Anthropology: Cultures Anthropology: Early Humans Anthropology: General
Published

Origins of cumulative culture in human evolution      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

Cumulative culture -- the accumulation of technological modifications and improvements over generations -- allowed humans to adapt to a diversity of environments and challenges. But, it is unclear when cumulative culture first developed during hominin evolution. A new study concludes that humans began to rapidly accumulate technological knowledge through social learning around 600,000 years ago.

Anthropology: Cultures Anthropology: General
Published

New research finds biases encoded in language across cultures and history      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

Researchers share evidence that people's attitudes are deeply woven into language and culture across the globe and centuries.

Anthropology: Cultures Anthropology: General Archaeology: General Biology: Botany Biology: Zoology
Published

Ancient Syrian diets resembled the modern 'Mediterranean diet'      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

Thousands of years ago, people in ancient Syria likely ate mostly grains, grapes, olives and a small amount of dairy and meat -- similar to today's 'Mediterranean diet,' according to a new study.

Anthropology: Cultures Archaeology: General
Published

Greek Island was home to Bronze Age purple dye workshop      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

The Greek island of Aegina was home to a Late Bronze Age purple dye workshop, according to a new study.

Anthropology: Cultures Anthropology: General Archaeology: General Offbeat: General Offbeat: Paleontology and Archeology
Published

Ritual sacrifice at Chichén Itzá      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

Rising to power in the wake of the Classic Maya collapse, Chichen Itz was among the largest and most influential cities of the ancient Maya, but much about its political connections and ritual life remain poorly understood. Close kin relationships, including two pairs of identical twins, suggests a connection to the Maya origin myths of the Popol Vuh.

Anthropology: Cultures Anthropology: General Archaeology: General Environmental: Water Geoscience: Environmental Issues
Published

Crucial shift in River Nile's evolution during ancient Egypt discovered      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

Researchers have explored how the River Nile evolved over the past 11,500 years and how changes in its geography could have helped shape the fortunes of ancient Egyptian civilization. Research reveals a major shift in the Nile around four thousand years ago, after which the floodplain in the Nile Valley around Luxor greatly expanded.

Anthropology: Cultures Archaeology: General Biology: Zoology Paleontology: Fossils Paleontology: General
Published

Ancient people hunted extinct elephants at Tagua Tagua Lake in Chile 12,000 years ago      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

Thousands of years ago, early hunter-gatherers returned regularly to Tagua Tagua Lake in Chile to hunt ancient elephants and take advantage of other local resources, according to a new study.

Anthropology: Cultures Anthropology: General Archaeology: General
Published

Excavation reveals 'major' ancient migration to Timor Island      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

The discovery of thousands of stone artefacts and animal bones in a deep cave in Timor Island has led archaeologists to reassess the route that early humans took to reach Australia. Researchers dated and analysed the artefacts and sediment at the Laili rock shelter in central-north Timor-Leste, north of Australia, to pinpoint the arrival of the colonists.

Anthropology: Cultures Anthropology: General Biology: Botany Ecology: Invasive Species
Published

Legacy of Indigenous stewardship of camas dates back more than 3,500 years      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

A new study found evidence that Indigenous groups in the Pacific Northwest were intentionally harvesting edible camas bulbs at optimal stages of the plant's maturation as far back as 3,500 years ago.

Anthropology: Cultures Anthropology: General
Published

What pottery reveals about prehistoric Central European culinary traditions      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

The analysis of fat traces in over one hundred pottery vessels reveals deep changes in food consumption and preparation by communities living in central Germany between the Early Neolithic and the Late Bronze Age, as well as in their relation with innovations in pottery styles and decorations. In a groundbreaking study, researchers identified a generalized inclusion of dairy products in prehistoric diets, a preference in consuming pork with the arrival of communities from the Eurasian Steppe, and the importance of dairy products in funeral rites. Central Germany was a key region for the emergence of great prehistoric cultures, such as the Linear Pottery Culture, the Corded Ware Culture, the Bell Beaker populations and the Unetice Culture, one of the first state societies in Europe.

Anthropology: Cultures Biology: Biochemistry Biology: Biotechnology Biology: Evolutionary Biology: General Biology: Microbiology Biology: Zoology Ecology: Endangered Species Ecology: Extinction Ecology: Invasive Species Geoscience: Geography Paleontology: Fossils Paleontology: General
Published

Evolutionary history of extinct duck revealed      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

The study's findings show mergansers arrived in the New Zealand region at least seven million years ago from the Northern Hemisphere, in a separate colonisation event to that which led to the Brazilian merganser.

Anthropology: Cultures Anthropology: General Archaeology: General Biology: Biochemistry Paleontology: Climate
Published

Early arrival and expansion of palaeolithic people on Cyprus      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

The patterns of dispersal of early humans across continents and islands are hotly debated, but researchers have found that Pleistocene hunter-gatherers settled in Cyprus thousands of years earlier than previously thought. In examining the timing of the first human occupation of Cyprus, research found that large islands in the Mediterranean Sea were attractive and favorable destinations for palaeolithic peoples. These findings refute previous studies that suggested Mediterranean islands would have been unreachable and inhospitable for Pleistocene hunter-gatherer societies.

Computer Science: Encryption Computer Science: Virtual Reality (VR) Engineering: Biometric
Published

VR may pose privacy risks for kids: A new study finds parents aren't as worried as they should be      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

New research finds that, while an increasing number of minors are using virtual reality (VR) apps, not many parents recognize the extent of the security and privacy risks that are specific to VR technologies. The study also found that few parents are taking active steps to address those security and privacy issues, such as using parental controls built into the apps.

Anthropology: Cultures Anthropology: General Archaeology: General Biology: Biochemistry Biology: Zoology Ecology: Animals
Published

In medieval England, leprosy spread between red squirrels and people, genome evidence shows      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

Evidence from archaeological sites in the medieval English city of Winchester shows that English red squirrels once served as an important host for Mycobacterium leprae strains that caused leprosy in people, researchers report.

Anthropology: Cultures Anthropology: General Geoscience: Environmental Issues Geoscience: Geography Paleontology: Climate
Published

Scientists show ancient village adapted to drought, rising seas      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

Researchers have unveiled evidence for ancient human resilience to climate change in the Eastern Mediterranean.

Anthropology: Cultures Anthropology: Early Humans Anthropology: General Archaeology: General Biology: Cell Biology Ecology: Animals
Published

More plants on the menu of ancient hunter-gatherers      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

It has long been thought that meat played an important role in the diet of hunter-gatherers before the Neolithic transition. However, due to the scarcity of well-preserved human remains from Paleolithic sites, little information exists about the dietary habits of pre-agricultural human groups. A new study challenges this notion by presenting compelling isotopic evidence of a strong preference for plants among 15,000-year-old hunter-gatherers from Morocco. This is the first time a significant amount of plant consumption has been measured for a pre-agricultural population, shedding new light on the dietary practices of ancient human societies.

Computer Science: Encryption Computer Science: General
Published

Computer scientists unveil novel attacks on cybersecurity      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

Researchers have found two novel types of attacks that target the conditional branch predictor found in high-end Intel processors, which could be exploited to compromise billions of processors currently in use.

Anthropology: Cultures Anthropology: General Archaeology: General Biology: Biochemistry Ecology: Endangered Species Geoscience: Environmental Issues Offbeat: Earth and Climate Offbeat: General Offbeat: Paleontology and Archeology Offbeat: Plants and Animals Paleontology: Fossils
Published

Ancient Maya blessed their ballcourts      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

Using environmental DNA analysis, an international team of researchers identified a collection of plants used in ceremonial rituals in the ancient Maya city of Yaxnohcah in Mexico. The plants, known for their religious associations and medicinal properties, were discovered beneath a plaza floor where a ballcourt was built.

Computer Science: Encryption Computer Science: General
Published

This tiny chip can safeguard user data while enabling efficient computing on a smartphone      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

A new chip can efficiently accelerate machine-learning workloads on edge devices like smartphones while protecting sensitive user data from two common types of attacks -- side-channel attacks and bus-probing attacks.

Anthropology: Cultures Anthropology: General Archaeology: General Offbeat: General Offbeat: Paleontology and Archeology Paleontology: Fossils
Published

First evidence of human occupation in lava tube cave in Saudi Arabia      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

New research has highlighted an area in Arabia that once acted as a key point for cultural exchanges and trades amongst ancient people -- and it all took place in vast caves and lava tubes that have remained largely untapped reservoirs of archaeological abundance in Arabia. Through meticulous excavation and analysis, the international team uncovered a wealth of evidence at Umm Jirsan, spanning from the Neolithic to the Chalcolithic/Bronze Age periods (~10,000-3,500 years ago).