"A history of contact": Geneticists are rewriting the narrative of Neanderthals and other ancient humans
Ever since the first Neanderthal bones were discovered in 1856, people have wondered about these ancient hominins. How are they different from us? How much are they like us? Did our ancestors get along with them? Fight them? Love them? The recent dis.....»»
You get your energy from your mom. A new study explains why
It's one of the basic tenets of biology: We get our DNA from our mom and our dad. But one notable exception has perplexed scientists for decades: Most animals, including humans, inherit the DNA inside their mitochondria—the cell's energy centers—.....»»
Ring’s new Smart Video Search uses AI to quickly scour your motion history
Ring Smart Video Search lets you type in a text description of an event to search your video history for matching clips. It's currently available in beta......»»
New book brings prehistoric mammals to life
After the extinction of dinosaurs came the age of mammals. A new book brings readers into this world with well-researched species profiles by Aaron Woodruff, collection manager for vertebrate paleontology at the Florida Museum of Natural History. The.....»»
Archaeologists found an ancient Egyptian observatory
Expedition leader: "Everything we found shattered our expectations." A few years ago, Egyptian archaeologists discovered what they thought were the ruins of an ancient Egyptian te.....»»
Research suggests Earth"s oldest continental crust is disintegrating
Earth's continental configurations have changed dramatically over its billions of years' history, transforming not only their positions across the planet, but also their topography as expansion and contraction of the crust made a mark on the landscap.....»»
Macaques give birth more easily than women: Study finds no maternal mortality at birth
An international research team led by the University of Vienna and the Medical University of Vienna has used long-term demographic data from Japanese macaques—a monkey species within the family of Old World monkeys—to show that unlike humans, the.....»»
Curiosity rover provides new insights into how Mars became uninhabitable
NASA's Curiosity rover, currently exploring Gale crater on Mars, is providing new details about how the ancient Martian climate went from potentially suitable for life—with evidence for widespread liquid water on the surface—to a surface that is.....»»
Indie App Spotlight: ‘GroceryBot’ is an all-in-one planner for grocery shopping
Welcome to Indie App Spotlight. This is a weekly 9to5Mac series where we showcase the latest apps in the indie app world. If you’re a developer and would like your app featured, get in contact. GroceryBot is a new iPhone app that aims to.....»»
Human cases of H5N1 confirmed in California amid rapid dairy spread
The CDC confirmed two new bird flu cases, bringing the human tally to 17. Two California dairy farm workers who had contact with H5N1-infected cows have contracted an H5 avian inf.....»»
As bird flu rages through California cows, possible human case identified
If the case is confirmed by the CDC, it will be the 16th linked to the dairy outbreak. A California dairy farm worker who had contact with H5N1-infected cows appears to have contr.....»»
Popular gut probiotic completely craps out in randomized controlled trial
If you're familiar with the history of Activia, you may not be surprised. Any striking marketing claims in companies' ads about the gut benefits of a popular probiotic may be full.....»»
The true global impact of species-loss caused by humans is far greater than expected, study reveals
The extinction of hundreds of bird species caused by humans over the last 130,000 years has led to substantial reductions in avian functional diversity—a measure of the range of different roles and functions that birds undertake within the environm.....»»
Genetic database shows some fungal crops became completely reliant on ants 27 million years ago
When humans began farming crops thousands of years ago, agriculture had already been around for millions of years. In fact, several animal lineages have been growing their own food since long before humans evolved as a species......»»
Scientists offer a detailed look at the skeleton of an ancient predator that thrived in extreme conditions
Imagine a world on the brink of collapse: volcanic eruptions spewing toxic gases, oceans turning acidic, and up to 90% of Earth's species vanishing in the blink of an eye. This was the reality at the end of the Permian Period, around 252 million year.....»»
Unique IDs for individual (digital) specimens from natural history museums streamline and future-proof science
The wealth of data hosted in natural history collections can contribute to finding a response to global challenges ranging from climate change to biodiversity loss to pandemics. However, today's practices of working with collected bio- and geodiversi.....»»
The darker side of human rights for great apes
The Spanish government has announced plans to ban harmful experiments on great apes as part of a wider initiative to give them increased rights closer to the ones humans enjoy......»»
Centuries ago, the Maya storm god Huracán taught that when we damage nature, we damage ourselves
The ancient Maya believed that everything in the universe, from the natural world to everyday experiences, was part of a single, powerful spiritual force. They were not polytheists who worshipped distinct gods but pantheists who believed that various.....»»
New species of clearwing moth from Guyana discovered in Wales
A new species of moth has been described far away from home following a cross-continent detective journey that included Natural History Museum scientists from separate fields, a budding young ecologist with a knack for community science, a globe-trot.....»»
The medicines we take to stay healthy are harming nature. Here"s what needs to change
Evidence is mounting that modern medicines present a growing threat to ecosystems around the world. The chemicals humans ingest to stay healthy are harming fish and other animals......»»
Ancient protein structure may have enabled early molecular evolution and diversification
In a finding that offers fresh insights into the early evolution of life on Earth, two RIKEN biologists have conducted lab experiments that have revealed a previously unknown protein fold, which is completely absent in modern proteins......»»