Is it crazy to believe in monsters? The legend of the Loch Ness monster has captured our imaginations for centuries. Now, a team of scientists has a more rational explanation.
Tests reveal Nessie could be a giant eel
Is it crazy to believe in monsters? The legend of the Loch Ness monster has captured our imaginations for centuries. Now, a team of scientists has a more rational explanation.
Hugh Grey was riding his motorcycle past Loch Ness in the dead of night. In the darkness, he struck something in the road and was thrown to the ground. Dazed, he looked back just in time to see a huge, flippered creature retreating into the waters.
A blurry snapshot, captured by Grey on that day in 1934, was published on the front page of the Scottish Daily Record. Soon, an official search party was launched to scour the lake. Nessie-mania had begun.
Now, a team of scientists from New Zealand say they may have the answer to the Loch Ness mystery. The researchers took DNADeoxyribonucleic acid is the material in an organism that carries genetic information. from 250 water samples from the Scottish loch, hoping to learn exactly what creatures might stir within its deep, dark waters.
They did not find a prehistoric marine reptile. They did not find a big shark. What they did find was a lot of eel DNA.
"The sheer quantity of the material says that we can't discount the possibility that there may be giant eels in Loch Ness," said Professor Neil Gemmell, who led the research. He insists that it is the only "plausible" theory. After all, the slender giant moray eel can grow 13-feet long.
At 23-miles wide and 226-metres deep, Loch Ness contains more water than all other English and Scottish lakes put together. But its waters are so murky that you can only see through a couple of feet at the surface.
Grey's account was one of a flurry of sightings in the 1930s, which drew Nessie to international attention. Yet legends of a great Scottish monster have existed for centuriesHundreds of years..
And the sightings have never completely died down. Already this year, there have been four separate encounters.
Many wild theories exist about the identity of the monster: it could be a sea dinosaur called a plesiosaur; a huge fish; a wandering Greenland shark; or even swimming elephants. Last month, one Scottish paranormal investigator ponderedThink about something carefully and reflectively. if the monster may live in a parallel universe.
Why has the legend persisted? Some psychologists say that the story fulfils a human need to reach beyond the dullness of ordinary life. Scotland has Nessie, but in other parts of the world there is the Himalayan yeti and the giant anaconda of South America.
These mythical creatures - also said to represent our human fear of the untameable, natural world - are known as cryptids.
Professor Gemmell was well aware of the power of the Loch Ness myth when he set out on his mission. "People love a mystery. We've used science to add another chapter to Loch Ness's mystique," he said.
In 2022, every corner of the world has been discovered and mapped. So, we long for a time of explorers, when the world was still full of mystery and possibility. We want to believe that monsters could exist.
Or perhaps, say others, these beasts reflect the hidden monsters inside our minds. As we go through life, we feel that there are unseen forces at work that are not reflected in our mundaneOrdinary. It originally referred to something that belonged to Earth rather than heaven. reality.
Indeed, for many, it is fitting that Nessie might be a giant serpent: subtle and shape-shifting, always slipping out of our grasp.
Is it crazy to believe in monsters?
Yes: The vast majority of monster sightings are proven fakes and hoaxes. We should not lose sight of common sense - Nessie is more likely a reflection in the water or an eel than a huge beast.
No: Believing in myths and legends is part of being human - we all have a desire within us for mystery and excitement beyond the everyday world. Moreover, for all we know, Nessie could actually exist.
Or... It may not be entirely rational, but it is simply more fun to search for beasts than to sit back and dismiss them. And it is good for business too - Nessie is worth £41m a year to Scotland's economy.
Keywords
DNA - Deoxyribonucleic acid is the material in an organism that carries genetic information.
Centuries - Hundreds of years.
Pondered - Think about something carefully and reflectively.
Mundane - Ordinary. It originally referred to something that belonged to Earth rather than heaven.
Tests reveal Nessie could be a giant eel
Glossary
DNA - Deoxyribonucleic acid is the material in an organism that carries genetic information.
Centuries - Hundreds of years.
Pondered - Think about something carefully and reflectively.
Mundane - Ordinary. It originally referred to something that belonged to Earth rather than heaven.