When mammal ancestors evolved flexible shoulders, their backbones changed too
Ancient changes to the backbone paved the way for modern mammal diversity
Shrug your shoulders. If you're not in public, shimmy a little.
You can do...
DNA analysis reveals distinct lineage of ancient panda in south China
Chinese scientists have found an ancient panda, belonging to a distinct group not found today, separated from present-day pandas 144,000 to 227,000 years ago.
In...
This dinosaur-killer meteoroid metal can kill cancer cells
In a recent study, researchers find that cancer cells can be killed with metal from the asteroid that killed the dinosaurs.
The results show that...
Newly discovered dinosaur fossils fill in the evolutionary gap
Two fossils unearthed in northwestern China are missing links in evolution of an unusual lineage, according to scientists.
Two newly discovered dinosaurs may be missing...
Fossil teeth show how Jurassic reptiles adapted to change
Marine predators that lived in deep waters during the Jurassic Period thrived as sea levels rose, while species that dwelled in the shallows died...
“Thermal scar” from dinosaur era still warming base of Greenland Ice Sheet
A new ‘heat map’ shows, in unprecedented detail, how geothermal heat is escaping through the Earth’s surface beneath the Greenland Ice Sheet.
This is critical...
Mammal forerunner sheds light on brain evolution
A newly described fossil of an extinct mammal relative — and her 38 babies — is among the best evidence that a key development...
When did human feet become “Made for walking”
How and when did early humans start walking upright?
For clues, researchers have been looking at feet—and, more specifically, at toes.
“Bipedalism was a critical step...
How did alvarezsaurian dinosaurs evolve monodactyl hand
Digit reduction occurs many times in tetrapod evolution, and the most famous example is the 'horse series' of North America.
An international research team announced...
228-million-year-old fossil turtle didn’t have a shell yet, but had the first toothless turtle...
There are a couple of key features that make a turtle a turtle: its shell, for one, but also its toothless beak.
A newly-discovered fossil...