More than 150 years ago, Darwin proposed the theory of universal common ancestry (UCA), linking all forms of life by a shared genetic heritage from single-celled microorganisms to humans. Until now, the theory that makes ...

Biology - Evolution

May 12, 2010 4.3 / 5 (65) 164 |

A 21-year Michigan State University experiment that distills the essence of evolution in laboratory flasks not only demonstrates natural selection at work, but could lead to biotechnology and medical research ...

Biology - Evolution

Oct 18, 2009 4.6 / 5 (42) 13

(PhysOrg.com) -- Scientists from the University of Utah in Salt Lake City in the U.S. have calculated that 1.2 million years ago, at a time when our ancestors were spreading through Africa, Europe and Asia, ...

Biology - Evolution

Jan 21, 2010 4.6 / 5 (42) 29 |

Charles Darwin's theory of gradual evolution is not supported by geological history, New York University Geologist Michael Rampino concludes in an essay in the journal Historical Biology. In fact, Rampino notes that a more ...

Biology - Evolution

Nov 09, 2010 4.6 / 5 (38) 477 |

(PhysOrg.com) -- A new book claims even modern athletes could not run as fast, jump as high, or have been nearly as strong as our predecessors.

Biology - Evolution

Oct 21, 2009 3.9 / 5 (41) 40

(PhysOrg.com) -- Nature, in all its glory, is nothing if not thrifty.

Biology - Evolution

Jul 27, 2010 4.8 / 5 (33) 12 |

By simulating 25,000 generations of evolution within computers, Cornell University engineering and robotics researchers have discovered why biological networks tend to be organized as modules – a finding that will lead ...

Biology - Evolution

Jan 29, 2013 4.4 / 5 (33) 14 |

(PhysOrg.com) -- Mass extinctions occur repeatedly, though irregularly, throughout Earth’s history, and occasionally these extinctions have been devastating to life on our planet - or have they? Extinction ...

Biology - Evolution

Apr 03, 2009 4.7 / 5 (30) 16

The lowly appendix, long-regarded as a useless evolutionary artifact, won newfound respect two years ago when researchers at Duke University Medical Center proposed that it actually serves a critical function. ...

Biology - Evolution

Aug 20, 2009 4.9 / 5 (29) 35

(PhysOrg.com) -- A new study of thousands of species of plants and animals suggests new species may arise from rare events instead of through an accumulation of small changes made in response to changes in ...

Biology - Evolution

Dec 11, 2009 4.5 / 5 (31) 40

Human brains have shrunk over the past 30,000 years, puzzling scientists who argue it is not a sign we are growing dumber but that evolution is making the key motor leaner and more efficient.

Biology - Evolution

Feb 06, 2011 4.2 / 5 (33) 56

(PhysOrg.com) -- The yellow-bellied three-toed skink (Saiphos equalis) is one of only three reptiles known to have different methods of reproduction in different places. In the coastal areas of New South ...

Biology - Evolution

Sep 06, 2010 4.6 / 5 (29) 3 |

After extracting ancient DNA from the 40,000-year-old bones of Neanderthals, scientists have obtained a draft sequence of the Neanderthal genome, yielding important new insights into the evolution of modern ...

Biology - Evolution

May 06, 2010 4.7 / 5 (27) 66 |

(Phys.org) -- A classic study from more than 60 years ago suggesting that males are more promiscuous and females more choosy in selecting mates may, in fact, be wrong, say life scientists who are the ...

Biology - Evolution

Jun 26, 2012 4.8 / 5 (26) 13 |

(PhysOrg.com) -- Although the question of what makes humans different from other animals doesn't have a single obvious answer, one seemingly conspicuous human trait is morality. Darwin, in his book The Descent of Man, an ...

Biology - Evolution

May 19, 2010 4.5 / 5 (27) 428 |