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The Biology of Star Wars
Classes You Would Only Find at UNC Asheville
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A short time ago, in a classroom not so far away…
In order to learn more about life on Earth, students in UNC Asheville Associate Professor of Biology Graham Reynold’s summer course studied fictional creatures in an imaginary universe. As it turns out, the “Biology of Star Wars” class was the perfect way for students to learn about the principles of biological evolution, and even gave them the opportunity to create their own forms of life (and, of course, watch a Star Wars movie or two).
“Each class was split in half,” explained senior environmental studies major Joseph Walston. The first half of the class focused on the principles of biological evolution; the second half applied those principles to the plants, animals and microbes found in the Star Wars universe.
“The first one we examined was a skeleton of a krayt dragon,” Walston said. “He showed us a picture of a skeleton and said, ‘Tell me everything you can about the biology of the creature.’ What kind of food did it eat? How did it move? How did it evolve? What did it evolve from? Where was most of its muscle mass?”
Walston and his classmates were given the assignment every science fiction fan dreams of: they had to watch Star Wars.
“One of our assignments was to make a field guide to Star Wars, where we had to watch a full-length movie and write a report about each creature we saw, whether it be a microbe, plant or animal,” Walston said.
Walston chose Empire Strikes Back, and while he found the creatures in the film were very sophisticated, he wasn’t as impressed by the plant life. So, when Reynolds assigned a creative final project in which each student developed their own “creature feature,” Walston decided to fix that.
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“We had to create a biologically accurate and scientifically supported fictional creature,” Walston explained. “I created the mammalian vampire plant. It is a parasitic plant that parasitizes mammals.”
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There are no known plants—on this planet, anyway—that prey on mammals, so Walston had to use everything he’d learned in class to justify his creation. “That was the hard part, making something that's completely fictional using facts. But that was also the fun part.”
Walston’s classmate, senior biology major Josh McCann, created a “rootsnake tree” for his project. “It was essentially a desert palm that had snake-like roots that helped it move through the desert sands and constrict prey,” McCann said. “I was inspired by late night hikes when all of the tree roots look like snakes coming out of the ground. I knew that desert plants had harsh conditions to adapt to so I put these two ideas together.”
Walston tapped into his love of sculpture for his project, and created two figurines of his mammalian vampire plant—one of the plant itself, and one of the plant and its prey.
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“It parasitizes wild boars. Every little decision I made, I gave reasons for it,” Walston said. “Why do its leaves work that way? Why are they shaped that way? Why are they that color? What color is the flower? What part of the pig does it parasitize? Why a pig? How does it survive on a pig? What about the pig makes it better for the plants’ survival? How does it spread its seed between hosts? We had to make a presentation about it and then write like a 12-page paper about it, so it was a lot of work, but I loved every step of it.”
The class and its creative assignments were fun, but also inspiring to McCann as he continues his studies in biology.
“This class has inspired me to think creatively about any and all of the biological concepts I learn about. It has given me a larger appreciation for biodiversity on Earth and makes me wonder even more about what life could be like on other planets in galaxies far, far away,” McCann said. “It bridges the gap between art and science and Dr. Reynolds really made it such a great learning experience.”
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