Uploaded September 2025 | Updated September 2026, 1 week ago
This episode features two stories from the Science Podcast. First, Science writer Ann Gibbons tells the story of three ancient hominin species that lived side-by-side in South Africa’s Cradle of Humankind. Then, anthropologist Melanie Beasley discusses her new study on why chemical signals in Neanderthal teeth and bones make them look like hypercarnivores. Her research suggests they were just eating a lot of maggots!
Origin Stories is a project of The Leakey Foundation, a nonprofit dedicated to funding human origins research and sharing discoveries.
The Science podcast is a weekly show from the journal Science and the American Association for the Advancement of Science. Search for Science Magazine in any podcasting app to subscribe. Learn more at science.org/podcasts
Origin Stories is audience-supported. Additional support comes from Jeanne Newman, the Anne and Gordon Getty Foundation, and the Joan and Arnold Travis Education Fund.
leakeyfoundation.org/donate
This episode features two stories from the Science Podcast. First, Science writer Ann Gibbons tells the story of three ancient hominin species that lived side-by-side in South Africa’s Cradle of Humankind. Then, anthropologist Melanie Beasley discusses her new study on why chemical signals in Neanderthal teeth and bones make them look like hypercarnivores. Her research suggests they were just eating a lot of maggots!
Origin Stories is a project of The Leakey Foundation, a nonprofit dedicated to funding human origins research and sharing discoveries.
The Science podcast is a weekly show from the journal Science and the American Association for the Advancement of Science. Search for Science Magazine in any podcasting app to subscribe. Learn more at science.org/podcasts
Origin Stories is audience-supported. Additional support comes from Jeanne Newman, the Anne and Gordon Getty Foundation, and the Joan and Arnold Travis Education Fund.
leakeyfoundation.org/donate
