Imagine you are happily cruising along space in your very own mining ship when suddenly
you pick up a faint distress signal from far away.
Checking your spaceship's digital atlas, you discover that the signal is coming from a
colony on a planet called “LV-426”- hmm, where have you heard that name before?
Landing on this distant moon you exit your spaceship hoping to rescue some desperate
colonists- only to come face to face with the galaxy's most formidable predator.
Hello and welcome to another special episode of The Infographics Show- today we're putting
you up against the most perfect organism in the universe in, Could you defeat it?
You vs a xenomorph.
Xenomorphs, or Aliens, are a parasitic species who's real origins are unclear.
Some believe that Xenos were genetically engineered by an ancient space-faring civilization known
as the Engineers, or Mala'kak.
The Mala'kak may have used Xenomorphs to terraform planets by wiping out all large species and
then starting fresh with their own genetically engineered creations, or they may simply have
been a biological weapon meant to 'disinfect' experiments they think went wrong, or to use
against their enemies.
Others however believe that Xenomorphs evolved in a dark, distant corner of the galaxy and
were discovered by the Engineers and other space-faring civilizations.
Though their origin remains a mystery, we have enough experience with xenomorphs to
have learned a lot about them as a species.
The Xenomorph life cycle begins with an egg which contains a short-lived organism known
as a Facehugger.
Upon detecting the pheromones of an approaching host, the egg will awaken the facehugger within,
which immediately attacks the would-be host and attempts to latch onto an orifice so it
can deposit a parasitic larvae inside the host- typically a host's mouth is the preferred
larva-laying route into a host, but given their adaptability to different hosts across
the galaxy any orifice or even a sufficiently large wound will do.
Once inside, the larvae feeds off vital fluids, making the host incredibly hungry and forcing
it to eat more which in turn further feeds the larvae.
One sufficiently large, the larvae will then exit the host as a chestburster, so named
for their proclivity to burst directly through a host's chest.
Once free, the larvae seeks shelter somewhere dark and isolated, where by some unknown biological
process it is able to quickly mature into an adult drone at an extraordinary rate.
Xenomorphs are a eusocial species much like ants, honey bees, and other social insects,
with a clearly defined caste system.
It's thought that all members of a xeno hive are females, and at the very top of the hive
is the only fertile female: the Queen.
She is solely responsible for egg laying, and every other member of the brood is her
offspring.
Drones, or warriors, are the workhorses of the hive and are responsible for defending
the hive as well as finding prey and new hosts for the eggs.
A third caste, the Praetorians, are only produced when a hive has grown large enough to support
them.
These are the most formidable of Xenomorphs- with the exception of the Queen herself- and
act as bodyguards to the Queen.
However as they mature, Praetorians exude a scent that is different than the rest of
the hive which prompts the hive's drones to attack it and chase it away from the hive.
Once fully mature the Praetorian will return and be attacked once again, and either be
killed off by the hive or be grudgingly accepted by the Queen after suffering too many casualties
amongst her drones.
Interestingly despite this hostility, Praetorians will defend the Queen to the death.
It was originally thought that they were the only males and perhaps this process of being
chased away and forced to fight their way back proved that they were the fittest and
thus could fertilize a queen and produce a stronger hive, but after a Praetorian was
observed molting into a Queen after the loss of a hive's current Queen, this theory has
largely been discarded.
Since then its generally accepted that much like many insects and invertebrates here on
Earth, Queens are completely self-fertilizing and don't require a male partner.
Taking on an entire hive of angry xenomorphs is guaranteed death- but let's say that you
were pitted up against just one of these vicious creatures, how could you defeat it, and what
are you up against exactly?
The hide of a Xenomorph is made out of a chitin that is believed to be coated with a layer
of polarized silicon which makes it very resistant to electricity and heat.
This layer of chitin covers almost the entire body, with the exception of the joints and
the underside of the neck, and is also extremely resistant to small arms fire.
At anything but point-blank range, any caliber smaller than a 5.56 mm round will simply bounce
off.
While resistant to heat, Xenomorphs show a vulnerability to weapons such as flame throwers,
and will generally shy away from open sources of flame.
Extreme cold such as liquid nitrogen is also exceptionally effective against a Xenomorph,
and its thought that rapid changes in temperature cause the Xenomorph's chitinous armor to rapidly
contract and expand causing it great pain.
A xenomorph is also able to match the outer layers of its body with the ambient temperature,
making it invisible to being tracked by thermal imagers- this seems to suggest that Xenomorphs
evolved as predators on a cold world with little or no daylight, as this ability would
have kept them hidden from heat-sensing prey.
The lack of eye organs also seems to indicate that this is a strong possibility, and its
thought that xenomorphs track their prey by scent and electroreception much like a hammerhead
shark and many sting rays.
A Xenomorph's acidic blood poses a significant risk to any would-be attackers, as it is extremely
corrosive and capable of easily dissolving steel, aluminum, or even titanium.
Its ability to also disintegrate normally acid-resistant plastics indicates that the
blood may not be an actual acid but rather a fluid that works to break molecular bonds
in an unknown way.
So how do you kill something that can shrug off bullets and will bleed acid blood on you
even if you manage to wound it?
Fire is the most obvious and immediate answer, and for that there's no better tool than a
high-powered flame thrower.
Though most nations have discontinued their use of flamethrowers due to being ineffective
in modern combat and for the very bad press they tend to create, Russia- who traditionally
doesn't much care what the rest of the world thinks- has recently re-evaluated their use.
A 2016 US Army report notes that Russia has found the weapons useful for urban and mountain
warfare (despite being illegal by international law to use in civilian population centers),
bunker busting, and clearing light infantry.
Russia's re-adoption of the flame thrower has actually seen them add four dedicated
regiments of flamethrower units in 2014.
So it's time to make like a Russian firebat and get your hands on some sweet, Xenomorph
destroying flamethrowers.
But, it's not as easy as all that, since Xenomorphs have shown an incredible ability to adapt
and problem solve through creative means.
Sure, you might get a few blasts off with Comrade Flamethrower, but with a maximum range
of 60 feet, a Xenomorph will simply retreat and rethink its plan of attack.
Given their incredible stealth and ability to squeeze into very tight places, a Xeno
will likely simply back off and wait to literally get the drop on you (animator: have xenomorph
drop down from ceiling).
Plus flamethrowers have one weakness that quickly became obvious to most of the world's
militaries: the backpacks of pressurized and highly combustive gas make for really good,
explosive targets.
Remember a Xenomorph's acidic blood?
Well, some of them can spit it from their mouths at incredible ranges, and with its
ability to dissolve most known materials, those tanks on your back aren't going to survive
for long.
While they won't explode as the fuel still requires heat to ignite, you're going to be
left with in essence an empty squirt gun when the Xenomorph comes to eat your face off.
You might be tempted to fall back on firearms, after all despite their bullet-resistant hides,
large calibers have been proven to injure a Xenomorph.
But firearms require you to see your target and to be accurate enough to actually hit
it once you do see it, and with a Xenomorph's ability to hide in the smallest nooks and
crannies, and its incredible speed and agility, you're taking your chances going with a firearm.
We here at The Infographics Show have our favorites amongst the great engineers, philosophers,
and scientists, but when it comes time to take on a genetically perfect super-predator
from across the galaxy, there's really only one name that comes to mind: Alfred Nobel,
the father of modern explosives.
Inventing TNT in 1867, Nobel gave man the tools to literally move the earth, and set
humanity down the path of bigger and better explosions.
That path would eventually lead to the holiest of battlefield holies: the Mk-19 (narrator
note: pronounced “mark”) automatic grenade launcher.
A tripod mounted weapon, the Mk-19 fires 40 mm grenades at a rate of up to 375 rounds
per minute, and is used extensively by US armed forces for anti-personnel and anti-vehicle
operations.
With a maximum distance of 2,212 meters, and an effective point target range of 1,500 meters,
there is nowhere to hide from the rain of explosive death it unleashes.
On impact a 40mm grenade has a 100% kill ratio of up to 5 meters, with a 50% kill ratio at
10 meters, making it an unparalleled Xenomorph killing tool- and with its high rate of fire
if the first one doesn't do the job, the next three or four definitely will.
So how would you take on a deadly xenomorph?
What weapon is truly best to use against the most dangerous predator in the galaxy?
Also, be sure to check out our other video YOU vs Spiderman - Could You Defeat Him?.
Thanks for watching, and as always, don’t forget to like, share and subscribe.
See you next time.