most ancient

Shiny stoneware sphinxes in modulated natural hues, an 11-foot mound of raffia crowned by the feminine symbol of a cowrie shell, a suspended cluster of several dozen breast-shaped terracotta gourds with golden nipples and pierced by metal antennas — sculpture’s most ancient substance is typically made sleek and modern in her hands.

The scientists looked for connections the brain might have with inflammation and innate immunity, the defense system shared by all animals and the most ancient component of the immune system.

There's some irony in the fact that devices that seem indispensable to modern life -- mobile phones, personal computers, and anything battery-powered -- depend entirely on minerals extracted from mining, one of the most ancient of human industries.

While most ancient oral microbiomes are retrieved from fossilised plaque, this study targeted the tooth directly.

Olfaction is the most ancient of animal senses, said Catherine Price, a behavioral ecologist at the University of Sydney in Australia.