Scientists in Florida found human remains that date back 7,000 years—and still have brain tissue!

Finding huge, significant archeological sites doesn't always have to leave you digging in the mud for months on end. Sometimes it shows up out of nowhere, by accident. In 1982 right outside the Titusville, Florida city limits, a backhoe operator discovered very old human remains.

Turns out the bones were about 7,000 years old. They belonged a little girl who was still clutching her favorite toys: a wooden pestle-shaped object and the carapace of a small turtle. That doesn't necessarily mean the bones look their age. At first, archeologists thought they were only a few hundred years old due to their keen preservation. Radiocarbon dating proved that incorrect.

Inside the skull, a dark brown, slippery material was found. After some analysis scientists learned that it was preserved brain tissue. Other skulls contained complete brains. The tissue was taken from the skulls and placed in plastic bags flooded with nitrogen gas for DNA cloning.

From the first day of excavation it became apparent that the site was one of the most intact cemeteries of 6,000 B.C.

(Source)