Adventure Ausrama Blog

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...

The long held "belief" that humans came out of Africa 60,000 years ago has now been officially announced as wrong by scientists. Migrations had been regularly been pushed back as far as 120,000 years before the present. It seems migration was constant not in waves. New research methods detect Homo sapiens in Asia very early, particularly in China. Genetic traces of these people are very low in modern humans. This indicates that the initial movement was slow from Africa. Later it became of a flood of Inquisitive searchers of new regions beyond. The early arrivals interbred with Denisovans and Neanderthals. These humans were taller and slender than those who came later. Neaderthals made tools from large flakes while humans technology involved lighter, finer cutting blades and spear heads. This was probably because Neanderthals were more muscular and tended to bash the quarry to death. Humans were more creative, carving antlers and bone. They made ivory flutes. C...

Despite all the technological achievements there is no real practical way to store data for the posterity of the human race. All the methods we have break down over time.  New optical disks that use gold particles may be the answer. They have a 10TB capacity and it is claimed that they will last six centuries. The disks can be mass produced. Currently, standard disks used by data centers hold 2TB of data and last only two years. If the new technology is for real it will be a huge step forward. The best disks all optical, we have to date last for a maximum of 50 years and they have not been put into service because of high cost. Australian and Chinese researchers say there is still a long way to go before the gold particle strategy is fully developed. Gold nanomaterials are combined with hybrid glass which produces a structure with great strength. Data can be stored across the whole spectrum of visible light rays. There is a trade off :  increasing the storage lev...

Anthropologists say the Hobbit of Flores did exist. The naysayers have had to accept that the Hobbit discovered on the island of Flores in Indonesia did exist. They survived until about 15,000 years ago. Anthropologists should have taken notice of local folklore. Stories were handed down to the present about tiny "people" raiding food crops at night. Remains have been closely examined by scientists. It was a tiny version of Australopithecus a human predecessor which lived in Africa from 4.5 million to 2 million years ago. The creature grew to small stature because it was trapped on an island. Short legs made it hard for them to walk but they did nonetheless - large trees do not grow on Flores. Despite having a small brain Homo floresiensis  developed stone tools to a complexity equalled only by humans. Its teeth were closer to human teeth than any other ape-like pre-human. This accounts for its naming as homo rather than Australopithecus . The real mystery ...

Conservation: Overfishing is just as toxic as pollution. G+ We are already running out of food.  If carbon dioxide doesn't kill us diminishing fish stocks will.  Soon, the humble fish and chips will cost too much for most people.  When the crunch comes the decline will be sudden over a period of five years.  It will not be possible to increase fish stocks in the medium term and some fish species will disappear forever. People must eat and in Asia in particular daily fishing is part of everyday life.  There will be little chance of a freeze on fishing.  It they are allowed to keep fishing and Western countries stop they will export to the lucrative fishing markets and nothing will change. Manufacturers like Birds Eye are alreading putting "rubbish" fish in their food products rather than the old reliable species.  When you get a fishy taste that is the second rate fish formally called baitfish.  It is so bad that major predators have fallen by ...

Science: Dingo dog came to Australia via Southeast Asian seafarers. Archaeological evidence shows that dingoes arrived in Australia 4,000 years ago.  There is no mystery as to who brought them.  Southeast Asian seafarers did land in Australia to get fresh water and herbs to treat constipation. The dingo is common across the world today, all the way from India to the Pacific islands.  In news videos you see dogs roaming about the street in the background that are absolutely identical to the dingo, same tail, same color coat. People chosen as the distributor of the dingo are the Lapita who moved eastward out into the pacific.  This choice is just for convenience.  It is definitely wrong.  The dog is common everywhere.  Let's face it, Timor is so close to Australia that sailors obviously landed here, often. Genetic evidence places the origin of dingoes in China.  This is only where the breed began.  It rapidly spread to every ...

Genetics: Australian Aboriginal stone tools use was made within the Aboriginal gene pool. Australian Aborigines have been isolated on this vast continent for 50,000 until Europeans came and messed everything up. DNA sequencing shows Aboriginals were pure for this whole period. Contrary to the view held by many scientists for centuries, people did not arrive from India 4,000 years ago. Seafarers from India and Southeast Asia did stop here to get fresh water and herbs to treat constipation. Yes, this is true. Data tracing the Y chromosome from father to son shows no Asian genes in their profile. Aboriginals were the first people out of Africa. Once they reached Australia no more came from Asia. The out of Africa theory has now been pushed back 200,000 years. There is no real evidence of where these people went as far back as that. Tasmanian Aboriginals are a mystery. All have now died out so we will never know if they came here before mainland Aboriginals. Their DNA cou...

Life began on Earth earlier than thought.  There is evidence of life 3.8 billion years ago.  This is only 0.7 billion short of the total life of the planet. A new study has pushed the origins of life back another 300 million years. It seems life began as soon the chaotic period of Earth's formation had settled down. Flecks of graphite were trapped in the crystal zircon.  This microscopic carbon mineral is among the zirconium, oxygen and silicon which is the main structure of the crystal. While trapped graphite is not full evidence of life, carbon is classed as biogenetic - life needs it to begin.  It is believed that the graphite was originally organic before being absorbed by zirconium.  Apparently, Earth calmed down very quickly after formation. Estimates now puts the origin of life on Earth at 4.1 billion years. ◆ Biology Ty Buchanan   ◆ Adventure Australia Funny Animal Photos Funny Weird Things Articles News Reviews ● ...

We know that we are related to sea creatures. Finding which ones are close ancestors is the problem. Dr Garcia-Bellido holds that odd-looking fossils of Nesonektris had cartilage which has the same structure as the "tails" of human embryos. Muscles latch on to notochord cartilage. Findings have been published in BMC Evolutionary Biology by universities of Adelaide and South Australia with the South Australian Museum. The University of New England also took part in the research. The source of the 500 million year old fossil is Kangaroo Island. This region has some of the world's richest fossil beds. vetulicolians lived in the Cambrian period and were filter feeders. Their cartilaged-tails were used for propulsion. This type of connections with humans had been overlooked in the past. ✴ Evolution by Ty Buchanan ✴ http://www.adventure--australia.blogspot.com/ http://www.tysaustralia.blogspot.com/ http://adventure--australia.blogspot.com/atom.xml ...

Everyone knows that Australia is old. Just how old has been defined by science - A zircon crystal on a Western Australian sheep station is the oldest piece of planet Earth. It is 4.4 billion years old. Tests were done to determine the crystal's age. The rate of decay of uranium against the constant lead showed how old it was. This was confirmed by atom-probe tomography where the mass of lead atoms is measured. The zircon particle was created on the Earth's crust soon after the planet formed. And the Earth was not a violent place until much later. Water was already present and there is a high probability that life began at this time. The Hadean eon as this period is called in now a misnomer because it means Hadean the god of hell. Proof of life is unlikely. Science is not advanced enough yet to fully examine this period. Very little can be identified as originating in this period of the Earth's development. Science by Ty Buchanan http://www.adve...

We see the platypus as a quiet curious animal always on the go, but millions of years ago it was twice as big and had vicious teeth. It hunted turtles crayfish and frogs. Paleontologists have called it Platypus Godzilla because it would have been quite vicious. The modern platypus, Obdurodon tharalkooschild, is only half a meter long. Its quiet, secretive life could indicate that it is heading for extinction. Identifying platypus fossils is easy if teeth are found, because they are so different from other species. Platypus teeth are blunt. The animals must have "bruised" their prey to death. Fossils of the ancient platypus were not ancestors of modern platypus. They were a side branch "experimenting' with being a larger size. Just why platypus millions of years old had functioning teeth while modern ones have virtually lost theirs is not known. Despite being good a hunter Godzilla did itself go extinct. Modern tharalkoo live in a narrow niche. ...