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A 240-million-year-old fossil just changed the dinosaur timeline

A newly identified 240-million-year-old animal from Tanzania is forcing scientists to rethink the early dinosaur timeline. Dinodontosaurus isiyavamanda belongs to a group previously known only from...

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This Australian cave hid 25,000 years of ritual secrets

Microscopic plant remains are revealing how GunaiKurnai ancestors used Cloggs Cave for ritual practices over thousands of years. People deliberately gathered whole grasses, carried them into the dark...

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UV light reveals possible camouflage on a 125-million-year-old crocodile

A 125-million-year-old crocodile fossil has revealed preserved skin, possible sensory organs, sophisticated respiratory structures, and an unexpected pattern on its tail. Ultraviolet light exposed...

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Plague was killing entire families thousands of years before the Black Death

Ancient DNA reveals that plague was already killing hunter-gatherers in Siberia 5,500 years ago, long before cities and flea-driven epidemics. The prehistoric strains may have been especially dangerous...

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One Mount Etna eruption took weeks. Another happened in hours

Mount Etna’s ancient eruptions followed radically different paths, with some magma lingering near the surface for weeks while other magma raced upward from nearly 30 kilometers deep in just hours....

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66-million-year-old feather in dinosaur poop may reveal why birds survived...

A feather discovered inside 66-million-year-old fossilized dinosaur poop may help explain why modern birds survived the asteroid catastrophe. The extinct bird it came from had more primitive insulating...

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Archaeologists find a 3,000-year-old Egyptian tomb before it’s too late

While clearing debris to protect ancient Egyptian tombs from flash floods, researchers near Luxor stumbled upon an unknown 3,000-year-old tomb. Its remarkably preserved paintings depict an official...

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DNA solves the mystery of a body found in the Arctic in 1859

Scientists have used DNA from living descendants to identify four more members of the doomed Franklin expedition, including Harry Peglar, whose identity had remained uncertain for 166 years. The...

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Ancient teeth reveal humans were getting high 25,000 years ago

Ancient human remains from Sulawesi suggest people were habitually using the psychoactive betel nut as far back as 25,000 years ago. Researchers found both unusual tooth wear and traces of arecoline,...

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400,000-year-old teeth reveal a hidden link in human evolution

More than 400,000-year-old Homo erectus teeth from China may reveal a surprising link between this ancient human species, Denisovans, and some modern people. Scientists found protein mutations...

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Devil’s Arrows: Ancient builders hauled 55,000-pound stones 11 miles for...

Britain’s towering Devil’s Arrows were built from 25-tonne stones hauled at least 18 kilometers from Brimham Rocks around 4,000 years ago. The discovery reveals an astonishing feat of prehistoric...

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Giant new dinosaur discovered beneath construction site in Brazil

Scientists have identified a giant new dinosaur from Brazil that reached about 20 meters long and lived 120 million years ago. Its surprising evolutionary ties to a Spanish dinosaur suggest its...

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A War of 1812 soldier buried his own arm. His real story is even stranger

A rediscovered memoir reveals that celebrated War of 1812 veteran Shadrack Byfield was far more rebellious and troubled than history has portrayed, battling chronic pain, poverty, authorities, and even...

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80,000-year-old “arrowheads” rewrite human history

Archaeologists have identified tiny 80,000-year-old projectile points in Uzbekistan that may have been used like arrowheads. Their size, design, and impact damage closely resemble weapons found much...

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A coffee-table-size scorpion roamed Earth before forests existed

A meter-long scorpion with massive pincers stalked ancient Britain 415 million years ago, long before forests and the better-known age of giant insects. Its surprising size and possible semi-aquatic...

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Fossil feet may be misleading scientists about human evolution

Wild monkeys in West Africa can climb vertical tree trunks using foot flexibility scientists did not realize they possessed. The discovery challenges a key assumption about what the last common...

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1.4-million-year-old footprints reveal a surprisingly large human relative

Ancient footprints in Kenya reveal that eight Paranthropus boisei may have traveled together 1.4 million years ago, with some individuals reaching surprisingly large, human-like body sizes. The tracks...

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Ancient Egyptian princesses were buried with weapons. Their bones reveal why

Weapons buried with ancient Egyptian princesses may have been more than ceremonial decorations. Researchers studying royal mummies from Dahshur found bone changes consistent with years of archery and...

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324-million-year-old fossil reveals how insects conquered land

Ancient fossils suggest insects conquered land through a long amphibious phase rather than making an abrupt jump from water to dry ground. A newly identified 324-million-year-old species still carried...

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Three forgotten kings could rewrite the history of ancient Assyria

Three forgotten Assyrian kings may have been hiding in plain sight for more than 2,700 years. By piecing together clues from tablets, inscriptions, and an ancient statue, researchers argue that these...

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