Testosterone in tusks: Hormones in mammoth fossils excite paleontologists
The technique could allow us to link mammoth health and nutrition to mating. Enlarge / Mammoth tusks collected at Wrangel Island, where some of the samples tested for hormones originated. (credit: Alexei Tikhonov) Musth,.....»»
A botanical Pompeii: Researchers find spectacular Australian plant fossils from 30 million years ago
The Australian continent is now geologically stable. But volcanic rocks, lava flows and a contemporary landscape dotted with extinct volcanoes show this wasn't always the case......»»
Examining the range of adulterants that disrupt the hormones of fish and amphibians
The contraceptive pill is obviously not intended for fish and frogs. However, the hormones in the pill and other pharmaceuticals that are not completely broken down in sewage treatment plants can affect aquatic organisms......»»
Archaeologists discover oldest known bead in the Americas
University of Wyoming archaeology Professor Todd Surovell and his team of collaborators have discovered a tube-shaped bead made of bone that is about 12,940 years old. The bead, found at the La Prele Mammoth site in Converse County, is the oldest kno.....»»
A former mine at a fossil-rich site is causing the BLM headaches
Bureau of Land Management's blasting will make the site safe, but may wreck fossils. Enlarge / Blasting taking place at the fossil-rich site. (credit: Bureau of Land Management) Blasting has begun in an area known as “.....»»
A former mine at a fossil-rich site is causing the BLM headaches
Blasting is happening at a former mining site that's also home to unique fossils. Enlarge / Blasting taking place at the fossil-rich site. (credit: Bureau of Land Management) Blasting has begun in an area known as “Com.....»»
Fossilized frog with belly full of eggs unearthed in China is oldest of its kind
An international team of Earth scientists, evolutionary biologists and paleontologists has unearthed an ancient frog with a belly full of eggs, the oldest known find of its kind. In their paper published in Proceedings of the Royal Society B, the gro.....»»
Rare 3D fossils show that some early trees had forms unlike any you"ve ever seen
In the fossil record, trees typically are preserved with only their trunks. They don't usually include any leaves to show what their canopies and overall forms may have looked like. But now, researchers reporting in the journal Current Biology descri.....»»
Researchers discover new ways to excite spin waves with extreme infrared light
As demands for computing resources continue to increase rapidly, scientists and engineers are looking for ways to build faster systems for processing information. One possible solution is to use patterns of electron spins, called spin waves, to trans.....»»
I’m a VR enthusiast. Here’s why the Vision Pro doesn’t excite me
The Vision Pro is great for VR, and Apple entering the market is much-needed validation, but here's why this spatial computer doesn't excite me......»»
Scientists pinpoint growth of brain"s cerebellum as key to evolution of bird flight
Evolutionary biologists at Johns Hopkins Medicine report they have combined PET scans of modern pigeons along with studies of dinosaur fossils to help answer an enduring question in biology: How did the brains of birds evolve to enable them to fly?.....»»
New species of ancient feline discovered in Spain
A small team of paleontologists at Museo Nacional de Ciencias Naturales-CSIC has discovered a new species of ancient feline based on study of a jawbone fossil. In their paper published in Journal of Vertebrate Paleontology, the group describes a jawb.....»»
Cognitive archaeology and the psychological assessment of extinct minds
This week, Emiliano Bruner, a paleoneurologist at the Centro Nacional de Investigación sobre la Evolución Humana (CENIEH), has published a wide-ranging review in the Journal of Comparative Neurology that describes the relationship between fossils a.....»»
"Hell chicken" species suggests dinosaurs weren"t sliding toward extinction before the fateful asteroid hit
Were dinosaurs already on their way out when an asteroid hit Earth 66 million years ago, ending the Cretaceous, the geologic period that started about 145 million years ago? It's a question that has vexed paleontologists like us for more than 40 year.....»»
North China fossils show that eukaryotes first acquired multicellularity 1.63 billion years ago
In a study published in Science Advances, researchers led by Prof. Zhu Maoyan from the Nanjing Institute of Geology and Palaeontology of the Chinese Academy of Sciences have reported their recent discovery of 1.63-billion-year-old multicellular fossi.....»»
New study tracks a mammoth’s travels across Alaska
Isotopes trapped in a tusk can be matched to those in the Alaskan landscape. Enlarge (credit: Aunt_Spray / GETTY IMAGES) A single tusk is all that remains of a mammoth that lived approximately 14,000 years ago. Yet that.....»»
Early evolution of cicadas revealed by analyses of new fossils
To clarify the early evolutionary history of Cicadoidea fossils, the phylogenetic relationships between Mesozoic fossils and extant Cicadoidea, the macroevolution of body structure adaptations, and their relationship with environmental changes, Dr. J.....»»
Wooly mammoth movements tied to earliest Alaska hunting camps
Researchers have linked the travels of a 14,000-year-old wooly mammoth with the oldest known human settlements in Alaska, providing clues about the relationship between the iconic species and some of the earliest people to travel across the Bering La.....»»
Key moment in the evolution of life on Earth captured in fossils
Curtin-led research has for the first time precisely dated some of the oldest fossils of complex multicellular life in the world, helping to track a pivotal moment in the history of Earth when the seas began teeming with new lifeforms—after 4 billi.....»»
Even the oldest eukaryote fossils show dazzling diversity and complexity
The sun has just set on a quiet mudflat in Australia's Northern Territory; it'll set again in another 19 hours. A young moon looms large over the desolate landscape. No animals scurry in the waning light. No leaves rustle in the breeze. No lichens en.....»»
Mammoth rocket stage for Blue Origin New Glenn goes for sideways ride on Space Coast
A first stage of Blue Origin's massive New Glenn rocket became king of the road for a day making a trip from the factory to its launch complex on Wednesday......»»