Researchers discover locations of ancient Maya sacred groves of cacao trees (EurekAlert 31/01/22)
Findings show links among cacao cultivation, religion and power in region
Ice-age remains near Sea of Galilee show ancient residents thrived as ice melted (Phys.org 26/01/22)
A new article published today in PLOS ONE by a Hebrew University of Jerusalem (HU)’s Institute of Archaeology team and colleagues focused on the remains of a previously submerged fisher-hunter-gatherer camp on the shores of the Sea of Galilee from around 23,000 years ago
Human ancestor Homo erectus probably wasn’t the carnivore we thought (National History Museum, London 24/01/22)
The development of early human ancestors may not have been the result of a high meat diet
Lunch Break Science #38 | Brenda Bradley
Lunch Break Science is a weekly online series featuring short lectures or interviews with Leakey Foundation scientists Meet Leakey Foundation grantee Brenda Bradley
Tracing the origins of plants in West African cuisine (Phys.org 17/01/22)
A team of scientists, led by the University of Bristol, in co-operation with colleagues from Goethe University, Frankfurt, has uncovered the first insights into the origins of West African plant-based cuisine, locked inside pottery fragments dating back some 3,500 years ago
Earliest-known Human Engineered Hybrid Animals Identified in Mesopotamia (Ancient Origins 15/01/22)
A super-powerful animal known as the ‘kunga’ was the first-known human-engineered hybrid of two animal species, reports a new study published in Science Advances . The researchers conducted a genome-sequencing study on equine skeletons found at a 4,500-year-old burial site at Umm el-Marra in northern Syria. The results of their study indicate the skeletons belonged to kungas, a…
European archaeologists back in Iraq after years of war (Phys.org 12/01/22)
After war and insurgency kept them away from Iraq for decades, European archaeologists are making an enthusiastic return in search of millennia-old cultural treasures
Ancient Mesopotamian discovery transforms knowledge of early farming (Phys.org 11/01/22)
Rutgers researchers have unearthed the earliest definitive evidence of broomcorn millet (Panicum miliaceum) in ancient Iraq, challenging our understanding of humanity’s earliest agricultural practices
Lunch Break Science #39 | Shara Bailey
Lunch Break Science is a weekly online series featuring short lectures or interviews with Leakey Foundation scientists Meet Leakey Foundation grantee Shara Bailey and learn what teeth tell us about human evolution.
Digging deep: DNA molecules in ancient dirt offer a treasure trove of clues to our past (Phys.org 04/01/22)
Alongside plant and animal remains, the sediments in an archaeological deposit might also contain ancient DNA molecules that can be extracted and used to identify the species that once lived there
How a handful of prehistoric geniuses launched humanity’s technological revolution (Phys.org 01/01/22)
A million years ago, primitive humans sometimes used fire, but with difficulty. Then, 500,000 years ago, technological change accelerated, as spearpoints, firemaking, axes, beads and bows appeared
Ancient DNA reveals the world’s oldest family tree (Phys.org 22/12/21)
Analysis of ancient DNA from one of the best-preserved Neolithic tombs in Britain has revealed that most of the people buried there were from five continuous generations of a single extended family