Science

Fossils of the oldest mammals related to mankind have been discovered for the first time on the 'Jurassic Coast' of Dorset. The two teeth are from small, rat-like creatures that lived 145 million years ago in the shadow of the dinosaurs. And one of the fossils has been named after the landlord of a pub near to where they were discovered by an undergraduate student. They are the earliest undisputed fossils of mammals belonging to the line that led to...

Alien life may be thriving in a warm, underground ocean on Saturn's icy moon Enceladus, according to new research. Scientists say tidal forces could have kept the subterranean sea liquid for billions of years - enough time for organisms to have developed. The mysterious world has a very fragmented and porous rocky interior, ideal conditions for flowing water with the friction creating 10 gigawatts of heat. This amount of energy would light and heat more than 7 million homes -...

Sea slugs are the pirates of the underwater world when it comes to feeding time - targeting prey that have just eaten to "supersize" their own meal. Scientists who identified the behaviour have named it kleptopredation. Researchers from the University of Portsmouth are the first to have observed the brutal feeding strategy in the natural world. Senior lecturer Dr Trevor Willis led the research into the behaviour of nudibranchs, a family of sea slugs, off the coast of Sicily. He...

Scientists will close an Antarctic research centre next year over fears the ice beneath it will CRACK. The British Antarctic Survey's (BAS) Halley VI Research Station is situated on a floating 150m thick ice shelf which has split twice in the last 12 months. The crack is caused by a movement of a chasm in the Brunt Ice Shelf, which had previously been dormant for around 35 years, but is now extending eastwards. The British Antarctic Survey's (BAS) Halley VI...

Humans were creating astonishing cave paintings in the Caribbean thousands of years before the arrival of Christopher Columbus, reveals new research. The study sheds new light on etchings found on the walls of dozens of cave systems on Mona Island, off modern day Puerto Rico. It is the Caribbean region’s largest concentration of indigenous pre-Columbian rock art. Some of the paintings are in very narrow spaces deep in the caves - only accessible by crawling. Humans were creating astonishing cave...

The first solar eclipse recorded more than 3,000 years ago in the Bible has been pinpointed by British scientists to today, October 30 1207 BC. And the timing could now mean historians can date within 12 months the reign of Egyptian pharaohs, including Ramesses the Great and his son Merneptah. The solar eclipse, mentioned in the Old Testament book of Joshua, tells how Joshua led the people of Israel into Canaan, now modern day Israel and Palestine and has puzzled...

Scientists have made the "first step" to being able to predict when earthquakes will happen after a major breakthrough hailed as the "holy grail" of geology. British and American researchers have used Artificial Intelligence to accurately predict earthquakes a week before they occur in laboratory simulations closely mimicking real-life tremors. They came up with a machine-learning algorithm that can analyse hidden warning signals modelling real-life "pre-cursor quakes" previously been written off as noise. Geologists have tackled the problem of predicting...

A computer that thinks for itself has mastered the world's most difficult game with no human input, scientists have revealed. The Artificial Intelligence computer program taught itself the game, and scientists claim the breakthrough is a gamechanger with all sorts of applications. Deep Mind's updated AlphaGo algorithm defeated its predecessor by 100-nil - which in turn had been too good for Go champion Lee Sedol last year. Go is a 3,000 year-old Chinese game and has trillions of possible moves...

A new species of bird that lived in Germany almost 50 million years ago has been discovered - complete with the waxy oils it used to colour its feathers. The fossil was so extraordinarily well-preserved its preen gland - found in the tail of our modern feathered friends - was still intact. Most birds use their heads to rub protective oils from this gland over their feathers, legs and feet. Flamingos in the wild even use pigments from these fatty...