Gleeful Gecko » History

Cannons are Dangerous. Not A Myth.

Brett — Wed, 07 Dec 2011 19:06:58 +0000

So apparently the Mythbusters fired a cannon through a house yesterday. They did not do it deliberately but I think we can say that the cannons being dangerous is pretty much not a myth.

There, the 6-inch projectile bounced in front of a home on quiet Cassata Place, ripped through the front door, raced up the stairs and blasted through a bedroom, where a man, woman and child slept through it all – only awakening because of plaster dust.

Luckily no one was hurt.

Giving the Gangers Ideas

Brett — Fri, 11 Nov 2011 13:17:11 +0000

This sort of news story is just the sort that will have gang members out doing archaeological digs all over the place. Crashed Spitfire found in bog with working machine guns. ‘Yo homies, get me a trowel, shit just got real.’ The poor archaeologists out there armed only with their bull whips will have no chance.

The Last Bongthing is Dead

Brett — Thu, 10 Nov 2011 22:25:13 +0000

Samdup Taso, the last Bongthing of Sikkim is dead and leaves the world without a shaman of Kanchenjunga for the first time since the 13th century. In America we regard it as a cultural tragedy when the hardware store that opened in the 1940s closes.

You Had Me At Saber Toothed Squirrel…

Brett — Fri, 04 Nov 2011 02:58:41 +0000

Saber toothed squirrel ancestor found. Happily no longer around to conspire against humanity and chew up our power lines. I can only shudder at the thought of what one of these monsters could do to a helpless bird feeder.

Want To Make Something Of It

Brett — Fri, 21 Oct 2011 13:30:39 +0000

British lawyers say American Independence is illegal. Americans point out the Britons, Picts and Saxons have a similar complaint. Come talk to us after you have made that all better. Also, I think the Native Americans would like a place in this line as well, and I think they come in before you do.

Medieval Italian Witch Body Found

Brett — Thu, 29 Sep 2011 13:21:52 +0000

An archaeological dig in Italy has turn up a ‘witch’ buried with seven nails driven through her jaw. The story places the burials at about 800 years old, so around 1200ad. Interesting the ‘witch’ was buried on consecrated ground, probably meaning she was from a high status family. I wonder if her family was even aware of the bodies desecration. Sadly the world is still not free of this sort of nonsense.

The Good Old Days

Brett — Mon, 05 Sep 2011 20:08:36 +0000

Dad what did you all used to do before video games were invented?

Summer of Fear: Removing the Sick and Old

Brett — Fri, 02 Sep 2011 09:47:37 +0000

Large predators rarely hunt the young and strong, like this cheetah they hunt for the sick and old. The cheetah seemed to have figured the game out pretty well, but still didn’t end up with an easy meal. It is tough being a large predator. Bonus the story happened in Tsavo where my favorite man eating lions are from.

Say It Isn’t So Greyfriars Bobby, Say It Isn’t So!

Brett — Wed, 03 Aug 2011 15:15:33 +0000

I am afraid its true kid.

I can’t believe in anything anymore!

Reenactor “Hit By Cannon”

Brett — Thu, 07 Jul 2011 12:04:49 +0000

A rare reenactor injury at a parade in Norwood Massachusetts when hit by a piece of metal fired from a cannon. From the sound of it a bit of a cannon broke apart when fired and hit a man portraying a German WW2 soldier. Reenacting is a pretty safe hobby, great care is taken as pointing guns and cannons at people requires a very safety minded focus for the hobby to function at all, most injuries I saw were from twisted ankles or minor burns from cooking, but even in a safe hobby things can go wrong.

History Cookbook

Brett — Wed, 29 Jun 2011 14:10:39 +0000

Cookit, The History Cookbook This is a very nice little site with historical English recipes. Some look very tasty, others less so but it is a nice view on how food has changed over the centuries, at least in England. One obvious difference is the bits we throw away, other than in hot dogs there are a lot of bits we just don’t eat anymore that once were considered delicacies and still are in many parts of the world.

How the Colonies Were Named

Brett — Fri, 25 Mar 2011 14:46:17 +0000

An excellent look at how the colonies were named. I suspect this is far too accurate.

Revising Stanley

Brett — Sat, 19 Mar 2011 22:45:12 +0000

Henry Stanley was a hero in his time. “Dr. Livingston I presume” made him famous and a short hand figure for the adventurous hero. More recently he has been branded a pariah, his association with the Belgian Congo, his harsh treatment of everyone he ran into have made him into a modern symbol of all that was wrong with the European exploration of Africa. Now the pendulum is swinging another way and his hometown is honoring him with a statue. The author of the article is publishing a new biography of Stanley this fall that sounds it will be much more friendly to Stanley than the last few have been. I think Stanley has become a hitching post for people to hang their ideas on, that said I will read the new book when it comes out.

History Matters

Brett — Tue, 22 Feb 2011 19:12:00 +0000

I struggle with abstract math, I do much better with it when I can see the result applied to the real world. I have never had this problem with studying history, but some do and recently there was a great story in the NY Times about someone applying history to the real world.

The story is about the Triangle Shirtwaist Factory Fire, which occurred in 1911 and led to many of the workplace safety rules we have in the law books today. Sadly it took the deaths of 146 people to bring these new laws about. As the workers who died in the fire were poor working class folk, no one ever compiled a complete list of those who died. Until now. This is excellent work and a great example of history study being put to good use.

London Girl Gangs of London

Brett — Fri, 31 Dec 2010 19:48:11 +0000

Interesting article on London’s Forty Elephants gang which runs from the mid 19th to the mid 20th century. May have to look up the book if I am ever over the pond again.