Sacred Iki Guard the Place of Refuge at Pu'u Honua O Honaunau National Historic Park: Photo by Donald B. MacGowan

Whether you visit the Big Island for a few days, a couple weeks or a few months, you want to make the most of your time in Paradise. With such a wide variety of natural and commercial attractions, it is natural for the visitor to get a little overwhelmed in the “Option Overload” and not be able to make a balanced and informed decision on what they want to do and how best to spend their time.

Pu'u Honua O Honaunau, the Place of Refuge, As Seen from Two-Step Snorkeling Beach, Kona Hawaii: Photo by Donnie MacGowan

Even choosing which beach you want to spend time on, or where you want to hike can be an exercise in confusion and conflicting advice.  Clearly, visitors to Hawaii could use help making quality decisions about how best to spend their time.

Sacred Iki at Pu'u Honua O Honaunau, the Place of Refuge. The "Kona Style" of Polynesian Wood Carving is Considered Among the Best in the World and These Sacred Iki are Fine Examples, Kona Hawaii: Photo by Donald B. MacGowan

Tour Guide Hawaii is excited and proud to announce the release of their new GPS/WiFi enabled App for iPhone and iPod that helps you navigate your trip to Hawaii with hours of informative, location-aware video and information. Although our video guide will lead you to dozens of unusual, untamed and unspoiled spots, let’s look at what may be Hawaii’s most spiritual, historically important and beautiful attraction, Pu’u Honua O Honaunau National Historic Park, and highlight just a bit of the information you might not be able to find from maps and guidebooks that could otherwise cause you to miss some very interesting places and amazing sights if you did not have Tour Guide Hawaii’s new App.

Pu'u Honua O Honaunau National Historic Park Entrance, Kona Hawaii: Photo by Donnie MacGowan

Pu’u Honua O Hounaunau National Historic Park: The Place of Refuge

Hale O' Keawe Heiau and Keone'ele, Pu'u Honua O' Hounaunau National Historic Park: Photo by Donald B. MacGowan

Introduction: Writing about the Place of Refuge in 1889, Robert Louis Stevenson said: “There are times and places where the past becomes more vivid than the present, and the memory dominates the ear and eye…”

Royal Fishpond, Place of Refuge, Kona Hawaii: Photo by Donnie MacGowan

Easily the most beautiful, peaceful and restful spot in all the Hawai’ian Islands, Pu’u Honua O Honaunau is a place of ease and regeneration for even the most weary and jaded soul. Of enormous historical and cultural significance, the sacred grounds at Honaunau are the best-preserved and largest remaining Pu’u Honua, or Place of Refuge, complex in Hawai’i. It is also a wonderful area to wander, swim, hike, snorkel, relax, picnic or SCUBA dive

Sacred Iki Guard Secrets as Old as Hawaii Itself, Pu'u Honua O Honaunau, Kona Hawaii: Photo by Donald B. MacGowan

Samuel Clemens and Kamehameha III passed many days in idle chat along the Great Wall of Honaunau; one can still sit upon the rock where they reclined and see the holes bored into the lava to support poles for awnings. For anyone who had any doubts about what Old Hawai’i was like, a trip to Honaunau will fill your imagination, your camera and your soul.

Hale O Keave and Temple Precincts, Place of Refuge, Kona Hawaii: Photo by Donald B. MacGowan

The Place of Refuge: A complex and strict order of law, known as the kapu system, controlled and governed everything in ancient Hawai’i from the order of crop rotation to proper sexual relations, what fish may be caught and in what season, what foods could be eaten by women and proper respect for the royalty (for instance, it was to break kapu for men and women to eat together, for women to eat pork or bananas, or for commoners to look upon the king or to step upon ground he had trod). Under the kapu law system, punishment for any transgression was swift and severe: immediate death by stabbing, clubbing, strangulation, drowning or burning. There was no appeal and no recourse; judgment was immediate and final.

Path from the Temple Grounds to the Royal Precincts, Pu'u Honua O Honuanua National Historic Park: Photo by Donald B. MacGowan

Unless the accused could escape to one of the designated heiau at a place of refuge. Once there, the accused would undergo a cleansing ceremony by the kahuna and would be absolved of all crimes and allowed to return to his family and previous life, free of onus. Women, children and the infirm also took refuge at the Pu’u Honua in times of war, as did vanquished warriors wishing to submit to the winning chief. Not often mentioned, however, is the grisly sport the king’s men sometimes made of the unfortunate accused, chasing them across sharp a’a fields, through the surf, over mountains, toying with their victims only to butcher them upon the Refuges’ outer wall, seeming seconds from salvation. This too, was sanctioned by the law.

A Passage Through The Massive Wall of Honaunau, Pu'u Honua O Honaunau National Historic Park: Photo by Donnie MacGowan

The complex at Pu’u Honua O Honaunau, established as a National Historical Park in 1961, is vast, well preserved and pervaded by a soul-filling peace. Down the center of the complex runs the Wall of Honaunau, 100 feet long, 10 feet tall and 17 feet thick. It separated the palace grounds of the Ali’ from the temple grounds of the Pu’u Honua. The wall was made without mortar or dressing the stones and has survived for over 500 years.

The Dry-Stack Masonry Employed by the Ancient Hawaiians, Using No Mortar, Has Survived Over Half a Milenium of Earthquakes, Tsunamis and Volcanoes With No Apparant Damage: Photo by Donald B. MacGowan

The royal residence area includes the canoe landing at Keone’ele Cove, Heleipolala Fishpond, several reconstructed residences and a canoe hale as well as the famous Hale Keawe, where the iwi (bones) of as many as 23 Ali’i ancestors of Kamehameha were once stored and venerated.

The 'Ale'alea Athletic Field, Pu'u Honua O Honaunau National Historic Park, Kona Hawaii: PHoto by Donald B. MacGowan

On the grounds of the refuge itself stands the stone platform, ‘Ale’alea, which was used for sports, the Keoua Stone, legendary resting place of the Ali’i and the Ka’ahumanu Stone, where it is said the favorite wife of Kamehameha the Great hid after quarrels with her husband.

An Ocean View Through Waiuohina Lava Tube View, Pu'u Honua O Honaunau National Historic Park, Kona Hawaii: Photo by Donald B. MacGowan

Leading south out of the refuge is the 1871 Trail, so named because area residence paid their 1871 taxes by improving and maintaining it. This trail leads to many important archeological sites such as the Ki’ilae Village, Oma’o Heiau, Alahaka Heiau, Keokua Holua and the Waiuohina Lava tube.

Sunset in the Vog Cast an Eerie Light on this Sacred Iki, Place of Refuge, Honaunau, Kona Hawaii: Photo by Donnie MacGowan

To see the new iPhone/iPod Touch App, please visit http://www.tourguidehawaii.com/iphone.html. The best of Tour Guide Hawaii’s free content about traveling to, and exploring, the Big island, can be found here. For more information on traveling to Hawaii in general and on touring the Big Island in particular, please also visit www.tourguidehawaii.com and www.tourguidehawaii.blogspot.com.

The Place of Refuge, Pu'u Honua O Hounaunau National Historic Park, From Across Honaunau Bay, Kona Hawaii: Photo by Donnie MacGowan

Copyright 2009 by Donald B. MacGowan. All rights reserved.

Well, over a year ago while we were living in Thailand for a while I studied Silver Jewellery making at Nova Jewellery Collection on Tapae Road in Chiang Mai Thailand.  Partly because I absolutely love silver jewellery, there is something very ancient and seems sacred and somehow tribal….. perhaps all the different cultures who have used silver over the recorded history of art and humans.  The other reason was that I was scared and fearful of failure, intimidated by the use of the torch and red hot heat and the precision of the art of it all.  So, all very good reasons to jump in and just do it!  With my husband Ralph giving me gentle nudges and encouragement off I went to the silver studio at Nova, with much trepidation and excitement a good recipe for creating.

As I enjoy design in so many forms, with my background in Interior Design, and exploration of multimedia art projects… I pulled into play my passion for beauty and my Buddhist meditation techniques on staying in the present moment.  Our approximate three months studying Vipassana Insight Meditation at Wat Ram Poeng and Wat Chom Tong turned out to be some of the most challenging times of my life and the most rewarding life satisfying gifts ever!  Being in Thailand with it’s heart centered people, tropical beauty and Buddhist beliefs was a very special place to challenge my self doubts….. and dive in I did!

I spent thirteen day classes with a silver master, Nugoon and his beautiful assistant Junko, and my knowledge, experience and joy increased by leaps and bounds as I finished each new project I ventured on.  The Nova Silver Studio has the ultimate in silver equipment and is set down one of the enchanting lanes off Tapae Road.  I had a lovely walk exploring lunch options and enjoyed delicious adventures daily, where I regaled Ralph with the current inspiration or ‘uh-oh’ topic.  I decided before I began that I would document this as best as I could so that when I get home to Canada I would be able to set up my own wee studio and begin exploring my newborn passion in silver.  So I took notes and photographed every step along each project, and I’m so happy I did as now I have good refresher information and visual reminders of what I did.

When in doubt as to what to design I resort to my favorite image ‘Grizzly Bear Claw’ which resides in my Ojibway blood.  Bear is also our family animal so bear is always a strong and sacred friend for me.  The Grizzly Bear Pendant I created as my first project turned out quite lovely and I wear it constantly with my pride and joy!  My next project design comes from my love of the Buddhist philosophy and the Lotus Flower, which rise up from the mud everywhere….. so the Lotus Flower feeds my passion for beauty and I played with the texturing techniques and learned so much!  You know you are living your passion when time drops away and only the experience in front of you is beating in your heart.  I was in heaven in paradise!

Let me show you some of the photos of the projects in various stages…. so often I said to myself, ‘well, this is ruined’… only to proceed to the next step and it would magically evolve ….. it really is alchemy!

Grizzly Bear Claw (2 in wide x 2-1/2 in ht) & Lotus Flower (2-1/2 in wide x 2 in ht) Pendants

Lotus Flower Pendant ~ Texturing Explorations

Topic: Millet Noodles

A 4,000-year-old bowl of noodles unearthed in China is the earliest example ever found of one of the world’s most popular foods, scientists reported today. It also suggests an Asian—not Italian—origin for the staple dish.

The beautifully preserved, long, thin yellow noodles were found inside an overturned sealed bowl at the Lajia archaeological site in northwestern China. The bowl was buried under ten feet (three meters) of sediment

“This is the earliest empirical evidence of noodles ever found,” Houyuan Lu of the Institute of Geology and Geophysics at Beijing’s Chinese Academy of Sciences said in an e-mail interview.

Lu and colleagues report the find tomorrow in the science journal Nature.

The scientists determined the noodles were made from two kinds of millet, a grain indigenous to China and widely cultivated there 7,000 years ago. Modern North American and European noodles are usually made with wheat.

Archaeochemist Patrick McGovern at the University of Pennsylvania’s Museum of Archaeology and Anthropology in Philadelphia said that if the date for the noodles is correct, the find is “quite amazing.”

Even today, he said, deft skills are required to make long, thin noodles like those found at Lajia.

“This shows a fairly high level of food processing and culinary sophistication,” he said.

Noodle History

Noodles have been a staple food in many parts of the world for at least 2,000 years, though whether the modern version of the stringy pasta was first invented by the Chinese, Italians, or Arabs is debatable.

Prior to the discovery of noodles at the Lajia archaeological site, the earliest record of noodles appears in a book written during China’s East Han Dynasty sometime between A.D. 25 and 220, Lu said.

Other theories suggest noodles were first made in the Middle East and introduced to Italy by the Arabs. Italians are widely credited for popularizing the food in Europe and spreading it around the world.

Additional evidence is needed to prove that the noodles found at Lajia are the ancestor of either Asian noodles or Italian pasta. “But in any case, the latter is only documented two millennia later,” Lu said.

Gary Crawford, an archaeologist at the University of Toronto at Mississauga in Canada, said finding 4,000-year-old noodles in China is not a surprise.

“It fits with what we’ve generally known—that noodles have a long and important history in China,” he said.

Ingredient Sleuthing

To determine what the noodles were made from, Lu and colleagues compared the shape and patterning of the starch grains and seed husks in the noodle bowl with modern crops.

The team concluded the noodles were made from two kinds of millet—broomcorn millet and foxtail millet. The grain was ground into flour to make dough, which was then likely pulled and stretched into shape.

Foxtail millet alone, the researchers say, lacks the stickiness required to allow the dough to be pulled and stretched into strings.

While archaeological evidence suggests wheat was present in China 4,000 years ago, it was not widely cultivated until the Tang Dynasty (A.D. 618 to 907), Lu said.

According to Crawford, the fact that the noodles were made of millet is not surprising. His own research at a similarly dated site in northern China shows ample millet and rice but very little wheat.

However, he added, the discovery of well-preserved millet noodles helps explain the lack of grain seeds found at some archaeological sites.

“One suspicion is grain seeds were made into a type of food through boiling and flour production. That would not necessarily leave much in the way of grains to be … recovered,” he said. ” … and if they were making noodles, that would explain it.”

According to Lu, in poor, rural areas of northwestern China, millet is still used to make noodles.

“These modern millet noodles have a harder texture than the wheat noodles, so they are commonly called iron-wire noodles,” he said.

Original article:

If you planning to tour Europe, you should consider the Latium region of central western Italy on the Tyrrhenian Sea. Latium, also known as Laszio, is the region that includes Italy’s capital Rome, the Eternal City. Because it is so easy to find articles describing the multiple pleasures of Rome, we write about the lesser-known attractions of Latium. This article focuses on Latium east of Rome. A companion article describes Latium west of Rome.

Tivoli is the site of Hadrian’s Villa, a getaway retreat for that infamous Roman emperor. He ran the empire from this villa during the latter years of his rule. The site exceeds a square kilometer (over 250 acres) and contains more than thirty buildings. The Vatican Museums contain much of this UNESCO World Heritage Site’s decorations and statues.

Villa d’Este is another UNESCO World Heritage Site in Tivoli. It is a beautiful water garden, reminiscent of the Hanging Gardens of Babylon, one of the seven wonders of the ancient world. This villa was founded in the mid-Sixteenth Century by a son of Lucrezia Borgia. One ‘pathway’ is called the Avenue of One Hundred Fountains. Be sure to see the Fontana di Rome, a scale model of Ancient Roman, demolished but partially rebuilt.

The town of Ninfa was destroyed during the Fourteenth Century. For some six hundred years it lay in ruins, largely because of the malarial mosquitoes in the nearby marshes. And then in 1920 an aristocratic English artist, Ada Wilbraham, married into the Caetani family that had been given the city way back in 1297 by a Caetani Pope. Wilbraham started the restoration which is still in progress. The site includes a bridge and seven churches from Roman times, a castle, and the city wall.

Anzio, a resort city of some 45,000 people, was the birthplace of the Roman Emperors Caligula and Nero. In 1944 it was the site of a major World War II battle, Operation Shingle. Visit the Anzio Beachhead British Military Cemetery, the Beachhead Museum, and the American Military Cemetery in nearby Nettuno.

Latium cuisine is abundant. The best cuts of meat were reserved for the rich and the poor had to make do with the rest, including feet, heart, and the like. Take a look at our companion article I Love Touring Italy – Eastern Latium for a sample menu and more information on Latium wines plus an in-depth examination of its tourist attractions. While today Latium is not known for its wine in the distant past Falernum, a Latium red was the hit of Ancient Rome.

Young David is killing Goliath with his slingshot. Later as a king he sent other people to fight.

Greetings! In this article, I’d like to offer you a super-powerful technique focusing on anything you want to draw into your life and making it happen with the full power of the Divine! This technique has been used since the dawn of time, and even pre-historic hunter/gatherers knew about it! Let’s get primitive in this article and make some magic happen!

Writing On The Wall

One of the most fascinating relics left behind from the ‘lithic’ (megalithic, neolithic etc. prehistorical peoples) folks are the cave paintings they created. Steeped in obvious symbolism and innate power, these designs were scribed onto the walls of pitch-black caves by tallow-light using the flint blades or red ocher finger paint. Scenes depicting the animals they needed to kill in order to survive, abundant crops, healthy women with child, and other ideals of fertility are the main topic of most all cave paintings. In most of these paintings, the animals are shown strong and healthy, with either arrows, traps or spears drawn onto them. Occasionally, the mystic-artist would dip their own hand into red ocher paint and apply a hand stamp over the animal- showing the he has caught it and it is within his grasp.

Cave Magic

Most experts agree that the spellbinding art found on cave walls is not a testament to history, a record of hunts or even tributes to rich tribe members- but rather a stunning display of sympathetic magic. Ancient mystics believed that an image of a thing was intimately linked to the reality of that thing- so that by creating a clear and vivid image of a mammoth, and then applying successful spear or axe wounds to that image, success on the actual hunt was guaranteed. In addition to paintings, the hunters would also carry around small bone, stone or ivory animal carvings representing the animal they wished to catch. This, they believed, would allow them to resonate with that animal and draw it towards them.

Through the process of sympathetic magic, the goal we want to achieve is manifest through creativity (painting, drawing, sculpting, etc., or in advanced levels purely within the mind-scape) and made as ‘real’ as possible within our paradigm. Then, the relationship we want to have with that goal is applied to the image to create a strong bond of magnetic resonance.

Timeless Attraction

I’ve always loved the process of studying and exploring the spiritual ways of our shared ancestors. I think that working, as best we can, with the methods our earliest fore-bearers realized links us to a stream of power which is literally tens of thousands of years old. It’s also interesting to see how what experts in this field have discovered about the spirituality and religion of the ancients has been carried in to even modern spiritual paths. Working with any form of mystic spiritual working that has history can lend us the power of its history if we simply acknowledge and honor that stream of ancestral power and wisdom.

Echoes From The Cave Into Your Life

Applying the power of sympathetic magic, as performed simply by the ancients, is both fun and effective. It allows us the opportunity to get closer to our goal by actualizing it from the depths of our creative, emotional, logical and spiritual centers. It also allows us to interact with it as though it already exists in our paradigm- which in and of itself attunes us to the law of attraction.

To make your own ‘cave paintings’ calling on the universal law of sympathy, try the following:

• Draw a picture of your patron deity/deities. Then, place in their hands or at their feet a representation of the goal you wish to manifest. Allow Them to become the face of the Divine which specializes in that goal. Hang the picture up somewhere special and use it for meditation, prayer, offerings or rituals. In ancient cave sanctuaries, the Mother Goddess or Sky God were often painted on walls that had a large stone altar directly in front of them. In this way, mystics could approach the facet of Divinity which was directly connected to their desire.
• Draw yourself in possession of your goal. Add things to yourself in drawing that make it personal- date of birth, favorite jewelry, favorite colors, etc. Draw yourself into the reality of having what you want- and use that drawing as a type of magnet to call forth your wish. Spend time with it daily in positive expectation and gratitude.
• For a really fun experience which is slightly more ritualistic in nature, draw or sculpt a representation of your goal. Make it as vivid and clear as you can. Spend time having fun putting energy and attention into it. Once you’re done, smear the palm of your left hand with your favorite color of water-based paint (poster paint, finger paint, etc.) and stamp your palm print onto the icon. In this way, you are ‘marking your goal’ and stating to yourself and to the universe that it belongs to you- and that you are rerady and willing to receive it. The left hand is energetically receptive, which acts upon subtle body energy to draw forth the goal.
• You can get really creative and make cave paintings on 7-day candles, allowing them to release the power of the sympathetic magic as they burn…
• You could also make small clay talismans or icons to wear, connecting you to your goal just as the ancients did…
• You could create cards you keep on a shrine or in your pocket showing you in possession of the goal…
• You could really reflect the ways of thew ancients by drawing in the snow or sand and allowing nature to ‘absorb and direct’ the power of your goal, again just as the ancients did.

This work not only helps attune you to the limitless potentials of your journey- it also helps connect you with the blessed ancients and to the fundamental spiritual powers which flow throughout time and place. Working in this way activates the creativity and inspires the heart to believe anything and expect miracles!

If you create something you’d like to share or have empowered, please send me a photo- I’d love to see your cave art!

Peace & Blessings on the timeless path of infinite possibility…

Josh Williams

Say Xian and you talk about the terracotta warriors. The army of 8,099 life-size soldiers and horses is one of the most impressive tourist attractions in the world. But the ancient capital of China has more to offer.

Ancient capital? Yes, Xian (also Xi’an and in the past known as Chang’an) was the Empire’s main city from the 11th century BC to the early 10th century AD. A total of 73 emperors ruled China from here. Located between rivers and mountains in the southern part of Central China’s Guanzhong Plain, it was also the eastern starting-point of the famous Silk Road that connected the Far East with Europe. An historically important city, in other words, and luckily much of its historical and cultural heritage has been preserved.

Notwithstanding the glorious past Xian is a modern city and Central China’s largest industrial center. It is believed Xian was the world’s first city with a population over 1 million. Now 8 million live here.

The tourist industry has quickly developed in recent years and you can now find hotel rooms for any budget. Many eateries still offer Chinese cuisine, but fast food restaurants have become serious competitors and are popular amoung young people. For the best deals on hotels in Xian, check out http://www.hotelscombined.com/City/Xian.htm?a_aid=4d780272 There’s so much to see in this ancient capital that I can’t list it all here, so let’s just mention a few highlights:

The city wall

The oldest part of Xian, dominated by a huge bell tower, is surrounded by an ancient city wall with gates at the eastern, western, southern and northern side. It’s pretty wide and an attraction in itself: you can hire a bike to ride on it! But you can also walk, on the wall and around it. The wall’s illuminated at night – you’ve got to see that!

Big Wild Goose Pagoda

This is the city’s symbol. This seventh century pagoda (64 m high) is found at Ci’en Temple and offers a great view.

Great Mosque of Xian

One of China’s oldest mosques was built 685-762 at the eastern end of the Silk Road. There are still 60,000 Muslims in the city who use this mosque as their place of worship. It’s subdivided into four courtyards and renowned for its beautiful art work.

Terracotta army

The terracotta warriors were discovered in vaults in 1974 and are now called the Eighth World Wonder. They have their own museum with a floor space of 20,000 square meters. Go and see the army. Standing face to face with the warriors is a mind-blowing experience!

If you have the time, this is the third city in China (next to Beijing and Shanghai) you must see!

If you are in the mood for a European tourist destination, you should consider the Latium region of central western Italy on the Tyrrhenian Sea. Latium, also known as Laszio, is the region that includes Italy’s capital Rome, the Eternal City. Because it is so easy to find articles describing the multiple pleasures of Rome, we are going to write about the lesser-known attractions of Latium. This article focuses on Latium east of Rome. A companion article describes Latium west of Rome.

Tivoli is the famous site of Hadrian’s Villa, a getaway retreat for that famous Roman emperor. He ran the empire from this villa during the latter years of his rule. The site exceeds a square kilometer (over 250 acres), It contains more than thirty buildings. The Vatican Museums contain much of this UNESCO World Heritage Site’s decorations and statues.

Villa d’Este is another UNESCO World Heritage Site in Tivoli. It is a beautiful water garden, reminiscent of the Hanging Gardens of Babylon, one of the seven wonders of the ancient world. This villa was founded in the mid-Sixteenth Century by a son of Lucrezia Borgia. One ‘pathway’ is called the Avenue of One Hundred Fountains. Be sure that you see the Fontana di Rome, a scale model of Ancient Roman, demolished but partially rebuilt.

The town of Ninfa was destroyed during the Fourteenth Century. For some six hundred years it lay in ruins, largely because of the malarial mosquitoes in the nearby marshes. And then in 1920 an aristocratic English artist, Ada Wilbraham, married into the Caetani family that had been given the city way back in 1297 by a Caetani Pope. Wilbraham started the restoration that has continued to this day. The site includes a bridge and seven churches from Roman times, a castle, and the city wall.

Anzio, a resort city of some 45,000 people was the birthplace of the Roman Emperors Caligula and Nero. In 1944 it was the site of a major World War II battle, Operation Shingle. Visit the Anzio Beachhead British Military Cemetery, the Beachhead Museum, and the American Military Cemetery in nearby Nettuno.

Latium cuisine is abundant. The best cuts of meat were reserved for the rich. The poor had to make do with the rest, including feet, heart, and the like. See our companion article I Love Touring Italy – Eastern Latium for a sample menu, additional information on Latium wines, and an in-depth examination of its tourist attractions. While today Latium is not known for its wine in the distant past Falernum, a Latium red was the hit of Ancient Rome.

Topic: Chilies

My Thoughts:

Here is an article I found on the ancient Zapotec and chilies in Sicence netlinks.

Some really old spice. I’m Bob Hirshon and this is Science Update.

If you could travel back in time to the Mexico of a thousand years ago, the food would probably have a familiar kick to it. This according to archaeo-botanist Linda Perry of the Smithsonian’s Museum of Natural History.

She and her colleagues discovered well-preserved scraps of domesticated chili peppers in an ancient Mexican shelter cave. The peppers date back five to fifteen hundred years. Perry was struck by the variety: ten different kinds of peppers in all, including seven in a single location.

Perry:
Because you’re not going to be growing seven different kinds of peppers if you’re not making some really interesting food.

What’s more, she says the peppers appear to have been used in both fresh and dried forms—providing a broad spectrum of spices that could fuel dishes similar to today’s Mexican specialties.

When you think of ancient food, you probably … well, chances are you don’t think about ancient food very much. But you probably wouldn’t think it would be much like the food we eat today. This research suggests that Mexican food may be one of the world’s oldest surviving cuisines, and that its basic elements may be traced back thousands of years.

The ancient peppers—122 specimens in all—were found in a cave in Oaxaca, a region that remains influential in Mexican cooking today. The caves were used for shelter and storage by the ancient Zapotec people over the course of an entire millennium. The peppers there were by no means the oldest cultivated chili peppers ever found; Perry and her colleagues have found fossilized chili starch in Ecuador that dates back over 6,000 years.

In this case, it’s not the age of the peppers that matters most, but the fact that many different kinds of ancient cultivated chilis have been found in a single location. The peppers were actually discovered over forty years ago, but they were passed on to Perry only very recently. By closely examining the starch grains in the peppers, Perry was able to confirm that they were farmed, not wild, varieties, and to sort out the different varieties. She also found some whole stems, which were probably ripped from fresh peppers right in the cave, and torn-up fragments, which may have been dried, flaked peppers brought in from another location.

As Perry notes, you wouldn’t bother to keep so many different kinds of peppers in one place unless you needed them—most likely, for a variety of recipes that required slightly different flavors. The fact that other Mexican food staples were also found in the cave, including corn, beans, and squash, supports the possibility that these recipes were not so different from those of today. Of course, this doesn’t mean that recipes haven’t changed over time. But the basic elements of this popular cuisine appear to have all been there 1,500 years ago, and chances are, they were put to similar uses.

Original Article:

By Bob Hirshon

Science Netlinks

A 2,000-year-old bronze drum and statue of the sacred cow Nandin are being displayed at the Quang Tri Museum to mark the 64th anniversary of Vietnam Cultural Heritage Day (November 23, 1945).

2,00-year-old bronze drum is being displayed at the Quang Tri Museum.

The drum was recently unearthed in Tra Loc village, Hai Xuan Commune, Hai Lang District in the central province of Quang Tri.

The statue of holy cow Nandin was found in an ancient Champa tower in Kim Dau village, Cam An Commune, Cam Lo District in the province.

According to the ancient Champa people, the Nandin Bull was a pure white bull that the Hindu God Shiva rode on. The sacred cow was also considered a lord of the castle.

The two antiques are now being presented to the Ministry of Culture, Sport and Tourism for recognition as national cultural heritage items.

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In his Kautilya Artha Sastra, Chanakya mentions Veda Vyasa.

Ravana,Duryodhana, Bhoja (Dandakya), Karala (Vaideha),  Janamejaya, Talajangha, Aila, Ajabindhu, Sauvira (Jayadratha), Arjuna (Haihaya), Vatapi and Vrishnis who conspired against Dwaipayana (Veda Vyasa). He gives them as examples of people who failed because they were unable to conquer their six internal enemies. (Desire,anger etc…)
Chanakya lived after Bharadwaja, Visalaksha,Parasara (father of Veda Vyasa), Pisuna, Kaunapadanta, Vatavyadhi and Bahudanti . He quotes their views on the matter of selection of ministers.
Chanakya lived after the following kings killed by their own families: Bhadrasena; Kárusa, Kásirája (killed by his queen), Vairantya, Sauvíra, Jálútha, Vidúratha.

So we know that Veda Vyasa lived before Chanakya. Vyasa was the grandfather of the Kauravas.

Veda Vyasa compiled the histories of the people and events before his time in the Puranas. Each Purana gives us  a list of the people through which he heard the purana. For example he learned the Siva Mahapurana from Sanatkumara, who learned it from Nandikeswara, who learned it from Siva himself. Vyasa (Krishna Dwaipayana) was the great grand son of Vasishtha who was the guru of Sri Rama. (See : Generations between Rama and Krishna., Generations previous to Sri Rama. )

• Vyasa classified the Veda Mantras, which included mantras by his father Parasara and mantras by his grandfather Sakthi and his great grandfather Vasishtha.
• Vyasa edited and compiled the Puranas which contained incidents of times before him – like the flood of the Matsya Avataram. as well as the achievements of Siva, Vishnu, Karthikeya and others.
• He made a reference to the Valmiki Ramayanam, and gave it as a reason why he need not explain the story of Rama in detail.
• He originally wrote the Mahabharatam and the SrimadBhagavatham, to reflect the heroic events of his time. The Bharatam includes the story of Sri Rama in it, as told to Draupadi to encourage her, that justice would prevail.
• He classified the Mahabharatam and Valmiki ramayanam as Itihasas.

Vyasa left a Placeholder for Future Events :

• There was a section in every purana to deal with events after the Bharata war.
• This section was written in the future tense to capture the time of the original work.
• It was updated every century or every dynasty.
• A special Purana called the Bhavishya Purana deals with incidents of the Kaliyuga. It was last updated in the time of QutbUdDin Aibak.

The british colonials dated the Puranas at the time of their last updation. This is like taking a diary maintained by a family for generations and dating all the incidents of that diary at the time of the last entry. It is silly to say the list. The anti-astrology people rejected the entire sections based solely on the use of future tense. It did not occur to them to treat it as a style issue.

David Frawley is not a typical western writer who maintains the colonial traditions. Yet he dates the Puranas as 400 AD. But he makes the following errors:

• Though he accurately interprets the shlokas and mantras, astronomically., he treats them in isolation.
• For example, he quotes a shlokam from the Vishnu Puranam which gives the astronomic date of 400 AD, but does not provide the context. It think that date-time-stamp indicated by that shlokam refers to an incident of 400 AD or to the poet who updated it.

Approximate Dateline as worked out by me, to be refined,  filled in and expanded : this is based on a 3102 BCE date for the start of kaliyuga. (See : Date of Sri Rama, Date of the Mahabharata War, How many kinds of Sakas (Eras) are there? How many kinds of Yugas are there? Date of Veda Mantras Equinoxes and Dating Vedas )

• Some Veda Mantras were composed by Vasishtha on the banks of Godavari and on the shores of the Bay of Bengal.
• The  Matsya Avatar is a contemporary of Satyavrata Manu, a forefather of Sri Rama. Vasishtha was on the boat to the Himalayas and helped Ikshvaku settle Ayodhya after the flood.
• Vishnu and Garuda defeated the brothers Sumali, Mali and Malyavan. (Sumali was the grandfather of Ravana)
• Surya Siddhantam created by Maya Danava.
• Siva destroyed Tripura built by Maya Danava, Ravana’s father-in-law.
• Veda Mantras of Parasara and Sakthi.
• Rama killed Ravana.
• Valmiki composed Ramayanam.
• Satrughna killed Lavanasura and established Mathura
• Bharata conquered Takshasila and Pushkalavata.
• Uttarkanda of Valmiki Ramayanam completed
• Veda Vyasa classified the Veda Mantras and he edited, abridged and compiled the Puranas. (between 3138 and 3162 BCE. (BC))
• Mahabharata war. (3138 BCE)
• Veda Vyasa Composed Mahabharatam (Jayam) and Srimad Bhagvatham (3102 to 3098 BCE):  Puranas received by Saunaka and others at Naimsaranya.
• Janamejaya’s dana sasana patram. (3009 BCE)
• Aryans arrive in India (2100 BCE)
• Kautilya Artha Sastram

See Also: Aryan + Naga: Sisunagas, Gauthama Kasyapa Buddha, Chandragupta : Bhavishya Purana,  Dark, handsome heroes of Uttar Pradesh – Sri Rama and Sri Krishna, Anarya! Dushyantha, Sri Rama, Sri Krishna.

Authorship and Copyright Notice : All Rights Reserved: Satya Sarada Kandula

King Tut is everywhere around us these days, here’s our Egyptian itinerary:

• How Did King Tut Die?
• King Tut’s Treasures: The Canopic Shrine
• Chabot Space & Science Center: Shows: Mysteries of Egypt

Great for younger kids too!

• IMAX > MUMMIES: SECRETS OF THE PHARAOHS

Bit too scary for younger ones…


• From Barcelona to San Francisco: The King is dead. Long live the King!
• Happy Mummy’s Day From San Jose

M O R E   Egyptian exhibitions in San Francisco and the Bay Area:

• Rosicrucian Egyptian Museum in San Jose
• Tutankhamun and the golden age of the Pharaohs in San Francisco
• Very Postmortem: Mummies and Medicine in San Francisco
• The Lost Cities of North Africa in San Francisco
• Cantor Museum in Stanford
• Virtual Egyptian Museum

The OPENING DAY of the MAYA SKIES was a fun day with lots of crafts and activities, hence less pics. Great videos of Chabot & MAYA SKIES here:

• EYE ON THE BAY: Chabot Observatory – Maya Skies video
• MAYA ITINERARY
  

The ancient Tea-Horse Road plays a similar role as the Silk Road, and is a significant part of the international trade in the history. Besides a road of wealth, it was also a road of cultural exchange that created a cultural bond between Tibetans and Chinese in the history, and facilitated the spread of Buddhism in China. Even today, when people are trekking on this ancient route into Tibet, they can still sense the spirit, the courage, and the wisdom devoted to this road, and marvel at this great legacy of our ancient ancestors.

Unknown by the western world until the 20th century, Tibet has always been the synonym of mystery. When you visit Tibet, You will immediately be amazed by its pure heavenly natural beauty, and be overwhelmed by its holiness of religious atmosphere. It is a journey that purifies your soul, and a discovery of outstanding culture and nature. From the impressive Buddhism ceremonies in the monasteries to the breathtaking sacred mountains of the Himalayas, Tibet, the roof of the world, will give every of its visitors a memory never fades away.

The symbol of Tibet is the majestic Potala Palace perched on top of Marpo Ri Hill in the center of the city of Lhasa. It is the must-go of most visitors to Tibet. The Potala Palace is the religious and political center of Tibet and the former residence of the Dalai Lama. It is the most sacred place in Tibetans’ heart. Although place like Lhasa is definitely somewhere that tourists can not miss, this article is going tell you something about Tibet that is absolutely magnificent but out of the spot lights.

Among the snowy mountains and deep gorges between Tibet and Yunnan, there are some mysterious footpaths winding through the mountainsides, some are even carved into cliff face crossing one of the most dangerous terrain and uninhabitable area in the world. These footpaths have been called the ancient Tea-Horse Road. Hardly to be called a road it starts from Sichuan and Yunnan provinces in Southwest China, runs along the eastern foothills and deep canyons of several major rivers, than heads into Tibet spanning the two highest plateaus of China (i.e. the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau and the Yunnan-Guizhou plateau), and finally reaches India, south of the Himalayas. But why have these ancient footpaths been called the Tea-Horse Road, who discovered this ancient route into Tibet, and what is the role it plays in the history?

It can be traced back to the Tang Dynasty (618-907). Tibetan people liked drinking Pu-erh tea (i.e. post-fermented tea compressed in thick rectangular blocks, flat squares, discuses or other shapes) because they ate high calories food such as butter, Tsamba, beef, and lamb but consumed very little vegetables. Pu-erh tea not only helped them to digest the heavy food but also offered their Vitamin need. Tibetans did not drink the Pu-erh directly but mixed the tea with the yak butter creating a salty and rich tea which is still common today. However the environmental situation of Tibet did not allow for the growing of the tea. Luckily, the neighboring Yunnan was an ideal land for growing tea, and they made Pu-erh tea in great quality. Those who could manage to transfer the tea from Yunnan into Tibet were going to make good money. On the other hand, Chinese army needed strong warhorses desperately, comparatively Tibetans had a strong mounted army and they also had access to Middle Asia, where possessed the best military horses in the world. However, it was almost a mission impossible to exchange goods between Tibet and Yunnan, because any possible land connection between the two regions was almost cut off by the harsh terrain. The natural border between Tibetan plateau and Yunnan is formed of endless snowy mountains and deep gorges with steep cliffs which is tough for any land animals to cross the area. Finally the irresistible temptation of making huge profit had given the merchants enough courage to make their way through cleverly however dangerously. If the mountains could not be climbed they went around them on the mountainsides. By following the rivers they could take advantage of the narrow river banks under the cliffs. In continuous and collective efforts in many years, the trading link was established. Through this route, Yunnan merchants traded Pu-erh tea for strong military horses from Tibetan, and resold these horses to the rest of China. On the other hand, Tibetan merchants also made good money by selling the tea to India and middle Asia. This is why this trading route has been called the Tea-Horse Road.

Therefore, the ancient Tea-Horse Road plays a similar role as the Silk Road, and is a significant part of the international trade in the history. Besides a road of wealth, it was also a road of cultural exchange that created a cultural bond between Tibetans and Chinese in the history, and facilitated the spread of Buddhism in China. Even today, when people are trekking on this ancient route into Tibet, they can still sense the spirit, the courage, and the wisdom devoted to this road, and marvel at this great legacy of our ancient ancestors.

My friends assume that I always wanted to become a historian. Well, I am fairly certain this is not true. I have a vague memory that when I was seven I was infatuated with surgery. At that time, my baby brother was admitted to hospital with hernia. Since then, I was determined to become a baby surgeon. Cutting up little people became the sole purpose of my life. My parents encouraged me to follow this path, hoping that one day I will become a rich and famous doctor. The “doctor” part may have been achieved but the “rich and famous” part is still in its infancy.

The turning point came in my young life when I was nine or ten. At elementary school they distributed our new books. Among them I spotted a shiny white book with an odd looking boat painted on the cover. This was the first year of teaching history and religion at school. Religion was not the one to attract my attention, and so, I turned to ancient history. (The aforementioned boat was a trireme, by the way). Within a week I have already read the book twice. The battles between the valiant Greeks and the wicked Persians became my favourite bed time story. And this is when it all begun.

Eratosthenes of Cyrene (277-196 BC), knew that at noon on the summer solstice the sun shone directly down a well in Cyrene – 800 km from Alexandria. By measuring the angle that the sun hit the ground at Alexandria at this time, Eratosthenes could use geometry to calculate the circumference of the earth very accurately. He figured it to be just under 40,000 km. Interestingly the idea of a spherical earth was well established by the time of Aristotle (384-322 BC) (Robin Kerrod, 1999). I am surprised at how often historical accounts seem to understate the intelligence of the ancients; something  Graham Hancock and others have referred to as ‘aping the ancients’.

Reference Bhavishya Purana.

• After 1000 years of  Kaliyuga Kasyapa Muni and Aryavati came to India (earth). They worshipped Saraswathi of Kashmir and had her blessings. (If Kaliyuga began in 3100 BC this event took place in 2000 BC.)

… ( Aryans to Asoka (Bhavishya Purana)…

• Arya-Prithu’s son was King Magadha.
• Magadha’s son was Sisunaga. (Interestingly Sisu means child and – Naga means snake as well as the Naga tribe . Sisunaga was born with Balabhadra’s grace. Balabhadra is one of the names of Balarama who is considered the incarnation of Sesha-Naga, Sisunaga could also be a variant of Sesha Naga. So Sisunaga was an Aryan-Naga blend.)

• Descendants: Kakavarma, Kshemadharma, Vedamisra, Ajata-ripu (or Ajatasatru. Ripu = Satru = enemy),Darbhaka, Udayasva, Nanda-Vardhana -
• Nanda-suta, Pranancala, Parananda, Samananda, Priyananda, Devananda, Yajna-bhanga, Mauryananda,Mahananda – the 9 Nandas
• Gautama Kaasyapa, introduced Buddhism in 1790 kaliyuga. (If Kaliyuga is 3100 BCE, then this is 1310 BCE)
• Descendants: Shakya Muni (Buddha was also called Sakya muni), Suddhodana, Sakyasimha, Buddha Simha, Chandragupta (who married the daughter of Suluva the Yavana king of Pausasa), Bindusara, Asoka.

Thus, as per the reference above Chandragupta, Bindusara and Asoka are descendants of Gautama Kaasyapa who founded Buddhism.

Reference 2 Srimad Bhagavatam

• Nandivardhana was the father of Sisunaga and the last of the Pradyotanas. (The account before Sisunaga differs from the Bhavishya Puranam)
• Sisunaga Descendants : Kākavarṇa,  Kṣemadharmā, Kṣetrajña ,Vidhisāra, Ajātaśatru, Darbhaka,  Ajaya, Nandivardhana, Mahānandi (also known as Mahapadma Nanda), father of 8 nandas (the oldest being Sumalya).
• “A certain brāhmaṇa [Cāṇakya] will betray the trust of King Nanda and his eight sons and will destroy their dynasty.  In their absence the Mauryas will rule the world as the age of Kali continues.
• This brāhmaṇa will enthrone Candragupta, whose son will be named Vārisāra. The son of Vārisāra ( Bindusara?) will be Aśokavardhana.” (Vari means water and Bindu means drop)

If Chandragupta Maurya of the Bhagavatam is the same as Chandragupta Kaasyapa of the Bhavishya Purana, and if Sandrokottus is the same as Chandragupta Maurya, and if Sandrokottus was about 300 BC, then Kaliyuga start date will have to be approx 2100 BCE. Then Kasyapa-Aryavati  (Aryans) would have come to India in 1100 BCE. Then could they have worshipped the Saraswathi river in kashmir?

In the Kautilya Arthasastra, Chanakya mentions the fall of Ravana, Jayadrata, Bhoja, Vatapi (at the hands of Agastya) and so on and the reasons for their respective falls.

Authorship and Copyright Notice : All Rights Reserved : Satya Sarada Kandula

Related Posts :

• Chanakya
• Chandragupta Maurya

• Magadha after Jarasandha
• Magadha kings as per Bhavishyat Purana
• Nagas
• Dark, handsome heroes of Uttar Pradesh – Sri Rama and Sri Krishna
• Anarya! Dushyantha, Sri Rama, Sri Krishna.
• Evidence of the Gandharvas : Mehrgarh – Neolithic site ((9000?)7000-3200 BC)
• What is Itihasa? Kautilya’s (Chanakya’s) definition.
• A link to Kautilya Arthasastra
• Exciting time for Indian History
• Historical Clues from the Bhavishyat Puranam

• Alexander’s Sandrokottus was not Chanakya’s Chandragupta!
• Who was Sandrokottus?

Reason for sending warriors/archers

During the early stages of an ancient start game, especially during a teamer warriors and archers are send to the opponent in order to slow down his build-up (= “choke”) or sometimes steal worker or even kill him. Of course the warriors and archers can be followed up by chariots, axes and more. If metal isn´t hooked till then, it´s not necessarily game over, but it´s probably looking grim. I´ll try to focus on how to deal with the first couple of units you get early into your land in a 1 vs 1 situation.

The defending player has one worker and warrior each. He cannot hook his corn without at least another unit, preferably an archer if he does not want to give the player who send a warrior to him odds around 50% on winning the game or at least stealing the worker.

What you are trying to achieve when warriors/archers are in your land

Playing well with a couple of units in your land that block off some tiles or form a bigger choke is one of the greater challenges in multiplayer civilization. Your goal is to try to keep up in build-up in relation to your opponent who send or is sending you those units. Remember he spend early hammers on building them, so you probably have a small build-up advantage at first which he is trying to overturn in his favour with slowing you down while not being slowed by any units himself since your are busy dealing with his stuff in your land.

Overall you first don´t want to invest more hammers into getting rid of opposing units then the opponent invested to build them. Killing a chariot with 2 archers, losing one, is a gain of 4 hammers. Second you don´t want to get slowed down in setting up your empire (hooking ressources, expanding …)

1. The first warrior
First thing you need to consider is a potential warriorstart of the opposing team. As long as the starting technologies of one civilization on the other team include Hunting, it´s a scoutstart.
List of civilizations that have Hunting as a starting technology:

• Ethiopia
• Aztec
• Germany
• Greece
• Holy Rome
• Celtics
• Khmer
• Mongolia
• Persia
• Russia
• Vikings
• Zulu

I recommend printing or writing a list of those if you play ancient start on Team_Battleground regularly or plan on doing so – here is my old one, which by now I don´t need anymore

If you are facing a warriorstart and you yourself start with a scout – you are behind turn 0. Warriorstart vs. Scoutstart is one of the most unbalancing factors in an ancient start teamer game. In that case get some units early, don`t go worker first unless you know what you are doing . Try not to let the other team build up without any opposing unis in their land after just having send their 5 initial warriors. Even if you get choked or slowed down, try to send at least a unit or two to do the most basic choking job. Especially the first unit you send counts – see also the above picture for an exemplary reason for that. One unit send means opponent having two build at least two units to be able to work his land freely.

2. Determining what will be thrown at you
Scout your opponent, especially the fatcross (=the 20 tiles a city could potentially work) of the capital.

• Did he plant his capital on a tile (plains hill, plains marble/stone elephant) giving him 2 hammer instead of 1 ?
• Does he have a 3-hammer-tile to work ?
• Is he Expansive, is he Aggressive ?
• Does he have a civ with an early ancient unique unit ?
• What are his habits (knowing his playing style required here) ?

All those are factors that can help you predict or at least take into consideration what your opponent will do, helping you to plan better what you yourself  should be doing. An expansive leader with a 2 hammer plant (and a 2 hammer tile to work) will almost always build a worker first. An aggressive leader with a 2 hammer plant and a 3 hammer tile to work will most probably send you one or two 2-turn warriors first, before starting production of his first worker. Another indicator might be the unique uint available to your opponent. IF he is Inca, he will try sending Quechuas early, if he is Mali, he will probably not send more then one warrior, if that at all and instead get a worker and only then spam out skirmishers. If someone is Maya or Natives, he might save money from turn 0n and upgrade his first warrior to a Holkan/Dog Soldier.

While no factor alone can provide you wiht certain information by itself, with some experience you start making better and better predictions about your opponent´s behaviour.

3. Don´t die to a warrior
Whatever you do, whether you go worker first, whether you send out your first and maybe even second warrior, keep in mind your own safety. It is solely a question of skill (with the very, very rare exceptions from the rule) whether you die to a warrior or not.

Checklist:

• How long would you need to build a warrior in case of emergency ?
• In an ancient start Team_Battleground 5v5, are you on the 3-people or 2-people-side ? If the first, front or middle ?
• Does the opposing team have a warrior or scout start ?
• In what way can a warrior move in on you – what´s the minimum amount of turns you will spot it before.

I recommend the article on vision range at this point. There are three basic situations in regard to how many turns of warning you have on an approaching warrior, namely one, two or three unless you have spotted the unit before for example with your initial scout or a warrior you build and send out yourself.

In most games you know turn 0 towards which direction the front is (where the opponent can come from). Check what can happen. How many turns warning will you have in worst case scenario ? Do you have a cornre, which would unguarded give you only 1 turn warning ? Maybe send the scout up there as a sentry. If you feel your land provides you with less then 3 turns warning, preproduce a wrarior for one turn – put enough hammers into it, so that you can finish it in 2 turns if needed and only then build your worker. Don´t just blindly go worker first. Also don´t just blindly send away your own warriors not keeping in mind possible ways your opponent might move in on you. Especially if you don´t have hundreds of games of experience, better be safe then sorry (earning you a place in the Hall of Shame of the league ).

A pretty high level trick (that requires some practice and experience) is to keep the mouse over a warrior in city production screen while the end of the turn approaches, changing the production to a warrior at last second in case an opposing warrior suddenly appears, effectively giving you one more turn of production. Of course for that you cannot go into the city to change produciton, but keep the city bar clicked.

Keeping the city bar open with the mouse over a warrior in order to respond faster to a suddenly appearing unit.

4. Blocking off tiles
In many games you will get warriors and archers into your land. Don´t panic – so far your opponent put early production into building those units, while you potentially made a worker. You are ahead for the time being. The goal is to keep that advantage or not lose too much of it.

Don´t take unnecessary risks by hitting his units with odds of 50 or 60 percent – when a loss results in you being slowed down a lot. Focus on getting your workers to work. Block of tiles so that you can work a food or especially chop a forest, while the opponent has to move around your city + a unit standing next to it in order to be able to hit the tile where the worker is standing on. Build up normally, just spread a couple of archers into your build order. Don´t try to control everything, focus on hooking one food, on being able to consistently chop and on getting metal. Opposing archers and warriors will have a very hard time trying to hit out your archers from forests, especially when you get more units to cover consistently,while his support routes are much longer.

If possible, don´t let the opponent sit on strategic spots. Hill metal is akey target here, another one being forested hills. The last one you cannot always prevent though and on average 2 axes should be able to clear out an archer there.

Most important, try not getting slowed down too much – just get those additional units in order to move and work with your workers and protect a settler for a second city for metal. If your opponent build a couple of warroirs and archers very early and you build a couple more then him, but a little later in the game, the buildup situation should be about the same. Remember that it´s better to manoveur around those units then taking unnecessary risks – though sometimes the situation can be so, that you have no other choice. For example, when the opponent has metal in his capital´s fatcross and will follow those warriors and archers up with axes soon.

5. Odds
When playing under choke, you need to know what you on average require in order to kill a unit sitting in your land on which you probably have bad odds with your first hit.

As a rule of thumb, having around 10% twice should take care of a unit. Meaning if your first archer has 9.9% on an opposing archer, two identical archers should take care of the situation. Don´t count on killing with less then those ~10% twice unless in special circumstances.

In general, try taking advantage of situations where your opponent gives you “good” odds while moving around your land. If he for some reasons moves on a flat tile for example, giving you 40 or 50 percent already with the first unit (example 2 archer vs a protective archer, 2 warrior vs an aggressive warrior etc.) – consider the situation, but in many situations it might be better taking a little risk here, then letting him slow you down more turns until you can hook metal and take a “sure” kill.

Topic: Ancient Beer

Patrick McGovern had just emerged from the ancient burial chamber in one of the most extensively excavated archaeological sites in China when a local scientist presented him with what he calls “the real treasure.”

It was a sealed bronze drinking vessel that resembled a teapot from 1200 B.C.

With liquid still inside.

“I just about dropped over – a liquid sample from 3,000 years ago,” said McGovern, a researcher at the University of Pennsylvania.

He whisked a sample back to his lab in the basement of Penn’s Museum of Archaeology and Anthropology. An analysis confirmed what he had suspected: a yellowish wine.

It was another eureka moment for McGovern, 64, who has spent the last two decades traversing the globe, from ancient capitals to remote villages, in a quest to uncover the secrets of ancient wine- and beer-making.

He has become internationally recognized as an authority on ancient potables. When he and other museum researchers were on the budget chopping block earlier this year, nearly 4,000 supporters signed a petition, among them archaeologists, curators, and government officials from countries around the world. Egypt’s director of antiquities was one of them.

“You find out who your friends are,” said McGovern, whose job was spared.

This month, he released a book, Uncorking the Past, which describes his research, including his collaboration with Delaware beer brewer Sam Calagione of Dogfish Head to re-create ancient beverages with recipes he found.

Last week, at an event at the University Museum, he and Calagione detailed their latest quirky foray: making an ancient Peruvian beer that required them to spend hours chewing purple corn – using their saliva as part of the fermentation process.

Two months ago, McGovern traveled to Lebanon’s Bekaa Valley at the behest of a Syrian Lebanese winemaker who wants to open a wine museum there. He’ll be heading back this month for further consultation.

“My husband loves what he does,” McGovern’s wife, Doris, said during an interview in the couple’s woodsy Media home, where a wine magazine and a beer book sat atop a reading table. “It’s a consuming passion.”

His first experience with potables came on a student bicycle tour through the German Alps when he was 16. He drank Coca-Cola until he discovered beer was cheaper.

When he returned home to Upstate New York, he wanted more beer. So he dressed in lederhosen and a green hat, went to a bar and, pretending to be foreign, asked for a beer in German. He got it.

His first acquaintance with wine came in 1971 as he and his wife backpacked around Europe with little money. They visited towns along the Mosel River in Germany, seeking work at vineyards. The couple landed a three-week gig in Trittenheim.

“That’s where I really got the whole notion of vintage worked out,” McGovern said. “By the end, you knew 1959 was a superb year. Sixty-nine was awful. The year we worked there – 1971 – was like the vintage of the century.”

Born in Texas, McGovern – the son of an engineer and teacher – grew up in New York, earned a degree in chemistry from Cornell University, and considered becoming a neuroscientist. But his interest turned to archaeology, and in 1977, he began working at Penn, where he got his doctorate in 1980.

“I was really wondering what man’s place in the universe was, how we got here,” he said.

It was, at times, a hard life. On research trips, he sometimes slept in buildings with no mattresses or heat.

He hasn’t seen his face in 35 years. He gave up shaving after trips to spots lacking much hot water; his bushy beard and mustache have gone from black to white.

Over time, McGovern became interested in ancient pottery, then discovering what was inside the pottery.

A colleague presented him with a large jar from Iran from 3500 B.C. that had a reddish deposit. She sought his analysis. The vessel contained tartaric acid, a key ingredient found in grapes from the Middle East.

“That started us off on the wine odyssey,” he recalled.

In 1999, McGovern began studying residue collected from drinking and eating vessels that were excavated in 1957 from what was believed to be King Midas’ tomb in the ancient Turkish city of Gordion. There, researchers had found the largest Iron Age bronze drinking set to date.

The samples, brought back to the museum by Penn researchers, sat largely untouched until another researcher told McGovern.

One was the residue of a spicy, barbecued lamb or goat stew with lentils. Another was a drink with grape wine, barley beer, and honey mead. McGovern decided to re-create the dinner that the ancients must have had, but he needed beverage help.

After a beer-tasting at the museum in 2000, he invited 15 local brewers into his lab and issued a challenge: Here’s an ancient recipe. Brew it. Whoever does the best will make the drink for a forthcoming dinner.

One of the brewers was Calagione.

“I was immediately struck by his passion,” Calagione said. “It wasn’t just a pedantic academic suit. He, like me, is truly passionate about the history and the romance of the stories behind these beverages.”

Calagione added saffron to his brew; other brewers used coriander. McGovern preferred Calagione’s version.

“Midas Touch” – the first brew the pair collaborated on – was served. It was 9 percent alcohol.

Later, Calagione and McGovern re-created the dinner at the tomb site in Gordion, with locals dressed in period costumes taking part.

After McGovern made a trip to China, the pair next collaborated on Chateau Jiahu, a re-creation of the oldest confirmed alcoholic beverage in the world, dating to 7000 B.C. Named after the ancient city of Jiahu, it contained hawthorn fruit, rice, and honey.

That brew won a gold medal at the Great American Beer Festival last month in Denver. Calagione invited McGovern – whom he calls “Dr. Pat” – to accompany him to the dais and accept the medal. He gave it to McGovern to keep.

Dogfish donates part of the proceeds from the re-created ancient beverages to McGovern’s research, in recognition of his contribution. Most of the brews are available commercially from Dogfish.

The pair collaborated next on Theobroma, a chocolate-based ale from Central America. McGovern obtained the recipe from Honduras.

Last summer, they re-created their fourth ancient beer, the Peruvian Chicha, after McGovern made a trip to Peru earlier in the year. Colleague Clark Erickson, a Penn anthropology professor, joined McGovern and Calagione at the Rehoboth Beach, Del., brewery last summer to help chew the corn – saliva turns the corn into sugar – and make the concoction.

Both Erickson and McGovern wince when thinking of the six hours spent chewing brittle corn.

“The following day, your jaw is sore,” McGovern said.

But it was fun telling his 150 guests at the museum event about the raw research.

“It may not sound appetizing,” he told his guests, assuring them that a boiling process and alcohol killed off bacteria. “And it may add some special flavors.”

With dozens of beverages at the gathering to sample, the line for Chicha was one of the longest.

McGovern, meanwhile, said he preferred the powerful flavor of Chateau Jiahu as he ruminated on the larger significance of his passion, which has crossed continents and time.

“It has contributed to how culture around the Earth has developed,” he said of his research.

Original article:

Susan Snyder

Oct 13, 2009

Philadelphia Inquirer