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Timeline of human evolution
The timeline of human evolution outlines the major events in the development of humans species and the evolution of human's ancestors. It begins with the time of the origin of life and presents a possible line of descendants that led to humans. This timeline is based on studies from paleontology, developmental biology, morphology and from anatomical and genetic data. The study of human evolution is a major component of anthropology. The Wikipedia timeline begins at 4000 MYA with the appearance of the ealiest life-forms and includes 10 MYA for when human ancestors speciate from the ancestors of the gorillas. The first anatomically modern humans (Homo sapiens) appear in Africa some time before 100kYA -- they evolved from Homo heidelbergensis.
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Fossils & Ruins News
September 16, 2026
Sep. 14, 2026 Ancient DNA reveals that plague was already killing hunter-gatherers in Siberia 5,500 years ago, long before cities and flea-driven epidemics. The prehistoric strains may have been especially ...
Sep. 13, 2026 Mount Etna’s ancient eruptions followed radically different paths, with some magma lingering near the surface for weeks while other magma raced upward from nearly 30 kilometers deep in just hours. Scientists traced the difference to volcanic gases ...
Aug. 12, 2026 Ancient remains from Vietnam suggest diseases like yaws may have been passed from mother to child thousands of years ago, a form of transmission often assumed to indicate syphilis. The discovery ...
July 22, 2026 Ancient fern savannahs may have transformed parts of Europe into a wildfire-prone inferno during the end-Triassic mass extinction. New fossil evidence suggests the ferns repeatedly regrew after fires, creating fresh fuel that helped prolong the ...
July 12, 2026 Why do beaches today have seashells from clams and snails instead of brachiopods? A new study suggests the answer lies in Earth's greatest mass extinction, when warming oceans and falling oxygen levels wiped out animals that couldn't adapt. Species ...
June 18, 2026 Plague was already a deadly killer 5,500 years ago, long before cities, farming, or the rat-infested conditions usually linked to historic outbreaks. By analyzing ancient DNA from hunter-gatherer cemeteries in Siberia, researchers discovered early ...
June 11, 2026 For nearly 700 years, Indigenous hunters repeatedly used a bison kill site in central Montana—then suddenly stopped, even though bison were still abundant. Researchers uncovered evidence that ...
May 20, 2026 For decades, scientists believed ancient humans avoided dense rainforests, treating them as nearly impossible environments for early survival. But a groundbreaking discovery in West Africa is rewriting that story. Researchers uncovered evidence that ...
May 14, 2026 Scientists analyzing the genomes of thousands of people across Japan discovered evidence for a previously overlooked third ancestral group, challenging the long-accepted “dual origins” theory. The newly identified ancestry appears linked to the ...
May 13, 2026 Humans may have returned to Britain far earlier than scientists once believed — not long after the last ice sheet began retreating. New evidence suggests people were already moving into the British ...
May 11, 2026 The Toba supereruption 74,000 years ago was so massive it may have plunged Earth into years of darkness and cold, leading some scientists to believe humanity nearly went extinct. Yet archaeological ...
May 5, 2026 Long-forgotten ancient tablets have been decoded, uncovering a mix of magic, politics, and daily life from early civilizations. Among the discoveries are rare anti-witchcraft rituals meant to protect ...
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Sep. 16, 2026 A newly identified 240-million-year-old animal from Tanzania is forcing scientists to rethink the early dinosaur timeline. Dinodontosaurus isiyavamanda belongs to a group previously known only from ...
Sep. 15, 2026 Microscopic plant remains are revealing how GunaiKurnai ancestors used Cloggs Cave for ritual practices over thousands of years. People deliberately gathered whole grasses, carried them into the dark ...
Sep. 15, 2026 A 125-million-year-old crocodile fossil has revealed preserved skin, possible sensory organs, sophisticated respiratory structures, and an unexpected pattern on its tail. Ultraviolet light exposed ...
Sep. 11, 2026 A feather discovered inside 66-million-year-old fossilized dinosaur poop may help explain why modern birds survived the asteroid catastrophe. The ...
Sep. 10, 2026 Scientists have used DNA from living descendants to identify four more members of the doomed Franklin expedition, including Harry Peglar, whose identity had remained uncertain for 166 years. The ...
Sep. 10, 2026 While clearing debris to protect ancient Egyptian tombs from flash floods, researchers near Luxor stumbled upon an unknown 3,000-year-old tomb. Its remarkably preserved paintings depict an official ...
Sep. 10, 2026 Ancient human remains from Sulawesi suggest people were habitually using the psychoactive betel nut as far back as 25,000 years ago. Researchers found both unusual tooth wear and traces of arecoline, ...
Sep. 9, 2026 More than 400,000-year-old Homo erectus teeth from China may reveal a surprising link between this ancient human species, Denisovans, and some modern people. Scientists found protein mutations ...
Devil’s Arrows: Ancient Builders Hauled 55,000-Pound Stones 11 Miles for Britain’s Tallest Stone Row
Sep. 9, 2026 Britain’s towering Devil’s Arrows were built from 25-tonne stones hauled at least 18 kilometers from Brimham Rocks around 4,000 years ago. The ...
Sep. 8, 2026 Scientists have identified a giant new dinosaur from Brazil that reached about 20 meters long and lived 120 million years ago. Its surprising evolutionary ties to a Spanish dinosaur suggest its ...