While the magazine has closed, its living archive endures—open to all and preserving the many ideas, voices, and discoveries that deepen our understanding of what it means to be human.
New evidence is prompting researchers to rethink Homo sapiens’ origin story—and what it means to be human. ✽ As a…
What If Neanderthals Had Outlived Homo Sapiens?An anthropologist considers how different the world might be if Neanderthals—and hence, their ways of navigating relationships with the environment…
Is a “Sweet Tooth” Genetic?An anthropologist explains the evolutionary origins of why so many people seem practically programmed to love sugar. This article was…
Did Meat Do Neanderthals In?Studying zinc levels in unearthed Neanderthal skeletal remains, an archaeologist examines whether the carnivorous eating habits of Neanderthals in the…
Extracting Hominin Evolution From Fossilized TeethTwo scientists explain how analyses of oxygen isotopes from 17-million-year-old ape teeth could lead to new insights on early human…
Was Our Skin Meant for the Sun?An anthropologist examines the history of human skin under the sun, revealing how evolution and culture conspired to shape our…
Are Insomniacs Overthinking Sleep?From WiFi-enabled sleep trackers to wearable brain-altering apps, sleep technology is becoming increasingly sophisticated. But is the antidote to insomnia…
The Problems of Evolution as a “March of Progress”The idea that evolution is a hierarchy of complexity with humans on top lurks in everything from biology classes to…
Did Margaret Mead Think a Healed Femur Was the Earliest Sign of Civilization?An anthropologist digs into the origins of a popular story attributed to Margaret Mead about the original sign of civilization.
What the Discovery of Denisovan Remains in Laos MeansThe new excavation of a fossil tooth places an enigmatic group of ancient humans in Southeast Asia 164,000 years ago.
