Forum for Science, Industry and Business
Sponsored by:     Siemens  n-tv 
Search our Site:

Topic (optional):

 

Home Reports Life Sciences Content

Bio-archaeologists pinpoint oldest Northern European human activity

next article
16.12.2005

 


Scientists at the University of York used a ‘protein time capsule’ to confirm the earliest record of human activity in Northern Europe.

A team of bio-archaeologists from York were able to provide the final piece of scientific evidence which confirmed that primitive stone tools discovered in East Anglia dated back around 700,000 years – 200,000 years earlier than any other traces of human colonisation of northern latitudes.


Dr Kirsty Penkman and Dr Matthew Collins were part of an international team, headed by the Ancient Human Occupation of Britain (AHOB) project, which studied the worked flint flakes discovered two years ago in a cliff at Pakefield near Lowestoft, Suffolk.

After members of the international team used stratigraphy to indicate the likely age of the flints, the York scientists were called in to confirm the antiquity of the artefacts using a newly-refined technique of amino acid analysis. The technique measures the extent of deterioration of proteins in fossils found close to the flints - in this case, opercula, the tiny trap-doors that close a snail’s shell.

The results of the research are published in the latest edition of Nature today (Thursday 15 December 2005).

Dr Penkman, an Associate member of AHOB, said: “The amino acids were very securely contained in enclosed crystals of the opercula, unchanged by environmental factors other than normal internal protein degradation. In effect, they are a protein time capsule, enabling us to confirm the Pakefield opercula were significantly older than 500,000 years, the previous earliest date for humans north of the Alps.”

Dr Collins said: “The method relies upon measuring the products of decomposition, so we had to isolate a protein sample that was well protected and did not leak the products of decay.”

Dr Penkman added: "Helping to demonstrate the antiquity of the Pakefield site has been very exciting, and we are now trying to apply the same technique to more sites in Britain and overseas. A systematic survey will enable us to build a framework which records the extent of protein degradation in different sites, so that we can link the patchy terrestrial records of past climate change with the long continuous records from ice cores and marine sediments".

David Garner | Source: alphagalileo
Further information: www.york.ac.uk/admin/presspr/pressreleases/earliestactivity.htm

next article

More articles from Life Sciences:

nachricht Genome sequence for the domestic horse to be unveiled
06.11.2009 | University of California - Davis

nachricht Common plants can eliminate indoor air pollutants
06.11.2009 | American Society for Horticultural Science

All articles from Life Sciences >>>

B2B Search

Product / Service
Company / Organisation

Latest News

Airborne nitrogen shifts aquatic nutrient limitation in pristine lakes

06.11.2009 | Studies and Analyses

Genome sequence for the domestic horse to be unveiled

06.11.2009 | Life Sciences

New Study in Geology Uses Satellite Imagery to Identify Active Magma Systems in East Africa’s Rift Valley

06.11.2009 | Earth Sciences

VideoLinks

Event News

Texas Tech University Hosts Major Textile Conference in India

06.11.2009 | Event News

Brief Highlights of the Fluid Dynamics Conference, Minneapolis

30.10.2009 | Event News

EUROSAFE Forum 2009 Brussels: "Safety Implications of an Increased Demand for Nuclear Energy"

29.10.2009 | Event News