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Among the most surprising finds is that the inhabitants of the earliest cities of the Bronze Age (3500–1200 b.c.) were enthusiastic pig eaters, and that even later Iron Age (1200–586 b.c.) residents of Jerusalem enjoyed the occasional pork feast. Yet despite a wealth of data and new techniques including ancient DNA analysis, archaeologists still wrestle with many porcine mysteries, including why the once plentiful animal gradually became scarce long before religious taboos were enacted...In the 1990s, at the site of Hallan Çemi in southeastern Anatolia, archaeologists unearthed 51,000 animal bones dating to about 10,000 b.c. Of these, boar bones made...

Phys.org reports that farmers were transporting live fish to stock mountain lakes in the Pyrenees much earlier than previously thought. High mountain lakes are often historically fishless due to natural barriers created by glaciers, as was the case with Lake Redon in northeastern Spain. The 240-foot-deep lake is isolated from fluvial waterways by a 330-foot waterfall, which makes it impossible for fish to naturally enter and colonize it. However, there are an estimated 60,000 brown trout living in it today. Historic documents record that the process of fish stocking was begun by at least the fourteenth or fifteenth century. Recent...

On the Presence of Non-Chinese at Anyang by Kim Hayes It has now become clear that finds of chariot remains, metal knives and axes of northern provenance, and bronze mirrors of western provenance in the tombs of Anyang indicate that the Shang had at least indirect contact with people who were familiar with these things. Who were these people? Where did they live? When did they arrive? Following the discovery of the Tarim Mummies, we now know that the population of the earliest attested cultures of what is present-day Xinjiang were of northwestern or western derivation. According to the craniometric...

Ancient DNA from the pelt of a fluffy white dog named Mutton is revealing new details about the woolly dog, an extinct breed that was cared for and raised by the women of the Coast Salish tribal nations in the Pacific Northwest. The small dogs... were fed a special diet of fish or elk, and they were shorn like sheep, their wool woven into special blankets and textiles.For thousands of years, woolly dogs were cherished as family members and raised on islands or kept in pens to ensure they didn't interbreed with other dogs, according to Michael Pavel, an elder...

In a nutshell Young children have better survival rates when animal protein makes up a larger portion of their diet due to essential amino acids and easily absorbed nutrients like iron and zinc. Adults over 60 benefit more from plant-based proteins, with higher life expectancy in countries where plant proteins are more prevalent in the food supply. The research suggests dietary guidelines should consider age-specific recommendations, especially as countries transition to more sustainable food systems. ******************************************************************** SYDNEY — New research challenges the one-size-fits-all approach to diet, at least when it comes to protein sources. Scientists have discovered that eating meat...

A cow with a name produces more milk than one without. And that might not be the strangest thing about moo juice, a decidedly odd part of human history. The Weird History of Milk | 20:57 The History Guy: History Deserves to Be Remembered | 1.52M subscribers | 121,022 views | March 3, 2025

The world’s most expensive — and unique — dog has sold for a fetching $5.7 million. Being the first of its kind, this is pooch is a cross between an actual wolf and a Caucasian Shepherd — which can sound like a sci-fi movie plot. An Indian dog enthusiast barked up the big bucks for the “wolfdog” named Cadabomb Okami, touted as the rarest dog in the world. This extravagant pup was born in the US and is only eight months old — but already weighs over 165 lbs and is 30 inches tall. Being part Shepherd, at heart Okami...

For hundreds of years, history left us wondering what disease killed the Aztecs in the mid-1500s. Many assumed the Aztecs were one of many Central American groups to be wiped out by European diseases like smallpox. However, DNA testing has unearthed new evidence about what really killed 80% of the Aztecs. Scientists extracted DNA from Aztec teeth, and discovered the presence of a strand of Salmonella. Research on climate change in Mexico at the time indicates droughts could have precipitated the spread of disease. Some things remain unexplained, however; only continued research can explain how a massive epidemic ravaged the...

According to a Phys.org report, an international team of researchers from Simon Fraser University, the Greek Ministry of Culture, and the University of Bologna analyzed the chemical composition of collagen samples taken from human remains recovered from Franchthi Cave, a site that now overlooks Greece's Bay of Koilada.The cave was occupied over a period of about 40,000 years beginning in the Upper Paleolithic period. The remains in the study have been dated to the Mesolithic period, between 8700 and 8500 B.C., and the Neolithic period, between 6600 and 5800 B.C.Previous studies of human bones from the cave have indicated that...

Camel milk may be better for our immune health than cow's milk. (Leo Morgan/Shutterstock) In a nutshell * Camel milk contains significantly more immune-supporting proteins than cow’s milk (1,143 vs. 851) and lacks the main protein that triggers dairy allergies * Its bioactive compounds may help fight harmful bacteria, support heart health, and create a healthier gut environment, though more research is needed * While production is currently limited (camels produce about 5L/day vs. cows’ 28L), camel milk’s ability to be produced in arid climates makes it promising for regions where traditional dairy farming is challenging JOONDALUP, Australia — Move...

Claims that we ought to subscribe to a low-carb, high-protein 'paleo diet' are typically based on assertions our ancestors avoided complicated plant processing in favor of simpler meals consisting of meats, nuts, fruit, and raw vegetables. "...nonsense ..."

The newly discovered species could have been even smaller than the smallest living cats of today, the rusty-spotted cat (pictured) and the black-footed cat. Image credit: Felineus/Shutterstock.com Abrand new species of cat has been found in a fossil from a cave in China. Reportedly small enough to have fit in the palm of your hand, the cat – named Prionailurus kurteni – is thought to have coexisted alongside ancient people. Prionailurus kurteni was discovered from a fragment of jaw bone in Hualongdong Cave and is believed to be between 275,000 and 331,000 years old. It is also thought to belong...

Cows also 'have regional accents' Cows moo with a regional twang Cow moo recordings(Click on site to hear) Cows have regional accents like humans, language specialists have suggested. They decided to examine the issue after dairy farmers noticed their cows had slightly different moos, depending on which herd they came from. John Wells, Professor of Phonetics at the University of London, said regional twangs had been seen before in birds. The farmers in Somerset who noticed the phenomenon said it may have been the result of the close bond between them and their animals. Farmer Lloyd Green, from Glastonbury, said:...

The Caveman Diet, also known as the Paleo Diet, is a weight-loss craze where calorie-counters pick foods they think early humans may have eaten. For most followers, this means a meat-heavy diet. But a new study suggests that if you truly want to eat like a caveman, you should be steering clear of red meat. Contrary to popular belief, researchers from Bar-Ilan University say that early humans were not solely focused on animal protein. Instead, cavemen were mostly vegetarians whose diets featured plant-based foods including acorns, cereals, legumes, and aquatic plants. 'This discovery underscores the importance of plant foods in...

The designation makes the breed eligible to compete for many best in show trophies, and it likely augurs more widespread interest in the small, sprightly dogs. The prospect both gladdens and concerns their biggest fans. ... Called the farmdog or DSF for short, the breed goes back centuries in parts of what are now Denmark, southern Sweden and some other European countries, according to the Danish-Swedish Farmdog Club of America. ... In their original homelands, the dogs’ main job was rodent patrol, but they also would herd a bit, act as watchdogs and play with farmers’ children. Some even performed...

An extremely rare example of megalithic rock art was recently identified in northern Israel's Yehudiya Nature Reserve inside a 4,200-year-old stone burial chamber. The unique discovery of a clearly composed, artistic rendering of a herd of animals is shifting the way archaeologists think about the little-understood peoples who created the thousands of massive stone burial chambers, or dolmens, that dot northern Israel's Golan and Galilee... "These megalithic structures were built more than 4,000 years ago. They are ancient burials and they were built by a group of people of whom the only thing we know is that they built their...

New research at indigenous Alaskan archaeological sites dates the origins of human-canid friendship in the Americas to 12,000 years ago, 2,000 years earlier than previous evidence. Food sharing is a universal custom of friendship, reflected in how modern humans share their homes and food with dogs like our ancestors did millennia ago. Large canids such as dogs, coyotes, and wolves commonly form bonds with human populations in cold, northern environments such as Alaska. Ancient Human-Canid Friendship While the deeper origins of human-canine companionship remain to be discovered, the new study published in Science Advances illuminates the early period of that...

After 60 years of searching, geneticists have finally identified the gene behind the marmalade coloration in domestic cats. Two independent teams of researchers found any fiery-hued fuzz on our beloved clawed floofs is likely the result of a missing segment of DNA in a non-protein-coding part of the cat's genome. "It's been a genetic mystery, a conundrum," Stanford University geneticist Greg Barsh told Sara Reardon at Science. Barsh and his colleagues discovered cat skin cells from which orange fur sprouts express 13 times as much RNA from a gene called Arhgap36, compared with skin cells from cats with no orange...

The trunks and hive are now at the Museum of Beekeeping Culture Credit: Museum of Beekeeping Culture Facebook Whilst Sweden is anxious to uncover fake honey and have it removed from shelves, Polish scientists have discovered a 1,300 year old beehive. Medieval Polish beehive is one of the oldest to be discovered anywhere in the world It was found inside the trunk of a tree and is believed to be one of the world’s oldest preserved beehives. As sawmill operators were getting ready to turn the trunk of an ancient oak tree into boards, they noticed something unusual imbedded within...

A new study led by a University of Arizona researcher is one step closer to an answer on how Indigenous people in the Americas interacted with early dogs and wolves.The study, published Wednesday in the journal Science Advances and based on archaeological remains in Alaska, shows that people and the ancestors of today's dogs began forming close relationships as early as 12,000 years ago – about 2,000 years earlier than previously recorded in the Americas..."People like me who are interested in the peopling of the Americas are very interested in knowing if those first Americans came with dogs," Lanoë added....