Archive for the ‘historical perspectives’ category

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Wildlife Conservation Officer Slain

November 16, 2010

– – People tend to think that being a game warden is a fairly tame job; not necessarily so.  When a Pennsylvania wildlife conservation officer recently caught a felon illegally night hunting deer with a spotlight and pulled over the poacher’s truck, a ferocious  exchange of gunfire ensued that killed the officer and left the later-captured suspect wounded.  David Grove became the first game warden killed in the line of duty in PA since 1915.

Poaching is a crime which sadly continues in the 21st century, and game officers, usually working by themselves, must routinely investigate men who are armed, and usually  better armed than the officers.   While game lands can be beautiful places used to enjoy nature, after dark wildlife conservation officers can find drinking parties, drug sales, and people that are knowingly breaking the law.

About 1.5 million acres are under the jurisdiction of game commission officers in Pennsylvania, an area nearly the size of Delaware…

Categories: conservation, environmental, historical perspectives
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Ancient Astronauts?

May 19, 2010

– – The notion of ancient astronauts (namely extraterrestrials) visiting earth and spurring the development of human culture, technologies, and religions is nothing new, and found popularity during the later twentieth century in the writings of Erich von Daniken and others.  Ancient astronaut theories have been widely used in science fiction, but have not received support within the scientific community.  Astrophysicist Carl Sagan and others have concluded that extraterrestrial visits to earth were possible but unproven, and likely improbable.

The History Channel now has an Ancient Astronaut series that may pique your curiosity if you haven’t been down  this trail before.  It’s good fun, and you may want to believe as you’re exposed to ancient religious texts and physical specimens such as cave drawings, stone sculptures, and pyramids…


Categories: aliens, cool things, historical perspectives, mysteries, space, strange happenings, television
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Getting Enough Worms?

January 12, 2010

– – In the earlier 20th century and prior to that time when dirt roads, horses, and cattle were more prevalent in life than they are now, every child and adult had worms in their gastrointestinal tract!  These worms were part of the ecosystem of the gut, and aided in controlling human immune reactions in order that they might live successfully in people. In the last 100 years or so, a more hygienic environment was created for people which led to immune disregulation, and so, one theory would have it, to an increase in certain immunological diseases.  A more sedentary lifestyle and a lack of physical activity also renders people more prone to certain illnesses and ailments to a degree not seen in the past.

Such immunological and metabolic diseases and conditions may include multiple sclerosis, type I diabetes, asthma, obesity, and even hay fever (now suffered by 1 in 4 people in the United States).  Improvements in hygiene have reduced infections, but along with that have reduced exposure of the immune system to antigens, such as compounds from viruses and bacteria.  Bodily regulation mechanisms then tend to become less effective, and certain illnesses and conditions are suffered to degrees not seen in the past.

(…but I’ll still pass on the worms, thank you!)

Categories: historical perspectives, medical, science
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– -Stonehenge “Rocks!”

December 4, 2009

– – Stonehenge is freakin’ awesome!- -I’d like to be buried there…preferably after I’m dead, of course.   A recent MysteryQuest episode considered the purpose of Stonehenge, advancing a theory that sound reverberations inside the ancient English circle of stones induced a trance-like state among participants in rituals held there.  Other theories promoted in the past have considered Stonehenge as a shrine to a god, an ancient solar calendar, or even a sacrificial altar for an unknown pagan religion.

Now we all enjoy throbbing bass rhythms, and the dudes in England 4,000 years ago were no exception!  Wailing on drums around the perimeter of Stonehenge reverbs nicely against those ancient stone monoliths, and grooving on this boots up the old alpha rhythms in your brain, which has been shown neurologically to promote slipping into a trance-like state; think Woodstock 2000 B.C.!   Pretty soon you think you’re rapping with a deity, or at least some dead ancestors.–Far out!–Works for me!

The notion of human sacrifices was discounted by MysteryQuest as an infrequent occurrence, although remains of one poor devil on site called “the archer” revealed that he was used as a human pincushion and punctured with quite a few arrows; that could ruin your whole day!

The episode was in my opinion one of the better ones of this series so far, and I’m up to form a drum circle at Stonehenge if you are…have your people call mine…      😉

Categories: historical perspectives, mysteries, television, unexplained
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The “Real” Werewolf on MonsterQuest

November 1, 2009

Gevaudan werewolf– – MonsterQuest recently aired a two-hour episode investigating the killing of over 100 peasants by a werewolf-like creature in southern France during the mid-1700’s.  As the slayings occurred over 240 years ago, extensive speculation and reconstruction was involved as provided by a cryptozoologist and a criminal investigator.

The Beast of Gevaudan slaughtered primarily women and children in an often gruesome fashion, at times decapitating the victims, eviscerating them, or consuming limbs.  The killings began in 1764, and continued for about three years, drawing the attention of Louis XV whose expert hunters dispatched a large wolf but failed to halt the peasant slayings.

That task was accomplished by one Jean Chastel, who used (–what else?) a silver bullet to kill the beast.  Speculation by the MonsterQuest investigators and others has been that the true “werewolf” was in fact a striped hyena, which may have actually been trained to accomplish his mayhem by Chastel himself!

The Beast of Gevaudan will continue to fascinate speculators, and the events form the historical basis for much of the rich present day werewolf sagas, which one hopes will continue for the indefinite future…150px-Woman_&_La_Bete

Categories: animals, anomalies, cryptozoology, furry, historical perspectives, mysteries, television, unexplained, unidentified
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Longest Eclipse!

July 22, 2009

eclipse— If you missed today’s solar eclipse that was visible across much of Asia, tough luck; there won’t be a longer one until 2132!  In parts of Asia, today’s eclipse lasted as long as 6 minutes and 39 seconds, the longest since July 11th, 1991; it will not be equaled again in this century.

A solar eclipse is a celestial event historically met with a mixture of awe, excitement, and fear; in Hindu mythology, an eclipse is caused when a dragon-demon swallows the sun.   More than one soon-to-be-boiled missionary in hack writing has been saved by conjuring up knowledge of an impending eclipse to intimidate a primitive native population…

Categories: historical perspectives, science
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Lunatic…

July 20, 2009

Buzz— On this 40th anniversary of the first lunar landing, it is sobering to think that a significant number of Americans believe that Buzz Lightyear was a member of that Apollo 11 mission crew…

Categories: historical perspectives, space
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Cat’s Cradle

June 9, 2009

cat burial– – Experts originally thought that the Egyptians were the first to domesticate the cat about 3,600 years ago, but recent genetic and archaeological discoveries indicate that cats were being tamed nearly 10,000 years ago in the Mediterranean.

In 2004, a 9,500-year-old burial site of an adult human and a cat was discovered on the island of Cyprus, where cats are not native.  Cats were accordingly thought to have been brought there by boat, long before the Egyptians began keeping them as pets…

…and they’ve owned us ever since!

Categories: animals, furry, historical perspectives
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Missing Link?

May 26, 2009

Ida– – The History Channel aired a most intriguing presentation on the evening of May 25th called, The Link. It concerned possibly the oldest and most complete human ancestor,  a 47 million year old fossil primate revealing an over 95% complete skeleton and even a soft body outline!

Discovered in Germany in the 1980’s, locked up for 25 years, and then secretly but intensely studied by a team for two years before revelation, this is the fossil of a small female arboreal primate less than a year old who lived in Germany in the trees of what was then an ancient rain forest.  Named “Ida” after the daughter of Dr. Hurum who acquired the fossil, the fossil may be that of a transitional species, a “lemur-monkey” which captures a crucial stage in evolution, incorporating features from both the human and non-human evolutionary line.- – The fossil is visually stunning and conceptually mind-boggling!–This puppy could be big!

If this fossil is a fraud as some are already saying, it’s an extremely good one.  The fossil incorporates a deformed right wrist which was likely broken and badly-healed. – -Heck, the remnants of Ida’s last meal are even represented in the stomach area!  The fossil also shows a shape adaptation in the Talus bone of the foot towards assumption of an upright posture.

If a true transitional fossil or “missing link,” this discovery will likely dominate textbooks for 100 years; this could be an awesome find!   As also expressed on the show, for those uncomfortable with the notion of evolution, “Ida’s existence will be a problem for many.”

Categories: animals, extinct species, furry, historical perspectives, science
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Life After People…

May 18, 2009

Life After People–The human race needs an attitude adjustment, and Life After People should help provide a badly-needed dose of humility…

…mankind tends to think and behave as if it always has and always will be here, whereas in reality, it ain’t necessarily so. In effect, the human race is the new kid on the block, with a track record that can’t hold a candle to the dinosaurs, which we presume to call clumsy and stupid now that they’re safely dead.

Enter Life After People on the History Channel, initially a special but now a series.  The show considers the durability of human engineering and creations given the impact of natural forces assuming that ole Homo sapiens is eradicated from the planet, and it ain’t a pretty picture.  In a few hundred years, most of the cities are in ruins, and we see this spectacle through extremely realistic computer simulations.  It’s sobering and humbling, as well as awesome to watch structures like the Empire State Building crumble and fall right before your eyes; there goes the Statue of Liberty again, after the decapitation it endured in Cloverfield! We also get to watch also the resurgence of animal species (hog futures are up), and the natural environment itself gradually swallows up the last traces of human existence.- -The furry shall inherit the earth!

I wouldn’t call the show depressing, but it is sobering and allows human arrogance to re-consider its own impermanence against a big time perspective…as the show poses the analogy, were time compressed into a 24-hour period, man’s reign to date occupies thirty seconds. – -Two paws up for Life After People!

Categories: animals, cool things, furry, historical perspectives
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