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Death jar mystery revealed, rice reaching its 'thermal limit,' prehistoric art controversy, and the asthma drug that could help fight cancer.Science news this week May 23, 2026: Our weekly roundup of the latest science in the news, as well as a few fascinating articles to keep you entertained over the weekend
Science news this week -
Scientists claimed the world's oldest rock art is 67,800 years old. But is the science behind that estimate flawed?Analysis A technique that has rewritten the timeline of prehistoric art may be overestimating the ages of cave paintings, some scientists say.
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800-year-old 'hugging skeletons' are genetically confirmed as Poland's only medieval same-sex double burialTwo skeletons found in an embrace next to a 13th-century Polish cathedral were both women, an ancient DNA analysis confirms, but their relationship remains a mystery.
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Great Pyramid of Giza is remarkably resilient to earthquakes — and it's due to the ancient Egyptians' 'extraordinary' engineering knowledgeThe Great Pyramid of Giza has survived for more than 4,600 years despite nearby earthquakes, and new research reveals why.
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Scurvy-plagued whalers' remains discovered at 'Corpse Point' in SvalbardSkeletons of early modern whalers reveal widespread scurvy, pipe smoking and heavy physical labor.
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800-year-old notebook and fancy silk toilet paper discovered in medieval latrine in GermanyArchaeologists recovered the 10-page wax notebook with Latin writing and its leather carrying case from a medieval latrine in Germany.
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1,200-year-old giant 'death jar' in Laos contains generations of human skeletonsExcavation of a large stone vessel from the mysterious Laos Plain of Jars has confirmed its use in an ancient funerary tradition.
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Doctor's kit found on Mount Vesuvius victim in PompeiiA man who died in Pompeii during the eruption of Mount Vesuvius in A.D. 79 was carrying a medical kit with him, new scans reveal.
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950-year-old burial of a pet dingo reveals unique archaeological evidence of humans ritually 'feeding' a graveArchaeologists have excavated the remains of a dingo that was buried by ancestors of the Australian Aboriginal Barkindji people and "fed" for the next 500 years with river mussels.
