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Re:Scientists discover spider species that feeds its young milk by chrisseaton on Saturday December 01, 2018 @08:40AM (#18576727)
It isn't literally milk - it's a 'nutritive fluid' and they say they're just calling it milk for convenience. It appears to be in some form of dissolved unused eggs? I'm not an entomologist.

> We suggest this milk might have evolved from trophic eggs, unviable eggs functioning as a food for newly emerged offspring

Re:Scientists discover spider species that feeds its young milk by dao- on Saturday December 01, 2018 @09:01AM (#18576787)
> It isn't literally milk

It isn't cow milk, but other than that I'm not really sure what you're saying. Milk is what you get when milking an animal. It's a pretty broad term. However I do doubt that this would be as nutritious to humans as milk from cows or other mammals.

Re:Scientists discover spider species that feeds its young milk by kbutler on Saturday December 01, 2018 @12:10PM (#18577643)
> Milk is what you get when milking an animal.

No, sometimes you get venom.

https://www.jobmonkey.com/uniquejobs/snake-milker/

Re:Scientists discover spider species that feeds its young milk by kbutler on Saturday December 01, 2018 @04:51PM (#18579178)
Re:Scientists discover spider species that feeds its young milk by mchannon on Saturday December 01, 2018 @09:09AM (#18576810)
> I do doubt that this would be as nutritious to humans as milk from cows or other mammals.

From the article: containing nearly four times the protein of cow’s milk

And we needn't get into how "coconut milk", "almond milk", etc. are somehow inappropriate uses of "milk" despite their entry into the lexicon millennia ago.

Re:Scientists discover spider species that feeds its young milk by Retric on Saturday December 01, 2018 @09:32AM (#18576914)
The idea of referring to things that look like milk as milk is much older than those examples. Consider, Milkweed which produces something that looks like cows but is a very different substance. https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Asclepias

Not to mention the Milky Way.

Re:Scientists discover spider species that feeds its young milk by dao- on Saturday December 01, 2018 @09:13AM (#18576830)
Not all proteins are the same.

Also keep in mind that it took humans some time of evolution to be able to digest cow milk.

Re:Scientists discover spider species that feeds its young milk by TheSpiceIsLife on Saturday December 01, 2018 @01:04PM (#18577928)
Not really.

All human babies have a much greater propensity to be able to digest lactose than adult humans.

Whey and casein are the dominant proteins, and lactose the dominant carbohydrate, in both human and cow milk.

Humans and cows aren’t that different. All mammals have quite a lot in common.

Re:Scientists discover spider species that feeds its young milk by dorchadas on Saturday December 01, 2018 @10:15AM (#18577080)
And that the majority of people on earth are still lactose intolerant.
Re:Scientists discover spider species that feeds its young milk by Retric on Saturday December 01, 2018 @12:48PM (#18577849)
That’s a relative issue: “People are usually able to drink at least one cup of milk per sitting without developing significant symptoms, with greater amounts tolerated if drunk with a meal or throughout the day.”

This is because most people produce some lactase it’s more a question on quantity of milk consumed.

Re:Scientists discover spider species that feeds its young milk by DJBunnies on Saturday December 01, 2018 @09:08AM (#18576806)
Milk is explicitly defined as coming from mammary glands in mammals.
Re:Scientists discover spider species that feeds its young milk by TallGuyShort on Saturday December 01, 2018 @12:46PM (#18577839)
Except we also use the term in connection with almonds, coconuts, and soybeans and we don't have to act like it's hard to understand.
Re:Scientists discover spider species that feeds its young milk by goldfeld on Saturday December 01, 2018 @02:41PM (#18578496)
It's different and coconut milk is as much milk as a seahorse is a horse, it's just a word.
Re:Scientists discover spider species that feeds its young milk by TallGuyShort on Saturday December 01, 2018 @04:33PM (#18579088)
And if people discuss seahorses, do you give them the biological definition of horse?
Re:Scientists discover spider species that feeds its young milk by dogma1138 on Saturday December 01, 2018 @08:28PM (#18580183)
That’s because of modern branding, some places don’t allow those to be called milk, you can’t call it milk in the EU unless it comes from animal sources for example.

Which is why almond, soy etc. would be called almond or soy drink in the EU you can’t even advertise it as a milk substitute.

Re:Scientists discover spider species that feeds its young milk by checkyoursudo on Saturday December 01, 2018 @11:21AM (#18577373)
https://www.etymonline.com/word/milk

This says people have been calling other things milk for at least 800 years and suggests the origination might be in the verb form rather than the noun form.

Also, defined by whom?

Re:Scientists discover spider species that feeds its young milk by yayana on Saturday December 01, 2018 @10:58AM (#18577262)
How are mammals defined?
Re:Scientists discover spider species that feeds its young milk by tejtm on Saturday December 01, 2018 @05:43PM (#18579454)