In a message dated 00-04-20 16:55:13 EDT, we learn: << ** Ancient Humans Valued Clean Teeth Microscopic scratches in the tooth of an ancient human suggest that we're not the first to use toothpicks to pry pesky scraps of food from between our teeth >> I have to say that this news flash from the Global Museum list provoked a great yawn. Although it's nice to have an ancient scratched tooth to verify the assumption that picking teeth is a very old custom (and I hasten to add that I do think that's a valuable find), I'm slightly amused by the amazed tone. Perhaps one of these days we'll be lucky enough to find a well-preserved carcass with marks which "suggest" that our ancestors scratched their itches (surprise!). David Haberstich (suddenly feeling very old) ========================================================= Important Subscriber Information: The Museum-L FAQ file is located at http://www.finalchapter.com/museum-l-faq/ . You may obtain detailed information about the listserv commands by sending a one line e-mail message to [log in to unmask] . The body of the message should read "help" (without the quotes). If you decide to leave Museum-L, please send a one line e-mail message to [log in to unmask] . The body of the message should read "Signoff Museum-L" (without the quotes).