Michael Richards's Blog

Awhile back I saw a news story in which a 2,300 year-old double-edged bronze sword was found in a tomb in the city of Xinyang, China inside a crust, rotting scabbard. But, when scientists carefully extracted it, they found that the sword hadn't rusted, but remained bright and shiny. The two-minute video below shows the sword being pulled from the scabbard.


Assuming that the video hasn't been pulled from Youtube from some reason, take a couple minutes to watch it. It's incredible watching a sword that appears to have been forged yesterday being pulled from a clearly ancient, corroded scabbard. The short news story doesn't explain how the sword managed to remain free from rust, but if I had to guess, it may have something to do with in remaining snug inside its scabbard for the last two millennia.

But, in researching this story, I found that this wasn't the only still-ancient sword out there.

Sword of Goujian By Siyuwj - Own work, CC BY-SA 4.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index... next sword, coincidentally, also comes from China, and is much more famous. It's called the sword of Goujian, and it was found in Hubei, China back in 1965. An archaeological survey was being performed on the second main aqueduct of the Zhang River Reservoir, when a bunch of tombs were discovered. An archaeological dig commenced, and after three months more than 50 tombs were uncovered, yielding over 2,000 artifacts. One of these was a double-edged bronze sword, still inside its nearly air-tight scabbard, laying within a casket next to a human skeleton (presumably the original owner). The scabbard was made of wood and coated in black lacquer. Incredibly, despite the tomb being mostly underwater for the last 2,000 years, the sword was found to be free of rust and tarnish. Along one side of the blade, Lord of the Rings style, two columns of ancient Chinese characters can be seen, gleaming as if they had just been put there. The text is in an ancient style called Bird-worm seal script. Deciphered, the text reads: "This sword is made and used by the King of Yue Gou Jian himself."  Which, of course, explains the name of the sword.
By Yutwong - Own work, CC BY-SA 3.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index... series of tests were performed on the sword to discover why it remains so perfectly preserved after so achingly long, and it was decided that perhaps the peculiar mixture of copper and tin (the two metals that together produce bronze), plus the air-tight conditions of the scabbard that also kept the water out, were responsible. King Tut's Personal DaggerBet you didn't expect this one. When Tutankhamun's body was found and unwrapped by Howard Carter and crew back in the 1920s, a perfectly preserved dagger was found within the wrappings. This blade predates the previous two by 1,000 years. So how in the heck did it stay so well preserved? Was it due to the dry Egyptian climate? The fact it was tightly wrapped in resign-soaked linens next to Tut himself for 3,000 years? Was due to extraterrestrials? Well, kind of. Now, nearly 100 years after it was found, scientists have discovered that the blade of Tutankhamun's dagger was made from...a meteorite!Yep, that's right, a giant rock from outer space.   Source: (WP:NFCC#4)When scientists analyzed the dagger with modern equipment, they discovered the blade's metal content matched that of meteorites.  According to this article, the blade was found to be "
mostly iron (Fe) and 11% nickel (Ni) and 0.6% cobalt (Co). This means its composition is placed within the median of a group of 76 previously discovered iron meteorites."
The original article also states: "The nickel content in the bulk metal of most iron meteorites ranges from 5% to 35%, whereas it never exceeds 4% in historical iron artifacts from terrestrial ores produced before the 19th Century."

Pretty cool, huh? I'll avoid going into further detail, but it's pretty cool that an Egyptian Pharaoh would make a treasured dagger out of a meteorite, something he may have recognized as being sent by the gods. And, since a pharaoh was considered to be a living god, this makes total sense in an historical context.

There are many other ancient swords that somehow avoided the rust and tarnish that normally eats away at ancient metal, but I won't list them here, because this post is already fairly long, and I probably lost many of you several paragraphs ago. However, if you're interested in further reading, follow the links to the articles I referenced above. You can also check out this Listverse article, which lists a total of 10 rust-free swords from antiquity.

Anyway, I hope this was interesting to at least some of you out there. And, as always, there is more cool stuff coming, so stay tuned!

Ciao friends!

I'm coming to the conclusion that most of the people in the media and politics are either complete idiots or evil. The way they have convenient amnesia of things that occurred in the past is very annoying.

For example, I heard recently on the radio that a bunch of celebrities got together and made an ad that attempts to turn people against Trump, saying things like Trump is homophobic, against Muslims and Islam, etc. (See http://www.salon.com and http://www.cnn.com)The truth? Exactly the opposite. (See http://www.foxnews.com) Mark Stein, a British commentator, pointed out today on the radio that in actuality, most of the animosity against the LGBTQ community is caused by radical Islam. Remember the nightclub shootings? And do some research sometime and look how homosexuals and women are treated in the Arab countries. Read and listen to Trump's actual words, and you'll discover that the reason he wants to limit certain peoples from entering the United States is to make sure that no terrorists are amongst them. We have already seen how many crimes are being committed by illegal aliens.
I have nothing at all against immigration; our country was built upon it. My beloved ancestors, like Ebenezer Farnes who came from England in the 1860s, did a lot of good when he immigrated. But he did it right; he went through all the proper, legal channels to come into this country. I'm just against people sneaking in illegally, or lying to get in to commit their horrible crimes. Don't forget 9/11, for crying out loud. How can any true American disagree with this?

Another example is the politicians and the media's complete 360 degree flop on their view of the intelligence community. A decade ago, they were saying how stupid Bush was to believe the intelligence community about there being "Weapons of Mass Destruction" in Iraq and Afganistan, especially when, as they said, there appeared to be none. Yet now, in the wake of Hillary's email scandal, they talk about how important it is to listen to the FBI when they said there was no valid reason to charge Hillary with any wrong doing. In Mr. Stein's view, the intelligence community has become completely politicized, leaking information to the Democrats, etc.

Some people have said that I've obviously "drunk the Kool-Aide," as I'm a big listener of conservative commentators like Rush Limbaugh and Glenn Beck. I disagree, of course, I'm more of a fan of the truth, and I constantly seek it everywhere. I follow my gut and my feelings, as we all do, and I find very little truth in the drive-by media, and much more of it in what the conservative media are saying.
I don't mindlessly follow what they are saying, like some brainless zombie, as some of my friends and family members have said. I don't agree with everything Mr. Limbaugh and Mr. Beck are saying. I study things out in my mind. I research the stories they talk about. I pray about them, and decide for myself what I believe. If more people would do the same thing, I think we would be much better off.

OK, rant over. I've got a lot of interesting and mysterious stories coming up, so stay tuned!

Below is a link to my most recent book review, "Clans of the Alphane Moon" by Philip K. Dick.

Clans of the Alphane Moon by Philip K. Dick

My rating: 4 of 5 stars


I found this to be a very interesting study of what might happen if the various patients from a mental hospital were abandoned on another world.... What kind of society would they create? He answers this masterfully. A lot of research must have gone into writing this book, as he goes into detail about the differences between different mental illnesses, and their effects on the individual sufferer. 

Another element of this book I enjoyed was the simulactrum. I love robots in science fiction, and Philip Dick was one of the best writers of stories featuring robots and androids.  The simulacrum are robots that look human, and for the most part are controlled remotely by a human; although, in this story, the simulacrum could act autonomously if needed. 

I would recommend this book to not only sf and PKD fans, but also fans of psychology and physiology.



View all my reviews

It's possible that this is Depression talking, but days like today I despair of life.  I don't think I'd ever actively seek to kill myself, or even formulate a plan, because I know too much about the hereafter to ever make such a blunder.  But days like today really make death look more and more inviting.

In fact, I'm fairly sure this is Depression talking, because nothing really horrible happened today.  I've just been having trouble getting my 8 year-old daughter to do her chores.  When she does do them, it is generally with much whining and complaining, something I just can't abide, because we were never allowed to do that in my house.  However, I was dealing with her attitude alright, up until she yelled at me to "shut up".  I shut her up in her room (there's no lock, but she still hates this), and she proceeded to scream and cry.  I wasn't terribly upset...more annoyed than anything.  But something changed inside, and I entered what I call a "slow" period.  When I start to go "slow", it feels like I am moving in slow motion. My muscles stop responding properly, my limbs refuse to cooperate, and I know I must quickly find somewhere to sit or I will fall where I stand.  During a Slow Period, I am a toy with a dying battery--I wind down until I stop completely.  Sometimes I come out of it while I can still move, but generally I reach a stage where I can no longer move, speak, or even hold my eyes open.  My mind is still alert, but it is trapped in a sleeping body.

This is what is happening to me now.

I've never done any writing during a Slow Period, so I'm hoping doing so has some kind of positive effect; perhaps the act of thinking and writing will shorten the Period, and keep me from freezing completely.  But, it is while I am in this state that Mr. Depression comes a-knockin'. 

Depression goes hand-in-hand with anxiety, and it is anxiety that is probably the cause of my Slow Periods. Because of this, it is generally in my Slow Periods that I feel like I want to die; that I feel worthless; that I feel like life is no more than a disease, as Edgar Allen Poe described in a poem once.

But when it comes down to the absolute truth, I do not really want to die But I still can't seem to shake the gloo
Nope, the Slow Period is pulling me down futher.  I won't b able to move for a few hours in a moment, so I'd beeter finish.  

Thanks for listening!

Wow, it's hard to believe that I haven't written a post here for nearly two years!  I have a million excuses, but I won't bother...it will only bore you anyway.

There is quite a bit I've been doing lately, and I have a lot of news to catch up on.  But, since today is Sunday, I'm going to concentrate on something, well, spiritual.  I'll catch up on all that secular stuff later in the week!

I've been re-reading one of my favorite books: Life Everlasting by Duane S. Crowther.  It's a fascinating book, all about what happens to us after we die.  It includes references from the scriptures, and numerous prophets, both ancient and modern.  In case you are wondering, this book relates specifically to The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints (Mormons); however, the book was not published by or endorsed specifically by the Church.  And though the author backs up most statements with reputable references, there may be some things in there that are pure speculation.  Also, even though this is a "Mormon" book, I think it is of interest to everyone, no matter what your religion or belief system.

After all, we all die. So what happens next?

Before getting to the meat of this book, let's go over a little background.

Everyone has heard of the "Afterlife", and most religions, cults, and belief systems believe in some sort of place where a person's consciousness goes after the body dies.  Of course, many people--scientists and other "learned people" in particular--believe we don't go anywhere; that we just die, and there isn't anything else.  In fact, let's look at it from a scientific standpoint for a moment.  Most scientists, I think would agree that consciousness--the whatever-it-is inside of us that allows us to think and be self-aware--is composed of a kind of energy.  Energy also allows our bodies to move, and our brains to function.  Science teaches us that energy cannot be either created or destroyed; that it exists everywhere in the universe, and always has.  So, if our consciousness is energy, and energy is never destroyed, when the consciousness of a person flees from his or her body, it must go somewhere.  Right?

Now for the spiritual stuff.

The Afterlife takes place in the Spirit World, which is an actual place.  Just like each living thing on Earth has a spirit (consciousness, energy, etc.), so also the planet on which we live has a spirit.  It is to this spirit Earth that we go after we die.  Think of it as another dimension, sharing the same space in which we live.  This means that, if we could see the Spirit World, and if God willed it, we would see the spirits of the departed all around us.  We would see trees, flowers and animals; we would see vast cities filled with innumerable people.  We don't know the specifics on how the Spirit World works or is organized, because this hasn't been revealed.  But we do know it exists, and we know where it is.

You might be wondering what proof I have for my beliefs in this, and the simple truth is, outside of the scriptures and revelations given by modern prophets, I have none.  This is what faith is for.

The author of the book begins with going over scriptural references of the Spirit World, beginning with the Bible.  These verses are few, but they do exist.  The first is from the New Testament, in John 5:24:

                    "He that heareth my word, and believeth on him that sent me,                    hath everlasting life, and shall not come into condemnation;                    but is passed from death unto life."
This tells us that once a person dies, they pass on into "life", or another stage of existence.  I've heard a Catholic priest at a funeral describe death as a "birth into a new life".  This means that all those who have passed out of this world through the gates of death, are not really gone, but are still alive.  They still think, feel, and do.  They are simply in another place.  But a place, as we've already mentioned, that isn't far away, but is very close.
The author continues with the many stories of Jesus bringing the dead back to life: a young man in Luke 7: 12-17, the young daughter of Jairus in Luke 8: 41-55, just to name two.  Applying reason to these stories, is it not reasonable to assume that if Jesus was able to return these individuals' consciousness to their bodies, there must have been someplace to bring their consciousness back from?  It must have gone somewhere.
In this same chapter, the author then tells of the experience of a Mormon missionary by the name of Peter E. Johnson, who died and visited the Spirit World, returning to life an hour-and-a-half later, in September 1898:
"My spirit left the body; just how I cannot tell.  But I perceived myself standing some four or five feet in the air, and saw my body lying on the bed.  I felt perfectly natural, but as this was a new condition, I began to make observations.  I turned my head, shrugged my shoulders, felt with my hands, and realized that it was myself.  I also knew that my body was lying, lifeless, on the bed.  While I was in a new environment, it did not seem strange, for I realized everything that was going on, and perceived that I was the same in the spirit as I had been in the body.  While contemplating this new condition, something attracted my attention, and on turning around I beheld a personage who said: 'You did not know that I was here.'  I replied: 'No, but I see you are here.  Who are you?'  'I am your guardian angel; I have been following you constantly while on earth.'  I asked: 'What will you do now?'  He replied: 'I am to report your presence, and you will remain here until I return.'
Mr. Crowther goes on and on with many other examples, but this gives a taste of what Life Everlasting is about.  I recommend this book highly, as it is very interesting and informative.  It can be found at libraries, for sale at Amazon.com, and many bookstores.

Green Lantern, Vol. 1: Sinestro by Geoff Johns
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

This was a fantastic, deeper look into the ever-mysterious Green Lantern villain, Sinestro, about whom fans like me have been clamoring for information, refusing to believe that he is simply "evil". It is extremely rare for a comic book villain to show any degree of sorrow or remorse for past actions, yet Sinestro does, and even solicits Hal Jordan's help to destroy his own Sinestro Corps. Of course, he does this in a very Sinestro-style way, keeping Jordan on a leash of sorts, to ensure that he has full control. As is usual with a Geoff Johns story, the characters are all fully rounded and realized, and not merely cardboard cutouts as is sometimes found in comic books. For these reasons and others, I give this collection five stars!

View all my reviews

I spent the day today taking pictures of graves at a nearby cemetery. Why on earth would I do something so morbid, you ask? Well, if you knew me, you would know that I am a morbid person anyway. The obituaries page is the first thing I read in a newspaper. The comics section is the second, but that's besides the point. But my fascination with death has nothing to do with it.

For some time now, my wife and I have been volunteer photographers for a website called FindAGrave.com. This is a wonderful place to go for people who want to view pictures of the graves of loved ones, see where famous people are buried, or just remember those who have passed on. You can even place virtual flowers and messages on a person's page. Now, some may be wondering why people would want to do these things. But think about it. Eventually, all of us will die. I know, I know, you think you will live forever, but--I'm sorry to break it to you--you won't! This mortal life ends for everyone, and we will all end up being stuffed into a hole in the ground somewhere while our spirits wing their way to the Afterlife. Each gravestone, therefore represents a real person, someone who was once a thinking, breathing individual, complete with hopes and dreams, likes and dislikes, joys and pains. For most people, especially those who die young, the gravestone is the only existing proof that they lived at all. And nobody wants to be forgotten.

So my wife and I have made it our mission to help people not be forgotten. As a volunteer, you can have FindAGrave notify you when someone has requested a photo of a gravesite nearby. On your account page, you put your ZIP code, and the system will send you requests that are within about 50 miles of the ZIP. You can choose to accept it or not. You can also do what we do, which is look on the site to find out which cemeteries are listed, and which are not. Frequently, we find that a cemetery nearby is either not listed or there are not many grave photos on file. So when we have a little spare time, we go to that particular cemetery and snap some pictures. You'd be amazed at how little time it actually takes to take a few dozen pictures.

When you begin taking pictures of gravestones, you may find that most stones are not kept up very well, especially if you are taking pictures in an old cemetery. The cemetery I went to today, which is Fairview Cemetery in Cheney, Washington, is quite old. Some gravestones date all the way back to 1830. Most of the gravestones were either badly weathered, or broken, or covered in different varieties of moss. You'll also find some stones covered in weeds, or buried under bushes, low tree limbs, or even layers of dirt. So I always try to bring some tools with me, like gardening clippers, several rags, water, and a knife. The knife is for scraping away the most difficult patches of moss, and for digging moss and dirt out of the names and dates on the stones so that they can be read. You gotta be careful when scraping with a knife, though. A lot of the older stones are very soft, and can be easily scratched, so it's best to just use a rag and some water. I'm by no means an expert at gravestone cleaning, but these are a few things which have worked for me.

So instead of lazing around in front of the boob-tube, get out there and take some pictures of some graves! You'll be helping the living to remember their dead, as well as making sure the dead are not entirely forgotten!

I spent the day today taking pictures of graves at a nearby cemetery.  Why on earth would I do something so morbid, you ask?  Well, if you knew me, you would know that I am a morbid person anyway.  The obituaries page is the first thing I read in a newspaper.  The comics section is the second, but that's besides the point.  But my fascination with death has nothing to do with it.

For some time now, my wife and I have been volunteer photographers for a website called FindAGrave.com.  This is a wonderful place to go for people who want to view pictures of the graves of loved ones, see where famous people are buried, or just remember those who have passed on.  You can even place virtual flowers and messages on a person's page.  Now, some may be wondering why people would want to do these things.  But think about it.  Eventually, all of us will die.  I know, I know, you think you will live forever, but--I'm sorry to break it to you--you won't!  This mortal life ends for everyone, and we will all end up being stuffed into a hole in the ground somewhere while our spirits wing their way to the Afterlife.  Each gravestone, therefore represents a real person, someone who was once a thinking, breathing individual, complete with hopes and dreams, likes and dislikes, joys and pains.  For most people, especially those who die young, the gravestone is the only existing proof that they lived at all.  And nobody wants to be forgotten.

So my wife and I have made it our mission to help people not be forgotten.  As a volunteer, you can have FindAGrave notify you when someone has requested a photo of a gravesite nearby.  On your account page, you put your ZIP code, and the system will send you requests that are within about 50 miles of the ZIP.  You can choose to accept it or not.  You can also do what we do, which is look on the site to find out which cemeteries are listed, and which are not.  Frequently, we find that a cemetery nearby is either not listed or there are not many grave photos on file.  So when we have a little spare time, we go to that particular cemetery and snap some pictures.  You'd be amazed at how little time it actually takes to take a few dozen pictures.

When you begin taking pictures of gravestones, you may find that most stones are not kept up very well, especially if you are taking pictures in an old cemetery. The cemetery I went to today, which is Fairview Cemetery in Cheney, Washington, is quite old.  Some gravestones date all the way back to 1830.  Most of the gravestones were either badly weathered, or broken, or covered in different varieties of moss.  You'll also find some stones covered in weeds, or buried under bushes, low tree limbs, or even layers of dirt.  So I always try to bring some tools with me, like gardening clippers, several rags, water, and a knife.  The knife is for scraping away the most difficult patches of moss, and for digging moss and dirt out of the names and dates on the stones so that they can be read.  You gotta be careful when scraping with a knife, though.  A lot of the older stones are very soft, and can be easily scratched, so it's best to just use a rag and some water.  I'm by no means an expert at gravestone cleaning, but these are a few things which have worked for me.

So instead of lazing around in front of the boob-tube, get out there and take some pictures of some graves!  You'll be helping the living to remember their dead, as well as making sure the dead are not entirely forgotten!

Howdy fans!

You may have heard about the two new bills being considered by congress, to increase regulation of the internet in the guise of making the internet "safer". I've studied this issue carefully, and I have to stand against it, and I encourage everyone to do the same.

As Americans, we are all about freedom. Freedom of the Press is what is at stake here. The internet is one of the last free markets there is. Because of this, there is a lot of evil on it, but it's the same with anything else. You are in control of what you look at, and let your children look at, so you are the one who should be policing your household's usage of the internet, NOT the government.

Almost any time the government has gotten involved in something, things have gotten worse. Need examples? Just look at Pres. Obama's administration. Remember he spent more than $300 Billion on stimulus packages--more than any other president in history--but things haven't gotten any better. Unemployment hasn't changed much, and prices continue to rise. Gas is still more than $3 a gallon. This "free" country is becoming a socialist state before our eyes. Don't let the government turn our internet into a police state as well!

You want protection from computer viruses? Get antivirus software like Norton. You want protection from porn and other garbage? Get family-safe browsing software. We already have the tools to protect ourselves. All the government will do is make more laws and regulations, drive the cost of everything up, and drive a lot of good sites like Wikipedia out of business.

Please contact your representatives right now and tell them to vote no on SOPA and PIPA. It's easy, and will only take a few minutes. Wikipedia has set up an awesome page to help you find out who your reps are. Just go to wikipedia.org/wiki/Special:CongressLo... to plug in your zip code, and contact links for your local representatives will pop up. These lead to their individual web page contact forms.

Thanks for reading, and stay smiling!

Michael to plug in your zip code, and contact links for your local representatives will pop up. These lead to their individual web page contact forms.

Thanks for reading, and stay smiling!

Michael

Howdy fans!

You may have heard about the two new bills being considered by congress, to increase regulation of the internet in the guise of making the internet "safer".  I've studied this issue carefully, and I have to stand against it, and I encourage everyone to do the same.

 As Americans, we are all about freedom.  Freedom of the Press is what is at stake here. The internet is one of the last free markets there is.  Because of this, there is a lot of evil on it, but it's the same with anything else.  You are in control of what you look at, and let your children look at, so you are the one who should be policing your household's usage of the internet, NOT the government.

Almost any time the government has gotten involved in something, things have gotten worse.  Need examples?  Just look at Pres. Obama's administration.  Remember he spent more than $300 Billion on stimulus packages--more than any other president in history--but things haven't gotten any better.  Unemployment hasn't changed much, and prices continue to rise.  Gas is still more than $3 a gallon.  This "free" country is becoming a socialist state before our eyes.  Don't let the government turn our internet into a police state as well!

You want protection from computer viruses? Get antivirus software like Norton.  You want protection from porn and other garbage?  Get family-safe browsing software.  We already have the tools to protect ourselves.  All the government will do is make more laws and regulations, drive the cost of everything up, and drive a lot of good sites like Wikipedia out of business.

Please contact your representatives right now and tell them to vote no on SOPA and PIPA.  It's easy, and will only take a few minutes. Wikipedia has set up an awesome page to help you find out who your reps are.  Just go here to plug in your zip code, and contact links for your local representatives will pop up.  These lead to their individual web page contact forms. 

Thanks for reading, and stay smiling!

Michael