Designing a creature

[GreenDog]

I admit this is a homework question never the less, suggestions are most welcome.
I've been told to design a creature whose sole purpose in life is to move to and from a glucose source,
it has memory and can learn but it doesn’t have a nervous system.
All it has are two nerve cells which can be any kind of cells (motor, sensor, both, etc.).

Any thoughts on the subject?

[Dr.Stein]

I admit this is a homework question never the less, suggestions are most welcome.
I've been told to design a creature whose sole purpose in life is to move to and from a glucose source,
it has memory and can learn but it doesn’t have a nervous system.
All it has are two nerve cells which can be any kind of cells (motor, sensor, both, etc.).

Any thoughts on the subject?

I think it is spermatozoon, it fulfills the criteria of "moving" and "living from glucose" but it seems that the rest statement are not suitable

[GreenDog]

The thing does not exist in real life! I'm suppose to invent it. But I don't really know which functions to give thouse two neurons so they could do all this.

[Khaiy]

I suppose you could just give it whatever neurons you wanted, as long as you could explain why the traits might be useful in its pursuit of glucose.

In my opinion motor neurons should be present so that it can actively move towards glucose sources, and sensory neurons of some sort so it could seek them out.

[Dr.Stein]

Aah ok, I am out of this game

[MrMistery]

Hmm... well, then i think you should give one sensory and one motor neuron. Since that is the simplest reflex i know...

[Darby]

It's a fairly silly exercise (it's supposed to be simple, but this simple is not terribly useful), but ultimately you need a sensorimotor neuron to sense and respond, and an interneuron to decide whether glucose is present and to decide which response to initiate.

[MrMistery]

what the heck is a sensorimotor neuron? there is no such thing...

[Darby]

They're part of Cnidarian nerve nets and found in a few other low-end animal groups. Impulses travel both ways on the same neurons - you can see why it's not a common set-up.

[Zeneth Entorion]

what the heck is a sensorimotor neuron? there is no such thing...

Input comes from environment, output goes to movement. Don't see why there couldn't be such a thing..

[ptPablo]

don't limit yourself to sensory, motor, sensorimotor and inter neurons. if you're allowed to "make it up" then MAKE IT UP!

e.g. a glucotactic neuron: when stimulated with glucose on one end, it releases NT at the other that stimulates a jet-propulsive fart in the direction of the glucose and another that stimulates the epithelium via cyclic-THC to activate hexose carriers to suck in the sugar. go wild! employ all the wacked-out intelligent design you can think of.

[rach]

i think tht is a cool homework question.
i wish i got homework that was fun...

but i think it could be RACHIELDER SMOSIS