Strange Fossil Skull

via Livescience.

Odd shaped human skull found in Romania, has both modern human AND what appear to be Neanderthal traits. Skull is among oldest ever found in Europe, dating to at least 35,000 and perhaps more than 40,000 years old.

"The reconstructed cranium is called Oase 2. Radiocarbon dating revealed only that it is at least 35,000 years old. But its mandible is similar to Oase 1, found previously at the surface of the cave and dated more firmly to about 40,500 years ago. The team has concluded that both fossils are the same age. These are the earliest modern human remains so far found in Europe.
Oase 2 has the same proportions as modern human craniums and has other features that are non-Neanderthal. But other features are unusual for a modern human, the scientists say. These include a retreating forehead and exceptionally large upper molars found principally among the Neanderthals."

Weird. There has been speculation among some scientists that modern and Neanderthal humans may have interbred, but this is the first significant evidence I've heard of to date. Other scientists believe the two species competed for habitat (to the detriment of the Neandethals), some think humans aggressively wiped them out, while others don't believe the two species ever even met, so the the scientific consensus isn't terribly clear. About the only thing that is clear is that the Neanderthals aren't around any more, so something happened after modern humans appeared in Europe. Interesting to see if this team uncovers anything else of note.