January 2008 Archives
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January 31, 2008
Biblical Studies Carnival XXVI Is Up
Biblical Studies Carnival XXVI Is Up At Biblicalia And is it ever up. What a job. Even if you don't have time to take every link be sure to read Kevin's abnormally interesting running commentary. This must be one of...Read all of "Biblical Studies Carnival XXVI Is Up"
Posted by Duane Smith at 8:21 PM
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Three Sentences From Page 123
Iyov has tagged me to carry on the nearest book meme. The rules are as follows: Pick up the nearest book of 123 pages or more. (No cheating!) Find Page 123. Find the first 5 sentences. Post the next 3...Read all of "Three Sentences From Page 123"
Posted by Duane Smith at 8:03 PM
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The ŠLMT Seal and How We Learn
At blogging speed this is a little late. I think Chris at Higgaion was the first to bring it to the attention of the blogging community. Eilat Mazar, who discovered the subject seal, first read it tmḥ. Peter van der...Read all of "The ŠLMT Seal and How We Learn"
Posted by Duane Smith at 10:11 AM
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January 30, 2008
Four Stone Hearth 33 Is Up
Four Stone Hearth 33 is up at Greg Laden's Blog. Perhaps readers of Abnormal Interests will find "Conspiracy Theories as Historical Just so Stories" at Archaeoporn of special interests. Thaddeus Nelson deals with the Simcha Jacobovici's work on the Talpiot...Read all of "Four Stone Hearth 33 Is Up"
Posted by Duane Smith at 7:42 PM
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January 29, 2008
The Game Is On
Jim West and Claude Mariottini are playing a lively game of Minimalist-Maximalist. I am not allowed to be a full participant in this game nor do I have any real desire to play. Therefore, I may not fully understand the...
Posted by Duane Smith at 10:53 AM
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January 28, 2008
What He Didn't Mention
I just finished listening to this President's last State of the Union Speech. There is a lot I might say about what he said, but for now, I am more interested in what he didn't say. He listed a number...Read all of "What He Didn't Mention"
Posted by Duane Smith at 7:49 PM
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January 26, 2008
Semi-Literates in the Hinterlands of Ugarit?
I have been exchanging emails with Rochelle Altman on scripts and scribal training. She believes it possible, in many cases, to distinguish between the written work of a professional scribe, that of a well-trained member of the literate elite and...Read all of "Semi-Literates in the Hinterlands of Ugarit?"
Posted by Duane Smith at 3:11 PM | TrackBack (0) | Abnormal Archive Link |
January 25, 2008
This May Light Up Your Life
PZ Myers thinks he has found some "Inappropriate iconography." Drop by Pharyngula and see what you think. I would have posted this sooner but I couldn't stop laughing. I also spent some time trying to see where one could buy...Read all of "This May Light Up Your Life"
Posted by Duane Smith at 2:22 PM
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January 24, 2008
Looting Does Matter
In the light of today's news about Federal agents raiding the Los Angeles County Museum of Art, Pasadena's Pacific Asia Museum, the Bowers Museum in Santa Ana and the Mingei International Museum in San Diego, I thought it might be...Read all of "Looting Does Matter"
Posted by Duane Smith at 8:14 PM
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January 23, 2008
Follow the Money
There has been quite a discussion on the Ancient Near East (ANE-2) list server of the ancient seal I mentioned the other day. I won't go into all the ins and outs of that discussion here. One thing that Peter...Read all of "Follow the Money"
Posted by Duane Smith at 7:39 PM
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January 22, 2008
Alligators and Those Other Alligators
I had lunch with a long time friend today. On the way home, I listened to the local all news station. They give traffic reports every ten minutes. The first report I heard said that there was an alligator on...Read all of "Alligators and Those Other Alligators"
Posted by Duane Smith at 8:19 PM
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January 19, 2008
Of Snails, Archaeology, and Climate
I always read what Aydin Örstan at Snail's Tales suggests. Well, maybe not always, but I do read his suggestions when his abnormal interests seem to align with my abnormal interests. Yesterday he directed his readers to the Archaeo+Malacology Group...Read all of "Of Snails, Archaeology, and Climate"
Posted by Duane Smith at 2:22 PM
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January 18, 2008
Things That Gods Hate
Jim West thinks Malachi 1:2-3 is "the hardest verse in the whole Bible" to "assimilate or comprehend." I guess he means assimilate into his theology. He has problems with YHWH hating Esau. Well, perhaps Jim should turn to Ba'al who...Read all of "Things That Gods Hate"
Posted by Duane Smith at 7:59 PM
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January 17, 2008
On The Seal du Jour
I was going to write a long post on the "Persian-era seal found in Jerusalem’s environs," as Chris Heard calls it. But Chris at Higgaion already wrote the post I had hoped to write. He even did the tracings I...Read all of "On The Seal du Jour"
Posted by Duane Smith at 3:39 PM | TrackBack (0) | Abnormal Archive Link |
January 16, 2008
Four Stone Hearth 32 Is Up
The 32rd edition of Four Stone Hearth, the anthropology carnival, is up at Testimony of the Spade. As usual, there is a lot of good stuff, well presented....Read all of "Four Stone Hearth 32 Is Up"
Posted by Duane Smith at 7:33 PM
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January 15, 2008
Lisa Gherardini, La Gioconda
Because I own the real Mona Lisa, I am abnormally interested in various little mysteries that surround it. It looks like one of those mysteries is now solved. Scholars at Heidelberg University have discovered strong evidence that the Mona Lisa...Read all of "Lisa Gherardini, La Gioconda"
Posted by Duane Smith at 8:34 AM
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January 14, 2008
On Wells and Walls
Although it's over two months away, I'm putting the finishing touches on my paper for WECSOR. One of those finishing touches involves working through a short paper by Samuel Iwry. Iwry suggests that the Hebrew expression מַשְׁתִּין בְּקִיר, "pisser against...Read all of "On Wells and Walls"
Posted by Duane Smith at 8:02 PM
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January 12, 2008
Hacking Vandalism Happens
There is a proposal to mandate that all new buildings and those undergoing substantial improvement in California be equipped with a radio-controlled device that allows utility companies to override settings on thermostats. I'm not sure want I think of this....
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Posted by Duane Smith at 12:58 PM
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January 11, 2008
On the "Ugaritic" Alphabet and Cuneiform Alphabets
Like Charles at Awilum, I'm working my way through Schniedewind and Hunt's A Primer on Ugaritic: Language, Culture and Literature. I'll leave it to Charles to write the definitive review of this interesting and potentially useful textbook. For now, I...Read all of "On the "Ugaritic" Alphabet and Cuneiform Alphabets"
Posted by Duane Smith at 8:09 PM
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January 10, 2008
The Power of a Beard
I've had a beard since 1971. I don't know what I look like without one. But I have always wondered if it gave me any special powers or had any special meaning. Well, Aydin Örstan at Snail's Tales consulted a...Read all of "The Power of a Beard"
Posted by Duane Smith at 8:52 PM
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January 9, 2008
In Which I Offer a Modest Suggestion
Jim West has written "What A Biblioblog Isn’t." Jim is reacting to posts by April DeConick at The Forbidden Gospel Blog and Christian Brady at Targuman. Jim makes the point that he and Chris Tilling do not "somehow mystically control...Read all of "In Which I Offer a Modest Suggestion"
Posted by Duane Smith at 7:40 PM | TrackBack (0) | Abnormal Archive Link |
I'm on My Way to Annapolis, Missouri
I have 500 copies of Dawkins' The God Delusion and I'm going to pass them out to the elementary school children in the South Iron School District. You think they might not let me do it? Well, the head of...Read all of "I'm on My Way to Annapolis, Missouri"
Posted by Duane Smith at 4:39 PM
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Found Again: the Garden of Eden
Claude Mariottini sure got this one right. I don't always agree with Claude but the man knows a Nigerian scam when he sees one. Sunday's Macau Daily Times has a report on the Ikom Monoliths in Nigeria. The report starts...Read all of "Found Again: the Garden of Eden"
Posted by Duane Smith at 12:57 PM
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More Abnormal Interest in the Hebrew Paragogic Nun
Those with truly abnormal interests may recall Charles' post at Awilum on a paper by Steven Kaufman. I responded to Charles' post with a few of my own observations. Now Peter Bekins at Balshanut has taken up this issue. Peter...Read all of "More Abnormal Interest in the Hebrew Paragogic Nun"
Posted by Duane Smith at 10:45 AM
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January 8, 2008
The Blunders of Modern Technology
Every couple of months I accumulate sufficient unchecked references to justify a trip across town to the UCLA library. I generally prepare so that when I get there I already know the call numbers of whatever it is I'm looking...Read all of "The Blunders of Modern Technology"
Posted by Duane Smith at 7:39 PM
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January 6, 2008
John Edwards and the Old Two Boy Strategy
Hillary Clinton is not my first choice for President. She is currently about second or third on my "why not the best?" list. But John Edwards is lower on my list and moving down. It this kind of cra stuff...
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Posted by Duane Smith at 12:33 PM
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January 5, 2008
My Predictions for 2008
Apparently, God has made a prediction for 2008 but his prophet won't tell what it is. Well now that the year is a few days old and I have had a change to get a feel for it, to align...Read all of "My Predictions for 2008"
Posted by Duane Smith at 3:12 PM
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January 4, 2008
What Have You Changed Your Mind About?
Every year Edge asks an "Annual Question." The 2008 question is, When thinking changes your mind, that's philosophy. When God changes your mind, that's faith. When facts change your mind, that's science. What have you changed your mind about? Why?...Read all of "What Have You Changed Your Mind About?"
Posted by Duane Smith at 4:21 PM
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January 3, 2008
Biblical Studies Carnival XXV is Up at Targuman
Like I said, "Biblical Studies Carnival XXV is Up at Targuman." Christian Brady has done a great job pulling together the best of the December posts on the study of the Bible. He did this despite the fact that a...Read all of "Biblical Studies Carnival XXV is Up at Targuman"
Posted by Duane Smith at 8:40 AM
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January 2, 2008
The Silver Screen Edition of Four Stone Hearth and Blogs I Did Not Know About
Four Stone Hearth #31 is up at Walking the Berkshires. One of the things I enjoy most about carnivals is that I get to learn about blogs that weren't previously on my radar. For example, with the publication of the...Read all of "The Silver Screen Edition of Four Stone Hearth and Blogs I Did Not Know About"
Posted by Duane Smith at 7:57 PM
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