Science News Roundup: Tiny 13,500-year-old bird statuette shows origins of Chinese art; World's largest green turtle colony nearly twice as big as thought and more

Tiny 13,500-year-old bird statuette shows origins of Chinese art A tiny statuette of a bird carved from burnt bone about 13,500 years ago reveals the origins of Chinese art, embodying a style different from prehistoric three-dimensional artwork by people in other parts of the world, researchers said on Wednesday.

Following is a summary of current science news briefs.

Tiny 13,500-year-old bird statuette shows origins of Chinese art

A tiny statuette of a bird carved from the burnt bone about 13,500 years ago reveals the origins of Chinese art, embodying a style different from prehistoric three-dimensional artwork by people in other parts of the world, researchers said on Wednesday. The figurine, found at a site called Lingjing in Henan Province in central China, depicts a standing bird on a pedestal and was crafted using stone tools employing four sculpting methods - abrasion, gouging, scraping, and incision, the researchers said.

World's largest green turtle colony nearly twice as big as thought

The world's largest population of nesting green turtles is nearly twice as big as previously thought, scientists said on Wednesday, after drones enabled better surveys of the animals. Australian scientists determined that there were about 64,000 green turtles waiting to lay eggs on Raine Island - a vegetated coral cay on the outer edges of the Great Barrier Reef - significantly more than thought.

China set to complete Beidou network rivalling GPS in global navigation

The Chinese Beidou navigation network will be complete this month when its final satellite goes into orbit, giving China greater independence from U.S.-owned GPS and heating up competition in a sector long dominated by the United States. The idea to develop Beidou, or the Big Dipper in Chinese, took shape in the 1990s as the military sought to reduce reliance on the Global Positioning System (GPS) run by the U.S. Air Force.

Scientists create embryo-like research model from human stem cells

Scientists have used human embryonic stem cells to create an embryo-like research model to help them study some of the earliest stages of human development. The model overcomes some of the ethical restrictions on using human embryos for research and will allow scientists to study a period of human development known as the "black box" period, which they say has never been directly observed before.

Researchers in Chile unearth 74 million year old mammal teeth

Chilean and Argentine researchers have unearthed teeth in far-flung Patagonia belonging to a mammal that lived 74 million years ago, the oldest such remains yet discovered in the South American country, the Chilean Antarctic Institute reported on Thursday. Scientists uncovered the tiny teeth, which belonged to a species called Magallanodon baikashkenke, on a dig near Torres del Paine National Park, a remote area of Patagonia famous for its glacier-capped Andean spires and frigid ocean waters.

Ground-penetrating radar reveals splendor of ancient Roman city

In a glimpse into the future of archeology, researchers have used ground-penetrating radar to map an entire ancient Roman city, detecting remarkable details of buildings still deep underground including a temple and a unique public monument. The technology was used at Falerii Novi, a walled city spanning 75 acres (30.5 hectares) about 30 miles (50 km) north of Rome, researchers said on Monday.

(With inputs from agencies.)