TALES FROM THE MYCELIUM

Mushrooms can turn ants into zombies and talk to each other: 10 facts

Image: Andrew Ridley

Mushrooms might just be the most mysterious living organisms on our planet. In fact, they have always been so bewildering to scientists that they are classified in a different realm to animals and plants, the Fungi Kingdom, as quirky as it sounds. These incredible organisms hold a myriad of secrets and surprises, from medicinal applications to symbiotic relationships with other species.

Get ready to expand your fungi knowledge with these 10 curious facts!

Image: Olli Kilpi

Forget elephants and blue whales, the title of largest organism on Earth belongs to a fungus. A 2500-year-old specimen of Armillaria ostoyae, also known as the honey fungus, was discovered in Oregon's Malheur National Forest. Spanning over 2,240 acres and weighing around 35,000 tons, the "humongous fungus" - as it is endearingly called by Oregonians, proves that there is still a lot we don’t know about fungi.

Image: Mathew Schwartz

Amazingly, scientists have recently found out that fungi are capable of communicating with each other through their underground root-like structures called mycelium. This network of fungal threads allows fungi to absorb nutrients, transport water, and exchange information through electrical spikes. Some researchers even believe that this communication is done in word-like components.

Image: Erich G. Vallery, USDA Forest Service

Cordyceps fungi have a chilling method of reproduction. In order to disperse its spores, first it infects ants and other insects, controlling their nervous systems and compelling them to climb to a higher vantage point. Eventually, the fungus bursts from the insect’s body, releasing its spores to reproduce and infect even more unsuspecting victims. Terrifying, eh?

Image: Igor Omilaev

Some fungi possess the extraordinary ability to produce their own light. While their bioluminescence is usually faint, these mushrooms’ otherworldly glow makes them visible in very dark places, like under the thick canopy of a forest. These luminescent species, such as the jack-o'-lantern mushroom, often use this trait to attract insects to ensure spore dispersal.

Image: Irina Iacob

Fungi have been used in traditional medicine for centuries. Species like reishi, lion's mane, and chaga boast a myriad of health benefits, from boosting the immune system to improving cognitive function. Modern research continues to unveil the therapeutic potential of these fungi.

Image: Nyusha Svoboda

Did you know that certain fungi produce compounds that act as natural sunscreens? A set of compounds called Mycosporine-like amino acids (MAAs) shield organisms from harmful UV radiation and are found on a wide variety of fungal species as well as in lichens, algae, and even some marine animals. Currently, scientists are exploring these compounds for potential human applications, as they could represent a sustainable alternative to conventional sunscreen.

Image: Michael Schiffer

Despite lacking a centralized nervous system, fungi display a peculiar form of intelligence. They can adapt to changing environmental conditions, navigate complex networks to find resources, and even solve puzzles in laboratory experiments. Amazingly, fungi may even be capable of learning and remembering spatial information.

Image: NASA

Fungi can survive in the harshest environments, so it should come as no surprise that it can certainly thrive beyond Earth’s atmosphere. In 1988, the Russian space station Mir was almost completely colonized by an "aggressive space fungus," endangering both the crew and the station’s integrity. Apparently, fungi flourish in the absence of gravity - as their mechanism for spore dispersal is greatly enhanced without any force to bring them down.

Image: PerytonMango, CC BY-SA 4.0

Fungi form intricate partnerships with other organisms, from plants to insects. In particular, mycorrhizal fungi form symbiotic relationships with plant roots, aiding in the nutrient uptake process in exchange for sugars. Meanwhile, lichens represent a partnership between fungi and algae or cyanobacteria, which allows them to photosynthesize and thrive in diverse environments from barren deserts to polar regions.

Image: Maarten van den Heuvel

With the quest for sustainable energy sources intensifying, these complex organisms offer a promising solution. Certain fungi, like Trichoderma reesei, produce enzymes capable of breaking down plant cellulose into sugars, which can then be fermented into biofuels such as ethanol. Who knows, fungi might just be the answer to many of our modern problems!

From cows to poker: 10 surprising financial word origins

Modern financial terminology is deeply grounded in history and physical objects, originating from medieval garments, board games, livestock management, and gambling, long before spreadsheets existed. These 10 terms you use every time you set a budget or swipe a card had a totally different meaning. Prepare to be amazed.

Many centuries ago, when bank accounts didn’t exist, wealth was measured in livestock. Ancient pastoral societies counted cattle, goats, and sheep "by the head" (caput in Latin) to calculate an estate’s net worth.

The Latin adjective capitalis referred to things related to the head, eventually evolving into the Italian capitale during the 16th century to describe a merchant’s stock or investment. Although today investors don’t herd cows on Wall Street, the linguistic link between counting livestock "heads" and financial "capital" remains intact.

In the modern world, "budgeting" means managing a digital spreadsheet, but long ago a budget was a physical container. The word stems from the Latin bulga (a leather knapsack), which entered Middle French as bougette, meaning a small leather pouch or wallet.

In 18th-century Great Britain, the Chancellor of the Exchequer (the chief finance minister) carried a leather bag filled with national revenue statements and expenditure plans to the House of Commons. Opening the bag to present the nation’s finances was described as "opening the budget". Over time, the name transferred from the pouch itself to the financial plans kept inside.

The word check traces back to the game of chess. Borrowed through Old French from the Persian word šāh ("king"), placing an opponent’s piece in check was a direct warning that the king was under threat.

From the notion of putting a limit on the king’s movement, the verb check expanded into general English to mean inspecting, halting, or verifying accuracy. By the late 18th century, financial institutions issued written payment orders featuring a counterfoil (a slip retained by the bank to "check" for forgery), giving rise to the modern paper check.

During the 17th century, shipowners and financiers gathered at Edward Lloyd’s coffeehouse in London to negotiate marine insurance for transatlantic trade voyages.

A document would be prepared describing the vessel’s cargo, crew, destination, and risks. Investors willing to take on a portion of the financial risk would literally write their names and the exact financial share they agreed to cover under the proposal text. Consequently, anyone guaranteeing financial risk in exchange for a premium became known as an "underwriter".

In modern stock markets, a "blue-chip" stock stands for a reliable and financially sound company with a long record of stable earnings. However, the metaphor comes straight from high-stakes poker.

By the 19th century, casinos assigned different monetary values to colored gaming chips, reserving white for low values, red for mid values, and blue for the highest value chips. In the 1920s, financial journalist Oliver Gingold of The Wall Street Journal began referring to high-priced stocks as "blue-chip stocks", permanently embedding poker jargon into market terminology.

To invest capital today implies buying financial assets with the expectation of generating profit. Historically, however, invest meant to put on clothing. Derived from Latin in- ("into") and vestire ("to dress," the root of vestment and vest), the word described granting power or office to someone by dressing them in official robes.

Italian merchants in the 16th century adapted investire metaphorically to describe "clothing" or "dressing" capital into a new commercial form, such as trade ventures.

A financial penalty imposed for a violation seems harsh, but the original concept of a fine was peaceful resolution. Rooted in the Latin finis (meaning "end", "limit", or "termination"), the word moved through Old French as a term for bringing a dispute to an end.

In Medieval English systems, a fine was a sum paid by a defendant to terminate legal proceedings and settle a feud. Initially, it wasn’t a punishment, but a final settlement payment that concluded a conflict once and for all.

Nowadays we view income as money earned from employment or investments, but its original 14th-century meaning had nothing to do with finance. The word was a compound of "in" and "come", denoting a physical arrival or entrance (such as a person entering a room).

In theological contexts, it described spiritual inspirations "coming into" the soul. It was not until the late 17th century that the term narrowed down to mean the monetary inflow generated by an estate or enterprise.

A fund represents a foundational reserve of capital. The word stems from the Latin fundus, which referred to the bottom or base of an object, as well as a foundational piece of land.

The word entered English via the French fond (meaning ground, bottom, or stock). In the late 17th century, English financiers Latinized the spelling to fund, using it to mean a solid bottom layer or monetary store upon which financial operations could securely rest.

As we know, crash is a sensory word describing the loud, smashing sound of objects colliding violently. Its metaphoric entrance into financial markets occurred during 18th-century speculative panics, particularly the collapse of the South Sea Bubble in 1720 and the Mississippi Scheme in Paris.

People used the word to evoke the sudden, noisy destruction of inflated paper fortunes hitting rock bottom. The term became permanently cemented in global economics after the catastrophic October 1929 "Wall Street Crash".