The world is full of incredibly strange animals‚ and zoos are a great place to see many of those creatures from the comfort of a paved path or through thick enough glass to ensure your protection. Sure‚ we all go to zoos expecting to see the mainstays that come with each city’s set-up: tigers‚ lions‚ […] The post 10 Absurdly Strange Animals You Can Actually Go See in Zoos appeared first on Listverse.

The Office of the U.S. Trade Representative intends to cooperate with a liberal legal organization that routinely sues over voter ID laws as part of its strategic plan to comply with President Joe Biden’s executive order to get out the vote.  USTR‚ an agency within the Executive Office of the President‚ included working with the Brennan Center for Justice‚ among other organizations‚ in the plan obtained by The Heritage Foundation’s Oversight Project through the Freedom of Information Act. The center‚ a legal advocacy group‚ is  based at New York University. The plan to implement Biden’s order on getting out the vote drafted by the trade representative’s office says: USTR will develop annual social media posts on key dates that are important to voting engagement including: National Voter Registration Day (4th Tuesday in September); Election Day (1st Tuesday in November); 15th Amendment anniversary re: Black men suffrage (February 3rd); 19th Amendment Anniversary (August 18th); and National Voter Registration Act (May 20th). In addition to featuring senior USTR officials‚ USTR will seek to partner with nonpartisan‚ public service and civic engagement organizations (e.g.‚ Asian Americans Advancing Justice‚ Mexican American Legal Defense and Educational Fund‚ National Pan-Hellenic Council‚ Brennan Center for Justice) in developing and amplifying content for these online engagements. Biden nominated lawyer Katherine Tai as his U.S. trade representative to lead the office as his principal trade adviser and negotiator; the Senate confirmed her in March 2021.  The USTR’s strategic plan describes the agency as “a component of the Executive Office of the President (EOP)” and “a Cabinet-level agency responsible for developing and coordinating U.S. international trade‚ commodity‚ and direct investment policy‚ and overseeing trade negotiations with other countries in bilateral‚ plurilateral‚ and multilateral discussions and institutions.” The plan crafted by the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative also indicates its election-related activities will have a budget impact for the agency‚ but that it was undetermined as yet based on the “approximate timeframe for implementation.” On its website‚ the Brennan Center lists multiple court cases opposing voter ID‚ advocating use of mail-in voting‚ and regarding the drawing of congressional and legislative districts.  The left-leaning organization also characterizes as “purges” efforts by states to update voter registration lists to do away with the names of dead voters‚ or those who moved to other jurisdictions. The Mexican American Legal Defense and Educational Fund‚ which the USTR plan mentions as a partner‚ has opposed redistricting and apportionment based on eligible voting population‚ and for including noncitizens in the count for legislative and congressional districts‚ according to the Capital Research Center‚ an investigative think tank that monitors nonprofits. The organization also has advocated noncitizen voting in some local jurisdictions.   Asian Americans Advancing Justice engages in litigation regarding voting rights and affirmative action. The National Pan-Hellenic Council is an association of sororities and fraternities. Release of the records comes after the revelation that Biden administration agencies have partnered with other transparently left-leaning organizations‚ including Demos and the American Civil Liberties Union‚ to help implement Biden’s Executive Order 14019 aimed at boosting voting.  Republican state legislators in Pennsylvania have sued to block Biden’s executive order from being used in their state‚ while Republicans in the U.S. House of Representatives advanced legislation to deny funding to implement the order.  “This executive order is so dangerous‚ and you could potentially be up to $1 billion [to fund it]‚” Rep. Claudia Tenney‚ R-N.Y.‚ co-chairwoman of the House Election Integrity Caucus‚ told The Daily Signal in an interview. “When Zuckerbucks looked really bad with $419 million‚ this is up to $1 billion. But you have every major federal agency engaged in the business of trying to create drop boxes and push their constituencies‚” Tenney said. Tenney and many other conservative advocates of election reforms have compared Biden’s executive order to Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg’s donating $419 million in 2020 for grants to administer elections‚ which critics say disproportionately went to heavily Democrat areas.  GOP lawmakers contend that the president’s executive order puts the federal government’s thumb on the scale in elections‚ which are supposed to be the purview of states. They argue that it also could prompt federal employees to violate the Hatch Act‚ which bars them from political activity on government time or using government resources. The Biden administration has ignored requests about implementation of the president’s order from over 50 members of Congress. Most of the information about it has surfaced through FOIA requests.  The Foundation for Government Accountability‚ a conservative legal organization‚ is suing the Justice Department for refusing to release its own strategic plan to implement Biden’s get-out-the-vote order.  “I don’t think they [the Biden administration] are proud about this. I think it’s a mission to get as many votes in as possible‚” Tenney told The Daily Signal. “They have built-in constituencies—the unions‚ a lot of these federal employees‚ people in HUD developments—they are using to try to get these votes that could make a difference in these swing states‚ which could decide our election.” Although the Brennan Center routinely has opposed and litigated against voter ID laws‚ the trade representative’s office says in the strategic plan that it would coordinate with the Executive Office of the President’s administrative office to comply with voter ID laws.  “The employee IDs for USTR employees are issued by the EOP Office of Administration‚” the plan says. “EOP/OA is responsible for issues concerning whether these identity documents satisfy state voter identification laws.” The plan adds:  “In a manner consistent with the Hatch Act‚ USTR will promote the goals of Executive Order 14019 of March 7‚ 2021‚ titled Promoting Access to Voting.” The agency’s plan later explains how the trade representative’s office will promote voting among the 250 USTR employees located in the U.S.‚ in Geneva‚ Switzerland‚ and at U.S. diplomatic facilities in the European Union‚ Mexico‚ and China.  The plan notes: USTR provides training for all employees on acceptable election activities including voting [and] volunteer service for voter registration and as a poll worker. In consultation with the Chief Human Capitol [sic] Officers Council (CHOC)‚ the Assistant U.S. Trade Representative for Administration will share policy guidance with USTR employees assigned overseas. CHOC is considering issuing guidance on administrative leave rules and other flexibilities. USTR will provide information to employees on voter registration‚ participation‚ and related policies. The Office of the U.S. Trade Representative didn’t respond to The Daily Signal’s inquiries before publication of this report.  Neither the Brennan Center for Justice nor the other named organizations responded to requests for comment.   Have an opinion about this article? To sound off‚ please email letters@DailySignal.com and we’ll consider publishing your edited remarks in our regular “We Hear You” feature. Remember to include the URL or headline of the article plus your name and town and/or state. The post EXCLUSIVE: Biden Trade Agency Plans Partnership With Liberal Legal Groups to Turn Out Vote appeared first on The Daily Signal.

Atlantis: everyone knows the name and almost everyone knows that the name refers to a mythical‚ sunken island continent in the Atlantic Ocean‚ according to a story told by the Greek philosopher Plato sometime during the 4th century BCE. Whether or not Atlantis existed has been a matter of conjecture for nearly four hundred years‚ ever since Francis Bacon published his novel The New Atlantis in 1626. Atlantis is a controversy that continues to this day. For some folks‚ Atlantis existed just as Plato explained‚ but for others the idea alone runs across the grain of prevailing scholarship and archaeological investigation. For those who are sure Atlantis did exist‚ it is a belief. But for the skeptic‚ a prehistoric civilisation with technical sophistication is pure fiction. Unfortunately‚ for those who believe there is no proof‚ Atlantis has been ‘discovered’ by researchers in almost every part of the world‚ from South America to the Eastern Mediterranean to the British Isles. Although scholarly consensus is convinced that Plato’s fictitious tale of Atlantis was based on the Island of Thera’s destruction in 1628 BCE‚ Atlantis remains as the Holy Grail of archaeology‚ even if archaeologists won’t admit it. Discovering evidence – even the smallest artefact – that the lost continent of Atlantis really existed would be the greatest find in the annals of all historical disciplines. History would not only be made‚ but have to be rewritten. However‚ until that evidence is discovered and confirmed‚ the controversy will rage on between believers and skeptics‚ with the skeptics having a distinct advantage. It’s all about evidence. Solid evidence is important and there is no direct evidence that Atlantis existed. No ancient stone or sign has ever been found stating ‘Atlantis this Way’ or ‘Welcome to Atlantis.’ No artefact has been discovered proving that sophisticated Atlantean equipment was used by any culture or civilisation during prehistoric times. This being the case‚ why do some people insist that the story of Atlantis is fact? The answer to this question lies in the Valley of the Nile‚ ancient Egypt‚ and the enigmatic Old Kingdom period. It’s where my hunt for Atlantis began. STANDARD EXPLANATION MISINTERPRETS THE EVIDENCE The ruins of ancient Egypt are unique. Nowhere else in the world are there such magnificent megalithic structures as well as fields of granite. It’s obvious that the builders of ancient Egypt’s temples and pyramids used granite‚ as well as limestone and basalt‚ as primary materials in their architectural designs. The importance of this fact cannot be overlooked. Working with stone is not easy and working with granite – the hardest rock known to man – and achieving any scale of economy in order to build big and build everywhere‚ like the ancient Egyptians did‚ is impossible without diamond studded tools. Today‚ such large and numerous projects on a big scale require specialised tools and equipment. Case in point: Giza’s Great Pyramid was the tallest structure in the world until France erected the Eiffel Tower in 1889. So‚ how could the ancient Egyptians build an entire civilisation out of limestone‚ basalt and granite using little more than copper chisels‚ stone hammers‚ dolerite pounding rocks‚ and brute strength? How could a large number of granite statues‚ some in excess of forty feet tall‚ be carved with such detail and perfection and then erected? The traditional explanation is that they did it with copper chisels‚ stone hammers‚ dolerite pounding rocks‚ and brute strength. However‚ for me‚ since no culture or civilisation was able to duplicate in complexity‚ scale‚ and quantity‚ the Old Kingdom construction efforts during the next 4‚000 years‚ then the traditional understanding must be an incorrect interpretation of the evidence – the most erroneous being the Great Pyramid. Skepticism is a two-way street. The idea that the Great Pyramid was a tomb defies logical and cogent reasoning. First‚ funeral items were never found within any of the pyramid’s chambers. Nor are there any inscriptions describing it as a tomb. Second‚ its internal design is strange and does not accommodate human beings. Passageways that lead to its three chambers are a little more than three feet in height and width. A trough links the pyramid/temple site to the valley below at Abu Sir. Nor are there any steps; so‚ to move about you have to crawl on your hands and knees. This makes moving about inside the pyramid next to impossible for anyone‚ let alone a ritual funerary party. Third‚ the walls and ceiling of the uppermost chamber‚ the alleged burial chamber‚ was built from seventy-ton slabs of granite with another five layers of granite in the area directly above its ceiling. Finally‚ as any good detective would consider important‚ a colossal structure such as the Great Pyramid requires enormous resources to build which‚ consequently‚ requires a valid and reasoned motive. A tomb is not one of them. At a cost of thirty-five billion in adjusted (US) dollars‚ according to engineer Markus Schulte‚ there had to be a very good reason to build the Great Pyramid; a reason or a cause that united a nation in mind and in spirit. To be sure‚ the currently accepted idea that the Great Pyramid’s construction was a national project is an accurate interpretation of what likely happened. However‚ any large scale operation that consumes billions of dollars in resources must return some type of social benefit. In the case of the Great Pyramid‚ the benefit somehow involved water. Basin at Abu Gorab (1 mile north of Abu Sir). On the Giza Plateau just south of the middle pyramid‚ a granite trough emerges from the sand (see illustration). At Abu Sir‚ south of Sakkara‚ a limestone trough runs the course of the hill on which a pyramid was built‚ and at both Abu Sir and its neighbour pyramid‚ Abu Gorab‚ there are numerous stone basins. Although denied by most Egyptologists‚ there is also evidence that a system of tunnels exists under the Giza Plateau. The so-called ‘Tomb of Osiris’ runs deep into the ground as does ‘the pit’ in the Great Pyramid’s subterranean chamber. Near the granite trough there is also two square tunnels drilled into the bedrock‚ although now filled with sand. Furthermore‚ the Great Pyramid’s original design included a perimeter wall‚ which might have functioned as a retaining wall for a reservoir for fresh water that flowed through a canal from the ancient Lake Moeris. A DEVICE‚ NOT A TOMB In his 1967 book The Pharaoh’s Pump‚ Edward Kunkel put forth the idea that the Great Pyramid was a hydraulic device. According to Kunkel‚ the Great Pyramid served as a ‘ram’ style water pump in order to facilitate moving large quantities of stone. Through a series of locks‚ stone blocks arriving from Upper Egypt were moved onto the Giza Plateau by barge‚ through a system of canals that linked the Nile River to the Great Pyramid. In Kunkel’s theory‚ the Great Pyramid housed two pumps. One was built underground and a second pump was built above ground. The underground pump consisted of the subterranean chamber and its associated passageways‚ and the above ground pump‚ the middle and upper chambers. The underground ‘ram’ style water pump used energy created by compressing water to maintain water flow‚ as did the middle chamber for the upper pump. In the lower pump‚ the subterranean chamber functioned as a compression chamber‚ and in the upper pump‚ the middle chamber functioned as a compression chamber. The odd niche in the middle chamber‚ according to Kunkel‚ was a safety value‚ and the upper (King’s) chamber‚ a secondary compression chamber. Kunkel’s theory is not as wild as it first seems. In his book he discusses the archaeological evidence that supports his idea. However‚ the notion that the middle and upper chambers functioned as compression chambers is a stretch of engineering imagination. For the upper pump to function‚ water would have to enter the Grand Gallery from the lower pump and then flow into the middle and upper chambers. Once in the upper chamber‚ the continuous flow of water from below would create two streams exiting the pyramid through the shafts built into the north and south sides. Unfortunately‚ Kunkel’s upper pump theory requires the creation of a vacuum‚ a number of valves‚ and some type of combustible fuel and combustion chamber to drive the pump‚ which according to Kunkel was located above the uppermost chamber. None of which appear plausible‚ although the theory that the subterranean chamber functioned as a ‘ram’ style water pump makes sense. According to marine engineer John Cadman‚ Kunkel made the mistake of theorising that the entire pyramid was a water pump. Cadman realised that only the subterranean chamber and associated passageways would have functioned as a pump. So‚ Cadman set out to solve it the engineering way. With as many photos of the subterranean chamber as he could find‚ Cadman built a model to test his theory‚ the first of which didn’t work. Accordingly‚ he went over the model’s design looking for weak points‚ and built a second model. This one worked the first time. He then built two more models‚ one which was made with a glass top and ink injectors in order to study the flow of the water inside the chamber. After studying this model he concluded that the chamber was designed to efficiently circulate and move water through the output and waste line. Cadman experimented further by adding a vertical pipe connected to the input pipe‚ called a ‘stand pipe’. In a ram pump‚ water enters the compression chamber from an elevated source. Inside the compression chamber an opened valve allows water to flow out until the velocity forces the valve shut; when the valve closes high pressure forces water past the check valve and through the output line. When the valve reopens‚ water once again flows down the input pipe into the compression chamber. A vertical pipe connected to the input line facilitates the pressure wave exiting the system and thereby allows greater cycling‚ i.e. water is moved through the pump at a faster rate. He also discovered that the stand pipe increases the intensity of the compression wave inside the chamber. Cadman’s conclusion: whoever carved the subterranean chamber out of bedrock knew exactly what they were doing. The chamber’s design was deliberate and engineered to quickly move water through the system. Furthermore‚ the compression wave resulting from the pump’s action was apparently more important to the builders of the pyramid than the water being pumped. This leads to another question: why would the pyramid builders design a device that intentionally sent a compression wave up through the body of the pyramid? Although the answer to that question still lies in the future‚ the significance of Cadman’s modelling of the Great Pyramid’s subterranean area is obvious. The builders of the Great Pyramid understood engineering physics‚ at least in the area of hydraulics which requires scientific inquiry and the application of science; in other words‚ technology. Herein is the answer to how the pyramid builders built an entire civilisation out of limestone‚ basalt and granite. If they had achieved an understanding of hydraulics sufficient to build a large ram pump‚ certainly they also achieved an understanding of physics sufficient to develop some type of machine technology. Of course‚ skeptics would argue if they used machines to build‚ then where are the machines now? I‚ too‚ would like to know what happened to the machines‚ but the reality is the machines they used‚ or what is left of them‚ probably disintegrated and returned to the elements from which they were made long ago. Exposed to weathering‚ only rock can withstand the corrosiveness of the environment for extremely long periods of time‚ although the possibility exists that beneath the Saharan sands lies the machining treasure of Civilisation X. Even so‚ there is another way to demonstrate that powered machines were used in the process of building the Old Kingdom’s magnificent structures. Whether a hand tool or power tool‚ every tool leaves its mark‚ and marks from hand tools are very different than those made by machines. Anyone who has taken metals or wood shop in high school knows this to be true. A cut made from a table saw is flat and straight where as a cut made by a person using a hand saw is less precise‚ not quite as flat or straight. The telltale signs of a power tool or machine are the minute marks the blade’s teeth make as they remove material. Although difficult to see‚ close up the marks from the blade are visible and make a regular pattern across the surface of the cut material. These marks are called ‘feed lines’ and are left by the machine as the operator feeds the material into the cutting blade. Finding evidence of feed marks on stone at one of Egypt’s ancient sites would be the equivalent of finding the machine that made those marks. THE STONE AT ABU RAWASH With the Great Sphinx and three pyramids‚ the Giza Plateau is the jewel of Egypt’s modern day tourist economy‚ and rightfully so. Without question there is no other place with such magnificence. However‚ there’s little-known ancient ruins five miles to the north‚ just off the road to Alexandria‚ called Abu Rawash. It’s not on the tourist map‚ but is as spectacular as Giza‚ although in a very different way. According to Egyptology‚ Abu Rawash’s pyramid was built 4‚570 years ago during the fourth dynasty by Djedefre‚ that dynasty’s third ruler. What’s fascinating about this pyramid is that it was never finished. Only fifteen or so courses of the pyramid were laid and the descending passage is exposed to the sky. It’s a fantastic site to visit and provides insight into pyramid construction and design. Machined granite slab at Abu Rawash. The most intriguing aspect of Abu Rawash‚ though‚ lies on its south side‚ a hundred feet or so from the base of the pyramid. There is a pink granite slab approximately four feet in length‚ three feet wide‚ and a foot in thickness. It’s propped up on a dozen or so stones the size of a softball. The granite stone is pristine‚ as if it was hidden away for thousands of years and only recently uncovered. The surface of the stone is smooth to the touch and at its top is an arc‚ precise in its edge‚ which separates the stone’s smooth surface from its rough. On the smooth surface there are two slice marks‚ one near the top and another toward the bottom. And as you look close at the stone’s surface‚ minute horizontal striations are clearly visible in the same pattern of the separating arc. Unmistakably‚ this pink granite slab was cut using a machine; irrefutable evidence that whatever construction crew was responsible for the pyramid at Abu Rawash‚ they were using some type of power saw. Abu Rawash isn’t the only place‚ either. There is evidence elsewhere that powered equipment was used by the pyramid builders – on the Giza Plateau‚ on the east side of the Great Pyramid at the north end of the basalt patio. Originally‚ the machine marks on these stones were not visible‚ hidden by adjoining blocks of a finished patio. But sometime over the course of the last four thousand years or more scavengers removed a number of blocks from the patio’s periphery‚ particularly the north end‚ exposing what the pyramid builders did not want anyone to see. Mistakes made by the men who operated the saws. At Giza‚ the evidence is just as compelling as what exists as Abu Rawash. WAS THERE A CIVILISATION X? Since the ancient Egyptians that lived from the third through the first millennium BCE were not known to have developed machine technology‚ and no other civilisation since has until modern times‚ the builders responsible for the stone at Abu Rawash and the Great Pyramid’s basalt patio must have existed at a remote time in prehistory. The evidence speaks for itself. There was Civilisation before Civilisation. I like to refer to it as Civilisation X. Who were they? Was Egypt a colony of Atlantis as some theorists have put forth? Or were they an unknown culture never described by ancient peoples? Although everyone knows that the story of Atlantis is attributed to the Greek philosopher Plato‚ most people don’t realise the story of Atlantis is Egyptian in origin. According to Plato’s dialogues Timaeus and Critias‚ he heard the story second hand from his uncle Solon who originally heard it from the temple priests at Sais where the Atlantis tale was said to be inscribed upon the temple’s pillars. Unfortunately‚ such an inscription has never been found. So no one knows whether or not Plato’s story of Atlantis is fact or fiction. There’s no question that Plato’s tale of Atlantis was a social moral. The pertinent question is‚ in my opinion‚ was there a kernel of truth to the story? In other words‚ was Plato inspired to write Timaeus and Critias from known history of the time? I think that is likely the case. There are a number of ancient cataclysm myths such as the Greek’s Deucalion’s Flood‚ the Hopi’s ‘Blue Star’‚ Sumer’s ‘The Epic of Gilgamesh’‚ and Egypt’s story of ‘Hathor as the Eye of Ra’‚ just to name a few. There are also two tales of catastrophe in the biblical Genesis‚ Noah’s Flood and the Tower of Babel. In modern times these ancient stories of death and destruction have been attributed to fantasy or a way of explaining life’s mysteries. I think such an interpretation is not only superficial but an insult to our ancestors. Who are we to say they were primitive and ignorant in their understanding of the world around them? Indeed‚ we should understand these ‘myths’ for what they are‚ ancient history told as a story in oral tradition that was designed to be understood as metaphor to be interpreted‚ and not a literal account. With that in mind‚ a fresh look at the biblical Tower of Babel story allows unique insight into our remote past. On its surface‚ the Tower of Babel story is just another fable where God’s wrath befalls an unsuspecting world: The whole world had one language and a common speech. Mankind was capable of planning and completing just about anything. Now the whole world had one language and a common speech. As men moved eastward‚ they found a plain in Shinar [Babylon] and settled there. They said to each other‚ “Come‚ let’s make bricks and bake them thoroughly.” They used brick instead of stone‚ and tar for mortar. Then they said‚ “Come‚ let us build ourselves a city‚ with a tower that reaches to the heavens‚ so that we may make a name for ourselves and not be scattered over the face of the whole earth.” But the LORD came down to see the city and the tower that the men were building. The LORD said‚ “If as one people speaking the same language they have begun to do this‚ then nothing they plan to do will be impossible for them. Come‚ let us go down and confuse their language so they will not understand each other.” So the LORD scattered them from there over all the earth‚ and they stopped building the city. That is why it was called Babel – because there the LORD confused the language of the whole world. From there the LORD scattered them over the face of the whole earth. – Genesis 11:1-9 Taken literally the story makes little sense. However‚ as metaphor the imagery is easy to understand. First‚ the word Babel in Hebrew sounds like the Hebrew word for confused. In my opinion what they were building was not a literal tower. In fact‚ the tower they were building was not a tower at all. The tower represents the technical state humanity had achieved at that time and that they were building a great civilisation. The text is clear on this point: “mankind was united through a single language and could accomplish just about anything.” It’s ludicrous to think that some magic event occurred that picked people up and moved them across the world while at the same time mysteriously altering their language. This‚ too‚ is metaphor. In the insurance industry customers are protected from floods‚ fires‚ tornados‚ and other unfortunate events. They are referred to as ‘Acts of God’ and are nothing more than natural disasters. Today‚ although we know that the disaster is a result of nature‚ we still perceive these events as acts of God. And a number of people‚ particularly those who hold spiritual views‚ assign their responsibility to God. Why would it be any different five thousand years ago? I don’t think it would. We still blame God today for all sorts of personal disasters. What the Tower of Babel story is expressing in metaphor is that a natural disaster of immense proportions occurred that decimated civilisation. Over many generations‚ isolated pockets of survivors struggled back onto the road of civilisation‚ and because of their isolation unique languages developed in diverse regions. HISTORY UNLEASHED According to history pundits‚ civilisation emerged around the world at about the same time‚ around 3000 BCE; in the Nile Valley‚ the Indus Valley‚ Mesopotamia‚ as well as South America at Caral‚ Peru and Japan from within the Jomon culture. Scholars interpret the sudden rise in societal organisation as an evolutionary phenomenon‚ a natural progression of humankind. But how do we know that as a fact? We don’t. It’s an assumption based solely on archaeological evidence‚ and given the evidence for the use of powered equipment at Abu Rawash and Giza‚ and the scientific modelling of the subterranean section of the Great Pyramid‚ it appears to be a false assumption. Maybe we should pay more attention to ancient myth such as the story of Hathor as the Eye of Ra and ancient records such as the Palermo Stone or the Turin Papyrus. According to the Turin Papyrus‚ before Egypt’s first dynasty – preceding 3000 BCE – the ‘Followers of Horus’ ruled for 13‚000 years and before them ‘the gods’ ruled for 20‚000 years. Thus‚ according to the ancient Egyptians their civilisation’s history dates back 36‚000 years. What happened to obscure this history? Between 14‚000 BCE and 9‚000 BCE catastrophe occurred on our planet‚ a cataclysm we simply refer to as ‘the end of the Ice Age’; science refers to it as the Terminal Pleistocene Extinction. We know for a fact that during that time many large mammalian species became extinct. If civilisation existed at that time‚ and the evidence is convincing that it did‚ the women and men living at that time would also have suffered the consequences of global calamity. For the survivors it would have been a long and difficult journey on the road to re-establishing civilisation. Edward Malkowski‘s book – Ancient Egypt 39‚000 BCE: The History‚ Technology &; Philosophy of Civilization X – takes a fresh look at the physical and textual evidence for a technical‚ prehistoric civilisation. © Copyright New Dawn Magazine‚ www.newdawnmagazine.com. Permission granted to freely distribute this article for non-commercial purposes if unedited and copied in full‚ including this notice. If you appreciated this article‚ please consider a digital subscription to New Dawn. The post Was There a Civilisation X?: Evidence Indicates There Was appeared first on Anomalien.com.

Humans have long dreamed of setting foot on the Moon and other planetary bodies such as Mars. Since the 1960s‚ space travellers have donned suits designed to protect them from the vacuum of space and stepped out into the unknown. However‚ the Polaris Dawn mission‚ which is to include the first spacewalk organised by a private company‚ has been delayed. This is due to complications with the design and development of a suitable spacesuit. Moon suits are also one of the key elements of Nasa’s Artemis lunar programme that have yet to be delivered. A report released in November 2023 said that the contractor making the suits is having to revisit aspects of the design provided by Nasa‚ which could introduce delays. Yet the first spacewalk‚ by the Soviet cosmonaut Alexei Leonov‚ took place in 1965. Later‚ 12 Nasa astronauts would walk on the lunar surface‚ between 1969 and 1972‚ using technology that would be eclipsed by today’s smartphones. So it’s not unreasonable to ask why it can still be difficult to design and build spacesuits to do the same thing. Much has changed since the Apollo missions planted flags on the Moon. The geopolitics driving space travel have shifted‚ and spacesuits are no longer expected to be just a form of protection. Instead‚ they are a critical way to improve the productivity of astronauts. This involves a rethink of not just the suits themselves‚ but the technology that supports them. An array of powerful telecommunications technologies to connect astronauts with space stations and ground control sits alongside multisensory cameras‚ temperature readers and proximity sensors in present-day spacesuits. Situational awareness – understanding key elements in the environment‚ such as the health of an astronaut – is a core tenet for modern spacesuit design and critical for the operator’s safety. The ability of a suit to track heart rate and other vital signs is important in a vacuum‚ where levels of oxygen need constant monitoring. Expectations around the risks astronauts take have changed for the better. And the level of investment it takes to produce a spacesuit necessitates that it can be used for future tasks that may include lunar settlement in the next few decades. The trade off that engineers must make when incorporating wearable technology like those already mentioned is weight. Will greater situational awareness result in a spacesuit that is too heavy to move in effectively? When Elon Musk first hinted at challenges with the extravehicular activity spacesuit for Polaris Dawn in a presentation to SpaceX employees in January‚ it was not difficulties with connected technology that he discussed‚ but of redesigning “the suit so that you actually move around in it”. Situational awareness However‚ when talking about mobility in a spacesuit‚ you need to consider the tasks that you want that mobility to support. Before the advent of modern spacesuits‚ Apollo astronauts struggled to carry out missions. When drilling into the surface of the Moon with a hand drill to collect samples‚ astronauts found it difficult to provide enough downwards force to counteract the Moon’s weaker gravity. It was not until the invention of a zero-gravity drill‚ decades later‚ that this problem would be addressed. The current exploration of pneumatic exoskeletons‚ providing the support necessary for movement in low gravity could be part of a solution. However‚ newer spacesuits may also need to interface with hardware‚ like robotic drills that exist outside the suit. This will also necessitate more mobility in spacesuits. Working with robots Offloading tasks‚ previously carried out by humans‚ to robots will be part of the future of space exploration. It’s a primary way that engineers will also be able to enhance the mobility of astronauts in spacesuits. For example‚ when an astronaut goes on a spacewalk to inspect the condition of part of a space station and make any possible repairs‚ they are supported by a robotic arm that ensures they don’t float off into space. While jointed‚ this arm is rigid and can limit an astronaut’s movement. An approach currently being explored to extend this range of movement is a climbing robot‚ that is attached to both the astronaut and the space station‚ that an individual can control through their spacesuit. This would allow the astronaut to move around the space station faster and with a greater range of movement than before‚ allowing them to reach and repair hard-to-access areas like corners. While the eventual hope is that robots themselves can assess any damage to the space station and repair it‚ due to possible disruptions in normal operations‚ humans must be ready to step in. Possible disruptions could be natural‚ like a small meteor shower damaging the robot‚ or human-made‚ like hacking carried by a hostile group or state. For the types of activities we want to accomplish in the future‚ this human-robot collaboration will be instrumental. Building a base on the Moon‚ as both the US and China plan to do‚ will involve construction work and drilling‚ which humans will not be able to accomplish alone. Modern spacesuits will need to provide an interface to work with this new technology‚ and we can expect the suits to evolve in step with robotics. The relationship between humans and robots is changing. It will go beyond spacewalks and robots’ previous uses as limited tools‚ to a situation where they are cooperative partners in space. The objectives of ten or 20 years from now‚ like building lunar settlements‚ exploring mineral deposits on the Moon and efficiently repairing space station modules can only be achieved using robotics. Modern spacesuits will be a key foundation of this collaborative relationship‚ forming the interface where astronauts and robots can work together to achieve shared goals. So when we do once again leave our footprints on other worlds‚ we will no longer be alone. Yang Gao‚ Professor of Robotics‚ Head of Centre for Robotics Research‚ King’s College London This article is republished from The Conversation under a Creative Commons license. Read the original article. The post Spacesuits need a major upgrade for the next phase of exploration appeared first on Anomalien.com.

Actress Brooke Shields blasted Hollywood for allowing her to be sexualized as a child actor and said the entertainment industry is "predicated on eating its young."At just 11 years old‚ Shields made her cinematic debut in the movie "Alice‚ Sweet Alice." A year later‚ Shields starred as a child prostitute in the controversial film "Pretty Baby." Shields appeared nude in the movie and kissed 27-year-old actor Keith Carradine. As a teen‚ Shields was cast in extremely sexualized roles for "Blue Lagoon" and "Endless Love."Now‚ Brooke is speaking out about how she was sexualized by Hollywood when she was a child actor. On Friday‚ Shields was joined by journalist Katie Couric‚ Meghan Markle‚ sociologist Nancy Wang Yuen‚ and journalist Errin Haines as keynote speakers at a SXSW panel titled: "Breaking Barriers‚ Shaping Narratives: How Women Lead On and Off the Screen.""There was this sexualization of young women and I was at the center of it. I was promoting it‚" Shields said. "I was surrounded by a strong mom‚ had a community around me‚ I did not become the type of statistic that Hollywood created."The 58-year-old actress said‚ "Hollywood is predicated on eating its young."She also noted that Hollywood dismisses actresses over the age of 40. "At 58 you're too old to be the ingénue but not quite the granny yet‚" Shields stated. "I find my reaction is to instead of getting angry‚ find and ferret out the filmmakers who appreciate a woman over 40 and appreciate the life experience."She added‚ "My entire career has been built on beauty‚ as I've gotten older I want my message to be appreciative‚ but beauty as a wellness.... we're not just wrinkle cream. We need to change the narrative – and say that there is beauty in this age."In her documentary "Pretty Baby‚" which was released last year‚ Shields talked to her daughters about being sexually exploited as a child. Her 19-year-old daughter discussed Brooke posing naked for Playboy at age 10 and appearing nude in a movie at age 11‚ and exclaimed‚ "It's child pornography!"Shields said in an interview‚ "That was hard for me‚ to not justify my mom to them‚ but when they asked me‚ I thought‚ 'Oh God‚ I have to admit this.'""I mean‚ I could say‚ 'Oh‚ it was the time back then‚' or 'Oh‚ it was art‚'" Shields explained. "But I don't know why she thought it was all right. I don't know."As Blaze News previously reported‚ Shields revealed that she was raped by a Hollywood insider early in her acting career. Like Blaze News? Bypass the censors‚ sign up for our newsletters‚ and get stories like this direct to your inbox. Sign up here!

The iconic movie Goodfellas chronicles the lives of real gangsters like Henry Hill‚ Billy Batts‚ Tommy DeSimone‚ and Jimmy Burke — but it only tells part of the story. The post The Real-Life Goodfellas: Meet The Mobsters Behind The Movie appeared first on All That's Interesting.

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Police ruled George Reeves' death in June 1959 a suicide‚ but a series of suspicious events surrounding the incident led some people to point a finger at the actor's fiancee — or even the Mafia. The post The Baffling Death Of George Reeves‚ The ‘Original Superman’ Who Some Believe Was Murdered appeared first on All That's Interesting.

After surviving the Great Depression and World War II‚ Dick Proenneke ventured to Alaska in search of a simple life — and ended up building a cabin by hand and staying there for the next three decades. The post The Unbelievable Story Of Dick Proenneke‚ The Man Who Lived Alone In The Alaskan Wilderness For 30 Years appeared first on All That's Interesting.

President Joe Biden apologized for describing the suspected killer of Laken Hope Riley as an "illegal immigrant." Meanwhile‚ former President Donald Trump met the family of the slain nursing student before…