Nature

There are creatures that feel ancient because they are old, and then there are creatures that feel ancient because they look like they escaped from a forgotten version of Earth. The goblin shark belongs firmly to the second category. With its elongated, blade-like snout, ghostly pink skin, and jaws that shoot forward like a biological harpoon, the goblin shark doesn’t resemble evolution’s latest design. It resembles something unfinished, experimental, or deliberately hidden. Often called a “living fossil,” the goblin shark is one of the rarest and least understood sharks on the planet. It drifts through the deep ocean at depths humans barely explore, surfacing so infrequently that every recorded encounter feels like an intrusion into a world we were never meant to see. When images of it c...

In recent years, a silent but deadly threat has been making headlines across the United States — Naegleria fowleri, the so-called “brain-eating amoeba.” Once thought to be confined mostly to warm lakes and rivers, this microscopic organism has now been detected in tap water systems in multiple regions. A recent and tragic case in Texas has renewed attention on the risks. A healthy woman lost her life after using tap water in a nasal irrigation device, leading to primary amebic meningoencephalitis (PAM) — an aggressive brain infection that is almost always fatal. The Texas Case: A Tragedy Unfolds The woman used tap water in a nasal irrigation device — a common practice for sinus relief. Within four days, she began experiencing severe neurological symptoms: headaches,...