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Categories: Anthropology: General, Mathematics: Puzzles
Published Better cybersecurity with new material


Digital information exchange can be safer, cheaper and more environmentally friendly with the help of a new type of random number generator for encryption. The researchers behind the study believe that the new technology paves the way for a new type of quantum communication.
Published Causes of the Qing Dynasty's collapse: Parallels to today's instability



The Qing Dynasty in China, after over 250 years, crumbled in 1912. An international research team has pinpointed key reasons behind the collapse, revealing parallels to modern instability and offering vital lessons for the future.
Published The scent of the afterlife unbottled in new study of ancient Egyptian mummification balms



A team of researchers has recreated one of the scents used in the mummification of an important Egyptian woman more than 3500 years ago.
Published Three-eyed distant relative of insects and crustaceans reveals amazing detail of early animal evolution



Scientists use cutting edge scanning technology to reconstruct 'fossil monster' that lived half a billion years ago. The creature's soft anatomy was well-preserved, allowing it to be imaged almost completely: It fills a gap in our understanding of the evolution of arthropods such as insects and crustaceans.
Published Wastewater pipe dig reveals 'fossil treasure trove'



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.
Published Malaysian rock art found to depict elite -- Indigenous conflict



Researchers have dated drawings of Gua Sireh Cave in Sarawak, uncovering a sad story of conflict in the process.
Published Buffalo slaughter left lasting impact on Indigenous peoples



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.
Published Bronze Age family systems deciphered: Palaeogeneticists analyse a 3,800-year-old extended family



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.
Published Ancient metal cauldrons give us clues about what people ate in the Bronze Age



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).
Published Unveiling Japan's ancient practice of cranial modification: The case of the Hirota people in Tanegashima



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.
Published Iceman Ötzi: Dark skin, bald head, Anatolian ancestry



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.
Published Key role of ice age cycles in early human interbreeding



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.
Published China's oldest water pipes were a communal effort



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.
Published A climate-orchestrated early human love story



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.
Published How a massive North Atlantic cooling event disrupted early human occupation in Europe



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.
Published Effectiveness of video gameplay restrictions questioned in new study


Legal restrictions placed on the amount of time young people in China can play video games may be less effective than originally thought, a new study has revealed.
Published Ancient DNA reveals an early African origin of Cattle in the Americas



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.
Published Researchers discuss the ethical challenges of studying DNA from a 18th--19th century African American community



A population genetics team recently identified the genetic relationship between over 40,000 23andMe users and a population of enslaved and free African Americans that lived in Catoctin Furnace, Maryland between 1776--1850. Over the course of this study, the researchers considered how best to inform descendants and other genetic relatives of their genetic connection to the site.
Published Social media algorithms exploit how humans learn from their peers


In prehistoric societies, humans tended to learn from members of our ingroup or from more prestigious individuals, as this information was more likely to be reliable and result in group success. However, with the advent of diverse and complex modern communities -- and especially in social media -- these biases become less effective. For example, a person we are connected to online might not necessarily be trustworthy, and people can easily feign prestige on social media. Now, a group of social scientists describe how the functions of social media algorithms are misaligned with human social instincts meant to foster cooperation, which can lead to large-scale polarization and misinformation.
Published Scientists uncover a surprising connection between number theory and evolutionary genetics


An interdisciplinary team of mathematicians, engineers, physicists, and medical scientists has uncovered an unexpected link between pure mathematics and genetics, that reveals key insights into the structure of neutral mutations and the evolution of organisms.