Anthropology: General Archaeology: General Biology: Marine Ecology: Endangered Species Ecology: Sea Life Paleontology: Fossils Paleontology: General
Published

Wastewater pipe dig reveals 'fossil treasure trove'      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

A new article describes the 266 fossil species as one of the richest and most diverse groups of three-million-year-old fauna ever found in New Zealand. At least ten previously unknown species will be described and named in future research. Fossils of the world's oldest known flax snails, an extinct sawshark spine, and great white shark teeth have all been found in a mound of sand excavated from beneath Mangere Wastewater Treatment Plant in 2020.

Biology: Biotechnology Computer Science: Artificial Intelligence (AI) Computer Science: General
Published

Pros and cons of ChatGPT plugin, Code Interpreter, in education, biology, health      (via sciencedaily.com) 

Researchers see potential in educational settings for the newest official ChatGPT plugin, called Code Interpreter, they've found limitations for its use by scientists who work with biological data utilizing computational methods to prioritize targeted treatment for cancer and genetic disorders.

Computer Science: Artificial Intelligence (AI) Computer Science: General Engineering: Robotics Research Offbeat: Computers and Math
Published

AI helps robots manipulate objects with their whole bodies      (via sciencedaily.com) 

A new AI technique enables a robot to develop complex plans for manipulating an object using its entire hand, not just fingertips. This model can generate effective plans in about a minute using a standard laptop.

Anthropology: Cultures Anthropology: General
Published

Malaysian rock art found to depict elite -- Indigenous conflict      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

Researchers have dated drawings of Gua Sireh Cave in Sarawak, uncovering a sad story of conflict in the process.

Anthropology: General Ecology: Extinction Environmental: Ecosystems
Published

Buffalo slaughter left lasting impact on Indigenous peoples      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

The near extinction of the North American bison in the late 1800s caused a devastating, lasting economic shock to Indigenous peoples whose lives depended on the animals, an economic study finds.

Computer Science: Artificial Intelligence (AI) Computer Science: General Offbeat: Computers and Math
Published

How artificial intelligence gave a paralyzed woman her voice back      (via sciencedaily.com) 

Researchers have developed a brain-computer interface (BCI) that has enabled a woman with severe paralysis from a brainstem stroke to speak through a digital avatar.

Anthropology: General
Published

Bronze Age family systems deciphered: Palaeogeneticists analyse a 3,800-year-old extended family      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

Researchers have analyzed the genomes of skeletons from an extended family from a Bronze Age necropolis in the Russian steppe. The 3,800-year-old 'Nepluyevsky' burial mound was excavated several years ago and is located on the geographical border between Europe and Asia. Using statistical genomics, the family and marriage relationships of this society have now been deciphered.

Chemistry: Inorganic Chemistry Computer Science: Artificial Intelligence (AI) Computer Science: General
Published

Sharing chemical knowledge between human and machine      (via sciencedaily.com) 

Researchers have developed a platform that uses artificial neural networks to translate chemical structural formulae into machine-readable form. With this platform, they have created a tool with which this information from scientific publications can be automatically fed into databases. Until now, this had to be done literally by hand and was time-consuming.

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

Ancient metal cauldrons give us clues about what people ate in the Bronze Age      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

Archaeologists have long been drawing conclusions about how ancient tools were used by the people who crafted them based on written records and context clues. But with dietary practices, they have had to make assumptions about what was eaten and how it was prepared. A new study analyzed protein residues from ancient cooking cauldrons and found that the people of Caucasus ate deer, sheep, goats, and members of the cow family during the Maykop period (3700--2900 BCE).

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

Unveiling Japan's ancient practice of cranial modification: The case of the Hirota people in Tanegashima      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

Cranial modification is a form of body alteration where the head is pressed or bound to permanently deform the skull. The practice has been reported across various cultures throughout history. Researchers report that the Hirota people -- who lived on the southern Japanese island of Tanegashima between the 3rd to 7th century CE -- also conducted cranial modification, with indication that both males and females performed the practice.

Anthropology: Early Humans Anthropology: General Offbeat: Paleontology and Archeology
Published

Iceman Ötzi: Dark skin, bald head, Anatolian ancestry      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

A research team has used advanced sequencing technology to analyze Ötzi's genome to obtain a more accurate picture of the Iceman's appearance and genetic origins.

Anthropology: Early Humans Anthropology: General Paleontology: Climate Paleontology: General
Published

Key role of ice age cycles in early human interbreeding      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

Recent paleogenomic research revealed that interbreeding was common among early human species. However, little was known about when, where, and how often this hominin interbreeding took place. Using paleoanthropological evidence, genetic data, and supercomputer simulations of past climate, a team of international researchers has found that interglacial climates and corresponding shifts in vegetation created common habitats for Neanderthals and Denisovans, increasing their chances for interbreeding and gene flow in parts of Europe and central Asia.

Anthropology: General Archaeology: General
Published

China's oldest water pipes were a communal effort      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

A system of ancient ceramic water pipes, the oldest ever unearthed in China, shows that neolithic people were capable of complex engineering feats without the need for a centralized state authority, finds a new study.

Computer Science: Artificial Intelligence (AI) Computer Science: General
Published

A roadmap to help AI technologies speak African languages      (via sciencedaily.com) 

From text-generating ChatGPT to voice-activated Siri, artificial intelligence-powered tools are designed to aid our everyday life -- as long as you speak a language they support. These technologies are out of reach for billions of people who don't use English, French, Spanish or other mainstream languages, but researchers in Africa are looking to change that. Scientists now draw a roadmap to develop better AI-driven tools for African languages.

Anthropology: Early Humans Anthropology: General Environmental: Ecosystems Paleontology: Climate
Published

A climate-orchestrated early human love story      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

A new study finds that past changes in atmospheric CO2 and corresponding shifts in climate and vegetation played a key role in determining when and where early human species interbred.

Anthropology: Early Humans Anthropology: General Geoscience: Environmental Issues Geoscience: Oceanography Paleontology: Climate
Published

How a massive North Atlantic cooling event disrupted early human occupation in Europe      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

A new study finds that around 1.12 million years ago a massive cooling event in the North Atlantic and corresponding shifts in climate, vegetation and food resources disrupted early human occupation of Europe.

Computer Science: Artificial Intelligence (AI) Mathematics: Modeling
Published

Turning ChatGPT into a 'chemistry assistant'      (via sciencedaily.com) 

Developing new materials requires significant time and labor, but some chemists are now hopeful that artificial intelligence (AI) could one day shoulder much of this burden. In a new study, a team prompted a popular AI model, ChatGPT, to perform one particularly time-consuming task: searching scientific literature. With that data, they built a second tool, a model to predict experimental results.

Anthropology: General Paleontology: Fossils
Published

Ancient DNA reveals an early African origin of Cattle in the Americas      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

Using ancient DNA, researchers have determined cattle were imported from Africa to the Americas much earlier in the process of European colonization than documented. The first records of African cattle in the Americas date back to the 1800s, leading some historians to conclude that early colonists relied entirely on a small stock of European cattle initially shipped to the Caribbean Islands. DNA from archaeological specimens pushes the introduction of African cattle back by more than 100 years.

Computer Science: Artificial Intelligence (AI) Computer Science: General Computer Science: Quantum Computers Energy: Technology Engineering: Nanotechnology Offbeat: Computers and Math Physics: Quantum Computing Physics: Quantum Physics
Published

Quantum material exhibits 'non-local' behavior that mimics brain function      (via sciencedaily.com) 

New research shows that electrical stimuli passed between neighboring electrodes can also affect non-neighboring electrodes. Known as non-locality, this discovery is a crucial milestone toward creating brain-like computers with minimal energy requirements.