Neolithic builders had an understanding of science

The Neolithic farmers and herders who built a massive stone chamber in southern Spain nearly 6,000 years ago seem to have possessed a good rudimentary grasp of physics, geometry, geology and architectural principles. Using data from a high-resolution laser scan, as well as unpublished photos and diagrams from earlier excavations, archæologists pieced together a probable construction process for the monument known as the Dolmen of Menga.

India’s pioneering mission bolsters idea that Moon’s surface was molten

The first-ever analysis of soil near the Moon’s south pole has found further evidence that the lunar surface melted shortly after it formed. The data come from India’s pioneering Chandrayaan-3 mission, which deployed a rover on the Moon last August that found the soil mainly comprised the mineral ferroan anorthosite. Previous landers have found similar results at other locations, suggesting the composition of the surface is uniform. This supports the theory that the Moon originated from material scattered into space when a large impactor struck the newly formed Earth.

Spider makes fireflies flash as bait

Orb-weaving spiders (Araneus ventricosus) make trapped male Absocondita terminalis fireflies flash like females to tempt more insects into their web. The spiders bite and wrap a flashing male firefly using a different technique than the one used on other prey. This method seems to change the repeating light sequence of the male firefly — which can still flash after being bitten — to one that resembles a female’s single pulse. The signal seems to tempt more males to their demise.

Primordial black holes are too scarce to explain dark matter

Primordial black holes (PBHs) would have to be at least ten times more abundant to support the theory that they make up a substantial proportion of the dark matter in our Galaxy. Researchers looked for black holes that formed during the early history of the Universe by observing stars in the Large Magellanic Cloud (LMC). A 20-year survey called the Optical Gravitational Lensing Experiment (OGLE) found 13 candidate signals. The detections involved an effect known as microlensing, in which a PBH (or other object) deflects and distorts the light from a star located farther away than the PBH, producing multiple magnified images of the star. The copies cannot be distinguished because they are too close to each other, but their combined brightness shows a characteristic increase as the PBH passes through the line of sight of the star (upper panel).

Dinosaur-killing Chicxulub asteroid formed in Solar System’s outer reaches

The asteroid that wiped out the dinosaurs was formed beyond the orbit of Jupiter. When the object struck what is now Chicxulub, Mexico 66 million years ago, the enormous explosion left a layer of asteroid material all over Earth. Researchers looked at an element preserved in that layer, ruthenium, and found that it matched the make-up of the type of asteroid that formed in the outer Solar System, rather than the type that was produced in the inner region.

Geology’s biggest mystery: when did plate tectonics start to reshape Earth?

Stonehenge’s enigmatic centre stone was hauled 800 kilometres from Scotland

Chemical analysis of tiny crystals in Stonehenge’s central Altar Stone suggest that it came from Scotland — and not from Wales as previously thought. The fingerprint of zircon, rutile and apatite crystals in the stone allowed it to be traced to the Orcadian Basin, which includes parts of northeastern Scotland and the Orkney Islands. Whether the six-tonne monolith was transported by land or by sea is hotly debated.

Reservoir of liquid water found deep in Martian rocks

Reservoirs 11.5 to 20 kilometres below the surface of Mars might hold liquid water. If so, it would be the first found on the planet. The evidence comes from data gathered by NASA’s InSight lander, which retired in 2022. InSight monitored seismic waves created by Marsquakes, which suggest that the planet has a layer of fractured rocks saturated with liquid water deep underground.

What your DNA says about your ancient relatives

After 10 generations — roughly 300 years — the number of ancestors that two people share will start to converge. Ancient DNA techniques are allowing scientists to connect modern people to their ancestors who lived hundreds or thousands of years ago. The findings could answer historical questions but also raise ethical dilemmas.

Mathematicians Reinvent the Wheel in Higher Dimensions to Solve Decades-Old Geometry Problem

Mathematicians have created a new family of shapes, similar to a multidimensional guitar pick, that roll like a wheel in higher dimensions. Wheels and spheres roll smoothly without wobbling because they are objects with constant width. In two and three dimensions, mathematicians have previously created smaller rolling objects called Reuleaux triangles and Meissner bodies — both similar in shape to guitar picks — that have constant width but less volume than wheels and spheres. Now a concise three-page proof offers a solution for higher dimensions.