The 70 Million-Year-Old History of the Mississippi River In 1758, the French ethnographer Antoine-Simon Le Page du Pratz published The History of Louisiana, in which he wrote that the Mississippi River’s name meant “the ancient father of rivers.” Though his etymology was off—the Ojibwe words that gave us Mississippi (Misi-ziibi) actually mean “long river”—the idea has proven … Continue reading The 70 Million-Year-Old History of the Mississippi River →

This Gorgeous Ice Cavern Has An Ancient Forest Underneath Mendenhall Glacier is one of the most picturesque places that is situated in Southeast Alaska. It is whoppingly 13.6 miles long. There is a number of ice caves that can be located in this Glacier. Also, an ancient forest was revealed beneath the glacier in the … Continue reading This Gorgeous Ice Cavern Has An Ancient Forest Underneath →

Denver museum to return looted relics to Cambodia after the U.S. moves to seize them Decades after they were hacked from temples and other historical sites, four ancient statues from the Denver Museum of Art are finally heading home. The museum has agreed to turn over the relics to the U.S. government, which plans to … Continue reading Denver museum to return looted relics to Cambodia after the U.S. moves to seize them →

Why this 300 million-year-old fossil discovered in Utah has the palaeontology world buzzing A 300-million-year-old fossil discovered deep in Canyonlands National Park in Utah could belong to an entirely new species, reports Amy Joi O’Donoghue for the Deseret News. The fossilized critter is an amniote—a land-dwelling vertebrate that lays eggs— and has four legs. It’s … Continue reading Why this 300 million-year-old fossil discovered in Utah has the palaeontology world buzzing →

Has a Race of Giants Ever Lived in America? Over the millennia, people in many places across the globe have reported the existence of giants. Some of these alleged giants were supposedly six or seven feet tall, while others were considerably taller – 10 feet or more. However, many of these accounts are considered mythical … Continue reading Has a Race of Giants Ever Lived in America? →

Vikings were in North America in 1021, researchers say Vikings from Greenland — the first Europeans to arrive in the Americas — lived in a village in Canada’s Newfoundland exactly 1,000 years ago, according to research published Wednesday. Scientists have known for many years that Vikings — a name given to the Norse by the … Continue reading Vikings were in North America in 1021, researchers say →

Rare tardigrade fossil found in 16-million-year-old Dominican amber The discovery of an incredibly rare fossil is helping scientists learn more about one of Earth’s ancient and most resilient inhabitants: the microscopic tardigrade. Modern tardigrades are eight-legged micro-animals, also known as water bears or moss piglets. They’re almost completely missing from the fossil record despite their … Continue reading Rare tardigrade fossil found in 16-million-year-old Dominican amber →

Newly identified American sabre-toothed cat species was larger than a tiger and hunted rhinos Scientists have identified a huge new saber-toothed cat species, Machairodus lahayishupup, that would have prowled the vast areas of North America between 5 and 9 million years ago, using detailed fossil comparison techniques. One of the biggest cats ever discovered, M. lahayishupup is … Continue reading Newly identified American saber-toothed cat species was larger than a tiger and hunted rhinos →

Humans May Have Smoked Tobacco 12,300 Years Ago, Scientists Find New Evidence in Utah Humankind’s addiction to tobacco runs deep: Archaeologists in Utah have discovered what appears to be the earliest known use of wild tobacco, stretching back 12,500 years—some 9,000 years earlier than the previously dated evidence. A team from the Far Western Anthropological Research … Continue reading Humans May Have Smoked Tobacco 12,300 Years Ago, Scientists Find New Evidence in Utah →