MS-LS4-1
Analyze and interpret data for patterns in the fossil record that document the existence, diversity, extinction, and change of life forms throughout the history of life on Earth under the assumption that natural laws operate today as in the past.
- Fossils
Where do humans come from?
Some scientists propose a newfound South African species as the most likely ancestor of the line that led to humans. But not everyone accepts that this is where it all began.
- Animals
The secret songs of giant beavers
Scientists discover a noisemaking chamber in the extinct animal’s skull.
- Fossils
Dino teeth tell a traveling tale
Dental evidence from sauropods suggests the mighty beasts migrated for food.
- Humans
Mummies share their secrets
Cutting-edge technology such as CT, or CAT, scans and endoscopes are allowing scientists to see not just what’s underneath the wrappings but also what’s inside a mummy’s body.
- Humans
Old bones ignite fresh debate
Scientists try to understand how 2 million-year-old fossils fit among ancient species.
- Animals
When the giant ants went marching
A new study of an ancient fossil suggests that 50 million years ago, supersized ants went on a cross-continental trek.
- Environment
Busy bacteria leave big mark
Earth’s earliest life-forms built mounds on an Antarctic lake bottom.
- Fossils
Dino Flesh from Fossil Bone
Scientists may have found dinosaur blood vessels and cells inside a fossilized leg bone.
- Fossils
Big fish in ancient waters
Fossils have revealed an ancient, oversized relative of modern-day swordfish.
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- Fossils
Ancient critter caught shedding Its skin
A fossil reveals that ancient animals shed their skin, just as insects and crustaceans do today.
- Humans
Digging up Stone Age art
Researchers have uncovered some very old, mysterious animal sculptures.
