Abstract The Miocene epoch (23.03–5.33 Ma) was a time interval of global warmth, relative
to today. Continental configurations and mountain topography transitioned toward modern …

Due to its lofty height, the Tibetan Plateau features some of the harshest environments in the
world with extreme coldness, low oxygen, high UV radiation, and in places, severe aridity …

Phytoliths, microscopic plant silica bodies, are often preserved in modern and fossil soils
and sediment, as well as in archaeological contexts. They record unique characteristics of …

Since the late Miocene, plants using the C4 photosynthetic pathway have increased to
become major components of many tropical and subtropical ecosystems. However, the …

Dating fossil hominids and reconstructing their environments is critically important for
understanding human evolution. Here we date the potentially oldest hominin …

The δ 13 C values of long chain n-alkanes from paleosol samples (n= 74) of four NW Indian
Siwalik sections have been used to reconstruct the relative abundance of C 3-C 4 plants …

Major innovations in the evolution of vegetation such as the Devonian origin of forests
created new weathering regimes and soils (Alfisols, Histosols) that increased carbon …

Modern tropical and subtropical C4 grasslands and savannas were established during the
late‐Miocene and Pliocene, over 20 Myr after evolutionary originations of the C4 …

The rise of grasses using C 4 photosynthesis and dominating grasslands during the latest
Cenozoic is one of the most dramatic events in Earth's history. A growing body of geological …

Abstract Enhanced aridification of Central Asia driven by the combined effects of orogenic
surface uplift, Paratethys retreat, changes in atmospheric moisture transport and global …