This page features brief excerpts of stories published by the mainstream
media and, less frequently, blogs, alternative media, and even obviously
biased sources. The excerpts are taken directly from the websites cited in
each source note. Quotation marks are not used.
Source: BBC News
January 12, 2011
Haitians are preparing to mark the anniversary of the earthquake that devastated their country and left some 250,000 of their fellow citizens dead.
Church services are due to be held around the nation, including at the ruined cathedral in Port-au-Prince.
There will also be a minute's silence at 4.53pm (2153 GMT) - the exact moment when the 7.0 magnitude quake hit.
One year on, some 800,000 people are still living in temporary shelters.
As well
Source: BBC News
January 12, 2011
Russia has blamed the Smolensk air crash which killed the Polish president and nearly 100 other people in April on Polish pilot error.
The Polish crew failed to heed bad weather warnings because they were afraid of displeasing President Lech Kaczynski, Russian investigators said.
The presence of Poland's air force commander in the cockpit drove them to take "unjustified risk", they found.
Poland's prime minister has cut short a holiday in response
Source: WaPo
January 11, 2011
IN RALEIGH, N.C. The sprawling Wake County School District has long been a rarity. Some of its best, most diverse schools are in the poorest sections of this capital city. And its suburban schools, rather than being exclusive enclaves, include children whose parents cannot afford a house in the neighborhood.
But over the past year, a new majority-Republican school board backed by national tea party conservatives has set the district on a strikingly different course. Pledging to &quo
Source: Washington Post
January 9, 2011
Dick Winters, a decorated Army officer whose World War II service was recounted in the best-selling book and HBO mini-series "Band of Brothers," died Jan. 2. News reports listed his age at 92.
Based on the 1992 book by historian Stephen E. Ambrose, the HBO mini-series came out in 2001 and was produced by Tom Hanks and Steven Spielberg.
The story follows the tragedies and triumphs of the 506th Parachute Infantry Regiment, 2nd Battalion, E Company.
Source: Telegraph (UK)
January 11, 2011
A low-cost, low-carbon airship makes sound economic sense says Michael Stewart.
One of the most intriguing predictions in the usual end-of-year rush was that we could soon be taking holidays thousands of feet in the air. By 2030, claimed a report for Thomson Holidays, giant, eco-powered airships, containing entire resorts, will be floating through the skies. It seems fantastical, but you don't need to look 20 years into the future to see the airship making a comeback. In fact, these
Source: AP
January 11, 2011
The earliest known winery has been uncovered in a cave in the mountains of Armenia.
A vat to press the grapes, fermentation jars and even a cup and drinking bowl dating to about 6,000 years ago were discovered in the cave complex by an international team of researchers.
While older evidence of wine drinking has been found, this is the earliest example of complete wine production, according to Gregory Areshian of the University of California, Los Angeles, co-director of
Source: AFP
January 10, 2011
Dying young was not likely the reason Neanderthals went extinct, said a study out Monday that suggests early modern humans had about the same life expectancy as their hairier, ancient cousins.
Scientists have puzzled over why the Neanderthals disappeared just as modern humans were making huge gains and moving into new parts of Africa and Europe, and some have speculated that a difference in longevity may have been to blame.
If anything, higher fertility rates and lower
Source: UN News Centre
January 11, 2011
An international team of archaeologists has begun a three-year survey, coordinated by the UN Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO), of the archaeological ruins of Lumbini, the birthplace of Buddha in Nepal.
Lumbini is a world-renowned Buddhist pilgrimage destination and a UNESCO World Heritage site since 1997.
The project, funded by the Japanese Government and coordinated by the UNESCO office in the Nepalese capital, Kathmandu, aims to identify the
Source: Michigan Tech News
January 10, 2011
If you are an archaeologist, determining when a pot was made is not just a matter of checking the bottom for a time stamp. Dating clay-based materials like ceramics recovered from archeological sites can be time consuming, not to mention complex and expensive.
Patrick Bowen, a senior majoring in materials science and engineering, is refining a new way of dating ceramic artifacts that could one day shave thousands of dollars off the cost of doing archaeological research.
Source: LA Times
January 10, 2011
Construction of La Plaza de Cultura y Artes near Olvera Street has unearthed skeletons of early L.A. settlers in a cemetery thought to have been emptied in 1844. The excavation is stirring up controversy.
Since late October, the fragile bones of dozens of Los Angeles settlers have been discovered under what will be the outdoor space of La Plaza de Cultura y Artes downtown near Olvera Street. According to archaeologists and the chief executive of La Plaza, they appear to be remains f
Source: Huma Today
January 8, 2011
Bones found in the basement of a Gibson home last year could be more than 700 years old and likely came from the Indian mound on which the house was built, state officials said.
The bone fragments were found Nov. 21, 2009, amid the remains of a cardboard box in the basement of 234 Fandall St. by a real-estate agent showing the house to potential buyers.
The bones are likely those of American Indian inhabitants of the area and could be more than 700 years old, archeologi
Source: BBC
January 11, 2011
"Liberte!" - That was the last word spoken by the heroine of Churchill's elite spy network before being executed by her Nazi captors.
On 13 September 1944, the glamorous British agent, code named "Madeline," was shot dead at Dachau concentration camp.
Despite being tortured by the Gestapo during 10 months of imprisonment, she had revealed nothing of use to her interrogators.
Noor's bravery has long been recognised in France, where the
Source: BBC
January 11, 2011
Excavations for the new Tattoo stands on Edinburgh Castle esplanade have revealed the remains of a boundary wall dating back to the 17th Century.
CFA Archaeology will now look at the surrounding area to gain a clearer understanding of what it was part of.
A trench dug for one of more than 100 concrete pad foundations for the new stands revealed the remains of a wall around 1m (3.3ft) wide.
The works are part of a Scheduled Monument Consent granted by minist
Source: U.S. Holocaust Memorial Museum
January 9, 2011
The United States Holocaust Memorial Museum expresses outrage at the heinous act of violence that took place yesterday in Tucson, Arizona. The Museum extends its deepest sympathies to the families and loved ones of those whose lives were lost or forever changed in this terrible attack upon innocent men, women and children. We hope and pray for a full recovery for all of the victims, including Congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords who, since 2010, has served on the United States Holocaust Memorial Cou
Source: LA Times
January 10, 2011
It's not unusual in Los Angeles for construction crews to find buried remains, but it is surprising to find a cemetery.
Under a half-acre lot of dirt and mud being transformed into a garden and public space for a cultural center celebrating the Mexican American heritage of Los Angeles, construction workers and scientists have found bodies buried in the first cemetery of Los Angeles — bodies believed to have been removed and reinterred elsewhere in the 1800s.
Since late
Source: Wired
January 7, 2011
A deep-sea treasure-hunting company in Florida says that diplomatic cables recently released by WikiLeaks have exposed the U.S. government’s backdoor interference in a lawsuit over $500 million in silver and gold coins recovered from a Spanish galleon.
According to Odyssey Marine Exploration, based in Florida, the U.S. State Department cables show that the U.S. ambassador to Spain made a quid pro quo deal to assist that country in its battle with Odyssey for the treasure.
Source: NYT
January 11, 2011
Scientists have reported finding the oldest known winemaking operation, about 6,100 years old, complete with a vat for fermenting, a press, storage jars, a clay bowl and a drinking cup made from an animal horn. Grape seeds, dried pressed grapes, stems, shriveled grapevines and residue were also found, and chemical analyses indicate red wine was produced there.
The discovery, published online Tuesday in The Journal of Archaeological Science, occurred in a cave in Armenia where the te
Source: NYT
January 11, 2011
Longevity in early modern humans and in Neanderthals was about the same, according to a new study, suggesting that long life was not what helped the population of early modern humans increase.
Erik Trinkaus, an anthropologist at Washington University in St. Louis and the study’s author, reported his findings in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.
“There must have been something else happening because the populations of early modern humans were expanding
Source: Cyprus Mail
January 9, 2011
WHAT is believed to be the most ancient house in Paphos has been uncovered amid excavations to discover the extent of walls of the ancient city of Nea Paphos.
For Dr Claire Balandier, the head of the French archaeological team which uncovered the house, complete with wall paintings, last year’s find was one of her most exciting during 20 years of excavating in Cyprus.
She believes the house is probably the oldest known of in Paphos, along with the first phases of the ho
Source: PTI (India)
January 10, 2011
Eight idols, including three of ''ashtadhatu'' (mixed metal), have been stolen from an ancient Ram Janki temple in Bithoor area here, police said today.
Temple priest Vishnu Prasad found the idols, including three ashtadhatu idols of Ram, Sita and Lakshman, missing when the main gate of the temple was opened yesterday morning, SP (Rural) Lal Bhadur said.
Later the priest raised an alarm and informed the police.
Police thoroughly checked the temple with the help o
