Ancient Cellulose
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This photo provided by Jack Griffith, a professor of microbiology and immunology at the University of North Carolina School of Medicine, shows him underground in front of a salt wall as he holds chunks of extracted salt samples at the Waste Isolation Pilot Plant near Carlsbad, N.M. in December 2006. Griffith and his team found cellulose dating back 253 million years _ along with some possible ancient DNA _ has been found in salt crystals from the underground nuclear waste dump. The crystals were taken from newly mined areas 2,000 feet below WIPP's desert surface last fall and a couple of years ago, Griffith said Wednesday, April 9, 2008. Griffith said he thinks looking for cellulose in salt deposits is a good way to go searching for life on other planets. (AP Photo/Courtesy of Jack Griffith)