Geobulletin alpha

Links: Fire Use, Deep Water, Europa Geology 

Sharing some interesting readings:1) The Discovery of Fire by Humans. Jungle Book's primate king Louie was certainly aware of the transformative power of fire. As J.A.J Gowlett writes in a very informative review, many animals engage in fire foraging, opportunistically increasing their access to resources made available by natural fires. Early hominins too would have interacted with natural

Links: Noisy Soils, First Art, Mars Geology 

A few readings for your perusal.1) Biologists are poking senors into soil to listen to the hum of life. Amazing article by Ute Eberle on what we can learn from acoustic signals given off by animals living within a soil profile.Life in the soil was thought to be silent. What if it isn’t?2)  When was the first 'árt' made? Is there a neat sequence from abstract scratches on rock and bone

Readings: Mars Geology, Human Diversity, India Rock Art 

 A few interesting readings:1) NASA's Mars Perseverence Rover is hard at work. It has an amazing collection of geochemical instruments which are probing the surface with the aim of categorizing the mineralogy and chemistry of surface materials. The hope is to pinpoint regions which could have hosted microbial life.Signs of Life on Mars: NASA's Perseverance Rover Begins the Hunt 2) How are

Peer Review and Iron Age Fossil Shark Teeth Collecting 

Earlier this year, public health experts Nason Maani and Sandro Galea cautioned that a public policy for the pandemic promising to “follow the science” misconstrued science and the role it can and should play in the public arena.  (What Science Can and Cannot Do in a Time of Pandemic, Scientific American, February 3, 2021.)  The details of their cogent arguments aren’t relevant to this present post, but their comment about peer review is: Peer review, designed to catch our mistakes [...]

Readings: Myanmar Geology, Holocene Human Populations, Indian Archaeology 

Some interesting readings over the past few weeks:1) Myanmar Geology- Oblique convergence, where plates converge or collide at an angle, has produced some stunning geological features in Myanmar. Lon Abbot and Terri Cook sail down the Irrawaddy River describing vestiges of volcanic arcs, strike slip faults, en echelon sedimentary basins, and fold mountains, with a fair bit thrown in about

SKØKKENMØDDINGER 

Many First Nations sites were inhabited continually for centuries. These sites were both home, providing continuity and community and also formed a spiritual connection to the landscape. The day to day activities of each of these communities would much like our own. Babies were born, meals were served and life followed a natural cycle. As coastal societies lived their lives they also

HAIDA GWAII BOUNTY 

Seafood Bounty / Haida Gwaii, British Columbia “When the tide is out, the table is set.” This wisdom from those who call Haida Gwaii home is still true today. The enormous difference between high and low tide in Haida Gwaii – up to twenty three vertical feet – means that twice a day, vast swathes of shellfish are unveiled, free for the taking.Archaeological evidence tells us that by roughly five thousand years ago, gathering shellfish replaced hunting and fishing as a primary food [...]

Hatshepsut: Neither a Mad Queen Nor a Bad Mother! 

HMNS’ collections are more than just curiosities, they’re mementos of past lives, each with a story to tell and a lesson to teach. Take, for example, the chunk of pink granite from our Hall of Ancient Egypt pictured below. This two and a half foot tall rock may look pretty big, but it’s only a

Links: Petroglyphs, Language, Urban Groundwater, Dams 

Some interesting articles I came across past few days. 1) Pleistocene Rock Art in India- New York Times covers the discovery of ancient rock art (40k-10K yr old?) carved on laterite plateaus of Ratnagiri District, S. Maharashtra. Good to see credit given to the stellar work of two amateur archaeologists Sudhir Risbud and Dhananjay Marathe. Link: Ancient Rock Art In The Plains Of India.

Missed Connections: Maya Seashell Currency 

The world is a vast place, but all life living on its surface sprung from the same origins. Everyone and everything on this planet is connected. Sometimes the connections may not be readily apparent, but they are there.. Our “Missed Connections” series is all about exploring the unexpected connections between objects in our different exhibits.

Lecture Leaks: Egypt’s Black Pharaohs 

Today the Houston Museum of Natural Science is hosting a fascinating lecture titled Black Pharaohs: Egypt, Nubia and Cultural Merging. The lecture will be presented by Dr. Peter Lacovara, who has been working in Egypt for over 30 years. Yesterday I had the pleasure of meeting Dr. Lacovara during a recording for the upcoming season of the Beyond Bones Podcast. This

Why Notre Dame Cathedral’s Future is Secure Thanks to Its Past 

By Dr. Michael Tinkler, Associate Professor of Art and Architecture, Hobart and William Smith Colleges The good news from Paris this week is that medieval builders worried about church fires. Remember, all light before Edison involved open flame – whether torches or candles. Candles in churches today are mainly symbolic, but reading inside churches called

That Time Beer Saved the World 

Long ago, in a galaxy that is actually the one we’re in now, the ancient Egyptians had a myth about a time when beer saved the world. In honor of National Beer Day, I thought I’d share this interesting historical tidbit with you on today’s edition of Beyond Bones The story begins with the sun

The Festival of Drunkenness and Other Ancient Vacation Destinations 

As this year’s Spring Break Celebrations reach their peak, many college kids are probably partaking in what they believe are the most epic vacations ever. However, history begs to differ, and I’ll explain why in today’s edition of Beyond Bones. Everybody needs a vacation every once in a while. The drive to get away from

Are Emojis The Same As Hieroglyphs? 

  The “back to hieroglyphs” meme, it’s one of those memes that won’t die. But is there any truth to it?  Today on Beyond Bones we’re going to find out! Although our increasingly complex and diverse store of emoticons may visually resemble the famous script of the ancient Egyptians, in truth emoji’s are a lot

A Few Daytrips From Houston That Offer Surprisingly Rewarding Experiences 

Everyone knows that traveling is a rewarding experience, but there seems to be a misconception as to how far you have to go to attain this elusive “reward”. I’m not the most seasoned traveler on earth, but I’ve been to a few different countries and some pretty exotic destinations and I’m here to tell you

Money, Violence And The Wrath of God: The Origins of Table Settings, Part I 

Blogs about table place settings are generally instructional by nature. They tell you what to do, where to place differect plates and utensils, but not why you should place them there, or why some of these objects exist in the first place. This blog will focus on the why, and that quest for knowledge is

Wait Just A Minute! Let’s Take A Second To Talk About the Origin Of Time Keeping. 

By Ralph E. Phillips, HMNS Docent I can’t seem to get enough time … that is to say I keep thinking and digging into our concept of time.  Why are there 60 minutes in an hour instead of 100? Why 60 seconds in a minute? Why 7 days in week?   What would “Metric time”

Stories From Our Microscope Lab! How The Ice Age Helped Keep The British Out Of Florida 

This sand from Flagler Beach, Florida, contains both mineral grains and shells.  The mineral grains are clear quartz, and the brown, tan, and orange grains are shells that give the beach an orange hue.  Blocks of coquina (roughly 130,000 -100,000 years old and known as the Anastasia Formation) are found offshore much of eastern Florida

The Krak Des Chevaliers: A Tough Nut To Krak 

  Organized warfare has been part of human history for thousands of years. Over time advances in offensive weapons gave rise to advances in defensive measures. Times of crisis often led to a speeding up of such changes. One of those times were the Crusades. At the time I am writing this, the Houston Museum