Article: Humans responsible for demise of gigantic ancient mammals

Scientists claim their research settles a prolonged debate over whether mankind or climate change was the dominant cause of the demise of massive creatures in the time of the sabretooth tiger, the woolly mammoth, the woolly rhino and the giant armadillo. 

Humans arrive, and megafauna went extinct. The authors had no way of determining if the extinctions due to hunting, competition, or habitat change.

Examining different regions of the world across these scenarios, they found coincidences of human spread and species extinction which illustrate that man was the main agent causing the demise, with climate change exacerbating the number of extinctions. However, in certain regions of the world -- mainly in Asia -- they found patterns which patterns were broadly unaccounted for by either of these two drivers, and called for renewed focus on these neglected areas for further study.

Science LInks - 7/31/15

Article: Independent expert confirms that the "impossible" EM Drive actually works

As efficient as this type of propulsion may sound, it defies one of the fundamental concepts of physics - the conservation of momentum, which states that for something to be propelled forward, some kind of propellant needs to be pushed out in the opposite direction. 

For that reason, the drive was widely laughed at and ignored when it was invented by English researcher Roger Shawyer in the early 2000s. But a few years later, a team of Chinese scientists decided to build their own version, and to everyone's surprise, it actually worked. Then an American inventor did the same, and convinced NASA's Eagleworks Laboratories, headed up by Harold 'Sonny' White, to test it. 

The real excitement began when those Eagleworks researchers admitted back in March that, despite more than a year of trying to poke holes in the EM Drive, it just kept on working - even inside a vacuum.

It might turn out that we need to rewrite some of our laws of physics in order to explain how the drive works. But if that opens up the possibility of human travel throughout the Solar System - and, more importantly, beyond - then it's a sacrifice we're definitely willing to make. Bring on the next set of tests.

Article #2: Engineers demonstrate the world’s first white lasers

While lasers were invented in 1960 and are commonly used in many applications, one characteristic of the technology has proven unattainable. No one has been able to create a laser that beams white light. 

Researchers at Arizona State University have solved the puzzle. They have proven that semiconductor lasers are capable of emitting over the full visible color spectrum, which is necessary to produce a white laser.

Applications include replace standard lighting because lasers are more efficient in change electrical energy into visible light. More vivid display screens (computers and TVs). And communications.

The lasers are also "tunable".

So far, this is "proof of concept" and not yet practical.

Article #3: Astronauts find living organisms clinging to the International Space Station, and aren’t sure how they got there

During a spacewalk intended to clean the International Space Station, Russian astronauts took samples from the exterior of the station for a routine analysis. The results of the experiment were quite surprising. Astronauts expected to find nothing more than contaminants created by the engines of incoming and outgoing spacecraft, but instead found that living organisms were clinging to outside of the ISS. The astronauts identified the organisms as sea plankton that likely originated from Earth, but the team couldn’t find a concrete explanation as to how these organisms made it all the way up to the space station — or how they managed to survive.

The article leads with a photo of diatoms (phytoplankton), but says that the organisms are invertebrates.

Article #4: Scientists identify men who died at Virginia's Jamestown 400 years ago

The men were identified as the Reverend Robert Hunt, Captain Gabriel Archer, Sir Ferdinando Wainman and Captain William West. All of them helped guide the colony during its difficult years after its founding in 1607. 

Researchers used archaeology, skeletal analyses, chemical testing, 3-D technology and genealogical research to identify the men who lived and died when the settlement was on the brink of failure due to famine, disease and war.

Science Links for 9/16/14 - Archeology

Article: Archaeologists discover 'long-lost' Roman fort

This was one of the major forts guarding the "backbone" of the Roman border in Germany.

The fort is apparently from the late first century C.E., and roughly 500 Roman soldiers were stationed there between 70 and 120 C.E.

Archaeologists discovered two V-shaped ditches and the post holes from a defensive tower at the site. The researchers suspect the finds were greater than at other sites because the Roman troops filled the ditches and dismantled the fort when they abandoned it. The Gernsheim fort allowed the Romans to control large areas east of the Rhine in the late first century C.E.

Burying the fort both hid it and allowed for its preservation.

Article: Massive 5,000-Year-Old Stone Monument Revealed in Israel

Over 150 yards long, and located near the Sea of Galilee.

It is "pre-Israel" in date, so would belong to peoples no one knows much about. It appears to be associated with a nearby ancient town.

The purpose of the structure is unknown; it was too far from the town to be a defensive wall.

The structure's crescent shape stood out in the landscape, Wachtel told Live Science in an email. The shape may have had symbolic importance, as the lunar crescent is a symbol of an ancient Mesopotamian moon god named Sin, Wachtel said.

Article: Study traces ecological collapse over 6,000 years of Egyptian history

Depictions of animals in ancient Egyptian artifacts have helped scientists assemble a detailed record of the large mammals that lived in the Nile Valley over the past 6,000 years. A new analysis of this record shows that species extinctions, probably caused by a drying climate and growing human population in the region, have made the ecosystem progressively less stable.

Four major periods of extinction, coinciding with dramatic drying of the Egyptian environment.

These drying periods also coincided with upheaval in human societies, such as the collapse of the Old Kingdom around 4,000 years ago and the fall of the New Kingdom about 3,000 years ago. 

"There were three large pulses of aridification as Egypt went from a wetter to a drier climate, starting with the end of the African Humid Period 5,500 years ago when the monsoons shifted to the south," Yeakel said. 

The last period starting around a 100 years ago.

The new study is based on records compiled by zoologist Dale Osborne, whose 1998 book The Mammals of Ancient Egypt provides a detailed picture of the region's historical animal communities based on archaeological and paleontological evidence as well as historical records. "Dale Osborne compiled an incredible database of when species were represented in artwork and how that changed over time. His work allowed us to use ecological modeling techniques to look at the ramifications of those changes," Yeakel said.

Science LInks - 9/9/14 - Archeology

Article: Chinese boy discovers 3,000-year-old sword in a river

Archaeologists speculated that the sword, which is roughly 10 inches long, comes from either the Shang or Zhou dynasties. The bureau suggested that the sword was a "status symbol of a civil official" and not a weapon used for fighting.

Archeologists are now planning a dig at the site.

Article: 3,000-Year-Old Golden Bowl Hides a Grisly Archaeological Tale

The golden bowl was found in an excavation in 1958 at a site in Iran. Further investigations make it appear as though looted along with several other valuable objects by several soldiers, found dead near by. The soldiers were killed, and buried, when the roof collapsed on them.

Two objects, thousands of miles apart, both from about the same era.

Article: Fever mounts as stunning statues found at ancient Greek tomb

A stunning discovery in the age of twitter and the 24/7 news cycle. Long ago (20 years or more) a major discovery would be investigated, then published.

Today, it can be followed on a near daily basis. This is so cool.

Speculation is mounting that the tomb, which dates from Alexander's lifetime (356-323BC), may be untouched, with its treasures intact. 

Theories abound about who could be buried in the tumulus tomb, ranging from Alexander's Bactrian wife Roxane, to his mother Olympias or one of his generals. 

Experts say the chances of Alexander himself being buried there are small, however. 

After his death at 32 in Babylon, the most celebrated conquerer of the ancient world is believed to have been buried in Alexandria, the Egyptian city he founded -- although no grave has ever been found there.

Article: Greece unearths two sculpted female figures in vast ancient tomb

Archaeologists have unearthed two sculpted female figures, known as Caryatids, as they slowly make their way into an ancient tomb recently discovered in Greece's northeast, the country's culture ministry said on Sunday.They mark a significant new finding in the tomb on the Amphipolis site, about 100 km (65 miles) from Greece's second-biggest city Thessaloniki, which archaeologists have hailed as a major discovery from the era of Alexander the Great.

Alexander the Great is supposed to have been buried in Egypt, but no one knows where.

This a tomb built around the time of his death, but it may belong to one of his generals or another prominent person in Macedonia.

The Caryatids are sculpted in the same style as the previously announced sphinx at the tomb entrance.

Science Links - 9/5/14 - Archeology [updated 9/6]

Update: Buried Treasure: 1,900-Year-Old Roman Jewelry Unearthed

Who doesn't love a buried treasure story?

A small pit filled with ancient Roman jewelry that dates back nearly 2,000 years to a violent riot that occurred around A.D. 61 was unearthed beneath a London-area department store, according to a British archaeology organization. 

An archaeologist with the Colchester Archaeological Trust, a registered charity devoted to promoting archaeology in the area, discovered the buried treasure during an excavation beneath the Williams & Griffin department store in the town center.

Although, the context of this one makes it a sad story. It was not merely a "violent riot" but full rebellion against the Roman government resulting in the burning of three towns.

qThe haul includes three gold armlets, two silver bracelets, a silver chain necklace, a small bag of coins, a "substantial" silver armlet and a small jewelry box with four gold rings and two sets of gold earrings. 

Article: Mosaic Floor Revealed at Alexander the Great-Era Tomb

Largest tomb of this period ever found in Greece. Absolutely no mention of any speculation about whose tomb. An omission I find fascinating, especially since no one knows where Alexander the Great is buried.

Mosaic flooring, red and black paint on the walls, statues of sphinxes, blue frescos.

Details to follow.

Article: 'Last Supper' Papyrus May Be One of Oldest Christian Charms

The papyrus is from Egypt, but written in Greek.

A researcher realized that a 1500-year-old piece of papyrus, previously known showed signs of being folded. The papyrus has writing that paraphrases part of Psalm 78 and the Last Supper. He hypothesized that it was folded in order to place into an amulet and worn as a magical protection for a Christian.

I would be more accepting of this as a charm and as a belief in some sort of Christianized pagan magic if they didn't claim that wearing a cross today is also Christian magic, and worn as protection. I think some ignorant intellectual has watched too many vampire movies and not read enough about basic Christian beliefs.

"To this day, Christians use passages from the Bible as protective charms so our amulet marks the start of an important trend in Christianity."

The actual quote:

"Fear you all who rule over the earth.
Know you nations and peoples that Christ is our God.
For he spoke and they came to being, he commanded and they were created; he put everything under our feet and delivered us from the wish of our enemies.
Our God prepared a sacred table in the desert for the people and gave manna of the new covenant to eat, the Lord's immortal body and the blood of Christ poured for us in remission of sins."

The discovery, which Mazza presented this week at an international conference on papyri at the university's research institute, reveals that Christians adopted an ancient Egyptian practice of wearing such charms to ward off danger.

"This practice is not very far from nowadays use to wear necklaces with the cross or images of Jesus, Mary, or the saints, for protection," Mazza said. "In many Catholic churches nowadays believers are given holy pictures of the saints with a prayer on the back that you can bring along again for protection."

Article: Ancient metal workers were not slaves but highly regarded craftsmen

Previous site interpretation: harsh conditions, high and thick wall surrounding the mine and refinery, fiery furnaces. It must about slaves!

Copper production is a complex operation requiring many levels of expertise. Ancient mine workers at Timna may have indeed been slaves or prisoners, because theirs was a simple task performed under severe conditions. However, the act of smelting, turning stone into metal, required an enormous amount of skill and leadership. 

The craftsmen ate meat and fish (a rarity). Copper was hard to refine (for the time) and very valuable (this is the height of the Copper Age, when most weapons were fashioned from copper).

The thick walls are now reinterpreted to being defensive in use: protecting the valuable craftsmen, their refinery and their refined copper.

The bias towards believing that it was all about slavery is interesting and says something about those archeologists that did the original work.

The author does not include who the people were.

Science Links 8/30/14

Article: Yellowstone Supervolcano Eruption would be Large, but not as Catastrophic as previously thought

Researchers have revealed after creating a new computer simulation called Ash3D at the US Geological Survey (USGS) that the eruption of the Yellowstone supervolcano would spew ash several feet thick in some areas. However, it is also true that the eruption will not be as catastrophic as being claimed by some previous reports.
"It's a crazy thing to think about because none of us have ever seen an eruption like Yellowstone. It would be two or three orders of magnitude more ash than we've been able to observe", said study lead author Larry Mastin, a USGS hydrologist, in a statement reported by Inquisitr.

The blast would be big and ash will engulf the states surrounding Yellowstone National Park.

Article: New Study Offers Clues to Swift Arctic Extinction

Seven hundred years ago, the Dorset people disappeared from the Arctic. The last of the Paleo-Eskimos, the Dorset had dominated eastern Canada and Greenland for centuries, hunting seal and walrus through holes in the ice and practicing shamanistic rituals with ornate carvings and masks.

They lived there for more than 4,000 years, then disappeared in a matter of decades.

The Dorset people were a genetically distinct group, and they were different from the modern Inuit people.

Usually, when one group displaces another, one group assimilates the other. The first group leaves genetic evidence in the other group.

It is possible that the Inuit themselves wiped out the Dorset people. The article does not talk about any overlap between the two peoples.

Article: Forum: Against Empathy

A long article about empathy focused on emotional empathy. The author is writing a book against empathy, especially as a guide to policy.

It refers to the process of experiencing the world as others do, or at least as you think they do. To empathize with someone is to put yourself in her shoes, to feel her pain. 

Empathy is a one-on-one connection.

Most people see the benefits of empathy as akin to the evils of racism: too obvious to require justification. I think this is a mistake. I have argued elsewhere that certain features of empathy make it a poor guide to social policy. Empathy is biased; we are more prone to feel empathy for attractive people and for those who look like us or share our ethnic or national background. And empathy is narrow; it connects us to particular individuals, real or imagined, but is insensitive to numerical differences and statistical data. 

Empathy is too narrow, focusing on one person at a time.

In light of these features, our public decisions will be fairer and more moral once we put empathy aside. Our policies are improved when we appreciate that a hundred deaths are worse than one, even if we know the name of the one, and when we acknowledge that the life of someone in a faraway country is worth as much as the life a neighbor, even if our emotions pull us in a different direction. Without empathy, we are better able to grasp the importance of vaccinating children and responding to climate change. These acts impose costs on real people in the here and now for the sake of abstract future benefits, so tackling them may require overriding empathetic responses that favor the comfort and well being of individuals today. 

Effective social policy requires doing things that can be painful to others. The actual administration of a vaccine is painful, and side effects can be annoying to painful. If one operates only on emotional empathy, it would be hard to vaccinate one's child. Or have a life-saving operation done on the same child.

Science Links for 8/15/2014

Article: Huge asteroid that 'could end human life' defying gravity as it moves towards Earth, scientists say

It "defies gravity" by rotating on its axis so fast that its surface at its equator actually experiences "negative gravity."

Asteroids are a collection of dust and rubble. Normally, they are held together held together by gravity, but this one is rotating so fast that it is held together by van der Waal's force. [A weak force that is due to attraction between molecules. It is related to hydrogen bonding.]

Article: Who's your mummy? Egyptian mummification older than was thought

Researchers on Wednesday said a form of mummification was being carried out there more than six thousand years ago, much earlier than previously thought. They said embalming substances contained in funerary textiles from the oldest-known Egyptian cemeteries showed mummy-making from as early as about 4300 BC.

There is evidence of mummification involving remains from around 2600 BC of Queen Hetepheres, mother of Khufu, the pharaoh who commissioned the Great Pyramid at Giza outside Cairo. There also is evidence of linen that contained resin being used to wrap bodies around 2800 BC.

The researchers were amazed to find that the plant, animal and mineral components used in preparing the mummies at the cemeteries in Mostagedda in central Egypt were essentially the same embalming "recipe" used thousands of years later at the pinnacle of the ancient Egyptian civilization.

Article: Little penguins forage together: 40% of studied penguins synchronized underwater movements while foraging

Olympic synchronized swimming for penguins!

Little penguins are the smallest penguin species and they live exclusively in southern Australia, New Zealand, and the Chatham Islands, but spend most of their lives at sea in search of food. Not much is known about group foraging behavior in seabirds due to the difficulty in observing their remote feeding grounds.

The authors GPS devices to track the little penguins.

The authors found that ~ 70% of little penguins' foraging tracks were in association with other penguins, ~ 50% of individuals dove while associating with other penguins, and ~ 40% exhibited synchronous diving. These behaviors suggest little penguins forage in groups, may synchronize their underwater movements, and potentially cooperate to concentrate their small-schooling prey.

Article: Ebola outbreak: the vaccine and 'secret serum' explained

Vaccines exist, but have not been tested on humans. They seem to give protection to monkeys. Because Ebola outbreaks are usually localized and limited. Vaccination will never be wide-spread (like polio or smallpox), and mostly given to health workers and the like.

This drug [the "secret serum'"] gives you antibodies directly, rather than waiting two to three weeks after vaccination for the antibodies to work. It could be used for treatment whereas a vaccine is more likely to be used for prevention.

Article: Competition for ecological niches limits evolution of new species

The article is worth skimming just for pictures of the birds.

Most new species are thought to arise in a three step process: First, a species expands its range. Then a barrier, such as a geographic event, separates the species into distinct populations. Last, development of the inability to interbreed -- reproductive isolation -- finalizes the speciation process. As this cycle repeats, it gives rise to a vast diversity of plant and animal species. 

In this study, Professor Price, Dr Mohan and their colleagues used several approaches to examine how geographic differences affect speciation by testing the niche-filling model: first, they asked whether the geography of the eastern Himalayas provided a greater number and diversity of niches that songbirds could occupy and adapt to. Second, they examined whether the rate of oscine speciation changed over time. Third, they investigated the diversity and abundance of resources available in different ecological niches.

These findings suggest that speciation and geography are intimately connected in the evolutionary history of the Himalayan songbird assemblage: initially, numerous morphological differences in feeding method and body size appear early in their evolutionary history, whereas only later did the fledgling species invade and adapt to available ecological niches at different elevations. Since available niches were filling up as new species moved in, younger and younger songbird species were usually competing for smaller and smaller niches. These findings are all consistent with the niche-filling model.

Ancient Italian well and the artifacts within

Article: Excavation of ancient well yields insight into Etruscan, Roman and medieval times

Summary:
During a four-year excavation of an Etruscan well at the ancient Italian settlement of Cetamura del Chianti, a team led by a archaeologist and art historian unearthed artifacts spanning more than 15 centuries of Etruscan, Roman and medieval civilization in Tuscany.

Among the most notable finds: 14 Roman and Etruscan bronze vessels, nearly 500 waterlogged grape seeds and an enormous amount of rare waterlogged wood from both Roman and Etruscan times.

The bronze vessels, of different shapes and sizes and with varying decorations, were used to extract water from the well, which has been excavated to a depth of more than 105 feet.

[G]rape seeds, found in at least three different levels of the well -- including the Etruscan and Roman levels -- are of tremendous scientific interest, according to de Grummond.

"They can provide a key to the history of wine in ancient Tuscany over a period from the third century B.C.E. to the first century C.E.," she said. "Their excellent preservation will allow for DNA testing as well as Carbon 14 dating."

In the Etruscan religion, throwing items into a well filled with water was an act of religious sacrifice.

"Offerings to the gods were found inside in the form of hundreds of miniature votive cups, some 70 bronze and silver coins, and numerous pieces used in games of fortune, such as astragali, which are akin to jacks," she said.

The [105 foot deep] well, dug out of the sandstone bedrock of Cetamura, has three major levels: medieval; Roman, dating to the late first century B.C.E. and the first century C.E.; and Etruscan, dating to the third and second centuries B.C.E. Not fed by a spring or other water source, the well would accumulate rainwater that filtered through the sandstone and poured into the shaft from the sides.

Article: Origins of Mysterious World Trade Center Ship Revealed

Archeological find discovered in the excavation for the new World Trade Center.

While mostly made of oak, the keel of the ship used hickory. This allowed the researchers to narrow the field to eastern North America. Study of the tree rings of the oak further narrowed the origin to the Philadelphia region. Seems that the trees rings of the boat's oak matched tree rings found in the oak of Independence Hall, and other historically verified wood samples.

Study of the tree rings also allowed the researchers to date the construction of the wood to the 1770's.

The wood had been damaged by borers, common in tropical waters. And the boat had become encrusted with oysters before its final burial. The boat was about 20 years old when buried (dated by artifacts surrounding the boat).

Therefore, the boat was made in the Philadelphia region in the 1770's traveled at least once to the tropics (probably the Caribbean), on its final voyage went to New York, specifically lower Manhattan where it was tied up for some time prior (allowing the oysters to grow) before its final burial.