Face of 49-Million-Year-Old Spider Revealed in 3-D

[Hot Mega]

Looky! It's great-great grand Cthulhu:tongue:

A very old spider has shown its face to the world for the first time in 49 million years, as scientists used high-tech X-ray methods to peer through the shroud of amber encasing the fossilized arachnid.

The report, published online April 28 in the journal Naturwissenschaften, confirms that the ancient spider is a member of the genus Eusparassus. These arachnids, also known as Huntsman spiders, live in the tropics and in Southern Europe today. From leg to leg, they can grow to a size of almost a foot (0.3 meters).

Huntsman spiders are non-aggressive and non-toxic to humans, but they can deliver a painful bite.

The ancient spider fossil, which is housed in the Berlin Natural History Museum, is buried in a darkened chunk of amber and is barely visible. Using a method called X-ray computed tomography, researchers from Germany and the United Kingdom created three-dimensional images and movies of the spider inside the amber.

http://news.yahoo.com/s/livescience/20110520/sc_livescience/faceof49millionyearoldspiderrevealedin3d;_ylt=AtVrZpdpoMdpLC4rC5kRTGas0NUE;_ylu=X3oDMTRsMDZjYXJxBGFzc2V0A2xpdmVzY2llbmNlLzIwMTEwNTIwL2ZhY2VvZjQ5bWlsbGlvbnllYXJvbGRzcGlkZXJyZXZlYWxlZGluM2QEY2NvZGUDbW9zdHBvcHVsYXIEY3BvcwM5BHBvcwM2BHB0A2hvbWVfY29rZQRzZWMDeW5faGVhZGxpbmVfbGlzdARzbGsDZmFjZW9mNDktbWls

 

[yoicham]

Wow, the video on the subsequent "3-D images" page looked really cool!

 

[Ulysses31]

I found one of those in the bath this morning.....fucker used up all of my shampoo

 

[StanScratch]

Pffft. That's not so scary. It has no legs.

 

[vodkazvictim]

Shouldn't have viewed that before sleeping after having eaten cheese...

I found one of those in the bath this morning.....fucker used up all of my shampoo

So your missus told you that the spider used all your shampoo and you believed her? I suppose a local bluebird flew in through the window and used your razor, right?

 

[grower_boy]

That's pretty cool. I always find that type of science interesting...especially stuff from before the dinosaurs.

 

[jod0565]

At least it wasn't the ol' Barking Spider:
http://www.creampiepussy.info/creampies/analcreampie-3.jpg