A stalagmite from Hsārok Cave in the Zagros Mountains of Kurdistan provides a detailed climate record from 18,000 to 7,500 years ago, revealing rainfall fluctuations that correspond with the timing of early agriculture and the rise of civilization in the Fertile Crescent.
DNA from a Neanderthal bone fragment in Crimea, dated to around 45,900-45,300 years ago, reveals genetic links between European and Siberian Neanderthals and suggests a migration corridor along 55°N.
