Even the oldest eukaryote fossils show dazzling diversity and complexity
The sun has just set on a quiet mudflat in Australia’s Northern Territory; it’ll set again in another 19 hours. A young moon looms large over the desolate landscape. No…
Mysterious fruit shown to be the oldest known fossils of the Frankincense and Myrrh family
Early in the 1970s, a paleontologist working on the outskirts of an Indian village found small, bead-like fossils embedded in the gray chert dotting the surrounding fields. The site was…
Molecular fossils shed light on ancient life
Paleontologists are getting a glimpse at life over a billion years in the past based on chemical traces in ancient rocks and the genetics of living animals. Research published Dec.…
Cultural artifacts serve as ‘cognitive fossils,’ helping uncover the psychology of the past
No two societies in history think exactly alike. In fact, the mindset of a given society throughout history can help historians unpack important clues about the effects of psychological shifts…