"Beyond the Pillars of Hercules and within the Ocean of Atlas there lies Atlantis - rich in wisdom, power and wealth."
Atlantis Where? What?
Atlantis, according to Plato (Critias &
Timaeus) was beyond the the Pillars of Hercules or the Straits of
Gibraltar. If we are to take the story literally then Atlantis is
definitely not in the Mediterranean.
An
illustration by Sir Gerald Hargreaves shows a utopian scene on a cove
of the mythical land of Atlantis. Many scholars think Plato invented
the story of Atlantis as a way to present his philosophical theories.
Photograph by Mary Evans Picture Library/Everett Collection
The
mystery of the lost city of Atlantis still captures the imagination of
millions. Was it real or just myth. Here are the basic facts.
Lost civilizations really still exist. New
discoveries are happening even as you read this. Places like the Nazca
Lines Google Earth can now be clearly seen. New cities have just been
found in the Amazon. Just because we haven't found Atlantis doesn't mean
we never will.
t was 9am on the morning of Friday, December 13th 1872 when
people on the waterfront saw a small two-masted sailing vessel
entering the Bay of Gibraltar.
The ship was the 'Mary Celeste' of New York, a Canadian built 100 foot
brigantine of 282 tons registered in New York. The registered owners
were James H Winchester (12/24) Sylvester Goodwin (2/24) and Benjamin
Spooner Briggs (8/24).
Her master, Benjamin Spooner Briggs known in Gibraltar to be
a staunch abstainer and devout bible reader. At the inquiry the
ships main owner James Henry Winchester gave evidence that the
A tibetian fortress
below the mountains were the Yeti is supposed to roam.
The Himalaya Mountains, the highest range on
Earth, have been referred to as the "roof of the world." If
that is so, there is a mystery called the Yeti in our
attic
Although accounts of an aquatic beast living in Scotland's Loch Ness
date back 1,500 years, the modern legend of the Loch Ness Monster is
born when a sighting makes local news on May 2, 1933. The newspaper Inverness Courier
related an account of a local couple who claimed to have seen "an
enormous animal rolling and plunging on the surface." The story of the
"monster" (a moniker chosen by the Courier editor) became a media phenomenon, with London newspapers sending correspondents to Scotland and a circus offering a 20,000 pound sterling reward for capture of the beast.
Loch Ness, located in the Scottish Highlands, has the largest volume
of fresh water in Great Britain; the body of water reaches a depth of
nearly 800 feet and a length of about 23 miles. Scholars of the Loch
Ness Monster find a dozen references to "Nessie" in Scottish history,
dating back to around A.D. 500, when local Picts carved a strange
aquatic creature into standing stones near Loch Ness. The earliest
written reference to a monster in Loch Ness is a 7th-century biography
of Saint Columba, the Irish missionary who introduced Christianity to
Scotland. In 565, according to the biographer, Columba was on his way to
visit the king of the northern Picts near Inverness when he stopped at
Loch Ness to confront a beast that had been killing people in the lake.
Seeing a large beast about to attack another man, Columba intervened,
invoking the name of God and commanding the creature to "go back with
all speed." The monster retreated and never killed another man.
In 1933, a new road was completed along Loch Ness' shore, affording
drivers a clear view of the loch
With
the missing Malaysian airlines MH370 leaving the world confused and
bewildered, we give you a rundown of some of the world's biggest
unsolved mysteries that still manage to captivate us. Go figure...
Amelia Earhart:
One of the biggest aviation mysteries that continues to boggle the
minds of both the young and old since she disappeared on July 2, 1937
over the pacific which would be both the longest as well as the first
attempt by a woman to do the same. Because of her public persona and
fair celebrity status, search efforts were undertaken immediately but to
no avail. Theories of her disappearance have been diverse and unending.
While many believe that Earhart and her navigator Fred Noonan ran out
of fuel and sank in the ocean, some believe that they crashed on an
uninhabited island and ultimately died. Some have speculated
possibilities of Earhart being a spy or even having assumed another
identity. It seems this mystery won't be laid to rest anytime soon.
(Thinkstock Photos/Getty Images)
Yeti: Tales
of the Yeti or the 'abominable snowman' have been recorded and spoken
about and even sent cryptozoologists in a tizzy but no one has ever come
close to identifying the mythical creature. Though there have also been
several reports and photographs and other traces of a large creatures
footprints over open snow lands, no physical body has ever been found.
Several studies have even claimed that the Yeti (or Bigfoot or
sasquatches) might be an ancient relative of humans who is somehow
thriving in complete solidarity. However, till some concrete proof is
found the Yeti remains one of the biggest unsolved mysteries in the
world. (Thinkstock Photos/Getty Images)
Lochness Monster: The
very popular sea monster known to live in the deep, daunting depths of
Loch Ness in Scotland, the Lochness Monster could debatably be one of
the most talked about mysteries of the world. Thousands of people flock
religiously to Loch to catch a glimpse of this mysterious creature.
There have been several theories concerning the Lochness monster, while
some believe that it might be a survivor from the dinosaur family,
others are convinced that it's a cryptic beast dwelling in the depths of
the ocean. (Thinkstock Photos/Getty Images)
Lost city of Atlantis:
The mystery of the lost city of Atlantis still manages to hold the
curiosity of people across the Globe. It is believed that simple,
virtuous people once populated the island of Atlantis, but as the land
started getting corrupted, Greek God Zeus gathered the other God's and
in a surge of anger and violence, the entire city and its people were
swallowed completely by the sea. Evidence of Atlantis being a real place
can be found in Plato's writings and have sparked debates and
controversies for centuries.
He's big, he's hairy, and he's starred in his own TV show.
Bigfoot is world-famous for spooking the
bejesus out of hikers and hunters in North America. Scientists consider
Sasquatch to be the result of folklore, misidentification and a whole
lot of hoaxes.
Guest bloggers Doug and Joanne Schwartz – League members and dedicated volunteers – are serving this summer as our Redwood Explorers-in-Residence, exploring the northern parks, and ground-truthing and mapping the groves of ancient forest they find. Along the way, they’re documenting the many interesting plants, animals, and fungi they find in Redwood Watch, and blogging about their experiences. Continued from last week… Many new redwoods grow in areas with old-growth cutting. Photo by Joanne and Doug Schwartz
A cricket ball is a hard, solid ball used to play cricket. A cricket ball consists of cork covered by leather, and manufacture is heavily regulated by cricket law at first class level. The manipulation of a cricket ball, through employment of its various physical properties, is the staple component of bowling
and dismissing batsmen – movement in the air, and off the ground, is
influenced by the condition of the ball and the efforts of the bowler,
while working on the cricket ball to obtain an optimum condition is a
key role of the fielding side. The cricket ball is the principal manner
through which the batsman scores runs, by manipulating the ball into a position where it would be safe to take a run, or by directing the ball through the boundary.
A cricket bat is a specialised piece of equipment used by batsmen in the sport of cricket to hit the ball, typically consisting of a cane handle attached to a flat-fronted willow-wood
blade. The length of the bat may be no more than 38 inches (965 mm) and
the width no more than 4.25 inches (108 mm). Its use is first mentioned
in 1624
The blade of a cricket bat is a wooden block that is generally
flat on the striking face and with a ridge on the reverse (back) which
concentrates wood in the middle where the ball is generally hit. The bat
is traditionally made from willow wood, specifically from a variety of White Willow called Cricket Bat Willow (Salix alba var. caerulea), treated with raw (unboiled) linseed oil,
which has a protective function. This variety of willow is used as it
is very tough and shock-resistant, not being significantly dented nor
splintering on the impact of a cricket ball at high speed, while also being light in weight. The face of the bat is often covered with a protective film by the user.
The skies over World War I-era Europe served
as a brutal testing ground for manned aircraft. Most early fighters were
flimsy and frail, and equipment failures and accidents often proved as
deadly as enemy gunfire. Upon hopping into the cockpit, even the most
skilled pilots had a life expectancy of mere weeks. Though limited by
their primitive machines, these “Knights of the Sky” went on to achieve
some of the war’s most extraordinary—and often downright suicidal—feats
of heroism. Get the facts on six of the Great War’s most celebrated
airborne daredevils.
U.S. troops only spent a little over a year
and a half in World War I and saw relatively little combat compared to
their French and British counterparts. Nevertheless, American
“doughboys” played a pivotal role in the offensives that overpowered the
beleaguered German army in late-1918. Forced to contend with the
horrors of industrialized combat, these troops produced some of the
war’s most humbling and often tragic stories of heroism. From a
balloon-busting fighter ace and a Navy escape artist to one of the most
Marine Corps’ most legendary sergeants, meet six servicemen who
distinguished themselves on the battlefields of World War I.
Between June 1941 and May 1945, Nazi Germany
and the Soviet Union engaged in a cataclysmic struggle on World War II’s
Eastern Front. The resulting war was one of the largest and deadliest
military duels in all of human history, and ultimately turned the tables
on the Nazi conquest of Europe. It was also a conflict marked by
strategic blunders, mass atrocities and human suffering on a previously
unimaginable scale. Explore eight facts about the brutal and often
overlooked Russian front of World War II.
1. Joseph Stalin disregarded early warnings of the German attack.
An
illustration by Sir Gerald Hargreaves shows a utopian scene on a cove
of the mythical land of Atlantis. Many scholars think Plato invented
the story of Atlantis as a way to present his philosophical theories.
The ship was the 'Mary Celeste' of New York, a Canadian built 100 foot
brigantine of 282 tons registered
in New York. The registered owners
were James H Winchester (12/24) Sylvester Goodwin (2/24) and Benjamin
Spooner Briggs (8/24).
He's big, he's hairy, and he's starred in his own TV show.
