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: Sign on San Diego
Feb 18, 2010
Kermit Tyler was a young fighter pilot stationed at Wheeler Field in Hawaii in 1941 when fate thrust him into a glaring spotlight. He happened to be the officer on duty at the aircraft tracking center on Oahu when the island was attacked by the Japanese on the morning of Dec. 7.
He wasn’t supposed to work that day, and he had been at the information center only once before. His assignment was vague; he just knew he was supposed to report for duty. The island’s radar system was in th
Source: Independent (UK)
Feb 18, 2010
A 3,000 year old Bronze Age trading vessel – the oldest shipwreck ever found in British waters – has been located off the coast of Devon in South West England.
It went down around 900 BC carrying a precious cargo of tin and copper ingots from the continent, and has lain undetected on the seabed in just eight to ten metres of water in a bay near Salcombe ever since. Experts have hailed the discovery – one of only four Bronze Age vessels found in British waters – as “extremely import
Source: Science Daily
Feb 18, 2010
A study led by University of Pittsburgh researchers could finally lay to rest the millennia-old conjecture that the ancient empire of Carthage regularly sacrificed its youngest citizens. An examination of the remains of Carthaginian children revealed that most infants perished prenatally or very shortly after birth and were unlikely to have lived long enough to be sacrificed, according to a Feb. 17 report in PLoS One.
The findings -- based on the first published analysis of the skel
Source: Discovery News
Feb 18, 2010
Dr. Zahi Hawass, the head of Egypt's Supreme Council of Antiquities, unveiled new evidence for King Tut's lineage and cause of death at a packed press conference on Wednesday.
Hawass added that new light was shed on the cause of death for Tutankhamun with the discovery of DNA from the parasite that causes malaria; it is likely that the boy king died from complications resulting from a severe form of this disease.
However, some outside mummy experts contacted by Discove
Source: BBC
Feb 18, 2010
A series of drawings which Michelangelo made for a younger man he is thought to have fallen in love with, have gone on display at London's Courtauld Gallery.
The exhibition is built around his masterpiece The Dream (Il Sogno), bequeathed to the gallery in 1978.
It depicts a naked young man, thought to represent Tommasso de Cavalieri, being roused from sleep by a spirit.
The Michelangelo Dream exhibition, which also features handwritten sonnets to Cavalier
Source: AP
Feb 18, 2010
The Washington Monument and other memorials in the nation's capital probably won't get labels for confused visitors after all.
The National Park Service is backing away from a plan to add small stone labels to the major memorials on the National Mall after a federal arts panel rejected the idea....
Source: BBC History Magazine
Feb 18, 2010
This year marks the 1600th anniversary of the end of the Roman empire. To mark the occasion, next month’s edition of BBC History Magazine will investigate the reasons behind the empire's collapse and its legacy in Britain. Until then, we've come up with a few suggestions to get you in the mood.If you’re keen to fine-tune your Roman knowledge, a wide-ranging study of their customs, beliefs and society can be found on the
Source: NYT
Feb 18, 2010
If you’ve ever been kidnapped by aliens from outer space, don’t complain to the British Ministry of Defense.
“Abduction is a criminal offense and as such is a matter for the civil police to handle,” the ministry advised a constituent from Lancashire. “The police can only investigate allegations of abduction if there is evidence to suggest that such a crime has taken place. As to date, the M.O.D. is not aware of any evidence which might substantiate the existence of extraterrestrial
Source: FOX News
Feb 18, 2010
Former President Bill Clinton acknowledged “remorse” for his role in the events that led to his impeachment and acquittal Wednesday, even as he renewed his attacks on his old nemesis, former independent counsel Kenneth Starr.
“I expressed my remorse at the time,” the former president told a Manhattan audience during a childhood obesity event Wednesday afternoon. “And my remorse does not have anything to do with whether what was done was legal or constitutional.”
Rather,
Source: The Telegraph (UK)
Feb 18, 2010
The US government has reached a historic $1.25 billion settlement with black farmers who were discriminated against when they tried to get loans and other assistance.
The settlement puts to rest a class-action lawsuit launched in 1997 by thousands of African-American farmers left out of programs because of alleged racism in the US Department of Agriculture (USDA).
Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack said the landmark settlement was the result of President Barack Obama's f
Source: BBC
Feb 18, 2010
Prehistoric seas were filled with giant plankton-eating fish which died out at the same time as the dinosaurs, new fossil evidence suggests.
Scientists from Glasgow, Oxford and the United States have identified fossil evidence which shows the fish existed between 66 and 172 million years ago.
They believe it may be a "missing piece in the evolutionary story of fish, mammals and ocean ecosystems".
The findings of the research are published in the
Source: BBC
Feb 18, 2010
Former New York City police chief Bernard Kerik, hailed as a hero after the 9/11 attacks, has been sentenced to four years in jail.
Kerik pleaded guilty in November to eight charges, including lying to the White House and tax evasion.
He lied while being vetted for the post of homeland security chief in 2004.
Federal judge Stephen Robinson said the fact that Kerik, 54, used the attacks for "personal gain and aggrandisement" was "a dark plac
Source: AP
Feb 18, 2010
An exhibit opened in Russia on Thursday on the life of an American veteran believed to be one the few soldiers to fight for both the U.S. and the Soviet Union in World War II.
The Russian Museum exhibit, titled "Joseph R. Beyrle — A Hero of Two Nations," presents 260 artifacts from Beyrle's life and military career, including a collection of his medals, uniform and photographs.
His son, U.S. ambassador to Russia John Beyrle, attended the exhibit opening and sa
Source: Science Daily
Feb 18, 2010
A study led by University of Pittsburgh researchers could finally lay to rest the millennia-old conjecture that the ancient empire of Carthage regularly sacrificed its youngest citizens. An examination of the remains of Carthaginian children revealed that most infants perished prenatally or very shortly after birth and were unlikely to have lived long enough to be sacrificed, according to a Feb. 17 report in PLoS One.
The findings -- based on the first published analysis of the skel
Source: Pilot Online (VA)
Feb 18, 2010
North Carolina's curriculum controversy may soon be history. The proposal to start high school history courses at 1877 is likely to disappear in the next curriculum draft due in April.
"I would expect that will not be part of that second draft," said Vanessa Jeter, communications director for the state Department of Public Instruction, on Wednesday. "I would expect there will be more U.S. History in high school."
Source: BBC
Feb 18, 2010
A Nazi helmet worth £1,700 has been stolen from The Historic Dockyard Chatham in Kent.
Police said the German SS camouflage head gear was taken from a stall in the dockyard's Main Gate Road on Sunday at about 1100 GMT.
The green helmet, which has a red flag with a white circle and a swastika painted on the side, dates back to World War II.
Source: BBC
Feb 18, 2010
A wooden object claimed to be a replica of the Biblical Ark of the Covenant has gone on display at a Zimbabwe museum.
The "ngoma lungundu" belongs to the Lemba people - black Africans who claim Jewish ancestry.
They say the vessel was built almost 700 years ago from the remains of the original Ark, which the Bible says was used to store Moses' 10 Commandments.
For decades the ancient vessel was thought to be lost, until it was found in a storero
Source: Telegraph (UK)
Feb 18, 2010
The 35-year-old Titanic star told Russian daily Komsomolskaya Pravda: "I'd love to play Stalin very much. However, it is all about a script and there is no such script at the moment."
DiCaprio's Russian grandmother survived the Soviet era with its political purges, mass killings and all powerful secret police.
"My grandmother was telling me about the Second World War, the Gulags and other Russian tragedies.
"I really do not know whether
Source: Independent (UK)
Feb 18, 2010
The round clay outline of a human body decorated with necklace, belt and bracelets has provided archaeologists with the first glimpse in possibly 1,400 years of a lost West African civilisation.
The discovery of 80 clay figurines from burial mounds in a remote area of northern Ghana is being hailed as evidence of the existence of a hitherto unknown but sophisticated society. It is hoped that the find will provide information about the region's pre-Islamic history.
Source: Telegraph (UK)
Feb 18, 2010
In Roman mythology, the bough was a tree branch with golden leaves that enabled the Trojan hero Aeneas to travel through the underworld safely.
They discovered the remains while excavating religious sanctuary built in honour of the goddess Diana near an ancient volcanic lake in the Alban Hills, 20 miles south of Rome.
They believe the enclosure protected a huge Cypress or oak tree which was sacred to the Latins, a powerful tribe which ruled the region before the rise of
