Researchers kill oldest living animal to verify it’s the oldest living animal

[hatrack]

7. I was just about to post this . . . great minds and all that.

Speaking of which, have you ever visited a bristlecone grove? The ancient trees are astounding, but the downed stuff is what struck me most.

Apparently, the wood is so dense, and so resistant to microbes and weather that it doesn't rot. It erodes, like rock. I knocked on a downed slab of bristlecone and it was like knocking on the side of a piano - the same sort of resonance and tone you'd expect from a Steinway (or maybe a giant marimba).

Just astounding - Great Basin is one of the least-known and most amazing national parks I've ever visited.