Why are cows so big if they are herbivores?

[Tefal]

You do realise every living thing, eg. grass, is made from protein?

Don't they teach science in school these days?

Christ talking with some "bright" school leavers lately and their knowledge of biology seems basically to be "regurgitate scientific word related to body part mentioned without understanding or context".

 

[Angilion]

There was no grass when dinosaurs were around.

Another little fact I heard about lawns was that in the olden days in America, Scottish immigrants got so upset that they decided to make lawns to emulate the Scottish Highlands and that's why most of us have got them now.
Funnily enough not a day goes by when I don't look out of my window, look at my lawn and think 'What a waste of space'.

I thought it was a status symbol predating the colonisation of America. Land was a symbol of wealth and power. Having land spare to grow inedible plants just for show was more so, especially as back then you'd have needed to hire people to keep it tidy. In short, I think lawns are a *deliberate* waste of space as a statement that you have it to waste.

People often tend to think of ostentatious display of wealth as a recent thing ("bling"), but it isn't. Even a modern rapper might consider it vulgar to literally eat gold, but they were doing exactly that ~500 years ago. Holding a feast was a display of wealth in itself, but gilding the food was the epitome of wealth, especially the desserts (the most expensive dishes, as sugar was so very expensive back then). No joke - for a good example, look for "gilded marchpane". Serving that was the utmost in ostentatiously displaying your wealth.

 

[Angilion]

Myostatin.

Doesn't really affect overall size as such, just muscle mass. There are cows with low levels of myostatin (a natural mutation, selectively bred in some cases) and they're not really bigger than other cows of the same breed. Much, much more muscular, but no taller or longer. Ronnie Coleman cows

 

[SexyGreyFox]

I thought it was a status symbol predating the colonisation of America. Land was a symbol of wealth and power. Having land spare to grow inedible plants just for show was more so, especially as back then you'd have needed to hire people to keep it tidy. In short, I think lawns are a *deliberate* waste of space as a statement that you have it to waste.

Who knows?
Was the documentary right or wrong?