Science News Roundup: Australian scientists discover ancient underwater Aboriginal sites; Blood cell damage may explain low oxygen levels and ore

Australian scientists discover ancient underwater Aboriginal sites Australia's first underwater archaeological sites off its west coast dating to more than 7,000 years ago will help with the understanding of the cultural and technology development of its first peoples, scientists said Thursday.

Following is a summary of current science news briefs.

Australian scientists discover ancient underwater Aboriginal sites

Australia's first underwater archaeological sites off its west coast dating to more than 7,000 years ago will help with the understanding of the cultural and technology development of its first peoples, scientists said Thursday. Archaeologists in Western Australia discovered hundreds of stone tools made by aboriginal people when the seabed was dry, at two ancient sites now submerged in the Dampier Archipelago.

Blood cell damage may explain low oxygen levels; two vaccines show promise in early testing

The following is a brief roundup of some of the latest scientific studies on the novel coronavirus and efforts to find treatments and vaccines for COVID-19, the illness caused by the virus. Low oxygen levels may be due to blood cell damage Surviving core of ill-fated.

Jupiter-like planet spotted near distant star

A rocky planet 39 times as massive as Earth has been spotted orbiting a distant star at breakneck speed, with astronomers concluding it may be the surviving core of a planet once perhaps larger than Jupiter that was stripped of its gaseous atmosphere. Researchers said on Wednesday it is the largest rocky planet ever discovered and would be the first planetary core ever found, offering a unique opportunity to better understand the interiors of gas giants like Jupiter, the largest planet in our solar system. How to rid East Africa of locusts?

Serve them in a kebab or drive them to cannibalism

Eat them, poison them, and use scent to drive them to cannibalism - as a second wave of locusts threatens to devour East Africa's crops, scientists in a Nairobi lab are experimenting with novel ways to kill them. Swarms are the worst for three generations, encouraged by unseasonably wet weather and dispersed by a record number of cyclones. The destructive pests could cost East Africa and Yemen $8.5 billion this year, the World Bank has said.

(With inputs from agencies.)