Julian Thorne
Julian focuses on the technical nuances of acid digestion and heavy liquid flotation. He is passionate about refining the accuracy of reference collections for intercostal cell patterns.
Latest from Julian Thorne
The Invisible Glass Ghosts in Your Backyard
Plants leave behind tiny glass skeletons called phytoliths that survive for thousands of years. These microscopic clues are helping scientists uncover the secret history of ancient farms and lost forests.
Ancient Menus: Reading the Microscopic Records Left on Prehistoric Teeth
Archaeologists are using plant glass trapped in ancient tooth tartar and soil to map out exactly what prehistoric humans ate and how they lived.
The Microscopic Recipe Book: How Tiny Stones Track the First Farms
Ancient plant remains called phytoliths are providing the 'smoking gun' for when and where humans first began farming.
The Glass Shadows of Ancient Meals
Discover how microscopic glass crystals called phytoliths are helping scientists reconstruct ancient meals and farming practices from thousands of years ago.
The Glass Ghosts in the Soil: Discovering What Ancient People Really Ate
Discover how tiny glass structures called phytoliths are helping scientists reveal the secret diets and farming habits of ancient civilizations.
The Secret Language of Prehistoric Grass
Ancient plant skeletons made of glass are rewriting the history of farming, showing us that early humans were much more sophisticated than we previously believed.
Finding History in a Tiny Speck of Glass
Phytolith analysis is like a high-tech game of 'match the shape' that uses tiny glass fossils to reveal what ancient people ate and how the climate has changed over thousands of years.
Dirt and Diamonds: How Scientists Use Microscopic Silica to Find Lost Forests
Scientists are using tiny silica 'plant stones' to reconstruct lost ecosystems and track how humans have changed the planet over thousands of years.
Tiny Glass Clues to Ancient Meals
Ancient plants may be long gone, but they left behind microscopic glass skeletons that are helping archaeologists rewrite the history of farming and food.
The Tiny Glass Rocks That Prove What Our Ancestors Ate
Archaeologists are using microscopic silica structures called phytoliths to track the true origins of farming, revealing that ancient humans were sophisticated plant breeders long before recorded history.
Rewriting the History of the Amazon with Micro-Glass
New research using microscopic plant silica is proving that the Amazon was once a massive, human-managed garden. Discover how 'plant glass' is debunking the myth of the untouched wilderness.
Tiny Glass Skeletons Are Rewriting Ancient Climate History
Scientists are using microscopic glass structures left behind by ancient plants to map out how the Earth's climate and forests have changed over thousands of years.
The Secret Glass Shapes That Reveal What Ancient People Ate
Scientists are using microscopic glass structures found in plants to rewrite history. These 'phytoliths' stay in the soil for thousands of years, revealing exactly what ancient people ate and how they farmed.
Reading Ancient Weather in Microscopic Glass
Scientists are using microscopic plant 'stones' to rebuild ancient ecosystems and understand how the climate has shifted over millennia.
The Glass Skeletons in the Mud: Finding Ancient Diets in Tiny Stones
Discover how microscopic glass structures inside plants are helping archaeologists solve ancient mysteries about what people ate thousands of years ago.
The Invisible Glass Skeletons That Tell Us What Ancient People Ate
Forget old bones. The real story of what our ancestors ate is hidden in tiny pieces of plant glass called phytoliths.
Innovations in Scanning Electron Microscopy Enhance Identification of Archaeobotanical Specimens
Scanning electron microscopy and AI-driven databases are revolutionizing the study of phytoliths, allowing scientists to identify ancient plant species with unprecedented accuracy.
Reconstructing Holocene Paleoclimates via Microscopic Silica Residues
Researchers are using microscopic silica structures from ancient plants to map climate fluctuations throughout the Holocene, providing a durable record of temperature and moisture in arid environments.
Archaeobotanical Reconstruction of Pre-Columbian Land Use in the Amazon Basin
Phytolith analysis is debunking the 'pristine forest' myth in the Amazon, providing evidence of sophisticated pre-Columbian land management and agricultural systems preserved as silica microfossils.
Microscopic Silica Evidence Shifts Timeline for Early Cereal Domestication
Advances in phytolith analysis, the study of microscopic plant silica, are reshaping the understanding of early rice domestication in East Asia. By examining cellular structures through SEM and polarized light microscopy, researchers are identifying key evolutionary markers that push back the timeline of systematic agriculture.