Thee Stranger News (January 21st, 2021)

A Liberated Zone on the FM, to enhance alternative culture and cognitive freedom!
Broadcast Thursdays at 89.5 FM KZCT in Vallejo, California, to a worldwide audience. Tune-in online [http://tunein.com/popout/player/s130679].
Convened by Dr.G., a Renegade Illuminati, convening Thee Temple, for knowledge, whimsy, and inspiration. Everything is true, nothing is forbidden!
Introductory track: Covenant - Ritual Noise [youtube.com/watch?v=dnlGEQ1NUsk]

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Futurism & Strange Science

* "Transparent Materials That Conduct Electricity" (2021-01-16, farsnews.ir/en/news/13991027000141/Transparen-Maerials-Tha-Cndc-Elecriciy) [archive.is/yClKw]

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* "Why China's maglev trains can revolutionize transportation and society" (2021-01-16, by Keith Lamb, via news.cgtn.com/news/2021-01-16/Why-China-s-maglev-trains-can-revolutionize-transportation-and-society-X60x6NDHRC/index.html) [archive.is/CPJKk]

* "China unveils maglev train prototype with designed speed of 620 km/h" (2021-01-14, news.cgtn.com/news/2021-01-14/China-unveils-maglev-train-prototype-with-designed-speed-of-620-km-h-X36Lf2fBAI/index.html) [archive.is/Oxz32] 

- image caption: A maglev train prototype using the high-temperature superconducting (HTS) maglev technology is unveiled in Chengdu, southwest China's Sichuan Province, January 13, 2021. 

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* "Mini robot fish swim in schools, just like the real thing" (2021-01-14, news.cgtn.com/news/2021-01-14/Mini-robot-fish-swim-in-schools-just-like-the-real-thing-X2zuCUGzSM/index.html) [archive.is/JZf5t]

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Ancient News

* "Neanderthal glue was a bigger deal than we thought Technology seems to have been a routine part of Neanderthal life" (2020-10-22, arstechnica.com/science/2019/10/neanderthal-glue-was-a-bigger-deal-than-we-thought/) [archive.is/ht3mH] [begin excerpt]:

Fifty-thousand years ago, a Neanderthal living in Northwestern Europe put sticky birch tar on the back side of a sharp flint flake to make the tool easier to grip. Eventually, that tool washed down the Rhine or Meuse Rivers and out into the North Sea. In the 21st century, dredging ships scooped it up along with tons of sand, other stone tools, and fossilized bones, then dumped the whole pile on Zandmotor Beach in the Netherlands. [end excerpt]

- image caption: This replica shows how Neanderthals might have used birch tar to haft a projectile point.

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* "World's oldest known cave painting found in Indonesia" (2021-01-13, phys.org/news/2021-01-world-oldest-cave-indonesia.html) [archive.is/HOJyf] 

- image caption: Dated pig painting at Leang Tedongnge. 

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* "Ancient Petroglyphs in Susquehanna River Reveal Lost American Culture" (2020-09-16, wypr.org/post/ancient-petroglyphs-susquehanna-river-reveal-lost-american-culture) [archive.is/vYjxs]

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* "China's earliest palace of 5,300 years found along Yellow River" (2021-01-14, news.cgtn.com/news/2021-01-14/China-s-earliest-palace-of-5-300-years-found-along-Yellow-River-X2yq1M9omQ/index.html) [archive.is/5Fm67]

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* "Archaeologists uncover Xuanwu Gate" (2021-01-15, news.cgtn.com/news/2021-01-15/Archaeologists-uncover-Xuanwu-Gate-X4nZjMCN5m/index.html) [archive.is/KWCGS]

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* "More Examinations Of magnetic Anomalies At Puma Punku And Tiwanaku In Bolivia" (2021-01-14, by Brien Foerster, via youtube.com/watch?v=0i0DZJeSry4) [archive.is/Cj3R1]

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* "Lost Maya Cities Archaeological Quests in the Mexican Jungle" (product page, tamupress.com/book/9781623498214/lost-maya-cities/) [archive.is/B0PcJ]:

By Ivan Sprajc

Translated by Petra Zaranšek and Dean Joseph DeVos

Hailed by The Guardian and other publications as “a real-life Indiana Jones,” Slovenian archaeologist Ivan Šprajc has been mapping out previously unknown Mayan sites in Mexico’s Yucatán Peninsula since 1996. Most recently, he was credited with the discovery of the Chactún and Lagunita sites in 2013 and 2014, respectively, helping to fill in what was previously one of the largest voids in modern knowledge of the ancient Maya landscape: the 2,800-square-mile Calakmul Biosphere Reserve in central Yucatán.

Previously published in Šprajc’s native Slovenian and in German, this thrilling account of machete-wielding jungle expeditions has garnered enthusiastic reviews for its depictions of the efforts, dangers, successes, and disappointments experienced as the explorer-scientist searches out and documents ancient ruins that have been lost to the jungle for centuries. A skilled communicator as well as an experienced scholar, Šprajc conveys in eminently accessible prose a wealth of information on various aspects of the Maya culture, which he has studied closely for decades.

The result is a deeply personal presentation of archaeological research on one of the most enigmatic civilizations of the ancient world. Generously illustrated, this book follows the chronology of Šprajc’s discoveries, focusing on what he considers the most interesting episodes. Those who specialize in Mesoamerican prehistory and archaeology will certainly relish Šprajc’s reports concerning his many field surveys and the discoveries that resulted. General readers, too, will enjoy his accounts of previously undocumented sites, ancient urban centers overtaken by the jungle, massive sculpted monuments, and mysterious hieroglyphic inscriptions.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR-

IVAN Šprajc is professor of archaeology at the Research Center of the Slovenian Academy of Sciences and Arts (ZRC SAZU), Ljubljana, Slovenia. He has been directing archaeological work in the Yucatán Peninsula of Mexico since 1996

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* "Villagers unearth nearly 20,000 ancient coins in central China" (2021-01-14, news.cgtn.com/news/2021-01-14/Villagers-unearth-nearly-20-000-ancient-coins-in-central-China-X2TY9m93mE/index.html) [archive.is/it2jN] [begin excerpt]: 

A group of villagers from Hualin Village, Liushahe County found an underground cellar below a pond and discovered the massive trove inside as they were removing sludge from the bottom of the pool during repair work.

According to Sun Bingli, an official from the local cultural relics protection bureau, the ancient coins weigh more than 100 kilograms and belong to different time periods. They are all well preserved and in excellent condition, providing valuable material for the study of local culture and history.

Experts identified most of the coins as having been minted during the Northern Song Dynasty based on the inscriptions they bear, which indicate their production date. The oldest coins date back to the Tang Dynasty (618–907). [end excerpt]

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* "Ancient temple complex found in southwest China" (2021-01-17, news.cgtn.com/news/2021-01-17/Ancient-temple-complex-found-in-southwest-China-X7SXNLYjgA/index.html) [archive.is/qlUCX]

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* "China publishes replicas of ancient Tibetan literature from Dunhuang" (2021-01-15, news.cgtn.com/news/2021-01-15/China-publishes-replicas-of-ancient-Tibetan-literature-from-Dunhuang-X422kSbDyw/index.html) [archive.is/VA4un]:

For the first time, China has published copies of ancient Tibetan literature taken to France from the famed Mogao Grottoes a century ago.

The Dunhuang manuscripts were first discovered in 1900 in the Mogao Grottos, a UNESCO World Heritage Site in northwest China's Gansu Province. There are more than 60,000 documents featuring history, politics, religion and folk customs. Dating from the 4th to 11th centuries, most of the manuscripts are in Chinese, but some are represented in other ethnic languages including Tibetan.

In the early 20th century, a large number of Dunhuang Tibetan manuscripts were taken to countries such as France and the UK. The Tibetan literature compiled and published this time is now preserved in the National Library of France.

Northwest Minzu University and Shanghai Chinese Classics Publishing House, together with editors from the National Library of France, compiled the photocopies, which have been published in 35 volumes as a set, with more than 28,000 high-definition pictures displayed in numerical sequence.

The series includes Tibetan literature from the 7th to 10th centuries covering Buddhist scriptures, historical works, contracts, legal texts and letters. The publications are expected to throw light on the socio-economic activities and cultural exchanges between ethnic groups during the reign of Tubo in Dunhuang.

It took the editorial team about 15 years to arrange and compile the documents in Chinese and Tibetan languages. It is the first time that the entire Tibetan literature preserved in France has been published in the form of photocopies, said Tsering, a professor at Northwest Minzu University and the editor-in-chief of the series. 

China also plans to compile and publish this year the ancient Tibetan manuscripts preserved in Britain. Chinese researchers are digitalizing the ancient literature amid the country's efforts to study and preserve distinctive Tibetan culture. A database built upon the Tibetan manuscripts is projected to enable full-text retrieval in the future, according to Tsering.

- image caption: The Mogao Grottos, a UNESCO World Heritage Site in northwest China's Gansu Province.

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Miscellany & Errata

"Bermuda Triangle" by Fleetwood Mac - 

I guess you've heard about the Bermuda triangle

There's something going on

Nobody seems to know just what it is

And the airforce won't let on

It might be hole down in the ocean

Yeah or a fog that won't let go

It might be some crazy people talking

Or somebody that we ought to know

Down in Bermuda, the pale blue sea

Way down in the triangle, it's easy to believe

Now here's one

You see strange shapes in moonlight

And shadows in the night

They said that wingtip seemed to brush their faces

And strangers stole their sight

Way down in the triangle

Where the sea was smooth as glass

Giving you one answer to a question

That you never thought you'd ask

Ah down in Bermuda, in the pale blue sea

Way down in Bermuda, yeah it's easy to believe

Down in the triangle, it's easy to believe

They came from Galveston

They came from New Orleans

And then from Bloomington, and Delaware

The used St. Petersburg, they came from Tampa

And then from Mexico, it doesn't matter where

They all completely share,

All of those ships and planes,

A great big mystery that cannot be explained,

Down in Bermuda, in the pale blue sea

Your feeling safe in your harbour

And everything seems certain

Right next to Palm Beach and Key Biscane

Behind a velvet curtain

But then the moon goes grey with worry

And the sea turns a pale white

You better believe something strange is going on tonight

Down in Bermuda, ah, the pale blue sea

Bermuda Triangle, yeah, it's easy to believe

Down in the Triangle, it's easy to believe

They came from Galveston

They came from New Orleans

And then from Bloomington, and Delaware

Bermuda, the pale blue sea

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Curiata

* "Birds might be conscious and self-aware like humans, groundbreaking study finds" (2021-01-07, sea.mashable.com/science/13941/birds-might-be-conscious-and-self-aware-like-humans-groundbreaking-study-finds) [archive.is/5vBpn]

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* "A museum let a group of penguins wander its empty rooms, and they couldn't take their eyes off the paintings" (2020-05-21, insider.com/penguins-visit-art-museum-for-the-day-2020-5) [archive.is/LDFGV]

* "Penguins Visit Nelson-Atkins Ahead of Kansas City Zoo Opening" (video, 2020-05-14, The Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art, via youtube.com/watch?v=zOqUoo96ssQ) [archive.is/OuVkt]: The COVID quarantine has caused everyone to go a little stir crazy, even the residents of the Kansas City Zoo. So several of the penguins decided to go on a field trip to the Nelson-Atkins, which is still closed, to get a little culture before the Zoo re-opens

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* "Scientists discover over 240 dinosaur footprints in east China" (2021-01-14, news.cgtn.com/news/2021-01-14/Scientists-discover-over-240-dinosaur-footprints-in-SE-China-X2hlxAoprO/index.html) [archive.is/SQHUr]

* "240 dinosaur footprints discovered for the first time in E China" (2021-01-13, news.cgtn.com/news/2021-01-13/240-dinosaur-footprints-discovered-for-the-first-time-in-E-China-X1gYbF2qQw/index.html) [archive.is/PAe4J]

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