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Categories: Anthropology: General, Offbeat: Paleontology and Archeology
Published Origins of the building blocks of life
(via sciencedaily.com) A new study posits that interstellar cloud conditions may have played a significant role on the presence of key building blocks of life in the solar system.
Published Smallpox has plagued humans since ancient Egyptian times, new evidence confirms
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source Smallpox was once one of humanity's most devastating diseases, but its origin is shrouded in mystery. For years, scientific estimates of when the smallpox virus first emerged have been at odds with historical records. Now, a new study reveals that the virus dates back 2,000 years further than scientists have previously shown, verifying historical sources and confirming for the first time that the disease has plagued human societies since ancient times.
Published Study reveals average age at conception for men versus women over past 250,000 years
(via sciencedaily.com) Using a new method based upon comparing DNA mutation rates between parents and offspring, evolutionary biologists have revealed the average age of mothers versus fathers over the past 250,000 years, including the discovery that the age gap is shrinking, with women's average age at conception increasing from 23.2 years to 26.4 years, on average, in the past 5,000 years.
Published DNA from archaeological remains shows that immigration to Scandinavia was exceptional during the Viking period
(via sciencedaily.com) A new study based on 297 ancient Scandinavian genomes analysed together with the genomic data of 16,638 present day Scandinavians resolve the complex relations between geography, ancestry, and gene flow in Scandinavia -- encompassing the Roman Age, the Viking Age and later periods. A surprising increase of variation during the Viking period indicates that gene flow into Scandinavia was especially intense during this period.
Published Bering Land Bridge formed surprisingly late during last ice age
(via sciencedaily.com) A new study that reconstructs the history of sea level at the Bering Strait shows that the Bering Land Bridge connecting Asia to North America did not emerge until around 35,700 years ago, less than 10,000 years before the height of the last ice age (known as the Last Glacial Maximum). The findings indicate that the growth of the ice sheets -- and the resulting drop in sea level -- occurred surprisingly quickly and much later in the glacial cycle than previous studies had suggested.
Published Archaeologists uncover oldest known projectile points in the Americas
(via sciencedaily.com) Archaeologists have uncovered projectile points in Idaho that are thousands of years older than any previously found in the Americas, helping to fill in the history of how early humans crafted and used stone weapons.
Published Hunter-gatherer social ties spread pottery-making far and wide
(via sciencedaily.com) Analysis of more than 1,200 vessels from hunter-gatherer sites has shown that pottery-making techniques spread vast distances over a short period of time through social traditions being passed on.
Published The other paleo diet: Rare discovery of dinosaur remains preserved with its last meal
(via sciencedaily.com) Microraptor was an opportunistic predator, feeding on fish, birds, lizards -- and now small mammals. The discovery of a rare fossil reveals the creature was a generalist carnivore in the ancient ecosystem of dinosaurs.
Published Fossil CSI: Giant extinct marine reptile graveyard was likely ancient birthing grounds
(via sciencedaily.com) An international research team examines a rich fossil bed in the renowned Berlin-Ichthyosaur State Park in Nevada's Humboldt-Toiyabe National Forest, where many 50-foot-long ichthyosaurs (Shonisaurus popularis) lay petrified in stone. The study offers a plausible explanation as to how at least 37 of these marine reptiles came to meet their ends in the same locality -- a question that has vexed paleontologists for more than half a century. The research presents evidence that these ichthyosaurs died at the site in large numbers because they were migrating to this area to give birth for many generations across hundreds of thousands of years.
Published Ancient grammatical puzzle solved after 2,500 years
(via sciencedaily.com) A grammatical problem which has defeated Sanskrit scholars since the 5th Century BC has finally been solved by a PhD student.
Published Drought encouraged Attila's Huns to attack the Roman empire, tree rings suggest
(via sciencedaily.com) Hunnic peoples migrated westward across Eurasia, switched between farming and herding, and became violent raiders in response to severe drought in the Danube frontier provinces of the Roman empire, a new study argues.
Published Early humans may have first walked upright in the trees
(via sciencedaily.com) Human bipedalism -- walking upright on two legs -- may have evolved in trees, and not on the ground as previously thought, according to a new study.
Published Fossil site reveals giant arthropods dominated the seas 470 million years ago
(via sciencedaily.com) Discoveries at a major new fossil site in Morocco suggest giant arthropods -- relatives of modern creatures including shrimps, insects and spiders -- dominated the seas 470 million years ago.
Published Precise solar observations fed millions in ancient Mexico
(via sciencedaily.com) Without clocks or modern tools, ancient Mexicans watched the sun to maintain a farming calendar that precisely tracked seasons and even adjusted for leap years.
Published Extinct 'monkey lemur' shows similarities to fossil humans
(via sciencedaily.com) Analysis of teeth of extinct lemurs has revealed fascinating clues to the evolution of humans, a new study has found.
Published True giant wombat gives Diprotodon podium a wobble
(via sciencedaily.com) While the Diprotodon -- the extinct megafauna species that is distantly related to wombats but was the size of a small car -- is commonly (but incorrectly) thought of as Australia's 'giant wombat', researchers have shed light on a large species that does belong in the modern-day wombat family. The complete skull of this true fossil giant wombat, found in a Rockhampton cave in Queensland, Australia and estimated to be around 80,000 years old, has been described for the first time.
Published Dinosaur teeth reveal what they didn't eat
(via sciencedaily.com) Scratches on dinosaur teeth could reveal what they really ate. Dental microwear texture analysis (DMTA) has now been used to infer the feeding habits of large theropods, including Allosaurus and T. rex. By taking 3D images of individual teeth and analyzing the pattern of marks scratched into them, researchers could reason which dinosaurs may have frequently crunched on hard bone and which may have regularly eaten softer foods and prey. This technique opens up a new avenue of research for paleontology, helping us to better understand not only dinosaurs themselves but also the environment and communities in which they lived.
Published Immune system of modern Papuans shaped by DNA from ancient Denisovans, study finds
(via sciencedaily.com) Modern Papuans' immune system likely evolved with a little help from the Denisovans, a mysterious human ancestor who interbred with ancient humans, according to a new study.
Published How intensive agriculture turned a wild plant into a pervasive weed
(via sciencedaily.com) Agriculture is driving rapid evolutionary change, not just on farms but also in wild species in surrounding landscapes, new research has found.
Published Smilodon's sabre teeth
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source Researchers have tested the biting efficiency of Smilodon, an extinct species of carnivore close to the extant felines. Using high-precision 3D scans and simulation methods, the team has just revealed how these animals managed to bite despite the impressive length of their teeth.