Archeological evidence has indicated that early humans fabricated tools during the Middle Paleolithic period in Europe and Africa. East Asia, during that same time, was considered less advanced. A new finding demonstrates that we need to adjust our conception of when and where tools were first made and used.Researchers report the discovery of the “Quina technological system” — essentially tools for making tools, with various kinds of stone chips at its core — in southwest China, dating b ...read more
While a drop in libido is often associated with aging in women, it’s not just a female issue. Around 26 percent of men over 70 report a loss of sexual desire as well. Sex isn’t just about reproduction — physical intimacy fosters emotional connection, reduces stress, boosts the immune system, and generally improves mood. Understanding what affects our libido can reveal how lifestyle changes might enhance our sex drive and relationships.Age-related libido changes are seen across mammalian sp ...read more
In 1919, a student at the University of Cambridge had an extra ticket to a lecture being given by an astronomer who had just returned from a trip off the west coast of Africa where he observed the stars and a solar eclipse.Cecilia Payne-Gaposchkin, then 19 years old and an undergraduate student, took the extra ticket. The lecture changed her life and inspired her to become an astronomer. “For three nights, I think, I did not sleep,” she later wrote.In turn, Payne-Gaposchkin changed astron ...read more
"That's so random" is a common saying people use when they see or experience something unexpected. But as a concept in physics, true mathematical randomness has long proven elusive — until now. A team of computer scientists using quantum computing methods has, for the first time, generated a truly random number, they report in the journal Nature.By now you’re asking yourself, what is “true randomness,” anyway? Doesn’t choosing a number between, say, one and a trillion, count as truly r ...read more
(A) Ventral view of the mandible and associated skull elements. (B) Mandible and skull elements labeled. (C) Left lateral view of the mandible. Abbreviations: an, angular; art, articular; d, dentary; j, jugal; R. mx, right maxilla; L. mx, left maxilla; p, palatine; R. pm, right premaxilla; sp, splenial; s.r., symphyseal ridge; sur, surangular.
(Image Credit: Klaus Nilkens/Urwelt-Museum Hauff/Marx et al.)After making a splash in early 2025 with the identification of its 183-million-year-old fossi ...read more
Author Vishay SinghPosted on Categories Discover Magazine