Saturday, September 6, 2008

Laws of Nature

A friend and reader recently passed on an article to me – a jellyfish that does not die, and maintains its eternal youth. Fascinating!

http://8e.devbio.com/preview_article.php?ch=2&id=6

"The hydrozoan Turritopsis nutricula ... appears to have achieved immortality. The solitary medusa of this species can revert to its polyp stage after becoming sexually mature (Bavestrello et al., 1992; Piraino et al., 1996). In the laboratory, 100% of these medusae regularly undergo this change. Thus, it is possible that organismic death does not occur in this species!"


Surely this ability can be harnessed and turned into something useful for human beings. Animal traits combined with human physiology could produce something greater than either alone. There is no mistake that in our literature, werewolves and other hybrid creations are a common theme.

If we are to break the rules of Mother Nature, we should take the best of what she has to offer.