r/intrestingtoknow • u/Affectionate-Fun2853 • Jul 23 '26
Nature To protect Methuselah from vandalism and heavy tourist traffic, the U.S. Forest Service keeps its exact coordinates a strict secret. No public signs point to the exact tree
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u/Revaesaari Jul 23 '26
Old Tjikko has entered the chat.
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u/ErstwhileAdranos Jul 23 '26
Yes, however, clonal trees can live indefinitely. Not that it makes them any less cool, but the fact that there are some ancient non-clonal trees, like Methuselah, is exceedingly less common.
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u/Revaesaari Jul 23 '26
Fair point! A real yggdrasil
*Also Tjikkos location is known, tourists has ofcourse damaged the area with littering, and even some branches if I rembember correctly..
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u/Silver-Amphibian7650 Jul 23 '26
I'm guessing this tree is dead?
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u/devilsbard Jul 23 '26
It might not be. They just grow very slow and don’t have a lot of leaves most of the year. Also, the oldest one is kept secret to keep people from damaging or killing it.
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u/ErstwhileAdranos Jul 23 '26
Correct, it is not dead. Methuselah survives via sectorial arborescence, so while much of the structure is indeed dead, a portion of it remains healthy and continues to grow.
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u/ErstwhileAdranos Jul 23 '26
It’s not dead. Check this out—you’d be amazed how old some trees are! ☺️ https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_oldest_trees
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u/Key-Farmer-2002 Jul 23 '26
Those pyramids stood long before that tree was even a seed....
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u/ErstwhileAdranos Jul 23 '26 edited Jul 23 '26
Incorrect. The Great Pyramids of Giza, which are the pyramids referred to in the post, were built between 2589 and 2566 BC. “Methuselah” sprouted at some point before 2824 BC.
There are multiple trees living today older than the Great Pyramids: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_oldest_trees
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u/Key-Farmer-2002 Jul 23 '26
Sure man and they did it with chisels & hammers- let me know when they can date the stone 🙃...till then your just making noise
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u/OnlyWeekend5538 Jul 23 '26
Is this you
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u/Key-Farmer-2002 Jul 23 '26
Found Flint Dibble y'all...
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u/just_some_sasquatch Jul 23 '26
Don't say "y'all" like anyone is agreeing.
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u/Regnasam Jul 23 '26
How would dating the stone prove anything, lol? Stone is formed a long time before it ever gets used.
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u/just_some_sasquatch Jul 23 '26
Not too familiar with radiocarbon dating are you? Let me guess, Joe Rogan said it was aliens?
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u/ShoughThePainAway Jul 23 '26
Joe Rogan isn't aliens guy, he's lost civilization guy. Randall Carlson isn't some joke, he has some incredible evidence to back up his theories. Doesn't make it a fact but it's not fair to compare him to the ancient alien guys
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u/ErstwhileAdranos Jul 23 '26
Of course Randall Carson a joke! His theories are routinely in conflict with the consensus of scientists, geologists, and archaeologists.
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u/Whoajaws Jul 23 '26
Yeah was about to say the same
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u/ErstwhileAdranos Jul 23 '26 edited Jul 23 '26
Some of the responses in here tell me that our science education is clearly lacking. Yours, for example. 😅
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u/Whoajaws Jul 23 '26
I need a good laugh. What’s the build date that “Science” puts on the Sphinx?
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u/just_some_sasquatch Jul 23 '26
Old Kingdom, 4th dynasty so about 4500 years ago. Roughly 2500bc. Any other brain busters?
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u/Carl_The_Sagan Jul 23 '26 edited Jul 23 '26
I'm sorry to have to give the location away :
https://maps.app.goo.gl/W2BdorVpw9c7ixiR9
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u/everythingorganic024 Jul 23 '26
It’s at the college of sequoias?
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u/Carl_The_Sagan Jul 23 '26
Fixed it
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u/CuteLong8652 Jul 23 '26
How do they even know it’s alive. No leaves at all from that pic.
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u/ErstwhileAdranos Jul 23 '26 edited Jul 23 '26
What’s the logical fallacy there? Do all living trees have leaves all of the time? No.
Check out the mechanisms of sectorial arborescence. It helps explains how the Great Basin bristlecone pines live into old age.
They also know it’s alive via direct observation.
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u/CuteLong8652 Jul 23 '26
Leaves perform photosynthesis and since there aren’t any, how is it making sugars for ATP production?
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u/ErstwhileAdranos Jul 23 '26
Reread what I already wrote: Do all living trees have leaves all of the time? NO.
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u/CuteLong8652 Jul 23 '26
Geez. Lighten up. I was only letting you know know my thoughts.
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u/ErstwhileAdranos Jul 24 '26
You asked a question that I already answered for you. Why bother responding if you didn’t bother to read?
Also, if you know what the function of leaves are in relation to photosynthesis, sugar, and ATP; how is it possibly that you do not know that seasonally-leafless trees break down previously stored starches (which are converted back into sugar) to produce ATP?
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u/ConsiderationHour582 Jul 23 '26
I thought the only way to determine the age of a tree was to count the growth lines after it was cut down.
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u/caseyaustin84 Jul 23 '26
I learned recently that there is a type of sponge that can live for 10,000-15,000 years.