https://phys.org/science-news/ en-us The latest science news on archaeology, fossils, mathematics, and science technology from Phys.org Orofacial clefts (OC; cleft lips and/or palates) require intense care immediately after birth and can lead to lifelong difficulties with eating and speaking, leading to social marginalization, stigmatization, and exclusion. In a study published in the International Journal of Osteoarchaeology, Dr. Xiaofan Sun and her colleagues identified and analyzed the first archaeological case of OC in China. The study found that the young man not only survived infancy, suggesting intensive care was given to him, but his burial suggests that he was fully integrated into his community, receiving full burial rights, indicating his deformity did not lead to him being shamed in life. https://phys.org/news/2026-04-archaeological-case-cleft-lip-china.html Archaeology Fri, 17 Apr 2026 12:20:02 EDT news695642603 Improved methods for social and behavioral sciences research could help enhance public trust in science, says a new study that investigated the robustness of data analysis to understand whether it reliably stood the test of time. It did. https://phys.org/news/2026-04-science.html Social Sciences Thu, 16 Apr 2026 18:40:01 EDT news695570281 Monumental ship burials in Scandinavia may have started around a century earlier than previously thought, according to a paper published in the journal Antiquity. It reports the discovery of the remains of a 1,300-year-old ship buried on the Norwegian island of Leka, predating the Vikings. https://phys.org/news/2026-04-monumental-ship-burial-beneath-ancient.html Archaeology Thu, 16 Apr 2026 18:00:08 EDT news695564232 Egyptian mummy remains were examined at Semmelweis University's Medical Imaging Center (OKK). The archaeological finds arriving from the Semmelweis Museum of Medical History, Hungarian National Museum Public Collection Center (MNMKK) were analyzed using the institution's newest CT scanner equipped with a photon-counting detector. Thanks to state-of-the-art imaging technology, highly detailed images have been captured that were previously unavailable, and the initial results promise significant scientific advances. https://phys.org/news/2026-04-generation-ct-scanner-reveal-year.html Archaeology Wed, 15 Apr 2026 19:30:02 EDT news695490901 The exact location of William Shakespeare's only London property can now be pinpointed to a quiet Blackfriars street, thanks to the discovery of a previously unknown floorplan. The discovery, made by Shakespeare expert Professor Lucy Munro from King's College London, not only identifies the exact place of the property Shakespeare bought in 1613 but also the layout and size. It also paints a different picture of where Shakespeare may have spent some of his time in his later years. https://phys.org/news/2026-04-shakespeare-london-house-discovery.html Archaeology Wed, 15 Apr 2026 19:10:07 EDT news695462461 Researchers have identified the genetic material of scarlet fever while examining a tooth from a naturally mummified skull housed at MUNARQ, the National Museum of Archaeology in La Paz. Using a method that reassembled previously unknown genomes from numerous short DNA fragments, they reconstructed a nearly complete, ancient genome of Streptococcus pyogenes. The reconstructed genome shows clear similarities to modern strains of the globally widespread bacterium, which can cause a variety of illnesses ranging from harmless throat infections to scarlet fever and life-threatening toxic shock syndrome. https://phys.org/news/2026-04-bolivian-mummy-rewrites-scarlet-fever.html Archaeology Wed, 15 Apr 2026 17:30:05 EDT news695492282 Nearly 800,000 years ago, early humans gathered along the shores of a lush lake in what is now northern Israel. Here, they returned again and again, hunting large animals, cooking fish over controlled fires, and organizing their daily lives around hearths. Now, a new study shows that even the wood fueling those fires, which is preserved as rare fragments of charcoal, can reveal how carefully these ancient communities understood and used their environment. https://phys.org/news/2026-04-ancient-charcoal-early-humans-fueled.html Archaeology Wed, 15 Apr 2026 17:00:06 EDT news695476707 If you can't get no satisfaction, then maybe it's because happiness does not only stem from pleasure or a meaningful existence. Instead, a new Simon Fraser University study suggests that freedom is the key to happiness. https://phys.org/news/2026-04-autonomy-key-happiness.html Social Sciences Wed, 15 Apr 2026 15:20:02 EDT news695474282 Archaeologists working at the ancient settlement of Stăuceni-"Holm" in northeastern Romania have uncovered a mega-structure measuring 350 square meters dating back about 6,000 years. This is one of the few examples of a massive building that has been physically excavated in the region. It is hoped that it will reveal more about the Cucuteni-Trypillia culture (ca. 5000–3500 BC) of Eastern Europe, which is known for its large, well-planned settlements. https://phys.org/news/2026-04-unearthed-mega-hints-communal-romania.html Archaeology Wed, 15 Apr 2026 14:50:02 EDT news695477987 In an analysis of a video-assisted, pitch-side review of soccer (UK football) referee calls in the English Premier League, referees overturned their original call 95% of the time. However, these decisions had no statistical link to crowd size, the score or quarter when the call was made, or whether the call was regarding the home versus away team. https://phys.org/news/2026-04-referee-decisions-soccer-frequently-overturned.html Other Wed, 15 Apr 2026 14:00:08 EDT news695464857 For over 100 years, the National Museum has housed a large collection of inscribed tablets from the earliest civilizations of the Middle East—many over 4,000 years old and written in languages that are now extinct. The tablets have led a quiet existence, but now researchers have deciphered them and discovered fascinating texts about magic, kings and good old-fashioned bureaucracy. https://phys.org/news/2026-04-year-clay-tablets-inscribed-magical.html Archaeology Wed, 15 Apr 2026 12:00:02 EDT news695466242 A new study led by Dr. Andrea Nini at The University of Manchester has found that a grammar-based approach to language analysis can match or outperform advanced AI systems in identifying who wrote a text. The method, called LambdaG, uses patterns in grammar and sentence construction rather than large-scale AI models, offering comparable accuracy with greater transparency and lower computational cost. https://phys.org/news/2026-04-basics-approach-outperform-ai-language.html Social Sciences Wed, 15 Apr 2026 11:40:05 EDT news695465206 A study published in the Journal of Anthropological Archaeology combined zooarchaeology with multi-isotopic analysis to reveal the diverse life histories of ancient dogs in the Wari Empire (ca. 600–1050 CE). Not only has this study broadened our understanding of the role of dogs during the Wari Empire, but it has also identified the first empirical evidence of Peruvian Hairless Dogs from that period, which were likely treated differently from other dogs. https://phys.org/news/2026-04-physical-evidence-peruvian-hairless-dogs.html Archaeology Wed, 15 Apr 2026 10:00:03 EDT news695463715 Learning a second language is becoming increasingly popular worldwide, with millions of people turning to digital tools and mobile applications to pick up a new language at their own pace. But what makes some more popular or effective than others? https://phys.org/news/2026-04-memory-language.html Education Wed, 15 Apr 2026 09:20:01 EDT news695463422 Research on ancient DNA is surging, but how can scientists ensure that human remains of irreplaceable significance are preserved? This is the question investigated by an international research team led by the University of Bonn. Their findings have now been published in the journal PLOS One. https://phys.org/news/2026-04-tomography-dna-ancient-humans-destroying.html Archaeology Tue, 14 Apr 2026 18:20:02 EDT news695396341 The study of ancient cultures around Ethiopia during the Middle Stone Age (MSA) time period is important for understanding how some of the first Homo sapiens lived and eventually left Africa. Unfortunately, there are not many well-preserved, open-air archaeological sites from the MSA, especially with both human fossils and artifacts. The Middle Awash study area in Ethiopia, however, is one of the few areas with a well-preserved treasure trove of artifacts capable of painting a picture of early human life in Ethiopia. A new study, published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, reports on some fascinating findings from this region, giving clues into what life—and death—might have been like. https://phys.org/news/2026-04-ethiopia-afar-rift-glimpse-life.html Archaeology Tue, 14 Apr 2026 13:35:25 EDT news695392501 A multidisciplinary archaeological team has examined plague burials from a 17th-century monastery turned hospital in Basel, Switzerland, shedding light on how social status impacted plague mortality in Early Modern Europe. Their study, "All equal in the face of death? Life histories of confirmed victims of the last plague epidemic in Basel," is published in the journal Antiquity. https://phys.org/news/2026-04-great-equalizer-young-laborers-hardest.html Archaeology Tue, 14 Apr 2026 05:00:05 EDT news694964942 You probably have a member of your family that you're not related to by blood—a step-parent, an adopted cousin, your mom's best friend who you grew up calling your aunt. They're indisputably part of your family, but a DNA test wouldn't hint at your relationship. Archaeologists are finding that this holds true for families from thousands of years ago, too. https://phys.org/news/2026-04-ancient-graves-dna-uncover-family.html Archaeology Tue, 14 Apr 2026 03:00:07 EDT news695313264 Archaeologists have investigated genetic relationships between individuals buried in Neolithic chambered tombs in northern Scotland, suggesting monumental tombs may have been physical embodiments of prehistoric kinship, tracing lineages over centuries. https://phys.org/news/2026-04-scottish-neolithic-tombs-kinship-descent.html Archaeology Mon, 13 Apr 2026 19:00:04 EDT news695293081 An 11th-century Anglo-Saxon seal belonging to Edward the Confessor has been rediscovered more than 40 years after being declared lost. The wax impression of the "Saint-Denis seal" disappeared without official explanation in the 1980s from the Archives Nationales in Paris, where it had resided for almost 200 years. https://phys.org/news/2026-04-lost-edward-confessor-resurfaces-years.html Archaeology Mon, 13 Apr 2026 14:40:06 EDT news695301961 Psychologists have long known that social situations profoundly influence human behavior, yet have lacked a unified, empirically grounded way to describe them. A new study addresses this problem by using generative AI to systematically classify thousands of everyday social interactions. In a new study, researchers analyzed thousands of textual descriptions of two-person social interactions, then used generative artificial intelligence (AI) to code the exchanges by features, resulting in a taxonomy of categories of social interactions. Then they related these groups to variables like conflict, power, and duty to provide a comprehensive, data-driven framework for quantifying the structure of interactions. https://phys.org/news/2026-04-ai-everyday-interactions-reveal-social.html Social Sciences Mon, 13 Apr 2026 14:10:02 EDT news695306693 A recent archaeological project has physically reconstructed the ceremonial dress of medieval Nubian royalty and clergy, offering a rare glimpse into how clothing shaped and communicated authority in Christian Nubia. The research is published in the journal Antiquity. https://phys.org/news/2026-04-revived-nubian-royal-robes-prestige.html Archaeology Mon, 13 Apr 2026 11:20:04 EDT news695295124 The small talk you try to avoid because you think it will be boring may actually be more enjoyable than you think, and good for you as well, according to research published in the Journal of Personality and Social Psychology. https://phys.org/news/2026-04-small-topics-enjoyable.html Social Sciences Mon, 13 Apr 2026 09:00:03 EDT news695028773 DNA studies of 1,500-year-old skeletons have revealed that ancient Koreans lived in tightly knit family networks where marrying close relatives was common in some cases, from powerful elites to individuals chosen for human sacrifice. https://phys.org/news/2026-04-ancient-korean-dna-reveals-marriages.html Archaeology Sun, 12 Apr 2026 12:00:01 EDT news695044039 For decades, the strongest evidence for the earliest human settlement in the Americas came from a site in Chile called Monte Verde. https://phys.org/news/2026-03-site-key-humans-americas.html Archaeology Sat, 11 Apr 2026 11:00:05 EDT news693154333 Happy Saturday! This week, researchers reported on the familiar phenomenon of speeding away from a slower-driving car only to have it catch up at the next traffic light—they've named it Voorhees law, after the well-known movie slasher who always catches up to his victims. A study finds that nonpsychotropic cannabinoid CBD reverses brain damage in a mouse model of Alzheimer's disease. And scientists are testing methods to regrow joints damaged by arthritis. https://phys.org/news/2026-04-saturday-citations-octopus-behavior-children.html Other Sat, 11 Apr 2026 09:00:02 EDT news695044047 A study published in Azania: Archaeological Research in Africa sheds new light on the westward spread of pearl millet (Pennisetum glaucum) agriculture in prehistoric West Africa. A recent survey documented its earliest known occurrence in the Lac de Guiers basin of Northern Senegal, around AD 200, coinciding with increasing aridification, which may have driven the expansion of dryland farming communities westward. https://phys.org/news/2026-04-archaeological-survey-gnith-reveals-pearl.html Archaeology Fri, 10 Apr 2026 15:20:03 EDT news695041245 Roman painters commissioned at the end of the 1st century to decorate the walls of the Domus of Salvius in present-day Cartagena could hardly have imagined that their technical expertise would still attract attention twenty centuries later. Analysis of wall paintings from one of the house's rooms—among the best preserved in ancient Carthago Nova—shows that these craftsmen possessed a sophisticated understanding of the materials used to produce pigments, as well as the effects achieved through combining them. In particular, researchers identified an advanced "recipe" that enabled them to reduce costs while ensuring the durability of the paint. This method relied on a mixture of pigments, including one of the most valued minerals of the time: costly cinnabar, often referred to as "red gold." https://phys.org/news/2026-04-rare-roman-recipe-uncovered-cartagena.html Archaeology Fri, 10 Apr 2026 14:20:05 EDT news695048063 From refusing to doff hats in court to resisting hat-snatching highway robbers, England's relationship with hats goes far deeper than fashion, new research shows. https://phys.org/news/2026-04-hat-wars-early-modern-england.html Social Sciences Thu, 09 Apr 2026 19:00:05 EDT news694950931 Research from MIT Sloan School of Management has demonstrated a new way of designing social science experiments that can uncover patterns invisible to common approaches. In their paper titled "Integrative experiments identify how punishment affects welfare in public goods games," published in Science, MIT Sloan associate professor Abdullah Almaatouq and recent MIT Sloan Ph.D. graduate in Information Technology Mohammed Alsobay, alongside Cornell University professor David G. Rand and University of Pennsylvania professor Duncan J. Watts, have shown what becomes possible when researchers move beyond studying factors in isolation. https://phys.org/news/2026-04-reveals-hidden-patterns-decades-social.html Social Sciences Thu, 09 Apr 2026 17:50:02 EDT news694972681