It’s the standing belief among most archaeologists that North America remained unpopulated until about 15,000 years ago, when Siberian people traveling over an Asian land-bridge traveled into Alaska and then moved down the West Coast. But in recent years, a series of surprising archeological finds at five sites along the Delaware, Maryland and Virginia coast offered evidence of a different possibility. Prehistoric blades found on the Eastern Shore of Virginia and in Tilghman Island, Maryland, appear to closely match those used by stone age Europeans known as the Solutreans.

At present, there are nearly 7,000 languages being spoken worldwide. However, due to ageing populations and globalization's English-only emphasis, a language dies out every 14 days. At this rate, nearly half the world's languages will vanish in 100 years. Very often, these languages are lost without any record: no clues about pronunciation, let alone grammar or vocabulary. 

Twenty years ago American folklorist and ethnomusicologist Alan Lomax designed "The Global Jukebox," a database that used descriptive tools to identify and link archival music and dance footage. The Global Jukebox was essentially Pandora — but conceived long before technology that could realize it existed. Ten years after his death, Lomax's dream may finally be realized: all of his recordings have been put online, but it will take at least another year to get his collection of dance film into the database.

To answer what makes us human has long been a scientific quest. It’s one that Dr. Richard Wrangham has been wrestling with since the 1970’s, when he started his career, observing chimps with Dr. Jane Goodall. Then about 10 years ago, while sitting in front of his own fireplace, a theory of human evolution came to him. It’s one that he lays out in his new book: Catching Fire: How Cooking Made Us Human. Richard Wrangham is the Ruth B. Moore Professor of Biological Anthropology at Harvard University's Peabody Museum of Archaeology and Ethnology. He joins The Takeaway with his take on human evolution.

Just look how far we have come since our humble beginnings.

Dan Ariely believes one reason people oppose the government's Wall Street bailout plan is that they want revenge on the companies that helped lead the nation into this economic turmoil.

"Baby-led weaning" is about skipping the baby food and letting your infant feed himself. The Takeaway talks to Helen Stewart, who blogs about baby-led weaning and to Keith Dixon, the father of an infant who eats everything he does — in mashed up form.

In the Amazon, some native tribes are burying their babies alive if they are born with birth defects — defects that can often be treated with modern medicine. Evangelical Christian missionaries have launched a campaign against the practice, and Brazilian politicians are getting caught in the middle. ABC Correspondent Dan Harris has been deep in the Amazon investigating the debate.

Hundreds of thousands of parents are flooding college campuses, decorating dorm rooms, eating lunch at the student union and driving back to an emptier home-- for the first time. To talk through the mix of emotions that parents are experiencing, and the best way to prepare for this life-changing event, we turn to family psychiatrist Alan Manevitz. And for context we check in with Sandra Markt-Reardon. She’s just driven her last kid off to college.

View a gallery of images of the tribe from Survival International.

The Nepalese government declared its country a republic Wednesday, abolishing its once revered monarchy. The Takeaway looks at what could happen to the royals as they join the common folk.

There's a premium on beauty. And it's not just social, it's economic. Some people can earn more because they have better teeth. Others earn more because they are taller. What's your experience? Join the discussion by clicking "get in the mix", by emailing mytake@thetakeaway.org, or by calling our SpinVox line at 1-877-8-MY-TAKE. And tune in Tuesday morning for Freakonomics author Stephen Dubner's assessment.

You'll see five pairs of portraits — one president and one vice president. Click on the one you think is the most attractive and we'll tell you if you picked the president. You do know your presidents, don't you?