https://phys.org/ en-us Phys.org internet news portal provides the latest news on science including: Physics, Nanotechnology, Life Sciences, Space Science, Earth Science, Environment, Health and Medicine. Iñaki Intxaurbe, a researcher at the EHU-University of the Basque Country, analyzed the distribution of images in nine caves in the Basque Country using network-based analysis and statistical techniques. https://phys.org/news/2026-07-animals-prehistoric-reveal-hidden-pattern.html Archaeology Tue, 21 Jul 2026 15:40:06 EDT news703857472 Steep hillsides and mountainsides in many regions worldwide are often covered in characteristic step-like patterns, also known as terracettes. These repeating landforms have fascinated scientists for more than a century, yet the factors contributing to their formation had not been clearly confirmed until now. https://phys.org/news/2026-07-darwin-150yearold-hillside-mystery-virtual.html Plants & Animals Fri, 10 Jul 2026 07:30:01 EDT news702823350 Arguably one of the most curious ancient human relatives is Homo floresiensis, a 3-foot-tall species that lived on the Indonesian island of Flores and has been nicknamed "hobbit" for its diminutive stature. Even though they had small brains, scientists had thought they were surprisingly advanced because early research linked them to big-game hunting, specifically targeting the extinct dwarf elephant (Stegodon florensis insularis), as well as the use of fire. https://phys.org/news/2026-07-ancient-hobbit-humans-survived-meat.html Paleontology & Fossils Mon, 06 Jul 2026 09:55:04 EDT news702550397 The agricultural economy was the backbone of wealth in ancient Greece. Food brought people together, whether in smaller groups at a wine-drinking symposium or the entire community in a sacrificial feast of epic proportions. In The Odyssey, the ancient Greek epic poem, Odysseus' son joins one of these early feasts—a community barbecue of 100 cattle. https://phys.org/news/2026-06-goat-tooth-100year-debate-ancient.html Archaeology Mon, 29 Jun 2026 14:20:02 EDT news701953880 For conservation and the management of human–wildlife conflicts, it is of great interest to know which species are eaten by carnivores. Scientists from the Ngorongoro Hyena Project at the Leibniz Institute for Zoo and Wildlife Research (Leibniz-IZW) analyzed this dynamic for spotted hyenas in the Ngorongoro Crater in Tanzania using DNA analysis of hundreds of fecal samples collected over 24 years. https://phys.org/news/2026-06-hyenas-livestock-rhinos-behavioral-biologists.html Plants & Animals Wed, 24 Jun 2026 09:20:03 EDT news701510943 The identity of a centuries-old shipwreck discovered off the south coast of England, holding 400 gold coins, has finally been identified as the Dutch trading ship "Dom van Keulen," which left Morocco for the Netherlands in the autumn of 1633. https://phys.org/news/2026-06-mystery-17th-century-shipwreck-gold.html Archaeology Thu, 18 Jun 2026 11:40:05 EDT news700997942 Goats appear to have a rare ability not shared by many in the animal kingdom, and that is being able to follow the direction of a human voice to locate hidden objects. While dogs have been shown to do this, even our closest primate cousins, like chimpanzees, have struggled with the task in previous experiments. https://phys.org/news/2026-06-goats-human-voices-hidden-food.html Plants & Animals Wed, 17 Jun 2026 10:20:01 EDT news700909066 Archaeological evidence from the Canary Islands suggests that by the 11th century, people there were harvesting and processing a variety of fish and other marine organisms—indicating that coastal resources may have played a vital role in the economic system, according to a study published in PLOS One by Jonathan Santana of the University of Las Palmas de Gran Canaria in Spain, and colleagues. https://phys.org/news/2026-06-canary-island-relics-clues-north.html Archaeology Sun, 14 Jun 2026 14:00:06 EDT news700325786 A new study published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences demonstrates how radiocarbon dating can reveal the maximum lifespan of Mediterranean hardwoods, uncovering hidden links between human history and long-term ecosystem dynamics. By analyzing mature and ancient oak trees across Italy, researchers found that a millennium of age is attainable from the Mediterranean coast to mountain environments. https://phys.org/news/2026-06-medieval-pandemic-left-hidden-legacy.html Plants & Animals Sat, 06 Jun 2026 19:40:01 EDT news699875318 New research shows Cheviot goats are one of the UK's most genetically distinct goat populations. Led by Newcastle University, this is the first genetic study to determine the ancestry and genetic health of a UK feral goat population. It provides a genetic assessment of the Cheviot goats in Northumberland's College Valley, identifying them as a historically significant and genetically distinct population unlike the other European goat breeds. https://phys.org/news/2026-06-rare-wild-goats-northumberland-genetically.html Plants & Animals Thu, 04 Jun 2026 16:40:03 EDT news699801481 For the past three decades, a team of archaeologists have been uncovering some of the field's most recent monumental discoveries, relying on gut instinct, persistent hard work, and cutting-edge methods and technologies. https://phys.org/news/2026-06-years-el-mirn-cave-uncover.html Archaeology Mon, 01 Jun 2026 14:20:07 EDT news699535561 The climate of the ancient Eastern Mediterranean was far more turbulent than previously thought—and a new study suggests that people adapted anyway. An international team of scientists, spearheaded by UC San Diego's Center for Cyber-Archaeology and Sustainability (CCAS) and the University of Haifa's Recanati Institute for Maritime Studies (RIMS), has developed a new way to track ancient climate and used it to decode 4,000 years of key environmental history in the ancient Mediterranean. The paper was published in Quaternary Science Reviews on May 13. https://phys.org/news/2026-05-wetland-sediment-scientists-uncover-centuries.html Archaeology Mon, 18 May 2026 17:20:04 EDT news698337181 Sticking needles into arms—or rather, haunches—is often the hardest part of distributing an effective agricultural vaccine. Now, University of Connecticut researchers show in the April 15 issue of Advanced Healthcare Materials that a patch can deliver a safe, temperature-stabilized vaccine against foot and mouth disease, no needles required. https://phys.org/news/2026-05-microneedle-patch-vaccine-farming-stubborn.html Veterinary medicine Mon, 18 May 2026 17:10:01 EDT news698342101 Eastern Africa's earliest livestock herders continued fishing, hunting and gathering for centuries after livestock were first brought to the region. The first pastoralists in eastern Africa didn't suddenly switch to a diet centered only on cows, sheep and goats. Instead, they kept eating a wide mix of foods—fish, wild animals and plants—alongside livestock for at least 1,000 years. The strategy may have helped them adapt to a harsh, changing climate. https://phys.org/news/2026-05-cattle-early-east-african-herders.html Archaeology Mon, 18 May 2026 15:00:09 EDT news698317797 Khirigsuurs are Late Bronze Age monuments found across Mongolia and parts of southern Siberia. They are typically thought to be burial monuments or ritual spaces, consisting of a burial mound surrounded by satellite features beneath which horse and caprine (goat/sheep) remains were deposited. https://phys.org/news/2026-04-evidence-assumptions-mass-feasting-ancient.html Archaeology Thu, 02 Apr 2026 08:10:01 EDT news694258066 New research has revealed that the Old Irish Goat shares a 3,000-year genetic link with goats living in Ireland during the Late Bronze Age. The findings suggest that the rare indigenous breed represents a continuous Irish lineage stretching back millennia. The work appears in the Journal of Archaeological Science. https://phys.org/news/2026-02-late-bronze-age-today-irish.html Archaeology Thu, 26 Feb 2026 00:10:02 EST news691252622 Approximately 9,000 years ago, human communities in Southwest Asia underwent a dramatic transformation, known as the Neolithic revolution. This period was marked by pronounced changes in how they lived and sourced food, with a shift from living on the move, hunting and gathering to permanently residing in one place, farming and herding of animals. https://phys.org/news/2026-02-evidence-early-goat-sheep-dairy.html Archaeology Fri, 20 Feb 2026 15:00:01 EST news690808540 A new study conducted at the Potsdam Institute for Climate Impact Research (PIK) shows that grassland-based grazing systems—currently covering a third of Earth's surface and representing the world's largest production system—will see a severe contraction as global temperatures rise. Depending on the scenario analyzed, 36–50% of the land with suitable climatic conditions for grazing today will experience a loss of viability by 2100, affecting more than 100 million pastoralists and up to 1.6 billion grazing animals. https://phys.org/news/2026-02-climate-halve-areas-suitable-cattle.html Ecology Mon, 09 Feb 2026 15:00:03 EST news689848625 In a study conducted by Dr. Mahdi Alirezazadeh and Dr. Hanan Bahranipoor, published in Archaeological Research in Asia, two exceptionally well-preserved fetal burials from Chaparabad, Iran, dating to the mid-5th millennium BC, were analyzed including burial L522.1, one of the most complete prehistoric infant burials in the Iranian plateau. Despite being buried only meters apart, the two fetal burials exhibit distinct burial treatments, offering insights into the variable burial practices of prehistoric cultures in southwestern Asia. https://phys.org/news/2026-01-rare-5th-millennium-bc-fetal.html Archaeology Sun, 01 Feb 2026 11:10:03 EST news688907414 Researchers have deciphered the diet of an important nomadic people in Eastern European history. By analyzing dental calculus, they have provided the first direct evidence that the diet of the Scythians included milk from various ruminants and horses. https://phys.org/news/2026-01-iron-age-dental-plaque-reveals.html Archaeology Wed, 21 Jan 2026 14:00:03 EST news688207381 For decades, researchers have focused on the problem of overgrazing, in which expanding herds of cattle and other livestock degrade grasslands, steppes and desert plains. But a new global study reveals that in large regions of the world, livestock numbers are substantially declining, not growing—a process the authors call destocking. https://phys.org/news/2026-01-overlooked-decline-grazing-livestock-opportunities.html Ecology Mon, 12 Jan 2026 15:00:01 EST news687187681 In the Middle Ages, a plague killed a third of Europe's population. Fleas carried the plague bacterium, Yersinia pestis, transmitting the Black Death from infected rats to millions of people. https://phys.org/news/2025-12-bronze-age-plague-sheep-mystery.html Archaeology Fri, 26 Dec 2025 11:30:01 EST news684431819 A study analyzing over 500,000 tweets from 2006 to 2021 found that public discourse on invasive species heavily favors charismatic animals over ecologically harmful plants. https://phys.org/news/2025-10-million-tweets-reveal-invasive-species.html Plants & Animals Mon, 27 Oct 2025 06:48:10 EDT news680285161 Prominent research studies have suggested that our planet is currently experiencing another mass extinction, based on extrapolating extinctions from the past 500 years into the future and the idea that extinction rates are rapidly accelerating. https://phys.org/news/2025-10-extinction-animal-groups.html Evolution Thu, 23 Oct 2025 09:13:05 EDT news680429582 New fossil research shows how human impacts, particularly through the rise of agriculture and livestock, have disrupted natural mammal communities as profoundly as the Ice Age extinctions. https://phys.org/news/2025-09-humans-reshaped-animal-world-years.html Ecology Tue, 30 Sep 2025 09:20:03 EDT news678442717 Through a collaboration between U.S. and Kenyan researchers and Turkana communities of northern Kenya, scientists have uncovered key genetic adaptations underlying survival in hot and dry environments, revealing how natural selection has enabled this pastoralist population to thrive in a challenging landscape. https://phys.org/news/2025-09-partnership-kenya-turkana-community-scientists.html Evolution Thu, 18 Sep 2025 14:00:10 EDT news677344321 In a recent study, Dr. Agata Hałuszko and colleagues discovered an ornament made from beetles in a cremation grave in Domasław, Poland. The work is published in the journal Antiquity. https://phys.org/news/2025-09-archaeologists-uncover-rare-beetle-ornament.html Archaeology Mon, 08 Sep 2025 09:32:55 EDT news676542768 Humans have caused wild animals to shrink and domestic animals to grow, according to a new study out of the University of Montpellier in southern France. Researchers studied tens of thousands of animal bones from Mediterranean France covering the last 8,000 years to see how the size of both types of animals has changed over time. https://phys.org/news/2025-09-years-human-wild-animals-domestic.html Plants & Animals Tue, 02 Sep 2025 12:30:05 EDT news676034650 How is an animal feeling at a given moment? Humans have long recognized certain well-known behavior like a cat hissing as a warning, but in many cases we've had little clue of what's going on inside an animal's head. https://phys.org/news/2025-08-ai-decodes-animals-emotional-states.html Biotechnology Mon, 25 Aug 2025 14:28:24 EDT news675350897 In a new study published in L'Antropologie, Dr. Shirin Torkamandi and his colleagues, Dr. Marcel Otte and Dr. Abbas Motarjem have analyzed the symbolic meaning of bovidea, particularly the ibex, in the ancient Near East. https://phys.org/news/2025-08-ibex-motif-linked-fertility-celestial.html Archaeology Thu, 21 Aug 2025 07:40:01 EDT news674915949