History
Longtermism’s perspective on humanity’s past, present, and future
If we manage to avoid a large catastrophe, we can see ourselves as living at the early beginnings of human history.
Derinkuyu: Mysterious underground city in Turkey found in man’s basement
A basement renovation project led to the archaeological discovery of a lifetime: the Derinkuyu Underground City, which housed 20,000 people.
A papyrus reveals how the Great Pyramid was built
The papyrus contains an eye-witness account of the gathering of materials for the Great Pyramid.
X-rays may save Henry VIII’s resurrected warship, the last of its kind
Henry VIII’s favorite warship survived centuries under the sea. New x-ray scanning technology will hopefully help preserve the Mary Rose for centuries more.
Lasers reveal hundreds of Mayan and Olmec ceremonial centers
Archaeologists are hunting for — and finding — previously hidden ancient structures in lidar data collected by planes and drones.
The history of boredom might surprise you
What we can learn from our complicated relationship with boredom.
Ancient frozen viruses hold clues to life and climate
Using new techniques, researchers at Ohio State have identified ancient viruses we’ve never seen before.
Ancient computer found in shipwreck decoded by scientists
A new model explains how an ancient computer known as the Antikythera Mechanism could have made complex astronomical predictions.
Neanderthals had the capacity for human communication
Neanderthals appear to have had the capacity to hear verbal language, suggesting that modern human communication has ancient roots.