National Geographic Magazine Mar-15

When archaeologist Jodi Magness began to excavate a fifth-century synagogue at the site of Huqoq in Israel in 2011, the last thing she expected to see was a mosaic. In similar buildings found in the area, floors are paved in flagstones. But there, in an agricultural village near the Sea of Galilee, Magness’s team has uncovered one stunning scene after another rendered in tiny colored stones. Two sections depict Samson, a biblical hero not commonly portrayed in synagogues of the time. Another scene includes an even more uncommon subject: a pair of elephants decked out for battle. “There’s no doubt that we have the very first nonbiblical story ever discovered decorating an ancient synagogue,” says Magness. “In the Hebrew Bible there are no stories involving elephants.” More surprises may lie…

At Huacas de Moche, a pre-Inca ceremonial center in the Peruvian desert, an intriguing grave from about 1,300 years ago has come to light. Near the skeleton of a man in his 30s lay a copper scepter, a symbol of power in the Moche culture. Also found: gilded feline claws of copper, probably from an animal costume used in ritual combat, with paws like the reconstructions at right. Archaeologists now plan to analyze the chemistry of this dignitary’s bones. Clues about his diet may identify the city where he wielded his power.…

America’s earthquake epicenter was once California. Now it’s Oklahoma. In 2014 there were nearly 300 times as many magnitude 3.0 and greater earthquakes as there were in 2008—and more quakes of that magnitude than in the prior 30 years combined. The cause? Scientists can’t say definitively, but new research funded by the U.S. Geological Survey notes that as quakes increased in number, so did the use of injection wells that bury wastewater from fracking and other oil and gas operations. Driving that water deep underground is intended to keep it from creeping into shallow aquifers. But the process can be likened to forcing water into a lidded cup, says hydrogeology researcher Matthew Weingarten: “You can only push so much water through a straw before pressure builds.” Increased subsurface water deposits…

Wild chimpanzees are not immune to the Ebola virus. With vaccination, they could be, researchers say. Infectious diseases, both naturally occurring and from human spillover, are a top threat to endangered chimps and gorillas. In past localized Ebola outbreaks, the virus killed more than 90 percent of gorillas and untold numbers of chimps. Recently, a vaccine was tested that mimics the Ebola virus’s outer covering but doesn’t carry live virus; injections gave captive chimps (such as those seen here) immunity without causing symptoms. Because administering shots to wild apes is impractical, researchers plan to develop an oral version to be delivered with bait. Future testing is uncertain, as the National Institutes of Health has changed how it funds research involving chimps. If primate biomedical facilities close, says quantitative ecologist Peter…

Greeting a friend doesn’t have to mean meeting all her germs too. David Whitworth and Sara Mela from the U.K.’s Aberystwyth University studied the bacteria transferred in handshakes, high fives, and fist bumps—and found that handshakes transfer 10 to 20 times more bacteria than fist bumps. Although in health terms there’s “a definite benefit to not shaking hands,” Whitworth says, it could be hard to persuade the public to bump instead of clasp. History favors the handshake, a greeting seen in Greek art from the fifth century B.C.…

Since the 1950s farmers have fed antibiotic growth promoters (AGPs) to livestock. Overusing these substances can create superbugs, pathogens that are resistant to multiple drugs and could be passed along to humans. Mindful of that, companies such as Perdue Farms have stopped using the drugs to make chickens gain weight faster. Since Denmark banned AGPs in the 1990s, the major pork exporter says it’s producing more pigs—and the animals get fewer diseases. Says Centers for Disease Control and Prevention epidemiologist Tom Chiller, “Antibiotics are miracle drugs that should only be used to treat diseases.”…