E X T E N S I O N HYBRIDS AND CHIMERAS It is more than 120 years since Wells first published his novel The Island of Dr Moreau but if you read some recent headlines1, you would think that we are dangerously near to living Wells dystopic story. Frankenstein-scientists developing part-human and part-animal chimera , reported the Daily Mirror in May 2016. Science wants to break down the barrier between man and beast, the Washington Times declared two months later, fearing that these chimeras would soon be unleashed2 on the world. The term chimera comes from Greek mythology, with Homer describing in the Iliad a strange creature not human, lion in front and snake behind, a goat in the middle . In reality, chimeras in science are less scary. The word describes any creature containing a fusion of genetically-distinct tissues.The mixed animals from Greek mythology certainly cannot be found in nature, where, instead, hybrids are present. A hybrid is an animal or plant that has parents of different species or varieties. Examples of hybrids include the mule (a cross3 between a male donkey and female horse), and the more exotic liger (a cross between a male lion and female tiger). In other words, a hybrid is A liger. a realisation of nature, a 2. unleashed: released, set free. 3. cross: a mixture of two different things, breeds of animal, etc. 1. headline: a line of words printed in large letters as the title of a story in a newspaper. 66