ScienceDaily: Fossils & Ruins News

African Americans who fled the South during great migration led shorter lives Posted: 26 Feb 2015 11:14 AM PST Millions of African Americans moved from the South in the early 20th century to seek better job opportunities and higher wages, but a new study on the historic Great Migration shows that with improved economic conditions came a greater risk of mortality.

How mantis shrimp evolved many shapes with same powerful punch Posted: 26 Feb 2015 10:21 AM PST The miniweight boxing title of the animal world belongs to the mantis shrimp, a cigar-sized crustacean whose front claws can deliver an explosive 60-mile-per-hour blow akin to a bullet leaving the barrel of a gun. A study of 80 million years of mantis shrimp evolution reveals how these fast weapons evolved their dizzying array of shapes -- from spiny and barbed spears to hatchets and hammers -- while still managing to pack their characteristic punch.

Drilling ancient African lakes sheds light on human evolution Posted: 26 Feb 2015 05:47 AM PST How was human evolution and migration influenced by past changes in climate? Researchers hope to find out.