Seeing the wood for the trees: How archaeologists use hazelnuts to reconstruct ancient woodlands
If we could stand in a landscape that our Mesolithic ancestors called home, what would we see around us? Scientists have devised a method of analyzing preserved hazelnut shells to tell us whether the microhabitats around archaeological sites were hea.....»»
Archaeologist reveals factors affecting ocher application in ancient burials at Khok Phanom Di
A study by Dr. Sarah Elizabeth Paris published in the International Journal of Osteoarcheology has investigated the link between ocher burials and chronology, age, sex mobility and funerary tradition at the site of Khok Phanom Di (~4000–3500BP), Th.....»»
Integrated space-ground technologies empower archaeological research into ancient tombs
A team of international researchers has employed an integrated approach to uncover the mysteries of the Eastern Mausoleum of Qin State, an ancient royal burial site from China's Warring States period......»»
"Time capsule" lunar samples link the moon"s past and present
Samples collected from the surface of the moon by the crew of Apollo 16 more than 50 years ago have helped scientists reconstruct billions of years of lunar history......»»
Saturday Citations: Brown dwarf actually brown dwarfs; the adaptability of ice-age humans; archaeologists excited
This week, researchers discovered a near-Earth microquasar that sheds new light on sources of relativistic outflows. Doctors reported finding a triphallic gentleman. And neuroscientists reported on modest cognitive boosts from short (or "acute," in c.....»»
Five surprising ways that trees help prevent flooding
Think of flood prevention and you might imagine huge concrete dams, levees or the shiny Thames barrier. But some of the most powerful tools for reducing flood risk are far more natural and widely recognizable: woodlands and green spaces. Trees offer.....»»
Lignin molecular property discovery could help turn trees into affordable, greener industrial chemicals
Trees are the most abundant natural resource living on Earth's land masses, and North Carolina State University scientists and engineers are making headway in finding ways to use them as sustainable, environmentally benign alternatives to producing i.....»»
Environmental DNA and epidemics in wood frogs: Collaboration examines eDNA"s precision in population size estimation
Tracy Rittenhouse, associate professor of natural resources and the environment in UConn's College of Agriculture, Health and Natural Resources (CAHNR), was doing an experiment to study ranavirus epidemics in wood frogs. When Meghan Parsley, then a P.....»»
In search of evidence of ancient human existence, researchers traverse the inhospitable Namib desert
Strewn across the Namib desert is a treasure trove of stone tools of which little is known because getting to them is so difficult. There are few roads and vehicles have limited access in this protected area that lies in the desert of western Namibia.....»»
Astronomers detect ancient lonely quasars with murky origins
A quasar is the extremely bright core of a galaxy that hosts an active supermassive black hole at its center. As the black hole draws in surrounding gas and dust, it blasts out an enormous amount of energy, making quasars some of the brightest object.....»»
Ancient ‘Age of Dinosaurs’ Seafloor Found beneath Pacific Ocean
A vast, ancient slab of seafloor plunged beneath the Pacific Ocean and has hovered in Earth’s mantle for more than 120 million years, a new study suggests.....»»
Sustainable building effort reaches new heights with wooden skyscrapers
Wood offers architects an alternative to carbon-intensive steel and concrete. At the University of Toronto, just across the street from the football stadium, workers are putting u.....»»
To keep Miami"s tree canopy resilient, tropical species may be the best option for planting
In Miami—a place known for one of the most diverse tree canopies in the world—nearly half of the native trees may struggle to survive in the coming decades, a new University of Miami study indicates......»»
How profits from big pharma"s use of genetic information could revolutionize nature conservation
The blue blood of threatened horseshoe crabs contains a chemical essential for testing the safety of vaccines. So these ancient creatures are highly sought after by pharmaceutical companies worldwide, contributing to declines in their populations......»»
Scientists apply ancient construction methods to help fabricate modern microparticles
Inspired by the ancient East Asian method of constructing wooden structures using a "tongue and groove" technique, Nanyang Technological University, Singapore (NTU Singapore) scientists have developed a new approach to fabricating advanced ceramic mi.....»»
Did child labor fuel the ancient pottery industry?
Archaeologists from Tel Aviv University and the National Museum in Copenhagen have analyzed 450 pottery vessels made in Tel Hama, a town at the edge of the Ebla Kingdom, one of the most important Syrian kingdoms in the Early Bronze Age (about 4,500 y.....»»
Ancient hominins had humanlike hands, indicating earlier tool use, study reveals
An analysis by Eberhard Karls University of Tübingen, Germany, on the manual capabilities of early hominins reveals that some Australopithecus species exhibited hand use similar to modern humans......»»
Traces of ancient immigration patterns to Japan found in 2,000-year-old genome
A joint research group led by Jonghyun Kim and Jun Ohashi of the University of Tokyo has demonstrated that the majority of immigration to the Japanese Archipelago in the Yayoi and Kofun periods (between 3000 BCE and 538 CE) came from the Korean Penin.....»»
Archaeologists discover Armenia"s oldest church
Archaeologists from the National Academy of Sciences of Armenia and the University of Münster have discovered the remains of a previously unknown early Christian church in the ancient city of Artaxata. The find consists of an octagonal building with.....»»
Ancient humans were so good at surviving the last ice age, they didn"t have to migrate like other species
Humans seem to have been adapted to the last ice age in similar ways to wolves and bears, according to our recent study, challenging longstanding theories about how and where our ancestors lived during this glacial period......»»
Adaptability of trees persists after millions of years of climate change, finds study
Seven of the most common forest trees in Europe have been shown to be able to shelter their genetic diversity from major shifts in environmental conditions. This is despite their ranges having shrunk and the number of trees having fallen sharply duri.....»»