Did pygmy hippos make a good meal?Did pygmy hippos make a good meal? Archaeologists have traditionally thought that humans first occupied the Mediterranean island of Cyprus about 9,000 years ago, long after the postulated pos·tu·late tr.v. pos·tu·lat·ed, pos·tu·lat·ing, pos·tu·lates 1. To make claim for; demand. 2. To assume or assert the truth, reality, or necessity of, especially as a basis of an argument. 3. disappearance of the pygmy hippopotamus pygmy hippopotamus Choeropsis liberiensis; see hippopotamus. , an animal the size of a small pig that once roamed Cyprus and other islands. But signs that the animals were victims of foul play foul play n. Unfair or treacherous action, especially when involving violence. foul play Noun 1. violent activity esp. murder 2. are now appearing. Through radiocarbon dating radiocarbon dating n. The determination of the approximate age of an ancient object, such as an archaeological specimen, by measuring the amount of carbon 14 it contains. Also called carbon dating, carbon-14 dating. of rock flakes apparently made by humans, Alan H. Simmons of the Desert Research Institute in Reno, Nevada, has pushed the human presence on Cyprus back before 10,000 years ago, he reports in the June 9 NATURE. Moreover, the flake site contained contemporaneous bones from pygmy hippos. Because of a disproportionate number of skull pieces, Simmons suggests the site was a refuse pile and humans had something to do with the Cyprus hippo extinction. |
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