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Categories: Anthropology: General, Energy: Batteries
Published Swimming secrets of prehistoric reptiles unlocked by new study
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source The diverse swimming techniques of the ancient reptiles that ruled the Mesozoic seas have been revealed.
Published Ancient DNA reveals the multiethnic structure of Mongolia's first nomadic empire
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source The Xiongnu, contemporaries of Rome and Egypt, built their nomadic empire on the Mongolian steppe 2,000 years ago, emerging as Imperial China's greatest rival and even inspiring the construction of China's Great Wall. In a new study, researchers find that the Xiongnu were a multiethnic empire, with high genetic diversity found across the empire and even within individual extended elite families. At the fringes of the empire, women held the highest positions of power, and the highest genetic diversity was found among low-status male servants, giving clues to the process of empire building that gave rise to Asia's first nomadic imperial power.
Published Apes may have evolved upright stature for leaves, not fruit, in open woodland habitats
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source Anthropologists have long thought that our ape ancestors evolved an upright torso in order to pick fruit in forests, but new research from the University of Michigan suggests a life in open woodlands and a diet that included leaves drove apes' upright stature.
Published Oldest bat skeletons ever found described from Wyoming fossils
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source Scientists have described a new species of bat based on the oldest bat skeletons ever recovered. The study on the extinct bat, which lived in Wyoming about 52 million years ago, supports the idea that bats diversified rapidly on multiple continents during this time.
Published Dairy foods helped ancient Tibetans thrive in one of Earth's most inhospitable environments
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source The question of how prehistoric populations obtained sustainable food in the barren heights of the Tibetan Plateau has long attracted academic and popular interest. A new study highlights the critical role of dairy pastoralism in opening the plateau up to widespread, long-term human habitation.
Published Electrification push will have enormous impacts on critical metals supply chain
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source The demand for battery-grade lithium, nickel, cobalt, manganese and platinum will climb steeply as vehicle electrification speeds up and nations work to reduce greenhouse gas emissions through mid-century. This surge in demand will also create a variety of economic and supply-chain problems, according to new research.
Published Woolly mammoths evolved smaller ears and woolier coats over the 700,000 years that they roamed the Siberian steppes
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source A team of researchers compared the genomes of woolly mammoths with modern day elephants to find out what made woolly mammoths unique, both as individuals and as a species. The investigators report that many of the woolly mammoth's trademark features -- including their woolly coats and large fat deposits -- were already genetically encoded in the earliest woolly mammoths, but these and other traits became more defined over the species' 700,000+ year existence. They also identified a gene with several mutations that may have been responsible for the woolly mammoth's miniscule ears.
Published Solid-state lithium-sulfur batteries: Neutrons unveil sluggish charge transport
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source Solid-state Lithium-Sulfur batteries offer the potential for much higher energy densities and increased safety, compared to conventional lithium-ion batteries. However, the performance of solid-state batteries is currently lacking, with slow charging and discharging being one of the primary causes. Now, a new study shows that sluggish lithium ion transport within a composite cathode is the cause of this slow charging and discharging.
Published Elephants as a new model for understanding human evolution
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source Human culture and language may be the result of 'self-domestication': an evolutionary process that leads to less aggressive and more prosocial individuals. A research team argues that elephants -- like humans and bonobos -- may also be self-domesticated. Elephants show many traits associated with self-domestication, such as prosocial behavior, playfulness and complex communication skills. This makes elephants an interesting new animal model for the evolution of prosociality.
Published Major storage capacity in water-based batteries
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source Chemical engineers have discovered a 1,000% difference in the storage capacity of metal-free, water-based battery electrodes.
Published One of Swedish warship Vasa's crew was a woman
(via sciencedaily.com) When the human remains found on board the Swedish warship Vasa (1628) were investigated, it was determined that the skeleton designated G was a man. New research now shows that the skeleton is actually from a woman. About thirty people died when Vasa sank on its maiden voyage in Stockholm, 1628. We cannot know who most of them were, only one person is named in the written sources. When the ship was raised in 1961 it was the scene of a comprehensive archaeological excavation, in which numerous human bones were found on board and examined.
Published Yak milk consumption among Mongol Empire elites
(via sciencedaily.com) For the first time, researchers have pinpointed a date when elite Mongol Empire people were drinking yak milk, according to a new study.
Published Researchers use 21st century methods to record 2,000 years of ancient graffiti in Egypt
(via sciencedaily.com) Researchers are learning more about ancient graffiti -- and their intriguing comparisons to modern graffiti -- as they produce a state-of-the-art 3D recording of the Temple of Isis in Philae, Egypt.
Published New, exhaustive study probes hidden history of horses in the American West
(via sciencedaily.com) Indigenous peoples as far north as Wyoming and Idaho may have begun to care for horses by the first half of the 17th Century, according to a new study by researchers from 15 countries and multiple Native American groups.
Published Ancient DNA reveals Asian ancestry introduced to East Africa in early modern times
(via sciencedaily.com) The largest-yet analysis of ancient DNA in Africa, which includes the first ancient DNA recovered from members of the medieval Swahili civilization, has now broken the stalemate about the extent to which people from outside Africa contributed to Swahili culture and ancestry.
Published Ancient African empires' impact on migration revealed by genetics
(via sciencedaily.com) Traces of ancient empires that stretched across Africa remain in the DNA of people living on the continent, reveals a new genetics study.
Published A reconstruction of prehistoric temperatures for some of the oldest archaeological sites in North America
(via sciencedaily.com) Scientists often look to the past for clues about how Earth's landscapes might shift under a changing climate, and for insight into the migrations of human communities through time. A new study offers both by providing, for the first time, a reconstruction of prehistoric temperatures for some of the first known North American settlements.
Published Revolutionary battery technology to boost EV range 10-fold or more
(via sciencedaily.com) A team develops layering-charged, polymer-based stable high-capacity anode material.
Published New invention: The oxygen-ion battery
(via sciencedaily.com) An oxygen-ion-battery has been invented, based on ceramic materials. If it degrades, it can be regenerated, therefore it potentially has an extremely long lifespan. Also, it does not require any rare elements and it is incombustible. For large energy storage systems, this could be an optimal solution.
Published Batteries: Passivation layer mystery solved
(via sciencedaily.com) In our daily lives, lithium-ion batteries have become indispensable. They function only because of a passivation layer that forms during their initial cycle. As researchers found out via simulations, this solid electrolyte interphase develops not directly at the electrode but aggregates in the solution. Their findings allow the optimization of the performance and lifetime of future batteries.