[SunkenCiv]

Gods, Graves, Glyphs Weekly Digest #224 Saturday, November 1, 2008
Prehistory and Origins
Humans made fire 790,000 years ago: study
	10/28/2008 7:53:10 PM PDT · Posted by SunkenCiv · 27 replies · 480+ views Reuters, via Yahoo! | Sunday, October 26, 2008 | Ari Rabinovitch, ed by Alastair Macdonald A new study shows that humans had the ability to make fire nearly 790,000 years ago, a skill that helped them migrate from Africa to Europe. By analyzing flints at an archaeological site on the bank of the river Jordan, researchers at Israel's Hebrew University discovered that early civilizations had learned to light fires, a turning point that allowed them to venture into unknown lands. A previous study of the site published in 2004 showed that man had been able to control fire -- for example transferring it by means of burning branches -- in that early time period. But...
Helix, Make Mine a Double
Genome-Wide Analysis of Single Nucleotide Polymorphisms Uncovers Population Structure in No. Europe
	10/30/2008 2:00:48 PM PDT · Posted by SunkenCiv · 22 replies · 500+ views PLoS ONE | October 24, 2008 | Salmela E, Lappalainen T, Fransson I, Andersen PM, Dahlman-Wright K, et al. Principal Findings In this study, we analysed almost 250,000 SNPs from a total of 945 samples from Eastern and Western Finland, Sweden, Northern Germany and Great Britain complemented with HapMap data. Small but statistically significant differences were observed between the European populations (FST = 0.0040, p<10-4), also between Eastern and Western Finland (FST = 0.0032, p<10-3). The latter indicated the existence of a relatively strong autosomal substructure within the country, similar to that observed earlier with smaller numbers of markers. The Germans and British were less differentiated than the Swedes, Western Finns and especially the Eastern Finns who also showed...
Neandertal / Neanderthal
Why did Neanderthals have such big noses?
	10/28/2008 7:45:29 PM PDT · Posted by SunkenCiv · 38 replies · 650+ views New Scientist | October 27, 2008 | Ewen Callaway The traditional answer has been that Neanderthals have a big nose because they have a big mouth and a wide jaw, useful for ripping apart tough food, says Nathan Holton, a paleoanthropologist at the University of Iowa. Why, then, do Neanderthals have faces that jut further out than humans? "They had them because earlier hominids had them," Houlton says. He laments the tendency of some anthropologists to "atomise the body", and explain each of its part as an exquisite adaptation to an environment. Selection for strong jaws and teeth has been a favourite explanation for other Neanderthal facial features, as...
Ancient Autopsies
Ancient iceman probably has no modern relatives
	10/30/2008 2:49:25 PM PDT · Posted by MissCalico · 27 replies · 538+ views Yahoo News | October, 30, 2008 | Reporting by Michael Kahn An undated handout file photo shows "Otzi", Italy's prehistoric iceman. -- "Otzi," Italy's prehistoric iceman, probably does not have any modern day descendants, according to a study published Thursday. A team of Italian and British scientists who sequenced his mitochondrial DNA -- which is passed down through the mother's line -- found that Otzi belonged to a genetic lineage that is either extremely rare or has died out. Otzi's 5,300-year-old corpse was found frozen in the Tyrolean Alps in...
Scientists believe 5,300-year-old mummified 'ice man' belonged to unknown branch of human fam. tree
	10/31/2008 10:15:15 AM PDT · Posted by BGHater · 21 replies · 815+ views Daily Mail | 31 Oct 2008 | Daily Mail A 5,300-year-old mummified 'ice man' unearthed in the Alps belonged to a previously unknown branch of the human family tree, scientists have discovered. No trace of the lineage appears to remain today, meaning that the 'ice man' - dubbed 'Oetzi' - is unlikely to have any descendants. Oetzi's mummified remains were found in September 1991 in the Eastern Alps near the Austro-Italian border. The 5,300-year-old remains of Oetzi the iceman. Scientists have failed to trace his lineage, fearing his family may have become extinct He was about 46 years old when he met his violent death. Examinations revealed that he...
Epidemics, Pandemics, Plagues, the Sniffles
Egyptian Mummies Yield Earliest Evidence of Malaria
	10/28/2008 8:03:16 PM PDT · Posted by SunkenCiv · 7 replies · 120+ views Discovery News | Thursday, October 23, 2008 | Rossella Lorenzi Two Egyptian mummies who died more than 3,500 years ago have provided clear evidence for the earliest known cases of malaria, according to a study presented this week in Naples at an international conference on ancient DNA. Pathologist Andreas Nerlich and colleagues at the Academic Teaching Hospital Munchen-Bogenhausen in Munich, Germany, studied 91 bone tissue samples from ancient Egyptian mummies and skeletons dating from 3500 to 500 B.C. Using special techniques from molecular biology, such as DNA amplification and gene sequencing, the researchers identified ancient DNA for the malaria parasite Plasmodium falciparum in tissues from two mummies... Caused by four...
Oldest Malarial Mummies Shed Light on Disease Evolution
	10/30/2008 11:08:48 AM PDT · Posted by Soliton · 6 replies · 108+ views National Geographic | October 30, 2008 | Andrew Bossone The oldest known cases of malaria have been discovered in two 3,500-year-old Egyptian mummies, scientists announced. Researchers in Germany studied bone tissue samples from more than 90 mummies found in the ancient Egyptian city of Thebes, now called Luxor. Two adult mummies from separate tombs had tissues containing ancient DNA from a parasite known to cause malaria, the researchers announced at a conference last week. In addition, a separate team at University College London recently found that a pair of 9,000-year-old skeletons -- a woman and a baby -- discovered off the coast of Israel were infected with the oldest known cases of tuberculosis...
Let's Have Jerusalem
Jordan copper mines from biblical times could be King Solomon's
	10/27/2008 5:24:51 PM PDT · Posted by BGHater · 13 replies · 453+ views Times Online | 28 Oct 2008 | Mark Henderson An ancient copper works in Jordan may have been the location of the fabled King Solomon's mines, new archaeological investigations suggest. The dig at Khirbat al-Nahas, once a thriving copper production centre in the Faynan district, about 30 miles (50km) south of the Dead Sea, has found evidence that it dates back to the 10th century BC, making it at least two centuries older than was thought. The new date means that the mine was almost certainly active during the time of the biblical Jewish kings David and Solomon. Scientists who conducted the excavations are now working to establish whether...
Archeologists 'find King Solomon's mines'
	10/28/2008 5:24:34 PM PDT · Posted by BuckeyeTexan · 19 replies · 1,267+ views heraldsun.com | 10/29/2008 In a discovery straight out of an Indiana Jones movie, archeologists believe they have uncovered one of the lost mines of King Solomon. The vast copper mine lies in an arid valley in modern-day Jordan and was created in the 10th century BC - around the time Solomon is believed to have ruled over the ancient Hebrews. The mines are enormous and would have generated a huge income for the king, who is famed for bringing extraordinary wealth and stability to the newly united kingdom of Israel and Judah. The announcement will reopen the debate about how much of the...
Faith and Philosophy
'2,000-year-old Jesus box' may not be a fake, as Jerusalem forgery trial nears collapses
	10/29/2008 7:42:25 PM PDT · Posted by BGHater · 63 replies · 1,155+ views Daily Mail | 30 Oct 2008 | Daily Mail A judge is set to throw out charges against experts accused of faking a stone box that claimed to offer the first physical proof of the existence of Christ - raising the possibility once again that it could be genuine. The discovery of the 2,000-year-old ossuary, or bone box, bearing the words, 'James, son of Joseph, brother of Jesus', was regarded as one of the greatest archaeological discoveries when it emerged nearly a decade ago. Fake or genuine: Men accused of forging an inscription of the 'Jesus Box' could be released The disputed inscription on the 'Jesus Box' But other...
Longer Perspectives
'Oldest Hebrew writing found near J'lem'
	10/30/2008 5:07:10 AM PDT · Posted by SJackson · 12 replies · 459+ views Jerusalem Post | 10-30-08 An Israeli archaeologist digging at a hilltop south of Jerusalem believes a ceramic shard found in the ruins of an ancient town bears the oldest Hebrew inscription ever discovered, a find that could provide an important glimpse into the culture and language of the Holy Land at the time of the Bible. The five lines of faded characters written 3,000 years ago, and the ruins of the fortified settlement where they were found, are indications that a powerful Israelite kingdom existed at the time of King David, says Yossi Garfinkel, the Hebrew University archaeologist in charge of the new dig...
Oldest Possibly Hebrew Inscription Possibly Found
	10/30/2008 12:48:50 PM PDT · Posted by Alex Murphy · 18 replies · 416+ views Fox News | October 30, 2008 | AP ...The five lines of faded characters written 3,000 years ago, and the ruins of the fortified settlement where they were found, are indications that a powerful Israelite kingdom existed at the time of the Old Testament's King David, says Yossi Garfinkel, the Hebrew University archaeologist in charge of the new dig at Hirbet Qeiyafa...
Archeologist finds 3,000-year old Hebrew text
	10/30/2008 6:37:54 PM PDT · Posted by george76 · 45 replies · 994+ views CNN | October 30, 2008 An Israeli archaeologist has discovered what he says is the earliest-known Hebrew text, found on a shard of pottery that dates to the time of King David from the Old Testament, about 3,000 years ago. Professor Yosef Garfinkel of the Hebrew University of Jerusalem says the inscribed pottery shard -- known as an ostracon -- was found during excavations of a fortress from the 10th century BC. Carbon dating of the ostracon, along with pottery analysis, dates the inscription to time of King David, about a millennium earlier than the famous Dead Sea Scrolls, the university said. The shard contains...
Epigraphy and Language
New archaeological discovery rewrites earliest Chinese characters dating
	10/29/2008 5:27:53 PM PDT · Posted by SunkenCiv · 10 replies · 242+ views Xinhua | Friday, October 24, 2008 | Editor: Yan Inscribed animal bones and jade pieces unearthed in Changle County of eastern Shandong Province are earliest examples of Chinese characters dating back 4,500 years ago, the latest archaeological studies show. The discovery broke the record for the previous earliest known examples of Chinese characters, the inscribed animal bones and tortoise shells, known as the oracle bones, of the Shang Dynasty (1600 BC-1100 BC), by more than 1,300 years. The oracle bones were major discoveries at the Yinxu in Anyang of central China's Henan Province... Li Laifu, the Shandong Oracle Scripts Association president, said the inscriptions may be left by the...
Rome and Italy
Treasure hunters set to coin it with Roman haul[UK]
	10/29/2008 7:16:05 PM PDT · Posted by BGHater · 16 replies · 377+ views MK News | 29 Oct 2008 | LAURA HANNAM As the credit crunch hits pensioners across the country one pair have hit the jackpot by finding buried treasure. Barrie Plasom and Dave Phillips The finders of a hoard of thousands of Roman coins agree with the words inscribed on them; 'happy times are here again'. The collection of bronze coins, which may be worth hundreds of thousands in sterling, were discovered in a field north of Newport Pagnell and have now been declared as treasure. It was discovered by a pair of experienced metal detectorists on ploughed farmland on December 1, 2006. An investigation into the find was concluded...
British Isles
Britain's 'most important archeological' discovery found in desk drawer
	10/28/2008 8:13:08 PM PDT · Posted by SunkenCiv · 3 replies · 620+ views Telegraph | Thursday, October 23, 2008 | Urmee Khan The pinhead-sized studs form an intricate pattern on the handle of a dagger, but archeologists failed to realise their significance when they excavated the burial mound in Wiltshire - known as Bush Barrow - in 1808. Now they are to be re-united with other priceless artefacts unearthed at the site and put on show at the Wiltshire Heritage Museum in Devizes after Niall Sharples, a senior lecturer at Cardiff University turned out his predecessors' desk and discovered them in a film canister labelled Bush Barrow. In the 1960s, the gold was taken away for examination by Professor Richard Atkinson, a...
The Vikings
Does ring found in field date back to Norman conquest?[UK]
	10/31/2008 10:32:14 AM PDT · Posted by BGHater · 19 replies · 530+ views The News | 31 Oct 2008 | Jeff Travis A metal detector enthusiast believes he has found a royal crown jewel buried in a field. Peter Beasley, 67, was stunned when he pulled a heavy gold ring from the ground while out with his metal detector near Petersfield. He claims the ring is 900 years old and belonged to Robert, the eldest son of William the Conquerer, whose name is engraved on the ring. Robert, known as 'Short-legs', unsuccessfully attempted to take the English throne when he landed in Portsmouth in 1101. But Mr Beasley is now involved in a dispute over the authenticity of the ring. The British...
Middle Ages and Renaissance
The Battle of Lepanto
	10/27/2008 2:08:21 PM PDT · Posted by mainestategop · 24 replies · 561+ views mainestategop blog | 10/27/08 | mainestategop This October was the 437th anniversary of a forgotten yet crucial battle in the defense of western civilization called the battle of Lepanto. It is the victory of this battle that is the reason we are living in a free nation rather than an Islamic style dictatorship. It is why we are still Christian and not Muslim. It is the reason for the existence of America as it is as a free nation. (Though now and days it is not that free.) In 1571, The Turkish Ottoman empire was the superpower of the day. On land, the armies of...
Australia and the Pacific
The real Robinson Crusoe: Archaeological island dig unearths fresh evidence of historical castaway
	10/30/2008 9:02:47 AM PDT · Posted by BGHater · 17 replies · 753+ views Daily Mail | 30 Oct 2008 | Chris Johnson The legendary literary story of Robinson Crusoe, cast away on a desert island, has captivated readers for centuries. Now archaeologists have unearthed fresh evidence about the real-life Crusoe - Scottish sailor Alexander Selkirk - who was marooned in 1704 on a small tropical island in the Pacific Ocean for more than four years. During a dig on the island of Aguas Buenas , a nautical instrument was discovered, along with proof of a campsite dwelling, thought to be used by Selkirk. The research, presented in the journal Post-Medieval Archaeology, supports contemporary record of the Scotman's existence on the island, since...
PreColumbian, Clovis, and PreClovis
Ancient Bone Tool Sheds Light on Prehistoric Midwest
	10/28/2008 8:28:30 PM PDT · Posted by SunkenCiv · 23 replies · 317+ views Newswise | Tuesday, October 21, 2008 | University of Indianapolis A prehistoric bone tool discovered by University of Indianapolis archeologists is the oldest such artifact ever documented in Indiana, the researchers say. Radiocarbon dating shows that the tool -- an awl fashioned from the leg bone of a white tail deer, with one end ground to a point -- is 10,400 years old. The find supports the growing notion that, in the wake of the most recent Ice Age, the first Hoosiers migrated northward earlier than previously thought. Sites from the Paleoindian and Early Archaic eras are more common in surrounding states such as Illinois and Ohio, which were not...
Catastrophism and Astronomy
Coast-2-Coast AM 10.29.08 Mike Heiser -Ancient Ghosts-
	10/29/2008 7:04:34 PM PDT · Posted by Perdogg · 8 replies · 261+ views C2C | 10.29.08 | Perdogg Expert in theology, biblical languages, and world civilizations, Mike Heiser will discuss ghosts & spirits in the Bible and other ancient literature.
Oh So Mysteriouso
Dateline: The ghosts of government
	10/26/2008 7:36:27 AM PDT · Posted by Pharmboy · 8 replies · 196+ views The Dallas Morning News | Sunday, October 26, 2008 | John Riley The nation's capital is awash with lawmakers, lobbyists and policy wonks. But by night, it's home to a variety of ghosts and demonic spirits, at least according to local folklore. Built on a swamp, Washington has had a long and bloody history, including being a wartime battleground. Many ghosts from the Revolutionary War, the War of 1812 and the Civil War are said to haunt the city. Some even believe the White House is haunted, with many former residents and staffers saying they've seen the ghosts of President Abraham Lincoln and former first ladies Abigail Adams and Dolley...
Large Medium, or Small?
Campaigners bid to clear the 'witch' who leaked WWII secrets about sinking battleship[UK]
	03/02/2008 10:55:54 AM PST · Posted by BGHater · 48 replies · 214+ views Daily Mail | 01 Mar 2008 | Andy Dolan When the battleship Barham was torpedoed by the Germans in November 1941, with the loss of over 800 lives, the Admiralty delayed announcing the news to maintain morale. But the secrecy was ended within a few days when medium Helen Duncan told a couple during a seance that their son, a sailor on the ship, had appeared from the spirit world to tell them it had sunk. Witch? Helen Duncan, pictured in a portrait from 1931, was jailed for nine months in 1944 under the Witchcraft Act of 1735 In one of the most bizarre acts of the Second World...
World War Eleven
Nazi Enigma Machines Helped General Franco in Spanish Civil War
	10/25/2008 2:57:39 PM PDT · Posted by kellynla · 35 replies · 796+ views timesonline | October 24, 2008 | Graham Keeley in Barcelona Sixteen crates locked in a dark store room in Madrid for more than 70 years hold the secret to how General Franco might have won the Spanish Civil War. Inside the crates are Enigma code-making machines that Franco had bought from Nazi Germany and used to co-ordinate his troops who fought on fronts hundreds of miles apart. The 26 machines were discovered this week by the Spanish daily newspaper El Pais, hidden in army headquarters since the Civil War ended in 1939, most still in perfect condition. The Enigma machines gave Franco's Nationalists a crucial advantage because their code was...
Paleontology
Dinosaur inspires flying robot
	10/28/2008 2:04:56 PM PDT · Posted by 2ndDivisionVet · 9 replies · 414+ views Electronics Weekly | October 28, 2008 | Steve Bush Texan researchers are mimicking the physical and biological characteristics of a pterosaur to create a 'pterodrone' - an unmanned aerial vehicle that flies, walks and sails like the original. "The next generation of airborne drones won't just be small and silent," said Texas Tech University, "they'll alter their wing shapes using morphing techniques to squeeze through confined spaces, dive between buildings, zoom under overpasses, land on apartment balconies, or sail along the coastline." The research team consists of palaeontologist Sankar Chatterjee of Texas Tech, University of Florida aeronautical engineer Rick Lind, and their students Andy Gedeon and Brian Roberts. The...
Biology and Cryptobiology
Rare, prehistoric-age reptile found nesting in NZ
	11/01/2008 2:03:57 PM PDT · Posted by NormsRevenge · 34 replies · 860+ views AP on Yahoo | 11/1/08 | Ral Lilley - ap A rare reptile with lineage dating back to the dinosaur age has been found nesting on the New Zealand mainland for the first time in about 200 years, officials said Friday. Four leathery, white eggs from an indigenous tuatara were found by staff at the Karori Wildlife Sanctuary in the capital, Wellington, during routine maintenance work Friday, conservation manager Rouen Epson said. "The nest was uncovered by accident and is the first concrete proof we have that our tuatara are breeding," Epson said. "It suggests that there may be other nests in the sanctuary we don't...
'Shop 'til You Drop
"Skeleton Of Giant" Is Internet Photo Hoax
	12/21/2007 3:02:30 PM PST · Posted by blam · 48 replies · 377+ views National Geographic News | 12-14-2007 | James Owens The National Geographic Society has not discovered ancient giant humans, despite rampant reports and pictures. The hoax began with a doctored photo and later found a receptive online audience -- thanks perhaps to the image's unintended religious connotations. A digitally altered photograph created in 2002 shows a reclining giant surrounded by a wooden platform -- with a shovel-wielding archaeologist thrown in for scale. (Photo Gallery: "Giant Skeletons" Fuel Web Hoax) By 2004 the "discovery" was being blogged and emailed all over the world -- "Giant Skeleton Unearthed!" -- and it's been enjoying...
Thoroughly Modern Miscellany
The Greatest US Presidents - The Times US presidential rankings
	10/31/2008 4:51:21 PM PDT · Posted by BGHater · 81 replies · 851+ views Times Online | 31 Oct 2008 | Nico Hines Who is the greatest of them all? While Barack Obama and John McCain battle to become the 44th President of the United States, we asked a panel of experts from The Times to rank the previous Commanders-in-Chief in order of greatness. 1. Abraham Lincoln 1861-65 (Republican, National Union) The No 1: our panel chose the radical Republican who kept the fledgling nation alive when it could have collapsed altogether. The first Republican President, Lincoln led the defeat of the Confederate states in the American Civil War and freed around four million slaves by issuing the Emancipation Proclamation. The formal abolition...
end of digest #224 20081101

[SunkenCiv]

Gods Graves Glyphs Digest #224 20081101 · Saturday, November 1, 2008 · 28 topics · 2121979 to 2115242 · 690 members ·
	Saturday Nov 1 2008 v 5 n 15 view this issue	Welcome to the 224th issue. I'm a day late, but hey, I enjoyed the party. And as to my being a dollar short, this is not news. President McCain. Vice-President Palin. November 2008 -- Be There. Visit the Free Republic Memorial Wall -- a history-related feature of FR.
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[SunkenCiv]

Gods, Graves, Glyphs Weekly Digest #225 Saturday, November 8, 2008
Prehistory and Origins
'Devils' trails' are world's oldest human footprints
	11/06/2008 5:42:40 PM PST · Posted by SunkenCiv · 11 replies · 732+ views New Scientist | October 13, 2008 | Catherine Brahic It's official: the oldest human footprints ever found are 345,000 years old, give or take 6000. Known as the "devils' trails", they have been preserved in volcanic ash atop the Roccamonfina volcano in Italy. The prints were first described to the world by Paolo Mietto and colleagues of the University of Padova in Italy in 2003 after amateur archaeologists pointed them out. At the time, the team estimated that the prints were anywhere between 385,000 and 325,000 years old, based on when the volcano was thought to have last erupted. Now, Stephane Scaillet and colleagues at the Laboratory of Climatic...
Ancient Autopsies
Man or Gorilla? Scientist Questions Skull Theory
	07/12/2002 8:56:17 AM PDT · Posted by Junior · 98 replies · 1,511+ views Reuters | Fri Jul 12,10:29 AM ET | John Chalmers PARIS (Reuters) - A prehistoric skull touted as the oldest human remains ever found is probably not the head of the earliest member of the human family but of an ancient female gorilla, a French scientist said on Friday. Brigitte Senut of the Natural History Museum in Paris said certain aspects of the skull, whose discovery in Chad was announced on Wednesday, were actually sexual characteristics of female gorillas rather than indications of a human character.Two other French experts cast doubt on the skull as Michel Brunet, head of the archeological team that discovered it, was due to present his...
Primates Americans Won't Do
New fossil reveals primates lingered in Texas
	11/06/2008 4:10:01 PM PST · Posted by SunkenCiv · 12 replies · 524+ views EurekAlert! | October 13, 2008 | Chris Kirk, University of Texas at Austin More than 40 million years ago, primates preferred Texas to northern climates that were significantly cooling, according to new fossil evidence discovered by Chris Kirk, physical anthropologist at The University of Texas at Austin. Kirk and Blythe Williams from Duke University have discovered Diablomomys dalquesti, a new genus and species of primate that dates to 44-43 million years ago when tropical forests and active volcanoes covered west Texas. The researchers have published their discovery in the Journal of Human Evolution article, "New Uintan Primates from Texas and their Implications for North American Patterns of Species Richness during the Eocene." During...
Paleontology
Paleontologists doubt 'dinosaur dance floor' (No Discoaceous Period?)
	11/07/2008 3:10:14 PM PST · Posted by decimon · 11 replies · 328+ views University of Utah | Nov. 7, 2008 | Unknown Potholes or tracks? Both sides team for follow-up study -- A group of paleontologists visited the northern Arizona wilderness site nicknamed a "dinosaur dance floor" and concluded there were no dinosaur tracks there, only a dense collection of unusual potholes eroded in the sandstone. So the scientist who leads the University of Utah's geology department says she will team up with the skeptics for a follow-up study. "Science is an evolving process where we seek the truth," says Marjorie Chan, professor and chair of geology and geophysics, and co-author of a recent study that concluded the pockmarked, three-quarter-acre...
'T.rex footprint' found by British dinosaur hunter: report
	10/09/2007 5:02:37 PM PDT · Posted by NormsRevenge · 17 replies · 694+ views AFP on Yahoo | 10/09/07 | AFP LONDON (AFP) - A Britain-based palaeontologist believes he has found the world's first known Tyrannosaurus rex footprint, he told a BBC television documentary Wednesday. Phil Manning said he has high hopes the one square metre (about 11 square feet) print, from the famed Hell Creek area of the northwest US state of Montana, is from the flesh-eating giant, although 100 percent certainty is impossible. "People have been trying to find T.rex tracks for a hundred years," Manning, who specialises in Jurassic and Cretaceous period dinosaur tracks, told the BBC. "Unless you come across an animal dead in its tracks you...
Makin' Thunderbirds
Ancient Birds Flew On All Fours
	09/22/2006 6:27:23 AM PDT · Posted by Tokra · 181 replies · 2,529+ views eurekalert | Spet. 22, 2006 | Nick Longrich The earliest known ancestor of modern-day birds took to the skies by gliding from trees using primitive feathered wings on their arms and legs, according to new research by a University of Calgary paleontologist. In a paper published in the journal Paleobiology, Department of Biological Sciences PhD student Nick Longrich challenges the idea that birds began flying by taking off from the ground while running and shows that the dinosaur-like bird Archaeopteryx soared using wing-like feathers on all of its limbs. "The discussions about the origins of avian flight have been dominated by the so-called 'ground up' and 'trees down'...
Africa
New Classification Of African Middle Stone Age
	11/03/2008 2:14:18 PM PST · Posted by SunkenCiv · 5 replies · 206+ views ScienceDaily | Monday, November 3, 2008 | Universitaet zu Koeln The Cologne archaeologist Dr. Ralf Vogelsang from the Africa Research Centre of the Institute of Prehistoric Archaeology and a team of international researchers have succeeded in dating layers in South Africa that provide information about stone tool innovation on the Middle Stone Age. This archaeological epoch began at the same time as the earliest appearances of humans (homo sapiens sapiens), about 200,000 years ago, in Africa and differs from the European Middle Stone Age chronologically. It is categorized as an era of change and marked by the development of regional stone tool traditions, the appearance of many innovations and the...
Faith and Philosophy
Earliest known shaman grave site found: study[Israel]
	11/03/2008 11:01:34 AM PST · Posted by BGHater · 6 replies · 348+ views Reuters | 03 Nov 2008 | Reuters An ancient grave unearthed in modern-day Israel containing 50 tortoise shells, a human foot and body parts from numerous animals is likely one of the earliest known shaman burial sites, researchers said on Monday. The 12,000-year-old grave dates back to the Natufian people who were the first society to adopt a sedentary lifestyle, Hebrew University of Jerusalem researcher Leore Grosman and colleagues said. "The interment rituals and the method used to construct and seal the grave suggest this is the burial of an ancient shaman, one of the earliest known from the archaeological record," they wrote in the Proceedings of...
The Conquest of Canaan
Inside, Outside: Where Did the Early Israelites Come From?
	11/05/2008 3:59:31 PM PST · Posted by SunkenCiv · 21 replies · 816+ views Biblical Archaeology Review [34:06] | Nov/Dec 2008 | Anson Rainey On one thing all scholars agree: In the period archaeologists call Iron Age I, from about 1200 to 1000 B.C.E., approximately 300 new settlements sprang up in the central hill country of Canaan that runs through the land like a spine from north to south. Almost everyone also agrees that these were the early Israelites settling down. The famous hieroglyphic text known as the Merneptah Stele, which dates to about 1205 B.C.E., refers to "Israel" at this time as a people (not a country or nation) probably located in Transjordan... In 1962 George E. Mendenhall... introduced a new theory of...
Epigraphy and Language
Shasu or Habiru: Who Were the Early Israelites?
	11/05/2008 3:47:04 PM PST · Posted by SunkenCiv · 8 replies · 424+ views Biblical Archaeology Review (BAR 34:06) | November/December 2008 | Anson Rainey Because of the surface similarity of the words habiru and "Hebrew," many scholars assumed the habiru were closely related, if not identical to, the earliest Israelite tribes. Upon closer examination, however, all similarity disappears. It is linguistically impossible to equate habiru and 'ivri (the Hebrew word for "Hebrew") and, in any case, the word habiru was not used to describe a single ethnic group but rather an array of disenfranchised social groups that inhabited the fringes of Bronze Age Near Eastern society. Since then, we have literally hundreds of references to habiru ('apiru) from Egypt, Nuzi (beyond the Tigris), Syria...
Let's Have Jerusalem
First Temple-Era Water Tunnel Revealed in Jerusalem
	10/30/2008 5:32:06 AM PDT · Posted by SJackson · 12 replies · 431+ views Arutz Sheva | 10-30-08 First Temple-Era Water Tunnel Revealed in Jerusalem by Hana Levi Julian (IsraelNN.com) A tunnel built thousands of years ago -- and which may even have been used during King David's conquest of Jerusalem -- has been uncovered in the ancient City of David, just outside the Old City and across the street from the Dung Gate. Renowned Israeli archaeologist Dr. Eilat Mazer, who is leading the dig, revealed the findings from the discovery Thursday morning at an archaeological symposium at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem. Mazer, who also uncovered King David's palace, has led the world in ancient Jerusalem findings....
Rome and Italy
Limestone altar Discovered at Dalheim Roman Dig [Luxembourg]
	11/03/2008 6:52:43 AM PST · Posted by SunkenCiv · 1 replies · 269+ views Station Network | Thursday, October 30, 2008 | unattributed Following previous archaelogical discoveries at the Dalheim dig, another artefact has been discovered. The site of the former Gallo-Roman baths has now produced what is described as an "exceptional archaeological discovery". The National Museum of History and Art (MNHA), led by the young German archaeologist Heike Posch and overseen by the curator John Krier, has uncovered fragments of a large 1.3m high limestone altar. The discovery dates from the 3rd century AD and has a Latin inscription showing that the altar was dedicated to the goddess Fortuna. The text over 10 lines mentions not only the people of Ricciacum vicus,...
British Isles
Caesar's British Landing Site Pinned Down
	11/06/2008 3:34:59 PM PST · Posted by SunkenCiv · 9 replies · 794+ views LiveScience | Saturday, November 1, 2008 | Harvey Leifert, Natural History Magazine When Julius Caesar arrived off the coast of Britain with his hundred-ship force in August, 55 b.c., he was greeted by a host of defenders poised to hurl spears down on his invading army from the towering Dover cliffs. Seeking a better landing site, he sailed on a strong afternoon current and landed his troops at a beach seven miles away, according to his own account. Caesar neglected to mention, however, whether he sailed southwest or northeast. The only shoreline within seven miles of Dover that matches Caesar's description lies to the northeast, near present-day Deal. That would settle it,...
Saxon Bling
Herefordshire Saxon find is declared as treasure[UK]
	11/05/2008 8:08:53 AM PST · Posted by BGHater · 3 replies · 508+ views Hereford Times | 05 Nov 2008 | Hereford Times A Saxon hook tag found in a Herefordshire field field has been declared as treasure. Assistant county coroner Roland Wooderson confirmed that the item, used for securing clothing or bags, was treasure at an inquest last week. The silver hook tag was found in Brampton Abbotts in June 2007 by Maxine Jones, from Swansea. In a statement, she said she spent her spare time looking for treasure using a metal detector and had sought permission from Mr Scudamore, who owns the land where the item was found. After the discovery was made, the hook tag was sent to the British...
Anatolia
Excavations put Izmir at 8,500 years old
	11/03/2008 6:43:13 AM PST · Posted by SunkenCiv · 16 replies · 236+ views Turkish Daily News | Friday, October 31, 2008 | unattributed New excavations have revealed that Izmir, once believe to be 5,000 years old, may be as old as 8,500 years. Associate professor Zafer Derin of the Ege University archeology department, the head of the excavation team, said in a written statement his team had removed 150 artifacts discovered at the Yeflilova Tumulus excavation site, reported the Anatolia news agency. Saying the findings discovered in the excavation played an important role in identifying those who lived in the area 8,500 years ago, Derin said: "Findings obtained from the excavation determined that those who lived in this area 8,500 years ago had...
Greeks
One of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World Brought Back to Life
	11/06/2008 6:03:06 PM PST · Posted by SunkenCiv · 45 replies · 1,364+ views Biblical Archaeology Review | November 6, 2008 | unattributed One of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World is set to be resurrected in Selcuk, Turkey. The famous Temple of Artemis was built at the expense of the Lydian king Karun in the 7th century B.C. Its architecture included 120 columns and 25,000 cubic meters of marble. The massive structure was dedicated to Artemis, the Greek goddess of virginity, fertility and the hunt. The original temple was destroyed during the early period of Christianity in Anatolia. In 2007, the Artemis Culture, Arts, and Education Foundation, was founded with the objective of rebuilding the ancient temple approximately 1,500 meters away...
Trojan War
Trojan arrows and unique seals from Perperikon stand out in archaeological summer '08
	11/03/2008 7:04:35 AM PST · Posted by SunkenCiv · 5 replies · 166+ views Bulgarian News | October 27, 2008 | Veneta Pavlova, Daniela Konstantinova, bnr.bg The place acted as a cult site as early as the end of 5 and the early 4 millennium BC. Researchers have come across finds from the second millennium BC and there is evidence the city prospered during Thracian times in Antiquity. An Episcopal center was set up here in the Middle Ages. At a press conference in Sofia Nikolay Ovcharov showed unique finds originating from different periods in the history of Perperikon. The oldest one is dated to the Trojan War, the archeologist contends. "It is a sword with a broken handle from 12-13 c. BC. It is made...
The Vikings
The Vikings' burning question: some decent graveside theatre
	11/03/2008 6:32:27 AM PST · Posted by SunkenCiv · 9 replies · 254+ views The Times of London | October 26, 2008 | Magnus Linklater The average Viking lived a life in which spirituality and thoughts of immortality played a far more important part than the rape and pillage more usually associated with his violent race, according to new research. A study of thousands of excavated Viking graves suggests that rituals were performed at the graveside in which stories about life and death were presented as theatre, with live performances designed to help the passage of the deceased from this world into the next... Detailed analysis of the burials revealed a remarkable variety of objects found alongside the bodies - from everyday items to great...
Phoenicians
French dig exposes underside of Tyre
	11/03/2008 5:44:29 AM PST · Posted by SunkenCiv · 7 replies · 172+ views Daily Star | Saturday, November 1, 2008 | Mohammed Zaatari A French excavations team from the Universite de Lyon has wrapped up phase I of works in the southern port city of Tyre, the head of the Directorate General of Antiquities (DGA) in the South told The Daily Star on Friday. "Excavations are centered in two main sites inside Tyre's Al-Mina ancient ruins area," Ali Badawi said. He added that archaeologists were working on uncovering the tomb of Frederic Archbishop of Tyre, which is said to be buried under an ancient cathedral dating back to the times of the Crusaders in the coastal city. "A German excavating team came to...
Helix, Make Mine a Double
Phoenicians Left Deep Genetic Mark, Study Shows
	11/03/2008 5:16:13 AM PST · Posted by SunkenCiv · 13 replies · 283+ views New Jack City Times | Thursday, October 30, 2008 | John Noble Wilford The Phoenicians, enigmatic people from the eastern shores of the Mediterranean, stamped their mark on maritime history, and now research has revealed that they also left a lasting genetic imprint. Scientists reported Thursday that as many as 1 in 17 men living today on the coasts of North Africa and southern Europe may have a Phoenician direct male-line ancestor. These men were found to retain identifiable genetic signatures from the nearly 1,000 years the Phoenicians were a dominant seafaring commercial power in the Mediterranean basin, until their conquest by Rome in the 2nd century B.C... The scientists who conducted the...
Diet and Cuisine
World's Oldest Cooked Cereal Was Instant
	11/06/2008 5:49:18 PM PST · Posted by SunkenCiv · 31 replies · 630+ views Discovery News | Friday, October 24, 2008 | Jennifer Viegas Dating from between 5920 to 5730 B.C., the ancient cereal consisted of parboiled bulgur wheat that Early Neolithic Bulgarians could refresh in minutes with hot water. "People boiled the grain, dried it, removed the bran and ground it into coarse particles," lead author Soultana-Maria Valamoti told Discovery News. "In this form, the cereal grain can be stored throughout the year and consumed easily, even without boiling, by merely soaking in hot water," added Valamoti, an assistant professor of archaeology at Aristotle University of Thessaloniki in Greece. She and her colleagues studied the Bulgarian grain, excavated at a site called Kapitan...
Climate
Monsoon link to fall of dynasties[China]
	11/07/2008 8:53:13 AM PST · Posted by BGHater · 11 replies · 254+ views BBC | 06 Nov 2008 | BBC The demise of some of China's ruling dynasties may have been linked to changes in the strength of monsoon rains, a new study suggests. The findings come from 1,800-year record of the Asian monsoon preserved in a stalagmite from a Chinese cave. Weak - and therefore dry - monsoon periods coincided with the demise of the Tang, Yuan and Ming imperial dynasties, the scientists said. A US-Chinese team report their work in the journal Science. Stalagmites are largely made up of calcium carbonate, which precipitates from groundwater dripping from the ceiling of a cave. Chemical analysis of a 118mm-long stalagmite...
China
Chinese emperor was poisoned with arsenic
	11/04/2008 11:10:03 AM PST · Posted by nickcarraway · 6 replies · 520+ views The Telegraph | 04 Nov 2008 | Richard Spencer Analysis of hair and other fragments taken from the tomb of the Guangxu emperor, who died 100 years ago this month, showed high levels of the chemical. The findings are seen as proving suspicions that the emperor was murdered, and the implications will be eagerly discussed, not just by historians. The traditional secrecy of Chinese rulers through the centuries makes the fate of China's last dynastic rulers important for understanding modern-day Communist Party politics. The Guangxu emperor, like all Chinese rulers, was known by a formal title given to his reign since commoners were not allowed to speak his name....
Navigation
Small Islands Given Short Shrift In Assembling Archaeological Record
	11/03/2008 5:26:29 AM PST · Posted by SunkenCiv · 4 replies · 124+ views ScienceDaily | Thursday, October 30, 2008 | University of Florida Small islands dwarf large ones in archaeological importance, says a University of Florida researcher, who found that people who settled the Caribbean before Christopher Columbus preferred more minute pieces of land because they relied heavily on the sea... Early Ceramic Age settlements have been found in the U.S. Virgin Islands and Montserrat, for example, but are absent from all of the larger islands in the Lesser Antilles, Keegan said. And all of the small islands along the windward east coast of St. Lucia have substantial ceramic artifacts -- evidence of settlement -- despite being less than one kilometer, or .62...
PreColumbian, Clovis, and PreClovis
No burial for 10,000-year-old bones: U of California denies request for repatriation of remains
	11/03/2008 5:07:01 AM PST · Posted by SunkenCiv · 25 replies · 323+ views Nature 455, 1156-1157 | Wednesday, October 29, 2008 | Rex Dalton In the latest twist in the tug-of-war between Native Americans and anthropologists, officials at the University of California have decided not to repatriate a pair of well-preserved skeletons that are nearly 10,000 years old. Archaeology students unearthed the bones in 1976 near the clifftop home of the chancellor of the University of California, San Diego (UCSD). It may be possible to extract some of the oldest human DNA in North America from the exquisitely preserved remains, say researchers. But in the past two years the bones have become a political football over US$7-million plans to demolish and rebuild the house....
Mayans
New Maya Olmec Archeological Find in Guatemala [Takalik Abaj]
	11/03/2008 5:01:49 AM PST · Posted by SunkenCiv · 6 replies · 182+ views Guatemala Times | Thursday, October 30, 2008 | unattributed It is known that the fragments of this enigmatic sculptures were placed into the buildings during the second part of the Late Pre- Classic Period (Phase Ruth 200 BC - 150 AD), which is when the early Mayan culture was florishing. Therefore this sculpture must have been carved before this time. There are two possibilities, it was carved at the start of the early Mayan era, or a little earlier, when the changes in Tak'alik Ab'aj from the Olmec era to the Mayan era was taking place, what is called the transition period. Could it be that the early Mayan...
Australia and the Pacific
Epic Voyage To Discover Origins And Migration Routes Of Ancestors Of Ancient Polynesians...
	11/06/2008 3:25:54 PM PST · Posted by SunkenCiv · 6 replies · 236+ views ScienceDaily | Thursday, November 6, 2008 | Durham University Two Durham University scientists are to play a key part in a 6000km trip following the migration route of ancient Pacific cultures. Drs Keith Dobney and Greger Larson, both from the Department of Archaeology, will be joining the voyage, which will be the first ever expedition to sail in two traditional Polynesian boats -- ethnic double canoes -- which attempts to re-trace the genuine migration route of the ancient Austronesians. The main aim of the voyage is to find out where the ancestors of Polynesian culture originated but the Durham University researchers will also be examining the local wildlife. Dr...
Biology and Cryptobiology
Scientists Race to Save "Water Monster" From Extinction
	11/05/2008 9:43:59 PM PST · Posted by nickcarraway · 23 replies · 1,094+ views nbc11 | Nov 3, 2008 Beneath the tourist gondolas in the remains of a great Aztec lake lives a creature that resembles a monster - and a Muppet - with its slimy tail, plumage-like gills and mouth that curls into an odd smile. The axolotl, also known as the "water monster" and the "Mexican walking fish," was a key part of Aztec legend and diet. Against all odds, it survived until now amid Mexico City's urban sprawl in the polluted canals of Lake Xochimilco, now a Venice-style destination for revelers poled along by Mexican gondoliers, or trajineros, in brightly painted party boats. But scientists are...
Bring Out The Dead
Frozen mice cloned - are woolly mammoths next? - how about Ted Williams?
	11/03/2008 3:10:47 PM PST · Posted by JoeProBono · 23 replies · 326+ views reuters | Mon Nov 3, 2008 5:30pm EST WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Japanese scientists have cloned mice whose bodies were frozen for as long 16 years and said on Monday it may be possible to use the technique to resurrect mammoths and other extinct species..."There is hope in bringing Ted Williams back, after all," cloning and stem cell expert John Gearhart of the University of Pennsylvania said in an e-mail. The family of Williams, the Boston Red Sox hitter, had his body frozen by cryogenics firm Alcor after he died in 2002..."
Cloned Mammoths Made More Likely by Frozen Mice
	11/07/2008 4:00:13 AM PST · Posted by Renfield · 6 replies · 288+ views Fox News | 11-05-08 Jurassic Park? Still not close to being real. But cloned woolly mammoths just became more possible, thanks to Japanese researchers who announced Monday that they'd cloned dead mice that had been frozen for 16 years. When animal tissue freezes, cell walls burst and the DNA inside the cell nuclei can be seriously damaged. Because of that, most scientists had assumed it'd be impossible to get any good DNA from the thousands of frozen mammoths thought to still lie in Siberian permafrost. The Japanese team figured, however, that the high concentration of sugar in brain tissue might preserve DNA. So they...
Middle Ages and Renaissance
Martin Luther's Death Mask on View at Museum in Halle, Germany
	11/03/2008 8:58:17 AM PST · Posted by Alex Murphy · 23 replies · 673+ views Artdaily.org | November 3, 2008 HALLE.- Martin Luther's original death mask belongs to the treasures and witnesses from the Reformation that Halle is amply equipped with. In one room of the tower, you can see the death mask of the great reformer, as well as a later plaster cast and a pulpit that stems from Luther's time. Presumably, the mask was created after a plaster cast that had been made by the local painter Lukas Furtenagel on Luther's deathbed in Eisleben on February 19, 1546. As Luther's body had to be taken to Wittenberg for the planned burial, his coffin was placed in the...
Early America
Little object, big find from shipwreck [ Blackbeard , Queen Anne's Revenge ]
	11/03/2008 10:48:33 AM PST · Posted by SunkenCiv · 12 replies · 550+ views Freedom ENC | October 28, 2008 | Jannette Pippin One of the smallest artifacts recovered during the latest dive expedition at the shipwreck presumed to be Queen Anne's Revenge is getting big attention. The circular, dime-sized piece has been resting on the ocean floor for 300 years, but early examination indicates it may be the first coin to come from the site believed to be the flagship of the pirate Blackbeard... QAR Conservation Field Supervisor Wendy Welsh said.. a coin weight with a bust of Queen Anne was recovered from the site during a 2006 dive but no actual coins. Shanna Daniel, assistant conservator at the QAR lab in...
Possible Blackbeard Ship Cannon Found
	10/15/2004 9:22:23 AM PDT · Posted by Area Freeper · 38 replies · 1,108+ views Associated Press | Fri Oct 8 Underwater archaeologists have found another cannon from the wreckage of what they believe was the flagship of the notorious pirate Blackbeard. Historical records indicate Blackbeard had 40 guns on the French frigate he captured in 1717 and renamed Queen Anne's Revenge. Since 1996, when the wreckage of the ship was discovered in Beaufort Inlet, divers have found 22 at the site. "We're pretty positive that we have cannon number 23," said project archaeologist Chris Southerly. It is a large cannon that probably shot a 6-pound or 8-pound ball, Southerly said. Divers uncovered the cannon while excavating an area of the...
Cavalry
First-hand account of the Charge of the Light Brigade unearthed
	11/04/2008 4:53:19 PM PST · Posted by bruinbirdman · 31 replies · 2,064+ views The Telegraph | 11/4/08 | Nick Britten A graphic first-hand account by the last survivor of the Charge of the Light Brigade, describing his ride 'in the valley of death' during the Crimean War, has been unearthed. Pte James Olley, of the 4th Light Dragoons, who was in the van of the 1854 cavalry action, tells of how he relentlessly fought the Russians despite having an eye blown out and a chunk of his head torn off. The three-page document is believed to be one of the only eyewitness accounts by a frontliner and is expect to fetch about £2,000 at auction. Pte Olley, who was aged...
World War Eleven
Airman Missing In Action From WW ll is Identified Staff Sgt. Martin F. Troy, U.S. Army Air Forces
	11/05/2008 3:40:46 PM PST · Posted by Dubya · 15 replies · 964+ views DOD | DOD Airman Missing In Action From WW ll is Identified The Department of Defense POW/Missing Personnel Office (DPMO) announced today that the remains of a U.S. serviceman, missing in action from World War II, have been identified and will be returned to his family for burial with full military honors. He is Staff Sgt. Martin F. Troy, U.S. Army Air Forces, of Norwalk, Conn. He will be buried on Nov. 20 in Arlington National Cemetery near Washington, D.C. Representatives from the Army's Mortuary Office met with Troy's next-of-kin to explain the recovery and identification process and to coordinate interment with military...
Vietnam
Marines Missing From Vietnam War Are Identified NOV 08
	11/06/2008 4:23:54 PM PST · Posted by Dubya · 61 replies · 2,236+ views DOD | DOD The Department of Defense POW/Missing Personnel Office (DPMO) announced today that the remains of four U.S. servicemen, missing from the Vietnam War, have been identified and will be returned to their families for burial with full military honors. They are Lance Cpl. Kurt E. La Plant, of Lenexa, Kan., and Lance Cpl. Luis F. Palacios, of Los Angeles, Calif. Remains that could not be individually identified are included in a group. Among the group remains are Lance Cpl. Ralph L. Harper, of Indianapolis, Ind., and Pfc. Jose R. Sanchez, of Brooklyn, N.Y. All...
Thoroughly Modern Miscellany
How We Used to Vote.
	11/02/2008 1:39:09 PM PST · Posted by Bubba_Leroy · 6 replies · 370+ views Slashdot | November 2, 2008 | Staff Think hanging chads, illegal purges of the voter rolls, and insecure voting machines are bad? The New Yorker looks back at how we used to vote back in the good old days: 'A man carrying a musket rushed at him. Another threw a brick, knocking him off his feet. George Kyle picked himself up and ran. He never did cast his vote. Nor did his brother, who died of his wounds. The Democratic candidate for Congress, William Harrison, lost to the American Party's Henry Winter Davis. Three months later, when the House of Representatives convened hearings into the election, whose...
Oh So Mysteriouso
Nostradamus Writings Predict McCain Victory
	11/03/2008 6:18:43 AM PST · Posted by backinthefold · 52 replies · 3,827+ views http://www.propeller.com/story/2008/10/30/nostradamus-writings-predict-mccain-victory/?icid=200100397x1212350706x1200748789 CAP NEWS - "Conventional wisdom picks Obama. Nostradamus, four and a half centuries ago, picked John McCain," said Dr. Hubert Evans, professor of Renaissance Studies at Yale University and author of the best-selling "Nostradamus: Prophesize This!" "Quatrain 78, Century X in particular seems to indicate that Obama had better not be measuring the White House windows for curtains quite yet, at least by my interpretation," said Dr. Evans. The quatrain to which Dr. Evans refers - Quatrain 78 - is located in the grouping of stanzas known as Century X. Originally published in 1555 in Nostradamus' still-popular Les Prophecies, Quatrain...
end of digest #225 20081108