They found part of the skull of A garhi, which enabled them to classify it as a new species, and the leg and arm bones of a second individual, which lived at the same time and is likely to belong to the same species.The third find, just a few feet away from the skeletal remains, included the bones of antelopes, horses and other animals, which showed clear signs of having been butchered with stone tools.Some of the bones were crushed or broken off at both ends, indicating the extraction of marrow. Others had curved cut marks, including some found on an antelope's jawbone, presumably to remove the tongue.Although stone tools from this period have been found, this is the first evidence that they were used for butchering animals, the scientists said."Marrow is rich in fat, and few animals other than humans and hyenas can get at it. Anthropologists have theorised that just such a dietary breakthrough allowed the dramatic increase in brain size," says an editorial in Science. Other scientists have proposed that the dietary breakthrough might instead have been the discovery of how to cook root vegetables, which would have provided a rich source of digestible carbohydrates.. THE OLDEST adage in Hollywood still rings true If it works, make a sequel, or at least a copy.

After the success of Shakespeare In Love, a follow-up is now under consideration. Meanwhile, every producer worth his salt is starting to see pound and dollar signs in iam-bic pentameters. One can almost imagine the "pitches" taking place from scriptwriters and producers to studio chiefs. But why fantasise? The actual Shakespearean films on their way to our cinemas include concepts more bizarre than any satirist could imagine. With Othello apparently not crisp enough a title, we will soon see a film called O, which tells of a drama between two high school basketball warriors. In a new version of Hamlet the Prince's name is unchanged; but just about everything else will be Ethan Hawke plays the Dane in Manhattan And Julia Stiles is an army-boot-clad Ophelia.

The action is set in the corporate world of New York where Hamlet's mother, Gertrude, and stepfather, Claudius, are in a "Ted Turner-Jane Fonda situation", according to Hawke.Titus, a film based on Titus Andronicus, starring Sir Anthony Hopkins, Jessica Lange and Alan Cumming and directed by Julie Taymor, is due to be released at the end of the year. It is set in Rome, like the original, but in case that seems too distant, Ms Taymor explains: "Titus is a great general. He could be Colin Powell or Norman Schwarzkopf." A Midsummer Night's Dream, with Michelle Pfeiffer, Rupert Everett and Calista Flockhart (TV's Ally McBeal), is set in Tuscany. The publicity handout promises: "Water nymphs and satyrs party into the night at the fairy bars and cafes." Kenneth Branagh has just finished shooting a song and dance version of Love's Labour's Lost, and will soon begin work on a film version of Macbeth, followed by As You Like It And then there is the biggest potential grosser of them all. Miramax boss Harvey Weinstein is reported to be considering a sequel to Shakespeare In Love.