https://phys.org/science-news/ en-us The latest science news on archaeology, fossils, mathematics, and science technology from Phys.org The Danish town of Svendborg was once home to a Franciscan monastery. As at other monasteries in Denmark, it was considered highly prestigious to be buried as close to the monastery church as possible, preferably inside the church itself, for instance near the chapter house or along the cloister. https://phys.org/news/2026-11-archaeological-fish-skeletons-hundreds-years.html Archaeology Tue, 10 Nov 2026 14:00:01 EST news713532542 A fresh excavation of the eastern deposit at Riparo Mochi, a rock shelter near today's French–Italian border, has pushed back the timeline for when Ice Age hunter-gatherers from Spain first entered Italy. https://phys.org/news/2026-11-ice-age-reveals-hunter-italy.html Archaeology Tue, 10 Nov 2026 10:40:05 EST news713524984 Theft is almost universally considered an exploitative behavior. The conventional view underlying judicial systems is that the act of taking resources from others without offering compensation stems from moral and personal failings. As a result, these systems rely on the assumption that the threat or imposition of punishment will motivate criminal offenders to adjust their future behavior. Yet the outcome is not always success. https://phys.org/news/2026-11-thieves-kleptomania-struggle-rewards-decision.html Social Sciences Tue, 10 Nov 2026 10:00:15 EST news713525041 More than 2,000 years ago, Egyptians offered cats to the gods. Now, a new study published in the Journal of Archaeological Science suggests that even cats destined for the gods did not necessarily live pampered lives. https://phys.org/news/2026-11-egyptian-cats-meant-gods-harsh.html Archaeology Tue, 10 Nov 2026 07:40:15 EST news713446014 Ten years after 8,000 ancient frog bones were discovered in a single ditch, scientists at Bournemouth University and the Museum of London Archaeology (MOLA) have finally identified the culprits https://phys.org/news/2026-11-case-roman-frog-graveyard.html Archaeology Mon, 09 Nov 2026 19:10:09 EST news713469601 Analysis of silver and gold from the Anglo-Saxon kingdom of Northumbria finds that, contrary to popular belief, it did not suffer from a shortage of precious metals, questioning why the kingdom used copper-alloy coins rather than silver like its contemporaries. https://phys.org/news/2026-11-anglo-saxon-kingdom-chose-copper.html Archaeology Mon, 09 Nov 2026 19:00:16 EST news713036101 Most of us are familiar with the urge to pick up a seashell from the beach or keep a stone from a hiking trip. The object itself may be ordinary, but to the person who keeps it, it serves as a reminder of a particular moment, place or person. Where did this behavior come from? Did early humans do the same? A new study by Tel Aviv University researchers suggests that this practice stretches back approximately half a million years, with important consequences for the evolution of memory. https://phys.org/news/2026-11-early-humans-keepsakes-years.html Archaeology Mon, 09 Nov 2026 18:00:01 EST news713453338 Symmetry is all around us, from the repeating patterns of crystals to the stitches in a knitted sweater. In materials science, these patterns are more than just visually appealing: They can influence how a material conducts heat, transports electricity and interacts with light. Now, an international research team led by Tohoku University's Advanced Institute for Materials Research (WPI-AIMR) has developed a mathematical framework for describing symmetry in complex, layered structures, opening new possibilities for understanding and designing functional materials. Their findings are published in the journal Interface Focus. https://phys.org/news/2026-11-mathematical-language-captures-symmetry-layered.html Mathematics Mon, 09 Nov 2026 15:20:08 EST news713450222 Most of us like a good old chat with friends, colleagues, neighbors or acquaintances. But what can turn a really good chat into a great one? Sure, conversation topics matter, but scientists have found underlying patterns that may explain our best interactions. https://phys.org/news/2026-11-art-good-conversation-involve-pink.html Mathematics Mon, 09 Nov 2026 12:10:01 EST news713447999 Is any good deed truly selfless—and does it matter? https://phys.org/news/2026-11-nice-essentially.html Social Sciences Mon, 09 Nov 2026 11:40:09 EST news713441496 To understand how societies might react to climate change, archaeologists look at social responses to extreme climate events in the past—and in some places, that included measures as drastic as human sacrifice. Mass ritual sacrifices along the desert coast of northern Peru have been linked to catastrophic flooding caused by El Niño, which made researchers wonder if such sacrifices were part of a rise in violence driven by resource scarcity. But a new survey of the Lambayeque Valley suggests that violence was extremely rare, even during periods of ecological upheaval. https://phys.org/news/2026-11-sacrificing-people-catastrophic-el-nio.html Archaeology Mon, 09 Nov 2026 00:00:02 EST news713119561 As floods become more frequent, severe and widespread, getting people to respond appropriately to flood warnings is more important than ever. New research from the University of Vermont shows that the way flood hazard information is presented can dramatically affect not only whether people make the right decision, but also how quickly they make it. The findings are published in the journal Crisis and Risk Communication. https://phys.org/news/2026-11-people-pressure.html Social Sciences Fri, 06 Nov 2026 08:00:01 EST news713022255 In an Amsterdam prison during the Nazi occupation, Sal Bramson drew his cell on pieces of cotton cloth. He added handwritten explanations and sent these messages to his mother, concealed inside a shirt collar among the prison laundry. The cloth could travel because it passed as something ordinary. Its material was part of what made communication possible. https://phys.org/news/2026-11-ai-holocaust-easier.html Social Sciences Thu, 05 Nov 2026 18:00:05 EST news713093918 The hunt for the source of Stonehenge's mysterious Altar Stone has entered a new phase after scientists ruled out several previously proposed locations and moved a step closer to identifying its origins. https://phys.org/news/2026-11-mystery-iconic-stonehenge-altar-stone.html Archaeology Thu, 05 Nov 2026 12:00:02 EST news713097601 On a desolate island at the end of the world, battered by freezing winds, archaeologists have uncovered the remains of a possible 19th-century castaway camp that may have belonged to a renowned Argentine sailor and his shipwrecked crew. https://phys.org/news/2026-11-archaeologists-uncover-19th-century-castaway.html Archaeology Thu, 05 Nov 2026 11:00:38 EST news713093852 It is one of the great questions of mathematics: What does "infinity" actually mean? Which infinities are larger than others? Can infinities be arranged in a sequence, like the rungs of an endless ladder, so that for any two of them we can always say which one lies above the other? https://phys.org/news/2026-11-infinity-bigger-alternative-mathematical-2d.html Mathematics Thu, 05 Nov 2026 09:40:08 EST news713092861 Researchers at the University of Sydney have identified a fundamental mathematical reason why artificial intelligence systems can learn different behaviors even when trained under almost identical conditions, a discovery that could help improve the reliability and trustworthiness of AI technologies. https://phys.org/news/2026-11-fractal-patterns-reveal-hidden-limits.html Mathematics Thu, 05 Nov 2026 05:00:04 EST news713010907 During England's Industrial Revolution, when the country's farming-based economy transformed into an industrial one between roughly 1760 and 1840, pollution, harsh working conditions, inadequate housing and limited access to sunlight drove disease. Rickets, in which the growing skeleton fails to properly mineralize, was commonplace among children. Traditionally, urbanization, latitude and socioeconomic status were considered the main drivers. A factor that has largely been overlooked is climate. https://phys.org/news/2026-11-centuries-cemetery-scientists-link-climate.html Archaeology Thu, 05 Nov 2026 00:00:06 EST news713005744 Bournemouth University (BU) archaeological research has revealed that Iron Age British ruler "Verica," who was central to the Roman invasion of Britain in A.D. 43, was in fact a woman. This discovery rewrites the history of early Roman Britain. https://phys.org/news/2026-11-ancient-coins-influential-iron-age.html Archaeology Wed, 04 Nov 2026 19:10:01 EST news713031241 Artificial intelligence may be making employees faster and more productive, but it could also be quietly damaging their careers. A new study led by Samuel Meyers, a Ph.D. student, together with his adviser Dr. Yochanan Bigman of the Hebrew University of Jerusalem and Dr. Roman Briker of WHU—Otto Beisheim School of Management in Germany, suggests that workers who use ChatGPT and other AI tools may pay an unexpected professional price: their managers are less likely to trust them. https://phys.org/news/2026-11-chatgpt-boss.html Economics & Business Wed, 04 Nov 2026 18:50:02 EST news713039641 Archaeologists have discovered the third-largest assemblage of Ice Age cave art ever found in Mediterranean Iberia in a region thought devoid of cave art, transforming our knowledge of Paleolithic European art. https://phys.org/news/2026-10-hundreds-ice-age-art-engravings.html Archaeology Wed, 04 Nov 2026 18:00:06 EST news712558476 Ancient DNA reveals that denizens of the Iberian Peninsula made leather from domestic goats as far back as 7,000 years ago, according to a study published Nov. 4, 2026, in the journal PLOS One by Jolijn A. M. Erven of University College Dublin, Ireland, and colleagues. https://phys.org/news/2026-11-year-piece-leather-reveals-deep.html Archaeology Wed, 04 Nov 2026 14:00:16 EST news712932901 English, German, Dutch and the Scandinavian languages are all members of the Germanic language group, spoken by hundreds of millions of people today. But where did these languages come from? https://phys.org/news/2026-11-ancient-dna-english-german-scandinavian.html Archaeology Wed, 04 Nov 2026 11:00:24 EST news712921202 Experts from Amgueddfa Cymru and Cardiff University have used cutting-edge CT scanning technology to unlock a centuries-old combination lock recovered from one of Wales' most remarkable maritime discoveries. https://phys.org/news/2026-11-ct-scans-reveal-letter-code.html Archaeology Wed, 04 Nov 2026 09:20:05 EST news713005504 Nicholas Coles, Ph.D., had long heard that forcing a smile can make you feel a little happier—after all, he had done a lot of the research that supposedly proved it. But something didn't sit quite right with his own findings. https://phys.org/news/2026-11-happier.html Social Sciences Wed, 04 Nov 2026 09:00:21 EST news713004061 About 300,000 years ago, the emergence of the first Homo sapiens in Africa was accompanied by major cultural and technological changes, marking the beginning of a new archaeological period, the Middle Stone Age. At that time, African landscapes were also undergoing profound transformations. To understand how the earliest members of our species lived and adapted, it is therefore essential to reconstruct the environments in which they lived. https://phys.org/news/2026-11-scarcer-food-early-humans-rework.html Archaeology Tue, 03 Nov 2026 18:00:01 EST news712933802 For a comprehensive understanding of the content of millions of Arabic manuscripts held in libraries around the world, it is crucial for scholars to first examine what their marginalia reveal, according to a new study published in the Journal of Islamic Thought and Civilization. https://phys.org/news/2026-11-marginalia-millions-arabic-manuscripts-reshape.html Archaeology Tue, 03 Nov 2026 17:00:01 EST news712933143 Cold conditions may not have been responsible for the centuries-long pause in the spread of farming across south-eastern Europe during prehistory, according to a new study by the Leibniz-Zentrum für Archäologie (LEIZA) in Germany, published in the journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. Researchers found no evidence of extreme cold at the Greek archaeological site of Franchthi, nor any statistically significant link between local temperature fluctuations and changes in how people obtained their food. https://phys.org/news/2026-11-cold-consequences-short-term-climate.html Archaeology Tue, 03 Nov 2026 13:40:22 EST news712926721 Expert Counter-Strike players could make ideal candidates for fast-paced emergency service response jobs requiring split-second decision-making, according to a new University of Sheffield study aiming to debunk myths about video games. https://phys.org/news/2026-11-counter-players-decision-reveals-faster.html Social Sciences Tue, 03 Nov 2026 13:00:02 EST news712925327 Visigothic and Vandal forces marched into Italy and conquered Rome; the Huns spread fear and terror on their campaigns through Western Europe; the Franks expanded their domain southward—the fifth century was an era of profound, often violent upheavals in Europe, and at the same time one of great mobility. Researchers from the Institute of Clinical Molecular Biology (IKMB) at Christian-Albrechts-University in Kiel and the Lower Saxony Institute for Historical Coastal Research (NIhK) have now identified a specific example of this mobility in the Fallward burial ground in what is now the district of Cuxhaven. https://phys.org/news/2026-11-boat-burial-reveals-leprosy-strain.html Archaeology Tue, 03 Nov 2026 12:00:06 EST news712924261