Experts Discover Building from 2,200 B.C. in Ecuador

Archaeologists discovered a building from around 2,200 B.C. in an archaeological and ecological park in the Ecuadorian capital at the foot of Pichincha Volcano, sources at the excavations told Efe.

“It is the most ancient archaeological find in Rumbipapa Park and in the city of Quito,” park supervisor Bernarda Icaza told Efe, adding that no identification or description has been made of the culture that lived in the area during the Formative Period when the building was constructed.

Icaza noted that the find has “enormous” historical importance, because “it opens doors to further archaeological, historical and heritage research.”

The excavation was started two years ago by archaeologist Angelo Constantine. After digging down three meters, the flooring of a small dwelling was found.

Park guide Danny Villacis, who worked on the dig, told Efe that carbon dating was used to determine the age of the site, where traces of human feces and urine were found.

Also found were scraps of human and animal bones from another period, presumably from a time after Pichincha Volcano erupted.

Specifically, next to the building were also found traces of volcanic lava. “What destroyed this village was the eruption of Guagua Pichincha, and later the eruptions of Pululahua finished it off for good,” Villacis said.

He said the discovery is singularly important because it shows “we are practically in our infancy” when it comes to studying historical subjects, and there is “still a lot of research to be done,” since many people refer to the Incas as their ancestors despite the fact that “thousands of years ago” there were already other people living here.

Source: LDN

Alien Planet moves toward Earth suggests Texas Professor

January 30, 2014 -- (TRN http://www.turnerRadioNetwork.com ) -- A man identifying himself as Dr. Kaplan, a Professor in the Astronomy Department at the University of Texas at Austin, has made use of the McDonald Observatory at that school to reveal the existence of an inbound planet heading toward Earth,  and has provided the actual coordinates for the general public to see it themselves. TRN has those coordinates and reveals them below.Dr. Kaplan videotaped his work inside the McDonald Observatory and TRN s has that video for you to see.

Using the 2.7m Harlan J. Smith telescope at the McDonald Observatory in Texas, Dr. Kaplan tracked this planet on January 26, 2014 at about 10:00 PM Texas time.

In the video, Dr. Kaplan did NOT say whether or not this planet would actually collide with Earth; he needed more time over several nights to make that computation.  However, whether the planet collides with Earth or not, Dr. Kaplan says its gravity will affect Earth in terrible ways long before it gets here.

According to Dr. Kaplan, the planet-sized object will be at Earth by August, 2014.  Kaplan says prior to its arrival, Earth will experience more and more adverse effects from the gravity of this planet.  TRN inquired of other astronomy and geological experts and they told us that if Kaplan's  scenario is true, the problems Earth will experience would begin with weather anomalies and tidal anomalies, will increase to earthquakes then volcanic eruptions as Earth's magma is pulled by the gravity of the approaching planet,.  The experts went on to tell us the troubles would increase further to horrific tsunamis 1000 meters high, moving at 1200 kilometers per hour striking coastal regions around the Earth and, ultimately, when this planet is closest by August 2014, Earth will suffer widespread destruction from shifting tectonic plates on a massive scale.  One expert even claimed that depending upon the size and gravity of the planet, and its angle of approach, the gravity of this other planet could actually STOP the Earth from rotating on its axis.  He likened it to a vehicle traveling at 1,000 miles per hour, and having the brakes slammed on; the resulting inertia of all objects on earth would cause them to continue moving while the earth was stopping; sort of like what happens in a car wreck when the car suddenly stops, but the passengers fly forward from their own inertia.   While Kaplan himself did not make any such claims, he did say the approach and  passage of this planet "will reconstruct the surface of the Earth into something we don't even know."

In the meantime, as of January 26, 2014 at 10:00 PM Central US Time, viewing the planet from the McDonald Observatory in Texas,  Dr. Kaplan said the coordinates to see this inbound planet are:

Right Ascension:  04 hrs.  08 Min.   08 Sec.

Declination: 60 degrees  56 arc min.  43 arc sec.

Moving toward earth at 200 Kps

The speed 200 Kilometers-per-second converts to about 124 miles per second, which converts to 7440 miles per minute, which converts to 446,400 miles per hour. This further converts to 10,713,600 miles per DAY.

Dr. Kaplan was NOT precise as to exactly what DAY in August, this planet would be closest to earth.  So today being January 30, 2014, and using today as the start date, the number of days from today until August 1 is 182.

At a speed of 10,713,600 miles per DAY, the estimated distance of this planet from earth as of right now is one-billion, nine-hundred forty-nine million, eight-hundred seventy-five thousand, two-hundred miles. (1,949,875,200 miles)

ARE SUCH SPEEDS EVEN POSSIBLE?

Lest you think such speeds are absurd, consider this from LiveScience.com:

As passengers on Earth we are all carried around the sun at a mean velocity of 66,600 mph. Add to that dizzying notion the fact that we are spinning (at the equator) at a 1,000 miles-per-hour (an action that causes the planet to bulge outward).

Of course, these velocities are relative (to the sun and to the poles, respectively). The reason we don't feel the rush is the same reason we aren't pinned to our seats while in an airplane moving at constant speed. Velocity can only be measured with reference to another object moving at a different velocity, and we cannot feel velocity while in a constant frame of reference.

This is why it might be news to you that our entire solar system is whizzing around the center of our galaxy at a fairly inconceivable 560,000 mph. The galaxy is also moving with respect to other galaxies in the universe. And, for all we know, the whole universe is moving, but now we're getting into great unknowns.

This speed of Earth information is also confirmed by the NASA Goddard Space Flight Center, HERE.

CAN GRAVITY AFFECT THINGS AT GREAT DISTANCES?

According to SPACE.COM the Earth is 92,955,807 miles from the sun.  Certainly the sun's gravity affects Earth; it keeps us in orbit!  Moreover, consider the reality of gravity's power by realizing the sun's gravity not only keeps Earth in its orbit, it does the same for all the other planets, including the massive planet Jupiter and even the tiny, far-more-distant Pluto.

According to UNIVERSETODAY.COM, Jupiter’s semi-major axis is 483.78 million miles from the Sun. Like every other planet in our Solar System, Jupiter’s orbit is elliptical. When Jupiter is at perihelion (closest approach) it is only 460,237,112 miles, but when it is at aphelion (most distant) it is 507,040,015 miles from the Sun. Average the two and you get Jupiter’s semi-major axis. Jupiter is about 5.2 times farther from the Sun than Earth is. Since one AU is equal to the average distance from Earth to the Sun, that translates into Jupiter being 5.2 AU from the Sun, yet the sun's gravity keeps Jupiter in its orbit.  The picture below from NASA compares Earth to Jupiter and shows how massive it is compared to us; yet the sun's gravity controls Jupiter from 483 Million miles away!

Comparing the size of Jupiter to earth helps provide perspective; Jupiter is over 317 times the mass of Earth. Volume…Jupiter’s volume is 1.43128 x 10¹⁵ km³. That is 1,321 times Earth’s volume. Surface area…The surface area of Jupiter is 6.1419 x 10¹⁰ km². Earth is over 120 times SMALLER!

That same web site proves that, at the closest point of its orbit, called perihelion, Pluto is 2.757 billion miles from the Sun. Then at the most distant point of its orbit, Pluto gets as far as 4.583billion miles from the Sun. Pluto’s orbital eccentricity is 0.2488, yet the sun keeps Pluto in its orbit.  THAT demonstrates the power of gravity.

Of course, our sun is HUGE and DENSE which gives it such massive gravitational power.  We do not yet know how large the incoming planet is, but according to the information from Dr. Kaplan, in order for it to be at Earth by August, it is already closer to us than Pluto!  Depending on the size of this unknown planet and its density, it is not unreasonable to believe that its gravity is already affecting Earth and may have been doing so for quite some time already.  Maybe this explains the weird weather Earth's been having for awhile?

THE VIDEO     (UPDATE 1-31-2014 -- the original video author has made a Copyright Claim.  TRN has made a "Fair Use" Counter-Claim)

The original author of the video, pictured below, turned out to be a Graduate Student (Not a Professor) named Kyle Kaplan at the University of Texas at Austin, Astronomy Program.  His contact information is made publicly available on the University's Observatory web site  HERE.  

The video he made was confirmed as having been shot inside the McDonald Observatory in Texas.  The telescope shown in the video is the exact same one which appears on the web site of the McDonald Observatory (link in top paragraph).

According to TRN sources, Dr. Kaplan was grabbed-up at the observatory by authorities for what he was doing andforced under duress to make another video retracting this material, allegedly because it was a "joke."

Who would want it retracted and why?  Well, if people think they're doomed, they may stop paying their taxes and their bills; there may be widespread panic and a breakdown of social order to the point of chaos.  The powers that be can't have any of THAT, can they?

Despite his retraction, the video below was still sent to us for publication.  Further, despite the retraction, no one can argue the Observatory's telescope was, in fact, pointed at (and LIVE tracking) the coordinates shown above. The Observatory's own targeting and tracking computer SHOWS that fact in the video!   If there's nothing there, why was the observatory looking at it and tracking it? (an inconvenient truth.)  Here's a screen shot of the tracking computer close-up, showing the day, date and time as well as, in yellow highlights, the actual planet coordinates: (Click Image twice to enlarge)

Further, this graduate student, by his own admission in the video, claims to have "hacked" into the NASA Goddard Space Flight Computers to get the "Closely guarded secret" of this planet's coordinates.  Publicly admitting to hacking government computers, which may have been a crime, is newsworthy.

Such conduct by a Graduate Student using multimillion dollar facilities to intentionally alert the public about a "danger" to the planet, then claim it was a "joke" is also newsworthy. As such, TRN made use of the video, only in part,  for non-profit news purposes, which falls under the Fair Use Exemption of US Copyright Law 17 USC 107.

Kaplan has now asserted a Copyright claim to prevent us from disseminating this news. Why?  The way see it, there are a couple possibilities:

1) Kaplan told the truth and got slammed for doing it and is now doing everything possible to stop what he started, OR;

2) Kaplan lied and got slammed for doing it and is now doing everything possible to stop what he started.

In either case, TRN believes this is newsworthy.   Therefore, TRN is fighting the copyright claim because, as stated earlier, no one can argue the Observatory's telescope was, in fact, pointed at (and LIVE tracking) the coordinates shown above. The Observatory's own targeting and tracking computer SHOWS that fact in the video!   If there's nothing there, why was the observatory looking at it and tracking it?

Further, a graduate student publicly impersonating a Professor/Doctor, publicly claiming to have "hacked" federal government computers to obtain a "closely guarded secret" and using multimillion dollar facilities funded in part by taxpayers to tell the world it is in danger, then claiming it was a joke, is also newsworthy.  In either case, we at TRN believe it serves the pubic interest to cover these events.  After all, we don't make the news, we report it.

Is this a HOAX?????? That's easy for all of you to verify: Grab a telescope and look at the coordinates yourself.  If there's a planet there, and you see it getting larger (i.e. closer) over a few nights, then this is real and we've got potential problems.

Source: TRN

Dynamic maps of sea level rise. Will global warming affect you?

An interactive map by National Geographic simulates what our Earth would look like if all the ice on land melted, elevating sea levels by 216 feet.
Coastlines and landmarks disappear in the deluge. Places much of our population currently inhabits is simply washed away in these images. The only
constant in our world seems to be the change.

I guess on the bright side, my property could be considered “ocean view” someday.

National Geographic Rising Seas interactive map

I thought a few on ATS might find this map interesting. Anyone else have beach front property in their futures?

(VIDEO) Quantum Theory Proves Consciousness Moves To Another Universe At Death.

A book titled “Biocentrism: How Life and Consciousness Are the Keys to Understanding the Nature of the Universe“ contains a notion that life does not end when the body dies, and it can last forever.

The author of this publication, scientist Dr. Robert Lanza who was voted the 3rd most important scientist alive by the NY Times, has no doubts that this is possible.

Lanza is an expert in regenerative medicine and scientific director of Advanced Cell Technology Company.

Before he has been known for his extensive research which dealt with stem cells, he was also famous for several successful experiments on cloning endangered animal species.

But not so long ago, the scientist became involved with physics, quantum mechanics and astrophysics.

This explosive mixture has given birth to the new theory of biocentrism, which the professor has been preaching ever since.

Biocentrism teaches that life and consciousness are fundamental to the universe. It is consciousness that creates the material universe, not the other way around.

Lanza points to the structure of the universe itself, and that the laws, forces, and constants of the universe appear to be fine-tuned for life, implying intelligence existed prior to matter.

He also claims that space and time are not objects or things, but rather tools of our animal understanding.

Lanza says that we carry space and time around with us “like turtles with shells.” meaning that when the shell comes off (space and time), we still exist.

The theory implies that death of consciousness simply does not exist. It only exists as a thought because people identify themselves with their body.

They believe that the body is going to perish, sooner or later, thinking their consciousness will disappear too.

If the body generates consciousness, then consciousness dies when the body dies. But if the body receives consciousness in the same way that a cable box receives satellite signals, then of course consciousness does not end at the death of the physical vehicle.

In fact, consciousness exists outside of constraints of time and space. It is able to be anywhere: in the human body and outside of it.

In other words, it is non-local in the same sense that quantum objects are non-local.

Lanza also believes that multiple universes can exist simultaneously. In one universe, the body can be dead.

And in another it continues to exist, absorbing consciousness which migrated into this universe.

This means that a dead person while traveling through the same tunnel ends up not in hell or in heaven, but in a similar world he or she once inhabited, but this time alive. And so on, infinitely. It’s almost like a cosmic Russian doll afterlife effect.

This hope-instilling, but extremely controversial theory by Lanza has many unwitting supporters, not just mere mortals who want to live forever, but also some well-known scientists.

These are the physicists and astrophysicists who tend to agree with existence of parallel worlds and who suggest the possibility of multiple universes.

Multiverse (multi-universe) is a so-called scientific concept, which they defend. They believe that no physical laws exist which would prohibit the existence of parallel worlds.

The first one was a science fiction writer H.G. Wells who proclaimed in 1895 in his story “The Door in the Wall”.

And after 62 years, this idea was developed by Dr. Hugh Everett in his graduate thesis at the Princeton University. It basically posits that at any given moment the universe divides into countless similar instances.

And the next moment, these “newborn” universes split in a similar fashion. In some of these worlds you may be present: reading this article in one universe, or watching TV in another.

The triggering factor for these multiplyingworlds is our actions, explained Everett. If we make some choices, instantly one universe splits into two with different versions of outcomes.

In the 1980s, Andrei Linde, scientist from the Lebedev’s Institute of physics, developed the theory of multiple universes. He is now a professor at Stanford University.

Linde explained: Space consists of many inflating spheres, which give rise to similar spheres, and those, in turn, produce spheres in even greater numbers, and so on to infinity.

In the universe, they are spaced apart. They are not aware of each other’s existence. But they represent parts of the same physical universe.

The fact that our universe is not alone is supported by data received from the Planck space telescope.

Using the data, scientists have created the most accurate map of the microwave background, the so-called cosmic relic background radiation, which has remained since the inception of our universe.

They also found that the universe has a lot of dark recesses represented by some holes and extensive gaps.

Theoretical physicist Laura Mersini-Houghton from the North Carolina University with her colleagues argue: the anomalies of the microwave background exist due to the fact that our universe is influenced by other universes existing nearby. And holes and gaps are a direct result of attacks on us by neighboring universes.

So, there is abundance of places or other universes where our soul could migrate after death, according to the theory of neo-biocentrism. But does the soul exist?

Is there any scientific theory of consciousness that could accommodate such a claim?

According to Dr. Stuart Hameroff, a near-death experience happens when the quantum information that inhabits the nervous system leaves the body and dissipates into the universe.

Contrary to materialistic accounts of consciousness, Dr. Hameroff offers an alternative explanation of consciousness that can perhaps appeal to both the rational scientific mind and personal intuitions.

Consciousness resides, according to Stuart and British physicist Sir Roger Penrose, in the microtubules of the brain cells, which are the primary sites of quantum processing.

Upon death, this information is released from your body, meaning that your consciousness goes with it.

They have argued that our experience of consciousness is the result of quantum gravity effects in these microtubules, a theory which they dubbed orchestrated objective reduction (Orch-OR).

Consciousness, or at least proto-consciousness is theorized by them to be a fundamental property of the universe, present even at the first moment of the universe during the Big Bang.

“In one such scheme proto-conscious experience is a basic property of physical reality accessible to a quantum process associated with brain activity.”

Our souls are in fact constructed from the very fabric of the universe – and may have existed since the beginning of time. Our brains are just receivers and amplifiers for the proto-consciousness that is intrinsic to the fabric of space-time.

So is there really a part of your consciousness that is non-material and will live on after the death of your physical body?

Dr Hameroff told the Science Channel’s Through the Wormhole documentary:

“Let’s say the heart stops beating, the blood stops flowing, the microtubules lose their quantum state.

The quantum information within the microtubules is not destroyed, it can’t be destroyed, it just distributes and dissipates to the universe at large”.

Robert Lanza would add here that not only does it exist in the universe, it exists perhaps in another universe.

If the patient is resuscitated, revived, this quantum information can go back into the microtubules and the patient says “I had a near death experience”‘

He adds: “If they’re not revived, and the patient dies, it’s possible that this quantum information can exist outside the body, perhaps indefinitely, as a soul.”

This account of quantum consciousness explains things like near-death experiences, astral projection, out of body experiences, and even reincarnation without needing to appeal to religious ideology.

The energy of your consciousness potentially gets recycled back into a different body at some point, and in the mean time it exists outside of the physical body on some other level of reality, and possibly in another universe.

First hemp-weaved fabric in the World found wrapped around baby in 9,000-year-old house

Latest excavation work in the ancient city of Çatalhöyük in Turkey has revealed the world’s first hemp-weaved fabric, which was found wrapped around a baby skeleton in the ground of a burned house. The city of Çatalhöyük is the largest and best-preserved Neolithic site found to date. At a time when most of the world's people were nomadic hunter-gatherers, Çatalhöyük was a bustling town of as many as 10,000 people.  Inscribed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site, it is known as one of the best sites for understanding human Prehistory. The linen, which dates back 9,000 years, was found as part of the latest dig, which involved 120 people from 22 different countries, and was one of the most striking findings of the season, particularly due to its high level of preservation. 

The hemp-weaved fabric found in Çatalhöyük. Photo Credit “The fire warmed up the ground and platforms of the building and created a kiln drying effect. Therefore the pieces and this piece of cloth underground have been so far protected. Examinations in the laboratory show that this piece of cloth is linen weaved with hemp,” said Professor Ian Hodder, head of the excavations.  “This is a first in the world and one of the best preserved examples.” Hemp is a commonly used term for high growing varieties of the Cannabis plant and its products, which include fibre, oil, and seed. Hemp fibre was widely used throughout history for items ranging from rope to fabrics and even sail canvases.  Hodder believes the piece of linen came from the eastern Mediterranean from the central Anatolia, and may be evidence of hemp used in trade. Hemp has been cultivated by many civilizations for over 12,000 years. However, until the latest discovery, the oldest evidence of hemp fibre came from imprints found on Yangshao pottery in China dating to the 5th millennium BC.  The Chinese later used hemp to make clothes, shoes, ropes, and an early form of paper. The classical Greek historian Herodotus (ca. 480 BC) reported that the inhabitants of Scythia would often inhale the vapours of hemp-seed smoke, both as ritual and for their own pleasurable recreation. It is not known whether the inhabitants of Çatalhöyük in Turkey had discovered the more ‘recreational uses’ of the Cannabis plant.

Source: AO

The Dead Sea Scrolls – Version 2.0

The Israel Antiquities Authority is launching today an upgraded version of its Leon Levy Dead Sea Scrolls Digital Library. It includes 10,000 new photographs of unprecedented quality

A second, upgraded version of the Leon Levy Dead Sea Scrolls Digital Library was launched today. Visitors to the new website (www.deadseascrolls.org.il) will be able to view and explore 10,000 newly uploaded images of unprecedented quality. The website also offers accompanying explanations pertaining to a variety of manuscripts, such as the book of Exodus written in paleo-Hebrew script, the books of Samuel, the Temple Scroll, Songs of Shabbat Sacrifice, and New Jerusalem.

A year has passed since the Israel Antiquities Authority first launched the Leon Levy Dead Sea Scrolls Digital Library. The library presents hundreds of scroll fragments imaged in unprecedented quality, achieved with a unique camera developed specifically for this purpose and installed at the Israel Antiquities Authority scrolls conservation laboratory in Jerusalem. Over half a million people worldwide have visited the site; 25,000 new users enter the site every month. Dead Sea Scrolls scholars as well as the general public will now be able to view, explore and examine one of the greatest archeological discoveries of the 20th century on their personal computers and even on their cellular phones.

The upgraded website comprises many improvements: 10,000 new multispectral images, improved metadata, additional manuscript descriptions, content pages translated into Russian and German in addition to the current languages, a faster search engine, easy access from the site to the facebook page and to twitter and more.

Through international collaboration, a unique monitoring system for the conservation of the scrolls was developed, using the multispectral images. The monitoring system will ensure the scrolls are properly preserved and kept in optimal conditions that simulate those in the JudeanDesert caves, where the scrolls survived for over 2,000 years. The system will be installed in the Dead Sea Scrolls conservation laboratory over the next few months. Using this advanced technology for long-term monitoring of the scrolls will help resolve scientific challenges in preserving these ancient scrolls.

The Israel Antiquities Authority is currently advancing local and international collaborations to add to the digital library transcriptions and translations of the scroll texts. The next versions of the website will also include additional images, tools for scholars, conservation data, content pages in additional languages, as well as advanced and multiple search options.

Contributing Source : IAA

Aztatlán astronomical observatory linked to sun worship

Archaeologists have located an astronomical observatory linked to sun worship in the Cerro de Coamiles site, one of the leading centres of Aztatlán (AD 850/900-1350 ) culture located in the central coast of Nayarit, Western Mexico. This discovery has helped define the importance astronomy had for the coastal boreal Mesoamerican.

Mauricio Garduño Ambriz, an archaeologist at the National Institute of Anthropology and History (INAH), said the observatory forms part of a ritual architectural complex which was built to record the passage of the sun through the sky at the equinoxes. Within the Mesoamerican religious tradition, mountains or step pyramids were conceptualised as solar temples.

A sacred space

The results of this investigation represents a significant advancement in the understanding of the symbolism employed in Aztatlán ceremonial architecture which was linked to the solar calendar and the annual ritual cycle connected to agriculture. Research in the Cerro de Coamiles began in 2005 and is still continuing, concentrating on the upper platforms located on the southwest side of the hill where a tiered system of large embankments forming part of the main ceremonial centre has been discovered.

The inhabitants of Cerro de Coamiles modified the top part of the hill, cutting into natural rocky outcrops to form vertical terrace lines which worked as solar calendrical markers. Garduño Ambriz explained that “the solar disc would appear in direct view from the main observation point on the North Acropolis hill, creating a visual line from west to east. Recording the appearance of the solar disc on the eastern horizon at the equinoxes defined the space as sacred.”

Solar God Xipe Totec

The symbolic importance of marking equinoxes in coastal Aztatlán is confirmed by the frequent sculptural representation of  Xipe Totec (flayed one), the sun god associated with spring equinox and his depiction on ceramic vessels intended for ritual purposes.

“For the dense population of the surrounding flood plain that stretched all the way west to the shore, Coamiles must have represented a mythical archetype within the regional symbolic scenery,” said the archaeologist.

View from the North Acropolis (Platform 5) at the top of Cerro de Coamiles. Image: INAH

Platform 4

Excavations have also been conducted at Platform 4, a large square space constructed for ceremonial use, 150 metres in length, where four parallel retaining walls reaching a height of almost three metres correspond to four constructional phases. The peak of this construction took place during the Postclassic.

Garduño Ambriz said that “the coordination and execution of this monumental work of remodelling, which significantly altered the original topography of Cerro de Coamiles even appears on the 18th century mapping of the plains of Yscuintla and Senticpac.”

“This would have required centralised political institutions and mechanisms of ideological control by the social elite of local and regional hierarchies of Aztatlán society. Apparently, the peak in Coamiles constructional activity matches panregional territorial reorganisation that took place during the Early and Middle Postclassic (AD 900-1350 ).”

The director of the Nayarit INAH Centre, Othon Yaroslav Quiroga Garcia, said that given its location within the central coast of Nayarit, as well as the exceptional state of preservation including ceremonial public architecture, petroglyphs and a wide range of flora and fauna, the site would be considered for opening to the public in the future.

Source: INAH