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The hunt for food led hominins to cast the first stone half a million years ago ? 200,000 years earlier than we thought. Archaeologists have found the oldest evidence yet of stone-tipped spears.
The new discovery in South Africa suggests that it was neither our species nor Neanderthals that pioneered the use of such spears, but our shared ancestor Homo heidelbergensis.
We already knew that Homo heidelbergensis could fashion wooden spears ? a 500,000-year-old horse shoulder blade from Boxgrove, UK, has a semicircular hole in it that suggests it was pierced by a spear. "But the hole's bevelled edges and circular shape are not suggestive of a stone-tipped weapon," says Jayne Wilkins at the University of Toronto in Ontario, Canada.
Stone points used on spears had been found only at sites that date back no more than 300,000 years, and that are associated with Neanderthals or archaic members of our species.
That gives huge significance to a new discovery by Wilkins and her colleagues in 500,000-year-old deposits at Kathu Pan in South Africa. The team unearthed a hoard of stone points, each between 4 and 9 centimetres long, that they think belonged to the earliest stone-tipped spears yet found. The stone points are the right shape and size for the job, and some have fractured tips that suggest they were used as weapons.
Crucially, the points show signs of having been resharpened to maintain their symmetry. That is characteristic of spear tips and not of handheld cutting tools; the latter typically become less symmetrical with use because only the side of the tool used for cutting is kept sharp.
The find does more than simply extend the prehistory of stone-tipped spears ? it puts those first spears firmly in the hands of Homo heidelbergensis, says Wilkins. Modern foragers use such tools to take down large game as part of cooperative, strategic hunts. Perhaps our ancestor did so too.
"The spears are evidence for the deep accumulation of hunting behaviours in our lineage," says Wilkins. Use of the spears may have developed as the brain of Homo heidelbergensis increased in size, she says.
Paola Villa at the University of Colorado Museum in Boulder agrees with the findings. She points out that at a 350,000-year-old site near Sch?ningen, Germany, wooden spears have been found associated with the remains of 19 horses, suggesting Homo heidelbergensis mounted a carefully planned ambush there. "That early humans had sophisticated cognitive abilities comes as no surprise," she says.
Last week, some of Wilkins's colleagues discovered 71,000-year-old stone tips that may have belonged to the world's earliest arrows. What should we make of the fact that this find, too, was made in South Africa?
It might just reflect the amount of work going on there, given that vast areas of Africa have yet to be explored for prehistoric remains. "Alternatively, it may be that the unique environmental conditions of southern Africa are in part responsible for technological innovation," says Wilkins. Though it is unclear what these conditions may have been.
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When done right, brands can go way beyond a static marketing symbol -- they take on a life of their own, and immerse themselves into customers' psyches. Take the number of people who have had a Nike swoosh (or a BMW logo, or even a Twitter bird) tattooed onto their bodies. People see their favorite brands as extensions of their own personalities.
9 November 2012Last updated at 10:01 ETBy Mark Kinver and Matt McGrathBBC News
Environment Secretary Owen Paterson: "The scientific advice is that it won't be possible to eradicate this disease"
Environment Secretary Owen Paterson has acknowledged that ash dieback, a disease that threatens the UK's ash trees, will not be eradicated.
Announcing the government's action plan to tackle the disease, Mr Paterson said efforts would focus on slowing its spread through the countryside.
Diseased young trees would be removed and destroyed, he added.
But the action plan stated that there were no plans to remove mature trees, which are important for wildlife.
It added that efforts would also focus on developing resistance to the disease.
Conservation groups welcomed the government's assurance that no diseased mature tree would be cut down.
"The scientific advice is that it won't be possible to eradicate this disease now that we have discovered it in mature trees in Great Britain," Mr Paterson said.
"However, that does not necessarily mean the end of the British ash.
"If we can slow its spread and minimise its impact, we will gain time to find those trees with genetic resistance to the disease and to restructure our woodlands to make them more resilient."
He told reporters that the arrival of ash dieback meant his department would have to reconsider its priorities.
"If we are going to really do something radical on the way we handle our forestry in the future and change the priorities, we are going to have to shift resources within Defra.
Continue reading the main story
?Start Quote
Regulation must be put in place to ensure this does not happen again?
End QuoteMartin HarperRSPB
"There will be some things we do in Defra now that we are going to have to stop doing."
Speaking at a briefing, Defra chief scientific adviser Prof Ian Boyd said: "By next season, we could potentially have resistant forms of ash growing in this country.
"We need to put in scientific research to try and get genetic markers for resistance so that we can go out into our current woodlands that have not been infected and identify trees that might survive relative to those who might not survive."
Survey results on Wednesday confirmed that the disease was present at 115 sites in England, Wales and Scotland.
The action plan outlined a number of areas where government efforts would be focused. These included:
reduction of the rate of spread of the disease,
development of resistance to the disease in the native UK ash tree population,
encourage the public and landowners to help monitor trees for signs of ash dieback.
It explained that newly-planted diseased trees and diseased trees in nurseries would be traced and destroyed because once young trees become infected, they succumb to the pathogen.
Continue reading the main story
Ecology of ash trees
Referred to as the common or European ash, the tree - the UK's only native ash species - is scientifically known as Fraxinus excelsior.
It is the UK's third most abundant species of broadleaved tree (after oak and birch), covering 129,000 hectares of woodland.
Ash is deemed to be a very important species within the UK's hedgerows and accounts for about 10% of the nation's estimated 123 million "non-woodland" trees.
The common ash is a large deciduous tree that can reach heights in excess of 40 metres (130ft). It can live up to 400 years but coppiced trees can live for centuries longer. The species is wind-pollinated, and the seeds (known as keys) are primarily dispersed by the wind.
As the species is long-lived, it is important for wildlife. It supports specialist deadwood species such as the lesser stag beetle and hole-nesting birds including owls and woodpeckers.
Ash woodlands have light, open canopies, so are an important habitat for flora such as bluebells and ramsons. Birds such as bullfinches feed on the trees' seeds.
Also, ash provides an important habitat for more than a quarter of Britain's lichen, including nearly 14% of the nationally rare/scarce species.
Upland mixed ash woodlands are listed as a priority habitat under the UK Biodiversity Action Plan.
However, there was no intention to fell mature trees because as well as being important to wildlife, they take longer to die and could provide vital clues for scientists looking for genetic strains that might be resistant to the disease.
The latest data showed that infection, caused by the fungus Chalara fraxinea, did not occur directly from tree to tree, only via leaf litter.
Over the coming weeks, the government said it would work with scientists and other "interested groups to further develop and implement the measures in the plan, and to set a longer term approach to tackling Chalara".
Aerial assault
A ban on ash imports and the movement of trees from areas with confirmed cases of dieback came into force on 29 October, just days after government scientists confirmed that the disease had reached the UK's natural environment - at sites in East Anglia.
Dieback, caused by the Chalara fraxinea fungus, was first recorded in eastern Europe in 1992 and spread over two decades to infect most of the continent.
The first confirmed cases in UK woodlands were at sites in Norfolk and Suffolk. Scientists said the infections were most likely to have been the result of spores from the fungus being blown across from mainland Europe.
Prof Boyd explained that computer modelling showed that there were days when meteorological conditions existed that would have seen a "plume of spores across the UK".
RSPB conservation director Martin Harper welcomed the publication of the government's action plan, saying it was a "vital part of stopping the spread of this disease".
Continue reading the main story
Symptoms of Chalara dieback
Diseased saplings typically display dead tops and side shoots.
Lesions often found at base of dead side shoots.
Lesions on branch or stem can cause wilting of foliage above.
Disease affects mature trees by killing off new growth.
"Upland ash woodland and ash in the UK's lowland woods and hedges are important habitats for a wide range of plants and animals," he said.
"We are pleased that protecting this wildlife has been enshrined in the Government's approach to tackling ash dieback."
But he added that the arrival of Chalara Fraxinea in the UK should act as a "wake-up call".
"It is essential that we change the way we move animals and plants around the country and across international borders," he warned.
"Regulation must be put in place to ensure this does not happen again - our natural environment is too precious."
Woodland Trust chief executive Sue Holden echoed the RSPB's "wake-up call" warning, but added that she supported the view that no mature ash trees should be felled.
"This underlines widespread concerns that rapid and ill-considered action in our mature and ancient woods could do more harm than good," she said.
"We do not want to remove small populations of resistant ash that may hold the key to the survival of the species across the country."
The most visible sign that a tree is infected with Chalara ash dieback is bleeding sores and cankers on the bark, and discolouration of the underlying sapwood.
The sores often surround branches in the infected area of the tree, causing the dieback of shoots, twigs, branches and smaller stems.
The disease has also been shown to infect ash tree leaves, appearing as blemishes.
There are numerous other diseases that display similar symptoms, making it difficult to identify for most people.
The Forestry Commission has issued guidance on how to identify the disease.
Bennett Wynne, a fisheries biologist with the N.C. Wildlife Resources Commission, was named Fisheries Biologist of the Year by the Southeastern Association of Fish and Wildlife Agencies at its 66th annual conference on Oct. 9, in Hot Springs, AR.
Wynne received the honor for his outstanding work in both aquatic habitat conservation and fisheries management.
As the agency?s Anadromous Fisheries Coordinator, Wynne coordinates the management of coastal migratory stocks of shad, herring, striped bass and Atlantic sturgeon. He has developed critical working relationships with numerous stakeholders concerning enhancement of aquatic habitats for the benefit of these populations.
?Bennett works diligently to assure adequate spawning flows for migratory fish in North Carolina?s coastal rivers, continually looking for opportunities to increase access to upstream habitats,? said Robert Curry, chief of the Division of Inland Fisheries.
On the Cape Fear River, Wynne advocated for years in support of construction of a rock arch fish passageway over Lock and Dam 1 ? the first impediment to anadromous fishes migrating upriver from the ocean. Beginning June 1, 2011, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers began construction of a rock arch fish passageway at this location, and the project is now almost complete.
?This is a landmark accomplishment, representing the first rock arch structure for fish passage built in North Carolina, and one of only a few in the Southeast,? Curry said.
Wynne is currently involved with evaluating the effectiveness of this structure and will help determine the potential for similar passage projects on dams upstream.
In 2010, he coordinated Atlantic sturgeon sampling in the upper Roanoke River basin, which resulted in the first documented capture of sturgeon from this area. Currently, he is leading the effort to develop plans to enhance river herring stocks in the Chowan River basin.
?Bennett fills a unique niche, seamlessly blending habitat conservation with fisheries management,? Curry said. ?His contributions to anadromous fish population restoration in North Carolina are extensive and make him well deserving of receiving an honor as prestigious as the Southeastern Association of Fish and Wildlife Agencies? Fisheries Biologist of the Year.?
The Southeastern Association of Fish and Wildlife Agencies is an organization whose members include the N.C. Wildlife Resources Commission and state agencies with primary responsibility for management and protection of the fish and wildlife resources in 14 other states, Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands.
The so-called fiscal cliff is an economy-rattling combination of expiring Bush- and Obama-era tax cuts and major across-the-board spending cuts to the Pentagon and domestic programs.
The cliff is the punishment for previous failures of a bitterly divided Congress and White House to deal with the government's spiraling debt or overhaul its unwieldy tax code. The Congressional Budget Office estimates that the austerity program would reduce the deficit by $503 billion through the end of next September ? or approaching $700 billion for the entire calendar year. CBO says millions of jobs could be lost.
The fiscal cliff includes:
?The expiration of Bush-era tax cuts on income, investments, married couples and families with children and inheritances. In addition, some 26 million additional face the alternative minimum tax next filing season, which would raise their taxes by an average of $3,700. Cost through September: $330 billion.
?A $55 billion, 9 percent cut in the defense budget next year and another $55 billion in cuts to domestic programs, including a 2 percent cut to Medicare providers.
?The expiration of unemployment benefits for the long-term jobless. Cost: $26 billion.
?A sharp cut in reimbursements for doctors participating in Medicare. Cost: $11 billion.
?The expiration of Obama's temporary 2 percentage point cut in payroll taxes. Cost: $95 billion.
?A variety of smaller taxes cuts for both businesses and individuals collectively known as tax "extenders." They include a tax credit for research and development and a deduction for sales taxes in states that don't have an income tax. Cost: about $65 billion.
?A need to increase the government's borrowing cap (the so-called debt limit) of $16.4 trillion. The government is expected to hit the cap late this year but the Treasury Department has the authority to juggle certain accounts to buy several more weeks of time so that Congress won't have to act until early next year.
When done right, brands can go way beyond a static marketing symbol -- they take on a life of their own, and immerse themselves into customers' psyches. Take the number of people who have had a 
Wynne received the honor for his outstanding work in both aquatic habitat conservation and fisheries management.