MONTEVIDEO, Uruguay – Researchers in Uruguay have found what appear to be super-intelligent sea life in a sunken warship.

The crew of the remotely operated vehicle SuBastian found, alongside a submerged warship, 30 new species flourishing in cold-water coral reefs, and that was thrilling enough to oceanographers and marine biologists. But what really lit up the Internet was the unsettling discovery, via footage from inside the bridge of the wrecked World War II destroyer Uruguay, of a large handful of octopuses that appeared to be manipulating the ship’s controls in coordinated sequences.

“At first, we thought the octopuses were just exploring,” said Dr. Alvar Carranza, chief scientist of the Schmidt Ocean Institute expedition. “But then we realized that they’d restored partial power to three deck sections.” And, Carranza said, when the ROV returned the following day, they discovered that the hatch had been welded shut from the inside.

Officials at the Ocean Institute said that James Cameron had already been in touch, requesting permission to visit the site. “I’ve done the Titanic and the Mariana Trench,” Cameron said, “and it’s time for a new challenge. In fact, I’m getting bored of Avatar now, and I think it’s time for a return to the Alien franchise. I’m thinking Alien: Cephalopod. I wonder if Sigourney Weaver is free.”

Carranza quite rightly wanted to turn the discussion back to coral and other forms of life.