POPULAR SCIENCE - If you picture a megalodon, chances are you envision what amounts to a gigantic great white shark. The image is understandable, given almost every depiction of the ancient apex predators across research and pop culture. But last year, an international team put forth a new anatomical design based on their analysis of incomplete fossilized vertebrae. According to the researchers, the famous megalodon was likely “more slender and possibly even longer” than the prevailing theory. Rather than a great white, the team offered sleeker mako sharks for a frame of reference.