Discovery of ‘worms from hell’ deep beneath Earth’s surface

[n2doc]

by Marc Kaufman, Wednesday, June 1, 1:00 PM
For the first time, scientists have found complex, multi-celled creatures living a mile and more below the planet’s surface, raising new possibilities about the spread of life on Earth and potential subsurface life on other planets and moons.

Nicknamed “worms from hell,” the nematodes, or roundworms, were found in several gold mines in South Africa, where researchers have also made breakthrough discoveries about deep subterranean single-cell life.



(Courtesy of Gaetan Borgonie at University of Ghent/ ) - Head of a nematode \"Halicephalobus Mephisto\".
The two lead researchers, Gaetan Borgonie of the University of Ghent in Belgium and Tullis Onstott of Princeton University, said the discovery of creatures so far below ground, with nervous, digestive and reproductive systems, was akin to finding “Moby Dick in Lake Ontario.”

“This is telling us something brand new,” said Onstott, whose pioneering work in South Africa over the past decade has revolutionized the understanding of microbial life known generally as extremophiles, which live in places long believed to be uninhabitable.

“For a relatively complex creature like a nematode to penetrate that deep is simply remarkable,” he said.

http://www.washingtonpost.com/national/discovery-of-worms-from-hell-deep-beneath-earths-surface-raises-new-questions/2011/05/31/AGnzJTGH_story.html?hpid=z2

[PlanetBev]

1. Not surprised

Republicans can be found everywhere.

[lifesbeautifulmagic]

2. Like I'm not going to open a thread with "worms from hell" in the title

Cool story. :)

[silverweb]

3. I'm disappointed.

The name suggests something big and scary, like from a sci-fi thriller. But toward the end of the article, it says specimens obtained are only about a third of an inch long. That's a real letdown, ya know?

Okay, so I like worms and spiders. And cats. Does that make me a dork?

[qazplm]

10. Graboids gotta start somewhere!

:)

[silverweb]

11. True, true!

:D

[Lint Head]

4. I thought you were talking about republicans.

Didn't notice it was the Science forum.

[xchrom]

5. Wow. Cool. Nt

[Permanut]

6. This will make a significant contribution

to Rush Limbaugh's family tree. Probably won't find it on ancestry.com though.

[obxhead]

7. The spice must flow.

[silverweb]

8. Hell, yeah!

That's what I had in mind when I saw the name "worms from hell" !!

Gotcher hooks and thumper ready?

:rofl:

[donheld]

9. They finally found Dick Cheney's bunker

[shanti]

12. perhaps, the mongolian death worm?

http://www.virtuescience.com/mongolian-death-worm.html