Geneticist Svante Pääbo figured out how to extract DNA from Neandertals’ and Denisovans’ bones Establishing a new field of science to answer the question of what makes humans unique from our extinct relatives has earned Svante Pääbo the Nobel Prize in physiology or medicine. “Humanity has always been intrigued byContinue Reading
Did the first civilization arise in Mesopotamia, or elsewhere? Countless civilizations have risen and fallen over the millennia. But which one is the oldest on record? About 30 years ago, this question seemed to have a straightforward answer. Around 4000 B.C., the earliest phase of the Sumerian culture arose asContinue Reading
It gets a “bath,” among other things. Our brains are complex and elaborate. They contain billions of neurons, don’t fully form until we reach age 25(opens in new tab), and can generate around 25 watts of power(opens in new tab) — enough to illuminate a light bulb. Scientists are constantlyContinue Reading
The Navy admitted it has a lot more footage of UFOs — but won’t share them anytime soon. The U.S. Navy holds unseen videos of unidentified flying objects (UFOs) — or unidentified aerial phenomena (UAP), as the Department of Defense (DOD) prefers to call them — but will not releaseContinue Reading
Orcas sometimes pick up a behavior for a while and then quit it just as quickly. Orcas are snapping the rudders off boats off the European coast, and scientists aren’t sure why. According to NPR, the spate of odd encounters has spanned from the coasts of Portugal and Spain upContinue Reading
The discoveries hint that humans occupied the region longer than locals thought. Archaeological treasures, including Stone Age pottery and medieval graves with swords and jewelry, have revealed a long history of human habitation near the Danube River in Germany. At the site, in the Geisingen-Gutmadingen district of Tuttlingen, in southwesternContinue Reading
This bug is a ticking time bomb of killer fungus. On a leaf in the Peruvian Amazon, a fly’s exoskeleton bursts open. Seven fungal stems emerge, flaring outward in a twisted bouquet. The fungus already took control of the fly’s mind and body — now, it’s time to find aContinue Reading
The Aztec Empire flourished in the Valley of Mexico between A.D. 1325 and 1519 and was the last great civilization before the arrival of the Spanish in the early 16th century. The Aztec Empire flourished in central Mexico during the Postclassic period of Mesoamerican history, from approximately A.D. 1325 toContinue Reading
This helps protect the tadpole-like fish from the cold. Scientists drilling deep into an iceberg off Greenland have discovered a fish with glowing green antifreeze coursing through its veins. The juvenile variegated snailfish (Liparis gibbus) contained the “highest expression levels” of antifreeze proteins ever reported, a new study found. SimilarContinue Reading
Time-lapse video reveals the surprising way debris-filled mucus moves out of a sponge’s body The next time you spot a sea sponge, say “gesundheit!” Some sponges regularly “sneeze” to clear debris from their porous bodies. As filter feeders, sponges draw in water through inlet pores — called ostia — andContinue Reading