Anthropology

  1. a fossilized ape jaw on a black background. The jaw has several discolored teeth
    Anthropology

    Fossil finds put gibbons in Asia as early as 8 million years ago

    Specimens from China raise questions about the evolutionary ID of an even older ape tooth from India.

    By Bruce Bower
  2. black and white illustration of buildings at the ancient settlement Abu Hureyra
    Anthropology

    Humans may have started tending animals almost 13,000 years ago

    Remnants from an ancient fire pit in Syria suggest that hunter-gatherers were burning dung as fuel by the end of the Old Stone Age.

    By Richard Kemeny
  3. image of a young adult’s skeleton with the lower left leg absent
    Anthropology

    The oldest known surgical amputation occurred 31,000 years ago

    A young adult on the island of Borneo survived a lower left leg removal thanks to medically savvy rainforest surgeons.

    By Bruce Bower
  4. An engraving of Hercules capturing the three-headed dog Cerberus with a rope around its neck amidst mysterious flames
    Anthropology

    How mythology could help demystify dog domestication

    The path that dog myths took around the world closely parallels that of dog domestication, a new study finds.

    By Elyse DeFranco
  5. 3-D models of an upper leg bone and two forearm bones, each shown from two angles
    Anthropology

    7-million-year-old limb fossils may be from the earliest known hominid

    An earlier report on one of the bones of a 7-million-year-old creature that may have walked upright has triggered scientific misconduct charges.

    By Bruce Bower
  6. a grayscale drawing of native Hawaiians rowing long boats, one of which has a sail
    Anthropology

    ‘The Five-Million-Year Odyssey’ reveals how migration shaped humankind

    A globe-trotting trek through history shows how past population migrations changed the course of human biology and culture.

    By Bruce Bower
  7. a child holding a glass of milk grimaces
    Anthropology

    Famine and disease may have driven ancient Europeans’ lactose tolerance

    Dealing with food shortages and infections over thousands of years, not widespread milk consumption, may be how an ability to digest dairy evolved.

    By Bruce Bower
  8. a 14,000-year-old partial skull of an ancient hominid shown from multiple angles
    Humans

    Ancient DNA links an East Asian Homo sapiens woman to early Americans

    Genetic clues point to a Late Stone Age trek from southwestern China to North America.

    By Bruce Bower
  9. Anthropology

    Demond Mullins climbed Everest to inspire more Black outdoor enthusiasts

    Mullins hopes his successful Mount Everest summit will encourage more Black people to experience the great outdoors.

    By Melba Newsome
  10. Two people hug outside a sign that reads ROBB ELEMENTARY SCHOOL. There are flowers all around the sign.
    Psychology

    The idea that many people grow following trauma may be a myth

    Studies of posttraumatic growth are fundamentally flawed and can contribute to toxic cultural narratives, researchers say.

    By Sujata Gupta
  11. portrait of brown chicken with lots of head feathers
    Anthropology

    A new origin story for domesticated chickens starts in rice fields 3,500 years ago

    Chickens, popular on today’s menus, got their start in Southeast Asia surprisingly recently, probably as exotic or revered animals, researchers say.

    By Bruce Bower
  12. a fossil tooth that may have belonged to a Denisovan girl, shown from multiple angles
    Anthropology

    A Denisovan girl’s fossil tooth may have been unearthed in Laos

    A molar adds to suspicions that mysterious hominids called Denisovans inhabited Southeast Asia's tropical forests.

    By Bruce Bower