M.J. Rose

Adventures in strange anthropological mysteries: the tiny “Atacama Alien”  is indeed human. But that makes it even stranger…

A mummified skeleton from the Atacama Desert in Chile has been described as “alien.” But genetic analysis shows that she was human and may have had a previously unknown bone disorder. CreditBhattacharya S et al. 2018

From The New York Times,

Was a Tiny Mummy in the Atacama an Alien? No, but the Real Story Is Almost as Strange

By Carl Zimmer

“Nearly two decades ago, the rumors began: In the Atacama Desert of northern Chile, someone had discovered a tiny mummified alien.

An amateur collector exploring a ghost town was said to have come across a white cloth in a leather pouch. Unwrapping it, he found a six-inch-long skeleton.

Despite its size, the skeleton was remarkably complete. It even had hardened teeth. And yet there were striking anomalies: it had 10 ribs instead of the usual 12, giant eye sockets and a long skull that ended in a point.

Ata, as the remains came to be known, ended up in a private collection, but the rumors continued, fueled in part by a U.F.O. documentary in 2013 that featured the skeleton. On Thursday, a team of scientists presented a very different explanation for Ata — one without aliens, but intriguing in its own way…”

For the rest, click here.

This kind of restoration may be a bit of a novelty, but we love it…

From Open Culture,

The Met Digitally Restores the Colors of an Ancient Egyptian Temple, Using Projection Mapping Technology

“Thanks to the tireless efforts of archaeologists, we have a pretty clear idea of what much of the ancient world looked like, at least as far as the clothes people wore and the structures in and around which they spent their days. But we seldom imagine these lives among the ruins-before-they-became-ruins in color, despite having read in the history books that some ancient builders and artists created a colorful world indeed, especially when a special architectural occasion like an Egyptian temple called for it.

“As depicted in popular culture, ancient Egypt is awash with the color beige,” writes the New York Times’ Joshua Barone. “A trip to the Metropolitan Museum of Art would seem to reflect that notion: The Temple of Dendur, with its weatherworn sandstone, could fit in naturally with the earth tones of Aida or The Mummy.

But Egyptologists know that this temple, like many others of the ancient world, was painted with vivid colors and patterns. In ‘Color the Temple,’ a marriage of research and projection-mapping technology, visitors to the Met can now glimpse what the Temple of Dendur may have looked like in its original, polychromatic form more than 2,000 years ago.”…

For the rest and some amazing videos, click here.

RIP Stephen Hawking. Thank you for your incredible work solving the mysteries of our universe.

From Science Alert,

Watch Stephen Hawking Casually Explain What Existed Before The Big Bang

Around 13.7 billion years ago, our universe sprang into existence, but what was around before the Big Bang?

“In a new episode of Star Talk, renowned physicist Stephen Hawking sat down with host Neil deGrasse Tyson to talk about what exactly pre-dated the beginning of our universe.

Hawking’s answer put simply? Nothing.

But just because an answer can be summed up in one word, does not mean it’s uncomplicated. Lucky for us, Hawking is one of the best science communicators in the world…”

For the rest, click here.