Free Republic

In a survival saga for the ages, a Colombian woman who had fallen off the grid two years ago was miraculously discovered alive at sea by flabbergasted fishermen. Video of her dramatic rescue has since gone viral online. “Thank God I was alive,” said Angelica Gaitan, 46, who was found Saturday by Roland Visbal while floating 1.2 miles off of Puerto Colombia. In the stunning footage shot by her rescuer, Visbal and a friend named Gustavo can be seen maneuvering their vessel toward the suspended woman, who appears unresponsive. In fact, they initially mistook Gaitan for a piece of driftwood...

On a recent Friday morning, a line of bathing-suit clad students stood beside a campus swimming pool, waiting to jump in. They had come to persuade the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill they were worthy of a college degree — which they were not, in UNC's eyes, until they could swim 50 yards and tread water for five minutes.For many, it was an annoying inconvenience, for others a moment of pride in conquering their fear of water. But the scene also was a small slice of collegiate history. This was the last swim test day at one of...

Marine biologists have discovered a crustacean in the South Pacific that resembles a lobster or crab covered in what looks like silky fur. Kiwa hirsuta is so distinct from other species that scientists have created a new taxonomic family for it. A US-led team found the animal last year in waters 2,300m (7,540ft) deep at a site 1,500km (900 miles) south of Easter Island, an expert has claimed. Details appear in the journal of Paris' National Museum of Natural History. The diving expedition was organised by Robert Vrijenhoek of the Monterey Bay Aquarium Research Institute in California. The "Yeti Crab",...