Grantee Spotlight: Giulia Gallo
Did all Neanderthals need or use fire? Giulia Gallo is a PhD candidate at UC Davis whose research is focused on Neanderthal fire use and maintenance. Her Leakey Foundation-supported project will help us to understand the different ways Neanderthals used fire.
Fresh Clues to the Life and Times of the Denisovans
We know that some modern human genomes contain fragments of DNA from an ancient population of humans called Denisovans, the remains of which have been found at only one site, a cave in what is now Siberia. Two recent papers published in Nature give us a firmer understanding of when these little-known archaic hominins lived.
New Studies Reveal the History of Denisova Cave
An extinct branch of hominins called the Denisovans is one of the most elusive members of our extended family tree: So far there have been only four individuals found in a single Siberian cave. Now researchers have done the painstaking work of dating the fossils, sediments, and artifacts found in that famous cave, including what might be the first evidence for crafts made by our long-lost cousins.
What Teeth Can Tell Us About Ancient Humans and Neanderthals
Teeth are a really useful indicator of past environments. This is possible because teeth have biological rhythms and key events get locked inside them. These faithful internal clocks run night and day, year after year, and include daily growth lines and a marked line formed at birth.
Neanderthal-like Features in 450,000-Year-Old Fossil Teeth from Italy
Fossil teeth from Italy, among the oldest human remains on the Italian Peninsula, show that Neanderthal dental features had evolved by around 450,000 years ago.