Loch Ness Monster: How 'unidentified’ DNA was found in Scottish Highland waters.

    The mystery  of the so-called Loch Ness Monster may be one step closer to being solved after a scientist found “unidentified” DNA in the waters of the Scottish Highlands.

    Nessie is a folklore creature, said to inhabit the waters of Loch Ness, Scotland, and has gained worldwide attention for almost a century due to several bizarre sightings. It is often described as large in size with a long neck and one or more humps protruding from the water, yet physical evidence is scarce. The scientific community regards the Loch Ness Monster as a phenomenon without biological basis, explaining sightings as hoaxes, wishful thinking, and the misidentification of mundane objects. 

    But Dr Neil Gemmell, from the University of Otago, threw that opinion up in the air after his research team from New Zealand extracted genetic samples at different depths all over the loch in a bid to establish what lives within. The findings were bizarre, to say the least.

    Dr Gemmell in 2019: “There is a very significant amount of eel DNA. “We can't discount the possibility that what people see and believe is the Loch Ness Monster might be a giant eel. “'Divers have claimed that they've seen eels that are as thick as their legs in the loch, whether they're exaggerating or not, I don't know, but there is a possibility that there are very large eels present in the loch."Whether they are as big as around four metres, as some of these sightings suggest, well, as a geneticist I think about mutations and natural variation a lot, and while an eel that big would be well outside the normal range, it seems not impossible that something could grow to such unusual size.” However, Dr Gemmell also admitted 20 percent of the DNA came back as “unidentified”, leaving the possibility of an unknown creature living in the waters open.

    Nessie hunters say that small “unidentified” amount, is enough to carry on the search.

    Steve Feltham, who holds the Guinness World Record for the longest continuous vigil on the banks of Loch Ness told the Telegraph in 2019: “I’ll keep looking”.“A twelve-year-old boy could have told you that eels live in the loch”. “These scientists are simply out to make a name for themselves”. “The fact is that people have seen large creatures here for years.”

    Despite the setback, amateur investigators kept an almost constant vigil, and in the Sixties several British universities launched expeditions to Loch Ness, using sonar to search the deep. Nothing conclusive was found, but in each expedition the sonar operators detected large, moving underwater objects they could not explain.

Question 1: [2 POINTS] Indicate whether the following statements are true or false and write down which part of the text justifies your answer.

a) Stating you have seen the Loch Ness Monster is considered to be dishonest by the scientific community.

b) The sample test results were surprising.

c) The great part of the DNA might belong to an eel.

d) There must be enormous eels in the lake.

Question 2 [2 POINTS] Answer the following questions in your own words.

a) What does Dr Gemmell study reveal?

b) Does Steve Feltham think Dr Gemmell’s study is important?

Question 3: [1,5 POINTS] Find words or phrases in the text that correspond to the words and definitions given. 

a) Widespread, universal (par. 2)

b) Rare (par.2)

c) Consider (par 2)

d) Huge (par. 4)

e) Average (par 4.)

Question 4: [1,5 POINTS] Choose and write the most suitable answer (A, B, C or D) according to the text and COPY the sentence onto your answer sheet

  1. Nessie has a worldwide attention for almost a century...

A) because several bizarre sightings.

B) because of several bizarre sightings.

C) despite several bizarre sightings.

D) although several bizarre sightings.

2. Dr Gemmell...

A) is sure Nessie is an eel.

B) thinks Nessie could be an eel.

C) thinks Nessie can’t be an eel.

D) thinks Nessie must have been an eel.

3. The study shows that ...

A) most of the DNA found does not correspond to an eel.

B) one fifth of the DNA found corresponds to an eel.

C) one fifth of the DNA found corresponds to Nessie.

D) most of the DNA found corresponds to known creatures.

Question 5: [3 POINTS] Write a short essay (about 120-150 words) on the following topic:

Would you like to study the Loch Ness searching for Nessi?

KEY

Question 1

a) False: explaining sightings as hoaxes, wishful thinking, and the misidentification of mundane objects.

b) True: The findings were bizarre, to say the least.

c) False: There is a very significant amount of eel DNA.

d) False: there is a possibility that there are very large eels present in the loch

Question 2

a) Whether they are as big as around four metres, as some of these sightings suggest, well, as a geneticist I think about mutations and natural variation a lot, and while an eel that big would be well outside the normal range, it seems not impossible that something could grow to such unusual size.” However, Dr Gemmell also admitted 20 percent of the DNA came back as “unidentified”, leaving the possibility of an unknown creature living in the waters open.

b)  No. “I’ll keep looking”.“A twelve-year-old boy could have told you that eels live in the loch”. “These scientists are simply out to make a name for themselves”. “The fact is that people have seen large creatures here for years.”

Question 3

a) worldwide

b) scarce

c) regard

d) giant

e) normal

Question 4

1.   b) because of several bizarre sightings.

2.   b) thinks Nessie could be an eel.

3.   d) most of the DNA found corresponds to known creatures.