September 30, 2019

Last month, in late August, scientists published a description of a 3.8-million-year-old fossil skull, allowing people to gaze into the face of perhaps our earliest ancestor, Australopithecus anamensis. According to one researcher, the remarkable fossil is the most complete skull of the “oldest-known species” of the human evolutionary tree. The important fossil helps define the ancient human evolutionary family, but it also brings more questions to the often cloudy relationships among that family’s members.

Paleontologists discovered the near-complete skull of Australopithecus anamensis in Ethiopia in 2016. Credit: © Dale Omori, Cleveland Museum of Natural History

A. anamensis belongs to the hominin group of living things that includes human beings and early humanlike ancestors. A team of paleontologists led by Yohannes Haile-Selassie from the Cleveland Museum of Natural History found the hominin skull in 2016 at a site called Woranso-Mille in the Afar region of Ethiopia. The fossil, officially known as MRD-VP-1/1 (MRD for short), was discovered in two halves that fit together, making up a nearly complete skull. The skull’s position in volcanic sediments enabled scientists to determine its age—3.8 million years—with great precision. The anatomical features of the skull helped identify it as A. anamensis, one of the earliest known hominin species. This species was first identified from a handful of fossil skull fragments and other bones discovered at Lake Turkana in northern Kenya in the 1990’s. Those specimens are between 4.2 million and 3.9 million years old.

Scientists used the fossilized Australopithecus anamensis skull to create this image of one of humankind’s earliest ancestors. Credit: © John Gurche/Matt Crow, Cleveland Museum of Natural History

The MRD skull shows that A. anamensis had a small brain, a bit smaller than that of a modern chimpanzee. The skull more closely resembles an ape than a modern human, with a large jaw and prominent cheekbones, but the canine teeth are much smaller and more humanlike. And, like humans, A. anamensis walked upright on two legs. Sediments and other fossils show that the region where the skull was found was arid, but the ancient creature died in a vegetated area near a small stream that entered a lake.

The site in Ethiopia where MRD was discovered is not far from the village of Hadar, where fossils of another early hominin, Australopithecus afarensis, were first discovered in 1974. A. afarensis is known mainly from the partial skeleton of an adult female, the famous “Lucy,” found in deposits dating to about 3.2 million years ago. Other A. afarensis fossils date to nearly 3.8 million years ago, which suggests Lucy and her kind may have coexisted with A. anamensis.

Most scientists, however, think that Lucy and her kind evolved from A. anamensis, and that the transition occurred as one species disappeared and the other took over. Scientists now understand that A. anamensis could still be ancestral to Lucy, but that other A. anamensis populations continued to thrive unchanged as her neighbors. The prehistoric landscape of East Africa had many hills, steep valleys, volcanoes, lava flows, and rifts that could easily have isolated populations over many generations. Over time, the populations eventually diverged. Scientists think that one of these species eventually gave rise to Homo, the human genus.

August 19, 2019

If your birthday is in August, you have two birthstones—the gems associated with the month of your birth: peridot and sardonyx. Peridots are a variety of a common rock-forming mineral called olivine. A high iron content gives peridots their distinctive green color. The sardonyx is a multi-colored variety of chalcedony, a fine-grained form of the mineral quartz. Most sardonyx has straight or slightly curved bands of reddish-brown and white. Both peridot and sardonyx have long been used in jewelry and decorative objects.

Peridot is one of two August birthstones. The other is sardonyx. Credit: © Albert Russ, Shutterstock

Peridots have been known since Biblical times, and legend says the stones improve health, guard against insanity, and slow the human aging process. Peridots are also said to increase assertiveness, patience, and clarity of thought and to encourage prosperity and happiness. Jewelers cut and polish the highest-quality peridot stones so that each gem has many flat surfaces called facets. Faceted peridots are used in all types of fine jewelry. Jewelers cut lesser-quality peridots into a rounded style called cabochon or polish them with abrasives in a process called tumbling. These lesser-quality peridots are used in costume jewelry and decorative objects. The earliest source of peridots was Jazirat Zabarjad (St. John’s Island), off the Egyptian coast in the Red Sea. In the United States, Arizona and New Mexico are important commercial sources of peridots.

Sardonyx is a multi-colored variety of chalcedony. Credit: © Vlad3563/Dreamstime

In ancient Egypt, sardonyx was considered a protective stone, and it was used to ward off evil. Modern folklore credits sardonyx with encouraging confidence, creativity, happiness, integrity, optimism, and even virtuous behavior. It is said to help students preparing for exams, authors dealing with writers block, or anyone faced with a job requiring mental discipline. Jewelers usually cut sardonyx flat or with a domed shape to bring out the bands of color. Cameos (engraved gems) are sometimes cut from sardonyx to take advantage of its color. The chief sources of sardonyx are Brazil, India, and Uruguay.

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Birthstones, according to tradition, bring good luck when worn by a person born in the associated month. Credit: WORLD BOOK illustrations by Paul D. Turnbaugh

According to tradition, a birthstone brings good luck to a person born in its month. Each birthstone also corresponds to a sign of the zodiac. The belief in birthstones may have come from a Bible story about Aaron, the first high priest of the Israelites. The story describes Aaron’s breastplate, which was decorated with 12 precious stones. Early writers linked these stones with the 12 months of the year and the 12 signs of the zodiac. The custom of wearing a stone that represented a person’s zodiac sign probably originated in Germany or Poland in the 1700′s.

August 7, 2019

To people with a cat in the family, every day may seem like “cat day.” But tomorrow, August 8, is officially International Cat Day, a holiday that celebrates felines of all forms and temperaments and encourages people to love, help, and protect the animals. Started by the International Fund for Animal Welfare (IFAW) in 2002, International Cat Day is celebrated in cat-obsessed cultures around the world. IFAW is one of the world’s largest animal welfare and conservation charities.

August 8 is International Cat Day. Credit: © Shutterstock

People celebrate International Cat Day in a wide variety of ways. Sometimes as particular as cats themselves, cat lovers may pamper their pets, donate to animal charities, or flood social media with cat images and videos (more than they do already). Cat parades and parties are organized, people visit cat cafés, and international names are bestowed upon cats for the day. Mister Whiskers and Fluffy become Señor Bigotes and Peluche in Spanish, Simba becomes Lion in the translation from Swahili, and little Lucy gains international flare as Lou-lou, Lucette, Lucia, or Lucinda. However you choose to celebrate the holiday, it is an excuse to take a cat nap with your pet and give the critter a little extra love and attention.

Benjamin Fink of the United States Navy holds President Calvin Coolidge’s cat, Tiger, at the White House on March 25, 1924. “Tige” had made a brief departure from the White House grounds, but was promptly returned by Fink. Credit: Library of Congress

No one knows exactly when the first cats were domesticated, but archaeologists discovered a cat buried alongside a human in a 9,500-year-old grave in Cyprus. According to the Guinness Book of World Records, the earliest known recorded pet cat name was Nedjem (loosely translated as Sweetie or Precious) during the reign of Thutmose III (1479-1425 B.C.). Thutmose was a pharaoh of ancient Egypt, where cats were considered sacred.

A Maine Coon cat needs extra brushing on International Cat Day. Credit: © Linn Currie, Shutterstock

Throughout history, people have valued cats for their skill at hunting and killing mice, rats, and snakes. Cats help keep farms, homes, and businesses free of these animals. People in many societies believe cats bring good fortune. The grace and beauty of cats have made them favorite subjects of artists, and cats have been featured in almost every type of literature. They appear in the mythology of ancient Greece and Rome, and Asian writers have praised cats in their stories and poems for many centuries. Cats are also commonly mentioned in the fairy tales, folklore, and legends of many countries. In modern times, cats are commonly featured in books, comic strips, motion pictures, musicals, and television programs.

Cat holidays are not limited to August 8. October 29 is National Cat Day in the United States, and March 1 is World Cat Day in Russia. In Japan, February 22 was chosen as Cat Day because in Japanese, the number 2 (二) is pronounced ni, so the date 2/22 reads as ni ni ni, similar to the way cats “talk” (nyan nyan nyan, or meow meow meow) in that country.

July 26, 2019

Earlier this month in July, Budj Bim, an inactive volcano and cultural site in southeastern Australia, was named a World Heritage Site. Such sites are places of unique cultural or natural importance as designated by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO). Budj Bim, once known as Mount Eccles, is the first World Heritage Site listed exclusively for its value to Aboriginal culture. Aboriginal people maintained systems of aquaculture (the raising of water animals and plants) in the crater lakes of Budj Bim for thousands of years.

Lake Surprise fills one of the volcano craters at Budj Bim National Park in southeastern Australia. Credit: Peter (licensed under CC BY-SA 2.0)

Budj Bim means High Head in the language of the Gunditjmara people (also called the Dhauwurd Wurrung) of southwestern Victoria state. Budj Bim sits about 170 miles (270 kilometers) west of Melbourne. It is part of the 20,700-acre (8,370-hectare) Budj Bim National Park (formerly Mount Eccles National Park).

Gunditjmara tradition holds that Budj Bim is part of the body of an ancient creator being, who was revealed to Aboriginal people in an eruption around 30,000 years ago. The last known eruption of Budj Bim occurred about 8,000 years ago. Starting at least 6,600 years ago, the Gunditjmara people began creating a system of channels and dams to trap eels and other fish among the rock formations of Budj Bim. The result was an aquaculture system that provided plentiful food, and permanent Aboriginal settlements were established at nearby Lake Condah and Lake Gorrie. European settlers arrived in the area in the 1830’s.

Budj Bim—named Mount Eccles by European settlers—became a protected area in 1926 and a national park in 1960. Mount Eccles National Park was renamed Budj Bim National Park in 2017. The area is popular for camping, hiking, and picnicking.

July 8, 2019

Since prehistoric times, people have depicted animals in their artwork. Ancient paintings and drawings of horses, oxen, and other animals appear on the ceilings, walls, and entrances of caves and rock shelters around the world. In more modern times, animals have continued to be a source of artistic inspiration. Many cultures have shown animals in artistic representations of rural life, as livestock, prey, or pets, or to illustrate legends and myths. Many cultures, too, include animals in art simply for their beauty or for their intimate connections with humans. At the National Gallery of Art in Washington, D.C., a new exhibition is detailing “The Life of Animals in Japanese Art.”

These wooden sacred foxes are part of the “Life of Animals in Japanese Art” exhibition at the National Gallery of Art in Washington, D.C. Credit: Sacred Foxes (Nanbokuch periods, 14th century), wood with pigments by unknown artist; National Gallery of Art

The Life of Animals in Japanese Art is the first exhibition devoted solely to animals at the National Gallery of Art. The exhibition shows animals—some real, some imaginary, some sacred, some merely beloved—in a wide variety of artistic mediums. The more than 300 works in block prints, ceramics, decorative arts, lacquerware, paintings, sculptures, and textiles span from the A.D. 400′s to the present day. The artworks—including seven designated as “Important Cultural Property” by the Japanese government—come from public and private collections in both Japan and the United States. The exhibition began on June 2, 2019, and runs through August 18.

These 1,000-year-old sacred monkeys are included in the “Life of Animals in Japanese Art” exhibition. Credit: Pair of Sacred Monkeys (Heian period, 11th century), wood with traces of pigment by unknown artist; Los Angeles County Museum of Art/National Gallery of Art

The sprawling exhibit occupies 18,000 square feet (1,700 square meters) of the National Gallery of Art’s East Building Concourse, and it is divided into various themed sections. The credited artists (many older works are unattributed) include the Zen Buddhist monk Sesson Shūkei (1504-1589), the painter Itō Jakuchū (1716-1800), and the painter and woodblock printer Katsushika Hokusai (1760-1849). Such modern artists as Kusama Yayoi (1929-…), the clothing designer Issey Miyake (1938-…), and the painter and sculptor Murakami Takashi (1960-…) are also represented.

The Life of Animals in Japanese Art is part of a series of events included in Japan 2019, an initiative to promote Japanese culture in the United States. Earlier Japanese art exhibitions took place at the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York City and the Cleveland Museum of Art. The animal art exhibition will move to the Los Angeles County Museum of Art in September, and a number of Japan-themed concerts, festivals, and performances are taking place in the United States throughout 2019.

June 24, 2019

Today, June 24, people in Peru celebrate the Fiesta del Sol (Festival of the Sun, or Inti Raymi in Quechua, the ancient language of the Inca). The festival marks the winter solstice in the Southern Hemisphere, and it is considered the most important day on the Inca calendar. The festival celebrates Inti, the Inca sun god, and begins the new Inca year. Inti Raymi celebrations include elaborate dances, the wearing of colorful costumes, and the sharing of traditional food and drink.

An Inca man displays a colorful quipu, a knotted record-keeping device, during an Inti Raymi procession in Cusco, Peru. Credit: © James Brunker, Alamy Images

The Inca are a native South American people who once ruled one of the largest and richest empires in the Americas. The Inca empire emerged in the early A.D. 1400’s and occupied a vast region centered around the capital of Cusco, in southern Peru. Today, Cusco remains a center of Inca culture, and it hosts the main celebrations for the Festival of the Sun. Nearly half of all Peruvians are descended from the Inca or other indigenous peoples, while another third are mestizos—people of mixed Spanish and Native American heritage.

The traditional Inca religious ceremony—the Festival of the Sun, or Inti Raymi—is reenacted at an ancient fortress in Cusco, Peru. Credit: © M. Timothy O’Keefe, Alamy Images

Originally, the Sapa Inca (emperor), nobles, priests, and thousands of devoted worshippers celebrated Inti Raymi at Huacaypata, Cusco’s main square (now called the Plaza de Armas). Ancestral mummies were paraded through the plaza, great numbers of llamas (and sometimes people) were sacrificed, dances and songs were performed, and sacred food and drink were taken. The ceremony was banned after the Spanish arrived in Peru in the 1530′s, but the festival was revived—minus the mass animal sacrifices—in the 1940′s. Today, Inti Raymi draws many thousands of people to Cusco and other Inca sites.

This illustration shows an Inca emperor entering the Temple of the Sun in Cusco, the capital. The chosen women, who prepared food and offerings used in the ceremony, stand near the mummy of a former emperor, left rear. Credit: WORLD BOOK illustration by Richard Hook

June 24 is a busy feriado (holiday) in other parts of Peru, as well. The day marks the birth of San Juan Bautista (Saint John the Baptist), one of the 12 apostles of Jesus Christ. People enjoy the Día de San Juan throughout the Selva (the Amazon region), where San Juan is the patron saint. June 24 is also the Día del Campesino (Day of the Peasant), a holiday once known as Día del Indio (Day of the Indian) that celebrates farm workers as well as Peru’s large indigenous population. For hundreds of years, in the Rímac district of Lima, June 24 was also the Fiesta de Amancaes. Amancaes, or flores de Amancay, are large yellow lilies native to the district, which was once a haven for people looking to escape the city for an afternoon.

June 12, 2019

A recent reexamination of an important fossil discovery shows that Denisovans, a mysterious group of prehistoric people in Asia, lived in the high-altitude environment of the Tibetan Plateau long before the ancestors of modern Tibetans and Nepalese arrived. The fossil, a Denisovan mandible (lower jawbone) fragment, proves that these ancient humans were the first hominids to settle in that harsh environment where altitude sickness is a constant danger. The scientists studying the fossil also believe that modern people living on the Tibetan Plateau owe their survival to these Denisovan ancestors.

This virtual reconstruction shows details of the Denisovan mandible found on the Tibetan Plateau in 1980. It is some 160,000 years old. Credit: © Jean-Jacques Hublin, MPI-EVA, Leipzig

Chinese scientists recently reexamined the mandible fossil, which was excavated in Tibet in 1980. The jawbone fragment containing a few teeth was unremarkable. However, the scientists were hoping to determine the age of the fossil and extract proteins and genetic material using techniques that were not yet invented in the early 1980′s. The scientists were surprised when dating methods showed the fossil was about 160,000 years old. Scientists had previously believed that the early human populations alive at the time could not survive the harsh environment of the Tibetan Plateau.

The Denisovan mandible was found in this Tibetan Plateau cave, a tourist site and Buddhist refuge, in 1980. Credit: © Dongju Zhang, Lanzhou University

Analysis of proteins extracted from the jawbone fossil showed that it belonged to the mysterious Denisovans, a population previously known only from a few skeletal remains found in the Altai Mountains of southern Siberia. Denisovan DNA has similarities to that of the modern indigenous (native) peoples of Australia, New Guinea, the southern Philippines, and other Pacific Islands. Denisovans contributed up to five percent of the genetic material of some people living in these regions today.

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Tibet
WORLD BOOK map

Analysis of the Tibet jawbone shows that the Denisovans were well-suited to a high-altitude environment. They possessed a genetic adaptation that enabled them to withstand the physical effects of hypoxia (insufficient levels of oxygen in the blood) caused by high altitudes. Today, the indigenous people of Nepal and Tibet also possess this genetic adaptation. Scientists now believe that the modern inhabitants of the Tibetan Plateau inherited this adaptation from Denisovan ancestors of the distant past.

May 15, 2019

Last month, on April 10, scientists announced that fossils discovered in the Philippines were evidence of a new and previously unknown variety of human that inhabited the islands some 67,000 years ago. The fossils were found at Callao Cave in northern Luzon, the main island of the Philippines. The scientists determined that the fossils represent a new species of human beings called Homo luzonensis.

Scientists found the bones of Homo luzonensis at Callao Cave on the Philippine island of Luzon. Credit: Callao Cave Archaeology Project

The fossil remains of Homo luzonensis were discovered during excavations that took place at Callao Cave from 2007 through 2015. The remains of three individuals included isolated teeth, a foot bone, two toe bones, two finger bones, and an incomplete thigh bone. Scientists observed an odd mix of anatomical features in these few remains. Some of the features are seen in modern humans alive today. Other features, such as highly curved toe bones, are seen in primitive human ancestors called Australopithecines.

These teeth of Homo luzonensis were found in Callao Cave. Credit: © Callao Cave Archaeology Project

The fossils from Luzon add to the growing list of physically distinct varieties of prehistoric humans known across the world—a list that has complicated the view of human evolution. Scientists understand from fossil evidence that physically modern human beings, Homo sapiens, first appeared in the fossil record of Africa around 200,000 years ago. Scientists believe those people eventually spread to inhabit nearly every corner of the globe. However, many regions of Africa, Asia, and Europe were already occupied by prehistoric humans when Homo sapiens arrived.

This foot bone of Homo luzonensis shows unusual curvature. Credit: © Callao Cave Archaeology Project

The Neandertals, a well known group of prehistoric humans, inhabited much of Europe and Central Asia at least 250,000 years ago. Another group, known informally as the Denisovans, is identified by genetic material recovered from a few bones discovered in Siberia (and recently, Tibet) that date to more than 50,000 years ago. Scientist do not know what the Denisovans looked like because fossil remains are so scarce, but their DNA shows they were distinct from both Neandertals and modern humans. These early people are also different from Homo naledi, a mysterious early human species first discovered at Rising Star Cave in South Africa in 2015. Even more peculiar is Homo floresiensis, a diminutive (very small) variety of prehistoric humans known from fossils discovered on the Indonesian island of Flores in 2004.

Scientist now understand that early Homo sapiens shared their world with several other physically distinct varieties of human beings. These ancient people were more like cousins than ancestors to modern humans. Today, only physically modern people remain. The discovery of yet another previously unknown human species demonstrates that prehistoric people came in many shapes and sizes.

May 6, 2019

Late last year, archaeologists in Egypt discovered a treasure trove of statues and mummified remains at a newly opened tomb complex in Saqqarah (also spelled Saqqara), an ancient site near Cairo. Antiquities are commonly found in Egypt, but this discovery was different: it was dedicated almost entirely to cats and scarab beetles. Saqqarah was the necropolis (burial ground) for Memphis, the capital of ancient Egypt for more than 2,000 years.

This gilded wooden cat statue was one of many discovered in a tomb complex at Saqqarah, Egypt, in November 2018. Credit: Egyptian Ministry of Antiquities

The recently opened tombs at Saqqarah are about 4,500 years old. Inside, archaeologists found some human remains as well as ceramic amulets and jars of writing utensils. The more interesting finds, however, were the dozens of mummified cats and scarab beetles. Some of the mummified cats may well have been treasured pets of the deceased, but others were probably included solely to please the feline goddess, Bastet. (Bastet was the goddess of cats as well as human fertility, love, and motherhood.) More than 100 gilded wooden cat statues were also in the tombs, along with an impressive bronze statue of Bastet. Animal statues and mummies are commonly found in ancient Egyptians tombs. Some animals were seen as physical manifestations of gods, and they were included in burials for companionship, food, protection, or religious offerings in the afterlife.

Archaeologists discovered the remains of these mummified scarabs at Saqqarah in November 2018. Credit: Egyptian Ministry of Antiquities

The preserved scarab beetles, a rare find, were wrapped in linen inside small decorated limestone sarcophagi (stone coffins). The Egyptians had a scarab beetle (or scarab-headed) deity, Khepri, a solar god of resurrection and immortality. Compared to Bastet, who had her own popular cult, Khepri was relatively obscure. Combined with the difficulty of embalming delicate beetles, that may explain the small numbers of scarab mummies found over the years.

Animal embalming was a vast industry in ancient Egypt. Sadly, this means that many animals—particularly cats and dogs—were captured or raised specifically to be offered as sacrifices for the dead. Millions of mummified animals have been found over the years. In 2015, a Saqqarah catacomb dedicated to the dog or jackal-like god of mummification, Anubis, was found stuffed with nearly 8 million animal mummies—most of them dogs. Such animals as baboons, cobras, crocodiles, falcons, ibises, and mice were also commonly mummified.

April 24, 2019

If your birthday is in April, your birthstone—the gem associated with the month of your birth—is the diamond. The diamond is the hardest naturally occurring mineral, and also one of the most valuable natural substances. Because of its hardness, the diamond is the most lasting of all gemstones. In Europe, Japan, and North America, diamonds are widely used in engagement and wedding rings. Diamonds are also used in industry for cutting, grinding, and boring other hard materials. About half of the world’s natural diamonds are suitable only for industrial use. A small percentage are set in jewelry.

This photograph shows a naturally occurring diamond embedded in a sample of the rock kimberlite. Diamonds may be mined from pipe-shaped deposits of kimberlite, which fill the throats of extinct volcanoes. Natural diamonds are dull and must be cut by skilled jewelers to bring out the gem’s distinctive sparkle. Credit: © Matteo Chinellato, ChinellatoPhoto/Exactostock/SuperStock

Diamonds have been treasured at least since the days of the ancient Roman naturalist Pliny the Elder. He wrote: “Diamond is the most valuable, not only of precious stones, but of all things in the world.” Trade in diamonds was also prevalent in ancient India, and by the Middle Ages diamonds were fashionable accessories in several parts of the world. The diamond is a traditional birthstone for Aries (March 21-April 19), a sign of the zodiac. It is also a traditional gem gift for a 60th wedding anniversary—an event also called a diamond anniversary. In the past, some people believed diamonds possessed magical powers. According to legend, wearing a diamond could relieve fatigue or cure mental illness.

Diamonds are crystals that are made up almost entirely of carbon. Some diamond crystals have six faces, but most form octahedrons,which have eight faces. Natural diamonds probably form in Earth’s upper mantle—the zone beneath the crust—where high temperature and pressure cause carbon to crystallize. Diamonds are later brought to Earth’s surface by volcanic activity. The gems can be found in several places around the world, but the leading producers of natural diamonds include Australia, Botswana, Canada, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, and Russia.

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Birthstones, according to tradition, bring good luck when worn by a person born in the associated month. Credit: WORLD BOOK illustrations by Paul D. Turnbaugh

According to tradition, a birthstone brings good luck to a person born in its month. Each birthstone also corresponds to a sign of the zodiac. The belief in birthstones may have come from a Bible story about Aaron, the first high priest of the Israelites. The story describes Aaron’s breastplate, which was decorated with 12 precious stones. Early writers linked these stones with the 12 months of the year and the 12 signs of the zodiac. The custom of wearing a stone that represented a person’s zodiac sign probably originated in Germany or Poland in the 1700′s.