The steps being randomly placed around the image isn't a great layout, but I appreciate that they used parts of the deer to process other parts of the deer.
I was talking to an outdoorsy type while he was working on a rabbit (?) skin he was softening, and he mentioned that it was brain tanned. So I asked him what that meant and he said there's something in animal brain that will tan their hides, and the brain the animal has enough for tanning its hide.
So every animal has enough brains to tan its own hide. That seems strangely appropriate on a metaphorical level.
I guess most animal brains increase as body size increases, like Elephant has bigger brain than cat. I wonder if anyone scientifically measured the amount of reactive enzyme or whatever is needed. because maybe we all too much
@BCsven @GreyEyedGhost There is a lot of work on brain size relative to body weight across species. It's referred to as an "Evolutionary Quotient". The relationship between brain volume and body mass is approximately linear overall, particularly in a phylum. There are variations off the linear and we generally associate the positive deviations with "smarter" animals.
So every animal has enough brains to tan its own hide.
It's a great myth, but it's entirely incorrect. I guess Silence of the Lambs isn't required watching anymore.
Aye, "Brain mash" is an uncomfortable phrase for civilized people, but survival is debatably the antonym of civilization. Explore!
As referenced by this diagram, when the deer loses its animation, it needs to be returned to its default T-pose.
This is missing a step
After applying brains (you can substitute a mix of warm water and soap or egg), the hide needs to be manually worked / stretched as it dries out.
That’s absolutely necessary if you want supple, suede like buckskin. If you skip this step, you’ll just end up with something close to fuzzy cardboard.