The Accomplishments of Captain James Cook

July 31, 2018February 17, 2023Leave a comment

Captain James Cook of the British Royal Navy was a sea captain as well as a cartographer. Cook circumnavigated the bottom portion of South America and South Africa, in addition to discovering and mapping many different islands including New Zealand, Hawaii, Fiji, Tahiti, and Easter Island as well the fertile east coast of Australia, which he named New South Wales and claimed in the name of Britain. Cook also found islands which had yet to be explored in the Pacific Ocean, discovering new lands on a scale which until that point had not been performed. The maps Cook drafted were so precise that even during the 20th century, sailors were still using them up until the advent of satellite imagery. Additionally, Cook discovered the cure and prevention for scurvy by accidentally stumbling upon the answer after feeding his crew a diet which included orange extract and sauerkraut

Quarantine During the Bubonic Plague

July 30, 2018February 17, 2023Leave a comment

The Bubonic Plague killed off approximately 66% of Europe during the 1350’s with the exception of Milan, Italy and Kraków, Poland. This was due to the people of Milan understanding that quarantining the city was a necessary requirement to help aide in the cessation of disease proliferation. Quarantining was performed despite physicians not properly and/or fully understanding the mechanics of viral and bacterial infection. The citizens of Milan also burned down the home of any person or family suspected of having recently contracted the Black Plague. Kraków was a prominent refuge for people of Jewish descent, as Jewish people were used as scapegoats as to the reason why the Black Plague occurred in Europe in the first place. Due to the fact that Jews frequently bathed as it was not in conflict with their religious beliefs, unlike most others in Europe, the Black Plague was barred from having as great of an effect as it did across the rest of Europe. Milan and Kraków were left virtually unscathed with most of their populations surviving the catastrophic epidemic

Nostradamus’ Books and the Method Used to Procure Prophesies

July 27, 2018February 17, 2023Leave a comment

Other than The Bible, Nostradamus’ self-published books have sold more copies than any other publicized work in the history of the printed word. Nostradamus made his ominous predictions of the future by inhaling as well as orally ingesting nutmeg which breaks down into an amphetamine when processed by the liver. Nostradamus then poured black ink into a bowl of water, covered his head with the hood of his robe and stared into the bowl of water and ink claiming it allowed him to view depictions of future events. Nostradamus wrote down his visions in cryptic verses referred to as “quatrains” which contain only 4 sentences. Quatrains have been used by many different European cultures, as well as Asian cultures over the course of history

The Extinction of Most Species

July 26, 2018February 17, 2023Leave a comment

130 species go extinct each day. 99% of all life which has ever lived upon Earth, is now extinct. Most species of mammals only survive 1,000,000 (1 million) years before going extinct. Modern human beings have existed for 200,000 years, but the most distant related ancestors of human beings, creatures more apelike than human but still bipedal and using tools, date back 3,000,000 (3 million) years with that particular ancestor being named “Australopithecus afarensis”

The Advent of Barbed Wire

July 25, 2018February 17, 2023Leave a comment

Barbed wire was invented during World War I and was designed to keep German troops from advancing their territory. Modern day barbed wire has 6” or more between each barb but during World War I, barbs were 1” – 2” apart, specifically designed to stop Germans soldiers from grabbing a piece and cutting into it. Razor wire, a similar yet different design, was also invented during World War I

The Ancient Roman Apothegm of S.P.Q.R.

July 24, 2018February 17, 2023Leave a comment

The acronym “SPQR” is an initialism of the Latin phrase, “Senatus Populusque Romanus” which means “The Roman Senate and People”. Latin was the primary language spoken by the ancient Romans, alongside many other lesser spoken languages as the Roman empire was a vast and diverse nation state with tolerance for culture, language, and religion. Today SPQR is still used as the official emblem of the modern day commune/municipality of Rome

The Etymology of “Seasoning”

July 23, 2018February 17, 20232 Comments

The people of Gaul which is modern day France, part of Belgium, western Germany, and northern Italy, discovered that various foods could be improved by aging them using a process referred to as “saisonner” which means “passing of the seasons” in German. After being conquered by the Normans in 1066, the British adopted this new aging process and referred to it as “seasoning”. With the introduction of Middle Eastern spices brought by returning Crusaders during the 13th century, seasoning took on the meaning of “anything which embellishes the taste of food”

The Most Targeted Areas of the Vikings

July 20, 2018February 17, 2023Leave a comment

Vikings most often targeted monasteries occupied by communities of monks living under strict religious vows, because these sites were often full of silver and gold chalices used for drinking wine, plates, bowls, and crucifixes

The Advent of the Telescope

July 18, 2018February 17, 20231 Comment

Hans Lippershey was a Dutch/German tradesperson who fashioned eye glasses for a living. Lippershey created and designed the first telescope, and then patented it in 1608. The first telescopes could only magnify objects 3x closer than the naked eye. The telescope turned out to be one of the most important inventions of the 15th century because Galileo Galilei built upon the original design to create the field of astronomy which lead to groundbreaking new discoveries about the solar system and Earths place within the cosmos

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Month: July 2018

The Accomplishments of Captain James Cook

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Quarantine During the Bubonic Plague

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Nostradamus’ Books and the Method Used to Procure Prophesies

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The Extinction of Most Species

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The Advent of Barbed Wire

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The Ancient Roman Apothegm of S.P.Q.R.

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The Etymology of “Seasoning”

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The Most Targeted Areas of the Vikings

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The Advent of the Telescope

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