Humans news stories

Children with autism show improvement after being treated with cannabidiol-rich medicinal cannabis
8th December 2022 | psypost.org | Humans, Misc.

A study of children with autism spectrum disorders in Israel reported significant improvements in their social communication abilities after six months of treatment with cannabidiol-rich cannabis oil… The study was published in Translational Psychiatry.

Ancient stone tools from China provide earliest evidence of rice harvesting
8th December 2022 phys.org | Ancient, Humans

A new Dartmouth College-led study analyzing stone tools from southern China provides the earliest evidence of rice harvesting, dating to as early as 10,000 years ago

Man holding penis and flanked by leopards is world’s oldest narrative carving
8th December 2022 | livescience.com | Ancient, Humans

An 11,000-year-old rock-cut relief in southeastern Turkey featuring menacing animals and two men, one of whom is holding his genitalia, is the oldest narrative scene on record, a new study suggests

UN calls for ‘peace pact with nature’
7th December 2022 | bbc.co.uk | Animal Life, Earth, Humans

Humanity has become a weapon of mass extinction,” the head of the United Nations has warned at the start of a high-level nature summit in Canada.

Jawbone may represent earliest presence of humans in Europe
7th December 2022 phys.org | Ancient, Humans

For over a century, one of the earliest human fossils ever discovered in Spain has been long considered a Neandertal. However, new analysis…dismantles this century-long interpretation, demonstrating that this fossil is not a Neandertal; rather, it may actually represent the earliest presence of Homo sapiens ever documented in Europe.

Study on LSD microdosing uncovers neuropsychological mechanisms that could underlie anti-depressant effects
5th December 2022 | psypost.org | Humans, Misc.

A single, low dose of  lysergic acid diethylamide (LSD) can increase reward-related brain activity, according to new research published in Neuropsychopharmacology. The study indicates that the psychedelic drug alters neuropsychological processes that tend to be blunted in patients with depression.

Search for alien life just got 1,000 times bigger after new telescope joins the hunt
5th December 2022 | livescience.com | Humans, Space, Tech

Astronomers searching for radio signals that could be signs of extraterrestrial life have just gained access to South Africa’s MeerKAT telescope.

Colossal Discovery on Mars Could Drive Surging Magma Under The Surface
5th December 2022 | sciencealert.com | Humans, Space

Scientists may have just identified the culprit behind signs of recently active volcanism on Mars. Beneath a broad plain called the Elysium Planitia, a colossal, 4,000-kilometer (roughly 2,500-mile) wide convection plume in the Martian mantle could be driving molten magma up as far as the surface.

Owl-shaped plaques may have been on Copper Age children’s wish list
2nd December 2022 phys.org | Ancient, Humans

Ancient owl-shaped slate engraved plaques, dating from about 5,000 years ago in the Iberian Peninsula, may have been created by children as toys, suggests a paper published in Scientific Reports.

Ancient skull uncovered in China could be million-year-old Homo erectus
1st December 2022 | nature.com | Ancient, Humans

Researchers are heralding the discovery of an ancient human skull in central China as an important find. As excavation of the remarkably intact fossil continues, archaeologists and palaeoanthropologists anticipate that the skull could give a fuller picture of the diverse family tree of archaic humans living throughout Eurasia in prehistoric times.

Focus on ancient campus mounds provides insight into Middle Archaic lifestyles
1st December 2022 phys.org | Ancient, Humans

Recent papers have offered alternate interpretations of their age. Knowing the approximate age of the mounds provides significant insight into the people who built the mounds. Archaeologists have built “culture histories” describing prehistoric ways of life and the way lifestyles have changed through time.

Findings from 2,000-year-old Uluburun shipwreck reveal complex trade network
1st December 2022 phys.org | Ancient, Humans

More than 2,000 years before the Titanic sunk in the North Atlantic Ocean, another famous ship wrecked in the Mediterranean Sea off the eastern shores of Uluburun—in present-day Turkey— carrying tons of rare metal.

Archeologists Rediscover an Ancient Peruvian Fresco That Hasn’t Been Seen In 106 Years
1st December 2022 | sciencealert.com | Ancient, Humans

Archeologists have rediscovered a pre-Hispanic fresco depicting mythological scenes in northern Peru that they had only seen in black and white photographs that were more than a century old.

One of Europe’s most ancient domestic dogs lived in the Basque Country
29th November 2022 phys.org | Ancient, Animal Life, Humans

The dog is the first species domesticated by humans, although the geographical and temporal origin of wolf domestication remains a matter of debate.

Octopus Brains Evolved to Share a Surprising Trait in With Our Brains
27th November 2022 | sciencealert.com | Ancient, Animal Life, Humans

Our glorious little blue marble of a planet is filled with an astonishingly diverse array of lifeforms, but some are definitely more peculiar than others.

Amygdala connectivity predicts ketamine treatment response among patients with anxious depression
25th November 2022 | psypost.org | Humans, Misc.

A brain region known as the amygdala could play a key role in predicting symptom improvement following ketamine therapy in patients with treatment-resistant anxious depression, according to new research published in the Journal of Affective Disorders.

News stories covering humans, psychology and health.