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Travel (General/Chat)

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  • The Luxury Yacht Charter Experience - I Want THIS!!!

    06/25/2016 7:55:26 AM PDT · by truthnomatterwhat · 47 replies
    MGM Yachts ^ | April 10, 2016 | Melanie Burke
    If you value exceptional service and the personal customization that luxury yacht chartersl affords, if you enjoy tropical destinations, and appreciate the treatment you receive at five star hotels, then a luxury yacht charter will lift you to the pinnacle of your desires. On a professionally staffed luxury charter yacht you’ll enjoy the luxury service and pampering that's beyond a fine luxury resort. With the added benefit of visiting beautiful, remote destinations, many of which can only be reached by boat. Bask in the sheer joy of swimming in crystal clear turquoise waters, strolling on remote powdery white beaches as...
  • Wealthy 3,600-year-old Trading Hub Found in Gaza

    06/25/2016 6:29:28 AM PDT · by SunkenCiv · 18 replies
    Haaretz ^ | May 20, 2016 | Philippe Bohstrom
    The remains of a vast Bronze Age town... has been discovered in Gaza, and has now been shown to be a rich trading hub. The prosperity of its Canaanite inhabitants is evident in discoveries of elaborate gold jewelry, vast amounts of imported pottery and an unprecedented number of scarabs... trade between the seaside Canaanite town and other Mediterranean peoples, notably the ancient Cypriots. Among the clay sherds discovered were over 200 of white slip I type of pottery, a type of ware rarely found outside of Cyprus. Tell el-Ajjul, which lies right on the Gazan coast, was first explored by...
  • Ancient Canaanites Imported Animals from Egypt

    06/25/2016 5:03:05 AM PDT · by SunkenCiv · 14 replies
    Haaretz ^ | June 21, 2016 | Philippe Bohstrom
    The ancient Canaanites living in Gath some 5,000 years ago weren't sacrificing their own livestock to appease the gods. They were importing animals from ancient Egypt, archaeologists have now proven. A donkey, as well as some sheep and goats whose remains were found in Early Bronze Age layers at Gath dating to 4900 years ago turn out to have been born and bred in the Nile valley.The discovery at the archaeological site of Tell el-Safi shows that animals were part of the extensive trading relations between the Old Kingdom of Egypt and Early Bronze Age Canaan (circa 2900-2500 BCE).... Until...
  • Campsite dating back 12,000 years unearthed by Route 8 [New Brunswick, Canada]

    06/24/2016 10:51:32 PM PDT · by SunkenCiv · 29 replies
    CBC News ^ | June 23, 2016 | Alan White, Shane Fowler
    Archaeologists say a campsite unearthed just metres from a new highway in Fredericton could be more than 12,000 years old. The campsite held 600 artifacts, most of which were from tool making, as well as a fire pit containing ancient charcoal... Artifacts including stone tool fragments and arrowheads that would have been attached to rods to make spears have been found at the site. No ceremonial objects were found at the site. The campsite is located just metres from the shoulder of a stretch of Route 8. Suttie estimated the site to be between 11,600 and 12,200 years old. The...
  • Skeletons and Gold Coins Found in Pompeii Shop

    06/24/2016 10:31:50 PM PDT · by SunkenCiv · 12 replies
    Archaeology ^ | Friday, June 24, 2016 | editors
    Archaeologists excavating a shop on the outskirts of Pompeii have found four skeletons, several gold coins, and a necklace pendant, according to an Associated Press report. The skeletons belonged to young people who died in the back of the shop when nearby Mount Vesuvius erupted in A.D. 79. There was an oven in the shop that the archaeologists believe may have been used to make bronze objects. There is evidence that the shop was targeted by looters seeking treasure after the eruption, but they apparently missed the gold coins and the gold-leaf-foil, flower-shaped pendant. Archaeologists have been excavating a second...
  • Marshals: Innocent People Placed On 'Watch List' To Meet Quota

    06/24/2016 7:50:11 AM PDT · by MtnClimber · 20 replies
    The Denver Channel ^ | 21 Jun, 2016
    You could be on a secret government database or watch list for simply taking a picture on an airplane. Some federal air marshals say they're reporting your actions to meet a quota, even though some top officials deny it. The air marshals, whose identities are being concealed, told 7NEWS that they're required to submit at least one report a month. If they don't, there's no raise, no bonus, no awards and no special assignments. "Innocent passengers are being entered into an international intelligence database as suspicious persons, acting in a suspicious manner on an aircraft ... and they did nothing...
  • Man Gets Entire Plane To Himself After Fellow Travelers Catch Other Flights

    06/24/2016 3:07:50 AM PDT · by SMGFan · 74 replies
    Consumerist ^ | June 23, 2016
    It’s not every day that the average traveler has an entire row of seats to take over, much less an entire plane. But one Delta passenger flying home this week got to experience the sweet sensation of being the only person on his flight when his fellow travelers opted to take other flights. Everything worked out perfectly for the Atlanta man, despite his initial worries when he showed up to an empty gate area at the airport in New Orleans earlier this week. “I was so nervous,” he told WSB-TV. “I couldn’t believe it. I felt like I missed my...
  • Archaeologist: Many thousands of years ago life flourished in the Gobi desert

    06/23/2016 11:33:53 AM PDT · by SunkenCiv · 20 replies
    Science & Scholarship in Poland ^ | June 10, 2016 | Szymon Zdziebiowski (PAP) [szz/zan/mrt]
    Many thousands of years ago life flourished in the Mongolian Gobi desert... Archaeologists found many traces of old camps... located on the shores of lakes - now dried. Based on the findings, researchers concluded that thousands of years ago richness of species of animals lived in the study area, benefiting the ancient inhabitants of the desert. Archaeologists discovered mainly stone tools and the waste associated with their production... The oldest finds are represented by a massive stone tools made by the Middle Palaeolithic communities (200 thousand - 40 thousand years ago). Archaeologists have also discovered smaller stone products from later...
  • Farming Invented Twice In Middle East, Genomes Study Reveals

    06/22/2016 11:55:17 AM PDT · by SunkenCiv · 21 replies
    Nature ^ | June 20, 2016 | Ewen Callaway
    Study of 44 ancient Middle Eastern genomes supports idea of independent farming revolutions in the Fertile Crescent. Two Middle Eastern populations independently developed farming and then spread the technology to Europe, Africa and Asia, according to the genomes of 44 people who lived thousands of years ago in present-day Armenia, Turkey, Israel, Jordan and Iran. ...the research supports archaeological evidence about the multiple origins of farming, and represents the first detailed look at the ancestry of the individuals behind one of the most important periods in human history — the Neolithic revolution. Some 11,000 years ago, humans living in the...
  • Discovery Of Roman Coins In Devon Redraws Map Of Empire

    06/22/2016 11:47:22 AM PDT · by SunkenCiv · 32 replies
    Guardian UK ^ | Wednesday, June 22, 2016 | Steven Morris
    The discovery of a few muddy coins in a Devon paddock by a pair of amateur metal detector enthusiasts has led to the redrawing of the boundary of the Roman empire in south-west Britain. Previously it had been thought that Ancient Rome’s influence did not stretch beyond Exeter but the find has resulted in a major archaeological dig that has unearthed more coins, a stretch of Roman road and the remnants of vessels from France and the Mediterranean once full of wine, olive oil and garum -- fish sauce. The far south-west of Britain has long been seen as an...
  • Make It So! Sayeth Cleopatra

    06/21/2016 6:35:29 PM PDT · by SunkenCiv · 16 replies
    Archaeology, Volume 54 Number 1 ^ | January/February 2001 | Angela M. H. Schuster
    A single Greek word, ginesthoi, or "make it so," written at the bottom of a Ptolemaic papyrus may have been written by the Egyptian queen Cleopatra VII herself, says Dutch papyrologist Peter van Minnen of the University of Groningen. Received in Alexandria on Mecheir 26 (February 23, 33 B.C.), the papyrus text, recycled for use in the construction of a cartonnage mummy case found by a German expedition at Abusir in 1904, appears to be a royal ordinance granting tax exemption to one Publius Canidius, an associate of Mark Antony's who would command his land army during the Battle of...
  • No signs of Zika or West Nile in Cochise County so far

    06/20/2016 3:40:00 PM PDT · by SandRat
    Sierra Vista Herald ^ | Andrew Paxton
    SIERRA VISTA — Cochise County has not seen a case of either the Zika or West Nile virus this season, but conditions will soon be changing which will bring more chances for mosquitos to flourish, and health officials are responding. County health officials have been trapping mosquitoes and sending them to state labs for testing, which have so far yielded no positive cases, said county Public Health Emergency Preparedness Director Elizabeth Lueck. “The main point here is that right now, we don’t have Zika or West Nile in Cochise County,” she
  • Archaeologists Discover 6,500-Year-Old Grave of Man Holding Stone Ax Scepter... [Bulgaria]

    06/19/2016 5:30:29 PM PDT · by SunkenCiv · 13 replies
    Archaeology In Bulgaria ^ | June 14, 2016 | Ivan Dikov
    A 6,500-year-old grave of a man holding in his hands a stone ax scepter has been discovered by archaeologists excavating a recently found necropolis from from the Chalcolithic (Aeneolithic, Copper Age) in the town of Kamenovo, Kubrat Municipality, Razgrad District, in Northeast Bulgaria. A total of seven graves were found in the Chalcolithic necropolis in Kamenovo when it was first discovered back in September 2015. However, these were all graves of women and children (of the Mediterranean anthropological type), with the newly discovered grave being the first male grave to be found there to date, reports local news site Darik...
  • Wine Used In Ritual Ceremonies 5000 Years Ago In Georgia, The Cradle Of Viticulture

    06/19/2016 5:23:27 PM PDT · by SunkenCiv · 16 replies
    Science Daily ^ | Ca' Foscari University of Venice
    Georgian-Italian archaeological expedition of Ca' Foscari University of Venice in collaboration with the Georgian Museum of Tbilisi has discovered vine pollen in a zoomorphic vessel used in ritual ceremonies by the Kura-Araxes population. In the archeological site of Aradetis Orgora, 100 kilometers to the west of the Georgian capital Tbilisi, Ca' Foscari's expedition led by Elena Rova (Ca' Foscari University of Venice) and Iulon Gagoshidze (Georgian National Museum Tbilisi) has discovered traces of wine inside an animal-shaped ceramic vessel (circa 3,000 BC), probably used for cultic activities. The vessel has an animal-shaped body with three small feet and a pouring...
  • High Altitude Archaeology: Prehistoric Paintings Revealed

    06/19/2016 5:20:15 PM PDT · by SunkenCiv · 19 replies
    Eurekalert! ^ | Wednesday, May 25, 2016 | University of York
    Archaeologists at the University of York have undertaken pioneering scans of the highest prehistoric paintings of animals in Europe. Studying the rock paintings of Abri Faravel, a rock shelter in the Southern French Alps 2,133m above sea level, archaeologists used car batteries to power laser and white-light scanners in a logistically complex operation. Producing virtual models of the archaeological landscape, researchers have now published the scans in Internet Archaeology - an online, open-access journal. Abri Faravel was discovered fortuitously in 2010. The rock shelter has seen phases of human activity from the Mesolithic to the medieval period, with its prehistoric...
  • 'Eye-watering' Scale Of Black Death's Impact On England Revealed

    06/19/2016 5:11:53 PM PDT · by SunkenCiv · 36 replies
    Guardian UK ^ | Last modified on Thursday 26 May 2016 | Maev Kennedy
    Scraps of broken pottery from test pits dug by thousands of members of the public have revealed the devastating impact of the Black Death in England, not just in the years 1346 to 1351 when the epidemic ripped Europe apart, but for decades or even centuries afterwards. The quantity of sherds of everyday domestic pottery -- the most common of archaeological finds -- is a good indicator of the human population because of its widespread daily use, and the ease with which it can be broken and thrown away. By digging standard-sized test pits, then counting and comparing the broken...
  • Lucy Had Neighbors: a Review Of African Fossils

    06/18/2016 3:47:12 PM PDT · by SunkenCiv · 34 replies
    Eurekalert! ^ | June 6, 2016 | Cleveland Museum of Natural History
    The researchers trace the fossil record, which illustrates a timeline placing multiple species overlapping in time and geographic space. Their insights spur further questions about how these early human ancestors were related and shared resources... The 1974 discovery of Australopithecus afarensis, which lived from 3.8 to 2.9 million years ago, was a major milestone in paleoanthropology that pushed the record of hominins earlier than 3 million years ago and demonstrated the antiquity of human-like walking. Scientists have long argued that there was only one pre-human species at any given time before 3 million years ago that gave rise to another...
  • Current Diversity Pattern Of North American Mammals A 'Recent' Trend, Study Finds

    06/18/2016 3:05:57 PM PDT · by SunkenCiv · 6 replies
    Eurekalert! ^ | June 13, 2016 | University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
    It's called the latitudinal diversity gradient, a phenomenon seen today in most plant and animal species around the world: Biodiversity decreases from the equator to higher latitudes. A new study of fossils representing 63 million of the past 65 million years reveals that -- for North American mammals, at least -- the modern LDG is the exception rather than the rule. The findings, reported in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, point to the importance of not assuming that the way things are today is the way they've always been, the researchers say... It may seem obvious that...
  • Ancient DNA Shows Perfect Storm Felled Ice Age Giants

    06/18/2016 2:53:34 PM PDT · by SunkenCiv · 22 replies
    Eurekalert! ^ | Friday, June 17, 2016 | University of Adelaide, Alan Cooper et al
    "Patagonia turns out to be the Rosetta Stone - it shows that human colonisation didn't immediately result in extinctions, but only as long as it stayed cold," says study leader Professor Alan Cooper, ACAD Director. "Instead, more than 1000 years of human occupation passed before a rapid warming event occurred, and then the megafauna were extinct within a hundred years." The researchers, including from the University of Colorado Boulder, University of New South Wales and University of Magallanes in Patagonia, studied ancient DNA extracted from radiocarbon-dated bones and teeth found in caves across Patagonia, and Tierra del Fuego, to trace...
  • 'Pristine' Landscapes Haven't Existed For Thousands Of Years Due To Human Activity

    06/18/2016 2:47:39 PM PDT · by SunkenCiv · 40 replies
    Eurekalert! ^ | June 6th, 2016 | University of Oxford
    It draws on fossil evidence showing Homo sapiens was present in East Africa around 195,000 years ago and that our species had dispersed to the far corners of Eurasia, Australia, and the Americas by 12,000 years ago. This increase in global human populations is linked with a variety of species extinctions, one of the most significant being the reduction by around two-thirds of 150 species of 'megafauna' or big beasts between 50,000 and 10,000 years ago, says the paper, with their disappearance having 'dramatic effects' on the structure of the ecosystem and seed dispersal. ...second... the advent of agriculture worldwide,...