NEW Toxic forever chemicals in drinking water: Is Canada doing enough?
As the United States sets its first national limits on toxic forever chemicals in drinking water, researchers say Canada is lagging when it comes to regulations.
Do we need to worry about a fungus that ultimately turns humans into zombies with parasitic tendrils coming out of their mouths, ready to attack?
That’s the concept behind the world-destroying pandemic in The Last of Us, a new HBO series based on a video game that’s known for mixing the zombie apocalypse genre with heart and humanity.
In the series, survivors struggle to endure a world where cordyceps, a type of fungi that typically infects ants or spiders, is able to jump to the human population due to climate change. Parasitic Cordyceps take over the host body by filling its cavity with spores.
In the TV show, humans are taken over by the fungi and turned into zombie-like creatures that chase survivors in order to infect them through a bite.
According to James Scott, a professor at the University of Toronto who specializes in biological hazards and microfungi, it may not just be the stuff of science fiction.
“We already have a lot of diseases of humans caused by fungi. But the fortunate thing is, there are lots of fungi on the planet, millions of different kinds, and there’s really only a handful that cause serious diseases of people,” Scott told CTV’s Your Morning on Friday, explaining that a pandemic fuelled by cordyceps is actually possible.
For the most part, he added, if a human is infected by a fungus, it’s difficult for them to transmit it to another human.
But that could change, Scott said. “The more we uncover remnants of lost rainforest in all sorts of far-flung rainforests, there is a possibility to encounter some of these things… that could then jump into the human population,” he said.
Watch the full interview above to learn more and about how fungal and bacterial infections differ.
As the United States sets its first national limits on toxic forever chemicals in drinking water, researchers say Canada is lagging when it comes to regulations.
Drivers in Eastern Canada face a big increase in gas prices because of various factors, especially the higher cost of the summer blend, industry analysts say.
Calgary police have arrested a man and a charge is pending in connection with the death of a toddler in 2022.
The journey to home ownership can be exciting, but personal finance columnist Christopher Liew warns about the trappings of becoming 'house poor' -- where an overwhelming portion of your income is devoured by housing costs. Liew offers some practical strategies to maintain better financial health while owning a home.
A Winnipeg woman was sentenced to house arrest after a single date with a man she met online culminated in her harassing him for years, and spurred false allegations which resulted in the innocent man being arrested three times.
New archeological investigations in Guatemala reveal that the ancient Maya people had a ritual of burning royal human remains as a public display of political regime change.
Almost 7,000 bars of pure gold were stolen from Pearson International Airport exactly one year ago during an elaborate heist, but so far only a tiny fraction of that stolen loot has been found.
Prince William will return to public duties on Thursday for the first time since his wife Kate revealed she was undergoing preventative chemotherapy for cancer.
Russian air defences downed what authorities described as five Ukrainian balloons overnight, the defence ministry in Moscow said Thursday, as the sides kept up long-range strikes that have featured heavily in what has largely become a war of attrition.
When Les Robertson was walking home from the gym in North Vancouver's Lower Lonsdale neighbourhood three weeks ago, he did a double take. Standing near a burrow it had dug in a vacant lot near East 1st Street and St. Georges Avenue was a yellow-bellied marmot.
A moulting seal who was relocated after drawing daily crowds of onlookers in Greater Victoria has made a surprise return, after what officials described as an 'astonishing' six-day journey.
Just steps from Parliament Hill is a barber shop that for the last 100 years has catered to everyone from prime ministers to tourists.
A high score on a Foo Fighters pinball machine has Edmonton player Dave Formenti on a high.
A compound used to treat sour gas that's been linked to fertility issues in cattle has been found throughout groundwater in the Prairies, according to a new study.
While many people choose to keep their medical appointments private, four longtime friends decided to undergo vasectomies as a group in B.C.'s Lower Mainland.
A popular highway in Alberta's Banff National Park now has a 'no stopping zone' to help protect two bears.
B.C. resident Robert Conrad spent thousands of hours on Crown land developing an unusual bond with deer.
A Sudbury woman said her husband was bringing the recycling out to the curb Wednesday night when he had to make a 'mad dash' inside after seeing a bear.