If I’m covering for Greg, who covered for Kat, who covered for me, then who’s covering for Jameske?
- Locks of 3200-year-old hair from Ramses II were unveiled at the Egyptian Museum, stolen 30 years ago in France. So that’s why Zahi Hawass wears the hat.
- The decorated tombs of the Valley of the Kings are deteriorating faster than they can be preserved.
- The tomb of Djehuty, overseer of works at Thebes during Queen Hatshepsut’s reign, amazed Egyptologists not only because of its unique architecture, but the artifacts inside.
- Clothing ornaments thought to confer supernatural powers were all the rage among important people in England 4000 years ago. Probably because those considered unimportant were cursing them.
- A mountain village in Umbria wants a 2600-year-old Etruscan chariot restored and displayed by the Metropolitan Museum of Art in NYC returned or else. I wonder if they’ll drive it back.
- Like an ancient Chinese number puzzle, archaeologists have unearthed more than 5000 items dating back 2000 years from a complex of 385 tombs discovered in Mongolia.
- The 3000-year-old city of Jinsha, including a palace and 800 tombs, is being excavated in Chengdu, Sichuan Province.
- Restoration work has begun on the tomb of Takamatsuzuka in Japan, its murals damaged by fungus.
- Anthropologist discovers new evidence suggesting ancient farmers in Mexico cultivated maize almost 1200 years earlier than previously thought.
- The Aztec kidnapped sacrificial victims from as far away as Mayan, Pacific and Atlantic coastal communities, according to DNA analysis of over 50 skeletons discovered at Teotihuacan’s Pyramid of the Moon.
- The Sun is more active now than it has been at anytime in the previous 1000 years. Before that, it was the Dark Ages.
- Danny Boyle and Alex Garland’s film Sunshine couldn’t be better timed. Except maybe a 2012 release.
- Astronomers have detected water in the atmosphere of a planet outside our solar system for the first time.
- The Pentagon’s National Security Space Office (NSSO) is considering the possibility of using satellites to collect solar energy for use on Earth.
- Researchers report that the Earth’s magnetic field was at least half as strong 3.2 billion years ago as it is today.
- NASA scientists have discovered that a mysterious red glow, seen throughout the Milky Way and other galaxies but never on Earth, radiates from extremely fine dust.
- Space tourist Charles Simonyi is all smiles about the International Space Station. I’d be smiling too if I were him.
- A former American astronaut is accused of intending to kidnap an ex-lover, wearing nappies and possessing X-rated bondage images. The Astronaut’s Wife starring Johnny Depp and Charlize Theron might be worth watching again.
- Do blogs need classifications for coarse language and some nudity, and do some bloggers use freedom of speech as an excuse?
- The amount of spam originating from China dropped dramatically in the first three months of 2007, according to a US IT security firm. What happened to you, China? You used to be cool.
- An international science journal has deleted a South Korean paper on wolf cloning from its website pending an investigation into incorrect data. Does that make Dolly a wolf in sheep’s clothing?
- Research has found that children who eat a traditional Mediterranean diet are 30% less likely to develop hayfever and asthma. I’m going to a traditional Greek wedding on Saturday, so I’ll pig out.
- Participants in an experiment exploring egalitarian impulses in human nature consistently robbed from the rich and gave to the poor, suggesting there’s a Robin Hood in all of us. There’s a Sheriff of Nottingham in political and religious leaders too.
- Archaeologists are excavating a house they think may have belonged to legendary Scottish outlaw Rob Roy.
- A British man who dreamed a phone number then called it out of curiosity has married the woman whom it belonged to. *Sigh* I only dream of 0055 numbers with hot, sexy female voice-overs.
- A book review of How to Predict Your Future: Secrets of Eastern and Western Astrology by James Braha (Amazon US or UK).
- Nick “UFO Mystic” Redfern discusses the British Ministry of Defense’s chilling report that paints a strange and bleak view of our future 30 years from now. The Guardian has an article about the MoD’s report which is worth reading.
- As Hillary’s presidential campaign gears up, researchers, journalists and the curious are finding it difficult to access the William Jefferson Clinton Presidential Library, including UFO files.
- RIP Kurt Vonnegut, 1922 – 2007. So it goes.
Quote of the Day:
A democracy which makes or even effectively prepares for modern, scientific war must necessarily cease to be democratic. No country can be really well prepared for modern war unless it is governed by a tyrant, at the head of a highly trained and perfectly obedient bureaucracy.
Aldous Huxley
