Two new Hobbit studies published in Nature support classifying Homo floresiensis as a new species. The first suggests that the tiny, small-brained, flat-footed tool-makers descended from an undocumented hominin more primitive than Homo erectus. The second study examined the evolutionary process known as insular dwarfing, and concluded that adapting to an island environment can shrink brains far more than had been thought possible.   Here’s more information on the analysis of the Hobbit foot, and two photographs of the fossils. “A foot like this one has never been seen before in the human fossil record,” said William L. Jungers of Stony Brook University.  

An imperial ritual complex and 16 settlements have been discovered in western Mexico by Christopher Fisher and a team of students from Colorado State University.  

Two American tourists have returned a chunk of terracotta they pocketed on vacation in Rome 25 years ago.   Although the BBC has a slightly different version of the story.   An article from the Italian news service ANSA offers a bit more information on objects tourists have tried to sneak out of the country.  

Perfectly preserved bodies have been recovered from tombs dating to Korea’s Joseon Dynasty (1392 – 1910). These wealthy people had been buried in double-sided coffins and covered with a limestone mixture.  

Scientists from the Oriental Institute at the University of Chicago are making high-resolution digital images of clay tablets from Persepolis.  

A wooden spear tip once coated with resin has reportedly been found in a riverbank in Slovenia.  

Five-year-old Marshall Hayum of Maynard, Massachusetts, found a 4,000-year-old plummet while on a nature walk with his class. The stone plummet would have been used to anchor fishing nets.  

A streetcar built for Pittsburgh Railways in 1911 will become a display at the Pennsylvania Trolley Museum.

This entry was posted by Jessica E. Saraceni on Thursday, May 7, 2009. Discussion of this blog entry is now closed.

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