science

The Shroud of Turin: modern, digitally processed image of the face on the cloth [left] and the full body image as seen on the shroud [right].

5 March, 2019 - 23:03 lizleafloor

The Shroud of Turin: Jesus' Bloodstained Burial Cloth or a Fascinating Forgery?

The Shroud of Turin is believed by many to be the bloodstained burial cloth Jesus of Nazareth was wrapped in after his crucifixion. But skeptics say it is a forgery, or at best only a religious...

A 1909 photo of Mark Twain. (Public Domain) Background: Halley’s Comet as taken March 8, 1986 by W. Liller, Easter Island, part of the International Halley Watch (IHW) Large Scale Phenomena Network. (Public Domain) It’s an interesting historical coincidence that Mark Twain was born and died alongside appearances of Halley’s Comet.

5 December, 2018 - 18:54 ashley cowie

Are These Incredible Historical Coincidences Actually Due to Synchronicity or Mathematical Probability?

Coincidences are a concurrence of circumstances which are so unpredictable that they often become associated with the supernatural and paranormal. History is composed with brilliant acts of skill and...

‘The Unicorn is Found’ in one of the Unicorn Tapestries in Stirling Castle. Medieval science fiction had a convergence of science, technology and the imagination

14 September, 2018 - 00:31 ancient-origins

Medieval Science Fiction Existed – Here’s What it Looked Like

Carl Kears & James Paz / The Conversation Science fiction may seem resolutely modern, but the genre could actually be considered hundreds of years old. There are the alien green “ children of...

Four paintings from ‘The Course of Empire’

26 August, 2018 - 13:53 walter

Lost Star of Myth and Time: The Rise and Fall of Civilizations

The idea of a worldwide Dark Age or universal decline in man’s knowledge may be difficult to accept because the broad deterioration of ancient civilizations didn’t happen at an even pace in all...

ESO's Visible and Infrared Survey Telescope for Astronomy (VISTA) has captured this unusual view of the Helix Nebula (NGC 7293), a planetary nebula located 700 light-years away. The Helix Nebula is sometimes called the “Eye of God.”

22 August, 2018 - 18:52 Rabbi Allen Maller

It Need Not Be Religion VS Science: Extra-Terrestrial Life and Religious Beliefs Combine

During Medieval times almost all Christian theologians accepted the Ptolemaic earth centered Greek view of the universe as an absolute universal truth of both nature and religion. The Catholic...

Archimedes pouring over his work by Fetti, 1620

15 August, 2018 - 01:06 Bryan Hill

Archimedes: An Ancient Greek Genius Ahead of His Time

Archimedes was a Greek mathematician, scientist, mechanical engineer and inventor who is considered one of the greatest mathematicians of the ancient world. The father of simple machines, he...

The Statue of Socrates at the Academy of Athens. Work of Leonidas Drosis (d. 1880). (C messier/CC BY SA 4.0) Background: This NASA image shows Earth from space. The image is a combination of data from two satellites.

9 August, 2018 - 18:53 Caleb Strom

Was Socrates in Space? A Question of Ancient Spaceflight

The ancient Greeks are credited with having made many early advancements in science and mathematics which influenced later western civilization. Aristarchus of Samos proposed an essentially...

28 May, 2018 - 14:00 ashley cowie

Out with the Ouija Board! How the Popular Divining Tool Influenced A Modern Murder Case

A convicted double murderer has won the right to a retrial on the basis that four of the jury had used a Ouija board the night before finding him guilty. Does this mean that the UK judicial system...

Neanderthal man at the Natural History Museum London

13 May, 2018 - 14:44 Alicia McDermott

Spectacular Science! Lab-Grown Mini Neanderthal Brains Could Explain What Makes Humans Different

We’re living in an age when many people believe there are no limits to what technology can do. Apply that to paleogenetics and you’ll see research into ancient disease, the domestication of animals,...

4 May, 2018 - 22:53 Daria Shatsylo

8 Ancient Chinese Inventions the West Had Not Imagined

According to the statistics provided by the World Economic Forum, nowadays China can boast its position of the world’s second largest spender on scientific research and development, yielding only to...

Llullaillaco mummy being examined by scientists (CC by 2.0)

9 April, 2018 - 14:00 ancient-origins

Rights of the Dead and the Living Clash when Scientists Extract DNA from Human Remains

The remains of a 6-inch long mummy from Chile are not those of a space alien, according to recently reported research . The tiny body with its strange features – a pointed head, elongated bones – had...

The Shroud of Turin: modern, digitally processed image of the face on the cloth

6 March, 2018 - 18:46 Dr Peter J Shield

Blood on the Shroud: An Interview with the Blood Investigator of the Shroud of Turin Research Project

In 1978 a large team of American scientists under the auspices of the Shroud of Turin Research Project (STURP) spent over two years prior to embarking for Turin, planning a large number of specific...

27 January, 2018 - 22:56 ancient-origins

Religion Isn’t The Enemy of Science: It’s Been Inspiring Scientists for Centuries

Take notice of any debate in the media and you’ll see that science and religion are, and always were, at loggerheads. Science is about evidence-based fact, religion is about faith-based belief. But...

Artists impression of a group of australopith

12 January, 2018 - 19:12 ancient-origins

The Origin of ‘Us’: What We Know So Far About Where We Humans Come From

The question of where we humans come from is one many people ask, and the answer is getting more complicated as new evidence is emerging all the time. For most of recorded history humankind has been...

The Alchymist, in Search of the Philosopher's Stone by Joseph Wright of Derby, 1771.

6 January, 2018 - 18:53 ashley cowie

Lord Kelvin’s Lost Alchemical Chamber of Secrets

In the world of historical investigation and detection, luck, is a universal component that often leads one to otherwise hidden realms. That is precisely what happened to me in 2009 while undertaking...

A Byzantine depiction of the Three Wise Men (526 AD), Basilica of Sant' Apollinare Nuovo, Ravenna, Italy.

16 December, 2017 - 02:02 ancient-origins

What the Magi Had in Common with Scientists

Picturesque and exotic, with their crowns and camels, the three kings regularly appear on Christmas cards and in nativity scenes. But how much is original, and how much is later addition for the sake...

Pages

Myths & Legends

The Epic of Gilgamesh. Source: Luca Oleastri / Adobe.

The Epic of Gilgamesh Unveiled: Searching For a Way to the Home Planet

The Epic of Gilgamesh is regarded as one of mankind’s greatest literary and historical works. Many authors have studied the text in an effort to explain the nature of Gilgamesh’s tyranny and his erratic behavior.

The Epic of Gilgamesh Unveiled: Enlightenment and Source of Religions

Decoding Viking Signs: Nine Norse Symbols Explained

Skaði, The Norse ‘Giantess’ with a Godly Vendetta

Say the Magic Word: The Origins of Abracadabra

The Menhune of Hawaii – Ancient Race or Fictional Fairytale?

Human Origins

Work using the Statue of Gilgamesh and Lamassu. Source: CC BY 4.0

The Epic of Gilgamesh Unveiled: Enlightenment and Source of Religions

Part 1 of this interpretation of the epic told of the birth of Gilgamesh, his tyrannical rule and the creation of a being to rival his power and also become his companion.

The Pagan Wheel of the Year: What Elaborate Rituals and Events Mark this Sacred Cycle?

Unity in Diversity: Studies Reveal Surprising Stories for the Genes of Ancient Hindus and Jews

The origins of human beings according to ancient Sumerian texts

Mysterious Worlds: Travels to the Faerie and Shamanic Realms

Drugs in Ancient Cultures: A History of Drug Use and Effects

Ancient Technology

The passage of carts over decades could cause ruts (like the one shown), particularly in high-traffic areas of Pompeii.

Romans in Pompeii Repaired the Roads with Molten Iron

The buried city of Pompeii continues to provide many insights into Roman society , economy, and culture. The ash and pumice , that fell on Pompeii from Mount Vesuvius , froze the city in time. A...

Why Are There 365 Days in a Year? Organizing Dates with an Ancient Egyptian Calendar

Ancient Journeys: What was Travel Like for the Romans?

Ten amazing inventions from ancient times

The revolutionary invention of the wheel

The Evidence is Cut in Stone: A Compelling Argument for Lost High Technology in Ancient Egypt

Ancient Places

The destruction of the Great Library of Alexandria

Alexandria, one of the greatest cities of the ancient world, was founded by Alexander the Great after his conquest of Egypt in 332 BC. After the death of Alexander in Babylon in 323 BC, Egypt fell to...

Explaining the Fall of the Great Akkadian Empire

The Ain Dara Temple and the giant footsteps of the Gods

The 9,000-year-old underground megalithic settlement of Atlit Yam

The Great Serpent Mound of Ohio, the Largest Earthen Effigy in the World

The Construction of Venice, the Floating City

Opinion

Mysterious Worlds: Travels to the Faerie and Shamanic Realms

There are many accounts of a land of immortality and eternal youth in world myths and legends, as well as shamanic and indigenous spiritual traditions. Mysterious Worlds Writing in his recent work,...

Pharaoh Akhenaten: An Alternative View of the Heretic King

Changing Colors and Scampering Across the Night Sky: What Did the Ancients Say about Sirius?

Cracking the Code to Discover Ancient Tarot Symbolism and Forgotten Universal Knowledge

The Secret Strategic Plans of Darius the Great

The Secrets of the Kabbalists Garden

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