In a paper published in SCIENCE CHINA Earth Sciences, a team of researchers employed systematic archaeobotanical flotation and AMS radiocarbon dating at two sites in Romania: Baia-În Muchie and Dobrovăț. It provides valuable data on the chronology of millet cultivation in the SW Eastern European Plain and enhances our understanding of early East-West exchanges and their impact on human-environment interactions in critical regions.

A new study reveals that the Neolithic Revolution in the southern Levant may have been triggered by catastrophic wildfires and climate-driven soil erosion. Using charcoal records, isotopic data, and sediment analysis, the research identifies a natural tipping point around 8,200 years ago that forced early communities to adopt agriculture. Fertile soils formed in valley basins after hillslope degradation became hotspots for settlement and farming. The findings challenge the idea of a purely cultural or anthropogenic transition, pointing instead to climate-induced environmental collapse as a driving force.