Newsdesk Archive

Bonita Mabo, prominent Indigenous rights activist, dies days after receiving accolade
2018-11-27
Just days ago she was awarded an Honorary Doctorate of Letters from James Cook University for her contribution to social justice and human rights.
Ancient Egyptian tomb unveiled
2018-11-27
Two sarcophagi, each containing a mummy, were found. All are in perfect condition. The archaeological dig also discovered around 1,000 funerary statues at the site.
It’s No Ancient Secret, a High-Tech Headband Can Help Train Your Brain to Meditate
2018-11-27
Brainwaves of highly experienced meditation practitioners are different than those of non-meditators.
Huge crater discovered in Greenland – here’s how the impact may have wiped out the mammoths
2018-11-26
If it is really true that the Greenland crater was created 12,000 years ago or more, it could explain a mysterious feature called the Younger Dryas event.
Meet Denny, the ancient mixed-heritage mystery girl
2018-11-26
A new project backed by the European Research Council aims to transform our knowledge of the Denisovans and their relations with both Homo sapiens and the Neanderthals.
Denisovans: complex stone tool find in China points to lost human race
2018-11-26
They weren’t made by Neanderthals. Nor Homo Sapiens. Complex stone tools found in China may have been the handiwork of a mysterious, almost-human tribe.
A Thanksgiving bonfire at dawn: celebrating Native American resistance on Alcatraz
2018-11-26
While most people are still asleep, thousands gather each year to remember the occupation that helped inspire the modern Native American protest movement.
Ancient Egypt Discovered Variable Stars A Thousand Years Before European Astronomers
2018-11-26
Ancient Egyptian astronomers may have discovered variable stars, and calculated the period of a well-known one called Algol, thousands of years before Europeans.
Early human ancestors not to blame for extinctions of giant African mammals
2018-11-26
The team's research, published in Science, shows that early hominin species played little to no role in driving mammal extinctions in ancient African ecosystems.
It looks like an anchovy fillet but this ancient creature helps us understand how DNA works
2018-11-26
Because amphioxus “sits in the middle” between invertebrates and vertebrates, it can tell us about some of the steps and developments that took place as animals became more complex over millions of years of evolution.
One of the world’s largest tombs is a keyhole-shaped forest
2018-11-26
Japan's Daisen Kofun is an ancient burial mound shrouded in mystery, massive in scale, and surprisingly little-known to the rest of the world. Reportedly, no one has crossed the inner-moat and visited the island since 1872.
Aboriginal Australia’s ‘mind-blowing’ struggle for a first treaty
2018-11-26
Australia is the only Commonwealth country never to make a treaty with its indigenous peoples. Why has it proven so difficult? Kathy Marks looks at the vast challenges in Victoria alone - a state that is working towards a national first.
Vanilla’s First-Known Use Came 2,500 Years Earlier and Half a World From Where We Thought
2018-11-22
Residue found in a jug in Israel shows vanilla was likely produced and traded from South Asia, millennia before it was cultivated in Mexico.
An exploding meteor may have wiped out ancient Dead Sea communities
2018-11-22
A superheated blast from the skies obliterated cities and farming settlements north of the Dead Sea around 3,700 years ago, preliminary findings suggest.
Native Americans are recasting views of indigenous life
2018-11-22
Native American photographers are pushing back against portrayals of their culture by non-natives, capturing scenes that reflect alternative views of indigenous life.
Sensual fresco discovered in ancient Pompeii bedroom
2018-11-22
Archaeologists have found a fresco in an ancient Pompeii bedroom that depicts a sensual scene of the Roman god Jupiter, disguised as a swan, and a legendary queen of Sparta from Greek mythology.
New species of extinct ape discovered in tomb of ancient Chinese noblewoman
2018-11-22
Gibbon likely belonged to Lady Xia, grandmother of China's first emperor, but its species appears to have been driven to extinction by deforestation.
NASA has chosen where it’s going to look for ancient life on Mars in 2020
2018-11-22
NASA has picked Jezero Crater as the landing spot for its upcoming Mars 2020 rover mission, after scrutinizing more than 60 potential locations over the last five years.
New dates for ancient stone tools in China point to local invention of complex technology
2018-11-21
Archaeologists thought artifacts had been carried into China from Europe and Africa, but they could have come from much earlier cultural transmission.
Native Americans Reveal Their Secrets To Preventing Forest Fires And More
2018-11-21
By gradually clearing away flammable material on the ground, Native Americans’ deliberate fires may have prevented large forest fires like those we see today.
Bennelong’s burial site to be turned into public memorial
2018-11-21
Sydney home bought by NSW government for $2.9m to be transformed into memorial to honour Eora nation elder.
Termites have been building hundreds of millions of huge mounds for 4,000 years – and now scientists know why
2018-11-21
'Biological wonder' of 200 million mounds saw soil equivalent to 4,000 great pyramids of Giza excavated by insects.
Scientists discovered an energetic “cosmic serpent” in our galaxy
2018-11-21
Unlike the evil Egyptian god, which could never be vanquished, not even by its arch enemy Ra, this cosmic serpent is destined to be defeated someday and will go out with a bang, unlike any other.
A ‘samurai’ swordsmith is designing a space probe
2018-11-21
Now, a trio of engineers have teamed up with a master Japanese swordsmith to design a rock-sampling device made with the same steel used in katana sword blades – and the plan is to use it on an asteroid.
Did Ancient Egyptian Scribes Discover Algol’s Variability 3,000 Years before European Astronomers?
2018-11-19
Sebastian Porceddu and colleagues argue that the ancient Egyptian scribes had the possible means and the motives for such astronomical observations.
Looters plunder Albania’s sunken treasures
2018-11-19
Expeditions carried out since 2006 have found some 40 shipwrecks along Albania's coastline, including vessels dating back to the 7th century BC and naval ships from World War I and II.
Archaeologists Have Discovered The 3,700-Year Skeletons Of An Egyptian Woman And Fetus In Aswan Grave
2018-11-19
Egyptian pottery and ostrich eggshell beads were discovered beside the bodies of the 3,700-year-old skeletons of the Egyptian woman and her fetus.
Did Colonists Give Infected Blankets to Native Americans as Biological Warfare?
2018-11-19
There’s evidence that British colonists in 18th-century America gave Native Americans smallpox-infected blankets at least once—but did it work?
Three Native American professionals on how they deal with bias and lack of representation
2018-11-19
In honor of Native American Heritage Month, three professionals share how they navigate the obstacles they have faced in their careers.
Greenland impact crater could help explain disappearance of woolly mammoths, early humans
2018-11-16
A scarily large meteorite crater has just been discovered in Greenland. It hit the world with the force of 700,000,000 nuclear bombs.
Neanderthals may not have been the headbangers scientists once assumed
2018-11-16
A new study reveals our closest human relatives were no more likely than Stone Age members of our species to sustain head injuries.
Ancient DNA Study Revealed The Evolution of a Mysterious Extinct Monkey of The Caribbean
2018-11-16
Different from any other monkey on Earth, Xenothrix was a slow-moving tree-dweller with few teeth and rodent-like leg bones.
Native American Mashpee tribe turns to Congress in land dispute
2018-11-16
Trump administration reversed Obama-era decision to recognise the Mashpee Wampanoag reservation in Massachusetts.
Impact crater 19 miles wide found beneath Greenland glacier
2018-11-15
The enormous bowl-shaped dent appears to be the result of a mile-wide iron meteorite slamming into the island at a speed of 12 miles per second as recently as 12,000 years ago.
A large impact crater beneath Hiawatha Glacier in northwest Greenland
2018-11-15
Geochemical analysis of this sediment indicates that the impactor was a fractionated iron asteroid, which must have been more than a kilometer wide to produce the identified crater.
Has a Piece of the World’s Oldest Computer Been Found?
2018-11-14
A lost piece of the world’s oldest analog computer (the Antikythera mechanism an ancient Greek device designed to calculate astronomical position) may have been discovered.
A lost ancient city built by Trojan War captives has been found, Greek officials say
2018-11-14
For the past several years, archaeologist Elena Korka has been focused on a legacy of the Trojan War: A lost city named Tenea, reportedly settled by war prisoners brought over from Troy.
Massive hoard of mummified cats and other animals found in ancient Egyptian tombs
2018-11-14
While preparing the site at the ancient necropolis of Saqqara, the team also came across the door of another tomb that remains sealed.
Ancient DNA Has Revealed Surprising Connections Between The First People of The Americas
2018-11-13
A simple migration story is turning into an intricate web of movement and cross-pollination of connections that stretch deep into South America, and around the world.
Experts find stone tools connected communities
2018-11-13
Stone tools from the Middle Stone Age in South Africa shows that different communities were connected over long time periods over vast geographical areas.
Scientists reveal 10,000-year-old mummy is Native American ancestor
2018-11-13
Scientists mapping out the historical migrations of North and South America have revealed that a 10,000-year-old skeleton unearthed in a cave in Nevada is the ancestor of a Native American tribe.
Ancient DNA reveals complex migrations of the first Americans
2018-11-13
Newly sequenced Native genomes showcase a wealth of surprises, from previously unknown populations to unique high-altitude adaptations.
40,000-year-old cave art in Borneo may be world’s oldest animal drawing
2018-11-13
The new dating suggests that these images are at least 40,000 years old, earning them the title of the earliest figurative cave paintings yet found.
Great Pyramid: how my research on ancient Egyptian poetry led to an amazing discovery
2018-11-13
While pulley systems are well known from Greek civilisation in the first millennium BC, the evidence from Hatnub pushes their use much further back in time, as it pre-dates the Greek evidence by some 2,000 years.
Ancient DNA analysis yields unexpected insights about peoples of Central, South America
2018-11-13
"A key discovery was that a Clovis culture-associated individual from North America dating to around 12,800 years ago shares distinctive ancestry with the oldest Chilean, Brazilian and Belizean individuals."
World’s Earliest Figurative Art Wasn’t in Europe, Archaeologists Reveal
2018-11-13
Prehistoric people in Southeast Asia were decorating their caves with cattle drawings and hand stencils in Borneo as early as 52,000 years ago, thousands of years before the rock artists of Europe.
Ancient DNA confirms Native Americans’ deep roots in North and South America
2018-11-09
Two studies find that ancient populations expanded rapidly across the Americas about 13,000 years ago, revealing previously undocumented, large-scale movements between North and South America.
Egypt: Artifacts discovered in Cairo could be 4,000 years old
2018-11-09
Archaeologists have found several fragments of stone slabs with inscriptions that could be 4,000 years old, Egypt's Ministry of Antiquities said.
A night of firsts: the candidates who made history in the 2018 midterms
2018-11-09
Women have run in record numbers, and Native Americans, Muslims, Latinos, immigrants, millennials and LGBT candidates have already made history with their campaigns.
‘Microdosers’ of LSD and magic mushrooms are wiser and more creative
2018-11-07
It has been found in the first ever pre-registered scientific study on the microdosing of psychedelics that microdosers scored higher on measures of wisdom, open-mindedness and creativity.
Mysterious three-mile wide ‘star map dating back 150,0000 YEARS’ found in Hawaii
2018-11-07
A HUGE drawing has been discovered carved into the ground of Hawaiian wasteland, which some believe could be an ancient star map.
Native Americans Deb Haaland and Sharice Davids to enter House
2018-11-07
Democrats Deb Haaland and Sharice Davids have become the first Native American women elected to Congress.
OUMUAMUA: ASTEROID THAT FLEW PAST EARTH COULD HAVE BEEN A SPACECRAFT SAILING PAST US, HARVARD SCIENTISTS SUGGEST
2018-11-07
The mysterious rock that flew past Earth could actually have been an alien spacecraft sailing past us using light, according to a new paper.
New discovery throws light on mystery of pyramids’ construction
2018-11-07
A ramp with stairways and postholes have been found, suggesting that the monuments may have been completed more quickly than previously thought.
Frequent inbreeding may have caused skeletal abnormalities in early humans
2018-11-07
It’s unclear why abnormalities seem to be so common amongst early humans, but scientists say one strong possibility is rampant inbreeding among small hunter-gatherer groups.
Oldest evidence of dairying on the East Asian Steppe
2018-11-07
Researchers have uncovered evidence that dairying arrived in Mongolia as early as 1300 BC through a process of cultural transmission rather than population replacement or migration.
Federal judge rejects lawsuit, lets North Dakota disenfranchise Native American voters
2018-11-07
A federal judge has rejected a North Dakota tribe's emergency motion to stop a voter ID law that it argued disproportionately affects Native Americans in Tuesday's midterm elections.
Fern plant infusion keeps the doctor away in Medieval Europe
2018-11-05
The remains of a medieval skeleton has shown the first physical evidence that a fern plant could have been used for medicinal purposes in cases such as alopecia, dandruff and kidney stones.
A Deadly, Fast-Spreading Form of Super-Ice Could Be Killing Off Alien Life-Forms
2018-11-05
It forms at speeds of more than 1,000 mph (1,600 km/h), it lies deep beneath our feet, it could destroy hopes for alien life, and — finally — scientists understand how it works.
Evidence of outburst flooding indicates plentiful water on early Mars
2018-11-05
Within 400 meters of rock, the researchers identified four different units that represent different types of deposition... "In my opinion, deposition of all of these packages involved water."
Existing laser technology could be fashioned into Earth’s ‘porch light’ to attract alien astronomers
2018-11-05
Laser technology could, in principle, be fashioned into a beacon strong enough to attract ET intelligence from as far as 20,000 light years away.
Fossils hint hominids migrated through a ‘green’ Arabia 300,000 years ago
2018-11-02
Stone tools and animal fossils at Saudi Arabia’s Ti’s al Ghadah site have been dated to between 300,000 and 500,000 years ago when the site was a grassy, vegetated region that enjoyed regular rains.
Landmark study to examine health benefits of Indigenous connection to country
2018-11-02
The health benefits of connections to identity, culture and land for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people are to be measured in a study that will follow them for up to 50 years.
ASTEROID MINING STARTUP BOUGHT BY BLOCKCHAIN FIRM HOPING TO DEMOCRATISE SPACE
2018-11-02
Space mining of water and precious metals has the potential to become a trillion-dollar industry in the coming years, experts say.
Dawn mission to asteroid belt comes to end
2018-11-02
NASA's Dawn spacecraft has gone silent, ending a historic mission that studied time capsules from the solar system's earliest chapter.
NATIVE AMERICANS ARE SUING NORTH DAKOTA OVER VOTER SUPPRESSION
2018-11-02
It now appears Native American North Dakotans are unable to vote, even when they have proof of their residential addresses.
Neanderthal children shivered and suffered in ancient Europe
2018-11-02
The study is “mind blowing” because it gives such a detailed record of how harsh winters, the water supply, and nursing duration can influence growth in early childhood.
Major corridor of Silk Road already home to high-mountain herders over 4,000 years ago
2018-11-02
Long before the formal creation of the Silk Road, pastoral herders living in the mountains of Central Asia helped form new cultural and biological links across the region.
This 4,500-Year-Old Ramp Contraption May Have Been Used to Build Egypt’s Great Pyramid
2018-11-02
They discovered the remains of this system at the site of Hatnub, an ancient quarry in the Eastern Desert of Egypt. The contraption would have been used to transport heavy alabaster stones up a steep ramp and was possibly how Egyptians built the Great Pyramid.
First humans to reach Australia likely island-hopped to New Guinea then walked – study
2018-11-02
Researchers map likeliest route using least-cost calculations, line-of-sight sailing and likely sea levels.
‘Idaho’s hope’: could Paulette Jordan be the first Native American governor in the US?
2018-11-02
The Democrat, whose grandparents were tribal chiefs, offers progressive solutions for a state struggling with healthcare, education and more.
Origin of chocolate shifts 1,400 miles and 1,500 years
2018-10-31
Cacao was in use in South America centuries before its exploitation by civilisations in Mexico and Central America, experts say.
Earliest hominin migrations into the Arabian Peninsula required no novel adaptations
2018-10-31
A new suggests that early hominin dispersals beyond Africa did not involve adaptations to environmental extremes, such as to arid and harsh deserts.
Humanity has wiped out 60% of animal populations since 1970, report finds
2018-10-31
The huge loss is a tragedy in itself but also threatens the survival of civilisation, say the world’s leading scientists.
Neanderthals’ barrel chests might not have been any bigger than ours
2018-10-31
Scientists say Neanderthals’ thoraxes—the cozy cavities enclosed by the ribs, breastbone, and spine—might actually have been the same size as ours, not larger, as was previously assumed.
“The Liquid Asteroid”–Event Equal to 10 Billion Hiroshima Bombs Made the Rise of Homo Sapiens Possible
2018-10-29
"All these fossils occur in a layer no more than 10cm thick... It tells us this is a moment in geological time... They died suddenly and were buried quickly."
ANCIENT EGYPT: ARCHAEOLOGISTS UNCOVER RAMSES THE GREAT’S BOOTH
2018-10-29
Mamdouh al-Damaty, who headed the archeological mission, said the booth was where the king once sat during the celebration of his crowning festival.
Scientists call for ‘mega-mission’ to find ancient life on Mars
2018-10-29
Space scientists have told Nasa they want the agency to “dream big” to ensure their new robot rover visits a maximum number of sites to increase chances of uncovering signs of ancient life on Mars.
15,000 Year Old Spearpoints Reveal Details About The Peopling Of The Americas
2018-10-29
This finding does not overturn the Clovis-First model; that was done long ago by the discovery of sites in the Americas, and by evidence from genomes of ancient and contemporary American peoples.
Ancient Travelers Created These Sprawling Circular Structures During Pit Stops
2018-10-29
Research suggests that the strange dirt markings in Peru were probably made by on-the-go travellers passing along the area's footpaths long ago.
The hidden story of Perth’s Aboriginal bush camps rediscovered in the western suburbs
2018-10-29
Just a few kilometres from Perth CBD is a quiet cul-de-sac street, lined with native banksia scrub on one side and a tilt up concrete warehouse on the other.
Oldest weapons ever discovered in North America pre-date Clovis
2018-10-28
Researchers have discovered ancient spear points that are 15,500 years old. The findings raise new questions about the settlement of early peoples on the continent.
Republicans wanted to suppress the Native American vote. It’s working
2018-10-28
Voter fraud barely exists, yet laws are being passed in states such as North Dakota that do nothing but strip the civil rights of indigenous peoples.
Crater from asteroid that killed the dinosaurs reveals how broken rocks can flow like liquid
2018-10-28
The same process that allows rock to flow like liquid during impact events allows 'peak rings' to form in large craters.
An Ancient Woman’s Remains Survived The Brazilian Museum Fire
2018-10-28
The heat melted the glue holding the pieces of Luzia's skull together, but the damage to them appears "less than expected". Approximately 80% of the fragments of her cranium have been recovered.
Rare genetic sequences illuminate early humans’ history in Africa
2018-10-28
Little-studied ethnic groups on the continent are helping researchers to understand the movements of people who lived there tens of thousands of years ago.
New Caledonian crows can create compound tools
2018-10-24
The birds are able to combine individual parts to form a long-distance reaching aid.
Driverless hover-taxis to take off in Singapore
2018-10-24
Millions of commuters in the region's cities have to contend with chronic gridlock every day, sparking a race to develop new ways to avoid the snarl-ups.
Single-use plastics ban approved by European Parliament
2018-10-24
The European Parliament has voted for a complete ban on a range of single-use plastics across the union in a bid to stop pollution of the oceans.
A look at 3200 Phaethon: A big, bizarre, blue asteroid we plan to visit
2018-10-24
New research suggests the "rock comet" is weirder than previously thought.
Two Native American geneticists interpret Elizabeth Warren’s DNA test
2018-10-24
Their concern stems from the historical power imbalances around how genetic material has been collected.
World’s oldest intact shipwreck discovered in Black Sea
2018-10-24
Archaeologists say the 23-metre vessel has lain undisturbed for more than 2,400 years.
Elizabeth Warren’s DNA test fact check: What journalists got wrong about senator’s Native American ancestry
2018-10-22
The results - which identified Native American DNA from six to 10 generations ago - were immediately misinterpreted.
While the Elizabeth Warren-DNA news cycle plays out, issues Native Americans actually care about aren’t getting any attention
2018-10-22
Here’s a look at some of the issues Native American leaders told the Fix that they would prefer the national conversation to focus on regarding them.
Elizabeth Warren denies DNA test was a mistake after Native Americans criticise Trump rebuttal
2018-10-22
Elizabeth Warren has defended her decision to release a DNA test and political advert asserting she has a distant Native American ancestor – even as the Cherokee Nation condemns her for it.
EGYPTIAN BOOK OF THE DEAD SELLS FOR €1.3 MILLION
2018-10-22
The complete Book of the Dead for Horwedja, dating from 594-588 B.C and made of papyrus, fetched the largest sum. Complete with 192 chapters, the text is written in hieratic script.
Real-life tomb raiders: Egypt’s $US3 billion smuggling problem
2018-10-22
When authorities seized a diplomatic pouch at the port in Naples, they weren't expecting to unearth a plot more suited to an Indiana Jones movie.
Asteroid mining might actually be better for the environment
2018-10-22
The first study of its environmental impact suggests that extracting resources such as platinum from asteroids might be cleaner than doing so on Earth.
America’s archaeology data keeps disappearing – even though the law says the government is supposed to preserve it
2018-10-19
Only a tiny fraction of data is made accessible or preserved for future research, despite agencies’ legal obligations to do so. Severe loss of data is not unusual – it’s the norm.
Insects Are Rapidly Disappearing Around The World, Leaving Scientists Horrified
2018-10-19
Insects around the world are in a crisis, according to a small but growing number of long-term studies showing dramatic declines in invertebrate populations.
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