Lab notes: nana nana nana nana nana nana nana nana ... Cheddar Man! A forensic reconstruction of Cheddar Man's head, based on the new DNA evidence and his fossilised skeleton. Crimefighting capabilities not pictured. Photograph: Tom Barnes/Channel 4/Reuters Tash Reith-Banks @TashReithBanks This week's biggest stories Where to even begin this week? Could it be with the news that human eggs have been developed in the lab for the first time? Or that researchers think they may have spotted a link between asparagine – a compound found in asparagus and other foods – and the spread of breast cancer? Maybe that archaeologists have discovered an exciting new Neolithic monument in Windsor? All of those things are certainly exciting, but really the two most thrilling stories this week are certainly Cheddar Man and Falcon Heavy: not a crimefighting duo but an exciting double-header of science and archaeology. Cheddar Man is Britain's oldest complete skeleton, and a groundbreaking analysis of his 10,000-year-old DNA has revealed that he had blue eyes, dark skin and dark curly hair, rather than the pale skin and fair hair that had always been assumed. By contrast, the incredible technological leap that has been made with the launch of Elon Musk's giant SpaceX rocket, and the safe return to Earth of at least two of three reusable rockets, promises a new new chapter in humankind's existence. More news from Guardian Science | Sign up to Lab notes ___ Gross-but-fascinating insects/arachnids of the week Proto-spider or actual facehugger? Photograph: Illustration by Dinghua Yang/University of Kansas/Reuters Two amazing/horrifying creepy crawly yarns for you this week. The first concerns the horrifying Chimerarachne yingi, a 100-million-year-old "proto-spider" with a long tail, discovered in pieces of ancient amber. The second is a strange but true story boasting not one but TWO set of oddly compelling video footage. Scientists have captured footage of bombardier beetles audibly exploding inside toads, causing the amphibian to vomit and allowing the beetle to escape. Maybe not one for mealtimes. Straight from the lab – top picks from our experts on the blog network Painted wall plaster from Tušhan's palace under conservation. Photograph: Tim Matney/Courtesy of the Ziyaret Tepe Project How archaeologists discovered an ancient Assyrian city – and lost it again | The Past and the Curious The governor's palace at Tušhan, which sits on the eastern side of the high mound, was built under king Ashurnasirpal II, who boasted about its construction in an inscription found not far from the site. Unlike Ashurnasirpal's magnificent Palace at Nimrud, the throne room of which can be seen in the British Museum, Tušhan's provincial palace had no stone reliefs. Instead its white plastered walls were decorated with finely painted geometric patterns in blue, red, orange and black. The reception suite was equipped with a trackway for a moveable heating brazier and neatly tiled bathroom facilities, giving it a touch of luxury. A discussion, not a war: two opposing experts talk dinosaur family trees | Lost Worlds Revisited In 2017 a startling paper suggested that the conventional view of the fundamental relationships between different groups of dinosaurs was incorrect. A huge new analysis including many early dinosaurs and their nearest relatives suggested that a rearrangement of the dinosaurs was in order – two groups previously separated (the theropods and ornithischians) were brought together in a group now called Ornithoscleida. This naturally came as something of a shock in palaeontological circles and beyond as the established order had been in place for a century and was well supported by a lot of data. Various comments immediately sprang from various researchers and a formal response (and counter) has appeared in the literature. From the outside this may have seemed like – and has been reported as – a bitter war. Girl, interrupted: the science behind my stutter – and what not to say to me | Notes & Theories There are approximately 70 million people who stutter worldwide, which is about 1% of the population. Stuttering usually begins in childhood between the ages of two and five, with about 5% of all children experiencing a period of stuttering that lasts six months or more. Three-quarters of children who stutter will recover by late childhood, but those who don't may develop a lifelong condition. The male-to-female ratio of people who stutter is four to one, meaning there is a clear gender discrepancy that scientists are still attempting to understand. Visit the Science blog network ___ Science Weekly podcast How important is culture to our own evolutionary history? Photograph: Steve Bloom Images/Alamy What role might culture play in intelligence? And how does human culture differ from culture found in other animals? Nicola Davis explores our evolutionary history in this edition of the Science Weekly podcast. ___ Eye on science – this week's top video The Falcon Heavy launch was impressive, but the thing I can't stop staring at is this timelapse of a Tesla car with dummy astronaut in space. It's just ... surreal. Guardian News & Media Limited - a member of Guardian Media Group PLC. Registered Office: Kings Place, 90 York Way, London, N1 9GU. Registered in England No. 908396