South West Australia: Spotlight on Historic Deanmill

At the turn of the 20th century, much of South West Australia remained little more than unexplored frontier. Although a budding settlement had been established near the coast at Perth in 1829, and numerous communities to the south had added to the burgeoning Swan River Colony, many settlers found the isolation and harsh conditions of frontier life too challenging, eventually deciding to go back home.  While several industrious individuals had recognized the potential for fortunes to be made from the region’s sprawling hardwood forests, most who attempted it failed miserably.  It wasn’t until the late 1870s when Maurice Coleman Davies succeeded almost single-handedly in creating a market and efficient lumber industry for karri and jarrah hardwoods, subsequently erecting sawmills at Coodardup, Karridale, Boranup, and Jarrahdene.  Read more . . .

Kosher, Iodized, Sea: What's the Salty Difference?

“Kosher” salt, (a term recognized as primarily American in usage), is a variety of edible salt with a much larger grain size than that of most common table salt.  Like common table salt, kosher salt consists of the chemical compound sodium chloride, but unlike table salt, kosher salt typically contains no additives such as iodine–although some brands include anti-clumping agents in small amounts. (The Salt Institute, located in Alexandria, VA, claims "Kosher salt contains no additives".)  Read more . . .

The Pros and Cons of Male Circumcision: the Debate Continues

If you’re one of those who thinks the need for male circumcision is a forgone, scientific conclusion, think again.  In fact, the issue of male circumcision is as controversial as it ever was, with a wider and wider gap forming between those health professionals who advocate it and those who don’t.  And while there are well-known religious, social, and medical reasons why circumcision is often recommended, most major medical societies have now taken an impartial view of the procedure, neither recommending nor renouncing the practice.   Read more . . .

Abandoned Towns and Cities of the World

Standing as stark reminders of a people’s past endeavors and hopes for the future, thousands of abandoned towns and cities can be seen around the world–some like silent, dusty museums, some little more than the wood or stone markers placed in remembrance. Yet, each speaks volumes of another time.  War, superstition, famine, earthquakes, religion, man-made disasters, shifting values, fire, disease, failed economy, and hurricanes have all played their roles in reducing thriving, prosperous cities to mere rubble and models of waste.  From Hong Kong to France, Turkey to Chile, here are ten of the countless abandoned towns and cities that still speak loudly of the people who once called them home.  Read more . . .

The Life of a Hermit

From the Latin eremita, meaning “desert dweller,’ a hermit is a person who lives to some degree in seclusion from society.  Often loosely applied to anyone living a solitary life-style, and used interchangeably with misanthrope and anchorite (someone who has chosen seclusion for purely religious reasons), hermits and anchorites were historically distinguished on the basis of physical location–hermits removing themselves to the wilderness while anchorites selecting a cell attached to a church or near a populated area.  In Christianity, the term hermit was originally applied to a Christian who lives the eremitic life out of religious conviction, namely the Desert Theology of the Old Testament (the forty years wandering in the desert that was meant to bring about a change of heart).  Read more . . .

Home Remedies for Sexual Impotence

Since man first discovered the connection between an erect penis and fertility, he has persued an interest in natural substances that enhance his sexual performance.  While exploring the effects of various plants he found growing around him, he no doubt stumbled upon herbs that when chewed would cause him to have more frequent and harder erections; herbs that would allow him to maintain his erections longer.  As a result, most cultures of the world now have an assortment of herb-based home remedies for treating sexual impotence.  Read more . . .

The Terracotta Army of China's First Emperor

The Terracotta Army is a collection of life-size terracotta sculptures depicting the armies of Qin Shi Huang (sometimes, QinShihuang), the first Emperor of China.  Dated to 210 BCE, the mausoleum housing the Terracotta Army, construction of which began when Huang was thirteen years of age, was discovered in 1974 by local farmers who were digging a well about 1.5 miles east of Mount Li. The mausoleum itself is associated with an especially significant historic world event, the first unification of the Chinese territory by an absolute monarch in 221 BCE–formally establishing “China.”  Read more.

The Spanish Flu: The Twentieth Century's First Deadly Pandemic

The 1918 flu pandemic commonly referred to as the Spanish Flu, was an atypically lethal form of influenza the known effects of which lasted from June 1918 to December 1920, and spread across the entirety of the world–even to the Arctic and remote Pacific islands. Between 50 and 100 million people died from this flu, making it one of the deadliest natural disasters in human history.  Of unknown geographic origin, most victims of the so-called Spanish Flu were healthy young adults, in contrast to other influenza outbreaks throughout history which predominantly targeted juvenile, elderly, or weakened individuals. The Spanish Flu was also implicated in the subsequent outbreak of wide-spread encephalitis lethargica in the 1920s.  Read more . . .

Greenpeace International: Defenders of Our Environment

Greenpeace International (Greenpeace Foundation) is a non-governmental, non-profit environmental activist organization with offices in over 40 countries and an international coordinating body based in Amsterdam, Netherlands. The organization’s stated goal is to "ensure the ability of the Earth to nurture life in all its diversity," and focuses on worldwide issues including global warming, deforestation, over-fishing, commercial whaling, and anti-nuclear activity.  Most commonly referred to as simply Greenpeace, the organization took root from the peace movement and anti-nuclear protests in Vancouver, British Columbia in the early 1970s.  Born from the newly founded Don’t Make a Wave Committee who sent a chartered ship, the Phyllis Cormack (renamed Greenpeace for the protest), on September 15, 1971 from Vancouver to oppose United States’ testing of nuclear devices in Amchitka, Alaska, the Committee subsequently adopted the name Greenpeace.  Read more . . .

Amnesty International: Global Protectors of Human Rights

Amnesty International is a global movement of more than 3 million supporters, members, and activists from more than 150 countries and territories who campaign to end severe abuses of human rights. Since Amnesty International started campaigning in 1961, they’ve worked diligently around the globe to stop the abuse of human rights and have been highly successful in achieving their mission.  Independent of any government, political ideology, economic interest, or religious affiliation, Amnesty International is funded mainly by through membership and public donations.  While national affiliated sections are responsible for their own activities, major policy decisions are reviewed by an Amnesty International counsel made up of representatives from all national sections.  Read more . . .

Charity: Water (Bringing Clean Water to the World)

The brain child of New York City photojournalist and night club promoter Scott Harrison, charity: water is a non-profit initiative based in NYC focused on bringing clean, safe drinking water to people of developing nations.  Founded in 2006, it has to date helped fund 2,906 projects in 17 countries, benefiting over 1,277,430 people.  Overall, the organization has sent more than $10 million to developing countries as of February, 2010.  For Harrison, the path to charity: water began in 2004 when he committed eight months of his life to the poor and marginalized of Africa through volunteer service in Liberia, with Mercy Ships (the global charity organization founded by Don Stephens and Deyon Stephens). While in Liberia, Harrison was exposed to the harsh living conditions of the impoverished people and traced problems surrounding education, safety, and health back to the water, proving that 80% of all the diseases they encountered were attributable to unsafe water and poor sanitation.  Wanting to commit to a life of service, Harrison decided that the lack of clean water facing the poor of the world was something he could do something about it.  Read more . . .

The Peace Corps

The Peace Corps is an American volunteer program run by the United States Government, as well as a government agency of the same name.  Established by President Kennedy on March 1, 1961, and authorized by Congress on September 22, 1961 with passage of the Peace Corps Act, the mission of the Peace Corps is three-fold: to provide technical assistance, help people outside the United States to understand US culture, and help Americans understand the cultures of other countries.  Generally, the work is related to social and economic development.  Read more . . .

Ending Global Hunger and Poverty: Heifer International

Heifer International is a nonprofit charitable organization based in Little Rock, Arkansas, dedicated to relieving global hunger and poverty.  It provides gifts of livestock and plants, as well as education in sustainable agriculture to financially-disadvantaged families around the world.  The Heifer Foundation, established by the board of Heifer International in 1990 to manage the endowment of Heifer International, was created to generate ongoing support for the work of Heifer International by educating the public and serving as an agency for donations.  Founded by American farmer Dan West, West was serving as a Church of the Brethren relief worker in Spain during the Spanish Civil War when he became frustrated at being tasked with deciding how to allocate a very limited amount of food aid.  Upon his return to the United States, he founded Heifers for Relief, an organization dedicated to providing permanent help to starving families by providing them livestock and training so they "could be spared the indignity of depending on others to feed their children."  Read more . . .

The History of Gambling: Tools and Games

Just as gambling evolved from divinatory practices of early societies, so too did the tools of gambling evolve from ritualized objects–stones, sticks, nuts, shells, and bones.  Small bones, particularly knucklebones (astragali) became the direct predecessors of modern dice.  Astragali have irregular, non-symmetrical shapes, with four large sides and two more-or-less rounded ends.  When thrown, an astragalus will land on one of its four big sides, delivering a seemingly random outcome of the throw.  Over time, the sides of an astragalus were given value and markings; the lowest value “1” assigned to the largest side of a concave shape because of a higher chance that the bone will rest on it, the highest value “6” given the smallest side of a convex shape for its greater odds–thus "Roll ‘em bones!"  Read more . . .

The History of Gambling: Ritual Beginnings

The roots of gambling can be traced back thousands of years to religious ceremonies conducted by many pre-historic societies.  Wide-spread cultural evidence indicates that early man created many rituals specifically to foretell the future or explain what was beyond mortal comprehension.  Initially involving the casting of lots–throwing a random handful of small objects such as pebbles, sticks, bones, shells, or nuts–the end results were then counted to ascertain an “odd” or “even” number; even generally equated with a positive outcome, odd a negative one.  Over time this process became more complex, also including the interpretation of the patterns various natural objects made as they appeared in the environment.  Read more . . .

Breastfeeding: Health and Practical Benefits for Moms

As most everyone is aware today, breastfeeding is the most natural and beneficial act a mother can do for her child.  Proven beyond a doubt, dramatic health benefits pass from mother to child through breast milk–from antibodies which protect an infant at birth, to the exclusive nutrients in mother’s milk which have been shown to prevent a number of childhood diseases–the benefits are incalculable.  In fact, it is said that there is no other single act by which a mother can so greatly impact the present and future health of her baby than breastfeeding.  But what many mothers are unaware of is the many health and practical benefits they themselves enjoy from the breastfeeding experience.  Read more . . .

Beyond Magic Slippers and Poison Apples: The Dark Truth Behind Our Favorite Disney Fairy Tales

For those who grew up under the wondrous cinematic spell cast by master cartoonist Walt Disney, the world of faery tales and fables appears to be a veritable wonderland created just for kids.  Indeed, the happily-ever-after realms of Sleeping Beauty, Snow White, and Cinderella, make it easy to imagine that the Brothers Grimm, Charles Perrault, and Hans Christian Anderson were born to create wondrous realms where children could simply let their imaginations run wild.  But what most parents and children are unaware of is that most of these beloved classic stories were in fact not written for children at all, and many of those that were, were meant as cautionary tales designed to frighten children into obeying their parents.  Read more . . .

La Leche League International: Mothers Supporting Breastfeeding

La Leche League International (LLLI) (la leche, Spanish for "the milk") is an international nonprofit, nonsectarian organization that promotes breastfeeding throughout the world.  Founded in 1956 in Franklin Park, Illinois, by seven mothers (including Mary Ann Cahill, Edwina Froehlich, Mary Ann Kerwin, Viola Lennon, and Betty Wagner) who had breastfed their own children and were motivated to help mothers who had difficulties with breastfeeding, La Leche League is now a presence in sixty-eight countries, dedicated to providing education, information, support, and encouragement to women who want to breastfeed.  All women, especially pregnant and nursing mothers, are welcome to attend their meetings.  The name, La Leche League, was inspired by a shrine in St. Augustine, Florida, dedicated to “Nuestra Señora de la Leche y Buen Parto,” meaning “Our Lady of Happy Delivery and Plentiful Milk.”  Read more . . .

"Sex Pots" and the Moche Civilization

The Moche civilization, believed to have flourished in northern Peru from about 100 CE to 800 CE, is an ancient culture best known for the tens of thousands of ceramic “sex pots” they fashioned to convey what anthropologists believe was their societal view of various forms of sexual activity.  Considered by historians to be among the finest pottery of the ancient Americas, it is quite striking in its naturalistic style and refined craftsmanship.  Anthropologists believe Moche ceramics may have served as models (visual aids) for relating moral or political perspective which allowed older generations, perhaps community elders, to pass down essential knowledge. The so-called “sex pots” could have been used to teach about procreation, sexual pleasure, cultural and social norms, immortality, transfer of life and souls, or perhaps the relationship between nature and life.  Read more . . .

The Wodaabe: the Beautiful People of Northwest Africa

The Wodaabe, a subculture of the larger Fulbe-speaking Fulani, are a group of nomadic cattle-herders and traders who historically have been highly influential in politics and economics throughout western Africa.  Known to have existed for over one thousand years, the Wodaabe continue to play a significant role in furthering Fulani domination in the West African region.  Referring to themselves as Bororo, the Wodaabe migration area currently stretches from southern Niger to northern Nigeria, northeastern Cameroon to the western region of the Central African Republic.  In 1983, the number of Wodaabe was estimated at 45,000; a more current assessment virtually impossible due to geographic dispersal and cultural restrictions.  Perhaps the most visually striking culture compared to other indigenous groups of this region, the Wodaabe are known for their beauty (both men and women), elaborate attire, and rich cultural ceremonies.  Read more . . .