(via retromantique)

openaccessarchaeology:

New Open Access IAOS issue- http://members.peak.org/~obsidian/bulletin.html

I highly recommend this book for further reading into the principles of evolution by natural selection. This encapsulates the brilliant sixth edition written by Charles Darwin to cite evidence and moreso bolster his theories against his critics of the time. Last summer I decided to approach Darwin’s literature from a more organic angle, reading The Voyage of the Beagle first, then The Origin of Species. Not only was he a passionate and meticulous naturalist, but an exceptionally detailed one at that, documenting his findings, experiments and evidence with poetic and exquisite detail.

After reading the Beagle, I realized that it was much more of an undertaking than if I had read The Origin of Species because it wasn’t until after Darwin returned home did he realize the true “nature” of his discovery as a whole, although, to his colleagues, it was plain to see what he had accomplished. I was fortunate this copy exists, because other editions of his work may stifle the reader (due to the verbiage, deviation from topic to elaborate further on another whilst not fully concluded the former) or leave the reader with specific questions, which he fully answers and elaborates on here. During a time where we have made so much advancement in life science, The Illustrated Origin of Species is certainly a piece of literature to own, with the ability to be understood, if not wholly marveled at, by the layman or scientifically literate amongst us.

From the book’s inner jacket:

The publication of Charles Darwin’s The Origin of Species in 1899 began a revolution not only in the biological sciences but in Western man’s philosophical and moral conceptions of himself. It caused an uproar in the respectable society of the late nineteenth century: copies were burned, and the author denounced from the pulpit. It also split the scientific community.

The Origin of Species went through six editions between 1859 and 1872. In each edition Darwin updated his information, carefully revised certain of his ideas, and answered his critics. Richard Leakey’s new and skillfully abridged version of the sixth edition presents both Darwin’s fundamental thoughts on the question of evolution and the author’s elegant refutations of the many vigorous arguments against them. Richard Leakey’s brilliant introduction, his comments inserted in Darwin’s text, and the numerous photographs, maps, drawings, and explanatory diagrams prepared for this edition relate Darwin’s basic hypothesis to the dramatic advances of recent years.

In the past century, thousands of scientists have devoted their lives to research in the fields of genetics, paleontology, embryology, comparative anatomy and physiology, biochemistry and ecology; as a result, we have a far more detailed understanding of the evolution of life, but one which almost entirely validates Darwin’s theories. The genius of Darwin’s insight transcends that century. Darwin’s chapter on instinct, to take one example, is startlingly modern and anticipates the most controversial question of current evolutionary theory: that of the genetic basis of behaviour and the possible evolutionary role of altruism. Richard Leakey discusses these topics and presents a balanced and impartial view of the current furore over sociobiology.

Evolution itself is still controversial, and the controversy began with The Origin of Species, which is perhaps the most influential scientific work ever written.

dailymedical:

Ancient Bones Show That Caring for the Disabled Is as Old as Society Itself

While violence seems to be as old as humanity itself, so too does kindness and compassion. While evidence suggests that human hands, for example, evolved to throw punches, other studies show that it is in our genetic nature to stand up to bullies. Indeed, a growing pool of archaeologists are finding evidence that, even in ancient times, humans have banded together in order to take care of severely ailing and disabled people, many of whom were unable to take care of themselves.

Read more

wildcat2030:

London: I recently recorded a four-part radio series for BBC World Service about the Anthropocene, called The Age We Made. I spoke to lots of great scientists about the incredible changes we’re making to our planet, and how they will be recorded in the geological record for millions of years. You can listen to the programmes here:

i don’t know if anyone realizes how big this week is for umm…history, life, everything? pay attention…

via giantfreakinrobot…

Tuesday, the deep recesses of space and the ocean take center stage. Gorgeous images and fascinating information gleaned from the Van Allen probes will be shared. There will be a briefing on the Mars rover Opportunity’s investigation of “Matijevic Hill,” on the rim of the Endeavour Crater, covering the possible presence of clay materials. James Cameron name-drop. His DEEPSEA CHALLENGE expedition gets its due, as the designers and crew, along with Cameron himself, will go in-depth about all details of the vehicle, and Cameron’s lone journey to Earth’s deepest point. Enjoy the light-hearted comedy associated with discovering clandestine nuclear-bomb-testing areas, and how climate change has affected our nation’s rampant wildfires.

Wednesday’s subjects appear drab in comparison, but are no less important. The GRAIL moon gravity mapping mission of spacecraft Ebb and Flow will give us the most high-def images of any celestial body ever. An updated, cloud-free Earth at Night photo will be revealed, as well as other photos from moonless nights, when only “airglow” and starlight are visible light sources. The Arctic’s decline in snow and rise in melting ice, without fluctuating temperatures, will be discussed, as will earthquakes occurring outside of faultlines and the amount of carbon caught up in the atmosphere above much of the western U.S.

Thursday only has two panels, and both are introspective. Should the Age of Man actually be an Age of Man? The definition and process of defining an epoch will be reviewed, as will considerations for the possible beginnings to our current era. Finally, scientists will look at the effects from the guilty verdicts of the Italian scientists involved in the L’Aquila Earthquake case, and they will discuss a change in thought over the responsibilities of those involved with natural hazards studies.

i certainly do not agree with the light-heartedness of this write-up, considering the crazy reality we exist in that allows us to even speak about the scientific ventures currently taking place, but i believe you get the point. if you’ve been following even half of the above scientific research & projects, i’m sure you’re as amped as i am right now.

big things coming people. big things.

openaccessarchaeology:

New Open Access Article- A Window into Early Middle Paleolithic Human Occupational Layers: Misliya Cave, Mount Carmel, Israel.

http://www.paleoanthro.org/journal/contents_dynamic.asp

laboratoryequipment:

Dinos Were First Grand Canyon Tourists

An analysis of mineral grains from the bottom of the western Grand Canyon indicates it was largely carved out by about 70 million years ago – a time when dinosaurs were around and may have even peeked over the rim, says a study led by the Univ. of Colorado Boulder.

The new research pushes back the conventionally accepted date for the formation of the Grand Canyon in Arizona by more than 60 million years, says CU-Boulder Assistant Prof. Rebecca Flowers. The team used a dating method that exploits the radioactive decay of uranium and thorium atoms to helium atoms in a phosphate mineral known as apatite, says Flowers, a faculty member in CU-Boulder’s geological sciences department.

Read more: http://www.laboratoryequipment.com/news/2012/11/dinos-were-first-grand-canyon-tourists

scinerds:

Bizarre Insectlike Creatures Discovered in Spanish Cave

Three bizarre-looking springtails, tiny insect-like creatures, have been discovered in a Spanish cave. The three species are very different from one another and have been named Pygmarrhopalites maestrazgoensis, P. cantavetulae and Oncopodura fadriquei.

Springtails are amongst the most ancient and widespread animals. Like insects they have six legs, but are small, more primitive and lack wings. They usually have a furca, or a tail used to spring away from danger, hence the name “springtails.” Many cannot be seen with the naked eye; the largest species is about 0.24 inches long (6 millimeters).

These new species have these springy tails and hairy, tiny bodies, resembling Lilliputian monsters. One of them, O. fadriquei, lacks eyes.

Full Article

sciencesoup:

Catacombes de Paris

Deep beneath the narrow streets and wide boulevards of Paris lies a seething labyrinth of tunnels, networked like arteries and stretching out over 300 kilometres. They originally began as stone mines during Roman occupation, and throughout the centuries, the ground below Paris was slowly quarried and hollowed out. In 1774, after a tunnel collapsed and swallowed up a house, an architect called Guillaumot was commissioned to map and stabilize the quarries. Around the same time, the millennia-old Saints Innocent cemetery was becoming a festering epicentre for disease, so in 1785, bodies were exhumed and transferred into the old quarries, making them catacombs: burial places. It’s thought that the catacombs house the remains of over 6 million dead Parisians, three times as many as those who inhabit the living city above. The dead date from the French Revolution to as far back as the Merovingian era, and the remains are unmarked with peasants mixed in with royalty—but some work below the surface to identify them. Researchers can read the bones and tell the diseases and accidents they suffered, their wounds, their diets…painting a simultaneous picture of life and death. Furthermore, teams of inspectors carry on Guillaumot’s work, mapping and assessing the tunnels to help prevent collapses, which still happen on small scales every year. These dangerous conditions mean that many tunnels are closed off to the public—not that it stops the most passionate explorers from exploring the damp, crumbling crypts, the brilliant murals, the walls of skulls, the sinkholes… With such a rich history, the catacombs have provided inspiration for scores of artists and writers from Victor Hugo to Umberto Eco, and continue to inspire today.

(Image Credit: Alvarez and Zoriah)

thisbelongsinamuseum:

I’m bringing back one of my favorite discoveries from this past year for American Guide Week. I personally paid a visit to Dave’s Down to Earth Rock Shop in Evanston, a town on the border of Chicago. After looking at all the various pieces of jewelry and crystal in the store I went down to the basement, where there is a collection of minerals and fossils that owner Dave Douglass has been collecting since he was a child. After his shop opened, Dave and his wife Sandy continued on their rock quest and traveled throughout the western United States, Canada, and Mexico. Their private collection became so large that in 1988, they opened up the Prehistoric Life Museum, which is open to the public, including school groups. There are fossils from every geological time period, some billions of years old, as well as from all over the world, including a French cave bear skeleton and a Chinese dinosaur. Anyway, I must say it was weird to step down below a busy jewelry shop and see case after case full of old bones and fossils. And right in the middle of Chicagoland! I won’t get into the content of the museum because I nearly failed science in high school, but I was amazed at the number of items in their impressive collection. I particularly liked the coal forming swamp forest from Coal City, Illinois (I’ve been there…don’t go!) and the fact that there appeared to be an actual documentation system for cataloging items (something that can’t be said for some real museums out there). Even though I’m not much of a shopper, I’d probably enjoy going to malls if they all had little museums inside them. Definitely a memorable, unexpected place so if you’re ever in the area, please stop at the Prehistoric Life Museum at Dave’s Down to Earth Rock Shop in Evanston, Illinois.

fyeaheasterneurope:

Archaeologists in Bulgaria say they have uncovered the oldest prehistoric town found to date in Europe.

The walled fortified settlement, near the modern town of Provadia, is thought to have been an important centre for salt production.

Its discovery in north-east Bulgaria may explain the huge gold hoard found nearby 40 years ago.

Archaeologists believe that the town was home to some 350 people and dates back to between 4700 and 4200 BC.

That is about 1,500 years before the start of ancient Greek civilisation.

The residents boiled water from a local spring and used it to create salt bricks, which were traded and used to preserve meat.

Salt was a hugely valuable commodity at the time, which experts say could help to explain the huge defensive stone walls which ringed the town.

(More at BBC.)

sciencesoup:

Woolly Mammoth Skeleton found near Paris

Thirty kilometres east of Paris, along the Changis-sur-Marne riverbank, an excavation of ancient Roman remains took a surprising twist when archaeologists accidentally uncovered a nearly-complete mammoth skeleton. Researchers at the National Institute for Preventive Archaeological Research (INRAP) have christened the mammoth “Helmut” and have determined that it was approximately 30 when it died, sometime between 100,000 to 200,000 years ago. It was nearly 3 metres tall with even longer tusks and a thick coat, and it belonged to the Mammuthus Primigenius or “Woolly Mammoth” species, which lived in Eurasia and North America before their extinction 10,000 years ago. It’s an extraordinary milestone, because it’s only the fourth mammoth specimen to be uncovered in France in the last 150 years—it’s rare to find well-preserved specimens as far south as France. Conditions have to be just right to facilitate the remains’ survival, and the researchers think that the creature either drowned and was buried in the silt of a river, or was trapped in mud. Interestingly, fragments of flint tools were found among the bones, suggesting Neanderthal involvement, but it’s unlikely that they were hunting the mammoth—the pieces of flint are too small. It’s more likely they were scavenging the already-dead Helmut for meat, and if confirmed, this will help build a better picture of mammoth-Neanderthal interaction. The skeleton will eventually go on display at Paris’s Natural History Museum.

(Image Credit)

neurosciencestuff:

For early man, walking beat talking

A new fossil discovery shows we did not climb out of the trees until much later than once thought.

Cave of Forgotten Dreams
In 1994, a group of scientists discovered a cave in Southern France perfectly preserved for over 20,000 years containing the earliest known human paintings. Knowing the cultural significance that the Chauvet Cave holds, the French government immediately cut-off all access to it, save a few archaeologists and paleontologists. But documentary filmmaker, Werner Herzog, has been given limited access, and now we get to go inside examining beautiful artwork created by our ancient ancestors around 32,000 years ago. He asks questions to various historians and scientists about what these humans would have been like and trying to build a bridge from the past to the present.

This film is absolutely incredible. Breathtaking. I can’t recall saying that about many films & documentaries I’ve viewed over my life, but this film literally held me speechless, filled my eyes with tears & swelled me up with…awe. My breathing slowed simply due to the mesmerizing wonders of our planet, our past, continually revealed to us by nature along with instinctive, human curiosity & discovery. To further boost this film & it’s importance on human culture alongside our anthropologic & archaeologic history, read on for a 2011 NY Times review of the film, Cave of Forgotten Dreams:

Herzog Finds His Inner Cave Man
What a gift Werner Herzog offers with “Cave of Forgotten Dreams,” an inside look at the astonishing Cave of Chauvet-Pont-d’Arc — and in 3-D too. In southern France, about 400 miles from Paris, the limestone cave contains a wealth of early paintings, perhaps from as long ago as 32,000 years. Here, amid gleaming stalactites and stalagmites and a carpet of animal bones, beautiful images of horses gallop on walls alongside bison and a ghostly menagerie of cave lions, cave bears and woolly mammoths. Multiple red palm prints of an early artist adorn one wall, as if to announce the birth of the first auteur.

Surely there were other, previous artists — those who first picked up a bit of charcoal, say, and scraped it on a stone — but the Chauvet paintings are among the earliest known. The cave was discovered in December 1994 by three French cavers, Jean-Marie Chauvet, Éliette Brunel Deschamps and Christian Hillaire. Following an air current coming from the cliff, they dug and crawled their way into the cave, which had been sealed tight for some 20,000 years. After finally making their way to an enormous chamber, Ms. Deschamps held up her lamp and, seeing an image of a mammoth, cried out, “They were here,” a glorious moment of discovery that closed the distance between our lost human past and our present.

The French government soon took custody of the cave, and ordinary visitors were barred to protect it, as Mr. Herzog explains in his distinctive voice-over, from the kind of damage done to other prehistoric caverns. Being not remotely ordinary, he persuaded the government to allow him and a tiny crew to join the researchers who visit the cave to plumb its secrets. A late-act revelation in the movie that a Chauvet attraction is in the works suggests that tourist dollars might explain why he was allowed in. The cave is already a regional attraction (there is an exhibition nearby), and certainly the movie is a fabulous bit of advertising that may even help France’s bid to have Chauvet designated a Unesco World Heritage site.

Whatever the reason, it’s a blast to be inside the cave, to see these images, within 3-D grabbing reach. As the smooth-handed director of photography Peter Zeitlinger wields the camera, Mr. Herzog walks and even crawls for your viewing pleasure. He’s an agreeable, sometimes characteristically funny guide, whether showing you the paintings or talking with the men and women who study them. As evident from his other documentaries, like “Encounters at the End of the World,” set in Antarctica, he also has a talent for tapping into the poetry of the human soul, finding people who range freely in this world and others, like the circus performer turned anthropologist here who night after night dreamed of lions after visiting the cave.

Much like this anthropologist and Ms. Deschamps, the explorer who cried out, “They were here” on seeing a painted mammoth, many of the researchers in the documentary seem deeply moved by the cave. In some ways they are communing with the dead, summoning up the eternally lost. For his part, Mr. Herzog uses the paintings to riff on the origin of art, at one point connecting overlapping images of horses — some of which, with their open mouths, convey a sense of movement — to cinema itself. At times he drifts away from the cave, tagging along, for instance, with a perfumer who tries to sniff out caves and isn’t half as interesting as those anthropologists who dream of, and happily live with, these uncommon ghosts.

In archaeology circles there has been debate on whether the earliest Chauvet paintings date from 32,000 to 30,000 BP (or “before present,” in the charming parlance of archaeology) or are actually somewhat younger. Whatever the case, even one of the critics of the earlier dating, a German archaeologist, Christian Züchner, has agreed on their beauty, enthusing in one 2001 paper that, “Even if Chauvet Cave is not as old as assumed it remains one of the outstanding highlights of cave art!” Mr. Herzog doesn’t address the conflict, which partly turns on whether the radiocarbon dating was sufficient, but then again, he isn’t a journalist. As the wistful title of the documentary indicates, he moves in a realm beyond empiricism, in a world of dreams and stories.

It takes a big subject to upstage Mr. Herzog, an often brilliant filmmaker of fiction and nonfiction who has mellowed into a borderline self-parodying figure, disarming (and famous) enough for a guest turn on “The Simpsons.” The cave largely keeps his more indulgently shticky side in check, save for a needlessly obfuscating coda set in a freaky research center where albino crocodiles swim in the runoff from nuclear reactor plants. “Cave of Forgotten Dreams” is certainly an imperfect reverie. The 3-D is sometimes less than transporting, and the chanting voices in the composer Ernst Reijseger’s new-agey score tended to remind me of my last spa massage. Yet what a small price to pay for such time traveling!

CAVE OF FORGOTTEN DREAMS
Written, directed and narrated by Werner Herzog; director of photography, Peter Zeitlinger; edited by Joe Bini and Maya Hawke; music by Ernst Reijseger; produced by Erik Nelson and Adrienne Ciuffo; released by Sundance Selects. Running time: 1 hour 30 minutes. This film is rated G. (In New York: in 3-D at the IFC Center, 323 Avenue of the Americas, at Third Street, Greenwich Village; in 2D at Lincoln Plaza Cinemas, 1886 Broadway, between 62nd and 63rd Streets.

P.S. If you’ve never heard of Werner Herzog, you can view a live interview of him being shot in the gut by a sniper during a live interview. Just one of the many examples of his audacious badassery.

EXTRA CREDIT: Herzog on the Obscenity of the Jungle/Nature