558 million-year-old fat reveals earliest known animal
Scientists have discovered molecules of fat in an ancient fossil to reveal the earliest confirmed animal in the geological record that lived on Earth...
A single gene mutation may have helped humans become optimal long-distance runners
Two to three million years ago, the functional loss of a single gene triggered a series of significant changes in what would eventually become...
The walking dead: Fossils on the move can distort patterns of mass extinctions
As sea levels change and move habitats, animals follow. Taking these shifts into account when analyzing the fossil record is crucial, researchers said.
Using the...
Half-billion-year-old fossils offer new clues to how life exploded on the sea floor
Stephen Pates, a researcher from Oxford University's Department of Zoology, has uncovered secrets from the ancient oceans.
With Dr. Rudy Lerosey-Aubril from New England University...
Scientists discover the oldest known abstract drawing from 73,000 years ago
The oldest known abstract drawing, made with ocher, has been found in South Africa's Blombos Cave—on the face of a flake of siliceous rock...
Lesson from Brazil: Museums are not forever
We now know what history going up in flames looks like.
On Sept. 2, the National Museum of Brazil lit up Rio de Janeiro’s night...
Ancient farmers spared us from glaciers but profoundly changed Earth’s climate
Glaciers have long served as Earth’s predominant source of freshwater.
But glaciation has stopped in the present day, apparently partially because of the actions...
Scientists discover cheese making evidence from 7200 years ago
Analysis of fatty residue in pottery from the Dalmatian Coast of Croatia revealed evidence of fermented dairy products -- soft cheeses and yogurts --...
Amber unveils evolution of ancient antlions
Myrmeleontiformia (antlions and their relatives) are an ancient group of lacewing insects characterized by predatory larvae with unusual morphologies and behaviors.
An international team led...
Scientists discover three unknown ancient primates
Biological anthropologists from The University of Texas at Austin have described three new species of fossil primates that were previously unknown to science.
All of...