Here’s a science story that sounds straight out of Greek mythology, except it’s real, and it’s about us. A new study by researchers at Lund University and the University of Sussex suggests that humans, along with every other creature with a backbone, may descend from a tiny worm-like animal that had just one eye, sitting right on top of its head, much like a cyclops.

And that’s not even the strangest part. According to the research, remnants of this ancient “third eye” may still be sitting inside our brains today, in the form of the pineal gland, the organ that helps control our sleep cycle.

Meet Our Cyclops Ancestor

Nearly 600 million years ago, long before dinosaurs or even fish existed, a small, worm-like creature lived in the ocean. It didn’t move around much, instead, it stayed in one spot and filtered plankton from the water for food.
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Scientists believe this creature originally had two eyes, or at least two light-sensing patches, like most animals need to judge distance and direction. But because it lived such a still, stationary lifestyle, it simply didn’t need that kind of vision anymore. Over generations, those two eyes faded away.

What it kept instead was a single patch of light-sensitive cells right in the middle of its, a simple “median eye.” This wasn’t sharp enough to see actual images, but it was enough to tell day from night, and which way was up.

So How Did We End Up With Two Eyes Again?

Here’s the twist: millions of years later, descendants of this creature started swimming actively again. Suddenly, spotting food, dodging predators, and sensing direction mattered a lot more, and vision became valuable again.According to the study, evolution didn’t build a fresh pair of eyes from scratch. Instead, it repurposed parts of that old central “cyclops eye” to construct a brand-new pair of image-forming eyes, the ancestors of the eyes humans and other vertebrates use today.

This, researchers say, is why our eyes are built so differently from those of insects or squid. Dan-E Nilsson, professor emeritus in sensory biology at Lund University, explains that our retina actually develops from brain tissue, while in insects and squid, eyes grow from skin cells on the head, a completely different evolutionary path.

The Real Twist: Part of That Ancient Eye Is Still Inside You

Perhaps the most fascinating claim in the study is this: the original cyclops eye never fully disappeared. Researchers believe it survives today as the pineal gland, a small structure deep inside the vertebrate brain.

We no longer use it to see, but it hasn’t stopped reacting to light and dark. The pineal gland produces melatonin, the hormone that makes us feel sleepy at night and alert during the day, helping to regulate our internal body clock.

In many animals, the pineal gland can sense light directly. In humans, our eyes handle that job instead, sending light signals to the brain so melatonin levels can rise and fall on schedule.

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Nilsson sums up the discovery as genuinely startling, noting how strange it is that the part of our brain regulating sleep today can be traced back to a single primitive eye from a creature that lived some 600 million years ago.

This research doesn’t just rewrite a chapter of biology textbooks, it reshapes how scientists understand the origins of the eye and even parts of the brain itself. It suggests that evolution doesn’t always move forward in straight lines; sometimes it takes detours, loses features, and later repurposes old leftover parts for entirely new jobs.

So the next time you feel sleepy after sunset, you might just have a one-eyed ancestor from the ocean floor to thank for it.

The UK government has not specifically warned against travel to anywhere in France or Spain, but it does advise caution.

In France, it says access to affected areas may be restricted and roads may close at short notice. It adds that further evacuations may take place.

It has also issued a general warning about the high risk of wildfires in France during the summer season from April to October.

For those in an affected area in France or Spain or planning to travel there, the UK government recommends following instructions and updates from local authorities and emergency services at all times.

Those needing emergency help in France or Spain can call 112.

Travellers should also bear in mind the UK government’s advice can and does change in response to moving events.

Anna-Marie Duthie, travel insurance expert at financial rating firm Defaqto, says that if this happens after you have booked your trip, “you may be covered for cancellation or curtailment”.

“You may also be covered for additional travel and accommodation costs should your trip be disrupted due to a catastrophic event, if your insurer offers this cover or you’ve paid to include it,” she adds.

To know if this applies to you, check your policy.

Milwaukee Bucks forward Kyle Kuzma has publicly criticized New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani, dismissing his recent call for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s arrest as political posturing rather than substantive governance.

A viral video draws a pointed response

The dispute began after Mamdani posted a video ahead of the United Nations General Assembly calling for Netanyahu’s arrest under an outstanding International Criminal Court warrant. In the video, Mamdani described Netanyahu as a “war criminal,” said the Israeli leader was not welcome in New York City, and argued that while the city itself lacks authority to enforce the warrant, the federal government does. “It is clear that we do not have the independent legal authority to enforce this warrant,” Mamdani said, adding that he was calling on federal officials to join the ICC and carry out the arrest if Netanyahu travels to the city for the U.N. gathering in September. According to reporting on the video, it surpassed 80 million views on X.

Kuzma, a nine-year NBA veteran, reshared Mamdani’s video with sharp criticism of his own. “This is 2026. People cosplaying as things they don’t have the authority, the talent, or the track record to actually be. Just for content,” Kuzma wrote, before broadening the critique into a wider commentary on public figures he views as prioritizing image over substance. He continued the post with additional examples, writing, “A mayor playing president. A founder playing operator. A content creator playing one-on-one thinking he’s a pro. A 25yr old with a ring light playing economist. Everyone auditioning. Nobody building.”

A dismissive reply to critics

Kuzma’s post quickly drew pushback from users who questioned both the substance of his criticism and his choice of target. One user responded by turning the “cosplaying” framing back on Kuzma himself, writing, “and you’re cosplaying as a basketball player.” Kuzma offered little in the way of a detailed rebuttal, responding simply, “yea, sure lol.” Other users argued that Kuzma had chosen to direct his criticism at a public official calling for accountability over alleged war crimes rather than at what they viewed as more fitting targets for his broader point about performative public figures.

Legal and political context surrounding the ICC warrant

The International Criminal Court issued an arrest warrant for Netanyahu in 2024, alleging he intentionally targeted civilians and used starvation as a method of warfare during Israel’s military campaign in Gaza. Israel does not recognize the ICC’s jurisdiction, and Netanyahu has repeatedly denied the allegations against him. The United States has also never ratified the treaty establishing the ICC, meaning the court’s authority is not directly binding on American federal or local law enforcement.

Mamdani had previously indicated that his administration explored whether New York City police could act on the warrant if Netanyahu visited for the U.N. General Assembly, a position he first outlined before winning office. He has since acknowledged publicly that the city lacks independent legal authority to execute the warrant on its own, a point he reiterated in the video that prompted Kuzma’s criticism, while continuing to call on the federal government to take action instead.

A divided reaction within the NBA

Kuzma’s comments stood in contrast to reactions from other prominent NBA figures. According to reporting on the episode, players including Kyrie Irving and Victor Wembanyama expressed support for Mamdani’s message, illustrating how the mayor’s stance on the issue has split opinion even among high-profile figures within the league. That division reflects broader public disagreement over Mamdani’s approach, with supporters framing his position as a principled stand on international law and accountability, while critics argue he is overstepping the practical bounds of his office by focusing on matters of foreign policy well beyond his authority as a city mayor.

Criticism from Jewish organizations and political opponents

Mamdani’s rhetoric regarding Israel has drawn repeated condemnation from Jewish advocacy organizations and political opponents throughout his time in office, who have argued his statements on the Israeli-Palestinian conflict have at times crossed into inflammatory territory. Critics have separately argued that Mamdani, a self-described democratic socialist elected to lead the country’s largest city, should prioritize addressing local challenges such as public safety, sanitation and housing affordability rather than engaging with international disputes that fall outside a mayor’s formal jurisdiction.

Mamdani has faced this line of criticism before

This isn’t the first time Mamdani has addressed the Netanyahu arrest warrant question publicly. In earlier interviews, including one with Fox News before he won office, Mamdani said he intended to uphold international law and would look to exhaust every available legal option to act on the warrant rather than attempt to create new legal authority for himself. He drew a contrast at the time between his own approach and that of President Donald Trump, saying, “Unlike Donald Trump, I’m someone who looks to exist within the confines of the laws that we have.”

No formal response from Kuzma’s team or the league

As of this report, neither the Milwaukee Bucks organization nor the NBA had issued any comment regarding Kuzma’s remarks about Mamdani. Kuzma has not elaborated further on his position beyond his initial social media posts, and it remains unclear whether he intends to address the criticism directly in future public comments.

With Netanyahu’s potential attendance at the U.N. General Assembly in September still pending, the question of how New York City and federal authorities might respond to his visit is likely to remain a point of political and public debate. Mamdani has continued to press the federal government to act on the ICC warrant, even while acknowledging the city’s own limited authority in the matter, ensuring the issue is likely to resurface as the September gathering approaches, alongside continued public reaction from figures both inside and outside professional sports.

Picture a city with 75,000 people, its own grocery stores, movie theatres, and swimming pools. Now imagine that city was invisible. No road signs pointed to it. No state map showed it. If you asked a local where it was, they legally couldn’t tell you, because most of them didn’t fully know either. This isn’t fiction. It’s Oak Ridge, Tennessee, and it was one of the strangest, most audacious secrets the U.S. government has ever pulled off.

A City That “Didn’t Exist”

When Japan attacked Pearl Harbor in December 1941, Oak Ridge didn’t exist at all. There was no city, no name, nothing but quiet farmland tucked into the valleys of East Tennessee.

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Then, in 1942, the US government quietly began buying up roughly 60,000 acres of that farmland ‘on land framed by the foothills of the Appalachian Mountains’. Families who had lived there for generations were told to pack up and leave, often with only a few weeks’ notice, no explanation given, and no say in the matter.

By July 1943, the takeover became official. An army captain handed Tennessee’s governor a proclamation, straight from President Franklin Roosevelt, declaring the land a total exclusion area no longer under state control. The governor reportedly tore it up on the spot. It didn’t matter. The federal government now controlled the land, no questions asked.

Why This Sleepy Valley?

The location wasn’t chosen by accident. Oak Ridge sat far from either coast, making it an unlikely bombing target, and its valleys offered natural cover, plus room to separate massive industrial plants in case something went catastrophically wrong.
It was also cheap and remote, sparsely populated, which meant fewer people to notice, and fewer people to ask questions. Within months, this “nowhere” spot became one of three secret sites, alongside Los Alamos, New Mexico, and Hanford, Washington, chosen to build the world’s first atomic bomb as part of the Manhattan Project.

Life Behind the Fence

What rose out of that Tennessee mud was almost unbelievable. By its peak, Oak Ridge was home to ‘75,000 people, making it the fifth-largest city in Tennessee’, bigger than many cities that actually appeared on maps.

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And yet, officially, it was blank space. Guards stood at every entrance. Every resident wore a badge at all times. Access required special approval, and visitors were essentially banned. Locals in nearby Knoxville reportedly knew something odd was happening, Oak Ridge workers were recognizable by their mud-caked shoes, a giveaway of the town no one was supposed to talk about.

Inside the fence, life looked almost normal, grocery stores, dances, churches, swimming pools. But almost nobody living there understood the true purpose of their own jobs. Workers were given fragments of tasks with zero context, deliberately kept in the dark so that even if information leaked, it wouldn’t add up to anything useful. One young chemist who arrived in 1943 later recalled being warned never to say the word “uranium” again after his very first day.

Some estimates suggest Oak Ridge briefly used more electricity than New York City, largely to power the massive uranium enrichment plants humming day and night behind the checkpoints.

When the Secret Finally Came Out

The truth broke in August 1945, when the U.S. dropped atomic bombs on Hiroshima and Nagasaki. Only then did the outside world, and most of Oak Ridge’s own residents, learn what they’d actually built: the enriched uranium used in the first atomic weapon ever deployed in war.

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Even after that, Oak Ridge stayed a closed, gated city for years. It wasn’t until March 1949 that its roads finally opened to the public, ending seven years of total secrecy.

What’s Left Today

Oak Ridge is no longer hidden, it’s a real, mapped city near Knoxville, and part of it is now preserved as the Manhattan Project National Historical Park. Visitors can tour surviving facilities, ride a scenic train along old supply routes, and see remnants of the plants that once ran around the clock behind armed checkpoints.

It remains one of the most remarkable facts of American history: for seven years, tens of thousands of people lived, worked, and raised families in a city the federal government built from nothing, and then simply erased from every map in the country.