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Why the mighty Stonehenge was built around 5,000 years ago has long been one of the great mysteries.But according to a new study, we may finally have an answer.Scientists say Wiltshire's famous stone circle was built as a symbol of unification between three distinct corners of Britain.We know that Stonehenge's rocky slabs were transported as far afield from southwest Wales and northeast Scotland.So the scientists, from University College London and Aberystwyth University, theorise that Scottish and Welsh people brought their own local stones down to Wiltshire as a well-meaning contribution to assembling the structure.In that sense, it represented a powerful...

A joint Egyptian-German archaeological mission from Sohag and Berlin Universities has discovered the burial chamber of a woman named Edi, daughter of Jifai-Hapi who was governor of Assuit in Upper Egypt during the reign of King Senusret I of the 12th dynasty (1991–1778 BC).The discovery was made during excavation work carried out on the father's tomb in Western Assuit Mountain, which is considered the largest non-royal tomb from that period in ancient Egypt."Preliminary studies suggest that Edi died before reaching the age of 40 and suffered from a congenital foot defect," said Mohamed Ismail, Secretary General of the Supreme Council...

Sci-fi films and TV shows have routinely depicted a brutal race of aliens visiting Earth in their spaceships and enslaving unfortunate Earthlings. But according to one expert, extraterrestrial life may actually be too scared of 'dangerous' and 'violent' humans to want to come here. Dr Gordon Gallup, a biopsychologist at the University of Albany, argues that humans are 'dangerous, violent and ceaselessly engage in endless bloody conflicts and war'. For this reason, aliens with the technological capability of making a visit to Earth - if they exist - are likely inclined to stay away for fear of death and genocide,...

Rising sea levels may be seen as a very modern phenomenon, but according to a new study, it really became a significant issue more than 150 years ago. Researchers have studied a global database of sea-level records spanning the last 2,000 years, based on archeological and biological evidence at global sites. These sites include Pelham Bay in New York, Cheesequake in New Jersey, Vioarholmi in Iceland, Aasiaat in Greenland and Loch Laxford in Scotland. Modern rates of sea level rise began emerging in 1863 following the Industrial Revolution, coinciding with evidence for early ocean warming and glaciers melting, the experts...

Ancient Earth was hit by extreme 'hothouse' periods of intense dryness, followed by massive rainstorms, a new study reveals. These rainstorms were hundreds of miles wide and could dump more than a foot of rain in a matter of hours, Harvard University scientists report.... ... for multiple periods in Earth's history, our planet experienced hothouse' periods' that were around 20°F to 30°F hotter than it is today. Earth likely experienced these periods multiple times in its distant past and will experience them again hundreds of millions of years from now as the sun continues to brighten, say they team, who...