Were cats domesticated as early as 9,500 years ago? A new discovery in Cyprus seems to show that the beasties were pets some 4,000 years earlier than previously thought. So the manipulation may have begun that early? National Geographic teaches me a new phrase, too: “commensal domesticates.” The phrase describes animals like mice, rats, sparrows, and early dogs, among others, that weren’t raised by people but nonetheless were attracted to human habitations. Somebody on NPR described this phenomenon this way: “OK. You have food. Vermin like your food. I like vermin as food. Guess I’ll hang out here for a while.”