Did you know scientists found the oldest human footprint ever? It’s a single step frozen in time, left by an ancient human over 1.2 million years ago in Spain! This footprint gives us a rare glimpse into how our distant ancestors lived and moved around. What’s cool is that it was preserved in mud that hardened over time, almost like nature’s time capsule. Researchers believe it was made by a young individual, possibly part of a family group exploring the area. It’s amazing to think a simple footprint can teach us so much about our ancient past! Credit:
Chalcolithic leather shoe: By Pinhasi R, Gasparian B, Areshian G, Zardaryan D, Smith A, Guy Bar-Oz, Thomas Higham - https://doi.org/10.1371%2Fjournal.pone.0010984, CC BY 2.5 https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.5, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=10609502
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Chalcolithic leather shoe: By Pinhasi R, Gasparian B, Areshian G, Zardaryan D, Smith A, Guy Bar-Oz, Thomas Higham - https://doi.org/10.1371%2Fjournal.pone.0010984, CC BY 2.5 https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.5, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=10609502
Animation is created by Bright Side.
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FunTranscript
00:00Ooh, so check this out.
00:03Researchers just found some super old footprints from a family of extinct humans, like we're
00:08talking 300,000 years ago.
00:11The prints belonged to a group of Homo heidelbergensis – ooh, that's a tough one, but I nailed
00:16it!
00:17So those dudes were pretty advanced for their time – they were building homes and hunting
00:21big animals.
00:22But unfortunately, they couldn't handle climate change and disappeared about 28,000
00:28years ago.
00:29No, they weren't sissies, trust me, the weather was really tough back then, and they
00:33couldn't just go grab a down jacket like you do.
00:36So the University of Tübbingen crew made the discovery in Germany, where they found
00:41the perfectly preserved prints in a forest by a lake.
00:44Apparently, elephants, rhinos, and other critters used to come relax by the lake, and so did
00:49this Heidelberg family.
00:51The scientists believe they were probably just a family outing rather than a group of
00:55adult hunters, since there were little kid footprints too.
00:59And depending on the season, they could munch on plants, fruits, leaves, shoots, and mushrooms
01:05around the lake.
01:06Experts even found tracks from an extinct elephant species that used to weigh up to
01:1113 tons.
01:12Now, can you imagine seeing one of those in person?
01:14Just so you know, 13 tons is about 45 times as heavy as a pig.
01:19Oink.
01:20They were digging around in Schöningen when they stumbled upon some elephant tracks that
01:25were 21 inches long.
01:26That's like the length of a really big ruler.
01:29They even found wood fragments in the ruts that the elephants had left behind.
01:33But wait, there's more!
01:35They also found a rhino print from the Pleistocene era, which is pretty wild.
01:39It's the first time they've found a footprint from this particular species in Europe.
01:44Who knew rhinos had such big feet?
01:47Except those whom the rhino stepped on.
01:49Meanwhile, over in New Mexico, some British and American archaeologists found some ancient
01:55human footprints that date back 23,000 years.
01:59They used radiocarbon dating to figure out when these footprints were made, and it turns
02:03out they were stomped into the mud during the last glacial maximum, as when ice sheets
02:08covered much of North America and sea levels were lower than they are now.
02:12Now, we've always thought that humans first made their way to North America between 13,000
02:19and 16,000 years ago.
02:21But these footprints suggest that our ancestors were wandering around way earlier than that.
02:26Some people even think that humans might've been hanging out in North America as far back
02:30as 33,000 years ago.
02:33Although not everyone is convinced.
02:38If there were footprints, there must've also been some shoes too, am I right?
02:43Well, researchers may not have found signature Gucci loafers even though they've been around
02:48since 1953.
02:50But they did find a cave in Armenia full of ancient artifacts from the Copper Age.
02:55And guess what?
02:56Those artifacts included a seriously well-preserved shoe that's now the oldest footwear ever
03:02found.
03:03That footwear was made from a single piece of cowhide leather, which is pretty rare today
03:07despite all the fancy-schmancy technological upgrades we've got today.
03:12Talk about premium quality!
03:14Currently, the coolest modern-day designer shoes are trying to copy this hole-cut technique.
03:19The shoe was also rubbed with some kind of plant or vegetable oil for extra durability.
03:25And it even had shoelaces that criss-crossed through a series of holes, just like our beloved
03:30sneakers today.
03:31The shoe was about the size of a woman's US 7, so we're guessing it was tailor-made
03:37for some fancy-pants wealthy person.
03:39Can you imagine rocking these feet-whips back in the day?
03:43They were possibly the talk of the town.
03:46Since we're talking about shoes, have you ever had that gross feeling when you step
03:50in something sticky?
03:51Especially if you're wearing a brand-new pair of white sneakers?
03:54No, not what you're thinking.
03:56I'm talking about chewing gum.
03:58It's a total buzzkill to have it stuck to your shoe.
04:02A super-cool British archaeology student named Sarah Pickett found a 5,000-year-old piece
04:08of Neolithic chewing gum made from birchbark tar while on a dig in Finland.
04:13It even had tooth marks in it.
04:15Who knew our ancestors were into chewing gum too?
04:18Apparently, birchbark tar has antiseptic properties, so it's believed that Neolithic peeps chewed
04:24it to help treat mouth and gum infections.
04:27So it looks like people have been spitting out gum since the beginning of time.
04:32What a tradition!
04:34Neolithic designers had way more than just shoes to offer to prehistoric fashionistas.
04:38You're not going to find such a statement piece in the mass market.
04:43And I'm not sure about high-end boutiques either.
04:45Yep, it's supposedly the oldest purse ever found.
04:49And yep, those are dog teeth used as decorations for a handbag.
04:53According to one of the archaeologists, these teeth were all the rage back in 2500 BCE.
04:59People were putting them on everything, from clothes to jewelry.
05:03This particular handbag was something special.
05:06It had over a dozen sets of teeth and was super fancy, which means whoever owned it
05:11was perhaps a VIP.
05:13Unfortunately, the purse itself didn't survive the test of time.
05:17All that's left are these teeth, pointing in the same direction and looking like a modern-day
05:22handbag flap.
05:23It must've been truly chic back in the day, but it's a good thing we've moved on to more
05:28humane materials for our accessories.
05:31Did you hear about the dino-sized discovery on Yorkshire's coast?
05:35Yep, sometimes scientists discover not human footprints, but dino-footprints.
05:40This time, they found a record-breaking dinosaur print that could've been left by a predator
05:45taking a break 166 million years ago.
05:49Can you imagine a T-Rex lounging on the beach with a smoothie in hand?
05:54This 3-foot-long fossil, spotted in Burniston Bay near Scarborough, is the largest ever discovered
05:59in the region.
06:00The team of researchers who studied the track concluded that it was made by a giant carnivore
06:05like a Megalosaurus.
06:07That's one big and hungry dino.
06:09The footprint is the largest made by a theropod, which is a group of bipedal dinosaurs that
06:14includes the infamous Tyrannosaurus rex.
06:17So we're talking about some seriously big and scary creatures here.
06:21A paleontologist from the University of Manchester said the discovery had shed new light on the
06:26behavior of these carnivorous giants.
06:29Apparently, features of the footprint suggest that this large predator was squatting down
06:34before standing up.
06:35Maybe it was doing some yoga, or taking a bathroom break, who knows?
06:41Another archaeologist, Marie Woods, stumbled across the print while collecting shellfish
06:46on the shore.
06:47She said she couldn't believe what she was looking at.
06:49I mean, who would expect to find a giant dinosaur print while picking up some clams?
06:55It's lucky that Ms. Woods and Rob Taylor, a local fossil collector, rescued the fragile
07:00print from the shoreline.
07:02Experts warned that it was at risk of being lost to erosion or landslides.
07:07Now plans are in motion for the footprint to go on public display at the Rotunda Museum
07:12in Scarborough.
07:14But there's some more dino-mite news.
07:17Several drought conditions in Texas have revealed ancient dinosaur footprints that are over
07:22100 million years old.
07:24Multiple dinosaur tracks belong to the dinos were recently discovered at Dinosaur Valley
07:29State Park in northwest Texas.
07:31The droughts have caused a river running through central Texas to dry up almost entirely, which
07:37is how these prehistoric prints were finally uncovered.
07:40This guy was a real beast, measuring 15 feet and weighing in at 7 tons.
07:46It used to roam the area over 113 million years ago, according to the state park.
07:52About 60 prints from this dino have been revealed due to the drought, with an estimated
07:56140 tracks from the dinosaur in total.
07:59But that's not all.
08:01Prints from Sauroposeidon were also discovered.
08:04This creature was a massive 66 feet long and weighed about 48 tons when fully matured.
08:10Experts believe that the Acrocanthosaurus preyed on Sauroposeidon, which explains why
08:15their prints were found together.
08:17There's a weird thing though.
08:18Sauroposeidon was bigger than Acrocanthosaurus.
08:22Can any professors please explain to me why the smaller dude would munch on the bigger
08:26one?
08:27That's it for today!
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08:34friends!
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