From Jerry Coyne’s “Why Evolution Is True” blog, New report: Bacteria can remain alive for over 100 million years!
On the one hand, this is really cool. On the other hand, I can’t be the only one to be thinking this sounds like the opening to a bad sci-fi horror movie. It is the Year 2020, after all.
This is why I hate touching the bottom when go swimming in natural bodies of water.
Well, it’s not like the same bacteria is 100m years old. Their species/whatever is still around after all this time and reproducing in that environment. This could be said of a few macro species as well I think.
No, it is exactly like that. That is what the story is.
And if both studies are true and there was no sort of contamination error, these bacteria had already been asleep for 150 million years when the above ones went down for their nap.
The prophecy is fulfilled:
That is not dead which can eternal lie,
And with strange aeons even death may die.
We are truly doomed in 2020.
It’s not like the bacteria were spontaneously alive. They were living after they were revived. My understanding is the scientists gave them Red Bull and made them listen to recordings of comedy sketches by Carl Reiner.
Kill It!
