300,000 years earlier than believed
An international team led by the University of Toronto and Hebrew University has identified the earliest known evidence of the use of fire by human ancestors. Microscopic traces of wood ash, alongside animal bones and stone tools, were found in a layer dated to one million years ago at the Wonderwerk Cave in South Africa. (more…)
Many of today’s college students use social media as their main form of communication, but getting them to use it in a professional manner can sometimes be a challenge, according to Lisa Severy, director of the University of Colorado Boulder Office of Career Services.
With many employers using social media and conducting Google searches as part of their employee screening process, creating a positive and professional online presence can go a long way in helping students land a job out of school, according to Severy. (more…)
*Anthropology Helps Us Understand the Past and Allows for a Deeper Understanding of the Future.*
COLUMBIA, Mo. — For more than a century and a half, scientists and tourists have visited massive animal-shaped mounds, such as Serpent Mound in Ohio, created by the indigenous people of North America. But few animal effigy mounds had been found in South America until University of Missouri anthropology professor emeritus Robert Benfer identified numerous earthen animals rising above the coastal plains of Peru, a region already renowned for the Nazca lines, the ruined city of Chan Chan, and other cultural treasures.
“The mounds will draw tourists, one day,” Benfer said. “Some of them are more than 4,000 years old. Compare that to the effigy mounds of North America, which date to between 400 and 1200 AD. The oldest Peruvian mounds were being built at the same time as the pyramids in Egypt.” (more…)
ANN ARBOR, Mich.— When tropical marine cone snails sink their harpoon-like teeth into their prey, they inject paralyzing venoms made from a potent mix of more than 100 different neurotoxins.
Biologists have known for more than a decade that the genes which provide the recipes for cone snail toxins are among the fastest-evolving genes in the animal kingdom, enabling these predatory gastropods to constantly refine their venoms to more precisely target the neuromuscular systems of their prey. (more…)
*Findings may help lead to new treatments for infectious diseases, cancer*
UCLA researchers have pinpointed a new mechanism that potently activates T cells, the group of white blood cells that plays a major role in fighting infections.
The team specifically studied how dendritic cells, immune cells located at the site of an infection, become more specialized to fight the leprosy pathogen known as Mycobacterium leprae. Dendritic cells, like scouts in the field of a military operation, deliver key information about an invading pathogen that helps activate the T cells in launching a more effective attack. (more…)
*Renewals include popular shows “Let’s Talk About Love,” “Reluctantly Healthy,” “Ultimate Surprises,” “Chow Ciao!,” and “Blue Ribbon Hunter”*
SUNNYVALE, Calif. — Following a successful first season of original premium Web shows targeted at women, Yahoo! Inc., the premier digital media company, today launches the second season of its women’s slate on Yahoo! Screen (https://screen.yahoo.com). The second season includes three new shows: “Style Studio with Rebecca Minkoff” hosted by the famed fashion designer (coming May 2012 ), “The Yo Show on Yahoo!,” featuring entertainment news reporter Michael Yo (launching today), and a new version of “In the Dressing Room with Cat Deeley” hosted by the fashion expert and TV personality (coming spring 2012). Yahoo! has also renewed five shows from the original women’s slate including “Let’s Talk About Love” with Niecy Nash, “Reluctantly Healthy” with Judy Greer, “Ultimate Surprises” (formerly known as “Ultimate Proposal”) with Cameron Mathison, “Chow Ciao!” with Fabio Viviani, and “Blue Ribbon Hunter” with Allison Fishman — all of which originally debuted in October 2011. Morgan Spurlock’s “Failure Club,” launched in November 2011, will continue documenting its year-long project; “omg! NOW,” Yahoo!’s daily entertainment news show will continue as well. Plus, new shows will be added to the slate in the coming months. (more…)
University biologists have found a new molecule in fruit flies that is key to the information exchange needed to build wings properly. They have also uncovered evidence that an analogous protein may exist in people and may be associated with problems such as cleft lip, or premature ovarian failure.
PROVIDENCE, R.I. [Brown University] — As they work together to form body parts, cells in developing organisms communicate like workers at a construction site. The discovery of a new signaling molecule in flies by Brown University biologists not only helps explain how cells send many long-haul messages, but also provides new clues for researchers who study how human development goes awry, for instance in cases of cleft lip and palate. (more…)
In ancient Earth history, the sun burned as much as 30 percent dimmer than it does now. Theoretically that should have encased the planet in ice, but there is geologic evidence for rivers and ocean sediments between 2 billion and 4 billion years ago.
Scientists have speculated that temperatures warm enough to maintain liquid water were the result of a much thicker atmosphere, high concentrations of greenhouse gases or a combination of the two. (more…)
