http://www.sciencedaily.com/news/fossils_ruins/ Articles in anthropology, archaeology, evolution theory and paleontology. Read the latest discoveries from archaeological sites and research institutes around the world. Images, updated daily. en-us Wed, 16 May 2012 16:05:02 EDT Wed, 16 May 2012 16:05:02 EDT 60 http://www.sciencedaily.com/images/logosmall.gif http://www.sciencedaily.com/news/fossils_ruins/ For more science articles, visit ScienceDaily. http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2012/05/120516120304.htm Today's mega forest fires of the southwestern U.S. are truly unusual and exceptional in the long-term record, suggests an unprecedented study that examined 1,500 years of ancient tree ring and fire data from two distinct climate periods. Researchers constructed and analyzed a statistical model and found that today's dry, hot climate combined with the past century of human fire suppression is causing megafires. Wed, 16 May 2012 12:03:03 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2012/05/120516120304.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2012/05/120515203019.htm Imagine having arthritis in your jaw bones ... if they're over 2 meters long! A new study has found signs of a degenerative condition similar to human arthritis in the jaw of a pliosaur, an ancient sea reptile that lived 150 million years ago. Such a disease has never been described before in fossilized Jurassic reptiles. Tue, 15 May 2012 20:30:30 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2012/05/120515203019.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2012/05/120514153113.htm Amber from the Cretaceous period found in Spain has revealed the first ever fossil record of insect pollination. Scientists discovered and studied with X-rays at the ESRF a specimen of a tiny insect covered with pollen grains. This is the first record of pollen transport and social behavior in this group of animals. Mon, 14 May 2012 15:31:31 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2012/05/120514153113.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2012/05/120514152952.htm Anthropologists working in southern France have determined that a 1.5 metric ton block of engraved limestone constitutes the earliest evidence of wall art. Their research shows the piece to be approximately 37,000 years old and offers rich evidence of the role art played in the daily lives of Early Aurignacian humans. Mon, 14 May 2012 15:29:29 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2012/05/120514152952.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2012/05/120511101352.htm A new species of photosynthetic bacterium has come to light: it is able to control the formation of minerals (calcium, magnesium, barium and strontium carbonates) within its own organism. This is a new type of biomineralization, whose mechanism is still unknown. This finding has important implications for the interpretation of the ancient fossil record. Fri, 11 May 2012 10:13:13 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2012/05/120511101352.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2012/05/120510141953.htm A vast city built by the ancient Maya and discovered nearly a century ago is finally starting to yield its secrets. Excavating for the first time in the sprawling complex of Xultún in Guatemala's Petén region, archaeologists have uncovered a structure that contains what appears to be a work space for the town's scribe, its walls adorned with unique paintings -- one depicting a lineup of men in black uniforms -- and hundreds of scrawled numbers. Many are calculations relating to the Maya calendar. Thu, 10 May 2012 14:19:19 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2012/05/120510141953.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2012/05/120510141905.htm Excavating for the first time in the sprawling complex of Xultún in Guatemala's Petén region, a team of archaeologists have discovered a house in which inside wall are covered with tiny red and black glyphs that appear to represent the various calendrical cycles charted that extend beyond 2012. Thu, 10 May 2012 14:19:19 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2012/05/120510141905.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2012/05/120510124007.htm Evidence for a forgotten ancient language which dates back more than 2,500 years, to the time of the Assyrian Empire, has been found by archaeologists working in Turkey. Researchers working at Ziyaret Tepe, the probable site of the ancient Assyrian city of Tušhan, believe that the language may have been spoken by deportees originally from the Zagros Mountains, on the border of modern-day Iran and Iraq. Thu, 10 May 2012 12:40:40 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2012/05/120510124007.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2012/05/120509180044.htm Researchers compare ancient, modern whale DNA to investigate discrepancies between genetic data and historical estimates. Wed, 09 May 2012 18:00:00 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2012/05/120509180044.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2012/05/120509092801.htm Researchers working in remote Cambodian mountains are shedding new light on the lost history of an unidentified people by studying their enigmatic burial rituals. Wed, 09 May 2012 09:28:28 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2012/05/120509092801.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2012/05/120509092522.htm Two skulls with perforations have been exhumed in the area of Gormaz in Soria, Spain. They have been dated from the 13th and 14th centuries -- a period in which trepanation was not commonly practiced.  One woman lived for a length of time after a hole was made through her skull. Wed, 09 May 2012 09:25:25 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2012/05/120509092522.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2012/05/120509092517.htm Scientists have found a new ursid fossil species in the area of Nombrevilla in Zaragoza, Spain. Agriarctos beatrix was a small plantigrade omnivore and was genetically related to giant pandas, according to researchers. Wed, 09 May 2012 09:25:25 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2012/05/120509092517.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2012/05/120508152131.htm New research explores the importance of the ballgame to ancient Mesoamerican societies. Dr. Blomster's findings show how the discovery of a ballplayer figurine in the Mixteca Alta region of Oaxaca demonstrates the early participation of the region in the iconography and ideology of the game, a point that had not been previously documented by other researchers. Tue, 08 May 2012 15:21:21 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2012/05/120508152131.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2012/05/120508151958.htm Though they evolved separately over millions of years in different worlds of darkness, bats and toothed whales use surprisingly similar acoustic behavior to locate, track, and capture prey using echolocation, the biological equivalent of sonar. Now researchers have shown that the acoustic behavior of these two types of animals while hunting is eerily similar. Tue, 08 May 2012 15:19:19 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2012/05/120508151958.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2012/05/120508112844.htm A basic tenet underpinning scientists' understanding of extinction is that more abundant species persist longer than their less abundant counterparts. A new study reveals a much more complex relationship. A team of scientists analyzed more than 46,000 fossils from 52 sites and found that greater numbers did indeed help clam-like brachiopods survive the Ordovician extinction. Surprisingly, abundance did not help brachiopod species persist for extended periods outside of the extinction event. Tue, 08 May 2012 11:28:28 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2012/05/120508112844.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2012/05/120508103803.htm Archaeologists have discovered objects that for the first time shed light on how a cult was organized in Judah at the time of King David. During recent archaeological excavations at Khirbet Qeiyafa, a fortified city in Judah adjacent to the Valley of Elah, Garfinkel and colleagues uncovered rich assemblages of pottery, stone and metal tools, and many art and cult objects. Tue, 08 May 2012 10:38:38 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2012/05/120508103803.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2012/05/120508094358.htm Scientists have used DNA analysis to gain important new insights into how human beings repopulated Europe as the Ice Age relaxed its grip.  Tue, 08 May 2012 09:43:43 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2012/05/120508094358.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2012/05/120508094354.htm A large neonate brain, rapid brain growth and large frontal lobes are the typical hallmarks of human brain development. These appeared much earlier in the hominin family tree than was originally thought, as anthropologists who re-examined the Taung child’s fossil cranial sutures and compared them with other fossil skulls now demonstrate. The late fusion of the cranial sutures in the Taung child is also found in many other members of the Australopithecus africanus species and the earliest examples of the Homo genus. Tue, 08 May 2012 09:43:43 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2012/05/120508094354.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2012/05/120507154107.htm New research indicates that domestic horses originated in the steppes of modern-day Ukraine, southwest Russia and west Kazakhstan, mixing with local wild stocks as they spread throughout Europe and Asia. Mon, 07 May 2012 15:41:41 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2012/05/120507154107.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2012/05/120507154025.htm One of the world's most important fossils has a story to tell about the brain evolution of modern humans and their ancestors, according to new research. The Taung fossil -- the first australopithecine ever discovered -- has two significant features that were analyzed by anthropological researchers. Their findings suggest brain evolution was a result of a complex set of interrelated dynamics in childbirth among new bipeds. Mon, 07 May 2012 15:40:40 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2012/05/120507154025.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2012/05/120507151209.htm One popular climate record that shows a slower atmospheric warming trend than other studies contains a data calibration problem, and when the problem is corrected the results fall in line with other records and climate models, according to a new study. Mon, 07 May 2012 15:12:12 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2012/05/120507151209.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2012/05/120507102352.htm Modern-day orangutans are host to ancient jumping genes called Alu, which are more than 16 million years old. The study was done in collaboration with the Zoological Society of San Diego and the Institute of Systems Biology in Seattle and is featured in the new open access journal Mobile DNA. Mon, 07 May 2012 10:23:23 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2012/05/120507102352.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2012/05/120507102324.htm Sauropod dinosaurs could in principle have produced enough of the greenhouse gas methane to warm the climate many millions of years ago, at a time when the Earth was warm and wet. That's according to calculations reported in the May 8 issue of Current Biology, a Cell Press publication. Mon, 07 May 2012 10:23:23 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2012/05/120507102324.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2012/05/120504171913.htm A crocodile large enough to swallow humans once lived in East Africa, according to new research. It may have exceeded 27 feet in length. By comparison, the largest recorded Nile crocodile was less than 21 feet, and most are much smaller. Fri, 04 May 2012 17:19:19 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2012/05/120504171913.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2012/05/120503153929.htm A new study that determined the age of skeletal remains provides evidence humans reached the Western Hemisphere during the last ice age and lived alongside giant extinct mammals. The study addresses the century-long debate among scientists about whether human and mammal remains found at Vero Beach in the early 1900s date to the same time period. Using rare earth element analysis to measure the concentration of naturally occurring metals absorbed during fossilization, researchers show modern humans in North America co-existed with large extinct mammals about 13,000 years ago, including mammoths, mastodons and giant ground sloths. Thu, 03 May 2012 15:39:39 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2012/05/120503153929.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2012/05/120503142534.htm Male water striders benefit by mating frequently, females by mating infrequently: both have developed traits to give them the upper hand. The researchers modified a gene involved in the development of antennae in male water striders and found that as the antennae became more elaborate, mating success increased. The study is unusual in that it describes a direct linkage between known forces of selection, evolutionary change morphology, and its underlying genetic basis. Thu, 03 May 2012 14:25:25 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2012/05/120503142534.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2012/05/120503125804.htm A partial, duplicate copy of a gene appears to be responsible for the critical features of the human brain that distinguish us from our closest primate kin. The momentous gene duplication event occurred about two or three million years ago, at a critical transition in the evolution of the human lineage, according to a pair of new studies. Thu, 03 May 2012 12:58:58 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2012/05/120503125804.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2012/05/120503125720.htm Scientists have shown that an extra copy of a brain-development gene, which appeared in our ancestors’ genomes about 2.4 million years ago, allowed maturing neurons to migrate farther and develop more connections. Thu, 03 May 2012 12:57:57 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2012/05/120503125720.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2012/05/120503120126.htm The phrase "battle of the sexes" is taking on new meaning in research that has implications for our understanding of evolution. In a new paper, scientists examine the role of genital spines in the reproductive success of a species of fruit fly. Their investigation identifies the specific type of advantage these spines bestow in the competition to reproduce. Thu, 03 May 2012 12:01:01 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2012/05/120503120126.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2012/05/120502184838.htm While we may brush and floss tirelessly and our dentists may scrape and pick at our teeth to minimize the formation of plaque known as tartar or dental calculus, anthropologists may be rejoicing at the fact that past civilizations were not so careful with dental hygiene. Researchers have discovered that particles of plaque removed from teeth of ancient populations may provide clues about their diets. Wed, 02 May 2012 18:48:48 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2012/05/120502184838.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2012/05/120502141132.htm His DNA has been decoded; samples from his stomach and intestines have allowed us to reconstruct his very last meal. The circumstances of his violent death appear to have been explained. However, what had, at least thus far, eluded the scientists, was identifying any traces of blood in Ötzi, the 5,000-year-old glacier mummy. Examination of his aorta had yielded no results. Yet recently, a team of scientists from Italy and Germany, using nanotechnology, succeeded in locating red blood cells in Ötzi's wounds, thereby discovering the oldest traces of blood to have been found anywhere in the world. Wed, 02 May 2012 14:11:11 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2012/05/120502141132.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2012/05/120502133110.htm Coelacanths, an ancient group of fishes once thought to be long extinct, made headlines in 1938 when one of their modern relatives was caught off the coast of South Africa. Now coelacanths are making another splash. Wed, 02 May 2012 13:31:31 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2012/05/120502133110.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2012/05/120502123424.htm A new study has found that each step of the marine food chain is clearly controlled by the trophic level below it -- and the driving factor influencing that relationship is not the abundance of prey, but how that prey is distributed. Wed, 02 May 2012 12:34:34 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2012/05/120502123424.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2012/05/120502112606.htm Maximum running speed is the most important variable influencing mammalian eye size other than body size, according to new research. Wed, 02 May 2012 11:26:26 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2012/05/120502112606.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2012/05/120502091828.htm Researchers have for the first time succeeded in discovering the optimal escape response of fish using a supercomputer. The aim was to test whether the escape mechanism of small fish, developed in the course of evolution, is optimal for achieving the maximum escape distance in a short time. Wed, 02 May 2012 09:18:18 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2012/05/120502091828.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2012/05/120501204839.htm Thirty-seven skeletons found in a mass burial site in the grounds of St John's College may not be who they initially seemed, according to Oxford researchers studying the remains. Tue, 01 May 2012 20:48:48 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2012/05/120501204839.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2012/05/120501162730.htm It takes a gutsy insect to sneak up on a huge dinosaur while it sleeps, crawl onto its soft underbelly and give it a bite that might have felt like a needle going in -- but giant "flea-like" animals, possibly the oldest of their type ever discovered, probably did just that. Tue, 01 May 2012 16:27:27 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2012/05/120501162730.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2012/05/120501134159.htm Despite years of intensive research about the extinction of non-avian dinosaurs about 65.5 million years ago, a fundamental question remains: Were dinosaurs already undergoing a long-term decline before an asteroid hit at the end of the Cretaceous? A new study suggests that in general, large-bodied, "bulk-feeding" herbivores were declining during the last 12 million years of the Cretaceous. But carnivorous dinosaurs and mid-sized herbivores were not. Tue, 01 May 2012 13:41:41 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2012/05/120501134159.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2012/04/120430152037.htm New evidence demonstrates that humans are continuing to evolve and that significant natural and sexual selection is still taking place in our species in the modern world. Despite advancements in medicine and technology, as well as an increased prevalence of monogamy, research reveals humans are continuing to evolve just like other species. Mon, 30 Apr 2012 15:20:20 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2012/04/120430152037.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2012/04/120430105351.htm Evidence that a Florentine merchant house financed the earliest English voyages to North America, has been published online. Mon, 30 Apr 2012 10:53:53 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2012/04/120430105351.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2012/04/120430100640.htm Corals, trees and marine sediments, among others, are direct evidence of the climate of the past, but they are not the only indicators. Scientists have now interpreted records written in Iraq by Arabic historians for the first time and has made a chronology of climatic events from the year 816 to 1009, when cold waves and snow were normal. The Arabic historians' records chronologically narrate social, political and religious matters, and some of them mention climate. Mon, 30 Apr 2012 10:06:06 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2012/04/120430100640.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2012/04/120429234639.htm Alu elements infiltrated the ancestral primate genome about 65 million years ago. Once gained an Alu element is rarely lost so comparison of Alu between species can be used to map primate evolution and diversity. New research has found a single Alu, which appears to be an ancestral great ape Alu, that has uniquely multiplied within the orangutan genome. Sun, 29 Apr 2012 23:46:46 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2012/04/120429234639.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2012/04/120426174100.htm If Pygmies are known for one trait, it is their short stature: Pygmy men stand just 4'11" on average. Now a study of the Western African Pygmies in Cameroon has identified genes that may be responsible for the Pygmies' relatively small size. Thu, 26 Apr 2012 17:41:41 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2012/04/120426174100.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2012/04/120426143850.htm One of the most debated developments in human history is the transition from hunter-gatherer to agricultural societies. Scientists have now shown that agriculture spread to Northern Europe via migration from Southern Europe. Thu, 26 Apr 2012 14:38:38 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2012/04/120426143850.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2012/04/120426104853.htm Humankind's remotest relative is a very rare micro-organism from south-Norway. The discovery may provide an insight into what life looked like on earth almost one thousand million years ago. Biologists all over the world have been eagerly awaiting the results of the genetic analysis of one of the world's smallest known species, hereafter called the protozoan, from a little lake 30 kilometer south of Oslo in Norway. When researchers compared its genes with all other known species in the world, they saw that the protozoan did not fit on any of the main branches of the tree of life. The protozoan is not a fungus, alga, parasite, plant or animal. Thu, 26 Apr 2012 10:48:48 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2012/04/120426104853.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2012/04/120425094354.htm Scientists have discovered one of the first fossil-based evidences supporting the evolutionary theory of aging, which predicts that species evolving in low mortality and resource-limited ecosystems tend to be more long-lived. Wed, 25 Apr 2012 09:43:43 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2012/04/120425094354.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2012/04/120424205353.htm Scientists have proposed that the bony structures in the skin of many early four-legged creatures might have been there to relieve acid buildup in bodily fluids. Analysis of their anatomy suggests that as they ventured out of water, the animals would have had trouble getting rid of enough CO2 to prevent acid buildup. Tue, 24 Apr 2012 20:53:53 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2012/04/120424205353.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2012/04/120424142145.htm Scientists have traced the development of life-sustaining chemistry to the earliest forms of life on Earth. Tue, 24 Apr 2012 14:21:21 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2012/04/120424142145.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2012/04/120424121740.htm Humans that populated the banks of the river Manzanares during the Middle Palaeolithic fed themselves on pachyderm meat and bone marrow. This is what a new study shows and has found percussion and cut marks on elephant remains in the site of Preresa. Tue, 24 Apr 2012 12:17:17 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2012/04/120424121740.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2012/04/120424121738.htm For 70 years, academic paleontologists in Cincinnati have been assisted by a dedicated corps of amateurs. One such amateur recently found a very large and very mysterious fossil that has paleontologists amazed. Tue, 24 Apr 2012 12:17:17 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2012/04/120424121738.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2012/04/120424095659.htm Research by a Danish physicist suggests that the explosion of massive stars -- supernovae -- near the Solar System has strongly influenced the development of life. Tue, 24 Apr 2012 09:56:56 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2012/04/120424095659.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2012/04/120423184154.htm The first study of how mammals in North America adapted to climate change in “deep time” found that families with greater diversity were more stable and maintained larger ranges than less diverse families. Mon, 23 Apr 2012 18:41:41 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2012/04/120423184154.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2012/04/120423153138.htm Scientists have uncovered clues as to how our genomes became riddled with viruses. The study reveals important information about the so–called 'dark matter' of our genome. Mon, 23 Apr 2012 15:31:31 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2012/04/120423153138.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2012/04/120423104522.htm Ammonites changed their reproductive strategy from initially few and large offspring to numerous and small hatchlings. Thanks to their many offspring, they survived three mass extinctions, a research team has discovered. Mon, 23 Apr 2012 10:45:45 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2012/04/120423104522.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2012/04/120422231826.htm Analysis of ancient mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) has been used to establish migration and population patterns for American indigenous cultures during the time before Christopher Columbus sailed to the Americas. New research has used more detailed DNA analysis of individuals from Arequipa region to identify the family relationships and burial traditions of ancient Peru. Sun, 22 Apr 2012 23:18:18 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2012/04/120422231826.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2012/04/120420105539.htm Carnivory is behind the evolutionary success of humankind. When early humans started to eat meat and eventually hunt, their new, higher-quality diet meant that women could wean their children earlier. Women could then give birth to more children during their reproductive life, which is a possible contribution to the population gradually spreading over the world. The connection between eating meat and a faster weaning process is shown by a research group from Sweden, which compared close to 70 mammalian species and found clear patterns. Fri, 20 Apr 2012 10:55:55 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2012/04/120420105539.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2012/04/120419191705.htm A new study maps the development of life-sustaining chemistry to the history of early life. Researchers have traced the six methods of carbon fixation seen in modern life back to a single ancestral form. Thu, 19 Apr 2012 19:17:17 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2012/04/120419191705.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2012/04/120419143117.htm Scientists have been investigating properties of so-called xenonucleic acids or XNAs. They have demonstrated for the first time that six of these unnatural nucleic acid polymers are capable of sharing information with DNA. One of these XNAs, a molecule referred to as anhydrohexitol nucleic acid or HNA, was capable of undergoing directed evolution and folding into biologically useful forms. Thu, 19 Apr 2012 14:31:31 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2012/04/120419143117.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2012/04/120419142932.htm Researchers have discovered that salicylate, the active ingredient in aspirin, directly increases the activity of the protein AMPK (AMP-activated protein kinase), a key player in regulating cell growth and metabolism. Salicylate, which is derived from willow bark, and is the active ingredient in aspirin, is believed to be one of the oldest drugs in the world with first reports of its use dating back to an Egyptian papyrus in 1543 BC. Thu, 19 Apr 2012 14:29:29 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2012/04/120419142932.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2012/04/120419132556.htm Scientists have discovered proof that the evolution of intelligence and larger brain sizes can be driven by cooperation and teamwork, shedding new light on the origins of what it means to be human. Thu, 19 Apr 2012 13:25:25 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2012/04/120419132556.htm