Droughts Pave Way for Islam

Extreme dry conditions contributed to the decline of the ancient South Arabian kingdom of Himyar.

Combined with political unrest and war, the droughts left behind a region in disarray, thereby creating the conditions on the Arabian peninsula that made possible the spread of the newly emerging religion of Islam.

On the plateaus of Yemen, traces of the Himyarite Kingdom can still be found today: terraced fields and dams formed part of a particularly sophisticated irrigation system, transforming the semi-desert into fertile fields. Himyar was an established part of South Arabia for several centuries.

However, despite its former strength, during the sixth century AD the kingdom entered into a period of crisis, which culminated in its conquest by the neighboring kingdom of Aksum (now Ethiopia). A previously overlooked factor, namely extreme drought, may have been decisive in contributing to the upheavals in ancient Arabia from which Islam emerged during the seventh century. These findings were recently reported by researchers led by Professor Dominik Fleitmann in the journal Science.

Petrified water acts as climate record
Fleitmann’s team analyzed the layers of a stalagmite from the Al Hoota Cave in present-day Oman. The stalagmite’s growth rate and the chemical composition of its layers (see box) are directly related to how much precipitation falls above the cave. As a result, the shape and isotopic composition of the deposited layers of a stalagmite represent a valuable record of historical climate.  READ MORE...

Disappearing Art

 

Backyard Photography of Galaxyk

In the summer of 2020, the world was enthralled with the Comet Neowise, which only makes an appearance every 6,800 years. Brennan Gilmore was so enthralled that it kicked off a passion for astrophotography that continues today. 

Two years after beginning his journey photographing the stars, he has accomplished a major goal: photographing the Andromeda galaxy.

Our neighbor in the sky, Andromeda is a spiral galaxy similar to our own Milky Way. Sitting 2.5 million light-years away, it remains a bright spot in the atmosphere and was something that Gilmore first photographed two years ago. 

However, it took him some time to build up the skills and acquire the equipment to achieve an image he was happy with. The final result was well worth the wait, as the image went viral after he posted it online and even ended up in Newsweek.

Gilmore captured the stunning image from his backyard in Charlottesville, Virginia, over the course of several nights. Using a four-inch telescope and astronomy camera, he took hundreds of photos of Andromeda. 

From there, he carefully culled his images, using only the very best for the final photograph.

In the end, all of his efforts paid off. The final photo, created from 290 individual frames, is incredibly detailed. Many of Andromeda's one trillion stars are visible through its gas halo. 

Gilmore thought of every detail, including the exposure so that even the core of the galaxy isn't overexposed. This allows viewers to drink in the stars and ponder on this far away neighbor, which is actually headed toward our own galaxy.  READ MORE...

Sunset Water

 

Playing in Water

 

Earth's Inner Core Oscillates

Scientists identify a six-year cycle of super- and sub-rotation that affected the length of a day based on their analysis of seismic data.

Earth’s structure is divided into layers, with the inner core at the center followed by the outer core, lower mantle, upper mantle, crust, and atmosphere. The inner core is the hottest part of the planet at about 10,000 °F (5400 °C), which is similar to the temperature of the surface of the sun!

Believed to consist mostly of an iron-nickel alloy, the inner core is mainly a solid ball with a radius of about 760 miles (1,220 km). It rotates slightly faster than the planet as a whole, which is called super-rotation.

University of Southern California (USC) scientists have found evidence that the Earth’s inner core oscillates, contradicting previously accepted models that suggested it consistently rotates at a faster rate than the planet’s surface.

Their study, published today (June 10, 2022) in the journal Science Advances, shows that the inner core changed direction in the six-year period from 1969-74, according to the analysis of seismic data. The scientists say their model of inner core movement also explains the variation in the length of a day, which has been shown to oscillate persistently for the past several decades.  READ MORE...

Walking By

 

COVID Prepared Us For Inflation

In 2015, my wife and I decided to retire at the same time; she was 62 and I was 67.  I got full benefits and she received partial benefits.

From 2015-2019 (5 years), we traveled as if our lives depended upon it.  Aside from the standard staying at Myrtle Beach, SC twice each year, we went on Caribbean Cruises, a Mediterranean Cruise, an Hawaiian Island Cruise, an Alaskan Cruise, Visited Las Vegas 3 times, flew to London, Paris, Rome, visited Switzerland by train, and also vacationed several times along the Gulf Coast, as well as on the Eastern side and Western side of Florida.  All total, we had 12 Cruises, 3 trips to Hawaii, 3 trips to Europe, 3 trips to the Gulf Coast, 6 trips to Florida, and 10 vacations at Myrtle Beach.

37 Vacations in 60 months.

Our last vacation outside the USA gave us nightmares in the Paris airport as well as the NYC International upon our return.  On the flight from NYC back to Knoxville, we decided that we had enough of traveling and would simply go to Myrtle Beach unless something special surfaced.

As we are all aware, COVID hit the USA like no one expected, and from 2020-2021, not only did we not go on vacation but we did not leave the house unless we had a doctor's appointment.

So, for 2 years, we learned to entertain ourselves at home.  We started venturing out more in 2022 and have a vacation at Myrtle Beach planned for September.

NOW, we have record inflation that keeps increasing.  Record gasoline prices that keep increasing.  And, record food prices that keep increasing not to mention blank shelves due to supply chain issues.

So, my wife and I are again putting into action all the things that we did during COVID...  like:

• buy in bulk as often as you can (check spoilage)
• buy only what you need not what you want
• stop going out for meals
• on the day you are going to be out, plan several visits to pick up things you need
• cook meals that you can freeze
• Dried  beans are cheaper than canned beans
• drive the speed limit
• don't take off fast from stop light/stop sign

Unfinished da Vinci Work

When the Italian polymath and Renaissance master Leonardo da Vinci swore allegiance to the French king in 1516 and accepted François I’s invitation to make his home in France, he brought with him three of his most famous works. Saint John the Baptist, the Virgin and Child with Saint Anne and his most celebrated painting, Mona Lisa – all now hang in the Louvre in Paris.

Some Leonardo experts, however, suggest he may have arrived in France with another painting – one that remained unfinished – a work that he returned to and improved but never completed, despite keeping it near him for more than 30 years.

The mysterious Saint Jerome in the Wilderness, which Leonardo started some time in the 1480s, rarely leaves its permanent home in the Vatican Museums. Today, however, as the result of an exceptional loan agreement it is on display at the manor house at Clos Lucé – near the former royal château at Amboise on the Loire in western France – where Leonardo lived for just over two years until his death in 1519.

“Five hundred years after Leonardo da Vinci’s death, we will have the painting here for 100 days,” François Saint Bris, whose family owns the Clos Lucé, told the Observer.

“It’s extremely moving for us to have this work loaned to us. This is a singular canvas, a work in progress that comes more alive the more we look at it. In it we see the workings of Da Vinci’s brain, his techniques, his intelligence, his drawing. We hope visitors will come here to contemplate it.”

Fewer than 20 paintings by Leonardo are thought to have survived until now. Saint Jerome in the Wilderness is not the best nor, indeed, the brightest: the gloomy and largely colourless painting depicts the gaunt and penitent fourth-century saint – considered the father of the Christian church – beating his chest with a stone. At the bottom of the canvas the outline of the lion from whose paw Jerome has famously extracted a thorn lies sketched uncharacteristically ferocious, a change from its usual docile representation.  READ MORE...

Wind Surfing

 

Snake Like Galaxy

The European Southern Observatory’s Very Large Telescope (VLT) and Atacama Large Millimeter/submillimeter Array (ALMA) have imaged a snake-like galaxy. Scientists named the galaxy NGC 1087, and it is swirling through space almost 80,000 light-years from our planet.


ALMA’s image of this snake-like galaxy is breathtaking
The snake-like galaxy spans over 86,800 light-years across. It can be found within the constellation Cetus. This particular part of the sky is home to several other water-themed constellations, too, such as Pisces and Aquarius. It isn’t the largest galaxy we have discovered but, it’s still impressive.

They created the main image by combining multiple images from ALMA and the Multi-Unit Spectroscopic Explorer on the ESO’s VLT. This allowed the ESO to create an image that showcases the full galaxy, along with the cold clouds of star-spawning gas that surrounds it. Additionally, the areas tinted with blue represent older stars that are more mature.

Scientists captured the shots as part of a conjunctive project called the Physics at High Angular Resolutions in Nearby Galaxies Survey, or PHANGS. The team assigned scientists to help deliver a catalog of high-resolution observations of nearby galaxies while using telescopes that target a wide range of different wavelengths. This snake-like galaxy is just one that the team has seen.

And ALMA is perfect for capturing images of galaxies like this because of how high up it is. The observatory is located at an altitude of 5,000 meters (16,500 feet) in Chile. As such, it has an excellent vantage point for the 66 radio telescopes the observatory is equipped with.  READ MORE...

A spiral galaxy is curled up like a sleeping serpent in a striking new image from the European Southern Observatory's (ESO) Atacama Large Millimeter/submillimeter Array (ALMA).ALMA's high altitude of 16,500 feet (5,000 meters) and extremely dry climate in Chile's Atacama Desert provide an excellent vantage point for the observatory's 66 radio telescopes to penetrateSwirling silently 80 million light-years from Earth like a sleeping, coiled snake, NGC 1087 is an intermediate spiral galaxy that spans 86,800 light-years in the constellation Cetus. This area of the sky is named after a sea monster from Greek mythology and is home to other water-themed constellations, like AquariuSeen as a composite image composed of shots taken at different wavelengths, ALMA's observations capture the galaxy's lava-like reddish hue, which represents cold clouds of star-spawning molecularThe blue-tinted regions indicate areas of older, more mature stars, all imaged by the Multi-Unit Spectroscopic Explorer on ESO's Very Large Telescope, located at the expansive ALMA observatory site, ESO representatives said in a statement(op

Painting books

 

Under African Skies

 

Language Helps Us Think

 

(Image credit: Digital Art via Getty Images)

Humans have been expressing thoughts with language for tens (or perhaps hundreds) of thousands of years. It's a hallmark of our species — so much so that scientists once speculated that the capacity for language was the key difference between us and other animals. And we've been wondering about each other's thoughts for as long as we could talk about them.

"The 'penny for your thoughts' kind of question is, I think, as old as humanity," Russell Hurlburt, a research psychologist at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas who studies how people formulate thoughts, told Live Science. But how do scientists study the relationship between thought and language? And is it possible to think without words?

The answer, surprisingly, is yes, several decades of research has found. Hurlburt’s studies, for instance, have shown that some people do not have an inner monologue — meaning they don't talk to themselves in their heads, Live Science previously reported. And other research shows that people don't use the language regions of their brain when working on wordless logic problems.  READ MORE...

Pikachu Cookie

 

Returning to Normal (somewhat)

Today, I begin to take my Imbruvica capsules, 2-240 mg once a day in the morning) along with my baby aspirin that was postponed due to surgery...  and, while that is not physically back to normal it is gradually moving in that direction.

Aside from the pain almost disappearing in my lower back, except when I adjust my position or walk...  which I believe is a result of the 12-15 inch incision I have on my lower back and not the trauma of the surgery itself on my bones.

Also odd is the fact that I can sleep on my back in relative comfort which one would think would not be so easy to do still this close the surgery but more importantly because of the incision itself.  My wife had hip replacement surgery and her scar was as long as mine and she could not sleep on the side of the scar until 6 months later and then not very long when she did.

Milestones yet to achieve:

Milestone 1 - two week appointment with surgeon after surgery which is almost going to be 3 weeks.

Milestone 2 - either a 4-6 week appointment with surgeon to release me to drive an automobile...  I would suspect a lot of that depends on the results of my 2/3 week appointment.

MIlestone 3 - a 3 month appointment with my surgeon to determine if physical therapy can begin...

After Milestone 3, I don't believe I see my surgeon again unless there is a problem.

Milestone 4 - this is not really an appointment but after 6 months, I should actually feel I am back to normal or should begin to be feeling I am back to normal...  with normal being about 95% or better.  I suppose either my therapist or I determine that.  If I don't feel 95%, then the normal part may take 12-18 months and sometimes 24 months.

CAVEAT:  my surgeon tells me that there is a small possibility that this fusion surgery will not help me at all or very little, although he doesn't think that will happen...  For that diagnosis, I will have to wait 3 months probably.

Meanwhile, after my first appointment with my surgeon,  I will be having dental surgery, meeting with my Onocolist and treatment (Opdivo and IVIG), and a CT scan the following month...  not because I stopped treatment for 3 weeks, but in the normal treatment cycle, it is time for me to have a CT, mainly because of my Melanoma.

A week after that, I will be fitted for a hearing air that I will wear for 30 days, to see if my hearing improves.  Hearing aids are not covered by my insurance, so if I decide I need them, then that expense will be $3,000 and probably a little more.

Growing older physically is no fun but after 14 years, I am kinda getting used to the impact it has had on my physical activities...  it is just something that all of us will go through, some journeys will be easier than others.

China Conducts Anti-Ballistic Test

China successfully conducted a mid-range anti-ballistic missile test late Sunday, its defense ministry said.

The land-based test “achieved its expected objectives” and was defensive in nature and not targeted at any one country, according to the statement.


The country conducted a similar test in February 2021 and brings the tally of publicly announced Chinese land-based anti-ballistic missile technical tests to six, state media Global Times reported.


The test could add to tensions in an already volatile region, where Beijing and Washington are vying for influence. Neighboring North Korea has also ramped up its missile tests in recent months, prompting South Korea and the US to respond to its provocations.

DAYDREAM by Lovin' Spoonful

 

Far Right Shock Waves in France

PARIS, June 19 (Reuters) - France's far-right scored a historic success in legislative elections on Sunday increasing its number of lawmakers almost tenfold and cementing the party's rise from fringe status to the mainstream opposition.

Since taking the helm of the party in 2011, leader Marine Le Pen has sought to rid the National Front - now called the National Rally (RN) - of the anti-Semitic image it acquired under the nearly 40-year leadership of her father, ex-paratrooper Jean-Marie Le Pen.

Securing 42% in April's presidential election, Le Pen had already tapped into the general disenchantment with President Emmanuel Macron and identifying anger across the country over the rising cost of living and the decline of many rural communities.

On Sunday, she took that one step further. According to estimates, Le Pen's party will win between 85-90 seats, up from just two in 2012 and eight in 2017, which could make it the second-largest party in parliament. Major pollsters last week estimated just 25-50 seats.  READ MORE...

Kitten Drinking Water