New tomb (I): Archaeologists have come across the first intact tomb since Tutankhamun’s was found in 1922-found only five metres away from Tut’s. A pundit with Ancient Egypt magazine speculated this could be the tomb of Nefertiti, which has never been found. Sixty-three pharaonic tombs have been dug up since the 18th century (BBC News)
New tomb (II): Archaeologists are also busy with another find, this time a large underground tomb in Greece dating from the era of Alexander the Great. Believed to be that of a noble family, it could shed light on the turbulent period following Alexander’s death. (BBC News)
Old bones (I): Archaeologists digging up a graveyard in a colonial-era Mexican city have found what could be some of the earliest remains of African slaves brought to the New World. The graveyard was used from around 1550 until the late 1600s-so slaves may have been present in the Americas as few as 60 years after its discovery by Columbus. (American Journal of Physical Anthropology)
Old bones (II): Paleontologists looking to extract DNA from fossils have found a new source for the stuff. Normally, DNA does not weather well. But it turns out that minute amounts of it get trapped inside tiny crystals found in most bones. Researchers now report they can extract longer strands of better preserved DNA from such crystal clusters than from ground bone. (Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences)
Old wreck: Researchers from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology are using a tireless underwater vehicle to explore a recently discovered Greek shipwreck in the Aegean. The ship sank in 60 metres of water sometime during the fourth century BC, and was found in 2004. Beside the value of the cargo, finds such as this reveal the intricate trading network that existed among Mediterranean peoples at that time. (M.I.T. news office)
Rock solid: Paleobiologists have figured out a way to image fossils found inside a rock-without smashing it apart. They use a process called Raman spectroscopy, and another called confocal microscopy, which uses a laser to make cell walls of once-living things fluoresce. Their procedure could be used to scan rocks we may one day bring back from Mars. (Astrobiology)
-Mike Ghenu
