They were awakened by something swimming under their boat, and
although they had no idea what it was, they knew it was big.
"At about 7:30 in the morning, something passed underneath
our houseboat to the point that it woke us up. That got our
attention, so we looked out the window and we saw what appeared to
be a wave, but it didn't seem to go anywhere."
Such were the words of John Casorso of Kelowna, Canada, who claims
he saw the infamous Ogopogo of Lake Okanagan. Unlike most
others, however, he has a video to "prove" it.
"You can distinctly see a large object with humps that stayed
about 100 yards away from our houseboat," said Casorso, who
is convinced that what he and his family saw was a living
creature.
"I believe it was a very large aquatic animal -- maybe a
reptile. It had a serpent look to it and when it moved it seemed
to stretch out."
Now it's time to judge for yourself.
Click here
to see a portion of the video, provided by Castanet.net.
Click here
to listen to an interview with John Casorso
Biologists Place Hope In Gators
by Jonathan
Drake
S: CNN.com (10-22-04)
A potentially dangerous invader has found its way into the
Everglades of Florida, and it may just take another dangerous
predator to hold it at bay.
The invader is the Burmese python, a native of Burma in Southeast
Asia, and it is one of the largest snake species in the
world. First sighted in the late 1990s, rangers and other
employees have rounded up and removed dozens of them from
Everglades National Park.
"We are concerned. They are competing with other
animals for food, space, burrows, crevices and rocks," said
park biologist Skip Snow, who believes the snakes, which have a
25-year life span, are breeding. "It's always a problem
when a non-native species can sustain and fully establish
itself."
How did they get there? Experts
believe that most were introduced into the park by unprepared pet
owners looking to discard their overgrown reptiles.
"People pay as low as $20 per hatchling not realizing how big
they grow," said Snow. "In just two to three
years, these snakes can grow to be at least 9 feet, so it's a
significant commitment."
Aside from traps or snake-sniffing dogs to keep the populations of
pythons from growing, scientists are hoping that Florida's
predatory natives, such as the American alligator, which won't
hesitate from making a meal out of the large snakes, will come to
their aid. Collaborative efforts, they hope, should keep the
snakes from spreading.
If
not, the Everglades could be in trouble.
World Shares Mutual Grandfather
by
Josef
Long
S: Telegraph (9-30-04)
With greater implications than
most experts realize, a new study reveals that everyone in the
world is descended from a single person who lived about 3,500
years ago.
According to scientists, "the most recent common
ancestor" of all six billion people alive today probably
dwelt in eastern Asia around 1,415 B.C. Anyone tracing their
family tree quickly finds out that the number of direct ancestors
doubles every 20 to 30 years. A few centuries is all that is
needed to clock up thousands of direct ancestors.
"...our results suggest that the most recent common ancestor
for the world's current population lived in the relatively recent
past - perhaps within the last few thousand years," said lead
researcher Dr Steve Olson.
He also added:
"No matter the languages we speak or the color of our skin,
we share ancestors who planted rice on the banks of the Yangtze,
who domesticated horses on the steppes of the Ukraine, who hunted
giant sloths in the forest of north and south America and who
labored to build the Great Pyramid of Khufu."
Ironically, Biblical historians believe Noah's flood to have
occurred roughly 4,000 years ago, and that his decedents are the
ancestors of everyone alive today. Now, science seems to be
authenticating such a notion, although most secular scientists
aren't taking it into consideration.
Whatever the remaining disagreements, most are finally beginning
to agree that we all share the same great grandfather who lived
roughly 4,000 years ago.
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