Today, trans people face politicization of their lives and vilification from politicians, media and parts of broader society. But in some of history’s earliest civilizations, gender-diverse people were recognized and understood in a wholly different way. As early as 4,500 years ago in ancient Mesopotamia, for instance, gender-diverse people held important roles in society with … Read more
Roman concrete is pretty amazing stuff. It’s among the main reasons we know so much about Roman architecture today. So many structures built by the Romans still survive, in some form, thanks to their ingenious concrete and construction techniques. However, there’s a lot we still don’t understand about exactly how the Romans made such strong … Read more
Scientists have found new evidence that a massive comet trail may have caused climate upheaval on Earth more than 12,000 years ago. Tiny particles detected in ocean sediment cores suggest that dust from a large, disintegrating comet entered Earth’s atmosphere around the beginning of the Younger Dryas event, a period of abrupt cooling that caused … Read more
The roar of the arena crowd, the bustle of the Roman forum, the grand temples, the Roman army in red with glistening shields and armor — when people imagine ancient Rome, they often think of its sights and sounds. We know less, however, about the scents of ancient Rome. We cannot, of course, go back … Read more
Researchers and artists have created a striking facial reconstruction of a Stone Age woman who lived roughly 10,500 years ago in what is now Belgium. The detailed depiction of the prehistoric hunter-gatherer, known as the “Margaux woman,” is based on various scientific data, including the remains of her skeleton and ancient DNA, according to a … Read more
A knight in “shining armor” wielding a sword or lance is an iconic medieval image, but more advanced weapons also appeared in the Middle Ages — including guns that fired bullets. This leads to an interesting question: Could the metal suits worn by knights and other warriors block a bullet? Live Science contacted experts to … Read more
Modern humans now permanently live on every continent except Antarctica, but it wasn’t always this way. After our species, Homo sapiens, emerged in Africa at least 300,000 years ago, some eventually ventured out, trekking and voyaging across the world. So when did the first modern humans reach each of the seven continents? The accepted ideas … Read more
A structure in southwest England that’s associated with King Arthur isn’t medieval as scientists had long thought. Instead, it dates back more than 5,000 years, to the Neolithic, or New Stone Age, archaeologists say — thousands of years before the mythical king and his knights are said to have lived. The scientists who were involved … Read more
Earth’s surface is a turbulent place. Mountains rise, continents merge and split, and earthquakes shake the ground. All of these processes result from plate tectonics, the movement of enormous chunks of Earth’s crust. This movement may be why life exists here. Earth is the only known planet with plate tectonics and the only known planet … Read more
In my research focused on early farmers of Europe, I have often wondered about a curious pattern through time: Farmers lived in large dense villages, then dispersed for centuries, then later formed cities again, only to abandon those as well. Why? Archaeologists often explain what we call urban collapse in terms of climate change, overpopulation, … Read more
