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Over the course of the past 200 million years, our planet has experienced four major geological periods (the Triassic, Jurassic and Cretaceous and Cenozoic) and one major ice age (the Pliocene-Quaternary glaciation), all of which had a drastic impact on plant and animal life, as well as effecting the course of species evolution. For decades, geologists have also understood that these changes are due in part to gradual shifts in the Earth’s orbit, which are caused by Venus and Jupiter, and repeat regularly every 405,000 years. But it was not until recently that a team of geologists and Earth scientists...

I mention here that not long after the excavation many began to describe the Great Boat of Khufu as the black box to the construction of the pyramids, and that its contents would reveal all the information that would bring us in proximity to the solution of the great mystery. With this I am in complete agreement, if only because this strange water vehicle, or I should say construction machine, plays a central role in my own theory. While I quite understand if you are somewhat mystified, I beg of you to continue on this exciting road of discovery. Perhaps...

In recent years, sightings of large predators in places where conventional wisdom says they "shouldn't be" have increased, in large part because local populations, once hunted to near-extinction, are rebounding—thanks to conservation. Many observers have hypothesized that as these populations recover the predators are expanding their ranges and colonizing new habitats in search of food. A Duke University-led paper published today in the journal Current Biology suggests otherwise. It finds that, rather than venturing into new and alien habitats for the first time, alligators, sea otters and many other large predators—marine and terrestrial species alike—are re-colonizing ecosystems that used to...

May 8th is the anniversary of V.E. Day (for "Victory in Europe") in 1945, and commemorates the unconditional surrender of Nazi Germany to the Allied forces, ending World War II in Europe. With Adolf Hitler dead by his own hand, German military leaders signed surrender documents at several locations in Europe on May 7, capitulating to each of their victorious foes. Germany’s partner in fascism, Italy, had switched sides in 1943, though many Italians continued to fight alongside their German comrades in Italy. Upon entering the war in December 1941, the United States had agreed on a “Europe first” strategy:...

Experts used ground penetrating radar (GPR) which provided "conclusive evidence of the non-existence of hidden chambers adjacent to or inside Tutankhamun's tomb," the ministry said in a statement. ... It said Porcelli had submitted a report that "concluded, with a very high degree of confidence... the hypothesis concerning the existence of hidden chambers or corridors adjacent to Tutankhamun's tomb is not supported by GPR data." Previous scans had suggested the possibility of hidden chambers, although experts disagreed on the results.

Only about 400 of Scotland’s 4,000-year-old carved stone balls have been found. They are of fairly uniform size, with the diameters of most measuring around 2.75 inches. Fitting nicely within the cupped hand, they are made from a variety of stone -- from soft sandstones to hard granitics. The numbers of projections or knobs range from between three and 160, with six knobs being by far the most common. They display varying degrees of workmanship. A few, like the remarkable Towie Stone, display beautifully intricate carvings, while others are unadorned. All but five of the stones have been found in...

OLD TOWN ALEXANDRIA, Va. — Nestled in centuries of dirt and debris, several well-preserved ships and artifacts have been unearthed that offer a glimpse of life at what was once one of the busiest ports in the North American colonies. At the site for Robinson Landing, a new townhouse and condominium development along the Potomac River here, excavations have uncovered the protruding, curved wooden bones of the ships. Three ships were scuttled and buried here centuries ago as Alexandria sought to expand its land into the deeper waters of the river. “It tells us a lot about the resourcefulness of...

Deer bones found in a cave in the Galilee have pointed to a unique cultural group that may have arrived in the region from Europe between 35,000 and 38,000 years ago. Newly published research regarding this group in the Levant (Israel, Jordan, Lebanon and Syria), points toward distinct cultural entities with distinguishing characteristics already existing in the early stages of human history... The study examined remains of ancient Levantine deer bones, found in the Hayonim Cave in the Western Galilee, and discovered a cultural symbol: bones with specific grooves appearing in a fixed area. The study posits that this may...

Amateurs find bronze age treasure trove Allan Hall TWO amateur treasure hunters who sold bronze age artefacts found on a mountainside to buy a stereo system have stumbled upon one of the greatest archaeological finds in history, writes Allan Hall in Berlin. Experts say they are certain the haul, which included a circular disc depicting the heavens with sun, moon and stars, is at least 3,600 years old. This shows Europeans had a rudimentary knowledge of the solar system and its influence on our lives far earlier than previously thought. Harald Meller, an archaeologist, said: "This ranks as one of ...

“We regard its age as quite likely between 865,000 and 810,000 years ago,” said Michael Walker of Spain’s Murcia University, a lead researcher on Cueva Negra. “[Arguably] Until now hand-axes in Europe have not been recorded from before 500,000 years ago,” said Walker. Moreover, he adds, “the evidence of combustion [use of fire] is also the oldest anywhere outside Africa.” The new dating results were acquired through biochronological analysis of small-mammal teeth remains found within the Cueva Negra rockshelter, indicating they accumulated during what is technically called the Matuyama magnetochron, or between 0.99 and 0.78 Ma. Researchers do not yet know...

Technology originally developed for NASA has revealed letters invisible to the naked eye on fragments of the 2,000-year-old Dead Sea Scrolls, officials announced Tuesday. The scrolls were discovered in the 1950s by archaeologists and Bedouin in caves near Qumran -- on the West Bank near the Dead Sea -- and include tens of thousands of parchment and papyrus fragments that are thought to belong to approximately 1,000 different manuscripts. The Israel Antiquities Authority said examinations of some fragments that had not previously been sorted or deciphered due to their "small size and precarious physical state" uncovered new script and pointed...

WASHINGTON, D.C.—Odysseus, who voyaged across the wine-dark seas of the Mediterranean in Homer’s epic, may have had some astonishingly ancient forerunners. A decade ago, when excavators claimed to have found stone tools on the Greek island of Crete dating back at least 130,000 years, other archaeologists were stunned—and skeptical. But since then, at that site and others, researchers have quietly built up a convincing case for Stone Age seafarers—and for the even more remarkable possibility that they were Neandertals, the extinct cousins of modern humans. The finds strongly suggest that the urge to go to sea, and the cognitive and...

Marie Antoinette's stunning hamlet in the grounds of the Château de Versailles has opened to the public for the first time after an enormous £326million restoration project. The Hameau de la Reine, constructed more than two centuries ago in 1783, is situated two kilometres away from the main chateau in north central France and served as a haven for the queen. Modelled on her vision of a countryside farm, she used it to entertain guests, introduce royal children to nature and animals - and even reportedly to play 'dress up' when she got bored of palace life.

Nicholas Blackwell and his father went to a hardware store about three years ago seeking parts for a mystery device from the past. They carefully selected wood and other materials to assemble a stonecutting pendulum that, if Blackwell is right, resembles contraptions once used to build majestic Bronze Age palaces. With no ancient drawings or blueprints of the tool for guidance, the two men relied on their combined knowledge of archaeology and construction. Blackwell, an archaeologist at Indiana University Bloomington, had the necessary Bronze Age background. His father, George, brought construction cred to the project... No one alive today has...

New documents revealed by the FDR library shows the president's secret plans to resettle Jews out of Europe. NEW YORK - New evidence suggests that as the Jews of Europe were being slaughtered across continent during the Holocaust, President Franklin D. Roosevelt did not want them seeking refuge on American shores. Tucked away in a secret vault inside the White House during his 12 year tenure as commander-in-chief, the newly revealed documents recently made public via the FDR Library paint a portrait of the President’s plan to ‘spread thin all over the world’ the remains of European Jewry.  Be the...

About 709,000 years ago, someone butchered a rhinoceros using stone tools on the Philippine island of Luzon. That may not seem remarkable -- except that humans weren't supposed to be in the Philippines so long ago. Before this discovery, the earliest indicator that early humans, or hominins, were even on those islands had been a single foot bone from 67,000 years ago, uncovered in the Callao Cave on Luzon. That's quite a time jump. Research says that the new findings push back the date for humans inhabiting the Philippines by hundreds of thousands of years. A study published Wednesday in...

Archaeologists in Israel have uncovered an ancient site that may offer fresh insight into the ancient biblical kingdom of David and Solomon. Researchers from Bar-Ilan University have been excavating the remains of a large house dubbed the “Governor’s Residence” that was destroyed by a fire in an 8th century B.C. Assyrian military campaign. The impressive four-room home, located at Tel ‘Eton in the Judean foothills, had at least two stories and its ground floor extended over 2,420 square feet. Occupying high ground at the top of a mound, the house was carefully built with deep foundations. Large masonry stones were...

A small leather case containing a fragment of bone claimed to be a relic of St Clement, a pope who was martyred almost 2,000 years ago, has been found in rubbish collected from central London. The waste disposal firm is now appealing for suggestions from the public for a more suitable final resting place for a saint than a bin. The box, originally sealed with red wax and tied with crimson cords, contained a scrap of bone under a glass dome, with a faded strip of paper labelling it “Oss. S Clementis” – bone of St Clement. St Clement is...

MANBIJ, Syria – For more than two years, ISIS forces who occupied this northern Syrian city paid little attention to the tip of an old gate on an empty mound of land where they dumped trash. They were clueless the gate ran several feet into the ground down to something they might well have destroyed had they known: The ruins of an ancient Christian refuge, or early church, possibly dating back to the first centuries of Christendom’s existence, under the Roman Empire. “I was so excited, I can’t describe it. I was holding everything in my hands,” Abdulwahab Sheko, head...

As Philip Klein points out, it’s a good thing that this “history lesson” comes from the Left’s favorite Palestinian moderate. Lord knows how this would have unfolded with a less rational personage than Mahmoud “Abu Mazen” Abbas. The Palestinian leader opened the first Palestinian National Council in 22 years yesterday, hoping to firm up his credibility enough to establish his preferred line of succession as well as unite Palestinians under his leadership. And what better way to accomplish this than some unadulterated and absolutely bat-s*** crazy anti-Semitic conspiracy theories? In a long and rambling at speech in Ramallah at...