Adventure Ausrama Blog

It is said that ancient humans settled down because they wanted to turn grain  (they did not use barley then)  into beer. This is unlikely: How did they know how to make beer before they had the bread and learned how yeast worked? Note that the original beer did not have hops. This beer was not that fizzy. it was like a soup. The euphoric feeling you get from drinking alcohol led to it being included in ritual and worship of prehistoric people. Moreover, we all know how imbibing improves social interaction. Ancient societies liked it so much that it became embedded in their culture. Identifying when the first beer was made is difficult. The remains of prehistoric malted grain can be identified by thinning of aleurone cell walls Grains from five sites were obtained. Researchers simulated the preservation process of ancient beer. They malted barley grain by charring. This was compared with the ancient grains. Findings were evaluated for more than a year. Fin...

It is said that ancient humans settled down because they wanted to turn grain  (they did not use barley then)  into beer. This is unlikely: How did they know how to make beer before they had the bread and learned how yeast worked? Note that the original beer did not have hops. This beer was not that fizzy. it was like a soup. The euphoric feeling you get from drinking alcohol led to it being included in ritual and worship of prehistoric people. Moreover, we all know how imbibing improves social interaction. Ancient societies liked it so much that it became embedded in their culture. Identifying when the first beer was made is difficult. The remains of prehistoric malted grain can be identified by thinning of aleurone cell walls Grains from five sites were obtained. Researchers simulated the preservation process of ancient beer. They malted barley grain by charring. This was compared with the ancient grains. Findings were evaluated for more than a year. Fin...

The research shows that super-archaic humans migrated from Africa to Eurasia two million years ago (note: Homo erectus is classed as human) . There is nothing special about them. Super-archaic is just a name given to them. Hominins are the line that resulted in us, from the time when the divergence from chimpanzee and bonobo occurred. Super-archaics had a long time out of Africa alone. Well we think that is the case. Much later, between 400,000 and 300,000 years ago another ancient human moved from Africa. Those who went to Europe evolved into Neanderthals, while those moving into Asia became Denisovans. Our ancestors who remained in Africa became Homo sapiens, us. There is a lot of debate and disagreement about when we left Africa. Theories range from 200,000 years ago or even earlier to 60,000 before the present. But it is thought that the early leavers died out - not yet fully proven. When Homo-sapiens met Neanderthals and Denisovans interbreeding took place. However...

A 5,000 year old skeleton of a woman suffering from non-genetic dwarfism is found in China. Skeletal dysplasia resulted in proportionate dwarfism where the whole skeleton is small. It is rare in humans. Pediatric onset hypopituitarism and hypothyroidism is an underactive thyroid and pituitary gland. This individual would need support from others to survive. It indicates that a tight social structure existed in the community. Of course, the society did not know that iodine would have prevented the ongoing damage to the person's body. Even today Chinese people suffer more from iodine deficiency than Westerners because it is lacking in their diet. There is contentious debate among archaeologists about the treatment of those with dwarfism in Ancient Chinese society. Confucian texts written in the 4th century B.C. say that those with deformities were accepted as equals. However, accounts two centuries later indicate that people with dwarfism were pushed out to live with othe...

Live to be 150 years old. But can you afford it? To live that long will take genetic manipulation and intensive drug therapy. Research has shown that the primary thing extending life is diet. Remove processed food completely and you will live longer. That is all processed food. New evidence shows that people did live into their eighties centuries ago. Note, there were no processed foods then. Meat and vegetable were eaten every meal. Even bread kept the attributes of the grain. What brings the average life-span down is the large number of people dying in accidents. Suicide is another factor. Improved health care will extend life over coming decades. That is if taxpayers can afford it, which is doubtful. Much is said about good genes predisposing a person for a long life. However, personality is important. How you choose to live determines longevity. Good food. regular exercise and mixing socially are major factors. It is important to be positive. Keeping the brain acti...

A fragment of a long bone from a hominid at least 13 years old shows that it had a Denisovan father and Neanderthal mother. The specimen was found in Denisova Cave in Russia in 2012. Because it was found indicates that other cross breeding occurred. Neanderthals obviously migrated to eastern Eurasia from western Europe. They were not "stuck" in regions around the Iberian Peninsular. Genetic analysis shows that the father of the Neanderthal/Denisovan adolescent also had some Neanderthal ancestry, so the groups were coexisting in the east. It is believed by scientists that Neanderthals interbred with humans and had fertile young. However, this is not possible as Neanderthals have 24 pairs of chromosomes while humans have 23. Interbreeding of Denisovans and Neanderthals could occur as they both had 24 pairs of chromosomes. + so denisovan is neanderthal us dna ox humans a denisovans i fossil oh mother ah genes by mixed id years + ~ ha denisovan in neanderthal on dna an hum...

Research shows Neanderthal man, Denisovan and another in DNA. Paleontologists have all the answers about man. They have a complete map of the evolution of humans beings. If you think this way, you are wrong! Evolution to the present is just based on a few old bones.  Modern examination from other sources it changing established theory.   Neanderthal man Denisovan Two prehumans are known: Neanderthals and Denisovans. However, genetic research has now shown that there are traces of another extinct human species in human DNA. Australian Aboriginals of north-east Australia and the people of Papua New Guinean carry these genes.     Neanderthal man evolution Astralo-Pacific people have about 2.8 per cent of Neanderthal in their genetic makeup. It was believed that another 6 per cent was from Denisovans. The latest research shows this estimate to be wrong. Only 1.11 is clearly Denisovan. This leaves 4+ per cent from another prehuman or maybe more sub-speci...

Science: Extroverts and introverts are on a continuum. Do you mix with others easily?  Are you a loner?  Human beings can be categorized as extrovert or introvert.  There appears not to be a continuum to give variety to the species.  You are either one or the other. Don't get me wrong here.  Introverts can rise to the occasion and mix in a group.  Oddly, many introverts become entertainers to bring themselves out and beat their fears.  Clearly though, extroverts love other people and get lonely quickly, whereas introverts thrive doing things on their own. After a noisy party where alcohol has temporarily changed introverts into extroverts.  The basically quieter type starts worrying about what he/she said at the bash.  The mixers just get on with life and don't fear anything. Wait on.  Research has shown the people do fit on a continuum.  We cannot all be divided into either mixer or loner, not totally.  To make...

Anthropology: Adam and Eve hominids in the Garden of Eden. Humans were not alone on the evolutionary path. There would always be at least one more type of hominid existing nearby until the last 13,000 years (Hobbits). If the number of chromosomes was very close then fertile offspring were possible. The case for neanderthal closeness is still not yet known for sure. Some make bold claims about humans having neanderthal genes, but note that we did have a common ancestor. "This is the Garden of Eden love, from the volcano God." Take it with a pinch of salt about us being Neanderthal, Denisovan, human hybrids. This is fairytale stuff. Neanderthals were mainly in Europe and Denisovans were for the most part in southeast Asia. This would mean that humans from Africa would be genetically pure. However, the Neanderthal gene chains are also in them. Perhaps these genes are common to most hominids. Only a few decades ago many scientists loudly proclaimed that people ca...

We all know that rats can get really big, particularly when they eat "quality" garbage left by humans. Yet, city people have never seen the giant rats found in East Timor. Africa was thought to be the home of large rats, but this is not the case. No less that seven new species of large rats have been observed in East Timor. If you can image one 10 times larger than your "domestic" beast, you are getting close to the mark. The giants weigh about 5 kilograms. There is evidence that ancient man actually ate the rats on Timor as far back as 50,000 years ago. This was before tools were introduced from Asia. It seems that they were hunted then thrown onto the fire to cook because there were no cooking pots. The study aims to find out what animals were like before humans arrived there from Southeast Asia. Were they large then? It is known that mammals actually get smaller when isolated on an island. ◆ Science by Ty Buchanan   ◆ Adventure Australia ...

It is not know why but the Great Barrier Reefs is always being attacked by hordes of Crown-of-Thorns starfish. Forty per cent of damage to the reef is done by the pest. Robots that can identify starfish and then inject them with a lethal toxin are being used to fight the invasion. The system works by having a submersible robot patrol about 30cm off the sea floor. When it sees a starfish an arm is extended and the injection is done. If a target is questionable the view is recorded in the robot's data base. A copy of the video is sent to human controllers who verify whether the robot has to return to finish the job. The robots get the starfish early before they can do any real damage to the reef. After the robots have done what they can, human divers go in to clear up the remaining starfish. This combined protective system will give the reef time to recover. ◆ Science  by Ty Buchanan   ◆ Adventure Australia Funny Animal Photos Funny Weird Things A...

Scientists are creating tiny human organs from stem cells just for the sake of it. They hope that it will make for beneficial discoveries and applications in the future. Is it a waste of public and private money? It could be. There is an opportunity cost in using resources for wasteful projects. These tiny but useless mini-organs are called organoids. Indeed, Madeline Lancaster was messing-around" when she realized that she had grown a brain. Attempting to form embryonic stem cells from neural rosettes she accidentally succeeded. The floating milky substance floating in the culture was an embryonic brain - retina cells. A mass of different cells were found when the contents of the culture dish were closely analysed. Organoids seem to mimic the operation of full-sized natural organs. Eye, stomach, gut, kidney, liver, pancreas, lung, prostate and breast mini-organs have been made. They do mimic some of the functions of the real thing. Unfortunately, they remain e...

It is commonly believed that DNA does its job and is just "there", non-functioning. However, new research shows DNA to be pro-active. It reads our senses and reacts accordingly. DNA detects the seasons and changes ones' body chemistry accordingly. As many as a fifth of all blood cells genes change with the season. Gene switches are turned on or off to achieve this. In winter immune responders are at a high level. The blood gets thinner in summer knowing that you will be more active. Body-building, fat-burning and water retention is the objective in hotter months. It is possible that living in air conditioned buildings could leave you body at risk of disease because the preparatory changes are not complete. Even the length of day is now distorted by artificial light.  While having ant-inflammatory chemicals ready and operational in winter is rationally useful, inflammation in itself damages the body, particularly when there is no attack on the body. It...