Latest science news in Paleontology & Archaeology
'Stranger Things' widened awareness of rare bone disorder
Actor Gaten Matarazzo III was born with a rare genetic disorder that affects bone development. Ever since his Netflix series "Stranger Things" became a hit, public interest in the condition...
USC makes tuition free to students of families making $80,000 or less
The University of Southern California said Thursday tuition will be free to students whose families make $80,000 or less.
Earliest interbreeding event between ancient human populations discovered
The study documented the earliest known interbreeding event between ancient human populations-- a group known as the "super-archaics" in Eurasia interbred with a Neanderthal-Denisovan ancestor about 700,000 years ago. The...
The earliest known hominid interbreeding occurred 700,000 years ago
Ancestors of Neandertals and Denisovans left Africa for Eurasia around 700,000 years ago and then interbred with a Homo population that had exited Africa long before, according to a new genetic study. The...
Artifacts recovered from HMS Erebus offer tantalizing links to sailors on doomed Franklin Expedition
Underwater archeologists from Parks Canada found highly personal items as they recovered more than 350 artifacts during their most recent - and they say most successful - season yet at...
The Earth formed much faster than previously thought
By measuring iron isotopes, researchers have shown that our planet originally formed much faster than previously thought. This finding provides new insights on both planetary formation and the likelihood of...
Earliest interbreeding event between ancient human populations discovered
For three years, anthropologist Alan Rogers has attempted to solve an evolutionary puzzle. His research untangles millions of years of human evolution by analyzing DNA strands from ancient human species...
New £20 bills enter circulation in Britain
The Bank of England introduced a new polymer £20 note into circulation Thursday that features an image of renowned 19th century British artist JMW Turner.
Tiny prehistoric lizard sheds light on reptile evolution
The discovery of a new species of prehistoric reptile from Germany is reported this week in Scientific Reports. The anatomical features of the species, named Vellbergia bartholomaei, add to our...
New analysis sheds important light on an ancient mass extinction event
The end-Permian mass extinction is considered to be the most devastating biotic event in the history of life on Earth—it caused dramatic losses in global biodiversity, both in water and...
Neanderthals had funerals with flowers, study suggests
A Neanderthal skeleton unearthed in an Iraqi cave already famous for fossils of these extinct cousins of our species is providing fresh evidence that they buried their dead —...
Study finds no acceleration in crime from Formula 1 race
A new analysis from The University of Texas at Dallas shows there is no evidence to suggest that crime increases when the Formula 1 United States Grand Prix arrives in...
To help students think in 3-D, a geologist turns to paper model making
Scissors. Purple glue sticks. Paper designs to cut out and fold.
German police: Xenophobia may be motive in attack that killed 10
Authorities said the shooter who attacked two hookah bars in Germany late Wednesday may have been motivated by xenophobia.
Himalayan wolf discovered to be a unique wolf adapted to harsh high altitude life
The Himalayan wolf is considered an ancient wolf as it evolved prior to the contemporary grey wolf which is found in large parts of North America and Eurasia. Very little is known...
German police: 11 dead, including suspect, in Hanau shootings
The suspected gunman who killed nine people in two shootings in Germany on Wednesday night was found dead at his home following a manhunt, police said.
Panama expedition reveals how species persevere under climate change
Last month, two graduate students from the Arnold Arboretum of Harvard University traveled to one of the most species-rich landscapes in the world: a remote strip of tropical rainforest at the narrowest point...
Painting of deity found inside 3,000-year-old coffin
Three men, one at each end and one at the middle, slowly and gingerly lifted the wooden lid as if handling a giant eggshell. Quietly offering each other direction and status reports,...
Harvard Art Museums restores King Philip III portrait
Call it a 17th-century portraiture whodunit. It began in 2018 almost by chance, when a curatorial fellow spied the work in the Harvard Art Museums’ storage area and took a closer look....
Houston Texans sign DT Brandon Dunn to contract extension
The Houston Texans signed veteran nose tackle Brandon Dunn to a multiyear contract extension.
German police: Eight people killed in Hanau shootings
Police said eight people were killed in shootings at two locations in the German city of Hanau on Wednesday night.
Cracks make historical paintings less vulnerable to environmental variations
Historical wood panel paintings with developed craquelure patterns—networks of fine cracks in the paint- are significantly less vulnerable to environmental variations than previously assumed, according to a study in the...
CENTCOM: Seizure fits 'historical pattern' of Iran arms sales to Houthi rebels
Navy Capt. William Urban told reporters Wednesday that a recent seizure of Iranian-made weapons in the Arabian Sea "fit a consistent historical pattern" in which Iran transfers weapons to Houthi...
Watch Mars 'sneak' behind the crescent moon in these amazing views (video)
The Red Planet briefly disappeared behind the moon for skywatchers in North America on Tuesday (Feb. 18), providing a rare celestial treat for early risers and astrophotographers.
Tennessee Gov. Bill Lee denies clemency for Nicholas Sutton ahead of Thursday execution
Tennessee Gov. Bill Lee on Wednesday denied clemency to death row inmate Nicholas "Nick" Sutton one day before his scheduled execution.
Reconstructing the diet of fossil vertebrates
Paleodietary studies of the fossil record are impeded by a lack of reliable and unequivocal tracers. Scientists have now tested a new method, the isotope analysis of zinc isotopes from...
Fish in the Sahara? Yes, in the early Holocene
Animal remains at the Takarkori rock shelter suggest human occupants shifted to a more mammal-heavy diet over time, as aridity of the region increased
Ancient gut microbiomes shed light on human evolution
The microbiome of our ancestors might have been more important for human evolution than previously thought, according to a new study published in Frontiers in Ecology and Evolution.