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☆ New mission could reveal secrets of the moon’s ‘hidden side’
▼ + stars: | 2024-05-04 | by ( Ashley Strickland | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +6 min

In one lunar region, Japan’s “Moon Sniper” mission has beaten the odds and survived three long, frigid lunar nights since its sideways landing on January 19. The Tianwen-2 mission will visit the space rock later this decade. But first, China has set its sights on returning to the moon’s “hidden side.”An illustration depicts the far side of the moon, with Earth behind it. Since the Chang’e 4 mission in 2019, China remains the only country to have landed on the moon’s far side, sometimes called the “dark side” of the moon. Scientists hope that returning samples from the far side could solve some of the biggest remaining lunar mysteries, including the moon’s true origin.

Persons: Graziano Ranocchia, Ranocchia, Plato, Emma Pomeroy, “ She’s, ”, Pomeroy, Armas Rakus, Suni Williams, Butch Wilmore, Kevin Bacon, Ashley Strickland, Katie Hunt Organizations: CNN, Engineers, Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency, NASA, Apollo, Platonic Academy of Athens, University of Pisa, Netflix, University of Cambridge, Norton Disney, Archaeology Group, Roman, International Space, CNN Space, Science Locations: China, Kurdistan, Gunung Leuser, South Aceh, Indonesia, Morocco

☆ Reconstruction reveals face of Neanderthal specimen Shanidar Z
▼ + stars: | 2024-05-01 | by ( Katie Hunt | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +7 min

Known as Shanidar Z, after the cave in Iraqi Kurdistan where she was found in 2018, the woman was a Neanderthal, a type of ancient human that disappeared around 40,000 years ago. The Shanidar Z facial reconstruction suggests that these differences might not have been so stark in life, Pomeroy said. Shanidar cave in Iraqi Kurdistan was first excavated in the 1950s. Neanderthals may not have honored their dead with bouquets of flowers, but the inhabitants of Shanidar Cave were likely an empathetic species, research suggests. Shanidar Z is the first Neanderthal found in the cave in more than 50 years, Pomeroy said, but the site could still yield more discoveries.

Persons: sapiens, Emma Pomeroy, Pomeroy, ”, “ She’s, ” Pomeroy, Graeme Barker, “, Adrie, Alfons Kennis, Dr, Lucía, Danish paleoartists Adrie Organizations: CNN, BBC, Netflix, University of Cambridge’s, Cambridge, Liverpool, University of Cambridge, Catalan Institute, Human Locations: Kurdistan, Europe, East, Central Asia, Shanidar, Cambridge, Spain, Danish

☆ Scientists use cosmic rays to date earliest evidence of humans in Europe
▼ + stars: | 2024-03-06 | by ( Katie Hunt | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +5 min

Archaeologists have recovered 90,000 stone tools from the site, which lies close to Ukraine’s southwestern border with Hungary and Romania. Some 90,000 stone tools made by early humans have been found at the site but no human fossils. Garba‘s colleagues measured two nuclides, aluminum-26 and beryllium-10, found in quartz grains from seven pebbles discovered in the same layer as the stone tools. The earliest human fossils unearthed in Europe are from the Atapuerca site in Spain and date back 1.1 million years, according to the study. Korolevo would have been appealing to ancient humans because it’s near the Tisza River, which leads to the Danube, and there was a readily available source of hard rock to knap stone tools, Garba said.

Persons: Roman Garba, ”, “, ” Garba, Garba, It’s, Briana Pobiner, wasn’t, hominins Organizations: CNN, Czech Academy of Sciences, Archaeological Institute, NAS, Smithsonian National Museum of Locations: Ukraine, Europe, Prague, Hungary, Romania, Africa, Spain, Georgia, Dmanisi, Washington , DC, hominins

☆ On the Trail of the Denisovans
▼ + stars: | 2024-03-02 | by ( Carl Zimmer | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

March 2, 2024Neanderthals may have vanished 40,000 years ago, but they are no strangers to us today. But there’s no such familiarity with the Denisovans, a group of humans that split from the Neanderthal line and survived for hundreds of thousands of years before going extinct. In a new review paper, anthropologists tally all of the fossils that have been clearly identified as Denisovan since the first discovery in 2010. Nevertheless, many scientists are growing increasingly fascinated by Denisovans. “I find Denisovans way more interesting,” said Emilia Huerta-Sánchez, a geneticist at Brown University.

Persons: Kevin Bacon, ”, Janet Kelso, Max Planck, Denisovans, Emilia Huerta, Sánchez Organizations: Max, Max Planck Institute, Brown University Locations: Africa, Leipzig, Germany

☆ Losing weight is hard. Here are 5 things to keep in mind
▼ + stars: | 2024-01-26 | by ( Andrea Kane | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +7 min

We delve into a slew of topics, including new weight loss drugs and how to talk to kids about weight. (CNN) — If you think it’s hard to lose weight and keep it off, you are not alone — and you are also 100% correct. “We evolved not to lose weight intentionally,” paleoanthropologist Daniel Lieberman told CNN Chief Medical Correspondent Dr. Sanjay Gupta recently on the podcast Chasing Life. It’s because we evolved not to lose weight intentionally. “So when people diet, they almost always struggle to overcome ancient, fundamental adaptations to prevent their bodies from losing weight,” he added.

Persons: Sanjay Gupta, it’s, ” paleoanthropologist Daniel Lieberman, Lieberman, ”, ” Lieberman Organizations: CNN, Harvard University

☆ What weight tells us about our health
▼ + stars: | 2024-01-17 | by ( Dr. Sanjay Gupta | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +12 min

(CNN) — If you’ve been paying attention to health news recently, you may have noticed a subtle but real shift in the way society discusses body weight. Beyond health care dollarsDespite changing attitudes about larger bodies, excess weight does carry a price. From a health care standpoint, it costs the country a lot of money. According to a study published in the journal The Lancet in 2020, 27% of total health care expenditures in 2016 — about $730.4 billion — could be attributed to “modifiable risk factors” for preventable health conditions like cardiovascular disease. That was eight years ago, when our total health care expenditure was $2.7 trillion, according to the study.

Persons: you’ve, We’re, Dr, Fatima Cody Stanford, “, They’re, Adolphe Quetelet, Ancel Keys, ”, ” Stanford, Morgan, That’s, we’ll, Daniel Lieberman, who’ll, Oprah Organizations: CNN, American Medical Association, Massachusetts General Hospital, Harvard Medical School, National, bloodwork, Harvard Locations: Belgian

☆ Cannibalistic Europeans likely ate their dead at funerals 15,000 years ago instead of burying them, study says
▼ + stars: | 2023-10-05 | by ( Sebastian Cahill | Grace Eliza Goodwin | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

Europeans probably ate their dead loved ones instead of burying them 15,000 years ago. According to a new study, the consumption of dead people was not essential, but a ritual. Researchers also said people used the remaining bones as cups and chewed on them. download the app Email address Sign up By clicking “Sign Up”, you accept our Terms of Service and Privacy Policy . AdvertisementAdvertisementCannibalistic Europeans likely feasted on their deceased loved ones at funerals instead of burying them, according to a new study.

Persons: —, Dr, Silvia Bello, William Marsh, Marsh Organizations: Service Locations: Europe, France, Germany, Spain, Russia, United Kingdom, Belgium, Poland, Czech Republic, Portugal, Gough's

☆ Cannibalism was a common funeral ritual in Europe 15,000 years ago, study finds
▼ + stars: | 2023-10-05 | by ( Amarachi Orie | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +5 min

Experts at London’s National History Museum reviewed literature to identify 59 Magdalenian sites that have human remains. There was also evidence to suggest that in some cases human remains were mixed with those of animals. They found that there were two distinct ancestral groups present in the region during that period – one of Magdalenian culture and another called the Epigravettian, a different European and geographically-distinct human culture. Map of Magdalenian sites where cannibalism has been identified in northwestern Europe. “However, this study provides pretty convincing evidence that ritual funerary cannibalism was practiced by people across Europe 20,000-14,000 years ago.”

Persons: Silvia Bello, ” Bello, “, ”, William Marsh, Thomas Booth, Francis Crick Organizations: CNN, Museum, History Museum, History, Francis Locations: Europe, England, France, Germany, Spain, Russia, United Kingdom, Belgium, Poland, Czech Republic, Portugal

In the past few months alone, researchers have linked Neanderthal DNA to a serious hand disease, the shape of people's noses and various other human traits. Research shows some African populations have almost no Neanderthal DNA, while those from European or Asian backgrounds have 1% to 2%. For example, Neanderthal DNA has been linked to auto-immune diseases like Graves’ disease and rheumatoid arthritis. The list goes on: Research has linked Neanderthal genetic variants to skin and hair color, behavioral traits, skull shape and Type 2 diabetes. Researchers found the skulls of domesticated dogs in Homo sapiens sites much further back in time than anyone had found before.

Persons: We’re, ”, Mary Prendergast, Hugo Zeberg, Svante Paabo, Zeberg, It's, Graves, Homo sapiens, Chris Stringer, “, Rick Potts, Paabo, ” Zeberg, Raghavan, Potts, Denisovans, sapiens, Eleanor Scerri, Prendergast, Janet Young, Pat Shipman, John Hawks Organizations: Rice University, Karolinska, Research, Smithsonian Institution, University of Chicago, Germany’s Max Planck Institute, Geoanthropology, Canadian Museum, University of Wisconsin -, Associated Press Health, Science Department, Howard Hughes Medical Institute’s Science, Educational Media Group, AP Locations: Sweden, Melanesia, New Guinea, Fiji, Africa, Europe, Asia, London, Eurasia, Germany’s, University of Wisconsin - Madison

☆ An 8.7 million-year-old ape skull suggests that human and ape ancestors may have evolved in Europe, not Africa
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-03 | by ( Alia Shoaib | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

An ape skull found in Turkey may challenge the belief that human and ape ancestors came from Africa. The discovery suggests that hominins may have first evolved in Europe. The discovery challenges the widely-held view that the ancestors of African apes and humans originated exclusively in Africa. Advertisement Advertisement Watch: This incredible animation shows how humans evolved from early lifeResearchers say that this suggests that hominins might have first evolved in Europe before migrating to Africa. AdvertisementAdvertisement"I don't think this find changes much from the discussions (in a recent paper in the journal Science) which concluded: 'Current evidence suggests that hominins originated in Africa from Miocene ape ancestors unlike any living species.'"

Persons: Erol, David, Chris Stringer, hominins Organizations: Service, University of Toronto, Communications, The Telegraph Locations: Turkey, Africa, Europe, Wall, Silicon, Cankiri, et, London

☆ 27,000-year-old pendants crafted from the skin of extinct giant sloths could help rewrite the human history of the Americas
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-15 | by ( Alia Shoaib | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

Researchers found what appeared to be pendants made from the now-extinct giant sloth. It suggests humans lived in South America thousands of years earlier than previously thought. "It's very likely that multiple waves of people came to Americas," she said, according to The AP. Giant ground sloths could reach 13 feet long, weighed more than a thousand pounds and were equivalent in size to an Indian elephant. It walked on all fours and was one of the largest creatures in South America, per the report.

Persons: Mirian Liza Alves Forancelli Pacheco, Jeffrey Greenberg, Briana, paleoanthropologist Organizations: Service, Royal Society B, Royal, North America, Federal University of Sao, Associated Press, Universal, AP, Smithsonian Institution's National, of Locations: South America, Wall, Silicon, Siberia, Alaska, South, North, Federal University of Sao Carlos, Brazil, Florida, Americas, Washington

☆ Cannibalism, or ‘Clickbait’?
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-01 | by ( Franz Lidz | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +2 min

Everybody’s quick to see a cannibal. The Romans thought the ancient Britons feasted on human flesh, and the British thought the same about the Irish. Not a few prehistoric finds have been attributed, evocatively if not accurately, to the work of ancient cannibals. The news release described the finding as the “oldest decisive evidence” of such behavior. Or, put another way, How much premodern evidence is needed to prove a modern theory?

Persons: Mark Twain, “, —, Briana Organizations: National, of Locations: Kenya

☆ Butchery marks on a fossilized bone suggest human ancestors ate each other, shocking researchers
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-27 | by ( Jenny Mcgrath | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +5 min

A researcher found what appear to be cut marks on the bone of a human ancestor. I was really not expecting to find these sorts of cut marks." Almost all of the bone's marks could be classified as cut marks with a high degree of confidence, Pobiner said. Not all cut marks mean cannibalismTwo marks (5 and 6) were identified as tooth marks, and the rest were identified as cut marks. Pobiner hopes the findings will inspire other researchers to return to existing collections to look for more cut marks.

Persons: Pobiner, —, Michael Pante, Jennifer Clark Defleshing, it's, Paleoanthropologist Mary Leakey, It's Organizations: Service, Smithsonian's National, of, National Museums, Kenya's, Museum, Colorado State University Locations: Kenya's Nairobi, anvils, Kenya, Gough's Cave, England

☆ Cut marks on fossilized bone may reveal ancient cannibalism
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-26 | by ( Katie Hunt | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +5 min

CNN —Nine cut marks on a fossilized shin bone suggest that ancient human relatives butchered and possibly ate one another 1.45 million years ago, according to a new study. “These cut marks look very similar to what I’ve seen on animal fossils that were being processed for consumption,” Pobiner said in a news release. Jennifer ClarkWhat the cut marks revealStudy coauthor Michael Pante, a paleoanthropologist at Colorado State University, created 3D models based on molds of marks on the bone. He said cut marks were reported on the cheek bone of a hominin fossil found in Sterkfontein, South Africa, in 2000 that could be about 2 million years old. Pobiner, however, said the source of the cut marks in that case was disputed.

Persons: Briana Pobiner, Pobiner, ” Pobiner, Marks, Jennifer Clark, Michael Pante, boisei, hominins, ” Silvia Bello, ”, Bello, Chris Stringer, Stringer Organizations: CNN, National Museums, Kenya’s, Museum, National Museum of, Washington DC, Colorado State University Locations: Kenya’s Nairobi, Washington, what’s, France, Sterkfontein, South Africa

☆ The future of medicine may lie in space
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-17 | by ( Katie Hunt | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +6 min

Days after I got my first taste of working at a lab bench, a company set forth to prove scientific research can be successfully done in orbit without any humans present. Look upVarda Space Industries plans to use a small capsule, shown in the rendering above, to conduct pharmaceutical research in space. Varda Space industriesThe future of medicine may take flight in space. Unearthed in Ethiopia in 1974 and representing 40% of a skeleton, the remains revealed an early human relative who lived millions of years before Homo sapiens. Meanwhile, other, more recent fossil discoveries are shaking up what we know about early human migration.

Persons: Varda, Lucy, Dave Einsel, paleoanthropologist Dr, Ashleigh L.A, Wiseman, waddle, Frank Postberg, Jochen Brocks, —, Ashley Strickland, Katie Hunt Organizations: CNN, Logan Science Journalism, Marine Biological, Space Industries, Research, British Antarctic Survey, Sky, University of Cambridge, ATP, Freie Universität Berlin, Australian National University, CNN Space, Science Locations: Woods Hole , Massachusetts, California, Antarctica, Weddell, Ethiopia, Barney Creek, Northern Australia, Australia, New England

☆ An extinct species buried their dead and carved symbols 100,000 years before humans. The findings challenge our understanding of human evolution, researchers say.
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-10 | by ( Alia Shoaib | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

An extinct species called Homo naledi buried their dead 100,000 years before humans. The species, called Homo naledi, had brains about one-third the size of a modern human's, according to CNN. Until now, these behaviors had only been associated with larger-brained species such as Homo sapiens and Neanderthals. "These recent findings suggest intentional burials, the use of symbols, and meaning-making activities by Homo naledi. Homo naledi walked upright and manipulated objects by hand like humans, Berger said, but they were shorter, thinner, had smaller heads, and were more powerfully built, per CNN.

Persons: —, Homo naledi, paleoanthropologist Lee Berger, Berger, Lee Berger, Luca Sola, Agustín Fuentes Organizations: Service, Privacy, CNN, Geographic, Getty Locations: South Africa, Maropeng, AFP

☆ Ancient Human Relatives Buried Their Dead in Caves, New Theory Claims
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-05 | by ( Carl Zimmer | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

In 2015, scientists reported an astonishing discovery from deep inside a South African cave: more than 1,500 fossils of an ancient hominin species that had never been seen before. The creatures, named Homo naledi, were short, with long arms, curved fingers and a brain about one-third the size of a modern human’s. Now, after years of analyzing the surfaces and sediments of the elaborate underground cave, the same team of scientists is making another splashy announcement: Homo naledi — despite their tiny brains — buried their dead in graves. They lit fires to illuminate their way down the cave, and they marked the graves with engravings on the walls. It suggests that big brains are not essential for sophisticated kinds of thinking, he said, such as making symbols, cooperating on dangerous expeditions or even recognizing death.

Persons: Homo naledi, —, Lee Berger, hominin Organizations: University of Witwatersrand Locations: Africa, Johannesburg

☆ Homo naledi buried their dead 100,000 years before humans
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-05 | by ( Ashley Strickland | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +12 min

The study team lays out fossils of Homo naledi at the University of the Witwatersrand's Evolutionary Studies Institute in Johannesburg. One body belonged to an adult Homo naledi, and the other was a juvenile. In 2018, the team began to find evidence that supported the idea that Homo naledi intentionally buried their dead. Carvings on the wallWithin one of the graves is a tool-shaped rock, buried next to the hand of a Homo naledi adult. The "tool shaped rock" was likely buried near or clutched in the hand of a young teenage Homo naledi child buried in the Hill Antechamber.

Persons: naledi, Robert Clark, Homo naledi, Lee Berger, Homo, paleoartist John Gurche, Mark Thiessen, ”, Berger, Tebogo Makhubela, Keneiloe Molopyane, ” Berger, “, John Hawks, Hawks, “ It’s, they’ve, Agustín Fuentes, ” Fuentes, Fuentes, Lee Berger Chris Stringer, ” Stringer Organizations: CNN —, University of, Evolutionary Studies, UNESCO, Geographic, University of Johannesburg, Expedition, University of Wisconsin - Locations: Johannesburg, South Africa, University of Wisconsin - Madison

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