end of the day I feel that it could be more complex than that, I mean, how does Mata nui function, and what's to say the same isn't applicable to the Matoran? When Greg said that real life physics don't apply to Bionicle, I took it to mean 'Don't try and read to much into some things'. When you start to think about the anatomy of the beings in a story, I would feel that's looking at a story in too much detail. I suppose the knowledge might be necessary if you're thinking about viruses and such that do feature in the story, but I personally am of the school of thought that sayes 'this does this' without needing to know why, because it's only a story.

Topics like these happen when there are too many complex minded people stuck in one place left to wonder about something :P

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Unfortunately, I've tried to offer similar ideas too and it gets nowhere. Mine was a very simplistic vascular/circulatory system in which LP was the "blood". I used numerous quotes from Greg too, such as how LP dissolves air just as it would in the ocean. But without getting into too much detail here, I can tell you that it eventually was shot down not because it wasn't logical or acceptable, but because it was just unnecessary information. It would not become canonized.Another reason is that there is a BZP group, whose name I have forgotten, that basically looks over such theories to see if they should go on to Greg for canonization. If it doesn't go through them, apparently, there is little chance for this.Anywhoo, nice thoughts on the subject, but I'm not sure what your plan to do with them was.a_peace.png

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