Thursday, February 19, 2004
Vikings' Barbaric Bad Rap Beginning to Fade
"Never before has such terror appeared in Britain as we have now suffered from a pagan race. … Behold, the church of St. Cuthbert, spattered with the blood of the priests of God, despoiled of all its ornaments; a place more venerable than all in Britain is given as a prey to pagan peoples."
So wrote religious scholar Alcuin of York in the late eighth century in a letter to Ethelred, king of Northumbria in England. He was describing a violent raid by Vikings on a monastery in present-day Scotland.
It is no wonder that the Vikings have a reputation for mindless savagery. Since the Vikings were unable to write, much of their history was recorded by British and French clergy—the very people who fell victim to the Viking raids.
Viking culture, history, and mythologies is an area that I am always interested in, and one that I am still reading/learning about. My current reading material is Viking Age Iceland.
From National Geographic.
So wrote religious scholar Alcuin of York in the late eighth century in a letter to Ethelred, king of Northumbria in England. He was describing a violent raid by Vikings on a monastery in present-day Scotland.
It is no wonder that the Vikings have a reputation for mindless savagery. Since the Vikings were unable to write, much of their history was recorded by British and French clergy—the very people who fell victim to the Viking raids.
Viking culture, history, and mythologies is an area that I am always interested in, and one that I am still reading/learning about. My current reading material is Viking Age Iceland.
From National Geographic.
Black Hole Destroys Star
Black holes will eat just about anything, and now astronomers have confirmed that stars are on their menus.
Observations from three space-based X-ray telescopes over about a decade provide the first solid evidence of a star being torn apart and partly swallowed by a black hole.
Astronomers already have plenty of evidence for black holes consuming gas that swirls inward and is superheated, generating radiation in many wavelengths from radio to visible light and X-rays. They have long assumed that whole stars could be torn apart by the gravitational tug of a black hole, but proof has been elusive.
If these events actually happen once every 10000 years, we are very lucky to have discovered this star being ripped apart by the black hole.
From Space.com.
Observations from three space-based X-ray telescopes over about a decade provide the first solid evidence of a star being torn apart and partly swallowed by a black hole.
Astronomers already have plenty of evidence for black holes consuming gas that swirls inward and is superheated, generating radiation in many wavelengths from radio to visible light and X-rays. They have long assumed that whole stars could be torn apart by the gravitational tug of a black hole, but proof has been elusive.
If these events actually happen once every 10000 years, we are very lucky to have discovered this star being ripped apart by the black hole.
From Space.com.
70 Million-Year-Old Bird Fossil Found
Scientists have unearthed the skeleton of a prehistoric bird and the remains of its eggs dating back more than 70 million years, in western Romania, a paleontologist said Tuesday.
Professor Vlad Codrea, who is considered to be Romania's top paleontologist, said the enantiornithine is the country's oldest bird fossil. The size of a blackbird, it is believed to be between 70 and 72 million years old, he said.
"The discovery is extremely important," Codrea said. "Due to the fragility of the bird skeleton and especially the fragility of the eggs, discoveries like these are very rare."
From Yahoo - Science AP.
Professor Vlad Codrea, who is considered to be Romania's top paleontologist, said the enantiornithine is the country's oldest bird fossil. The size of a blackbird, it is believed to be between 70 and 72 million years old, he said.
"The discovery is extremely important," Codrea said. "Due to the fragility of the bird skeleton and especially the fragility of the eggs, discoveries like these are very rare."
From Yahoo - Science AP.
Nuclear Expert Tells AP Yucca Mt. Unsafe
The nation's nuclear waste dump proposed for Nevada is poorly designed and could leak highly radioactive waste, a scientist who recently resigned from a federal panel of experts on Yucca Mountain told The Associated Press on Wednesday.
Paul Craig, a physicist and engineering professor at the University of California-Davis, said he quit the panel last month so he could speak more freely about the waste dump's dangers.
Yucca Mountain, about 90 miles northwest of Las Vegas, is planned to begin receiving waste in 2010. Some 77,000 tons of highly radioactive waste at commercial and military sites in 39 states would be stored in metal canisters underground in tunnels.
I have been criticizing the plan to store nuclear waste in Yucca Mountain since 1997 when my Petrology class did a study on the rock samples of the surrounding area. Yucca Mountain lies very near an active fault, and the area has shown very recent volcanic activity. Also, the ground water levels of the area were much higher as recently as 10000 years ago, and who says they will not return to these levels in the future.
Yucca Mountain is a bad idea.
Geological Information of Yucca Mountain.
Hazards of an earthquake at Yucca Mountain.
Possibility of increased seismic activity at Yucca Mountain.
Faulting at Yucca Mountain.
Volcanic Hazards at Yucca Mountain.
More readings on Yucca Mountain.
From Yahoo - US National AP.
Paul Craig, a physicist and engineering professor at the University of California-Davis, said he quit the panel last month so he could speak more freely about the waste dump's dangers.
Yucca Mountain, about 90 miles northwest of Las Vegas, is planned to begin receiving waste in 2010. Some 77,000 tons of highly radioactive waste at commercial and military sites in 39 states would be stored in metal canisters underground in tunnels.
I have been criticizing the plan to store nuclear waste in Yucca Mountain since 1997 when my Petrology class did a study on the rock samples of the surrounding area. Yucca Mountain lies very near an active fault, and the area has shown very recent volcanic activity. Also, the ground water levels of the area were much higher as recently as 10000 years ago, and who says they will not return to these levels in the future.
Yucca Mountain is a bad idea.
Geological Information of Yucca Mountain.
Hazards of an earthquake at Yucca Mountain.
Possibility of increased seismic activity at Yucca Mountain.
Faulting at Yucca Mountain.
Volcanic Hazards at Yucca Mountain.
More readings on Yucca Mountain.
From Yahoo - US National AP.
Tuesday, February 17, 2004
Mars Express stares at volcano
Europe's Mars Express space probe in orbit around the Red Planet has produced a stunning image of the highest volcano in the Solar System.
The probe produced images of Olympus Mons, a 22 kilometre-high volcano.
The images show the volcano's caldera, the circular depression from which magma erupts or is withdrawn.
"I was amazed myself at how good it is," Professor Gerhard Neukum, principal investigator on the probe's camera told BBC News Online.
The quality of these photos is amazing, along with the earlier pictures that were taken by Mars Express.
From BBC Online.
The probe produced images of Olympus Mons, a 22 kilometre-high volcano.
The images show the volcano's caldera, the circular depression from which magma erupts or is withdrawn.
"I was amazed myself at how good it is," Professor Gerhard Neukum, principal investigator on the probe's camera told BBC News Online.
The quality of these photos is amazing, along with the earlier pictures that were taken by Mars Express.
From BBC Online.
Diamond star thrills astronomers
Twinkling in the sky is a diamond star of 10 billion trillion trillion carats, astronomers have discovered.
The cosmic diamond is a chunk of crystallised carbon, 1,500 km across, some 50 light-years from the Earth in the constellation Centaurus.
It's the compressed heart of an old star that was once bright like our Sun but has since faded and shrunk.
And to think people say diamonds are the rarest of gems! Now show me the remnants of a star that are made of ruby, sapphire, or emerald.
From BBC Online.
The cosmic diamond is a chunk of crystallised carbon, 1,500 km across, some 50 light-years from the Earth in the constellation Centaurus.
It's the compressed heart of an old star that was once bright like our Sun but has since faded and shrunk.
And to think people say diamonds are the rarest of gems! Now show me the remnants of a star that are made of ruby, sapphire, or emerald.
From BBC Online.
Life could be tough on acid Europa
Far from being a haven of ice and water and an ideal spot for the search for alien life, Jupiter's moon Europa may be a corrosive hotbed of acid and peroxide. That is the conclusion of researchers who met last week to prepare for NASA's proposed Jupiter Icy Moons Orbiter, an ambitious mission to study Jupiter's moons.
Almost all the information we have about Europa comes from the spacecraft Galileo, which completed its mission to study Jupiter and its moons close up before NASA dramatically crashed it into Jupiter in 2003.
Although the general perception of Europa is of a frozen crust of water ice harbouring a salty subterranean ocean kilometres below, researchers studying the most recent measurements say light reflected from the moon's icy surface bears the spectral fingerprints of hydrogen peroxide and strong acids, perhaps close to pH 0, if liquid.
It will be interesting to see what the Jupiter Icy Moons Orbiter (launch 2012) will discover.
From New Scientist.
Almost all the information we have about Europa comes from the spacecraft Galileo, which completed its mission to study Jupiter and its moons close up before NASA dramatically crashed it into Jupiter in 2003.
Although the general perception of Europa is of a frozen crust of water ice harbouring a salty subterranean ocean kilometres below, researchers studying the most recent measurements say light reflected from the moon's icy surface bears the spectral fingerprints of hydrogen peroxide and strong acids, perhaps close to pH 0, if liquid.
It will be interesting to see what the Jupiter Icy Moons Orbiter (launch 2012) will discover.
From New Scientist.
Remains of Darwin's Beagle May Lie Under Essex Mud
A group of marine archaeologists may have solved one of the world's most enduring maritime mysteries -- the final resting place of HMS Beagle in which Charles Darwin developed his landmark theory of evolution.
"This vessel is one of the most significant in the history of scientific research," Robert Prescott of the Beagle Ship Research Group told Reuters by telephone.
So far all that has been seen is a radar image of the outline of a hull under some 12 feet of mud in the marshes of Essex, east of London, with further research needed to verify that it is indeed the Beagle.
If this vessel is actually the HMS Beagle, this would be an extraordinary discovery.
From Yahoo - Science Reuters.
"This vessel is one of the most significant in the history of scientific research," Robert Prescott of the Beagle Ship Research Group told Reuters by telephone.
So far all that has been seen is a radar image of the outline of a hull under some 12 feet of mud in the marshes of Essex, east of London, with further research needed to verify that it is indeed the Beagle.
If this vessel is actually the HMS Beagle, this would be an extraordinary discovery.
From Yahoo - Science Reuters.
Tuesday, February 10, 2004
Four-armed jellyfish found
Researchers have discovered a new species of jellyfish so different from its fellow creatures that it merits a new subfamily. The diaphanous beast, which dwells in deep waters off California, has a bell-shaped body and four fleshy arms.
The creature was first nicknamed 'Bumpy' by the researchers who found it, because it is covered in tiny bumps. But it now has an official moniker: Stellamedusa ventana.
'Stella' refers both to its translucent blue-white colour and its trailing arms, which make it look like a shooting star, while 'medusa' is a commonly used name for jellyfish. It is named 'ventana' after the robotic submarine that first caught Bumpy on video, explains its discoverer, Kevin Raskoff of the Monterey Bay Aquarium Research Institute in California.
And thus the seas open up and show us another one of the hidden treasures that seem to be discovered every few months.
From Nature.
The creature was first nicknamed 'Bumpy' by the researchers who found it, because it is covered in tiny bumps. But it now has an official moniker: Stellamedusa ventana.
'Stella' refers both to its translucent blue-white colour and its trailing arms, which make it look like a shooting star, while 'medusa' is a commonly used name for jellyfish. It is named 'ventana' after the robotic submarine that first caught Bumpy on video, explains its discoverer, Kevin Raskoff of the Monterey Bay Aquarium Research Institute in California.
And thus the seas open up and show us another one of the hidden treasures that seem to be discovered every few months.
From Nature.
Fossilized footprints from Stone Age men found in South Korea
Fossilized footprints from Stone Age men have been discovered for the first time in Asia in South Korea, cultural authorities said on Friday.
Some 100 detailed footprints from the Paleolithic Age, which dates back 50,000 years, were found on the southern coast of the southern island of Jeju last October, the Cultural Properties Administration said.
This is first discovery of Paleolithic men’s fossilized footprints in Asia and the world’s seventh, according to officials of the Cultural Properties Administration. The six other countries where they were found are Tanzania, Kenya, South Africa, Italy, France and Chile.
The discovery of fossilized footprints are very important in helping us understand the distribution of humans and the types of environments they were living in.
From Khaleej Times Online.
Some 100 detailed footprints from the Paleolithic Age, which dates back 50,000 years, were found on the southern coast of the southern island of Jeju last October, the Cultural Properties Administration said.
This is first discovery of Paleolithic men’s fossilized footprints in Asia and the world’s seventh, according to officials of the Cultural Properties Administration. The six other countries where they were found are Tanzania, Kenya, South Africa, Italy, France and Chile.
The discovery of fossilized footprints are very important in helping us understand the distribution of humans and the types of environments they were living in.
From Khaleej Times Online.
Roman water still on tap : Archaeologists have discovered a 2,000-year-old water main built by the Romans - which is still working.
The find has amazed experts at the Vindolanda Roman fort in Northumberland.
During ongoing excavations at the site, workers discovered a 100ft stretch of wooden mains, which at one time fed the fort with water from nearby springs.
The pipes were constructed by drilling large lengths of alder, which were joined together by oak pegs.
They were found under the floor of what is thought to have been an area used as a hospital in about 100AD.
It is hard to believe that the pipes were still preserved almost 2000 years later and were still transporting water from the spring.
From BBC Online.
During ongoing excavations at the site, workers discovered a 100ft stretch of wooden mains, which at one time fed the fort with water from nearby springs.
The pipes were constructed by drilling large lengths of alder, which were joined together by oak pegs.
They were found under the floor of what is thought to have been an area used as a hospital in about 100AD.
It is hard to believe that the pipes were still preserved almost 2000 years later and were still transporting water from the spring.
From BBC Online.
Spheres of Influence: Water among Hypotheses for Mars Rock Formation
Scientists are narrowing the number of explanations for what created tiny spheres of material embedded in a rock outcropping discovered at the landing site of the Mars rover Opportunity. One idea still in the running is that the tiny beads formed in the presence of water.
The researchers cannot rule out a volcanic origin, but a thorough examination of the broad outcropping over the next few days could produce a definitive answer.
The tiny spherical objects are embedded in layers of a single rock initially nicknamed Snout. It has now been renamed Stone Mountain, though it is actually a small stone -- part of an outcrop of rocks that is only a few inches tall overall.
I hope that they will be able to determine the composition of the spherules, and ultimately determine what processes created them.
From Space.com.
The researchers cannot rule out a volcanic origin, but a thorough examination of the broad outcropping over the next few days could produce a definitive answer.
The tiny spherical objects are embedded in layers of a single rock initially nicknamed Snout. It has now been renamed Stone Mountain, though it is actually a small stone -- part of an outcrop of rocks that is only a few inches tall overall.
I hope that they will be able to determine the composition of the spherules, and ultimately determine what processes created them.
From Space.com.
Spirit Rover Drills 'First Planned Hole' in Martian Rock
The Spirit Mars Exploration Rover has achieved a "hole in one" -- that is, grinding a hole in the rock dubbed Adirondack.
Sitting at its landing site within Gusev Crater yesterday, Spirit's Rock Abrasion Tool (RAT) used two tiny diamond cutting heads that spin at high speed to cut into the rock's surface.
The rock had been prepped for the RAT, with the same hardware brushing off a select spot on the rock earlier.
After three hours of whirring, the RAT excavated a hole 1.8 inches (45.5 millimeters) in diameter and roughly 0.1 inch (2.7 millimeters) deep. The RAT exposed fresh interior material of the rock for close inspection with Spirit’s microscopic imager and two spectrometers on the robotic arm.
It is good to see Spirit working away after the software problems have been fixed. Now we just have to wait for the geological information of Adirondack to be published.
From Space.com.
Sitting at its landing site within Gusev Crater yesterday, Spirit's Rock Abrasion Tool (RAT) used two tiny diamond cutting heads that spin at high speed to cut into the rock's surface.
The rock had been prepped for the RAT, with the same hardware brushing off a select spot on the rock earlier.
After three hours of whirring, the RAT excavated a hole 1.8 inches (45.5 millimeters) in diameter and roughly 0.1 inch (2.7 millimeters) deep. The RAT exposed fresh interior material of the rock for close inspection with Spirit’s microscopic imager and two spectrometers on the robotic arm.
It is good to see Spirit working away after the software problems have been fixed. Now we just have to wait for the geological information of Adirondack to be published.
From Space.com.
Plan Ahead: Rare Transit of Sun by Venus
Put a big red circle around June 8 on your calendar. On that day, you may have a chance to see a celestial event not witnessed by human eyes in 122 years when Venus crosses in front of the Sun.
Venus has been growing brighter and climbing higher into our evening sky lately. It has evolved into an "evening lantern" for those commuting home from work and school.
By the end of May 2004, however, Venus will be rapidly dropping back toward the Sun’s vicinity, ultimately to disappear as it makes the transition back into the morning sky. That transition day will be June 8.
This will be an event to catch in June, as the next one will take place in 2012, but after that it will be another 105 years for the next transit.
From Space.com.
Venus has been growing brighter and climbing higher into our evening sky lately. It has evolved into an "evening lantern" for those commuting home from work and school.
By the end of May 2004, however, Venus will be rapidly dropping back toward the Sun’s vicinity, ultimately to disappear as it makes the transition back into the morning sky. That transition day will be June 8.
This will be an event to catch in June, as the next one will take place in 2012, but after that it will be another 105 years for the next transit.
From Space.com.
Wednesday, February 04, 2004
NASA Firm on Hubble Decision but Would Listen to Options
NASA is standing firm on its decision not to service the Hubble Space Telescope, but the agency would not ignore offers from other parties to extend the observatory's life providing someone else footed the bill and took responsibility for mission safety.
In a conference call with reporters today, the Associate Administrator for the NASA’s Office of Space Science, Ed Weiler, said he does not see anyone lining up to make such an offer, however.
Weiler also said that contrary to press reports, no serious layoffs of Hubble staff are planned. The agency's 2005 budget request includes money for continued operation of the telescope for the next few years, he said.
This is really disappointing.
From Space.com.
In a conference call with reporters today, the Associate Administrator for the NASA’s Office of Space Science, Ed Weiler, said he does not see anyone lining up to make such an offer, however.
Weiler also said that contrary to press reports, no serious layoffs of Hubble staff are planned. The agency's 2005 budget request includes money for continued operation of the telescope for the next few years, he said.
This is really disappointing.
From Space.com.
Oxygen at Extrasolar Planet, a First
Astronomers have detected the first presence of oxygen and carbon in the atmosphere of an extrasolar planet, a world already known to be venting massive amounts of gas into space.
The find is evidence of an atmospheric "blow off" in action, where energetic hydrogen gas drags heavier elements along for a supersonic ride into space.
"If you imagine a wind so efficient that it takes everything with it, sand particles for instance, you get the idea," said the study's leader Alfred Vidal-Madjar, of the Institut d'Astrophysique de Paris. The planet "is really losing a lot of material even more efficiently than we thought before."
Exciting that scientists can now detect oxygen on planets (along with other elements) hundreds of light years away. In the future we can use this technique on any "earth sized" planets detected orbiting other stars.
From Space.com.
The find is evidence of an atmospheric "blow off" in action, where energetic hydrogen gas drags heavier elements along for a supersonic ride into space.
"If you imagine a wind so efficient that it takes everything with it, sand particles for instance, you get the idea," said the study's leader Alfred Vidal-Madjar, of the Institut d'Astrophysique de Paris. The planet "is really losing a lot of material even more efficiently than we thought before."
Exciting that scientists can now detect oxygen on planets (along with other elements) hundreds of light years away. In the future we can use this technique on any "earth sized" planets detected orbiting other stars.
From Space.com.
Pixies Tour Officially a Go
The much-ballyhooed reunion of seminal alternative rock act the Pixies is getting off the ground.
Beyond a previously announced May 1 appearance at the Coachella Valley Music & Arts Festival in Indio, Calif., the group is now confirmed to open for the Red Hot Chili Peppers on June 15 at Paris' Parc Des Princes. The quartet has not played live together since disbanding in 1993.
Sources have confirmed to Billboard.com that dates are being booked, and guitarist/vocalist Frank Black's unofficial Web site (http://www.frankblack.net) reports that the Pixies will first embark on a North American warm-up tour that will lead up to the Coachella appearance. A full-scale tour will follow, encompassing both North America and summer European festivals.
Ok, this doesnt have much to do with science, but WOOHOO!
From Yahoo - Entertainment Reuters.
Beyond a previously announced May 1 appearance at the Coachella Valley Music & Arts Festival in Indio, Calif., the group is now confirmed to open for the Red Hot Chili Peppers on June 15 at Paris' Parc Des Princes. The quartet has not played live together since disbanding in 1993.
Sources have confirmed to Billboard.com that dates are being booked, and guitarist/vocalist Frank Black's unofficial Web site (http://www.frankblack.net) reports that the Pixies will first embark on a North American warm-up tour that will lead up to the Coachella appearance. A full-scale tour will follow, encompassing both North America and summer European festivals.
Ok, this doesnt have much to do with science, but WOOHOO!
From Yahoo - Entertainment Reuters.
Study Notes Extinction of Shark Species
The population of oceanic whitetip shark, once among the world's most common tropical sharks, has plummeted by 99 percent since the 1950s and the species is nearly extinct in the Gulf of Mexico, scientists reported Wednesday.
The study published in the journal Ecology Letters blamed overfishing and called for new restrictions, but federal fisheries officials said the study was flawed and further assessments are needed.
Biology professors Julia K. Baum and Ransom A. Myers based their research on a comparison of data compiled by the U.S. government in the 1950s and data collected by trained observers aboard fishing boats in the 1990s.
Overfishing of the oceans is eventually going to cause many species to go extinct, as they will no longer be able to compete with commercial fishermen to feed themselves.
From Yahoo - Science AP.
The study published in the journal Ecology Letters blamed overfishing and called for new restrictions, but federal fisheries officials said the study was flawed and further assessments are needed.
Biology professors Julia K. Baum and Ransom A. Myers based their research on a comparison of data compiled by the U.S. government in the 1950s and data collected by trained observers aboard fishing boats in the 1990s.
Overfishing of the oceans is eventually going to cause many species to go extinct, as they will no longer be able to compete with commercial fishermen to feed themselves.
From Yahoo - Science AP.
Monday, February 02, 2004
Thousands of files deleted on Spirit to fix computer trouble
A week-and-a-half after falling ill to computer woes, NASA on Sunday declared its Mars Exploration Rover Spirit was healthy again.
"We have confirmed that Spirit is booting up normally. Tomorrow we'll be doing some preventive maintenance," mission manager Mark Adler reported Sunday.
Controllers worked to fix the computer ailment afflicting Spirit by purging thousands of data files from its flash memory. The no-longer-needed files piled up on the rover and prevented its computer system from successfully accessing the flash memory, triggering Spirit's computer to reset itself over and over again.
Great news!
From Spaceflight Now.
"We have confirmed that Spirit is booting up normally. Tomorrow we'll be doing some preventive maintenance," mission manager Mark Adler reported Sunday.
Controllers worked to fix the computer ailment afflicting Spirit by purging thousands of data files from its flash memory. The no-longer-needed files piled up on the rover and prevented its computer system from successfully accessing the flash memory, triggering Spirit's computer to reset itself over and over again.
Great news!
From Spaceflight Now.
Mars rover on track of watery mineral
The Mars rover Opportunity, which rolled off its landing platform onto the Martian surface early on Saturday, has returned its first real science data to Earth.
The initial findings of the craft's mini-Thermal Emission Spectrometer show that the mineral hematite is found in the upper, nubbly layer of the landing site's wine-dark soil.
Hematite had been detected from orbit and was a key reason for the choice of the Meridiani Planum as a landing site. The iron oxide often, but not always, forms in the presence of liquid water.
The lighter patches of soil that were squashed flat by Opportunity's landing show no signs of hematite at all, strongly suggesting it is in the dark surface pebbles, which were buried by the force of impact.
And the bedrock in front of Opportunity does not have the chemical signature of basaltic, carbonate, or silicate origins. I am anxious of finding out what the exact composition is.
From New Scientist.
The initial findings of the craft's mini-Thermal Emission Spectrometer show that the mineral hematite is found in the upper, nubbly layer of the landing site's wine-dark soil.
Hematite had been detected from orbit and was a key reason for the choice of the Meridiani Planum as a landing site. The iron oxide often, but not always, forms in the presence of liquid water.
The lighter patches of soil that were squashed flat by Opportunity's landing show no signs of hematite at all, strongly suggesting it is in the dark surface pebbles, which were buried by the force of impact.
And the bedrock in front of Opportunity does not have the chemical signature of basaltic, carbonate, or silicate origins. I am anxious of finding out what the exact composition is.
From New Scientist.
Zahi Hawass: ‘A strong personality is essential for a good archaeologist’
Zahi Hawass, the secretary-general of the Supreme Council of Antiquities (SCA), may be the most powerful man in archaeology today. In Egyptology, all roads lead to Zahi, as the crowded waiting room, scurrying secretaries and deferential foreign archaeologists at his Zamalek premises attest. In his inner office, applicants advance along a row of chairs, gradually approaching his desk, while Hawass calls orders over his shoulder and signs papers proffered toward his pen.
Out in the field, Hawass’ demeanor is energetic; adorned with his standard Indiana Jones hat and buccaneer scowl, he often leads camera crews and photographers around the ancient sites that are his domain.
He is a controversial figure. The author of several books on archaeology, and a recurrent guest on National Geographic television specials, he reportedly coined the term “pyramidiots,” in reference to New Age pyramids enthusiasts. Last year, he kicked 14 expeditions out of the country, which did little to diminish his maverick reputation.
How I would love to have his job...
From The Daily Star.
Out in the field, Hawass’ demeanor is energetic; adorned with his standard Indiana Jones hat and buccaneer scowl, he often leads camera crews and photographers around the ancient sites that are his domain.
He is a controversial figure. The author of several books on archaeology, and a recurrent guest on National Geographic television specials, he reportedly coined the term “pyramidiots,” in reference to New Age pyramids enthusiasts. Last year, he kicked 14 expeditions out of the country, which did little to diminish his maverick reputation.
How I would love to have his job...
From The Daily Star.
