Nowadays, crossbreeding and gene splicing are creating things that would never have occurred in nature. Thanks to gene splicing, modern man can witness mice that glow in the dark, goats that produce milk which is then used to make bulletproof vests, and even cows that produce milk that is almost identical to human breast milk. One of the latest feats of human genius is the creation of Thompson and Morgan. By combining the genes of tomatoes and potatoes they were able to create a “TomTato”, which is essentially a plant that grows tomatoes and potatoes at the same time. With creations such as this, the world’s hunger problem may be resolved in a few decades.

A small series by illustration Alex Solis remembering those things that used to rule the world.

A model, painted by the artist Avi Ram from Airbrush Hero, poses for a photo as part of a calendar project, at the Tower of David in Jerusalem's Old City, April 27, 2017. (Photo by Ronen Zvulun/Reuters)

Devotees offer prayers before taking a holy bath during the Swasthani Bratakatha festival in the Triveni River in Panauti near Kathmandu January 24, 2015. During the month long festival, devotees recite one chapter of a Hindu tale daily from the 31-chapter sacred Swasthani Brata Katha book that is dedicated to the God Madhavnarayan and the Goddess Swasthani, alongside various other gods and goddess and the miraculous feats performed by them. The devotees also go on pilgrimages to various temples, perform religious rituals, take a holy bath in the rivers and fast for a month, especially among women who believe fasting helps in their family's well-being or in getting them a good husband. (Photo by Navesh Chitrakar/Reuters)

A devotee takes a holy bath in River Saali in Sankhu during the Swasthani Brata Katha festival in Kathmandu, Nepal, January 24, 2016. During the month long festival, devotees recite one chapter of a Hindu tale daily from the 31-chapter sacred Swasthani Brata Katha book that is dedicated to God Madhavnarayan and Goddess Swasthani, alongside various other gods and goddess and the miraculous feats performed by them. The devotees also go on pilgrimages to various temples, perform religious rituals, take a holy bath in the rivers and fast for a month, especially among women who believe fasting helps in their family's well-being or in getting them a good husband. (Photo by Navesh Chitrakar/Reuters)

Kung Fu master Li Liangui practices “Suogugong” Kung Fu and his wife Liang Xiaoyan (R) practices Qigong at a park in Beijing, China, June 30, 2016. For 50 years, kung fu master Li Liangui has been contorting his body into eye-watering positions while practising one of the more unusual and less popular Chinese martial art forms. The 70-year-old is an expert in suogugong, or body shrinking kung fu, where practitioners dislocate their bones to help them achieve unlikely positions and feats. (Photo by Kim Kyung-Hoon/Reuters)

The Bahamas, the Commonwealth nation of hundreds of islands roughly the size of Connecticut and with population of just a bit over Anaheim, is known for its crystal waters and pristine beaches. This is possibly one of the world’s most beautiful havens of nature, yet people are coming here to see pigs. It is unclear when the pigs first appeared on Exuma Island or where they come from. There’s talk about a daring escape from a shipwreck, or sailors releasing the swine on purpose. In all probability, there were no pigs on this tropical paradise before European settlers came, so their mere presence is the work of human. The intriguing feat of nature, however, is that this population of pigs developed a fine aptitude for swimming. Here: “So you're on a boat in Bahamas and then this pig swims by begging for food”. (Photo and caption by Lisa Larsen/Public Domain)