|
· Saturday, August 8, 2009 · 29 topics · 2311358 to 2305790 · 718 members · |
|||
Saturday |
Welcome to the 264th issue. |
||
|
|
|||
|
|
|
| Gods, Graves, Glyphs Weekly Digest #264 Saturday, August 8, 2009 |
|
|
|
|
| Billy Jean Was Not My Pharaoh | |
|
|
|
| Michael Jackson's Face In An Ancient Egyptian Bust? |
|
|
· 08/06/2009 1:46:05 PM PDT · · Posted by TaraP · · 22 replies · 683+ views · · NPR's Breaking News, Analysis Blog · · August 5th, 2009 · |
If you keep in mind that Chicago is the place where people once saw the Virgin Mary in a salt stain on the wall of a roadway underpass it should make sense that it's now the place where some are seeing the face of the late Michael Jackson in an ancient Egyptian sculpture. The resemblance has caused a big buzz in the blogosphere, which led the Chicago Sun-Times to put a photo of the 3000-year old bust of an Egyptian woman on its front page yesterday and for its columnist Michael Sneed to write about it. Anyway, it's hard to... |
|
|
|
| Ancient Egyptian statue thrills Jackson fans in Chicago (3000 Yr Old Statue of MJ) |
|
|
· 08/07/2009 7:38:10 PM PDT · · Posted by nickcarraway · · 13 replies · 448+ views · · Times of India · · 8 August 2009 · |
Was Michael Jackson secretly trying to be "The Pharaoh of Pop?" An ancient Egyptian bust on display at the Field Museum in Chicago has been the focus of interest since the star's death as visitors double-take at the eerie similarities between the 3,000-year-old statue and the singer. The limestone statue -- which depicts an unidentified woman -- went on display at the museum in 1988 and was carved during the New Kingdom Period, dating from between 1550 BC to 1050 BC. Like Jackson's surgically-altered face, the carving has a distinct, upturned nose and rounded eyes. And like Jackson -- if... |
|
|
|
| Let's Have Jerusalem | |
|
|
|
| Carbon 14 -- The Solution to Dating David and Solomon? |
|
|
· 08/01/2009 6:58:42 AM PDT · · Posted by SunkenCiv · · 14 replies · 425+ views · · Biblical Archaeology Review · · May/Jun 2009 BAR 35:03 · · Lily Singer-Avitz · |
According to the so-called high chronology, the transition occurred around 1000 or 980 B.C.E. It is generally recognized that David conquered Jerusalem in about 1000 B.C.E. According to the low chronology, the transition to Iron Age IIa occurred around 920-900 B.C.E. Other opinions place the transition somewhere between the two -- in about 950 B.C. The date is important because the date you choose will determine whether David and Solomon reigned in the archaeologically poor and archaeologically poorly documented Iron I or in the comparatively rich and richly documented Iron IIa. However, the differences in data between the various schools... |
| Experts dig up dirt on David and Goliath |
|
|
· 08/08/2009 8:21:36 AM PDT · · Posted by BGHater · · 28 replies · 651+ views · · ABC News · · 03 Aug 2009 · · Anne Barker · |
Archaeologists are putting some flesh on the bones of the David and Goliath myth by shifting through layers of earth at the site in the Holy Land. While little physical evidence has ever been found to support the 3,000-year-old biblical story of David and Goliath, a team from Israel and Australia has been excavating 50 kilometres from Jerusalem in the city of Tell es-Safi, where Goliath was supposedly born. According to the bible, Goliath stood around three metres tall and lived in the 10th century BC in the ancient city of Gath, which is now modern day Tell es-Safi. It... |
|
|
|
| Rome and Italy | |
|
|
|
| Finding King Herod's Tomb |
|
|
· 08/02/2009 6:17:08 PM PDT · · Posted by BGHater · · 9 replies · 588+ views · · Smithsonian Magazine · · July 2009 · · Barbara Kreiger · |
After a 35-year search, an Israeli archaeologist is certain he has solved the mystery of the biblical figure's final resting place Shielding my eyes from the glare of the morning sun, I look toward the horizon and the small mountain that is my destination: Herodium, site of the fortified palace of King Herod the Great. I'm about seven miles south of Jerusalem, not far from the birthplace of the biblical prophet Amos, who declared: "Let justice stream forth like water." Herod's reign over Judea from 37 to 4 B.C. is not remembered for justice but for its indiscriminate cruelty. His... |
|
|
|
| Faith and Philosophy | |
|
|
|
| Turkish Government Denies Request for Church in Tarsus |
|
|
· 08/06/2009 1:24:52 PM PDT · · Posted by marshmallow · · 23 replies · 321+ views · · American Catholic · · 8/5/09 · |
VATICAN CITY (CNS) -- Despite a personal request from Pope Benedict XVI and repeated requests by Christian leaders in Turkey, the Turkish government has decided that the only church in Tarsus, the city of St. Paul's birth, will remain a government museum. The Church of St. Paul, built as a Catholic church in the 1800s and confiscated by the government in 1943, was used throughout the 2008-2009 year of St. Paul for prayer services by Christian pilgrims. After the end of the yearlong celebration commemorating the 2,000th anniversary of St. Paul's birth, the Turkish government decided the building could not be used... |
|
|
|
| Precolumbian, Clovis, and PreClovis | |
|
|
|
| Alabama city destroying ancient Indian mound for Sam's Club |
|
|
· 08/04/2009 11:04:42 PM PDT · · Posted by BGHater · · 25 replies · 869+ views · · ISS · · 04 Aug 2009 · · Sue Sturgis · |
City leaders in Oxford, Ala. have approved the destruction of a 1,500-year-old Native American ceremonial mound and are using the dirt as fill for a new Sam's Club, a retail warehouse store operated by Wal-Mart. A University of Alabama archaeology report commissioned by the city found that the site was historically significant as the largest of several ancient stone and earthen mounds throughout the Choccolocco Valley. But Oxford Mayor Leon Smith -- whose campaign has financial connections to firms involved in the $2.6 million no-bid project -- insists the mound is not man-made and was used only to "send smoke... |
|
|
|
| Diet and Cuisine | |
|
|
|
| No Sweet Tooth for Europe |
|
|
· 07/31/2009 10:28:27 PM PDT · · Posted by neverdem · · 27 replies · 639+ views · · ScienceNOW Daily News · · 31 July 2009 · · Constance Holden · |
Enlarge ImageTrick or treat? This confection may be more pleasing to some taste buds than it is to others. Credit: Photos.com If you take your coffee without sugar or your pancakes without syrup, chances are you've got some European ancestry in your blood. New research reveals that people whose early relatives lived in Europe are more sensitive to sweet tastes than those whose ancestors came from other parts of the world. Scientists led by Alexey Fushan of the National Institute on Deafness and Other Communication Disorders in Bethesda, Maryland, asked 144 people from various ethnic backgrounds to rank the... |
|
|
|
| Middle Ages and Renaissance | |
|
|
|
| Delighted antiques dealer discovers 1,300-year-old Knights Templar relic at car boot sale |
|
|
· 08/03/2009 9:38:22 PM PDT · · Posted by BlackVeil · · 52 replies · 1,213+ views · · Daily Mail · · 4th August 2009 · · By Daily Mail Reporter · |
An antiques dealer has picked up what could be a priceless church relic dating back 1,300 years at a car boot sale. The small piece of painted wood is believed to have come from a box which the Knights Templar used to protect religious items as they moved across Europe during the Crusades of the Middle Ages. Quite how this ornate piece of wood found its way to a car boot sale in Yorkshire is anyone's guess. But it could bring Leeds antiques dealer Martin Roberts a big windfall at the next stop on its unlikely journey - an auction... |
|
|
|
| Scotland Yet | |
|
|
|
| Haggis was invented by the English, not the Scottish, says historian |
|
|
· 08/02/2009 2:02:52 PM PDT · · Posted by bruinbirdman · · 62 replies · 1,023+ views · · The Telegraph · · 8/2/2009 · · Simon Johnson · |
Before being hijacked by Scottish nationalists Catherine Brown has discovered references to the dish in a recipe book dated 1615, The English Hus-wife by Gervase Markham. This was published at least 171 years before Robert Burns penned his poem Address to a Haggis, which made the delicacy famous. The first mention she could find of Scottish haggis was in 1747, indicating that the dish originated south of the Border and was later copied from English books. Ms Brown, whose findings feature in a TV documentary broadcast this week, said: "It was originally an English dish. In 1615, Gervase Markham says... |
|
|
|
| Early America | |
|
|
|
| North Carolina says "No Thanks" to Constitution 4 August 1788 (Vanity) |
|
|
· 08/04/2009 3:07:39 AM PDT · · Posted by Jacquerie · · 2 replies · 224+ views · · North Carolina History Project · · unknown · · unknown · |
These men distrusted the central government and believed states' rights best protected individual liberties. After debating for eleven days, it became clear that the Constitution would not be ratified in North Carolina. |
|
|
|
| The Framers | |
|
|
|
| the 25th Amendment |
|
|
· 08/03/2009 7:27:17 PM PDT · · Posted by SunkenCiv · · 10 replies · 270+ views · · Constitution of the United States, via FindLaw et al · · proposed July 6, 1965 · · ratified February 10, 1967 · · The Framers et al · |
Section 1. : In case of the removal of the President from office or of his death or resignation, the Vice President shall become President. Section 2. : Whenever there is a vacancy in the office of the Vice President, the President shall nominate a Vice President who shall take office upon confirmation by a majority vote of both Houses of Congress. Section 3. : Whenever the President transmits to the President pro tempore of the Senate and the Speaker of the House of Representatives his written declaration that he is unable to discharge the powers and duties of his... |
|
|
|
| The Civil War | |
|
|
|
| This Day In Civil War History August 2, 1865 CSS Shenandoah learns the war is over |
|
|
· 08/02/2009 8:47:18 AM PDT · · Posted by mainepatsfan · · 7 replies · 420+ views · · History Channel · |
August 2, 1865 CSS Shenandoah learns the war is over The captain and crew of the C.S.S. Shenandoah, still prowling the waters of the Pacific in search of Yankee whaling ships, is finally informed by a British vessel that the South has lost the war. The Shenandoah was the last major Confederate cruiser to set sail. Launched as a British vessel in September 1863, it was purchased by the Confederates and commissioned in October 1864. The 230-foot-long craft was armed with eight large guns and a crew of 73 sailors. Commanded by Captain James I. Waddell, the Shenandoah steered toward... |
|
|
|
| Epigraphy and Language | |
|
|
|
| Computers unlock more secrets of the mysterious Indus Valley script |
|
|
· 08/03/2009 2:59:07 PM PDT · · Posted by decimon · · 14 replies · 547+ views · · University of Washington · · Aug. 3, 2009 · · Hannah Hickey · |
Four-thousand years ago, an urban civilization lived and traded on what is now the border between Pakistan and India. During the past century, thousands of artifacts bearing hieroglyphics left by this prehistoric people have been discovered. Today, a team of Indian and American researchers are using mathematics and computer science to try to piece together information about the still-unknown script. The team led by a University of Washington researcher has used computers to extract patterns in ancient Indus symbols. The study, published this week in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, shows distinct patterns in the symbols'... |
|
|
|
| Ancient Autopsies | |
|
|
|
| 4,500-Year-Old Skeleton Found on Italian Beach |
|
|
· 08/02/2009 9:05:41 AM PDT · · Posted by Doogle · · 38 replies · 1,036+ views · · FOX NEWS · · 08/02/09 · · FOX · |
A well-preserved 4,500-year-old skeleton of a man was found on a beach south of Rome, Italian police told Reuters. The man is believed to be a warrior killed by an arrow in the chest, Reuters reported. Six small vases were also found buried near the man. |
|
|
|
| Prehistory and Origins | |
|
|
|
| World's oldest map: Spanish cave has landscape from 14,000 years ago |
|
|
· 08/06/2009 5:51:58 AM PDT · · Posted by decimon · · 51 replies · 856+ views · · Telegraph · · Aug. 6, 2009 · · Fiona Govan · |
Archaeologists have discovered what they believe is man's earliest map, dating from almost 14,000 years ago Photo: EPA A stone tablet found in a cave in Abauntz in the Navarra region of northern Spain is believed to contain the earliest known representation of a landscape. Engravings on the stone, which measures less than seven inches by five inches, and is less than an inch thick, appear to depict mountains, meandering rivers and areas of good foraging and hunting. |
|
|
|
| Helix, Make Mine a Double | |
|
|
|
| Dog domestication likely started in N. Africa |
|
|
· 08/03/2009 6:19:19 PM PDT · · Posted by decimon · · 15 replies · 284+ views · · Discovery · · Aug 3, 2009 · · Jennifer Viegas · |
A Basenji is a dog breed indigenous to sub-Saharan Africa. Humans might have first domesticated dogs from wolves in Africa, with Egypt being one possibility, since wolves are native to that region. Modern humans originated in Africa, and now it looks like man's best friend first emerged there too. An extensive genetic study on the ancestry of African village dogs points to a Eurasian -- possibly North African -- origin for the domestication of dogs. Prior research concluded that dogs likely originated in East Asia. However, this latest study, the most thorough investigation ever on the ancestry of African village... |
|
|
|
| Getting to be Hobbit | |
|
|
|
| Humans, Flores 'hobbits' existed together: study |
|
|
· 08/03/2009 6:38:16 PM PDT · · Posted by BGHater · · 11 replies · 472+ views · · ABC News · · 02 Aug 2009 · · David Mark · |
They were just one metre tall with very long arms, no chins, wrist bones like gorillas and extremely long feet. In 2003, archaeologists excavating in a cave on the Indonesian island of Flores made a discovery that forced scientists to completely rethink conventional theories of human evolution. They reported the discovery of a new species of human, one that lived as recently as 12,000 years ago, at the same time as modern humans. But others disagreed, arguing the one-metre-high skeleton was a modern human that suffered from a deformity known as microcephaly. The debate has raged ever since. But Debbie... |
|
|
|
| Morphology | |
|
|
|
| Fossil is 'earliest tree-dweller' [ Suminia getmanovi ] |
|
|
· 08/04/2009 1:40:23 PM PDT · · Posted by SunkenCiv · · 5 replies · 213+ views · · BBC · · Wednesday, July 29, 2009 · · Victoria Gill · |
A 260-million-year-old fossil is the oldest known tree-dwelling creature, according to researchers. Scientists described the finding as the earliest evidence in the fossil record of an "opposable thumb"... they described how the animal's elongated hands and fingers would have helped it to grip and climb... The fossilised creature, named Suminia getmanovi, has been dated to late Permian period, 100 million years earlier than the first known tree-dwelling mammal. It was first discovered in Russia in 1994. But for lead author Jorg Frobisch, from the Field Museum in Chicago, US, said this study was the first opportunity to examine its whole... |
|
|
|
| Paleontology | |
|
|
|
| Pterosaur features defy comparison |
|
|
· 08/05/2009 5:22:00 AM PDT · · Posted by decimon · · 16 replies · 455+ views · · Discovery News · · Aug. 5, 2009 · · Jennifer Viegas · |
A well-preserved pterosaur with soft tissues reveals this flying reptile had hair, claws and wings that were unlike anything seen on today's living animals, suggests a new paper. Analysis of the remains, which date to around 140 to 130 million years ago, indicate pterosaurs were warm-blooded insect eaters that may have lived in trees and possessed sophisticated flying skills. "Pterosaurs are unique in their bone construction and our study also shows that some of the soft tissues of these creatures differ from anything known today," says study author Dr Alexander Kellner. |
| Was T. rex a chicken and baby killer? |
|
|
· 08/07/2009 4:31:02 PM PDT · · Posted by decimon · · 13 replies · 234+ views · · Live Science · · Aug. 7, 2009 · · Charles Q. Choi · |
Although past research has suggested Tyrannosaurus rex was related to chickens, now findings hint this giant predator might have acted chicken too. Instead of picking on dinosaurs its own size, researchers now suggest T. rex was a baby killer that liked to swallow defenseless prey whole. Fossil evidence of attacks of tyrannosaurs or similar gargantuan "theropods" on triceratops and duck-billed dinosaurs has been uncovered before, conjuring images of titanic clashes. |
|
|
|
| World War Eleven | |
|
|
|
| Amelia Earhart Mystery Solved? 'Investigation Junkies' to Launch New Expedition |
|
|
· 07/30/2009 10:33:38 AM PDT · · Posted by BGHater · · 12 replies · 1,013+ views · · ABC · · 27 June 2009 · · CHRISTINA CARON · |
DNA Evidence on a Remote Island May Reveal the Truth About Earhart's Disappearance It has been 72 years since famed aviator Amelia Earhart and navigator Fred Noonan disappeared while attempting to fly around the world. But the mystery remains unsolved: Nobody knows exactly what happened to Earhart or her plane. Now researchers at the International Group for Historic Aircraft Recovery, or Tighar, say they are on the verge of recovering DNA evidence that would demonstrate Earhart had been stranded on Nikumaroro Island (formerly known as Gardner Island) before finally perishing there. During May and June of next year, Tighar will... |
|
|
|
| Longer Perspectives | |
|
|
|
| Reassessing The Causes [Gulf of Tonkin incident not the real start] |
|
|
· 08/02/2009 7:06:37 AM PDT · · Posted by verity · · 2 replies · 272+ views · · The Washington Times · · August 2, 2009 · · Robert F. Turner · |
Today marks the 45th anniversary of a 1964 attack by North Vietnamese P-4 torpedo boats upon the American destroyer USS Maddox in international waters in the Gulf of Tonkin. The incident remains shrouded by confusion and misinformation and continues to be misperceived by many as the reason America went to war in Vietnam. Today may be a useful time to set the record straight. First, contrary to popular belief, the Aug. 2 attack definitely did occur. No less an authority than Gen. Vo Nguyen Giap -- North Vietnam's defense minister at the time -- admitted so in a 1995 meeting... |
|
|
|
| Thoroughly Modern Miscellany | |
|
|
|
| Iraq Invades Kuwait 19 Years Ago Today - Video 8/2/1990 |
|
|
· 08/02/2009 5:24:15 AM PDT · · Posted by Federalist Patriot · · 5 replies · 218+ views · · Freedom's Lighthouse · · August 2, 2009 · · BrianinMO · |
Here is a brief video report on the August 2, 1990 Iraq invasion of neighboring Kuwait, 19 years ago today. Iraq invaded using over 100,000 troops and 700 tanks. The invasion led to the First Gulf War in which a coalition of nations - led by the United States - drove Iraq out of Kuwait. Below is part of a speech by President George H.W. Bush to a Joint Session of Congress on September 11, 1990, in which he demanded that Iraq withdraw immediately and unconditionally from Kuwait. . . . . . |
|
|
|
| Pages | |
|
|
|
| What Are You Reading Now? - My (Belated) Quarterly Survey |
|
|
· 07/29/2009 7:23:00 AM PDT · · Posted by MplsSteve · · 166 replies · 1,423+ views · · 7/29/09 · |
Well, it's time again for my quarterly "What Are You Reading Now?" thread. I do this thread to gauge what other Freepers are reading. As all of you know, Freepers are probably some of the more well-read individuals on the Internet and I'm always curious as to what we're reading. It can be anything, a classic work of fiction, a NY Times bestseller, a technical journal, a trashy pulp novel...in short anything. Please do not ruin this thread by replying "I'm reading this thread". It become un-funny a long time ago. I'll start. I'm about halfway thru "The Horrid Pit:... |
|
|
|
| Kindling | |
|
|
|
| Free Book Downloads For Constitutional Originalists - Emmerich de Vattel |
|
|
· 08/05/2009 10:18:45 AM PDT · · Posted by RegulatorCountry · · 4 replies · 149+ views · · archive.org · · Various, 1758 - Present · · Emmerich de Vattel · Joeseph Chitty · Edward Duncan Ingraham · Sam C. Miller · |
Notes of a Course of Lectures on Vattel's Law of Nations (1891)The law of nations; or, Principles of the law of nature, applied to the conduct and affairs of nations and sovereigns. From the French of Monsieur de Vattel ... From the new ed. (1855) Author: Vattel, Emer de, 1714-1767; Chitty, Joseph, 1776-1841, ed; Ingraham, Edward D. (Edward Duncan), 1793-1854, ed Subject: International law; War (International law) Publisher:... |
| Free Book Downloads For Constitutional Originalists - Gottfried Wilhelm Leibnitz |
|
|
· 08/05/2009 10:39:41 AM PDT · · Posted by RegulatorCountry · · 12 replies · 205+ views · · archive.org · · 1717 · · Gottfried Wilhelm Leibniz & Samuel Clarke · |
A Collection of Papers, which Passed Between the Late Learned Mr. Leibnitz ... (1717) Author: Samuel Clarke , Gottfried Wilhelm Leibniz Publisher: printed for James Knapton Year: 1717 Possible copyright status: NOT_IN_COPYRIGHT Language: English Digitizing sponsor: Google Book contributor: Oxford University Collection: europeanlibraries Notes: A gentleman of the University of Cambridge = John Bulkeley |
| Free Book Downloads For Constitutional Originalists - William Blackstone |
|
|
· 08/05/2009 10:57:53 AM PDT · · Posted by RegulatorCountry · · 4 replies · 209+ views · · archive.org · · Various · · William Blackstone · · William Cyrus Sprague · · Robert Malcolm Kerr · |
Blackstone's Commentaries Author: William Blackstone, William Cyrus Sprague: Abridgment of Blackstone's Commentaries (1893); An interesting appendix to Sir William Blackstone's Commentaries on the laws of England (MDCCLXXIII [1773]) Author: Blackstone, William, Sir, 1723-1780; Blackstone, William, Sir, 1723-1780; Priestley, Joseph, 1733-1804; Blackstone, William, Sir, 1723-1780; Priestley,... |
|
|
|
| Oh So Mysteriouso | |
|
|
|
| Canyonitis: Seeing evidence of ancient Egypt in the Grand Canyon |
|
|
· 08/04/2009 5:39:04 PM PDT · · Posted by BGHater · · 37 replies · 767+ views · · Philip Coppens · · 04 Aug 2009 · · Philip Coppens · |
Is there, within the Grand Canyon, an enigmatic system of tunnels that is evidence of an ancient Egyptian voyage to America? Is it all bogus? Or is the truth most likely somewhere in between? On April 5, 1909, a front page story in the Arizona Gazette reported on an archaeological expedition in the heart of the Grand Canyon funded by the Smithsonian Institute, which had resulted in the discovery of Egyptian artefacts. April 5 is close to April 1 -- but then not quite -- so perhaps the story could be true? Nothing since has been heard of this discovery. Today,... |
|
|
|
| end of digest #264 20090808 | |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
· Saturday, August 8, 2009 · 29 topics · 2311358 to 2305790 · 718 members · |
|||
Saturday |
Welcome to the 264th issue. |
||
|
|
|||
|
|
|
| Gods, Graves, Glyphs Weekly Digest #265 Saturday, August 15, 2009 |
|
|
|
|
| For Those About to Rock, Fire! | |
|
|
|
| Early Human Lessons: Hot Rocks Make Sharper Tools |
|
|
· 08/13/2009 6:28:59 PM PDT · · Posted by BGHater · · 8 replies · · 290+ views · · NPR · · 14 Aug 2009 · · Christopher Joyce · |
So, it's the southern tip of Africa, about 70,000 years ago, and some humans have built a fire. Maybe it's to keep warm, or to cook up some gazelle steaks. To kill time, they do a little flint knapping -- whacking one rock with another to chip off razor-sharp flakes. They use the flakes to cut meat or make spear points. After the fire dies down, someone drags a big stone out of the embers and tries whacking that, and discovers that it makes really good flakes: it chips predictably and the flakes are symmetrical and sharp. Eureka -- pyroengineering... |
|
|
|
| Homo Erectus | |
|
|
|
| Evidence for Use of Fire Found at Peking Man Site |
|
|
· 08/12/2009 12:16:08 PM PDT · · Posted by decimon · · 16 replies · · 223+ views · · CRIENGLISH.com · · Aug 11, 2009 · · Unknown · |
Archaeologists have discovered several vertebrate fossils, ashes, burned bones and charcoal remnants at the Zhoukoudian caves, also known as the "Peking Man" site, China News Service reported on Monday. The discovery proves that Peking man was able to use fire roughly 200-000 to 500,000 years ago, the article said. Many foreign experts once cast doubt on whether Peking Man could use fire at that time, because in past decades they found no direct evidence for its use. The recent archaeological discoveries directly refute their doubts, the article said. |
|
|
|
| Neandertal / Neanderthal | |
|
|
|
| Neanderthals wouldn't have eaten their sprouts either |
|
|
· 08/12/2009 11:42:29 AM PDT · · Posted by decimon · · 29 replies · · 361+ views · · PhysOrg.com · · August 12th, 2009 · · Denholm Barnetson · |
They have found that a gene in modern humans that makes some people dislike a bitter chemical called phenylthiocarbamide, or PTC, was also present in Neanderthals hundreds of thousands of years ago. The scientists made the discovery after recovering and sequencing a fragment of the TAS2R38 gene taken from 48,000-year-old Neanderthal bones found at a site in El Sidron, in northern Spain, they said in a report released Wednesday by the Spanish National Research Council (CSIC). "This indicates that variation in bitter taste perception predates the divergence of the lineages leading to Neanderthals and modern humans," they said. Substances similar... |
|
|
|
| Pages | |
|
|
|
| Restating the case for human uniqueness |
|
|
· 08/10/2009 9:27:31 AM PDT · · Posted by AreaMan · · 8 replies · · 271+ views · · Spiked Online · · Summer 2009 · · Helene Guldberg · |
A brilliant new book cuts through all the media-oriented research about "clever chimps' using tools, doing maths and feeling emotions, and reminds us that, in truth, there is nothing remotely human about primates.Helene Guldberg Not a Chimp: The Hunt to Find the Genes That Make Us Human is a refreshing defence of human uniqueness. "We are a truly exceptional primate with minds that are genuinely discontinuous to other animals', Jeremy Taylor writes. The first half of Not a Chimp challenges "the basis... |
|
|
|
| Biology and Cryptobiology | |
|
|
|
| Extinct Walking Bat Found; Upends Evolutionary Theory |
|
|
· 08/11/2009 6:05:10 AM PDT · · Posted by JoeProBono · · 29 replies · · 721+ views · · nationalgeographic · · August 7, 2009 · · Carolyn Barry · |
A walking bat in New Zealand took its marching orders from an ancestor, a new fossil-bat discovery reveals. Scientists had long thought that the lesser short-tailed bat evolved its walking preference independently. Since the bat's native habitat lacks predators, researchers reasoned that -- much like flightless birds on isolated islands -- the bat had adapted to its safer surroundings in part by walking. But the discovery of fossils of a now extinct walking bat in northwestern Queensland, Australia, suggests that the modern-day bats descended from 20-million-year-old Australian relatives. "We were amazed to find they were virtually identical to the bats in New Zealand today,"... |
|
|
|
| Longer Perspectives | |
|
|
|
| Must Science Declare a Holy War on Religion? |
|
|
· 08/11/2009 1:05:47 PM PDT · · Posted by nickcarraway · · 56 replies · · 516+ views · · Los Angeles Times · · August 11, 2009 · · Chris Mooney and Sheril Kirshenbaum · |
The so-called New Atheists are attacking the mantra of science and faith being compatible. Others in the science community question the value of confrontation.This fall, evolutionary biologist and bestselling author Richard Dawkins -- most recently famous for his public exhortation to atheism, "The God Delusion" -- returns to writing about science. Dawkins' new book, "The Greatest Show on Earth," will inform and regale us with the stunning "evidence for evolution," as the subtitle says. It will surely be an impressive display, as Dawkins excels at making the case for evolution. But it's also fair to ask: Who in the United... |
|
|
|
| Thoroughly Modern Miscellany | |
|
|
|
| Does Obama Need to Appoint a History Czar? |
|
|
· 08/10/2009 7:42:07 PM PDT · · Posted by jim byrd · · 16 replies · · 283+ views · · jimbyrd.com · · 08/01/2009 · · jim byrd · |
Stupidly. If "stupidly" were an industry, the Obama administration and the Democrat Party leaders in Congress would be in violation of the Sherman Antitrust Act. It is apparent, in the past six months, that Obama and Congress are in league to acquire a monopolistic consortium on "stupidly." Obama and the Democrat Congress have validated, with absolute certainty, that they have, in tandem, stupidly interpreted the Constitution and possess a stupidly unsophisticated aptitude for economics; Obama continues to brandish his nugatory knowledge of history. |
|
|
|
| Let's Have Jerusalem | |
|
|
|
| Alleged Discovery of "Real' Mt. Sinai Could Change the Middle East Forever |
|
|
· 08/14/2009 4:02:47 PM PDT · · Posted by AJKauf · · 48 replies · · 1,870+ views · · Pajamas Media · · August 14 · · Ryan Mauro · |
It may be the biggest archaeological discovery to date, but it is also the most dangerous. In an adventure story rivaling an Indiana Jones movie, Bob Cornuke and Larry Williams snuck into Saudi Arabia to investigate whether the Wahhabist home of Mecca and Medina is also home to one of the holiest sites in Judaism and Christianity: Mt. Sinai. They have each written page-turning books about their story. Dr. Lennart Moller, a Swedish scientist, has gone one step further, writing a must-read book full of images and scientific analysis titled The Exodus Case, which puts together the stunning evidence that... |
|
|
|
| Egypt | |
|
|
|
| Cave Complex Allegedly Found Under Giza Pyramids |
|
|
· 08/14/2009 10:09:21 AM PDT · · Posted by LibWhacker · · 15 replies · · 825+ views · · Vorchester · · Discovery News · · 8/13/09 · · Rossella Lorenzi · |
An enormous system of caves, chambers and tunnels lies hidden beneath the Pyramids of Giza, according to a British explorer who claims to have found the lost underworld of the pharaohs. Populated by bats and venomous spiders, the underground complex was found in the limestone bedrock beneath the pyramid field at Giza. "There is untouched archaeology down there, as well as a delicate ecosystem that includes colonies of bats and a species of spider which we have tentatively identified as the white widow," British explorer Andrew Collins said. Collins, who will detail his findings in the... |
|
|
|
| Epigraphy and Language | |
|
|
|
| University of Toronto archaeologists find...cuneiform tablets in 2,700-year old Turkish temple |
|
|
· 08/10/2009 9:49:19 AM PDT · · Posted by decimon · · 19 replies · · 453+ views · · University of Toronto · · August 7, 2009 · · Unknown · |
Excavations led by a University of Toronto archaeologist at the site of a recently discovered temple in southeastern Turkey have uncovered a cache of cuneiform tablets dating back to the Iron Age period between 1200 and 600 BCE. Found in the temple's cella, or "holy of holies', the tablets are part of a possible archive that may provide insights into Assyrian imperial aspirations. The assemblage appears to represent a Neo-Assyrian renovation of an older Neo-Hittite temple complex, providing a rare glimpse into the religious... |
|
|
|
| Anatolia | |
|
|
|
| Ancient people also complained about exorbitant taxes |
|
|
· 08/11/2009 5:51:12 AM PDT · · Posted by BGHater · · 19 replies · · 325+ views · · Today's Zaman · · 11 Aug 2009 · · TZ · |
Inscriptions revealing complaints about high taxes from 1,700 years ago have been found during the excavation of the ancient city of Rhodiapolis in Antalya's Kumluca district. The excavation was started by Professor Nevzat Çevik, head of the archaeology department in Akdeniz University's faculty of science and literature, and led this year by Assistant Professor Isa Kızgut. Kızgut told the Anatolia news agency that they made interesting discoveries concerning the social life of the people of Rhodiapolis. Noting that one of the most interesting discoveries was an inscription, Kızgut said: "In addition to many historical artifacts, we uncovered some relics concerning... |
|
|
|
| British Isles | |
|
|
|
| 9,000-year-old house reveals Stone Age lifestyle |
|
|
· 08/11/2009 5:44:59 PM PDT · · Posted by decimon · · 45 replies · · 811+ views · · Discovery News · · Aug 11, 2009 · · Jennifer Viegas · |
The remains of a 9,000-year-old hunter-gatherers' house, uncovered during construction at an airport, have been unearthed in Great Britain's Isle of Man. The house was surrounded by buried mounds of burnt hazelnut shells and stocked with stone tools, according to archaeologists working on the project and a report in the latest British Archaeology. It is the earliest known complete house on the Isle of Man and one of Britain's oldest and best-preserved houses, according to the report. The find also offers a glimpse of domestic life 4,000 before Stonehenge. |
|
|
|
| Diet and Cuisine | |
|
|
|
| London's earliest timber structure found during Belmarsh prison dig |
|
|
· 08/12/2009 10:15:16 AM PDT · · Posted by decimon · · 4 replies · · 220+ views · · University College London · · Aug 12, 2009 · · Unknown · |
London's oldest timber structure has been unearthed by archaeologists from Archaeology South-East (part of the Institute of Archaeology at UCL). It was found during the excavation of a prehistoric peat bog adjacent to Belmarsh Prison in Plumstead, Greenwich, in advance of the construction of a new prison building. Radiocarbon dating has shown the structure to be nearly 6,000 years old and it predates Stonehenge by more than 500 years. Jacobs Engineering UK Ltd acted as the managing consultants, on behalf of the Ministry of Justice, and the work was facilitated by Interserve Project Services Ltd. The structure consisted of a... |
|
|
|
| Precolumbian, Clovis, and PreClovis | |
|
|
|
| Human sacrifice! Archaeologist creates stir with new book on Cahokia Mounds |
|
|
· 08/10/2009 2:41:39 PM PDT · · Posted by BGHater · · 31 replies · · 645+ views · · BND · · 9 Aug 2009 · · George Pawlaczyk · |
Human sacrifice! Victims buried alive! Read all about it in "Cahokia -- Ancient America's Great City on the Mississippi." According to this new book by University of Illinois archaeologist and professor of anthropology Tim Pauketat, the mound builders were not always the idyllic, corn-growing, pottery-making, fishing-hunting gentle villagers depicted in various dioramas at the Cahokia Mounds State Historic Site in Collinsville. Pauketat said these long-vanished people practiced human sacrifice of women and men on a mass scale and weren't always careful to bury only the dead. Based on years of study of artifacts including many from the extensive... |
|
|
|
| Early America | |
|
|
|
| Crews Accidentally Remove Part Of NY's Oldest Fort (Environmentalism Destroys) |
|
|
· 08/14/2009 7:55:17 PM PDT · · Posted by nickcarraway · · 33 replies · · 896+ views · · New York Post · · August 14, 2009 · |
Crews dredging PCBs from the Hudson River on Friday ripped away remnants of what was once Britain's largest fort in Colonial America, a mistake that incensed local officials who had feared the cleanup project would damage such relics in the area. Neal Orsini said he was awoken around 4 a.m. by the sound of dredging along his riverside property in Fort Edward, 45 miles north of Albany. Orsini said he later discovered that the dredgers had torn out the riverbank, along with two wooden beams that had been part of the original fort's waterfront bastion. A third beam was later... |
|
|
|
| Australia and the Pacific | |
|
|
|
| Mystery Ends in Australia WWII Disaster |
|
|
· 08/12/2009 9:25:57 PM PDT · · Posted by nickcarraway · · 16 replies · · 967+ views · · CNN · · 8/13/09 · |
The Australian cruiser met the disguised German vessel in the waters off western Australia two years after the two became enemies in World War II. The Australian ship approached, trying to determine whether the vessel was friendly. It wasn't. What resulted was Australia's worst naval disaster: the sinking of the Australian ship and the loss of its entire crew of 645. The wreckage wasn't found until last year, leading to decades of conspiracy theories about what actually happened. On Wednesday a long-awaited report on the sinking of the Sydney II ended the mystery that began when it met its fate,... |
|
|
|
| World War Eleven | |
|
|
|
| Man in Sierra Vista is last living survivor of little-known pre-World War II attack on a U.S. ship |
|
|
· 12/30/2007 7:02:34 AM PST · · Posted by SandRat · · 10 replies · · 554+ views · · Sierra Vista Herald /Bisbee Review · · Ted Morris · |
Four years before Pearl Harbor was attacked, a local man sailed on a U.S. Navy ship that was bombed and sunk by Imperial Japanese warplanes. The incident happened on Dec. 13, 1937, as the USS Panay was evacuating U.S. embassy personnel from Nanking, China's capital of that era. It was a city under siege whose downfall became the infamous Rape of Nanking. The Panay was a gunboat that belonged to the U.S. Asiatic Fleet, whose 1930s peacetime mission included protection of American lives and property from pirates along the lawless Yangtze River, under a treaty with the... |
|
|
|
| A Vegan's Worst Nightmare | |
|
|
|
| Giant 'meat-eating' plant found |
|
|
· 08/11/2009 8:19:34 AM PDT · · Posted by JoeProBono · · 25 replies · · 1,402+ views · · .bbc · · 11 August 2009 · · Matt Walker · |
A new species of giant carnivorous plant has been discovered in the highlands of the central Philippines. The pitcher plant is among the largest of all pitchers and is so big that it can catch rats and well as insects in its leafy trap. During the same expedition, botanists also came across strange pink ferns and blue mushrooms they could not identify. The botanists have named the pitcher plant after British natural history broadcaster David Attenborough. |
|
|
|
| Middle Ages and Renaissance | |
|
|
|
| For a Rare Discarded Harp, a Chance to Sing Again |
|
|
· 08/10/2009 7:20:31 AM PDT · · Posted by BGHater · · 39 replies · · 710+ views · · The New York Times · · 9 Aug 2009 · · COLIN MOYNIHAN · |
To a certain type of New Yorker, every dumpster is a potential treasure chest,right up there with thrift stores and stoop sales. But if the scavenger gods offer only a finite number of prizes, Julie Finch might have claimed one of them. Last month Ms. Finch stood on her toes to peer into the Dumpster outside her building on West 26th Street and found a blue wooden harp distinguished mainly by caked layers of grime and dust and a snarl of broken strings. "It was this old thing with wires going in all directions," she said."It didn't look like anything anybody... |
|
|
|
| Underwater Archaeology | |
|
|
|
| Secrets of the Tang Treasure Ship |
|
|
· 08/09/2009 5:51:07 AM PDT · · Posted by decimon · · 25 replies · · 707+ views · · Taipei Times · · Aug 08, 2009 · · Unknown · |
Over 1,100 years ago, an international crew of men set sail on a perilous journey. They are returning home from Tang Dynasty China with rare ceramics and gold, created by ninth-century Chinese craftsmen, desired by the rest of the world. For centuries, China has traded with the West over land, via the Silk Road. They traveled safely from the Middle East, all the way to China. But on their return voyage, they made a fateful decision. Here, off the coast of Indonesia, the reef-filled waters are so deadly that ancient sailors called the area the Treacherous Bay. Tilman Walterfang was... |
|
|
|
| The Framers | |
|
|
|
| the 26th Amendment |
|
|
· 08/10/2009 6:43:31 AM PDT · · Posted by SunkenCiv · · 10 replies · · 339+ views · · Constitution of the United States via FindLaw et al · · proposed March 23, 1971 · · certified July 7, 1971 · · The Framers et al · |
Section 1: The right of citizens of the United States, who are eighteen years of age or older, to vote shall not be denied or abridged by the United States or by any State on account of age. Section 2: The Congress shall have power to enforce this article by appropriate legislation. |
|
|
|
| end of digest #265 20090815 | |
|
|
|
