Fossil ear bones rewrite the story of freshwater fish
A new discovery of tiny fossilized fish bones has forced scientists to rethink the origins of some of the world’s most successful freshwater fish.
These...
Scientists discover Europe’s oldest blue pigment in Germany
Archaeologists in Germany have uncovered something that could change our understanding of early human creativity.
At a site in Mühlheim-Dietesheim, researchers found traces of a...
Teen dinosaur fossil reveals secrets of dome-headed dinosaurs
A rare dinosaur fossil from Mongolia’s Gobi Desert is giving scientists new insight into one of the most mysterious groups of dinosaurs.
The fossil belongs...
Why the Moon’s “two faces” may have very different interiors
For centuries, humans could only wonder what the far side of the moon looked like.
Unlike the near side, which always faces Earth, the far...
Ancient pottery unlocks secrets of prehistoric fishing nets
For the first time, archaeologists have digitally and physically reconstructed fishing nets from more than 6,000 years ago, thanks to traces left in ancient...
Ancient copper smelting site reveals clues to the birth of the iron age
A 3,000-year-old metal workshop in southern Georgia may hold the key to one of the most important turning points in human history: the invention...
Scientists discover new ichthyosaur species in Jurassic clay pit
Paleontologists have identified a new species of ichthyosaur, a marine reptile that swam the oceans during the age of dinosaurs, from fossils discovered in...
Tiny croc with strange teeth discovered in Montana after 95 million years
About 95 million years ago, a little crocodyliform no bigger than a household lizard scurried around what is now southwest Montana.
Nicknamed Elton, this tiny...
Earth’s “carbon thermostat” could overshoot, triggering a sooner ice age
Earth has a built-in climate regulator that recycles carbon dioxide, but new research from the University of California, Riverside shows this system may sometimes...
Tally sticks from three ancient civilizations rewrite money’s history
When most of us think about the history of money, we imagine a simple timeline: people bartered goods, then invented coins, then paper money,...