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DON'T MESS WITH THE SCYTHIANS!

Monday, February 12, 2024

In today’s newsletter, we uncover these fierce warriors’ grotesque trophies, examine when Earth may have looked like a snowball, question the origins of gothic architecture ... and learn 9 simple ways to boost your mental health.

From 47 fragments of 2,400-year-old leather and fur from Scythian tombs, researchers determined that at least two of the samples were human.

PHOTOGRAPH COURTESY MARINA DARAGAN

These ancient warriors were so fierce they drank the blood of their enemies—and made leather trophies from the skin of those they vanquished.

That was the long-debated, 2,400-year-old claim of Herodotus, often called the Father of History. But the Greek scholar was right, researchers have concluded—at least about human skin fragments. (Pictured above are fragments from Scythian tombs, sourced from domestic and wild animals as well as—yep—Homo sapiens. It’s unclear if these two are from human skin.)

HOW? WHAT? WHY?

STORIES WE’RE FOLLOWING

A depiction of how Earth may have looked 650 million years ago during a period when snow and ice may have covered most, if not all, of the Earth's surface and oceans.

ILLUSTRATION BY SPENCER SUTTON, SCIENCE PHOTO LIBRARY

Could an asteroid have turned ancient Earth into a ‘snowball’? (Pictured above, a depiction of how Earth may have looked like 650 million years ago in a ‘snowball’ state.)

Melanoma is overdiagnosed at ‘alarming’ rates. Here’s what to know.

How Harriet Tubman's espionage freed thousands during the U.S. Civil War

What happens to your body when you're in love—and when you're heartbroken

Does this room contain Michelangelo’s lost drawings?

What your biological age can reveal about your health

Monarch butterflies’s numbers took a dive, but could they bounce back?

Is this ‘rare’ disease really rare? Or misdiagnosed?

Who will be the first woman to walk on the moon?

How music is used to heal the sick in Appalachia

WE ASKED, YOU ANSWERED

Hikers walk a trail along a wind farm filled with brush.

PHOTOGRAPH BY ZACHARY KRAHMER, NAT GEO IMAGE COLLECTION

Thanks, readers! When we came up with nine simple ways to boost your mental health, like getting out in nature (pictured above), we asked you for your suggestions. And you delivered! “Cultivating strong and meaningful relationships, and appreciating art in ANY of its forms,” Romy Hollenberg writes. Reader Gift Logan’s favorite: Listening to music. Here’s our original science-backed list.

GET UP, OFF THE FLOOR!

WHERE IN THE WORLD?

A detail from the Tree of Jesse stained glass window in St-Denis depicts Abbot Suger, who believed that this style of window would transform the earthly realm into a heavenly one filled with light.

PHOTOGRAPH BY BRIDGEMAN IMAGES

Gothic architecture has some of the most iconic features throughout time. Its flying buttresses, lofty towers, and stunning stained-glass windows (above, in St-Denis) are a nod to both human craftsmanship and the divine inspiration that led to the designs of some of the world's most famous cathedrals. Which Parisian cathedral originally gave rise to one of history's most significant architectural revolutions?

A. The Cathedral of Notre Dame de Paris
B. The Basilica Cathedral of Saint-Denis
C. Sacré Coeur Basilica
D. Chartres Cathedral

HERE’S THE ANSWER

Related: Resurrecting the Notre Dame

Today’s soundtrack: The Bells of Notre Dame, from Disney's The Hunchback of Notre Dame

Today’s newsletter was curated and edited by Jen Tse, Nancy San Martín, Nishita Naga, and David Beard. Let us know if you have any suggestions for us.

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