How Kings Created Angkor Wat— Then Lost It
New archaeological research reveals that leaders centralized the Angkor Wat agriculture system shortly before its decline.
New archaeological research reveals that leaders centralized the Angkor Wat agriculture system shortly before its decline.
An anthropologist reflects on being raised by a single mother — and discovers a secret to how good moms become great moms.
Where and when were these animals first domesticated? Archaeologists home in on new data to revise the human-horse story.
In Turkey, the Ilisu Dam's flooding of the ancient town of Hasankeyf offers a lesson in how societies choose the sites they preserve or destroy.
The Venice quarantine history is being unearthed by archaeologists to illuminate how the Italian city created a vast public health response 700 years ago.
Suffocating pollution and censored information in China are leading to higher fatalities from the virus. Will this outbreak clear the air?
An anthropologist traces the development of Homo sapiens' most powerful force, from the making of stone tools to the rise of religions.
Decades-old photography from the U-2 spy program now offers a time machine to see traces of the historical and ancient past.
An anthropologist works to give producers a voice in the chocolate industry, taking a lesson from high-end coffee, wine and cheese.
Dairying is one of the puzzles of history. An archaeologist set out to unravel it and, in the process, discovered Mongolia's wealth of endangered microbes.
Scholars are giving serious consideration to whether these members of the genus Homo are the same species after all.
A shift in ancient Chinese crops shows how agricultural practices can help or hinder food production in the face of environmental change.
Humans can operate prosthetic limbs with their minds. What will happen if we become increasingly knitted with technology in the future?
Research confirms that who you spend time with is a powerful predictor of the microbes you carry. But these tiny organisms may also influence your social life.
In order for spoken language to be a possibility, a species has to have the right anatomical equipment. Studies of the Neanderthal skeleton can help to shed some light on this question by revealing whether Neanderthals possessed the features necessary for speech — and what that speech might have sounded like.
Modern-day shamans in a variety of sectors appear to tame uncertainty by embracing their otherness.
People in Arctic and Northwest Coast communities are uncovering the therapeutic history of tattoos.
Generosity helps communities manage risk and cope with disasters. New research untangles the factors that lead people to help neighbors in need.