Clipmarks | arifsali's 'discovery' clips

Remains of children found in 'green Sahara'

Thu, 14 Aug 2008 20:58:20 GMT

clipped by: arifsali

A tiny woman and two children were laid to rest on a bed of flowers 5,000 years ago in what is now the barren Sahara Desert.

The slender arms of the youngsters were still extended to the woman in perpetual embrace when researchers discovered their skeletons in a remarkable cemetery that is providing clues to two civilizations who lived there, a thousand years apart, when the region was moist and green.

Paul Sereno of the University of Chicago and colleagues were searching for the remains of dinosaurs in the African country of Niger when they came across the startling find,

"Part of discovery is finding things that you least expect," he said. "When you come across something like that in the middle of the desert it sends a tingle down your spine."

"Everywhere you turned, there were bones belonging to animals that don't live in the desert," said Sereno. "I realized we were in the green Sahara."

Tags: discovery, desert

World's smallest snake discovered

Sun, 03 Aug 2008 14:49:50 GMT

clipped by: arifsali

Clip Source: news.bbc.co.uk

The world's smallest snake, averaging just 10cm (4 inches) and as thin as a spaghetti noodle, has been discovered on the Caribbean island of Barbados.

The snake, found beneath a rock in a tiny fragment of threatened forest, is thought to be at the very limit of how small a snake can evolve to be.

Females produce only a single, massive egg - and the young hatch at half of their adult body weight.

This new discovery is described in the journal of Zootaxa.

Tags: discovery, animals

Ageing muscle 'given new vigour'

Thu, 19 Jun 2008 19:27:16 GMT

clipped by: arifsali

Clip Source: news.bbc.co.uk

Scientists have found a way to give old, tired muscles a new lease of life.

They tweaked biochemical signals in mice to boost the ability of the animal's stem cells to repair damaged tissue, restoring its youthful vigour.

The breakthrough raises hopes of new treatments for age-related degenerative diseases such as Alzheimer's and Parkinson's.

The study, by the University of California, Berkeley, is published in the journal Nature.

We are one step closer to having a point of intervention where we can rejuvenate the body's own stem cells so we don't have to suffer from some of the debilitating diseases associated with ageing

Dr Morgan Carlson
University of California, Berkeley

Tags: stem cells, alzheimers, parkinson, disease, discovery, science

Diver Finds 385-Year-Old Gold Toothpick

Tue, 20 May 2008 21:13:35 GMT

clipped by: arifsali

Clip Source: www.cbsnews.com

Search Of Shipwrecked Spanish Galleon Off Florida Coast Yields Luxurious Grooming Tool

Experts found a tiny gold combined toothpick and earwax spoon, believed to be more than 385 years old, during the search for a shipwrecked Spanish galleon off the Florida Keys.

The late 16th or early 17th century grooming tool, which weighs only about an ounce, was located Sunday by Blue Water Ventures diver Chris Rackley as he searched the area about 22 feet below the surface and 40 miles west of Key West. The value could exceed $100,000.

The divers, who are searching the shipwreck trail of the Spanish galleon Santa Margarita that sank in a 1622 hurricane, also recovered ceramic pieces, spikes, ships' fittings, rigging elements and two skeleton keys.

Tags: ship, discovery

1,000 Ancient Tombs, Unique Remains Found in Colombia

Fri, 09 May 2008 23:15:16 GMT

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Clip Source: news.nationalgeographic.com

Builders clearing land for a housing project in Colombia have uncovered an ancient burial site containing nearly a thousand tombs linked to two little-known civilizations. (See photos.)

The site covers some 12 acres (5 hectares) in the impoverished Usme district in southeast Bogotá (see map) and includes one set of remains that some researchers believe could be a victim of human sacrifice.

Clip Source: news.nationalgeographic.com

The possible victim is a young woman who seems to have been buried alive, said Ana Maria Groot, one of the lead anthropologists from the National University of Colombia working at the site.

"Her mouth is open as if in terror, and her hands seem contracted as if she had tried grabbing hold of something," Groot said.

Another tomb contains the remains of a man with a curved tibia, or shinbone, possible evidence that the man was a shaman, she added.

Tags: colombia, discovery, anthropology

New evidence from oldest human settlement in the Americas

Thu, 08 May 2008 20:45:47 GMT

clipped by: arifsali

Clip Source: www.vanderbilt.edu

N ew evidence from the Monte Verde archaeological site in southern Chile confirms its status as the earliest known human settlement in the Americas and provides additional support for the theory that one migration route followed the Pacific Coast more than 14,000 years ago.

The study was conducted by a team of anthropologists, geologists and botanists headed by Vanderbilt University's Distinguished Professor of Anthropology Tom Dillehay and is reported in the May 9 issue of the journal Science.

The paper, which includes the first new data reported from the site in 10 years, includes the identification of nine species of seaweed and marine algae recovered from hearths and other areas in the ancient settlement. The seaweed samples were directly dated between 14,220 to 13,980 years ago, confirming that the upper layer of the site, labeled Monte Verde II, was occupied more than 1,000 years earlier than any other reliably dated human settlements in the Americas.

Tags: america, archealogy, discovery

Missing Matter Spotted by European Probe

Wed, 07 May 2008 23:06:28 GMT

clipped by: arifsali

Clip Source: dsc.discovery.com

An orbital X-ray telescope has found a chunk of matter whose existence had long been theorized, but evidence for which had been lacking, the European Space Agency (ESA) said on Wednesday.

Twin Galaxy Clusters

The discovery made by ESA's XMM-Newton telescope is part of so-called baryonic matter, which comprises less than five percent of the cosmos.

Most of the universe consists of matter and energy of an unknown nature, which astrophysicists call "dark matter." It is believed to be distributed in a web-like structure.

The new claim is based on the observation of a pair of distant galaxy clusters, called Abell 222 and Abell 223, located 2.3 billion light-years from Earth.

Tags: science, astronomy, discovery

New species discovered in Brazil

Tue, 29 Apr 2008 21:30:48 GMT

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clipper's remarks: Gallery

Clip Source: www.conservation.org

Legless Lizard among New Species Discovered in Cerrado Region of Brazil

Arlington, VA – Researchers discovered a legless lizard and a tiny woodpecker along with 12 other suspected new species in Brazil’s Cerrado, one of the world’s 34 biodiversity conservation hotspots.

The Cerrado’s wooded grassland once covered an area half the size of Europe, but is now being converted to cropland and ranchland at twice the rate of the neighboring Amazon rainforest, resulting in the loss of native vegetation and unique species.

An expedition comprising scientists from Conservation International (CI) and Brazilian universities found 14 species believed new to science – eight fish, three reptiles, one amphibian, one mammal, and one bird

Tags: discovery, animals, brazil

Fish which looks like a glass sculpture

Wed, 02 Apr 2008 22:22:08 GMT

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Clip Source: uwnews.org

A fish that would rather crawl into crevices than swim, and that may be able to see in the same way that humans do, could represent an entirely unknown family of fishes, says a University of Washington fish expert.

The leglike pectoral fin for walking is the clue that this newly found fish is an anglerfish, even though it does not have a lure on its head for attracting prey. Its flat face and forward-looking eyes are just two of a host of reasons why University of Washington professor Ted Pietsch thinks the fish found in January probably represents a new family of vertebrate animals.

The fish, sighted in Indonesian waters off Ambon Island, has tan- and peach-colored zebra-striping, and rippling folds of skin that obscure its fins, making it look like a glass sculpture

Tags: fish, discovery

Giant sea creatures found in Antarctic search

Fri, 21 Mar 2008 14:28:52 GMT

clipped by: arifsali

Clip Source: www.cnn.com

WELLINGTON, New Zealand (AP) -- Scientists who conducted the most comprehensive survey to date of New Zealand's Antarctic waters were surprised by the size of some specimens found, including jellyfish with 12-foot tentacles and 2-foot-wide starfish.

A 2,000-mile journey through the Ross Sea that ended Thursday has also potentially turned up several new species, including as many as eight new molluscs.

It's "exciting when you come across a new species," said Chris Jones, a fisheries scientist at the U.S. National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. "All the fish people go nuts about that -- but you have to take it with a grain of salt."

The finds must still be reviewed by experts to determine if they are in fact new

But beyond the discovery of new species, scientists said the survey, the most comprehensive to date in the Ross Sea, turned up other surprises.

Tags: discovery

Stone Age Hand Axes Found at Bottom of North Sea

Tue, 18 Mar 2008 02:20:30 GMT

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Clip Source: news.nationalgeographic.com

An amateur archaeologist has found an unprecedented collection of Stone Age hand axes among material collected at the bottom of the North Sea.

Jan Meulmeester of the Netherlands found 28 axes, possibly up to 100,000 years old, in marine sand and gravel scooped up by a British construction materials supplier.

He also found fragments of bones, teeth, tusks, and antlers from mammoths and other animals that had likely been butchered with the utensils.

Early humans used the stone tools for several purposes, much like today's Swiss army knives.

During ice-age periods of the Paleolithic era, which ended about 10,000 years ago, sea levels were lower and the North Sea was grassland hunting grounds.

The axes's discovery proves that artifacts from that ancient period remain exceptionally well preserved below the seafloor, experts say.

Tags: discovery, archaeology

Ancient Bones of Small Humans Discovered in Palau

Mon, 10 Mar 2008 22:17:57 GMT

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Clip Source: news.nationalgeographic.com

Thousands of human bones belonging to numerous individuals have been discovered in the Pacific island nation of Palau. Some of the bones are ancient and indicate inhabitants of particularly small size, scientists announced today.

The remains are between 900 and 2,900 years old and align with Homo sapiens, according to a paper on the discovery. However, the older bones are tiny and exhibit several traits considered primitive, or archaic, for the human lineage.

"They weren't very typical, very small in fact," said Lee Berger, a paleoanthropologist at the University of Witwatersrand in Johannesburg, South Africa.

The caves were littered with bones that had been dislodged by waves and piled like driftwood. Others had remained buried deep in the sandy floor, and more, including several skulls, were cemented to the cave walls.

Tags: discovery

Giant creatures found in Antarctica

Tue, 19 Feb 2008 17:57:41 GMT

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Clip Source: www.cbc.ca

Scientists investigating the icy waters of Antarctica said Tuesday they have collected several mysterious creatures from 2,000 metres below the ocean's surface, including giant sea spiders and huge worms.

Tunicates, animals that resemble glass tulips, were photographed in Antarctic waters by Australian scientists taking part in a census of marine life in January 2008.

Some of the animals far under the sea grow to unusually large sizes, a phenomenon called gigantism that scientists still do not fully understand.

"Gigantism is very common in Antarctic waters," Martin Riddle, the Australian scientist who led the expedition, said in a statement.

"We have collected huge worms, giant crustaceans and sea spiders the size of dinner plates."

Tags: antarctica, science, discovery

Giant "Frog From Hell" Fossil Found in Madagascar

Tue, 19 Feb 2008 20:38:21 GMT

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Clip Source: news.nationalgeographic.com

Scientists working in Madagascar have found what may be the largest frog that ever lived.

The bad-tempered Beelzebufo, or "devil frog," also poses a big mystery—Why do its closest relatives live half a world away in South America?

Paleontologist David Krause of Stony Brook University in New York and his colleagues began unearthing the specimen in bits and pieces more than a decade ago.

Over the years a 75-piece puzzle emerged that was only recently put together by fossil-frog expert Susan Evans of University College London.

Tags: science, discovery, fossil

'Mythical Roman cave' unearthed

Tue, 20 Nov 2007 22:37:37 GMT

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Clip Source: news.bbc.co.uk

Italian archaeologists say they have found the long-lost underground grotto where ancient Romans believed a female wolf suckled the city's twin founders.

The cave believed to be the Lupercal was found near the ruins of Emperor Augustus' palace on the Palatine hill.

The 8m (26ft) high cave decorated with shells, mosaics and marble was found during restoration work on the palace.

According to mythology Romulus and Remus were nursed by a she-wolf after being left on the River Tiber's banks.

The twin sons of the god Mars and priestess Rhea Silvia are said to have later founded Rome on the Palatine in 753 BC.

Tags: roman, discovery, archaeology