Near-Complete Human Ancestor Found in Neglected Chunk of Rock

South African scientists say they've discovered the most complete skeleton ever of an early human ancestor - in a rock that had lain unnoticed in a lab for years. It was only when a technician noticed a tooth protuding from the stone last month that an investigation and CT scan revealed significant parts of Australopithecus sediba, discovered in 2009 at the Malapa site in South Africa, and identified as a new hominin in 2010.

The new additions to the original find make the skeleton - dubbed Karabo - astonishingly complete. "This discovery will almost certainly make Karabo the most complete early human ancestor skeleton ever discovered," said professor Lee Berger of the University of the Witwatersrand in Johannesburg.