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Sep 26
33m 57s

Skull rewrites story of human evolution;...

NEW SCIENTIST
About this episode
Episode 322 An ancient skull discovered in China may have just rewritten the story of human evolution. It’s widely accepted that the common ancestor of Homo sapiens, Denisovans and Neanderthals came out of Africa. But this skull upends that assumption - potentially showing human evolution began in Asia. Discover how a new reconstruction of the Yunxian fossi ... Show More
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Nov 21
The origin and evolution of music: Steve Pretty plays the conch
Episode 333 It’s not often you get to see or hear someone playing music on a conch shell. So prepare yourself for a musical treat with musician and podcaster Steve Pretty, who brings into the studio a trumpet and a collection of his favourite conches, rigged up to some modern el ... Show More
30m 43s
Nov 14
New genome of ancient human; 95% of us have a dormant virus that causes disease; Formula E cars faster than F1; Bill Bryson joins the pod!
Episode 332 For only the second time, the genome of an ancient Denisovan has been sequenced - thanks to the discovery of a 200,000-year-old tooth found in a Siberian cave. This ancient member of the human family has long been a mystery, so this genome is being described as a bom ... Show More
45m 2s
Nov 13
Why the claims about Hitler’s genome are misleading
Episode 331 This week sees the broadcast on Channel 4 in the UK of a documentary called Hitler’s DNA: Blueprint of a dictator. Geneticists have managed to find a DNA sample from Adolf Hitler and have sequenced it and verified it, and now we have his genome. The big question is wh ... Show More
29 m
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