The world’s oldest grinding stone dates to 68,700 years old and comes from Madjedbebe rock shelter on the Mirrarr Nation in northern Arnhem Land, Australia Aboriginal Land. 563 grinding stones were collected from at the Madjedbebe rock shelter and 104 grinding stones were analysed during the study. It is the oldest human example of a stone used to grind food. The second-oldest grinding stone dates to 60,300 years old and comes from Nauwalabila on the Mirrarr Nation in Kakadu in the Northern Territory.

The first time and last time that I visited the city of Zacapa, Guatemala, my team and I were sitting in our car in traffic when there came a hard and constant beeping from behind. Turning to look out of the back window, I saw a heavy black truck behind us.  The driver was honking the horn so aggressively that the cars started scrambling to get out of the way. That wasn’t the only motivator.

This winter, my parents sold our childhood home. It was a creaky old house (like, 19th century old), the kind that spooked peers in grammar school and fascinated friends in high school. I knew all of its quirks by heart: how to jiggle the handle of the bathroom door just so to avoid getting stuck inside; how to gently, quietly place my feet on each step to avoid waking my parents up after a late night out.

Welcome to Late Bloomer, a newsletter and community for teen girls.   Late Bloomer publishes in collaboration with The Conversationalist, a nonprofit feminist media outlet that amplifies global perspectives with original reporting and commentary. From a beginner’s guide to reproductive justice to navigatingchanges in adult friendships, join The Conversationalist community for thoughtful stories that are led with nuance and empathy. Meet Saniya, a high school senior from New Jersey who loves ‘00s emo music, binge-watching South Park, and hanging with friends at the beach.

Among the first things the Beaujolais-born Jura vigneron Thomas Popy mentions, when I first visit him in July 2020 with my friends Juliette and Bert, is he generally prefers not to have his picture on the internet. I can see the wisdom in this. There’s basically no way to keep one’s face off the internet entirely. But it slows the avalanche a bit, and, as any good winemaker knows, the rate at which an event occurs - be it the pressing of a tank, or fermentation, or positive media coverage - is as important as the achievement of the event itself.