Humans news stories

For crying out loud: Dutch scientists grow human tear glands
18th March 2021 | theguardian.com | Humans, Misc., Weird

Stop your sobbing – because scientists can do it for you. Using stem cells, Dutch researchers have grown miniature human tear glands capable of “crying”.

The stories behind Aboriginal star names now recognised by the world’s astronomical body
16th March 2021 cosmosmagazine.com | Ancient, Humans, Space

Four stars in the night sky have been formally recognised by their Australian Aboriginal names.

Neanderthals helped create early human art, researcher says
16th March 2021 | theguardian.com | Ancient, Humans

When Neanderthals, Denisovans and homo sapiens met one another 50,000 years ago, these archaic and modern humans not only interbred during the thousands of years in which they overlapped, but they exchanged ideas that led to a surge in creativity, according to a leading academic.

Psychedelic therapy could ‘reset’ depressed brain
16th March 2021 | bbc.co.uk | Humans, Misc.

A powerful hallucinogenic drug known for its part in shamanic rituals is being trialled as a potential cure for depression for the first time.

What fueled humans’ big brains? Controversial paper proposes new hypothesis.
14th March 2021 | livescience.com | Ancient, Humans

Over the course of the Pleistocene epoch, between 2.6 million years ago and 11,700 years ago, the brains of humans and their relatives grew. Now, scientists from Tel Aviv University have a new hypothesis as to why: As the largest animals on the landscape disappeared, the scientists propose, human brains had to grow to enable the hunting of smaller, swifter prey.

Scientists Have Unlocked the Secrets of the Ancient ‘Antikythera Mechanism’
14th March 2021 | vice.com | Ancient, Humans

A digital model has revealed a complex planetarium on the ancient device’s face. “Unless it’s from outer space, we have to find a way in which the Greeks could have made it,” researchers say.

From cats to cows to crocodiles, ancient Egyptians worshipped many animal gods
14th March 2021 | nationalgeographic.com | Ancient, Animal Life, Humans

Sobek, crocodile-headed god of the Nile; Sekhmet, leonine goddess of war; Anubis, jackal god of the underworld; and Hathor, mother goddess with a cow’s horns: The ancient Egyptian pantheon of gods was filled with divine animals.

‘The ketamine blew my mind’: can psychedelics cure addiction and depression?
14th March 2021 | theguardian.com | Humans, Misc.

This week sees the opening of the first UK high-street clinic offering psychedelic-assisted therapy. Could popping psilocybin be the future of mental healthcare?

Suspicions on True Origin of World’s Oldest ‘Impact Crater’ Have Now Been Confirmed
14th March 2021 | sciencealert.com | Ancient, Earth, Humans

Earth and giant meteorites go way back, but new research confirms that what had been proposed as the oldest impact crater on the planet – the 100-kilometer (62-mile) wide Maniitsoq structure – isn’t actually an impact crater at all.

What Did I Come in Here For? New Study Explains The Weird ‘Doorway Effect’
12th March 2021 | sciencealert.com | Humans, Weird

If you’ve ever walked into a room, then completely forgotten what you went in there for, you’ve experienced what’s known as the doorway effect: it’s almost as if the mind blanks itself as you change location, ready for some fresh experience or input.

Bronze age burial site in Spain suggests women were among rulers
12th March 2021 | theguardian.com | Ancient, Humans

A burial site found in Spain – described by archaeologists as one of the most lavish bronze age graves discovered to date in Europe – has sparked speculation that women may have been among the rulers of a highly stratified society….

A Wild Experiment Just Got Us Closer to Exploring Extra Dimensions
12th March 2021 | vice.com | Humans, Weird
Scientists have measured the smallest gravitational field yet, which has big implications for future research into dark matter, quantum gravity, and the possibility of extra dimensions.
Mexico Set to Legalize Marijuana, Becoming World’s Largest Market
12th March 2021 | nytimes.com | Humans, Misc.

Lawmakers in Mexico have approved a bill to legalize recreational cannabis, but in a country still marred by a deadly drug war, the proposal has proved divisive.

Scythian people weren’t just nomadic warriors, but sometimes settled down
12th March 2021 | eurekalert.org | Ancient, Humans

Scythian people of ancient Ukraine led more complex lives than commonly assumed, according to a study published March 10, 2021.

Rare meteorite chunk traced by scientists to Gloucestershire driveway
10th March 2021 | theguardian.com | Ancient, Humans, Space

A lump of a rare meteorite that lit up the night sky over the UK and northern Europe last week has been recovered from a driveway in Gloucestershire.

Neanderthals disappeared from Europe thousands of years earlier than we thought
10th March 2021 edition.cnn.com | Ancient, Humans

Neanderthal remains believed to belong to some of the last survivors of the species in Europe are thousands of years older than once thought, according to a new study.

News stories covering humans, psychology and health.