The enhancement of human-machine interaction is expected to bring notable improvements in support for learning and access to healthcare. By CALEB DAVIES In a Swiss classroom, two children are engrossed in navigating an intricate maze with the help of a small, rather cute, robot. The interaction is easy and playful – it is also providing researchers with … Read more
Recreating long-faded smells from history to evoke the past is a new way to experience culture in museums and tours. By CALEB DAVIES Ever since the days of the ancient Greek thinker Aristotle, it has been supposed that there is a hierarchy of the human senses. Sight comes out as the most important, then hearing, with … Read more
Advances in studying ancient DNA from prehistoric remains provides us with new insight into the life of our African ancestors and the emergence of the modern human. Humans all share a common African ancestry, making African history everyone’s history. Yet little is known about the genetic evolution of people living on the continent in the … Read more
Having a big idea may not be enough to change the world – innovation is a commercial process as well as scientific inspiration. Turning research into marketable products is partly a business challenge. It’s common knowledge that proteins, a key component of human nutrition, are also essential for making animal feeds. Less well known is … Read more
Speech and language skills are unique to modern humans. While this ability evolved over millions of years, it is not possible to trace language in the fossil record because it leaves no direct imprint. Instead, re-examining the ways our nearest living relatives communicate is helping to unravel this mysterious capability. The mystery is deepened … Read more
As natural climate archives, the deposits found in caves can play an important role in our ability to understand – and predict – climate change. Every family has those stories that are passed down from generation to generation. Some of them have to do with history, others about a particular individual. But many of them … Read more