In 2022, Richard D. Hansen led a team in Guatemala’s Mirador-Calakmul Karst Basin and found Mayan structures consistently spread over a 650-square-mile area (slightly larger than modern London). They identified 964 previously unknown sites aged 1000 B.C. to A.D. 150 and 110 miles of raised causeways connecting them. While it was already known that Mayan civilization was spread throughout Central America, many assumed tropical forest settlements were an obstacle to creating complex societies. â ...read more
Did you know it's possible for scientists to trick your brain into thinking you have an additional appendage? A participant might stand in front of a mirror placing their left hand in such a way that the thumb doesn’t show. A researcher then strokes the non-thumb side of the left hand at the same time as stroking the side with the thumb. In the space of a few moments, the participant begins to feel as though they have a second thumb on the wrong side of their hand — even though they can clea ...read more
In Stone Age sites all over the world, archaeologists have found rounded stone “spheroids” that fit in the palms of their hands. A bit too heavy for tossing around, the balls have cropped up in Africa, Asia, Europe and the Levant, the countries gathered near the eastern shore of the Mediterranean. No one knows what purpose the balls served, be it practical, personal, aesthetic or something yet unimagined.Scientists have also disagreed on whether early humans made the objects intentionally †...read more
The world is full of insects who are out for our blood. Since the dawn of human existence, we’ve been snacked on by ticks, lice, fleas, flies and mosquitoes beyond counting. But in recent times, few parasitic insects have instilled more skin-crawling revulsion — or fear of infestation — than the common bed bug.And with good reason: According to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, cases of bed bug infestation have been increasing over the past 20 years. As many as 1 in 5 Americans eit ...read more
Author Vishay SinghPosted on Categories Discover Magazine
