Write your abstract here. SciFi
Monsters & Mermaid-Safe Tuna.
I''m a huge fan of myths. How can this
appreciation of things fictional
be reconciled with an equal fondness for cold, hard science? Well, most
mythology grows from roots buried deep in a fact-rich tilth... or we''re
simply waiting for proof to surface.Case in point: woolly
mammoth versus giant squid. No, not a wading pool
battle to bet on in Vegas-- I''m talking about what sparks our
collective imagination. Why did December 2006 footage of a hooked Genus
Architeuthis (biggest mollusk on the planet, at last check) cause such
a furor, while the recent discovery of an impossibly-intact woolly
mammoth calf has been relegated to the back page? Thankfully, I have
many theories. Giant squids are cool. Period. But more than that, the aura surrounding
them had been due to their neighborhood: the crushing depths of the
sea. And these creatures are still around, thus making vivid
cherry-syrup-red-on-blue-background imagery possible, tentacles
splashing and writhing. Snapshots of a frozen, fuzzy extinct mammal are
just... sad. What''s odd is that giant squids enjoyed mythical status at all, since
there was plenty of evidence of their existence (rubbery carcasses
washing up on shore, sucker scars on sperm whales). Perhaps sailor
folklore lent hyperbolic incredulity to a creature that was already
fascinating enough on its own-- growing to an estimated 60 feet in
length.It''s rather difficult to buy the theory that the Loch Ness Monster is
actually a lonely plesiosaur; America''s version, Champ (of Lake
Champlain, technically one of the Great Lakes) is a legend much more
readily explained. In 2005, I visited a biology/ecology museum in
Burlington, Vermont and watched lake sturgeon glide past thick aquarium
glass. The silhouette of one of those
monsters glimpsed beneath the ice
was sure to''ve inspired larger-than-life stories. We find a wonderfully preserved woolly mammoth specimen-- thought to
have died 10,000 years ago-- and the primary, impatient concern seems
to be ''how soon can we harvest the DNA, and get a version of this guy
up and cavorting again?'' Best intentions aside, this mentality suggests
overtones of both the circus and good old-fashioned guilt (R.I.P.,
river dolphins). The unicorn is an oryx in profile, the dodos have all been eaten. Will there be another atavistic shocker like the coelycanth ? Think I recently spotted a yeti on Google Maps Street View....Galaxy News Reported October 12th, 2007.