Humans

More Stories in Humans

  1. fossilized skeletons of four kungas lying side by side
    Animals

    Part donkey, part wild ass, the kunga is the oldest known hybrid bred by humans

    Syria’s 4,500-year-old kungas were donkey-wild ass hybrids, genetic analysis reveals, so the earliest known example of humans crossing animal species.

    By Jake Buehler
  2. image of a reconstructed skull from the Omo site
    Anthropology

    Homo sapiens bones in East Africa are at least 36,000 years older than once thought

    Analyses of remnants of a volcanic blast push the age of East Africa’s oldest known H. sapiens fossils at Ethiopia’s Omo site to 233,000 years or more.

    By Bruce Bower
  3. photo of a free covid testing sign and people standing in line to be tested
    Health & Medicine

    Omicron forces us to rethink COVID-19 testing and treatments

    At-home rapid tests may miss the speedy variant early on, and some treatments, such as some monoclonal antibodies, no longer work.

    By Tina Hesman Saey
  4. illustration of a clovis hunter aiming a spear at a mammoth
    Archaeology

    Clovis hunters’ reputation as mammoth killers takes a hit

    Early Americans’ stone points were best suited to butchering the huge beasts’ carcasses, scientists contend.

    By Bruce Bower
  5. image of a blastoid sphere with blue and pink hues
    Health & Medicine

    ‘Blastoids’ made of stem cells offer a new way to study fertility

    Newly created “blastoids” could help with research on nonhormonal contraceptives and fertility treatments.

    By Jake Buehler
  6. photo of someone pricking a finger to test blood sugar levels
    Health & Medicine

    The coronavirus may cause fat cells to miscommunicate, leading to diabetes

    Researchers are homing in on a surprising cause of high blood sugar in COVID-19 patients and possibly what to do about it.

    By Tina Hesman Saey
  7. a bronze buckle shown from the front and back
    Archaeology

    Arctic hunter-gatherers were advanced ironworkers more than 2,000 years ago

    Swedish excavations uncover furnaces and fire pits from a big metal operation run by a small-scale society, a new study finds.

    By Bruce Bower
  8. gif of a swarm of xenobots moving particles around
    Life

    Here are our favorite cool, funny and bizarre science stories of 2021

    These are some of the fun science stories from this year that we couldn’t wait to talk about with friends.

    By Trishla Ostwal
  9. a map of the milky way with dots that might indicate anti-matter stars
    Space

    These discoveries from 2021, if true, could shake up science

    Discoveries in 2021, from hidden subatomic particles to the oldest animal fossils, could shake up science. But more evidence is needed to confirm them.

    By Aina Abell