Botanical illustrations by John Allen taken from ‘Beautiful Flowering Trees and Shrubs’ by John Weathers.

Published 1903 by Simpkin, Marshall.

University of British Columbia Library.

When caterpillars turn into butterflies, they don’t just go into a chrysalis, shrink their body, and grow some wings. Nope! If you cut open a chrysalis halfway through a metamorphosis, a bunch of goo will fall out. And that’s it. Because, when caterpillars turn into butterflies, they don’t just grow some wings - they liquefy completely and build a new body from ions and molecules up.

That’s why this is so rad. No part of their body is spared this liquefaction. Not even the brain! So, if the brain turns completely liquid, where are the memories stored?