What were the hands of ancient hominids like? And what could our ancestors have done with them? Analysis of fossils found in northern Kenya has shed some more light on these questions. These are the remains of a hand from Paranthropus boisei, one of the four species of hominids –along with theHomo habilis, heHomo rudolfensisand theHomo erectus– that coexisted in East Africa between 2 and 1 million years ago. Analysis of this primate's bones has revealed that it had grip strength similar to that of gorillas and tool-making skills similar to that of humans.

"I had a farm in Africa." The famous line that opens Sidney Pollack's film Out of Africa has caused thousands of people to dream of living like Meryl Streep and Robert Redford. As always, Hollywood glosses over reality a bit, although it's still a beautiful film. Reading Out of Africa, the book that inspired the film, you can get an idea of how difficult it would have been for Danish woman Karen Blixen to run the farm almost alone. And you can understand that tragic love story with the English adventurer Denys Finch-Hatton. And if you're lucky enough to visit Nairobi, you can ground yourself even more in reality by visiting the famous farm.