Archaeologists Discover Ancient Stone Turtle in Drained Angkor Reservoir

Seated next to Cambodia’s world-famous Angkor Wat temple and palace lies Srah Srang reservoir, a magnificent body of water that archaeologists were in the process of draining. And while the team executing the project knew the bed below would yield a variety of intriguing artifacts, something truly astonishing finally appeared from the mud. It seemed to be a massive beast — and incredibly, researchers believe it dates back several centuries.

12 Ancient Technologies That Were Way Ahead Of Their Time

Technology didn’t develop at the same pace all over the world. A technological breakthrough in one part of the ancient world might not have been achieved in another part of the world until several centuries later. That’s because there’s always a genius somewhere who has ideas way ahead of their time! We’re celebrating those pioneers today in this video full of incredible early inventions and discoveries.

Forbidden Aristotle Quotes That Can Inspire Greatness and Instill Wisdom

Aristotle was a Greek philosopher and polymath during the Classical period in Ancient Greece. Taught by Plato, he was the founder of the Lyceum, the Peripatetic school of philosophy, and the Aristotelian tradition.Aristotle provided a complex synthesis of the various philosophies existing prior to him.

These are vivid sayings and quotes from Aristotle. The best quotes and aphorisms of Aristotle that will make you think about many things in life. Life quotes from Aristotle are definitely worth your time.

Why Did Left-Handedness Evolve in 10% of Ancient Humans?

In this video, we'll be exploring the theory that left and right handedness evolved in ancient humans. We'll discuss the evidence and argument for this theory and explore the implications it has for human evolution.

From the time most children first start picking up and using objects, they tend to favor one hand over the other. And, in a majority of humans, the right side is dominant: around 85 percent of the modern human population on Earth is right handed. This trend is borne out by another line of evidence: skeletal asymmetry. As you (or anyone—even a Neanderthal) use muscles in your body, and as those muscles grow stronger, the parts of the skeleton to which those muscles attach also grows in order to provide more robust anchor points for the increased muscle mass. After death, the skeleton can reveal which parts of the body were stronger, and thus used more intensively, than others.

Furthermore, New research suggests right handedness in humans goes back at least 1.8 million years. The controversial Homo habiliss, who lived in what is now Tanzania some 1.8 million years ago appears to also have favored his or her right hand, according to new research published in the Journal of Human Evolution. Until this study, the earliest evidence of right handedness appeared in Neanderthals and their earlier relatives from about 430,000 years ago, But how can researchers figure out from just bones if an individual was right or left-hand dominant, or if they were handed at all?

Horned human skulls and 7-foot skeletons were found in Pennsylvania in the 1880s?

It's been centuries since the first ancient skeleton of a person with gigantism was found near Rome. But online, some claim similar skeletons were found in the United States as well.

A March 22 Facebook post claiming archaeologists dug up human skeletons 7-feet tall with horned skulls in Pennsylvania accrued more than 1,000 shares in two days.

"During an archaeological excavation in Sayre, Bradford County, Pennsylvania in the 1880s, a number of human skulls were unearthed," the Facebook post reads. "These skeletons were anatomically correct, except for the anomaly of their projections – two distinct 'horns' two inches above the eyebrow, and the fact that their average height in life would have been around seven feet tall."

The post asserts the bones were sent to the "American Investigating Museum" in Philadelphia, where they were stolen – "never to be seen again."

But there is no evidence to support the claim.

USA TODAY reached out to the Facebook user who shared the post for comment.

No evidence of horned human skulls, skeletons with gigantism

Some people do grow to unusual size – and ancient skeletons have been found of people suffering from gigantism.

That's a genetic disorder caused when individuals experience abnormal linear growth due to excessive action of insulin-like growth factors, said Erin Kimmerle, associate professor of anthropology at the University of Central Florida.

"Basically you keep growing even though the growth plates are fused," Kimmerle said in an email. "The frequency is believed to be about 8 cases per 1 million people. I am not sure if it was more frequent in the past because earlier testing and treatments are possible now."

But the horned skull shown in the Facebook post is a fake, Kimmerly said. USA TODAY found no credible news or scientific reports of any such discovery.

Researchers at the Robert S. Peabody Institute of Archaeology described the tale of horned giants in Pennsylvania as a compilation of stories that, with time, took on a life of their own. Newspaper articles from the 19th and early 20th centuries included multiple versions of the story.

Peabody researchers attributed the references of giant skeletons to misidentified extinct animal species and to written records that exaggerated the height of individuals who were tall for the time.

While the University of Pennsylvania has a collection of 1,300 crania included in the Penn Museum's Morton Collection, there is no museum with the name “American Investigating Museum”, as the post claims. Kimmerle confirmed the museum does not exist.

Source: https://eu.usatoday.com/story/news/factche...

Wooden Ship Unearthed at World Trade Center Site From Revolutionary-Era Philadelphia

From the ruins of the terror attacks on the World Trade Center in 2001 sprouts an amazing link to Revolutionary War-era Philadelphia. And the key to this discovery lies with tree rings.

In 2010, excavators in New York's Lower Manhattan discovered buried deep in the ground the remains of a wooden ship and—according to a new study—that ship was built using timber that had been harvested from old-growth forests in southeastern Pennsylvania around 1773.

Independence Hall and other Revolutionary-era buildings in Philadelphia were constructed using timber harvested around the same time and from the same area, according to Edward Cook, a tree ring scientist at Columbia University in New York and the senior author of the study, which was published in the July issue of the journal Tree-Ring Research.

The ship—a type of sailboat called a sloop—was likely built in a small shipyard in Philadelphia soon after the timber was harvested.

Two decades later, in the 1790s, it was deemed junk and the ship's remains were used as landfill to extend the banks of the Hudson River and create more land in the burgeoning city of New York.

How was this information gleaned from a heap of rotting wood?

"What determined the exactness of the construction date of the ship was the use of [tree ring dating]," said Cook, "which was made possible by recovering timber from the ship.

"It really is the premier scientific method for dating structures made of wood."

Tree Rings Tell Time

The key relates to the way trees grow: Each year they lay down a new ring of wood around their trunk. In good years—when trees grow well—the rings are wide, and in bad years the rings are narrow.

Most of the time scientists use this information to figure out how the climate has changed over time in a particular area.

But it also gives archaeologists a valuable tool they can use to date wooden artifacts by cross-referencing tree-ring sequences in different samples.

In the case of the World Trade Center discovery, the ship was made of wood from hickory, spruce, pine, and oak, but Cook and his colleagues based their findings on tree rings contained in planks of white oak, which were used to build the ship's frame.

White oaks grow throughout eastern North America, but the scientists were able to narrow in on a more precise location because they already had information on tree-ring sequences in white oaks from North Carolina to Massachusetts. All that was required was a comparison between those sequences and the tree-ring sequences contained in the boat's timber.

As it turns out, "the same pattern of growth variability in the World Trade Center boat was found in timbers in southeastern Pennsylvania," Cook said. "There is no indication that timbers came from a more remote area."

The oldest ring that they identified dated back to the late 1400s, during the time of Columbus's maiden voyage to the New World. And the youngest ring—laid down in the year the timber was harvested—dated back to 1773, the same year that Bostonians held their famous Tea Party.

The later date not only tells us about when the wood was harvested, but also provides a window into the likely construction period.

"You can make an educated leap of faith that the timber was used as soon as it was cut down, and that there wasn't any seasoning involved," said Martin Bridge, an expert on dating wooden artifacts at the University College London in the United Kingdom.

"With shipbuilding you usually use [the wood] within a year or two [of it being harvested] because it's easier to work with," so it seems like a reasonable assumption that the ship was built in 1773 or soon after, noted Bridge, who was not involved in the study.

Short Life

Cook and his colleagues were able to surmise that the ship was probably built in a small shipyard in Philadelphia because all of the timber had the same tree-ring sequence. Large shipyards would have received wood from a variety of locations, each with different growth conditions, so experts wouldn't expect their tree-ring sequences to match up as nicely.

Once built, the ship "would have been taken down the Delaware River, used for various purposes, and then taken to Manhattan where it was scrapped," Cook said.

The area in Lower Manhattan where it was found was filled in in the 1790s, so—for reasons that aren't entirely clear—the ship's working life probably didn't extend beyond a decade or two.

"If ships [in the Philadelphia area] were easy to make or build because of the abundance of timber [in the late 1700s], then perhaps there wasn't a lot of time put into building a strong vessel," Cook noted. "So the life span may have been not that great."

Another possible explanation relates to a shipworm infestation found in the timber, which may have reduced the life span of the vessel.

Regardless, the ship's journey didn't end in Manhattan.

After being excavated, it was taken to the Maryland Archaeological Conservation Laboratory, where Cook and his colleagues obtained the tree ring samples.

And plans are said to be in the works to put the historic sailboat on display in a New York museum.

If that happens, museum-goers will reflect on a ship whose heritage—like its tree rings—reflects a wide cross-section of world history.

Source: https://www.nationalgeographic.com/history...

How did they build the Great Pyramid of Giza?

Explore how the ancient Egyptians built the Great Pyramid, a tomb created for Pharaoh Khufu which took over 20 years to complete.

As soon as Pharaoh Khufu ascended the throne circa 2575 BCE, work on his eternal resting place began. The structure’s architect, Hemiunu, determined he would need 20 years to finish the royal tomb. But what he could not predict was that this monument would remain the world’s tallest manmade structure for over 3,800 years. Soraya Field Fiorio digs into the construction of the Great Pyramid.

Remains of cemetery found in Sahara

A tiny woman and two children were laid to rest on a bed of flowers 5,000 years ago in what is now the barren Sahara Desert.

The slender arms of the youngsters were still extended to the woman in perpetual embrace when researchers discovered their skeletons in a remarkable cemetery that is providing clues to two civilizations who lived there, a thousand years apart, when the region was moist and green.

Paul Sereno of the University of Chicago and colleagues were searching for the remains of dinosaurs in the African country of Niger when they came across the startling find, detailed at a news conference Thursday at the National Geographic Society.

"Part of discovery is finding things that you least expect," he said. "When you come across something like that in the middle of the desert it sends a tingle down your spine."

Some 200 graves of humans were found during fieldwork at the site in 2005 and 2006, as well as remains of animals, large fish and crocodiles.

"Everywhere you turned, there were bones belonging to animals that don't live in the desert," said Sereno. "I realized we were in the green Sahara."

The graveyard, uncovered by hot desert winds, is near what would have been a lake at the time people lived there. It's in a region called Gobero, hidden away in Niger's forbidding Tenere Desert, known to Tuareg nomads as a "desert within a desert."

The human remains dated from two distinct populations that lived there during wet times, with a dry period in between.

The researchers used radiocarbon dating to determine when these ancient people lived there. Even the most recent were some 1,000 years before the building of the pyramids in Egypt.

The first group, known as the Kiffian, hunted wild animals and speared huge perch with harpoons. They colonized the region when the Sahara was at its wettest, between 10,000 and 8,000 years ago.

The researchers said the Kiffians were tall, sometimes reaching well over 6 feet.

The second group lived in the region between 7,000 and 4,500 years ago. The Tenerians were smaller and had a mixed economy of hunting, fishing and cattle herding.

Their burials often included jewelry or ritual poses. For example, one girl had an upper-arm bracelet carved from a hippo tusk. An adult Tenerian male was buried with his skull resting on part of a clay vessel; another adult male was interred seated on the shell of a mud turtle.

And pollen remains show the woman and two children were buried on a bed of flowers. The researchers preserved the group just as they had been for thousands of years.

"At first glance, it's hard to imagine two more biologically distinct groups of people burying their dead in the same place," said team member Chris Stojanowski, a bioarchaeologist from Arizona State University.

Stojanowski said ridges on the thigh bone of one Kiffian man show he had huge leg muscles, "which suggests he was eating a lot of protein and had an active, strenuous lifestyle. The Kiffian appear to have been fairly healthy — it would be difficult to grow a body that tall and muscular without sufficient nutrition."

On the other hand, ridges on a Tenerian male were barely visible. "This man's life was less rigorous, perhaps taking smaller fish and game with more advanced hunting technologies," Stojanowski said.

Helene Jousse, a zooarchaeologist from the Museum of Natural History in Vienna, Austria, reported that animal bones found in the area were from types common today in the Serengeti in Kenya, such as elephants, giraffes, hartebeests and warthogs.

The finds are detailed in reports in Thursday's edition of the journal PLoS One and in the September issue of National Geographic Magazine.

While the Sahara is desert today, a small difference in Earth's orbit once brought seasonal monsoons farther north, wetting the landscape with lakes with lush margins and drawing animals and people.

The research was funded by National Geographic, the Island Fund of the New York Community Trust, the National Science Foundation and the Wenner-Gren Foundation for Anthropological Research.

Source: https://www.nbcnews.com/id/wbna26203952

Archaeologists from the University of Zurich unearth 205-million-year-old fossils of a giant sea monster 2,700 meters above sea level in the Swiss Alps

Remains of a giant sea monster, that lived 205 million years ago, have been found 9,000 feet above sea level in the Swiss Alps by a team of archaeologists.

The marine monster grew to a length of 65ft and weighed 80 ton, and was identified from fossils representing three individuals - including teeth, ribs, and vertebrae.

The 205 million year old ichthyosaur was discovered in the Swiss Alps by a team from the University of Zurich, who described the find as 'thrilling'.

They were dug out of rocks 9,000 feet above the ocean in Switzerland, where Europe's high peaks formed when tectonic plates collided - pushing up the seabed.

The huge reptiles patrolled Panthalassa, an ocean that surrounded the supercontinent Pangea during the Late Triassic.

Team member Dr Heinz Furrer, a retired curator at the University of Zurich's Palaeontological Institute and Museum, said he was thrilled by the discovery.

He said: 'It's the world's longest ichthyosaur; with the thickest tooth found to date and the largest trunk vertebra in Europe.'

These massive creatures also made forays into the shallow seas of the Tethys on the eastern side of Pangea, the team discovered.

Lead author Dr Martin Sandler, of the University of Bonn, said: 'Maybe there are more remains of the giant sea creatures hidden beneath the glaciers.'

They discovered teeth and vertebrae from the 65ft long, 80 ton ichthyosaurs, and the tooth root was twice as wide as the previous record, which belonged to another ichthyosaur that was 50 feet from nose to tail.

Dr Sandler said: 'Bigger is always better. There are distinct selective advantages to large body size. Life will go there if it can.

'There were only three animal groups that had masses greater than 10–20 metric tonnes: long-necked dinosaurs; whales; and the giant ichthyosaurs of the Triassic.'

Ichthyosaurs first emerged in the wake of the Permian extinction some 250 million years ago, when some 95 per cent of marine species died out.

The group reached its greatest diversity in the Middle Triassic - and a few species persisted into the Cretaceous.

Roughly the shape of contemporary whales, ichthyosaurs had elongated bodies and erect tail fins.

Fossils are concentrated in North America and Europe, but ichthyosaurs have also been found in South America, Asia, and Australia.

Giant species have mostly been unearthed in North America, with scant finds from the Himalaya and New Caledonia.

The discovery of further behemoths in Switzerland represents an expansion of their known range.

Dr Sander said: 'It amounts to a major embarrassment for palaeontology that we know so little about these giant ichthyosaurs despite the extraordinary size of their fossils. We hope to rise to this challenge and find new and better fossils soon.'

The specimens, collected between 1976 and 1990, have only recently been scanned, and likely represent the last of the leviathans.

Dr Sander said: 'In Nevada, we see the beginnings of true giants, and in the Alps the end. Only the medium-to-large-sized dolphin and orca-like forms survived into the Jurassic.'

It's only the second instance of a giant ichthyosaur with teeth - the other being the 50 foot long Himalayasaurus.

They occupied similar ecological roles to modern sperm whales and killer whales, the team explained, adding that the teeth are curved inwards like those of their mammalian successors.

It indicates a grasping mode of feeding conducive to capturing prey such as giant squid.

Dr Sander said: 'It is hard to say if the tooth is from a large ichthyosaur with giant teeth or from a giant ichthyosaur with average-sized teeth.'

The tooth was broken off at the crown. It could not confidently be assigned to a particular taxon.

Still, a peculiarity of dental anatomy allowed the researchers to identify it as belonging to an ichthyosaur.

Dr Sander said: 'Ichthyosaurs have a feature in their teeth that is nearly unique among reptiles: the infolding of the dentin in the roots of their teeth. The only other group to show this are monitor lizards.'

The skeletal remains consist of eight vertebrae and ten rib fragments. They belong to the family Shastasauridae, which contains the giants Shastasaurus, Shonisaurus and Himalayasaurus.

Known as the Kössen Formation, the rocks from which these fossils derive were once at the bottom of a shallow coastal area - a very wide lagoon

The findings have been published in the Journal of Vertebrate Paleontology.

Source: https://www.dailymail.co.uk/sciencetech/ar...

Insane Laws from Ancient China You Won't Believe Existed

These are some of the strangest laws that have ever been enacted in Chinese history, ranging from the prohibition of crying to the enforcement of proper fish naming etiquette.

Imperial Chinese dynasties had to deal with wars, rebellions and uprisings all the time, so keeping order in the realm was often their most important job. So, it's not surprising that Chinese emperors and officials made huge, complicated legal systems to control their empire and the behavior of their people.

Units of History - The Varangian Guard Documentary

In this animated history documentary we explore one the most famous units of history: the Varangian Guard. The video begins with a brief history on the Rise of the Byzantine Empire which followed the fall of Rome. We focus specifically on the dynamics of the eastern Roman Empire which interacted quite heavily with the lands of Scandinavia and the Kievan Rus by way of the river routes which linked the Baltic Sea with the Black Sea. The documentary discusses the history of the Byzantine conflicts with the Kievan Rus which gave rise to the eventual mercenary service of Varangians in the Byzantine army.

We then lay the ground work for this discussion by looking at the organization of the Byzantine Army and its mercenary corps known as the "Hetairai". Starting around the end of the 9th century, the first warbands of Varangians would make their way into its ranks. However it would be in 989 AD when they came in full force, 6,000 Varangians sailing south to assist Emperor Basil II.

We discuss how future Varangians would make their way into Byzantine Service and the sorts of ways they would be used by the Emperors. This covers both civil and military service. Next we cover what the equipment of the Varangian Guard as well as the tactics of the Varangians in battle. Finally we conclude with a service history of the Varangian Guard over the Rise and fall of the Byzantine Empire. They fought many foes such as the Seljuks, the Bulgars, the Normans, the Pechenegs, and more. This includes key battles such as the Battle of Manzikert and the Siege of Constantinople during the 4th Crusade.

"Filthy" Secrets of The Vikings

Today you are going to learn all the “filthy” secrets you did not know about the Vikings. Watch the video to find out more!

Origins of the Hungarians

The Hungarians, or Magyars, have a very unique language and origin which has long been debated. With the most recent genetic studies together with medieval legends and archaeology, the real origins of the Magyars are explored.

Monsters and Myths: The origins of humanity's greatest legends

Monsters have always been part of our nightmares and fairy tales. But what is true and what belongs to the realm of fiction? We explore the myth of dragons, hunt for traces of the “chupacabra”, and track down ancient unicorns.

Bizarre detail on buried 2000-year-old skeleton recovered from archaeological dig in Crimea sparks ‘alien’ claims

The skeletons of five people with elongated skulls have been dug up in the Russian-annexed region of Crimea, sparking rumours of an “alien” grave.

The remains date from slightly less than 2000 years ago and are believed to be from the ancient Sarmatian culture.

A mother was found buried with a baby lying on her chest, with three more skeletons found under them in the grave.

All had distinctive deformed skulls, and previous similar discoveries have led to reports of “alien” graves.

But the Sarmatians considered such artificial reshaping of the skull as “beautiful” but also essential for warriors who famously included women.

Archaeologist Oleg Markov said the latest discoveries were made at the Kyz-Aul necropolis in Crimea.

“The burial contained five skeletons located one above the other,” he said.

“On the upper level was the skeleton of a woman on whose chest lay the remains of a child, and under her there were three more skeletons.

“The skull bones of all had been deformed during their lifetime.

“The so-called elongated skulls were traditional for the Sarmatian culture.

“This is not the first time at the Kyz-Aul necropolis when they find those buried with such deformations of the skull.

“Several years ago, a burial of a child with the same altered cranium was discovered, then journalists dubbed this burial ‘the burial of an alien’.”

In the unlooted grave there was also a jug with a zoomorphic handle shaped as a wild boar.

“Why five people were buried in one grave is not clear yet,” he said.

A study is now underway to understand if they were the victim of “a military conflict or deadly epidemic”.

Ancient practice

The Sarmatian skull elongation process began early in childhood when the bones were still soft, and no surgery was needed.

Special wooden planks were tied to the skull, pressing the bones and gradually altering the shape.

Such deformations were seen as altering the character, and making warriors “more aggressive”.

Nikolay Sudarev, a scientist from the Archaeology Institute of the Russian Academy of Sciences, said: “They thought this was more beautiful.”

The Sarmatians - who held sway in this region around two thousand years ago - were famed for their female warriors who helped to conquer Crimea in ancient times.

The prominent role of the group’s women in warfare was seen as an inspiration to the legendary Amazon female fighters.

The burial site in Crimea - annexed from Ukraine in a 2014 military operation - is close to a giant $A5.4 billion bridge to mainland Russia.

Source: https://7news.com.au/news/world/bizarre-de...

30 Trees That Look Like Something Else And Will Make You Look Twice

Have you checked if you’re a pareidoliac yet? For all of you that enjoy seeing random objects in places where non exists, Bored Panda has prepared a special treat. We have compiled a list of peculiar-looking trees that appear to look like something else entirely.

Turns out, while most maples and sweetgum look very similar, nature has sculpted some of them most likely just to prank our eyes. Is that a trunk or a dragon? A stump or Cthulhu? Scroll down, take a close look and decide for yourself! Also, feel free to upvote your favorite entries and add new ones.

#1 Face With A Beard

#2 Devil Tree

#3 Whoever Put Those Eyes In The Tree: F*** You!

#4 Found A Tree That Looks Like A Dragon

#5 A Rare Horny-Tree

#6 This Tree Looks Like An Ent

#7 Tree-Rex

#8 This Tree Looks Like It Has A Nose

#9 Owl Tree

#10 Tree Butt

#11 Kissing The Dragon On The Nose

#12 This Tree Has Seen Some Stuff…

#13 Mr. Big Ass Tree Welcomes A Child’s Big Ass Hug

#14 This Tree Looks Like Straight Up Broccoli

#15 A Tree Stump That Looks Like A Dragon Skull

#16 Teenage Mutant Ninja Tree

#17 A Tree Enjoying A Meal

#18 This Sad Tree

#19 Godzilla Tree Eats The Moon! Om Nom Nom Nom!

#20 Cthulhu Stump

#21 This Tree Looks Like It Has Eyes

#22 The Top Of A Tree Was Blown Off In A Storm. Now It Looks Like A Dude Out For A Stroll

#23 This Tree Looks Like A Moose

#24 This Tree Looked Surprised When We Approached It

#25 Face In A Tree

#26 This Angel Is On The Wrong End Of The Tree!

#27 The Base Of This Tree Looks Like A Dragon!

#28 This Tree Kind Of Looks Like A Rooster

#29 Funny Tree

#30 The Faces Of Trees

Source: https://www.beautyofplanet.com/30-trees-th...