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RE: Last to post wins - Creeperopolis - 08-10-2023
Archaeology, Anthropology, and Interstellar Communication is a 2014 collection of essays edited by Douglas Vakoch and published by NASA. The book is focused on the role that the humanities and social sciences, in particular anthropology and archaeology, play in the search for extraterrestrial intelligence. The seventeen essays are gathered into four sections, which respectively explore the history of SETI as a field; archaeological comparisons for human-alien communication, such as the difficulties of translating ancient languages; the inferential gap between humans and aliens, and the consequences this would have for communication and trade; and the potential nature of alien intelligences.
Originally scheduled for publication in June 2014, a PDF of Archaeology, Anthropology, and Interstellar Communication was accidentally released a month before the intended date and reviewed by Gizmodo. The positive response to the review inspired NASA to bring forward its release as an e-book, making it available on their website from May of that year.
The book gained widespread media coverage upon release. As well as receiving generally positive reviews, it was at the center of controversy regarding misinterpretation of one of its essays. A quote about ancient terrestrial stone carvings, rhetorically stating that they "might have been made by aliens"[1] for all that they were understood by modern anthropologists, was misreported by publications such as TheBlaze, The Huffington Post, and Artnet.
RE: Last to post wins - Creeperopolis - 08-11-2023
The Battle of Dupplin Moor was fought between supporters of King David II of Scotland, the son of King Robert Bruce, and English-backed invaders supporting Edward Balliol, son of King John I of Scotland, on 11 August 1332. It took place a little to the south west of Perth, Scotland, when a Scottish force commanded by Donald, Earl of Mar, estimated to have been stronger than 15,000 and possibly as many as 40,000 men, attacked a largely English force of 1,500 commanded by Balliol and Henry Beaumont, Earl of Buchan. This was the first major battle of the Second War of Scottish Independence.
The First War of Scottish Independence between England and Scotland ended in 1328 with the Treaty of Northampton, recognising Bruce as King of Scots, but the treaty was widely resented in England. King Edward III of England was happy to cause trouble for his northern neighbour and tacitly supported an attempt to place Balliol on the Scottish throne. Balliol and a small force landed in Fife and marched on Perth, the Scottish capital. A Scottish army at least ten times stronger occupied a defensive position on the far side of the River Earn. The invaders crossed the river at night via an unguarded ford and took up a strong defensive position.
In the morning the Scots raced to attack the English, disorganising their own formations. Unable to break the line of English men-at-arms, the Scots became trapped in a valley with fresh forces arriving from the rear pressing them forward and giving them no room to manoeuvre, or even to use their weapons. English longbowmen fired into both Scottish flanks. Many Scots died of suffocation or were trampled underfoot. Eventually they broke and the English men-at-arms mounted and pursued the fugitives until nightfall. Perth fell, the remaining Scottish forces dispersed and Balliol was crowned King of Scots. By the end of 1332 he had lost control of most of Scotland, but regained it in 1333 with Edward III's open support. He was deposed again in 1334, restored again in 1335 and finally deposed in 1336, by those loyal to David II.
RE: Last to post wins - Creeperopolis - 08-12-2023
Elephants are the largest existing land animals. Three living species are currently recognised: the African bush elephant, the African forest elephant, and the Asian elephant. They are the only surviving members of the family Elephantidae and the order Proboscidea; extinct relatives include mammoths and mastodons. Distinctive features of elephants include a long proboscis called a trunk, tusks, large ear flaps, pillar-like legs, and tough but sensitive grey skin. The trunk is prehensile, bringing food and water to the mouth, and grasping objects. Tusks, which are derived from the incisor teeth, serve both as weapons and as tools for moving objects and digging. The large ear flaps assist in maintaining a constant body temperature as well as in communication. African elephants have larger ears and concave backs, whereas Asian elephants have smaller ears, and convex or level backs.
Elephants are scattered throughout sub-Saharan Africa, South Asia, and Southeast Asia and are found in different habitats, including savannahs, forests, deserts, and marshes. They are herbivorous, and they stay near water when it is accessible. They are considered to be keystone species, due to their impact on their environments. Elephants have a fission–fusion society, in which multiple family groups come together to socialise. Females (cows) tend to live in family groups, which can consist of one female with her calves or several related females with offspring. The leader of a female group, usually the oldest cow, is known as the matriarch.
Males (bulls) leave their family groups when they reach puberty and may live alone or with other males. Adult bulls mostly interact with family groups when looking for a mate. They enter a state of increased testosterone and aggression known as musth, which helps them gain dominance over other males as well as reproductive success. Calves are the centre of attention in their family groups and rely on their mothers for as long as three years. Elephants can live up to 70 years in the wild. They communicate by touch, sight, smell, and sound; elephants use infrasound and seismic communication over long distances. Elephant intelligence has been compared with that of primates and cetaceans. They appear to have self-awareness, and possibly show concern for dying and dead individuals of their kind.
African bush elephants and Asian elephants are listed as endangered and African forest elephants as critically endangered by the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN). One of the biggest threats to elephant populations is the ivory trade, as the animals are poached for their ivory tusks. Other threats to wild elephants include habitat destruction and conflicts with local people. Elephants are used as working animals in Asia. In the past, they were used in war; today, they are often controversially put on display in zoos, or employed for entertainment in circuses. Elephants have an iconic status in human culture and have been featured in art, folklore, religion, literature, and popular culture.
RE: Last to post wins - Creeperopolis - 08-13-2023
The Wood River Branch Railroad was a shortline railroad in Rhode Island, United States. Chartered in 1872 and opened on July 1, 1874, the 5.6-mile (9.0 km) line connected Hope Valley, Rhode Island, to the New York, Providence and Boston Railroad (known as the Stonington Line) mainline at Wood River Junction. Though always nominally independent, the company was closely affiliated with the Stonington Line and its successor, the New York, New Haven and Hartford Railroad (the New Haven), which held significant portions of its stock.
The Wood River Branch carried both passengers and freight for local mills and other industries. A small operation, the company owned only one or two locomotives at any given time. Rhode Island citizen Ralph C. Watrous became president of the railroad in 1904, and remained involved in its operation for the next 33 years. He defended the railroad from several attempts at abandonment. A major flood in November 1927 severed the line and suspended all operations. The company considered abandonment, but ultimately local citizens and the New Haven agreed to rebuild the damaged segments and return the line to service for freight only, using a gasoline locomotive.
Abandonment was considered again in 1937, but the New Haven instead agreed to sell the line for $301 to businessman Roy Rawlings, owner of a grain mill that was the line's biggest customer. He ran the company with his family and a small staff until 1947. That year, both his mill and two other Hope Valley industries were destroyed by fire. Lacking enough business to justify operating expenses, the railroad ceased operations and was abandoned in its entirety in August 1947. Little of the line remains as of 2018.
RE: Last to post wins - Creeperopolis - 08-14-2023
George Ward (30 November 1993 – 18 September 2022), better known by the stage name Cherry Valentine, was an English drag queen and mental health nurse who competed in the second series of the television show RuPaul's Drag Race UK. Raised in an English Traveller community, Ward has been credited as the first contestant on the Drag Race franchise to acknowledge his Romani heritage. In 2022, he addressed his background in the BBC documentary film Cherry Valentine: Gypsy Queen and Proud, and in an episode of the documentary series God Shave the Queens. Following Ward's death in 2022, a memorial concert and fundraiser was held at London's Clapham Grand.
RE: Last to post wins - Creeperopolis - 08-15-2023
Chandralekha (also spelt Chandraleka)[b] is a 1948 Indian historical adventure film produced and directed by S. S. Vasan of Gemini Studios. Starring T. R. Rajakumari, M. K. Radha and Ranjan, the film follows two brothers (Veerasimhan and Sasankan) who fight over ruling their father's kingdom and marrying the village dancer, Chandralekha.
Development began during the early 1940s when, after two successive box-office hits, Vasan announced that his next film would be entitled Chandralekha. However, when he launched an advertising campaign for the film he only had the name of the heroine from a storyline he had rejected. Veppathur Kittoo (one of Vasan's storyboard artists) developed a story based on a chapter of George W. M. Reynolds' novel, Robert Macaire: or, The French bandit in England. Original director T. G. Raghavachari left the film more than halfway through because of disagreements with Vasan, who took over in his directorial debut.
Originally made in Tamil and later in Hindi, Chandralekha spent five years in production (1943–1948). It underwent a number of scripting, filming and cast changes, and was the most-expensive film made in India at the time. Vasan mortgaged all his property and sold his jewellery to complete the film, whose cinematographers were Kamal Ghosh and K. Ramnoth. The music, largely inspired by Indian and Western classical music, was composed by S. Rajeswara Rao and M. D. Parthasarathy with lyrics by Papanasam Sivan and Kothamangalam Subbu.
Chandralekha was released on 9 April 1948. Although the film received generally-positive reviews, it did not recoup its production costs. Vasan directed a Hindi version with some changes, including re-shot scenes, a slightly altered cast, and Hindi dialogues from Agha Jani Kashmiri and Pandit Indra. The Hindi version was released on 24 December of that year, becoming a box-office success. South Indian cinema became prominent throughout India with the film's release, and it inspired South Indian producers to market their Hindi films in North India.
RE: Last to post wins - Creeperopolis - 08-16-2023
Esplanade MRT station is an underground Mass Rapid Transit (MRT) station on the Circle line (CCL) in Singapore. Situated in the Downtown Core, it is at the junction of Bras Basah Road, Raffles Boulevard and Nicoll Highway. As the name suggests, the station serves the Esplanade performing arts centre, alongside various developments such as War Memorial Park, Suntec City Mall and the Suntec Singapore Convention and Exhibition Centre. Esplanade station is linked to the nearby City Hall station via CityLink Mall, an underground retail development.
First announced in 1999 as Convention Centre MRT station as part of the Marina MRT line, it was later incorporated into Stage 1 of the CCL. Several roads were diverted during its construction. The station was renamed Esplanade through a public poll in 2005. Along with the other stations on Stages 1 and 2 of the CCL, the station opened on 17 April 2010. Esplanade station features an Art-in-Transit artwork A Piece of Ice-Clear Heart by Lim Mu Hue.
RE: Last to post wins - Creeperopolis - 08-17-2023
Doc Savage was an American pulp magazine that was published from 1933 to 1949 by Street & Smith. It was launched as a follow-up to the success of The Shadow, a magazine Street & Smith had started in 1931, based around a single character. Doc Savage's lead character, Clark Savage, was a scientist and adventurer, rather than purely a detective. Lester Dent was hired to write the lead novels, almost all of which were published under the house name "Kenneth Robeson". A few dozen novels were ghost-written by other writers, hired either by Dent or by Street & Smith. The magazine was successful, but was shut down in 1949 as part of Street & Smith's decision to leave the pulp magazine field completely.
Dent's work was full of inventive ideas, and ranged across multiple genres. Science fictional gadgets were common, but there were also detective novels, westerns, fantasies, and straightforward adventures. Dent worked with Henry Ralston and (until 1943) John Nanovic, two editors at Street & Smith, to plot the novels, though in a few cases ghost-writers were given leeway to create their own plots without Dent's involvement. Early covers were painted by Walter Baumhofer; when Baumhofer left Street & Smith in 1936 he was replaced by R. G. Harris and then by Emery Clarke.
The magazine was very successful, reaching a circulation of 300,000. After the magazine ceased publication, the franchise continued; the novels were later reprinted as paperbacks, and new novels were eventually written by pulp historian Will Murray. The prose style was action-oriented and Dent had a low opinion of his work, describing his life's output as consisting mostly of "reams of saleable crap".[1]
RE: Last to post wins - Paleocacher - 08-17-2023
I win, for now.
RE: Last to post wins - Creeperopolis - 08-18-2023
Frances Clara Cleveland Preston (née Folsom, christened Frank Clara; July 21, 1864 – October 29, 1947) was the first lady of the United States from 1886 to 1889, and again from 1893 to 1897, as the wife of President Grover Cleveland. She is the only first lady to have served in the role during two non-consecutive terms.
Folsom met Grover Cleveland while she was an infant, as he was a friend of her father, Oscar Folsom. When her father died in 1875, Grover became the executor of her father's estate. He took care of Oscar's outstanding financial debts and provided for the well-being of Frances and her mother Emma. She was educated at Wells College, and after graduating, she married Grover while he was the incumbent president. When her husband lost reelection in 1888, they went into private life for four years and began having children. They returned to the White House when her husband was elected again in 1892, though much of her time in the second term was dedicated to her children.
The Clevelands had five children, four of whom survived to adulthood. Cleveland involved herself in education advocacy, serving on the Wells College board, supporting women's education, and organizing the construction of kindergartens. She was widowed in 1908, and she married Thomas J. Preston Jr. in 1913. Cleveland-Preston continued to work in education activism after leaving the White House, becoming involved with Princeton University. During World War I, she advocated military preparedness. She died in 1947 and was buried alongside her first husband in Princeton Cemetery.