When the journalist Roger Lewin in 1987 dubbed the common maternal ancestor of all people living today “ Mitochondrial Eve ,” he evoked a creation story —that of a woman who was the mother of us all...
The annual meeting of the American Association of Physical Anthropologists held at the end of March in Cleveland, Ohio, was eagerly awaited by those with an interest in human origins as it would be...
A study has made a startling claim. It argues that an extinct species of humans, the Denisovans , may have mated with modern humans ( Homo sapiens ) as late as 15,000 years ago. This claim is based...
The Druze are a secretive surviving Gnostic community in the Middle East today who publicly claim homogeneity with Islam due to a historical fear of persecution. In truth, they have nothing in common...
As science progresses and archaeologists are forging new positive relationships with developers around Irish heritage, more secrets from Ireland’s Viking past are coming to light, and they are not...
An international team of researchers have analyzed ancient DNA from almost 300 individuals from the Iberian Peninsula, spanning more than 12,000 years, in two studies published today in Current...
Modern humans, Homo Sapiens , are now the only surviving member of the homo genus. It is almost inconceivable to us that there was a time we walked with other human species, but as the science of...
There have been a number of high-profile reconstructions of historical figures recently and it seems like whenever a reconstruction is shared there is controversy and argument about whether the...
Detailed data and minute details have both fed into an exhibition taking place In the English city of Brighton, that offers people a chance to see not only physical cultural items, but their ancient...
Niall Noígíallach or Niall of the Nine Hostages in English, was an Irish king believed to have lived during the 4th / 5th century. The Uí Néill dynasties, which dominated the northern part of Ireland...
University College London / Science Daily Skin color is one of the most visible and variable traits among humans and scientists have always been curious about how this variation evolved. Now, a study...
By Christina Troelsen / Science Daily Researchers from Aarhus University, Denmark, and Copenhagen Zoo have discovered that the human mutation rate is significantly slower than for our closest primate...
Scientists drilling into Mercer Lake, a Subglacial Antarctic lake locked beneath 3500 feet (one kilometer) of ice have discovered the ancient carcasses of tiny animals including “water bears,” in a...
By combining deep learning algorithms and statistical methods, investigators from the Institute of Evolutionary Biology (IBE), the Centro Nacional de Análisis Genómico (CNAG-CRG) of the Centre for...
University of Sheffield Scientists at the University of Sheffield studying ancient DNA have created a tool allowing them to more accurately identify ancient Eurasian populations, which can be used to...
New research using ancient DNA is rewriting the genetic history of two ancient peoples; the Hindus and the Jews - and it shows that their two religious civilizations are the result of multiple...
A new twist in the mapping of early human migrations into North and South America has occurred after DNA samples from the 10,000-year-old “Spirit Cave mummy,” unearthed in a cave in Nevada, revealed...
Before the Inuit’s ancestors conquered the Arctic region of what we now call Canada and Greenland, there is evidence of another remarkable Paleo-Eskimo culture– the Dorset. Soon after the arrival of...
In 2010 the existence of a previously unknown archaic human population was revealed following the DNA sequencing of a finger bone over 41,000 years old. It was discovered in 2008 in the Denisova Cave...
A worldwide team of archaeologists, geneticists, and forensic scientists have been assembled in Jamestown, Virginia to identify the remains of a headless body found in a church dating back to 1617...
The identity of the woman who sat for Leonardo da Vinci’s world renowned painting, The Mona Lisa, is a mystery that researchers have long sought an answer to. Most experts believe the woman depicted...
We’re living in an age when many people believe there are no limits to what technology can do. Apply that to paleogenetics and you’ll see research into ancient disease, the domestication of animals,...
If you managed to time travel back to Ice-Age Europe, you might be forgiven for thinking you had instead crash landed in some desolate part of the African savannah. But the chilly temperatures and...
As science progresses and archaeologists are forging new positive relationships with developers around Irish heritage, more secrets from Ireland’s Viking past are coming to light, and they are not...