5 most incredible discoveries of the week

A galaxy cluster.(Photo: AFP/Getty Images)

This week's discoveries ranged from a milestone in deep space to a head-scratcher about trees with gold in their leaves:

1. Newly found galaxy is oldest yet^[1]: Residents of the Milky Way, meet z8_GND_5296. That's the not-so-great name of a newly discovered galaxy that just happens to be the most distant — and thus oldest — ever spotted. The Big Bang might give up its secrets yet.

2. Scientists find gold in eucalyptus trees^[2]: Money may not grow on trees, but gold might grow in them. Such is the fascinating conclusion of a group of Australian researchers who studied eucalyptus trees in two groves in the country's west and south. Gold diggers might do well to pay attention.

3. Rare viking 'thing' found in Scotland^[3]: Archaeologists have uncovered another parking lot find^[4], only this time it's in Scotland, and what they discovered is best described as a "Thing." Yep, that's the technical term for a Viking parliamentary gathering site, one of which has been unearthed in the town of Dingwall.

4. Big find in Peru's capital: Mummies^[5]: A site in Lima, Peru, that archaeologists have been excavating since 1981 has given up quite the find: an undisturbed tomb that's at least 1,000 years old — with two mummies inside. It looks like one was a master weaver.

5. Simon & Garfunkel tune may ease chronic pain^[6]: Walk into select Lloyds Pharmacy locations in the UK complaining of a headache, and you may be more likely to walk out with a Simon & Garfunkel CD than a bottle of painkillers. The chain commissioned a study that found 41% of people suffering persistent pain felt better after listening to music, and "Bridge Over Troubled Water" was one of the better performers. Fleetwood Mac made the cut, too, though.

For more incredible discoveries visit Newser^[8], a USA TODAY content partner providing general news, commentary and coverage from around the Web. Its content is produced independently of USA TODAY.^[7]