See You in the Next Geological Era
When life gets difficult, it’s always lovely to take some time off. In the Siberian permafrost, there’s a worm that, a bit too stressed, took a 46,000-year break — before a team of scientists woke it up
Nature is always more creative than we think. A female spider eating her partner after mating, birds orienting themselves through the Earth’s magnetic field, or a jellyfish reverting the life cycle when stressful environments become overwhelming.
One fascinating natural solution that I have always found intriguing is cryptobiosis. This term refers to the ability of an organism to enter a specific dormancy state (known as the cryptobiotic phase), in which metabolism nearly stops, and the organism does not grow or reproduce. This state occurs as a response to adverse environmental conditions, such as dehydration, freezing, or hypoxia. The organism remains technically alive, as metabolic processes can restart as soon as the environmental stress subsides.
The cryptobiotic phase can be achieved by both unicellular organisms (such as yeast) and multicellular organisms like tardigrades. Tardigrades are micro-animals often found in lichens and the soil of freshwater sediments. While in this state, their…
