When and where the earliest modern human populations migrated and settled in East Asia are relatively well known. However, how these populations moved between islands on treacherous stretches of sea is still shrouded in mystery. In two new papers, researchers from Japan and Taiwan led by Professor Yousuke Kaifu from the University of Tokyo simulated methods ancient peoples would have needed to accomplish these journeys, and they used period-accurate tools to create the canoes to make the journey themselves.

Babies as young as eight months old can adapt their learning style to changing situations, according to research by Francesco Poli of the Donders Institute at Radboud University. This is the first time that babies have been shown to learn in such a flexible way.

In the Andes, the rise of agriculture to replace foraging was not the result of hardship and resource scarcity, but instead a time of economic resilience and innovation, according to a study published June 25, 2025 in the open-access journal PLOS One by Luis Flores-Blanco of the University of California Davis and Arizona State University, U.S., and colleagues.

In an international study, participants’ attitudes towards certain social groups—namely, politicians and Black people—were more strongly related to their attitudes towards the men than the women of each group, suggesting that men are the “default” for attitudes towards these groups. Curtis Edward Phills of the University of Oregon, U.S., and colleagues present these findings in the open-access journal PLOS One on June 25, 2025.

"Boomerang" made from mammoth tusk is likely one of the oldest known in Europe at around 40,000 years old, per analysis of this artifact from a Polish Upper Paleolithic cave

A University of Houston study finds that minority employees often face "outsider" status and complex visibility, limiting their access to key career advancement resources like mentorship, networks, and training. The findings are based on a review of 337 journal articles examining disparities in workplace success.

The enigmatic stone alignments in the Carnac region of Brittany, France, are among the most famous megalithic monuments in Europe – alongside Stonehenge, Menga, and the megalithic temples of Malta. For the first time, it has now been possible to date parts of these alignments with a higher precision and gain new insights into their function.