New Study Proves Cats Have Always Been After World Domination - http://clapway.com/2015/08/14/new-study-proves-cats-have-always-been-after-world-domination123/

Researchers analyzing over 2,000 fossils of felines and canines in Asia have come to the conclusion that when ancient cats arrived, they kind of took over, causing about 40 species of dogs to go into extinction.

Fossils of Cats and Dogs Prove Felines Rule In Evolutionary Studies

The new study, published in the journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, analyzed the fossil records of canines from three subfamilies of Canidae, or what we call dogs.

The researchers found that around 40 species of ancient dogs went extinct thanks to increased competition by none other than their natural sworn enemies: cats.

Well, technically, cats and other dogs were responsible for the competition that drove less successful breeds into the ground. The study results proved that competition among the same clades of animals was more important to extinction than other factors, including climate change and body size.

Competition, Not Climate Change or Body Size, Fuels Evolution Success

Although researchers studying evolutionary biology usually find a distinct change in the rise or fall of species due to climate change or body size, the researchers of this study found that competition among cats and dogs fueled the extinction of 40 canid species.

Between 40 million and 20 million years ago, canid species in North America had reached their evolutionary peak. But then, the feline species came around and proved to be a worthy carnivore adversary resulting in some dog species extinction, which is why we only have 9 native species in North America now.

Another common finding in evolution sciences is that a larger body size is better adapted to survival and thriving compared to smaller, less able bodies. However, as this study shows, ancient cats were smaller than their canid counterparts.

So how did these more diminutive carnivores win at the competition of survival?

Cats May Have Smaller Bodies, But More Warrior Like Prowess

Without the ability to use their size to overpower prey, ancient cats relied on their natural, warrior-like prowess, their cunning predatory hunting skills, and their sharp, retractable claws to take down their dinners.

The researchers believe that these attributes helped cats in terms of ambushing prey, whereas dogs did not have these advantages, most notably the retractable claws.

When supplies such as meat are limited and the number of carnivores is high, only the strongest, most adept hunters will live. With this new study, now the public will know what cat owners around the world have always suspected: cats were better at surviving than dogs and are most likely plotting to take over the world even now.

Additional Image Credit to Melissa Wiese

Additional Image Credit to Chris Erwin

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New Study Proves Cats Have Always Been After World Domination

Top 5 Most Studied Mummies Ever Found - http://clapway.com/2015/07/03/top-5-most-studied-mummies-ever-found456/

Otzi the Iceman

Found in 1991, Otzi was an amazing dig. Otzi’s body had been frozen in the Otztal Alps since the Neolithic period, and he was found with his clothing and personal belongings intact! Over the years, he has been scrutinized closely, and has become one of the most studied mummies. But since he has been frozen for millennia, special precautions to keep him cold needed to be put in place. Along with his 61 tattoos, and what he ate for his last meal, it was found that Otzi’s cause of death was foul play.

Lindow Man

Lindow Man is an Iron Age big body who was found in 1984, near Manchester. Bog bodies from the Iron Age are rare and shocking finds, and many of them show signs of ritualistic death. Once they were dumped in the peat bogs, they were tanned and preserved naturally along with most of the clues to how they died. Lindow Man was in his 20s, and had a particularly brutal death. He was beat over the head, his throat slit, and then strangled.

Juanita the Ice Maiden

Found on Mount Ampato, Peru in 1995, this little girl was part of an Incan sacrifice. She was roughly 12 years old when she was drugged, led up the mountain, and then hit over the head. Due to the massive trauma, her brain was found squished up to the side of her skull.

Juanita was declared as one of the most important finds of 1995, and since then she has not only been one of the most studied mummies, but a window into Incan life and religion.

Lady Dai

Hailed as being one of the biggest finds in the 20th century, lady Zin Zhui was found in 1971 after being interred for more than 2,000 years! She was the wife of the marquis of Dai during the Han dynasty, and her remains are some of the most well preserved in Chinese history.

Because of her high station, her tomb has offered previously unknown facts about the Han dynasty. And because of her excellent preservation, her body has been studied a lot. Unlike others on this list, her death was completely natural: a rich, gluttonous life gave her a heart attack when she was 50 years old.

The Qilakitsoq Mummies

These are the oldest found remains from Greenland. A total of 7 bodies were found, mostly woman and a few children, and one of them an infant.

Found near an old Inuit village in 1972, some of the mummies were found to be related. It’s very possible that the infant was alive when the burial happened. When a mother died, her children were sometimes buried with her because no one could care for them.

Bonus: King Tutankhamun

How could I write a list about the most studied mummies and not include the Boy King?

Howard Carter and George Herbert cracked open the world-changing discovery in 1922, but the life and death of King Tutankhamun is still shrouded in mystery. This may have to do with the religious and political shifts happening when the boy became pharaoh.

His tomb and body are still subject to research and tests, making him the king of the most studied mummies ever found.

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Top 5 Most Studied Mummies Ever Found

A mummy and his baby. - http://clapway.com/2015/06/22/sweden-tiny-corpse-concealed-in-coffin-of-mummified-bishop-for-nearly-350-years-459/

As researchers at the University of Lund examined the body of Bishop Peder Winstrup, they made a fascinating and unexpected discovery: a tiny corpse concealed at the feet of the mummified bishop.

The Archaeological Examination of the Mummified Bishop

Peder Winstrup was the former bishop of Lund. Winstrup died in 1679 from what researchers believed to be pneumonia, worsened by a weak immune system after a history of health problems. From gout to gallstones, the bishop was not in great condition before his death. He had plaque on his heart and badly decayed teeth when they put him to rest in the crypt of Lund Cathedral in Sweden.

But despite his health conditions while he was alive, Winstrup’s corpse is believed to be one of the best preserved human bodies and as such, was initially the subject of an interdisciplinary study concerning modern medical techniques. Beginning in 2014, researchers conducted medical and archaeological examinations on the corpse to better understand life in the 17th century.

Surprise findings in the Mummified Bishop’s coffin

The researchers were astonished at the preservation of Winstrup’s body, especially considering it was not embalmed. The bishop, who lay on a bed filled with herbs, was naturally preserved with all of his internal organs. His beard and clothes were still intact, albeit a little faded from over 300 years of wear.

Though all of these findings were remarkable, the biggest surprise came when the researchers conducted a CT scan and found the tiny fetus that had been quietly tucked under the bishop’s feet for three centuries.

After over a year of researchers examining the mummified bishop, having opened his coffin several times already, the baby had managed to stay concealed under the bed of juniper, wormwood, and hops until the CT scan gave away its position.

Just coffin companions or Winstrup’s relative?

Researchers believe the small companion died of natural causes having been born several months prematurely. It was quite common in Winstrup’s time for an illegitimate child to be slipped into a coffin intended for burial in holy ground. However, other theories suggest that the child could be related to Winstrup and was laid to rest alongside him.

As of now, researchers have planned for DNA testing to see if the two corpses shared more than just a coffin. Regardless of the outcome, the mummified bishop will be reburied with his baby buddy again at the end of the studies.

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Sweden: Tiny Corpse Concealed in Coffin of Mummified Bishop for Nearly 350 Years