In 1989 and 1990, a pair of 1-million-year-old skulls belonging to an unknown human species were unearthed in Yunyang District of Hubei province, Central China. A third similar skull was found nearby in 2022, but the mystery didn’t become any less hazy; were they Homo erectus or early Homo sapiens? Might they even be related to the elusive Asian “Dragon Man” lineage?In a new paper – which is yet to be peer-reviewed – scientists have reconstructed one of the skulls and make the juicy claim that the individual may be close to the last common ancestor of H. sapiens and the Dragon Man lineage.Dragon Man, scientifically known as Homo longi, is an extinct species of archaic human that's known from a 146,000-year-old skull found in the Chinese province of Heilongjiang, which means Black Dragon River. Some have suggested Dragon Man is the same species as the Denisovans – the elusive extinct “sister species” of human that once lived alongside H. sapiens in Eurasia – although its exact place in the Homo family tree is uncertain. Curiously, it appears that the Dragon Man might also have an intriguing relationship to the three skulls found in Yunyang, known as the “Yunxian Man”.To reach this conclusion, the researchers reconstructed the skull of the Yunxian Man, primarily using the better-preserved specimen (Yunxian 2). They then studied the shape of the rebuilt skull to see how it compared to other members of the Homo family.While the Yunxian skull had a mosaic of features, many aspects of its cranium looked as if it belonged to an early member of the Dragon Man lineage. “The reconstructed Yunxian 2 suggest that it is an early member of the Asian ‘Dragon Man’ lineage, which probably includes the Denisovans, and is the sister group of the Homo sapiens lineage. Both the H. sapiens and Dragon Man lineages had deep roots extending beyond the Middle Pleistocene, and the basal position of the Yunxian fossil cranium suggests it represents a population lying close to the last common ancestor of the two lineages,” the study authors write.At around 940,00 to 1.1 million years old, the Yunxian Man is significantly older than the Dragon Man lineage and H. sapiens. However, its dating does neatly tie in with the theoretical time these two lineages originated around 1.13 million and 930,000 years ago, respectively.Perhaps, therefore, the Yunxian Man is something of a last common ancestor between our species and the so-called Dragon Man of East Asia, the researchers ponder. “It is reasonable to conclude that Yunxian is morphologically and chronologically close to the last common ancestor of the lineages of H. sapiens and Dragon Man,” the study authors explain.The new paper is posted on the pre-print server bioRxiv.

The long-lost head of a Deva statue from the Victory Gate of Angkor Thom has been discovered in a pit at the statue’s feet. Archaeologists from Cambodia’s national heritage authority APSARA unearthed the head in an excavation of the Victory Gate, where the body it was once attached to, the 23rd Deva, still stands guard along with 53 of its colleagues. The head is in comparatively good condition, considering its decapitation and burial. It is only missing its nose and its upper lip. Established by King Jayavarman VII (r. 1181–1218) in the late 12th century, Angkor Thom was the last capital of the Khmer Empire. Jayavarman built 26-foot high walls surrounding the city with a wide moat around the perimeter. The walled city was entered and exited via five monumental gates, one at each of the cardinal directions, plus a fifth one, the Victory Gate, at the northeast. The extra gate was built to accommodate a pre-existing road that connected the Royal Palace to the East Baray (a man-made water reservoir built around 900 A.D.). Visitors to the city crossed a causeway over the moat as they approached the gate. The causeway was flanked on both sides with statues of 54 devas and 54 demons, a reference to a Hindu myth of the Churning of the Ocean of Milk in which the opposing powers — gods and demons — worked together to make amrita, the nectar of life that would grant them immortality. The current excavation at Victory Gate is the assessment phase of a larger restoration project to ensure the long-term stability of Further excavation revealed that the foundations of the balustrades at the Victory Gate are still strong, as they had been repaired during the post-Angkor and French periods. However, stakeholders have suggested additional digging to assess the overall condition of the bridge and the previous repairs before planning future restoration work on the balustrade statues. The discovery of the Deva statue head adds to the rich archaeological heritage of Angkor Thom and provides valuable insights into the history and craftsmanship of the ancient Khmer civilization.

The wealth of grave goods suggests the person buried there was a leader of high status — possibly a Stone Age chieftain.

Earlier this month, Hold the Line Political Action Committee — an America First PAC, launched an attack advertisement against Brian Jack, a Republican candidate for Georgia’s third congressional district. …

Michael Cohen Admits Stealing From Trump Organization A shocking day in the Trump trial carousel. “Donald Trump’s defense attorney grilled Michael Cohen on Monday during the former president’s hush…

“Imagine the sea-level of the oceans rising at a rate of 50 feet in elevation per day … across the globe.  Naturally, out of self-preservation, any creature in its right mind would be compelled to move to higher ground for safety. No matter how persistent the efforts to build levies with bulldozers and fill sandbags, the waters rush in, over, and through every countermeasure.  Eventually, the creatures congregate to safe havens and places of refuge. Now think of the rising water in human societal and cultural terms.  There has already been a shift of people moving to “higher ground,” socially … The post The Editors’ Quote of the Day: appeared first on SurvivalBlog.com.

This weekly column features news stories and event announcements from around the American Redoubt region. (Idaho, Montana, eastern Oregon, eastern Washington, and Wyoming.) Much of the region is also more commonly known as The Inland Northwest. We also mention companies located in the American Redoubt region that are of interest to preppers and survivalists. Region-Wide Today is election day in many states, for state and local issues. Examine the backgrounds of your candidates closely, and then get out and vote! o  o  o 101 things to do in the Inland Northwest this summer. Idaho Reader R.J. sent this: West Coast … The post SurvivalBlog’s News From The American Redoubt appeared first on SurvivalBlog.com.

Late winter into early spring is usually the time for planting, pruning, and getting trees ready for the coming summer. Since trees and maintenance services are usually expensive, you need to know how to do this for yourself. If you are thinking about planting new trees in the next 6 to 18 months, then now is the time to prepare. Purchases from a tree nursery must often be planned months in advance. Some nurseries take pre-orders a year ahead. Whether you are planting a fruit tree, a nut tree, a deciduous shade tree, or an evergreen tree for privacy and … The post Tree Planting and Care, by R.B. appeared first on SurvivalBlog.com.

On May 21, 1871, French regular troops began their attack on the Commune de Paris — an attempted French revolutionary government that seized power and barricaded streets in Paris from 18 March to 28 May, 1871. By July 28th, 17,000 had died. — On May 21, 32, after flying for 17 hours from Newfoundland, Amelia Earhart landed near Londonderry, Northern Ireland, becoming the first transatlantic solo flight by a woman. — Today is the birthday of English poet Alexander Pope.  (Born May 21, 1688, died May 30, 1744.) In addition to his own poetical works and essays, he translated the … The post Preparedness Notes for Tuesday — May 21, 2024 appeared first on SurvivalBlog.com.

Two of the most vital skills that you can have as a prepper are to store clean drinking water and to repurpose old items to That’s precisely why repurposing storage items for stockpiling water is a great way to combine these two skills. With that in mind, repurposing old milk jugs for water storage may […] The post Read This Before Storing Water in Milk Jugs appeared first on Ask a Prepper.