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Natovenator polydontus may be the first known nonbird dinosaur to have possessed a streamlined body comparable to that of modern diving birds, researchers report December 1 in Communications Biology. A dinosaur unearthed in Mongolia is making a splash among paleontologists, as its sleek physique may add evidence to the idea that some dinos were suited for life in the water. Natovenator and other closely related dinosaurs may have been swimming predators, the researchers say, challenging the popular notion that dinos were landlubbers. [Extracted from the article]

The article discusses the origin of the Colorado River in the West. Topics include geological mapping research by Andres Aslan of the University of Colorado, investigating drill cores from mesas being drilled by WPX Energy company, the challenges of studying an erosional system, such as the Colorado River/Grand Canyon, and a debate on the age of the Grand Canyon between the University of Colorado Boulder's Rebecca Flowers and Karl Karlstrom of the University of New Mexico in Albuquerque.

The article offers information on the discovery of the fossils braincases of the Homo erectus and the Paranthropus robustus which will help in knowing the several aspects of human evolution. It mentions the uncertainties in the estimates of the age ranges in the hominid lineage, along with challenges in precise dating of cave sediments.

Reports on the debate among anthropologists over whether Neanderthals coexisted with anatomically modern humans in the Middle East. First discovery of Neanderthal remains; Assumptions about Neanderthals' place in evolutionary history; Conflicting dating techniques; Possible interbreeding between Neanderthals and Homo sapiens; Anatomical discrepancies in fossils; Controversy over Neanderthal classification; Impact of childhood growth patterns. INSET: Asian gene lines show antiquity..

The article discusses the discovery of dating for Homo (H.) naledi fossils in southern and South Africa caves that are from between 236,000 and 335,000 years ago, including through referencing a study led by paleoanthropologist Lee Berger and geoscientist Paul Dirk in the journal "eLife." The H. naledi's relationship with the Homo genus's evolution is discussed.

The article reports on research by paleoclimatologist Svetlana Botsyun of the University of Tübingen, Germany, regarding the age of the Tibetan Plateau. It mentions the use of paleoaltimetry to measure change in elevations, the levels of oxygen isotopes which help determine age, and the evidence of fossilized palm tree leaves.

The article discusses the discovery of a possible partial Homo sapien jaw with an estimated age between 177,000 and 194,000 years old that was found in Misliya Cave on Mount Carmel in Israel. It explains how the jawbone could indicate that humans left Africa and reached the Middle East approximately 60,000 years earlier than previously believed by scientists.

The article discusses the geological dating of plate tectonics to 3.5 billion years ago, including the role that titanium isotopes over silicon dioxide played in this regard, referencing a report coauthored by scientist Nicolas Greber in the September 22, 2017 issue of "Science" journal.

The article discusses the evolution and dating of the ray-finned fishes Polypterus and Fukangichthys, following the discovery of the later's fossil in China, referencing an online article coauthored by paleontologist Matt Friedman in the August 30, 2017 issue of "Nature" journal.

The article discusses the age and DNA of the fossil tooth of a Denisovan female found in the Denisova Cave, Siberia, Russia, referencing a study coauthored by evolutionary geneticist Viviane Slon in the July 7, 2017 issue of the "Science Advances" journal.

The article discusses the discovery of purported Homo sapiens fossils and stone tools that are about 300,000 years old at Jebel Irhoud, Morocco. Reports on the finds in the June 8, 2017 issue of the journal "Nature" are noted. Topics include the relation of the fossils to human migration from Africa, the dating and classification of the fossils, and the relation of the fossils to those of the species Homo erectus.

The article discusses the discovery of a fossil skeleton, dubbed Little Foot, from the species Australopithecus prometheus in the Sterkfontein Caves of South Africa, as described in a report published in the April 2, 2015 issue of "Nature." Topics include how this species lived during the same time as Australopithecus afarensis, how scientists measured the decay of surrounding radioactive sediment to determine the fossil's age, and its distinct features such as the shape of its teeth and face.

The article presents an excerpt from the article "Clues to Life's Origin" from the August 1, 1964 issue of "Science News Letter," which discusses the geological clock and a 2014 update on the development of carbon dating and supporting evidence for the clock.

The article provides information on the discovery of fossils likely belonging to microorganisms that were found in rocks from Quebec, Canada dating back between 4.28 billion and 3.77 billion years ago. Details are included on the microfossils found by a team led by Matthew Dodd, a biogeochemist at the University College London.

The article discusses research by geologists on the extent of the Permian mass extinction in relation to land animals. Topics include the redating of fossils of the species Dicynodon and Lystrosaurus, research by a team led by geologists John Geissman and Robert Gastaldo in South Africa's Karoo Basin, and the data of rock accumulation in relation to zircon crystals found in the basin. The research was presented on November 4, 2015 at a Geological Society of America meeting in Baltimore, Maryland.

The article reports that chemical biomarkers found in Australian rocks, and once thought to be the oldest evidence of complex life on the planet, may have been incorporated into the matrix long after formation. These biomarkers were chemical compounds produced by life forms related to cyanobacteria. Birger Rasmussen, a geochemist at Curtin University of Technology in Bentley, Australia, provides quotes on the topic. INSET: Back Story.

Reports that carbon dating of Chinese fossils supports the idea that at least one of the groups of mammal species that appeared in North America came from Asia. Analysis of carbon and magnetic characteristics of rocks in the Lingcha Formation in Hunan, China; Evidence that a family of predatory mammals called hyaenodontids originated in Asia before appearing in North America.

The article discusses findings by Rachel Wood of the Australian National University in Canberra and colleagues, reporting in the February 19, 2013 issue of the journal "Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences," that cast doubt on the reliability of radiocarbon dates from Neandertal cave sites. Wood's team analyzed fossils from two caves in Southern Spain, Jarama VI and Cueva del Boquete de Zafarraya, that suggested the last Neandertals may have died out earlier than thought.

A response from the author of the article "Grand Canyon's Age Pushed Back” in the January 12, 2013 issue is presented.

A letter to the editor is presented in response to the article “Grand Canyon's Age Pushed Back,” by Alexandra Witze in the January 12, 2013 issue.

The article discusses fossils discovered in Australia that may be the oldest examples of complete animal bodies. Research led by scientist Adam Maloof and reported online in "Nature Geoscience" in August 2010 discusses the fossil discoveries. The fossils are theorized to derive from the Cryogenian geologic period.

The article discusses a report published in the May 7, 2009 issue of "Proceedings of the California Academy of Sciences," that has evidence for the first native North American honeybee which was unearthed in Nevada and is thought to be 14-million-years old. Topics include a brief evolutionary history of the honeybee, including Apis mellifera which originated in Europe, and how the discovery of the honeybee changes the hypothesis regarding their origin in Europe and Asia.

The article discusses the nature of a microorganism that has been found to survive off of the energy derived from pure sulfur. Scientists have found that these organisms lived on ancient rocks from 3.5 billion years ago. They obtained energy through the metabolism of sulfates, which leaves behind sulfides, helping scientists to determine that the rocks were inhabited and a time frame for this occurrence.

This article discusses grains of yellow silt embedded in mountain-rock layers in China, which scientists believe may settle a debate about the age of a nearby desert. The Taklimakan Desert of northern China is estimated to be 1 million to 3.5 million years old, says Jimin Sun, a geologist at the Chinese Academy of Sciences in Beijing, China. The desert has never been aged because scientists had never discovered sediment layers that could be accurately dated.

The article looks at research on the formation of gorges along the Atlantic seaboard. Two river gorges along the Atlantic seaboard were carved out over a geologically short period, according to analyses of rock samples from the chasms. Many large rivers that flow eastward from the Appalachian Mountains spill through narrow gorges just before they dump into the Atlantic Ocean or Chesapeake Bay. Those geologic features are often carved into bedrock that is millions of years old, but data hint that at least some of the chasms are much younger, says Luke J. Reusser, a geologist at the University of Vermont in Burlington. For their analyses, Reusser and his colleagues collected quartz samples from the walls and channels of two gorges, each 10 to 20 meters deep: the 3-kilometer-long Mather Gorge on the Potomac River along the Maryland-Virginia border and the 5-kilometer-long Holtwood Gorge along the Susquehanna River in Pennsylvania. Results from the Mather Gorge samples indicate that the chasm eroded downward between 37,000 and 13,000 years ago at a rate of about 80 centimeters per millennium.

Reports that scientists have discovered a nondestructive way to determine the age of desert varnish, the dark coating that develops on rocks in arid regions. Metal composition of desert varnish; Description of the technique developed; Data from ancient drawings.

Reports on dating analyses of bodies buried at Lake Mungo. Number of years the Lake Mungo individuals have been buried according to James M. Bowler of the University of Melbourne; Number of years since people first settled in the Lake Mungo area; Results of soil evaluations with respect to water levels in the lake.

Reports that refinement of a technique for determining the age of ancient rocks indicates that the Earth's crust may have formed millions of years earlier than was previously thought. Measurement of lutetium-176 which decays into hafnium-176 to determine age; Reduction to the proposed rate of decay of lutetium.

Reports evidence from 65-million-year-old sediments which suggests that a single impact from space eliminated the dinosaurs and that ecosystems recovered in only a few thousand years. Analysis of the isotope helium-3 in ocean sediments in Italy and Tunisia; Indication that a long-term comet shower did not cause the dinosaur's extinction.

Focuses on a study in which mica samples taken from fossil-free sediments of the Balakot formation in the Himalaya mountains were dated. Finding that most of the grains were between 36 million and 40 million years old, making the mountain range younger than geologists had thought; Geological surveys of the Balakot formation which indicate how 55-million-year-old fossil-bearing layers became sandwiched within the younger sediments.

Comments on a revised estimation of the age of the universe determined by the analysis of ancient stars. Discussion of radioactive dating, which involves the use of a chronometer to detect radioactive elements; Discussion of metal-poor stars, which formed from hydrogen, helium and lithium.

Notes the debate over the age of rocks found in India. Discovery of worm burrows in a 1.1-billion-year-old sandstone; Alternative dating of the rock to 545 million years; Criticism of the younger age; Question of whether worms caused the burrows.

Reports on a new technique for measuring time far back in Earth's history. Rex E. Crick and Brooks B. Ellwood measuring the maganetic susceptibility of rocks; What rock susceptibility is; How it is used to track changes in the amount of sediment eroding from continents; How they refined the measurement to determine how long it took sedimentary layers to form; Applications for studying the rates of evolution; Reported at the Sixth North American Paleontological Convention.