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The research team sequenced DNA from four children buried 8,000 and 3,000 years ago at Shum Laka in Cameroon, a site excavated by a Belgian and Cameroonian team 30 years ago. The findings, published Jan. 22 in Nature, represent the first ancient DNA from West or Central Africa, and some of the oldest DNA recovered from an African tropical context. They enable a new understanding of the deep ancestral relationships among early Homo sapiens in sub-Saharan Africa.
Increased uptake of plant-based diets in New Zealand could substantially reduce greenhouse gas emissions while greatly improving population health and saving the healthcare system billions of dollars in the coming decades, according to a new University of Otago study.
In Nature, a team led by researchers at the US Department of Energy (DOE) Joint Genome Institute (JGI), a DOE Office of Science User Facility located at Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory (Berkeley Lab) uncovered a broad diversity of large and giant viruses that belong to the nucleocytoplasmic large DNA viruses (NCLDV) supergroup. As a result, virus diversity in this group expanded 10-fold from just 205 genomes, redefining the phylogenetic tree of giant viruses.
Sign languages throughout North and South America and Europe have centuries-long roots in five European locations, a finding that gives new insight into the influence of the European Enlightenment on many of the world's signing communities and the evolution of their languages.
OSIRIS-REx successfully executed a 0.4-mile (620-m) flyover of site Nightingale yesterday as part of the mission's Reconnaissance B phase activities.
Researchers at the McKelvey School of Engineering at Washington University in St. Louis found that the hazards of switching disinfectants in water systems -- increased lead levels -- can be mitigated if the change is done correctly.
Visual surveys alone cannot sufficiently detect the Brown Treesnake (BTS), which was introduced to the island of Guam around the time of WWII and has contributed to significant biodiversity loss. Researchers coupled visual surveys with radio telemetry to form a powerful method of detecting the BTS. Their work will improve detection efforts and rapid response should the snake arrive on nearby snake-free islands.
Hydrologists diving off the coast of the Philippines have discovered volcanic seeps with some of the highest natural levels of C02 ever recorded. The scientists were working in Verde Island Passage, one of the most diverse marine ecosystems in the world and is home to thriving coral reefs.
Researchers at the University of Pittsburgh's Swanson School of Engineering have proposed a system that would use currently underutilized resources in an existing wireless channel to create extra opportunities for lag-free connections. The process, which wouldn't require any additional hardware or wireless spectrum resources, could alleviate traffic backups on networks with many wireless connections, such as those found in smart warehouses and automated factories.
Policies and new technologies have reduced emissions of precursor gases that lead to ozone air pollution, but despite those improvements, the amount of ozone that plants are taking in has not followed the same trend, according to Florida State University researchers.
