Geology and palaeontology
New type of flying reptile discovered
An international group of researchers from the University of Leicester (UK), and the Geological Institute, Beijing (China) have identified a new type of flying reptile - providing the first clear evidence of an unusual and controversial type of evolution... — full story
Tyrannosaur design evolved at 'punk size'
— 17 September 18:00A new dinosaur shows that tyrannosaur design evolved at 'punk size.' The creature, Raptorex, from NE China had evolved all the hallmark anatomical features of Tyrannosaurus rex at least... — full story
Phylogenetic analysis predicts the mechanism of sex determination in extinct marine reptiles
— 16 September 17:00Long extinct sea reptiles not only had live births, but the sex of their offspring was genetically pre-determined, according to research published in the current (17 September) issue... — full story
Floral changes across the Triassic-Jurassic boundary linked to extensive volcanism
— 13 July 17:00The turnover of land plants in Europe at the boundary of the Triassic and Jurassic periods, 200 million years ago, was driven by environmental changes triggered by massive volcanic... — full story
The late Precambrian greening of the Earth
— 8 July 17:00An abrupt greening of the Earth took place in the Neoproterozoic era just before the first of the great glaciations, suggests a new study titled 'The late Precambrian greening of the... — full story
Volcano eruption captured by ISS crew
— 25 June 16:02Impressive photograph of the Sarychev Peak volcano has been taken by the ISS crew on 12 June 2009. Sarychev Peak, named after the famous Russian explorer and hydrographer Gavril Sarychev,... — full story
Earliest musical tradition documented in SW Germany
— 24 June 17:00Excavations in the summer of 2008 at the sites of Hohle Fels and Vogelherd produced new evidence for Palaeolithic music in the form of the remains of one nearly complete bone flute... — full story
Top minds in 'Hobbit' debate gather at Stony Brook University
— 7 February 12:44As the debate rages on about whether Homo floresiensis - so called 'Hobbit' - fossils discovered on the Indonesian island of Flores in 2003 represent a separate human species, researchers... — full story