Homo naledi

[gadje]

Mysterious species buried their dead and carved symbols 100,000 years before humans

https://www.cnn.com/2023/06/05/world/hom...index.html

[AllGold]

Still rather preliminary, but if the findings turn out to be accurate, it will be a very significant discovery.

Also: "The symbols include deeply carved hashtag-like cross-hatchings and other geometric shapes."

So the hashtag predates Twitter by more than 300,000 years. Who knew? miley12:

[NewtonMP2100]

….perfect timing for Pride month……????

[btfc]

https://arstechnica.com/science/2023/06/...d-symbols/

[ka jowct]

I saw a documentary about the discovery and exploration of that cave. It made my claustrophobia kick in to a very uncomfortable degree. Some of the scientists who got to work on exploring it were small women, because they could fit.

This from an article in the NY Times:

Times wrote:
As these new discoveries came to light, Dr. Berger decided that he had to take a look for himself at one of the chambers, known as Dinaledi, that contained a purported grave. He had to lose 55 pounds before he could fit through the passageway. Last July, he was ready for the journey.

Dr. Berger went in alone and examined the fossils. As he made his way out, he passed a pillar. On its side, he noticed a set of hashtag-like grooves etched into the hard surface.

Getting out was harder than getting in. “I almost died,” Dr. Berger said, but managed to escape with a torn rotator cuff. Two members of the team, Agustín Fuentes of Princeton University and John Hawks of the University of Wisconsin, were waiting for him in the adjoining chamber. Dr. Berger showed them photos of the grooves he had taken.

Fascinating discovery.

[btfc]

https://www.nytimes.com/2023/06/05/scien...-dead.html

[Wags]

I’m a big admirer of Lee Berger. Unlike the majority of his colleagues he makes his findings freely available and in a timely manner. Here, nerd out: https://www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1101/...1.full.pdf

[Wags]

ka jowct wrote:
I saw a documentary about the discovery and exploration of that cave. It made my claustrophobia kick in to a very uncomfortable degree. Some of the scientists who got to work on exploring it were small women, because they could fit.

This from an article in the NY Times:

[quote=Times]
As these new discoveries came to light, Dr. Berger decided that he had to take a look for himself at one of the chambers, known as Dinaledi, that contained a purported grave. He had to lose 55 pounds before he could fit through the passageway. Last July, he was ready for the journey.

Dr. Berger went in alone and examined the fossils. As he made his way out, he passed a pillar. On its side, he noticed a set of hashtag-like grooves etched into the hard surface.

Getting out was harder than getting in. “I almost died,” Dr. Berger said, but managed to escape with a torn rotator cuff. Two members of the team, Agustín Fuentes of Princeton University and John Hawks of the University of Wisconsin, were waiting for him in the adjoining chamber. Dr. Berger showed them photos of the grooves he had taken.

Fascinating discovery.
Probably this NOVA. https://youtu.be/RzLJAa5X4Fo