Monte Verde's Age Questioned, New Study Challenges Early Human Settlement

0:00This is Global News Today. Every region, every story, every day. For decades, Monteverde and Chile stood as the strongest proof of early human settlement in the Americas, with artifacts dated to around 14. 1,500 years ago, that included footprints, wooden tools, building foundations, and fire pit remains. Now, a new study questions the timeline, claiming the site can't be older than 8,200 years before present. Researchers say, landscape changes, like a stream eroding rocks, mixed odor sediments with newer layers, fooling earlier dates. They re-examine the geology and publish their work this week in the journal Science. Lead office from Chile and Wyoming argue this explains why wood and tools seem so ancient. Not everyone buys it. Excavation leaders and other experts call it a weak hypothesis, pointing out directly dated artifacts like a mastodon tusk tool and burn digging. Stick that still peg to site at, 14,500 years old.

1:02They say the new analysis used mismatched samples from nearby areas. Monteverde helped overturn the old idea that Clovis people with stone tools arrived 13,000 years ago, as the first. It fueled debates on how humans reached the Americas, dodging ice sheets via coastal boats or an ice-free corridor. Newer North American sites like those in Idaho and Texas already pushed timelines back further. The dispute highlights how science self-cracks over time. While the younger day could shift some views, plenty of evidence supports early arrivals. Expect more digs and tests to settle this. The Daily News Now is powered by our sponsor, link in the description. When you want calm, do not reach for your phone. Lay back and listen, S-O-L-I, solelypillow.com.