'Rosie the Riveter' from WWII poster dies

[AP]  When a photographer snapped Geraldine Doyle's picture in an Ann Arbor factory during World War II, the 17-year-old had no idea she would inspire others to contribute to the country's war effort. Doyle said it took more than 40 years for her to learn that her image from that photo was placed on the illustrated "We Can Do It!" poster.  More...

Ancient stone alignments in Connecticut?

[Archaeo News]  During the summer solstice, a chunk of white rock in a manmade chamber on the edge of a reservoir in Madison (Connecticut, USA) is illuminated by sunlight in the shape of a dagger. In another part of town, a 7-acre parcel is filled with stone walls that align during the solstices with rocks in the shape of snakes, white quartz boulders, prayer seats and assorted cairns.  More...

Major And Unique Celtic Tomb Found

[Arch News]   Scientists have discovered a 2,600 year-old aristocratic burial, likely of a Celtic noblewoman, at the hill fort site of Heuneburg in southern Germany. The discovery has been described as a “milestone” in the study of Celtic culture.  More...

Archaeologists to probe Sherwood Forest's 'Thing'

[BBC]  A team of experts hope to shed new light on one of Nottinghamshire's most mysterious ancient monuments. A 'Thing', or open-air meeting place where Vikings gathered to discuss the law, was discovered in the Birklands, Sherwood Forest five years ago.  More...

One of King Solomon's fortresses wasn't, after all

[USA Today]  The discovery of a single amphora, or clay jar, found in the ancient fortress of Tel Qudadi in the Israeli city of Tel Aviv could indicate both that the fortress itself is much younger than previously thought, and that trade between the area and Greek city states were much more common.  More...

Fish swam the Sahara, bolstering out of Africa theory

[MSNBC]  Fish may have once swum across the Sahara, a finding that could shed light on how humanity made its way out of Africa, researchers said. The cradle of humanity lies south of the Sahara, which begs the question as to how our species made its way past it. More...

400,000-yr-old remains show 'humans evolved from Middle East, not Africa'

[Sify News]   A new discovery of 400,000-yr-old human remains has raised doubts as to whether the first humans evolved out of Africa....Archaeologists from Tel Aviv University have found eight human-like teeth found in the Qesem cave near Rosh Ha'Ayin, which belong to the Middle Pleistocene Age - and therefore are the earliest remains of homo sapiens yet discovered. These findings by Professor Avi Gopher and Dr Ran Barkai indicate that modern man did not originate in Africa as previously believed, but in the Middle East.  More...

Ancient Bible fragments reveal a forgotten history

[Physorg]   The study by Cambridge University researchers suggests that, contrary to long-accepted views, Jews continued to use a Greek version of the Bible in synagogues for centuries longer than previously thought. In some places, the practice continued almost until living memory.  More...

Neanderthals cooked and ate vegetables

[BBC]  Researchers in the US have found grains of cooked plant material in their teeth.
The study is the first to confirm that the Neanderthal diet was not confined to meat and was more sophisticated than previously thought.  More...

A 60-Year Drought Like That Of The 12th Century Could Be In The Southwest's Future

[Medical News Today]  An unprecedented combination of heat plus decades of drought could be in store for the Southwest sometime this century, suggests new research from a University of Arizona-led team...."Major 20th century droughts pale in comparison to droughts documented in paleoclimatic records over the past two millennia," the researchers wrote. During the Medieval period, elevated temperatures coincided with lengthy and widespread droughts. More
...

Family of WWI veteran looks forward to 110th birthday

[CNN]  Buckles, who was born February 1, 1901, is thought to be the world's oldest living war veteran. More...

Ancient Bone's DNA Suggests New Human Ancestors

[NPR]  DNA taken from a pinkie bone at least 30,000 years old is hinting at the existence of a previously unknown population of ancient humans. It's just the latest example of how modern genetic techniques are transforming the world of anthropology....Anthropologist John Hawks of the University of Wisconsin, Madison says DNA evidence is changing the way anthropologists work. "It's so much more than we knew from the fossil record. It's really like discovering something for the first time," he says.  More...