Duck & Cat

 

Luxury Estate From the Islamic Period

ARCHAEOLOGISTS FROM THE ISRAEL ANTIQUES AUTHORITY (IAA) HAVE UNCOVERED A LUXURY ESTATE THAT DATES FROM THE ISLAMIC PERIOD.

The team made the discovery during works to build a new neighbourhood in the city of Rahat in the Negev desert, located in Southern Israel.

The region was formerly ruled by the Al-Tayaha tribe (Al-Hezeel clan), a Negev Bedouin people that settled in the Sinai Peninsula during the early years of the Muslim conquests.

Archaeologists found a large estate with a central courtyard that sits on a vaulted complex and a three-metre-deep rock-hewn water cistern which dates to the Early Islamic period from the 8th to 9th century AD.

The estate has four wings, in which one of the wings has a hall paved with a marble and stone floor and walls decorated with frescoes using finely coloured red, yellow, blue, and black pigments.

Some of the other rooms had plaster floors and large ovens for cooking, while fragments of delicate glass serving dishes have also been uncovered.

“The luxurious estate and the impressive underground vaults are evidence of the owners’ means. Their high status and wealth allowed them to build a luxurious mansion that served as a residence and for entertaining”, said the excavation directors – Oren Shmueli, Dr. Elena Kogan-Zehavi and Dr. Noé D. Michael.  READ MORE...

Best Friends

 

New Webb Telescope Observations

Let’s start with the rumors. What about the new Webb data would suggest the big bang is wrong? 

The same type of data Hubble gave us years ago. We generally think of evidence for the big bang being centered around two facts: first, that more distant galaxies have a higher redshift than closer ones; and second, that the universe is filled with a cosmic background of microwave radiation.

The first suggests that the universe is expanding in all directions, while the second suggests that it was once in a very hot and dense state. 

These are two of the Three Pillars of data supporting the big bang, the third being the relative abundance of elements in the early universe.

But these observations are just the foundation of the big bang model. We have long since expanded on these to create the standard model of cosmology, also known as the LCDM model. 

That is a universe that began with the big bang and is filled with matter, dark matter, and dark energy. Everything from the acceleration of cosmic expansion to the clustering of galaxies supports this standard model. 

And the standard model makes predictions about other observational tests, so we can further prove its validity. That’s where the latest claims of the “big bust” come into play.  READ MORE...

The Pianist

 

 

I walked this morning at 8:30 am and it was 77 degrees which is fairly mild for a walker, but the humdity this morning was 88% so walking early in the morning actually made very little difference.

So, why share this incident at all?

We need to be aware of our environment rather than being unaware of what is going on because it is our health that is on the line and the older we get the more aware we should become.

I check my weight every morning and count my calories every day and I do this to make sure that I am maintaining...

I did not need to do this when I was 40, 50, or even 60...  but, as soon as I turned 60, my healthy, athletic  body began to fall apart.  In 2008 I was diagnosed with cancer and had a heart attack.  And, what is interesting about my heart attack is that I stopped smoking 20 years earlier and I had stopped drinking alcohol 20 years earlier and I had stopped eating red meat, sugars, and fried foods, 20 years earlier.  And, to cap it all off, my wife and I were fast walking 5 miles a day, 7 days a week...  and yet, I still had a heart attack.

At soon to be 75 years old, I am keenly aware of my health and pay attention to all aspects of my health of which I am aware just to make sure nothing sneaks up on me.

My level 5 lumbar disk fusion is the latest issue that I have needed to face.  My orthopedic  surgeon said if I had not been healthy, my back situation would have been worse...  well hell, that's comforting...  So, now I have to spend the next 3-9 months recovering from this trauma...  I say 3-9 months, because I have already experience 12 weeks since surgery.

I walk 1.5 miles for 6 days then take 1 day off to allow my body to recover.  It takes me about 36 minutes to walk that distance and I have been using a walking stick.

I am determined and disciplined and have no doubts at all that I will live past 95 years of age.  When I recover from this latest surgery, not only will I walk everyday but I will go to the gym and workout on strength machines...   giving up 90 minutes a day is not a bad price to pay to remain healthy.

It also helps to have a positive attitude, especially when retired, and to keep one'self busy by doing something that stimulates the mind and I don't mean just watch shows on cable TV.

For me, I maintain 2 blogs daily as well as spend time writing novels that require me doing research.  I also have interest in:

• Ancient Aliens/Extraterrestrials
• Astronomy
• Theoretical Physics
• Quantum Mechanics
• Cosmology
• Cosmic Consciousness
• Politics & Economics
• Multi-dimensions
• Parallel Universes
• Physchology

Being Like Everyone Else

 

When I was young and wanted to do something that everyone else was doing and used that as my justification, my father would say, if everyone jumped off the side of cliff, would you want to do that too?  Of course, I would say no...  but later in life, realized that my father was making an unrealistic comparison and the more I thought about that, the angrier I got at him for treating me like that....

But, today, I understand his logic because there are several progressive Democrats who want to go GREEN and have no gasoline vehicles, only electric as soon as we can or before...  these people also want us to use solar panels to power our electrical plants and stop using coal to supply power.

In short, we should do away with all fossil fuels IMMEDIATELY if not sooner.

Well, what these progressives don't seem to understand is that the rest of the world is not following our lead.  In fact, they are wondering why we are so stupid.  

If you think I am kidding check out the desire to GO GREEN by:

• Russia and China
• North Korea and Iran
• The Middle East
• Africa and South America
• Indonesia and Southeast Asia
• India and Pakistan

None of these countries want to jump off the cliff with us...  and they are laughing at us thinking we will survive once we jump off the cliff...

How stupid are these Americans???

Don't you realize that if the rest of the world does not join us in GOING GREEN that we are simply spitting in the wind and wasting our money to try and save the planet from climate change?

Again, how stupid are we???

A Perspective on US Education

Ironically, despite the United States having the best-surveyed education system on the globe, U.S students consistently score lower in math and science than students from many other countries. According to a Business Insider report in 2020, the U.S. ranked 38th in math scores and 24th in science. SOURCE:  WorldPopulationReview.com

So, why this contradiction in the data?

Was someone lying?

Test scores don't lie...

Education in the US of A today is not the same quality as education in the US of A 50 years ago...  Education has gotten WORSE instead of BETTER...

WHY???

We could blame the problem on the teachers.  We could blame the problem on the students. We could blame the problem on the parents.  We could blame the problem on the system.

All would bear some responsibility...

I retired in 2015 after 45 years of working in and around education which included me teaching classes to students who had graduated from high school and wanted more education.

These students were:

• academically lazy as they did not want to do homework
• not interested in drilling down on a subject
• not very good at presentations
• not very good at team work
• not very good at reading out loud
• not very good at writing or spelling
• not very good with critical thinking skills

What bothered me the most was they all wanted to be told exactly what to do without trying to figure it out on their own.

This was very disappointing to say the least.

I could just imagine what these people would be as parents trying to get their children to STUDY and be good students...

I was not the best student until I left college, went into the military, and returned to college.  Once I returned, I became the best student on campus.  I did the homework, read the assignments, sat in the front of class, answered questions, figured out on my own what the professor wanted me to do, and made sure my assignments always exceeded the professor's expectations.  I was in college to learn, not just get the highest grade.

But, what I don't really understand is how we could be considered to be the best when our scores are not that good at all...  That false sense of security has got to be impacting our employers who have to be hiring the people and retraining them...

How successful has that been I wonder or is that more data that has been kept hidden from us?

Sky Stars

 

Two Biblical Heroines Uncovered

The Israelite commander Barak depicted in the Huqoq synagogue mosaic. Several BYU students 

were part of the team to help excavate at the ancient Jewish village site. Credit: Jim Haberman

As they brushed the last layer of dirt from a small section of mosaic on the synagogue floor, the archaeologists were momentarily baffled by the odd image beginning to emerge.

"Then we realized we were looking at the story of Jael pounding the stake through the head of Sisera the Canaanite," said BYU ancient scripture professor Matthew Grey. "We brought out a phone and pulled up Judges 4 to read the story while we uncovered the scene."

Almost every summer since 2011, BYU faculty and students have joined a consortium of universities led by the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill to excavate the synagogue in the ancient Jewish village of Huqoq, on the northwest shore of the Sea of Galilee. This year's work on the building's beautiful mosaic floor, which dates from the late fourth—early fifth century C.E., yielded a unique discovery: fragments showing Jael and the prophetess Deborah.

"This is the first time we've seen a depiction of the biblical heroines Deborah and Jael in ancient Jewish art," said project director and UNC professor Jodi Magness.

Situated in the southwest corner of the building just to the left of the synagogue's entrance, the panels highlight how the women helped save Israel through their gifts and intrepidity. One patch shows Deborah sitting under her palm tree, giving instructions to the Israelite general Barak to guide her people in battle (Judges 4:4–10). 

Below that, another patch shows Jael driving a tent stake through Sisera's temple, taking out the Canaanite general to help Israel defeat their enemy (Judges 4:17–22).  READ MORE...

Wave at Sea

 

Probing Dark Energy

Dark energy illustration. Credit: Visualization by Frank Summers, Space Telescope Science Institute. Simulation by Martin White, UC Berkeley and Lars Hernquist, Harvard University





Could one of the biggest puzzles in astrophysics be solved by reworking Albert Einstein’s theory of gravity? Not yet, according to a new study co-authored by NASA scientists.

The universe is expanding at an accelerating rate, and physicists don’t know why. This phenomenon seems to contradict everything scientists understand about gravity’s effect on the cosmos: It’s as if you threw an apple in the air and instead of coming back down, it continued upward, faster and faster. The cause of the cosmic acceleration, dubbed dark energy, remains a mystery.

A new study marks the latest effort to determine whether this is all simply a misunderstanding: that expectations for how gravity works at the scale of the entire universe are flawed or incomplete. This potential misunderstanding might help researchers explain dark energy. However, the study – one of the most precise tests yet of Albert Einstein’s theory of gravity at cosmic scales – finds that the current understanding still appears to be correct. The study was from the international Dark Energy Survey, using the Victor M. Blanco 4-meter Telescope in Chile.


The results, authored by a group of scientists that includes some from NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL), were presented Wednesday, August 24, at the International Conference on Particle Physics and Cosmology (COSMO’22) in Rio de Janeiro. 

The work helps set the stage for two upcoming space telescopes that will probe our understanding of gravity with even higher precision than the new study and perhaps finally solve the mystery.  READ MORE...

Sea Creature

 

The Big Bang Means Something Different Now

If there’s one hallmark inherent to science, it’s that our understanding of how the Universe works is always open to revision in the face of new evidence. 

Whenever our prevailing picture of reality — including the rules it plays by, the physical contents of a system, and how it evolved from its initial conditions to the present time — gets challenged by new experimental or observational data, we must open our minds to changing our conceptual picture of the cosmos. 

This has happened many times since the dawn of the 20th century, and the words we use to describe our Universe have shifted in meaning as our understanding has evolved.

Yet, there are always those who cling to the old definitions, much like linguistic prescriptivists, who refuse to acknowledge that these changes have occurred. 

But unlike the evolution of colloquial language, which is largely arbitrary, the evolution of scientific terms must reflect our current understanding of reality. 

Whenever we talk about the origin of our Universe, the term “the Big Bang” comes to mind, but our understanding of our cosmic origins have evolved tremendously since the idea that our Universe even had an origin, scientifically, was first put forth. 

Here’s how to resolve the confusion and bring you up to speed on what the Big Bang originally meant versus what it means today.  READ MORE...

Hungry Fish

 

FOX News - Most Watched by Americans

 Why?

It may be because Fox News presents more truthful news than the other media outlets...

We know that ABC, NBC, CBS, and CNN are not talking about what is happening at our Southern Borders...  about all the illegal immigration and illegal drugs that are coming across the border...

We know that ABC, NBC, CBS, and CNN have been reporting that the Hunter Biden Laptop Story was MISINFORMATION...  when in reality it was not and even Zuckerberg now has admitted that the FBI asked him to present it as misinformation...

We watch FOX News because we want news that is not just truthful but news that is not censored...

FOX News is reporting that the FBI has been politicized by the Democratic Party especially with the raid at Mar-a-largo in the hopes that it would prevent Trump from running for President in 2024...  This sounds like the same kind of shit that countries like Russia, China, North Korea, and Iran like to do in their countries...

So, is the USA trying to become like them now???

What is TRUTH?

The truth is what we believe and we believe it because someone said it is the truth.  But, just because they said it was the truth does not necessarily make it the truth.

Former President Trump was accused of colluding with the Russians and the Democrats said that was the truth...  and, the mainstream media reported it as being the truth...

But, once Trump left office, we found out that this truth was in fact a lie and not the truth at all.

Facebook reported last year that the story about Hunter Biden's Laptop was not the truth that is was misinformation.  the mainstream media again reported that the Hunter Biden Laptop story was not the truth.

A year later, we find out that the Hunter Biden Laptop was the truth and Facebook said that the FBI suggested that they report it as misinformation so that people would believe it was not the truth.

If our leaders are not telling us the truth then who are we going to believe?

today's lie is tomorrow's truth and today Truth is tomorrow's lie. 

This is how we now must live our lives.

Sunday Morning

 

It is a no-brainer that Sunday comes around once a week, but the question is this:

Is Sunday the beginning of the week or the ending of the week?

Not that it makes any difference but it is a curious question.

I personally favor the ending of the week but what the hell do I know?

Sundays in the Valley

Not really a whole lot to do actually outside of going to Church in the morning.  But then there is going out to lunch which is fine as long as you go before Church gets out...  After that, it is all up for grabs:

• Stay at home
• go to a movie
• go to the mall
• go to the park
• go to the lake
• visit with friends

I suppose it is this way everywhere as the Valley is no different than anywhere else...

Still,

the valley is different...

It is not like the city nor is it like the country except that there is lots of land around everywhere...  and, not all of it is being farmed or cultivated for suburban communities.

Maybe,

It is all the lakes and parks that we have that are not necessarily found in other areas of this state or other states for that matter.

Maybe,

it is all the walking trails that we have that are available to exercise, leisure, or serious hiking and camping.

Maybe,

it is all the farmer's markets that we have selling homegrown fruits and vegetables that are better than store bought.

Being retired,

the Valley suits my LAZY ASS ATTITUDE as I drift in and out of consciousness on my back porch sitting in one of them thar lounge chairs we purchased from Wally World.

I look out my suburban house window out into the field across the street and I see a family of deer just slowly walking around as if they have nothing to fear...

Deer are beautiful creatures and it is very enjoyable to watch them.  

From my back porch, I can see hummingbirds swarming around our feeders...  I can see squirrels and rabbits scampering from one side of the yard to the other side...  I suppose just to see if they can go there...

And, there are all kinds of birds that fly around and into the trees that are in our yard...  Ironically, we planted trees in our yard 20 years ago while our neighbors cut all of their trees down...  now they complain they have no animals to look at.

Our Valley is not for everyone.  It may be too slow of a lifestyle for most people who are used to the fast pace of the city.  The only fast pace I see in the city is dodging cars as you try to cross.

Did You Know?

That working out in a gym is not really going to help you lose weight...

This is a NO SHIT statement!!!

The only way that you are going to lose weight is to EAT LESS...

I mean we have diets that have you counting FAT GRAMS and then there are diets that have you counting CARBOHYDRATES and there are other diets that have you counting CALORIES...

These are all bullshit...

Just eat less.

In fact, many nutritionalists say you should eat 5 small meals a day and while that is fine, they don't really define small.

Others say your plate should be divided this way:

• 1/4 for meat
• 1/4 for starch (rice or potato for example)
• 1/2 for vegetables

NOTE: the meal is considered to be 4 oz and the starch is considered to be 1 cup or less...

I have also heard from some specialists that you should drink 8 ounzes of water before each meal so you won't eat that much.

But first you have to admit that there is a reason and a need for you to lose weight otherwise all you are doing is spitting in the wind and fooling yourself that you are serious.

And, the whole deal is up to you...  

Are you determined?

Are you disciplined?

Are you serious?

August is Dying Quickly

The month of August is rapidly coming to a close...  after today, there are only 3 more days left and then we open up the month of September and while the temps are still like summer, we are heading into the fall and more than likely a cold winter...

I saw a woolly bear today while I was walking and tried to remember what my grandmother said about it being a precursor for a hard or mild winter...

Woolly Bear Folklore:

According to folklore, the amount of black on the woolly bear in autumn varies proportionately with the severity of the coming winter in the locality where the caterpillar is found. The longer the woolly bear's black bands, the longer, colder, snowier, and more severe the winter will be. Similarly, the wider the middle brown band is associated with a milder upcoming winter. The position of the longest dark bands supposedly indicates which part of winter will be coldest or hardest. If the head end of the caterpillar is dark, the beginning of winter will be severe. If the tail end is dark, the end of winter will be cold. In addition, the woolly bear caterpillar has 13 segments to its body, which traditional forecasters say correspond to the 13 weeks of winter.

Personally, I don't think much of folklore although at times it seems to be a pretty good predictor...  still...  folklore is folklore...  is it not?

What I do know...  is that for the past several years, the months of September, October, November, and December in the Valley have been relatively mild temperature wise and that January, February, and March have been typically cold months with some years being colder than others...  

In this valley we can pretty much count on 12-15 weeks of cold weather before it feels like spring has returned and we can start wearing our tennis shoes and sandals again.  These 12-15 weeks can include December as well as April...  as winter tends to flip-flop once in a while.