paleontology
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Otters the Size of Lions Once Roamed the Earth
Enhydriodon omoensis dwarfed ancestors of humans who lived alongside it from 2.5 to 3.5 million years ago; the two species may have competed for food.
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Now-Extinct Giant South American Sloth Likely Devoured Meat With Its Vegetables
Up to now, it has been thought that the two-ton Darwin’s ground sloth, which lived up to 10,000 years ago, was strictly vegetarian. Apparently not.
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Methods Used to Reconstruct Ancient Rain Forests May Need Revision, Says Study
One way in which scientists use carbon isotopes found in fossils to identify the sites of ancient rain forests may not work as expected.
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Project Will Delve Into How Climate and Tectonics Shaped Human Ancestors Over 25 Million Years
A new project will investigate the relationships between tectonics, climate and the evolution of humans’ primate ancestors in Kenya’s Turkana Basin.
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Sailing Stone Track Discovered ‘Hiding in Plain Sight’ in Dinosaur Fossil
The “walking rock” track suggests that a massive volcanic winter may have frozen the tropics during the dawn of the dinosaur age.
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Study Signals Change in How Scientists Calculate Ancient Diets
Scientists have long determined what extinct animals ate by analyzing carbon isotopes locked inside their fossil teeth. But a new study shows that in many cases, they may be plugging the wrong numbers into their equations. The findings may change some views of how mammals, including us, evolved.
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Paleontologists Are Unzipping Our Genes
Recently, paleontologists have used genomics to delve into the lives of ancient humans. These studies have capitalized on futuristic techniques to reveal the genealogy, travel plans and sex lives of our ancestors.
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Paleomagnetism Researcher Elected to American Academy of Arts and Sciences
Dennis Kent, a leading expert in the history of earth’s magnetic field, has been elected to the American Academy of Arts and Sciences. Other members of the 2012 class include U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton, playwright Neil Simon, Hollywood director Clint Eastwood and Amazon founder Jeffrey Bezos.
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Foot Forward
In 1968, 14-year-old Paul Olsen of suburban Livingston, N.J., and his friend Tony Lessa heard that dinosaur tracks had been found in a nearby quarry. They raced over on their bikes. “I went ballistic,” Olsen recalls. Over the next few years, the boys uncovered and studied thousands of tracks and other fossils there, often working into the night. It opened the…
Join us on Saturday, October 19, from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. for the Lamont-Doherty Earth Observatory Open House! Celebrate 75 years of science with us at our beautiful Palisades, NY campus. The event is free and open to everyone, with a suggested $5 donation. Learn More and RSVP
