Latest science news in Paleontology & Archaeology
New insights into the life of the Maya
(PhysOrg.com) -- Ancient artifacts are almost always concerned with rich and powerful religious and political leaders, but new excavations of an ancient Maya site have unearthed a pyramid decorated with...
Scientists nose out clue to preserving books: their smell
The complex perfume of ageing books has been broken down into its component chemicals by research that could assist conservatorsThe dusty smell of old books is one of the joys of visiting...
Study: Africa's Congo Basis once treeless
DALLAS, Nov. 12 (UPI) -- A U.S. paleontology student says he has determined central Africa's tropical Congo Basin was arid and treeless during the Late Jurassic period.
Ancient penguin DNA raises doubts about accuracy of genetic dating techniques
Penguins that died 44,000 years ago in Antarctica have provided extraordinary frozen DNA samples that challenge the accuracy of traditional genetic aging measurements, and suggest those approaches have been routinely...
Vatican Ponders Alien Life
Questions of life's origins and of whether life exists elsewhere to be studied.
A motley collection of boneworms
MOSS LANDING, CA -- It sounds like a classic horror story -- eyeless, mouthless worms lurk in the dark, settling onto dead animals and sending out green "roots"...
Small ancestor of giant sauropods unearthed
Fossils suggest bipedal dinosaur occasionally walked on all fours, could open its mouth wide to gather foliage
New Fossil Plant Discovery Links Patagonia To New Guinea In A Warmer Past
Fossil plants provide clues as to what our planet looked like millions of years ago. Identifying fossil plants can be tricky, however, when plant organs fail to be preserved. Researchers...
Arabian "Sea Cows" Going Hungry?
Along the coast of Abu Dhabi, development is spilling into the sea, smothering the sea grass beds that nourish rare marine mammals called dugongs. Video.
King Tut's tomb to get makeover
Mysterious brown spots in the Tomb of Tutankhamun will be investigated during a five-year restoration project.
Eager gamers line up for 'Modern Warfare 2'
(AP) -- Ryan Norwalk has cleared his schedule. The 26-year-old California State University student plans to spend Tuesday gunning down foes in "Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2," the...
Learning from creationism | Andrew Brown
The spread of creationism, and climate denialism is not the result of gullibility but of mistrustIt's easy to suppose that the whole vast apparatus of modern creationism has taught us nothing at...
Asteroid impact could have stirred the ocean
Model offers one explanation for sudden change in deep-ocean chemistry almost 2 billion years ago
Look ma, no mercury in fillings!
Tooth enamel is hardest material in the human body because it's made almost entirely of minerals. As tough as it may be, however, enamel can be broken down by bacteria,...
Penile tissue implants deemed success
WINSTON-SALEM, N.C., Nov. 10 (UPI) -- U.S. researchers say they have been able to grow new penile tissue in labs and implant it into rabbits to restore their sexual...
Excavation unravels mysteries of men's gymnasium's demise during 1906 earthquake
More than a year into an excavation project of the men's gymnasium that was destroyed by the 1906 earthquake, university archaeologist Laura Jones' team has unearthed evidence suggesting why the...
Ice cream researchers making sweet strides with 'functional foods'
COLUMBIA, Mo. -- A comfort food, a tasty treat, an indulgence -- ice cream conjures feelings of happiness and satisfaction for millions.
Close encounters of the faked kind
Psychologist Chris French explains why he believes The Fourth Kind is dangerously misleading twaddleThe Fourth Kind is, in so many ways, a really awful film. Directed by Olatunde Osunsanmi and released in the...
National Briefing | Rockies: Montana: Campus Ban on Tobacco
The University of Montana is proposing a campuswide ban on all forms of tobacco.
Major bed bug spike hits Toronto
Toronto is experiencing a dramatic spike in the number of bed bug infestations, according to a new report.
Human origins: Our crazy family tree
Fossils reveal evolution could take our relatives in bizarre directions, involving skulls resembling nutcrackers and miniature bodies resembling the hobbits of "Lord of The Rings."
Observatory: Hogwarts Namesake Faces Loss of Status
Stygimoloch spinifer and Dracorex hogwartsia may be two growth stages of Pachycephalosaurus wyomingensis, two paleontologists argued.
Stateside Home Is Proposed for South Pole Dome
A small group of science station veterans is trying to preserve a geodesic dome that sheltered scientists and supported workers at the South Pole for three decades.
Maya Murals Give Rare View of Everyday Life
Murals uncovered in ancient Mayan mound give rare glimpse at everyday life.
Monday Puzzle: You Can't Fight Density... er, Destiny
In this fictitious sequence of events, love sours and Tom Cruise tosses the golden statue given to him by his estranged wife, Nicole Kidman, into the lake. Will the water...
3 IVF attempts double chances
Just one in three women gives birth after a single IVF attempt, but the cumulative chance of a live birth increases with each cycle - where women are offered three...
This treasure stirs the West Midlands' Anglo-Saxon soul | Tristram Hunt
The Staffordshire hoard has brought history to life in modern-day Mercia – and it is here that the collection has to returnFrom the Lindisfarne gospels to the Lewis chessmen, much of British...
'Last chance' for tuna authority
The body charged with conserving Atlantic tuna has a "final chance" to get things right at its meeting, the US commissioner says.