Long Story Shark

“Its hulking frame is covered by sandpaper skin. Its fins, stunted, sit awkwardly along its sides. And its eyes, perpetually cloudy, are often host to wormlike parasites that dangle as the shark slowly roams the depths of the North Atlantic and Arctic oceans. But looks aside, the species has a surprising capacity: It can live for as long as about 400 years. Now, an international team of scientists from Europe and the United States has mapped the genome of the Greenland shark, offering scientists an opportunity to glean the secret to the shark’s outstanding longevity.” NYT (Gift Article): This Shark Lives 400 Years. Its DNA May Explain Why. “Researchers identified a network of 81 genes that were found only in Greenland sharks and are known to play a role in DNA repair.” (You know it’s only a matter of time before tech bros are living in Shark Mode.)