Scientists extract first wealth from ‘Holy Grail of shipwrecks’ that sank off the coast of Colombia in 1708
A priceless shipwreck treasure that sank with the San Jose Galleon off the coast of Colombia more than 300 years ago is now seeing the light of day. The amazingly well-preserved items recovered, including a cannon, a porcelain cup and three coins, are just a few of the shipwreck’s vast riches. The galleon is often […]
Are humans still evolving? An anthropologist explains it.
Curious Kids is a series for children of all ages. If you have a question you’d like an expert to answer, send it to CuriousKidsUS@theconversation.com. If evolution is real, why isn’t it happening now? — Dee, Memphis, TN Many people believe that we humans have conquered nature through the wonders of civilization and technology. Others […]
Did NASA’s telescope really ‘see’ dark matter? Strange gamma rays prompt bold claims, but scientists urge caution
A new study suggests that a NASA telescope may have made the first observation of the elusive dark matter, the invisible and mysterious substance that makes up most of the matter in the universe. But scientists, including the study authors, caution that more research is needed to understand this finding. NASA’s Fermi Gamma-ray Space Telescope, […]
Creepy video shows 100,000 mph comet fragment explodes in green fireball over Great Lakes
Video shows a meteorite exploding into a green fireball over Michigan’s Great Lakes. This dramatic event was likely caused by comet debris burning up in the atmosphere. At approximately 5:29 a.m. ET on Sunday (November 23), dozens of witnesses reported seeing a meteor streak across the sky before exploding in a ball of flame. Cameras […]
Chinese people coexisted with chicken-killing tigers long before the arrival of domestic cats.
More than 3,500 years before the arrival of domestic cats, humans coexisted with leopard cats in ancient Chinese settlements, a new study has found. The findings reveal that people in the region had an enduring and complex relationship with these animals for thousands of years, until domestic cats arrived on the Silk Road with merchants […]
Decades of drought doomed one of the world’s oldest civilizations to extinction
A series of severe droughts over several decades led to the end of the Indus Valley Civilization, one of the world’s oldest civilizations, a new study has found. The Indus Valley Civilization (also known as the Harappan civilization) flourished between 5,000 and 3,500 years ago in the region that straddles the modern-day border between India […]
Shrinking tree canopies in California schools could put children at risk of extreme heat
Tree canopies are shrinking in thousands of California schoolyards, potentially making children more vulnerable to the negative effects of extreme heat, according to a recent study. In the study, published in the journal Urban Forestry & Urban Greening, scientists looked at a snapshot of more than 7,000 public schools in urban areas across the Golden […]
Experts are divided over claims that Chinese hackers launched the world’s first AI-powered cyberattack, but that’s not what they’re really worried about.
Anthropic researchers claim that Chinese state-sponsored spy groups have used Claude artificial intelligence (AI) to automate most of their cyberattack campaigns, but the news has caused equal parts alarm and skepticism. In light of the research, the cybersecurity community is trying to figure out what actually happened and how autonomous the model actually was. Company […]
Ancient rock art along the U.S.-Mexico border has survived for more than 4,000 years and depicts indigenous peoples’ views of the cosmos.
For more than 4,000 years, Native Americans have been painting rock art depicting their view of the cosmos in what is now southwest Texas and northern Mexico, a new study has found. Innovative dating techniques reveal that this rock art, known as the Pecos River Style tradition, probably first appeared about 6,000 years ago and […]
2,000-year-old gold ring, clue to extravagant cremation excavated in France
French archaeologists have discovered a Roman-era cremation tomb richly decorated with silver coins, gold jewelry and perhaps a ring inscribed with the deceased’s last name. The tomb was discovered unexpectedly during excavations in the medieval settlement of Ramonzy-Saint-Martin, a small town in southwestern France. Archaeologists were excavating beneath a medieval silo when they noticed an […]