Ancient Civilization: Hittites

The Hittites were an ancient civilization that flourished in Anatolia (modern-day Turkey) during the Late Bronze Age, from approximately the 18th century to the 12th century BC. They established one of the earliest known great empires in the region, and their influence extended over a vast territory encompassing Anatolia, northern Syria, and parts of Mesopotamia.

The Hittites were known for their advanced military capabilities, strategic diplomacy, and administrative skills. They were skilled charioteers and developed sophisticated tactics in warfare. Their army played a significant role in the geopolitical landscape of the time, engaging in conflicts and forging alliances with neighboring kingdoms and empires.

The Hittites were also renowned for their contributions to law and governance. They developed a legal system known as the "Hittite laws" or "Laws of Hattusa," which were among the earliest written legal codes in history. These laws provided regulations for various aspects of society, including property, contracts, family matters, and criminal justice.

In terms of religion, the Hittites practiced a polytheistic belief system and had a pantheon of gods and goddesses. Their religious rituals involved offerings, sacrifices, and divination practices. The Hittite religion had influences from both Mesopotamian and Hurrian cultures, reflecting the diverse cultural interactions in the region.

One of the most notable events involving the Hittites was their diplomatic interactions with other major powers of the time, particularly with ancient Egypt. The Hittite-Egyptian diplomatic correspondence, including the famous Amarna Letters, provides valuable insights into their political alliances, marriage alliances, and trade relationships.

Despite their achievements, the Hittite Empire eventually declined due to various factors, including invasions, internal conflicts, and the collapse of the Bronze Age civilizations. The capital city of the Hittites, Hattusa, was abandoned and lost to history until its rediscovery in the early 20th century.

The study of the Hittites and their civilization has significantly contributed to our understanding of the ancient Near East, particularly in the areas of language, culture, law, and diplomacy.

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So, today I went to watch Film Red at the cinema and it was amazing and I loved it and here is why I loved it! Yes, I read some reviews, some that liked it, some that hated it, and I was going in expecting it not to be as good as it was in the end.

1. Uta (and Shanks)

Some people don't like her. I get it. What I read before watching the movie made me dislike her too but I didn't want to have an opinion without watching the movie. People say it doesn't make sense that Uta exist. Why? Because Shanks had her on his ship and wouldn't take Luffy. I also read that people thought she was childish and a brat.

Honestly, of course she is a "brat". She mentally wasn't able to grow up. Not at all. She basically witnessed the death of a whole kingdom. People were probably still screaming from being burned alive as she ran to get to Shanks. Add the trauma of being abandoned and the feelings of betrayal... She only had Gordon after that and having only one person to grow up with doesn't really give place to mature and grow as a person especially as traumatized as she was. Also, Shanks would never take Luffy because Luffy is Garps grandson. What do you think would have happened if Shanks had taken Luffy with him? He would have gotten the Marine on his back to the extreme. And from that one filmstill of Shanks seeing Rayleighs and Gol D. Rogers we see we can assume that Shanks was found himself just like Uta and Shanks in a way wanted to give back by taking on a child himself.

Uta never had the chance to see the world, meet other peopele and from what we know she barely recognized the tenryuubito. Yeah, she did in the end, but she didn't care, because she was so detached from reality. And what is someone who never grows up? Naive. So of course her behaviour screams out naivete.

2. Klabautermann

I honestly believe what we saw of Merry and what we saw in Film Red isn't the rest of what Oda has planned regarding Klabautermänner. Especially after seeing this incredibly cute personification of the Sunny.

3. Utas heritage (Manga spoiler ahead)

Who is up-to-date with the Manga or at least has seen the end of the Wano arc knows about Lunarians. What I think? After seeing Utas design with the wings? Utas half white hair? Why she was able to sing the runes? Why she is so powerful? (Because honestly she could take over the world.) Uta is half Lunarian. We know Oda was more involved in this movie than the others. And as a designer/artist myself and knowing Oda designed her himself it's safe to assume he didn't do anything without reason. He delibirately designed Uta the way he did. Maybe I'm wrong but it's a theory I can confidently believe in.

4. Tot Musica

Probably an ancient weapon (or an attempt of one, a prototype maybe?). In the newest chapter we saw something in regards to the ancient civilization that ruled during the Void Century. When the Strawhats and the others were in the library as Robin read what was written on the ceiling the guardians that popped up to fight and protect looked very similar to what we saw at the end of the newest chapter. And Uta *sang the ancient runes.* What's up with that?

5. Utas death

She consciously chose death. She didn't want to live feeling the heavy, heavy guilt of what she's done. I honestly don't think I could have lived like this too. Because she is responsible for the death of a whole nation and of trapping so many people in her dream world. What she did came out of a place of desperation to be happy. She is an incredibly tragic character. Shanks understood that hence his smile. He could have yelled at her but he didn't. Because he us an incredibly empathetic man who didn't deserve to watch his child die. But he did. He stayed with her through it all. God, what a Chad. I fell in love all over again with him and overall with One Piece.

But somehow I'm glad she died by saving them, even if she was the initial cause.

So, yeah... My thoughts on Film Red.

can I submit non-Roman or Greek peopel?

Might as well, it'll make it easier for people to submit tributes if its just general ancient people

Doctor Who Live-Ish Blog #2 - “The End of the World”

I fucking love this episode.  There’s so many little things in it, little hints, little bits of foreshadowing... I love it.

I’ve literally never heard or seen anyone mention it, but I suppose someone must have, way back in 2005, that some of the guests on Platform 1 are talking when they pan through the room, and one of them says “this is the Bad Wolf scenario” [something something] “multiverse”.  THEY FUCKING TOLD US.  

Also, I still can’t get over the fact that “Toxic” is an Traditional Ballad.  That bit still makes me lose my shit, even 10 years after I first saw that episode.  (maybe more?? I was in elementary when I started watching this show.  Holy shit.)

And the fact that the Face of Boe was there, because we all know that he’s Captain Jack, so imagine him just being like “oh yeah, good old Doctor” in his head.  (and you just KNOW he would have totally approved of the playing of Toxic.  I mean, I think everyone’s read the thing where the Cat Nurse is like “I hear him singing, such ancient songs in my head.”  and you just know that Jack is going “all the single ladies, all the single ladies” on repeat.)

And the fancy little trick that he used to get past the last fan blade after Jade died?? I love it.  But also, that scene with the fan blades reminded me of on the playground in elementary.  We called it “roadkill”.  And you had to run down the line of swings, while peopel were swining, and not get hit by their backs or legs.  Just like that, but yk, with more death.

The Doctor after Jade dies... it just broke me.  Because it’s such a stark constrast from just the last episode where he was so reluctant to use the anti-plastic on the Nesting Conciousness.  But here he was, so very angry, and so very bitter.  And he was cruel, maybe, but no more than Cassandra deserved.  

ALSO: Cassandra is trans??   She says “when I was a little boy”  She specifically says that.  So, yeah, the last human being is a trans woman.  Take that, transphobic shitheads.

convinced her to let me stay in the car >:]]] but also just had a nosebleed n had no napkins skdhks

yay car but another nosebleed?? dude,,

I’m so fucking confused this entire time I’ve been under the impression that Leela was a neanderthal. Is she not. are you telling me she’s human. why did I think she was a neanderthal. 

That post with the dumb responses reminds me of the time I told someone maybe don’t play Hades bc of the incest between the main character and his adoptive siblings/the whole dumpster fire with that and the response was “oh it was Ancient Greece so it was fine and I don’t care” like did. You read. What I said.

see I played Hades and for a while I tried to ignore the fights happening over it because I hadn't even gotten far enough in the game to really understand the context peopel were talking about. but now I"m like "they literally didn't HAVE to add it." zagreus exists in greek myth but not the way he does in Hades. the devs clearly knew how it looked the firs ttime around cause they actaully adjusted the dialogue, but it still sounds like "Zagreus wants to fuck his adoptive brother" and no amount of "I actually could secretly tell we weren't siblings" is gonna fix that 🥴

could you tell me who the sea peopel are? 👀 im dumb and intrigued

basically they were some dudes why came out of nowhere and suddenly started fucking stuff up in ancient Egypt, like noone really knows where they're from but they pretty much singlehandedly collapsed the late bronze age then just dissapeared

The Regret of the Lord

1 Samuel 15:10–11 (ESV) The word of the Lord came to Samuel: 11 “I regret that I have made Saul king, for he has turned back from following me and has not performed my commandments.” And Samuel was angry, and he cried to the Lord all night. Does God regret as we understand it? This is the great question of 1Samuel 15. Saul was commanded to utterly destroy Amalek and its king from under heaven. But he took God’s command only as far as he preferred. For this the Lord describes his feeling to Samuel as “regret.” Now scores of theologians have studied this chapter to reconcile what seems like God’s unexpected disappointment with Saul here and God’s knowledge of the end from the beginning. Many theories have resulted and even some resolve around “open deism” in which God discovers the end along with us and through our choices. This of course rejects countless texts on the sovereign knowledge of God. So how are we to take this? Simply. The Lord is responding to what He knew was going to happen in the way we respond when we know someone we put our faith is will let us down. And the text has no other way to describe the Lord’s response to this event other than what we as humans feel when sin destroys lives and damages legacies. 1 Samuel 15:12-15 (ESV) And Samuel rose early to meet Saul in the morning. And it was told Samuel, “Saul came to Carmel, and behold, he set up a monument for himself and turned and passed on and went down to Gilgal.” 13 And Samuel came to Saul, and Saul said to him, “Blessed be you to the Lord. I have performed the commandment of the Lord.” 14 And Samuel said, “What then is this bleating of the sheep in my ears and the lowing of the oxen that I hear?” 15 Saul said, “They have brought them from the Amalekites, for the people spared the best of the sheep and of the oxen to sacrifice to the Lord your God, and the rest we have devoted to destruction.”  Saul’s disobedience stems from the fact that he cannot lead because he is obsessed about the opinions of people. First the text tells us he went to Carmel to build a monument to himself. Carmel is in Judah, the tribe that sent only a fraction of troops to Saul when he called the nation’s army together (see 1 Samuel 15:4). Secondly, the text implies the people led Saul to spare the best of the sheep and flocks. Note the pronouns of verses 20-21: 1 Samuel 15:20–21 (ESV) And Saul said to Samuel, “I have obeyed the voice of the Lord. I have gone on the mission on which the Lord sent me. I have brought Agag the king of Amalek, and I have devoted the Amalekites to destruction. 21 But the people took of the spoil, sheep and oxen, the best of the things devoted to destruction, to sacrifice to the Lord your God in Gilgal.” Saul protests that he has followed through on the Lord’s commandment while it was the PEOPLE who spared the best of the things devoted to destruction. True to character, Saul feigns religious piety here suggesting the reason for their disobedience was to WORSHIP the Lord! And his motive for sparing the king would have lined up with ancient warfare practices of capturing foreign adversaries as a symbol of his dominance in the land. Saul needs people to think he’s powerful when his divine assignment was to make the Lord’s power known to His people. To that Samuel will utter the most famous words, “to obey is better than sacrifice.” (1 Samuel 15:22). The Lord wants NOT our religious performance but our steady obedience. Why? Because it will bring Him glory and us blessing. But also, it teaches us to break free from the opinions of our culture. Here’s why you want that to happen for you. Because every culture has blind spots about their morals, values and virtues. If you aren’t careful, you will find yourself adapting to the culture that leads into long term pain, hurt and even death in ways you may not currently understand. Consider how each generation takes some measure of pride in exposing the misconceptions of previous cultures about right and wrong. Like when we speak about doctors in the 1950’s prescribing cigarettes for sore throats. That sounds crazy to us but then we are forced to consider what harmful things might our current culture prescribe that will bring long term pain. God wants us to obey not only so we trust Him but so that we learn to lead ourselves and those we care about. This brings healing and strength to His people and is a testimony to the nations that His way is right and good. Only when we break free from the hold peopel’s approval has on our hearts can we lead our lives in the good life God has in store. via Blogger http://bit.ly/2VpUhFL

oh god peopel reblooping ancient FE3H art of mine im scared

@duperderedere replied to your post

“besides loz (which i still need to get) and odyssey, what are good...”

Stardew Valley! Not a Switch exclusive, but a wonderful little Harvest Moon type game.

Oooh i think scie @reaperscience plays that game. honestly i’ve always wanted to play that maybet his is my chance

@goldflowers replied to your post

“besides loz (which i still need to get) and odyssey, what are good...”

mariokart 8 its real real good

not to sound pathetic and depressing but i don’t think i hang out w/ enough peopel irl or who have switches to warrant spending $60 on mario kart which is a shaaaame because double dash was so fun in college (and like when i was a child, i wasn’t in college when it came out... just to clarify... i’m 24 not that ancient)

i always love some good mario kart but... alas

Ancient Iranian Peopel: Sogdians

The Sogdians were an ancient Iranian people who inhabited the region of Sogdiana, which is located in present-day Uzbekistan and Tajikistan. They played a significant role in the cultural and economic exchanges along the Silk Road, serving as intermediaries between the East and the West.

Here are some key points about the Sogdian people:

History: The Sogdians were part of the larger Iranian peoples and had a rich history that dates back to at least the 6th century BCE. They established city-states in the fertile valleys of Central Asia, forming a prosperous and cosmopolitan society.

Silk Road Traders: Sogdiana was strategically located along the Silk Road, the ancient trade route that connected China to the Mediterranean. The Sogdians became renowned traders, controlling key points along the route and facilitating the exchange of goods and ideas between the East and the West. They played a vital role in the transmission of Chinese, Indian, Persian, and Hellenistic cultures.

Economic Power: The Sogdians accumulated substantial wealth through their involvement in trade. They specialized in long-distance commerce, transporting goods such as silk, spices, precious stones, and other luxury items across vast distances. Their mastery of commercial networks and languages allowed them to establish thriving trading colonies and to dominate the Silk Road's commerce.

Cultural Influences: The Sogdians were not just traders but also cultural intermediaries. They adopted and transmitted various cultural influences from different regions they encountered, blending elements of Persian, Hellenistic, Indian, and Chinese cultures. Sogdian art, language, and religious practices, including Zoroastrianism and later Buddhism and Manichaeism, were strongly influenced by these interactions.

Sogdian Art and Writing: Sogdian artists were renowned for their exquisite artwork, particularly in metalwork, painting, and ceramics. They created intricate and vibrant motifs that incorporated both local and foreign influences. The Sogdians also developed their own script, known as the Sogdian script, which was an important precursor to the Uighur script used in Central Asia.

Decline: The Sogdian civilization faced significant challenges over time. In the 8th and 9th centuries, Arab Muslim conquests swept through the region, leading to the decline of Sogdiana as a political and economic power. The gradual Islamization of the area further eroded Sogdian culture and traditions.

Today, the Sogdians and their civilization are no longer in existence, but their legacy lives on through archaeological discoveries and ancient texts. The study of Sogdiana and its people provides valuable insights into the complexities of cultural exchange and the historical significance of the Silk Road.

Read More About Sogdians:

Ancient Iranian Language: Sogdian

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my ‘bad blood’

there is a fascinating iterview with Carl jung where he sepaks about Hitler; upon readign it i understood some thigns about myself; [link]

i look like hitler, so does my grandmother on the father’s side, and her son - my biological ‘dad’, thus we must have a connection;

Jung explained soemthign imprtant about adolf hitler - he was a witchdoctod, from the african tradition of witchcraft; that is  a very powerful voodo traditiona dn i thik goes back to ancient egypt times, too; but it’s dark still for me and i don’t realize the full thing for now; the fact is that its awitchcraft absed on fear,a nd it is worse even than the black witchcraft in europe during the middle ages - 

now that is where my mother’s bloodline is - i asoociate her fatehr with the nrose diety ragnar, and with european witches, but also with the people who fought witches by torturing them and buring them, and they themselves came from a bckground of religious self-torture - they were fanatics; jut like the diety ragnar is;

hitler was not just tht though; actual practical amgic , i read in one article somewhere, came with the crusaders from the lands of the middle east - all the alternative teachings that were abundant there i  amny sects and cryptic practises, some fo which we now can call demonic; they were ased on fear; dark magic, inherently;

the witchdoctors that hitler’s brainw as connected with came from taht dark tradition, in africa; and my parents on the side of my ‘father’ are turkish indescent and they have taht strong persian /arabic vibe; but in a not always good sense, unfortunately; they fer lack and thus they become selfisha nd brutal, too materialistic and demanding of abundance in abusive ways, even gross, pervrted sexually ways - my grandmother was a pedophile and she sued to touch me and my sister as small girls and we developed insane brainfuck ebcause fo that;

there is mroe to it, unfortunately but it’s hard to formulate for now;

so jung spoke of hitler as a doll, a voodoo object; he was not a sensible epros, but possessed, especially in the end; my father strikingly resembles hi m and it is very undertsandible why my mother liked himbecause she carries a desire for vengance and love for nazi order in ehrself; she loves germanya nd how everything is organzied disciplined and strict there; which for me is torture and isanity when it comes to my subconsious; but that might e just my turkish descent’s flaw; i am gonna explore that i n later posts; i amcertain it must be this;

because actually germanic structure of society and manners of living are related directly to the norse gods system, which ie xplored too at one point; and so do amy other peopel; so ti is a virtuous and humanistic system, not merely brutal and agry; 

my take on it comes from MY INNEE SHADOW which is  hatred of lack fo abundance3; i love gold flowing from my shower when i am showering, if i have to put it in words; in truth i feel msierable fi im nto in the warmth of the desert and eating freshly picked fruit by the peopel who work for me - my bloodline is related to the pharaohs, and to cleopatra... so its peopel fo high status and powerful positions in society; nothing to match with my other familiar’s village way fo life and the cozyness of the woods, the cbin, the fireplace, the woolen clothes and the home; we are leaders and rulers and love glory; just love it; we are capable fo hanling muc stress and we are actually immortal; so that shadow aint taht abd either;

but black magic ia frica sprung in places where peopel lived in mysery so there sia  lto fo aggression there to this day, as you very well know - i am not well educated on tribal peopela nd their wys of though; i am always surrounded by civillized people, and civilized criminala ctivity - yakuza, gangs, drug lords, dictators, spies, agents, police and military; but never brutality of the lower vibrational level - people whoa re animalistic and they dont realize their diviity within;

i dont judge that, i am clarifying wher is atnd in the world we are living in; to me such peopel are scary ebcause they refuse the light of God;

i love my cleopatra roots, they ar really wise and loving, playful and lusty; tjhis was her word up there; bless her heart! she was a beutiful woman;

s for the egyptin pharaohs, they are said to have been seeded by the starpeopel themselves, the gods, tahts why they carried divinity in the dna of normal humansa nd spread it across the centuries of their rule, mating with many and ruliung in the lands of the original human beings - africa; they were very feared and hated, especially by those who woudl later on become dark wizards in africa, dark voodoo practitioners and the brain-masters behind the puppet hitler; they hate humanity in many levels, tehy hate civillied humanity anmd their power is brute force; amny of todays africna dictators have that encoding in them; i am writing this to spread awareness on the subject ebcause my cleopatra self is still a politican and i cant escape my need for being powerful player that helps govern the outcomes of the plitical stategies and happenings that amke up our near futures; i decide to do that in a soft manner, nto as a politician, but s an inspirational perso, in art, in real-life stories i share and have suffered slongside many of te others slaves of today’s society and the capitallistic structure that is not functioning for the well being fo the people but fuelling fearful and greedy dictators worldwide, insetad of terating the wounds of the past, and present, and takign care fort the future of the nature and environment of this earth; it could have been the other way around thus i am using my psychic and goddly abilities to brainfuck the ill-minded leaders and to insipre ordinary folk to be more proslerous, joyous and bold in their ways of viewing and experiencing life and reality;

my leadership is warm and heartful; i am cleoptra

*i even look like leonor varela and we share the same name lol

[idk if tahtw as achanneling right now but i hve ahd those before too, so dont take the words eprosnally, but like a energy that i amc hannelling but also repect and associate with myself somehow, wich i as the way for me to expand - taking in stuff and finding comparisons between me and them or if i revere somebody ro soemthuing - go out of my ways to enact their ways and learn new startegies fo thinking about life and operating in it - as happened with the boy i am loving from 5 years now ; i wanted to copy every bit of him and paste it into my Self and tehe merging oif the two is a compelx and very eautiful rpocess full of itegration, sorrow and painfuless;

but cleopatra herself was amazing; she is a ebodiment of the goddess ISIS, occording to one article - JESUS; thats a very ineterstign tale as well:

she was a devotee to the goddess isis and the last pharaoh of egypt and the turns of events in the world lead her to reincarnate in the form of Jesus; her last lover - Mark nathony was like a small boy and although the romance was passionate, she was liek a mother to him too; there the mary/jesus/mary magdalene separation was created, into new symbols that comprise the same characters and had been played out amongst humans ever since that era - the mary/jesus/mary magdalene archetypes are mcuh more ‘common’, ordinary - a lot more people, poor people, not pharaohs and clergy, or goddesses/gids, can find their selves in those archetypes, and thus grow their hearts strong and loving for their divvinity, embracing at the smae tiemtheir humanity;

it is interestign now to delve into the aspects of isis/cleopatra/mark anthony and gender roles, because those are also improtant aspects of the separation the christian order; cleopatra is a god - nor male, neither female; but jeus has gender preferences; so he is not god, but a human;

christ consciousness is a mass consciousness ascencion project; aimed at elevating the entire humanity to God; and cleopatra /isi is the source of it; but keep ti a secret ;)

i’ll stop here for now

Peoples & Races

Here is my day three for world building june! Just as a disclaimer, I am white which means all of my experience with racism is second-hand. I have also been very conscious of negative racial stereotypes and have done my best to both avoid those and avoid basing any group of people off of a real life group of people who might not be happy with any aspect of their culture being taken lightly for a fantasy race of people. If you see anything in my work as a poc that offends, please let me know and I will fix it!

Emily Harsh, as I have mentioned before, is African American.

Though the Kingdoms of the Vales exist in a rather small space, great diversity can be found among its people. Importantly, the people themselves find great pleasure in celebrating what makes them unique not only as a citizen of a specific country but as the descendant of their own race.

Fokuts: has probably the least complicated racial situation as most of the Fokuts people are, according to their oral history, descending from the same ancient clan of people. Now, most Fokuts belong to family clans, which might have tension between them but whose tension rarely affects their neighbors. Fokuts’ people are considered both by scholars and themselves to be the original inhabitants of the waters they still call home. While there is great variation in facial features based on what part of Fokuts someone is from, they tend to share the same coloring, with brown skin and black hair. Other countries believe there is a division of social status based on eye color but this is a misunderstanding.

Chäum: The peopel here are divided into three main groups. The first is the natives to the land where the country now is, they are noted for their brown skin but very light colored hair, especially red tones. The second is descended from the ancient empire which once called the entirety of the country its capital city. These empire descendants had very fine features, notably pointed ears, and were advanced magical users.  The third group is descended from another group of conquerors who arrived after the empire fell. They are pale with brown hair.  These three groups ended up being very at odds with each other for a number of years because of a number of reasons, both based on the legal code with its law against interracial marriage, and based on social stigma. Recently these tensions have lessened as mixed children have become more common and many of the laws were removed.

Nizid: has a strict caste system based on economic family status in its cities which are semi-autonomous city states but which is almost non-existent in the rural communities formed on the mountainsides. Most residents of Nizid have very dark black skin. 

There are many foreigners who can be found in the Kingdoms of Vale. Most of them are either merchants or the children of who take the River of Many Names down from outside of the Vale to do trade within the Kingdoms. They come in a variety of shapes and colors and backgrounds. 

My mom and I were talking about hoe dumb it is that people get mad about gay characters in children's movies and historical movies and she's liek 'it's stupid I mean gay peopel have been around forever, same as incest Abd in ancient rome-' She was doing... so well at the start

Isobel Geologist

Hello

Hi there, is that Isobel

Yes, is that Lily?

Yes

I'm covered in cat food

What exactly do you want to know?

So I'm kind of doing a site based project, I've been going to Salisbury on Site visits, looking at the novichok event, but also Salisbury in its wider history and things. And I've been interested in the earth side of the event and what does the earth know of the event. I'm interested in finding out a more geological kind of perspective because I don't really know much about geology.

So the geology of Salisbury is quite simple, not very complicated really. It's a bit ... load of the upper levels of the chalk and into that you've got carved, you know all these river valleys ... and then during the ice age they got filled up with gravel, you know washed in when all the ice was melting and things like that, and because the sea level kept changing up and down, you get these river terraces, you got gravel, and you probably know about Salisbury cathedral being on a load of gravel and that's why its still standing. *laughs* so that's kind of the geology. So i mean, I've wrote a book, in 2000 actually, 19 years ago, haha, i don't know if you've seen that.

Whats the book called?

Its called hidden depths, you can get it on Amazon or probably still get it in the Library. Or I can just cut out a bit of the text that's relevant, and I've just been looking at it again this morning before you called me to remind me what I used to know. *laughs*

That sounds interesting yeah.

So I can do that for you, but im not sure... So during the ice age you had ancient man living by the rivers as you probably know as well and they found various bits and bobs in these valley gravels . So it has a long long history . and then you get to you know since the ice age you get things startin of with palaeolithic peopel and then you get the stone age bronze age and then the iron age and the romans , all that, and it just goes on, we're in a tiny fraction of that.

Yeah, cos in geology , um , cos obviousy there's been a lot of stuff about the Anthropocene at the moment...

Well I think thats a load of rubbish actually, thats my opinion

Really?

Yeah. Well its cos people cant kind of conceive, of the timescales involved. You know what i mean hundreds of millions of years and I realise that whats going on now is in a greater scheme of things.

Yeah such a tiny...

...Such a tiny blip.

And you can't really define these periods until afterwards. I mean that's what's so stupid about the Anthropocene I think. Until afterwards, i mean when we're all dead, when we're not here any more, then you can start looking at the consequences of it. But looking over 150 years of it or whatever it is they're on about , its so stupid. Um. so thats my view on the Anthropocene, I've no time for it. But people love to get on the latest bandwagon. And as it happens, Ive just - i've almost finished a book on cosmology, dont even ask why. Well its because my husband got it, its to do with climate change and this ... the problem is, you can't really see the wood through the trees with all the political angles. And the media, and politicians, they've had a hugely successful campaign over the last 10 or more years, convincing everybody that carbon dioxide is the main driver of climate change, and I'm sorry but that's simply not true.

What would you say it is?

It's um, cosmic rays. Because i've just read this book i can tell you this otherwise id have forgotten. *laughs*. Umm its called the chilling stars. It's really good actually ,I got it on amazon. Its by a man caled nigel calder who i think is now dead , he is one of the founding memebers of new scientist. and somebody called Svensmark who is a dane, nd he is a sort of cosmic ray expert if there is such a thing *laughs*. and hes dealing in hundreds of millions of years. And with the sun, you're probably too young for the monty python song, we're travelling around the planet which is revolving 2000 miles around the sun. And we are travelling through the milky way, the sun, the planets, everything. And he has managed to sort of link ice ages and hot times, cos you're probably aware that sometimes there's no ice at the poles at all to the number of cosmic rays. so the bottom line is the more cosmic rays the colder it gets. But I think that's really interesting. God knows how they do it but um, I think it kind of puts everything into perspective. but the general kind of aim is to link the geological variations in climate and stuff, to where we were in the planet ring at that time. He says carbon dioxide may have an effect, but it's tiny. I know they keep rabbiting on about there being too much but you're talking about a tiny tiny thing yet we've been bombarded by these particles through space all the time. And it can just come from teh sum but the sun he thinks is quite minor but these cosmic rays they come from exploding galaxies in the milky way. its mind boggling, but anyway i've been quite inspired by this book an dit just puts the whole thing into perspective.

Yeah thats interesting i hadnt heard that kind of angle on it before.

Yeah because you know its the media!

mm

You know all these ... the media they decide whtas news worthy. so basically they said what tey think you want to know.

Yeah well i guess in terms of salisbury the media has had a very negative impact

Its sad.. You wonder if these two men, we assume its those two in the pictures,  knew just how awful this stuff was tey were told by their bosses. Put on the door handle of this evil whats his name - skripal.

And then they just chucked it somewhere

And they just chucked it in a rubbish bin! I mean you'd think theyd at least bury it somewhere!

It had enough to affect two thousand people! It's crazy...

So - in geology is there ever any sense of prediction and the future or is it always based in the past?

If you can do any prediction, its to do with cycles, in the sun you probably know about these sunspot cycles. And there are loads of cycles. I cant-- oh dear. Um. I mean one is to do with the rotation of the earth on its axis - it wobbles, like a spinning top. Um, and thats called the malankovitch cycle. And that means that the earth gets warmer and colder depending on how it goes round the sun, because its like wobbling, i can't even remember now. all these cycles superimposed upon each other which affects our climate. We're just in a -- so you can predict according to where we are on these cycles, and this is all done by mathematicians, cosmologist, physicsts... But there are cycles, yes. But because we are dealing in hundreds of thousands of milions of years and things.. predicting the future,,... I mean you probably wont remember... but i remember in 1970...you probably weren't alive... in 1970 the media was going on about whether there was going to be the next ice age, is coming. this is partly why i'm so cynical, i mean i'm 70 years old, i remember this when everybody was fretting about the ice age, and now they're fretting about it getting hot. I mean if you ask me bring it on! I just don't like being cold. And i don't think , well we'll see, time will tell, but I'll probably be dead. but i dont believe any of it really. i think maybe we are getting half a degree hotter, but you've got to remember with computers. all this hype is based on computer models, and nothing has changed with that, if you dont put all the facts in you dont get all the stuff out. And its worth remembering that, and climate science is hugely complicated, and according to the people like this chilling stars book, they're just not putting the right - theyre not putting the right stuff in cos half of it is barely known. so youre basing all this hype on computer models, and weve only got climate records from the past 150 years which is like nothing! and so i could go on for ages about hte fact climate change is just like normal! and we shouldn't worry about it,. And we dont need to plant loads of geranium plants

Do you mean we shouldnt worry about it in the kind of grand scheme about the earth existing?

In the grand scheme of things, my view on this has always been, since it started, is that if it makes us more environmentally friendly that is good. so maybe you need al the hype maybe you need to make people change their ways. I mean we're awful, people on the whole. They just don't care. So - yes - while i might be cynical about the whole thing, if it does make people more, and i think it has, people are recycling stuff and people arent throwing plastic in the sea.