December 2010 Archives
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December 31, 2010
Gonzalo Rubio On Assyriology
“I felt that I needed to work in a field in which I could not only say new things but also see new things.” While not very deep, the LifeScience Q and A piece with Gonzalo Rubio is interesting. I...Read all of "Gonzalo Rubio On Assyriology"
Posted by Duane Smith at 9:30 AM
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A 1056 Page Book With A 404 Page Review
Among the several books I received for Christmas this year was Josef Tropper’s Ugaritische Grammatik. I’ve used a library copy from time to time but the nearest copy is over 20 miles away so its nice to have it within...Read all of "A 1056 Page Book With A 404 Page Review"
Posted by Duane Smith at 8:51 AM
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December 29, 2010
A Lesbian Amphora From Tel Qudadi
Gee, I didn’t know amphorae had sexual orientation. Science Daily (and other places) has a report on 8th - early 7th century BCE Tel Qudadi. Tel Qudadi is on the shore of the Mediterranean, within the Tel Aviv megalopolis. Here...Read all of "A Lesbian Amphora From Tel Qudadi"
Posted by Duane Smith at 8:10 AM
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December 28, 2010
Proofreading Akkadian Prayers
Alan Lenzi just sent me what amounts to the page proofs for one of my chapters in his forthcoming Reading Akkadian Prayers and Hymns – An Introduction. I’ve just started working through it. I don’t know what I may eventually...Read all of "Proofreading Akkadian Prayers"
Posted by Duane Smith at 4:27 PM
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December 27, 2010
Why I Don’t Trust Experts
Recently, I had a conversation with an acquaintance on the question of why one should trust experts when they are often wrong. Put too simply, he argued that experts couldn't be trusted and I argued that they could be trusted....
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Posted by Duane Smith at 1:31 PM
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December 26, 2010
Unfortunately, A Quotation For The Ages
From the preface to Einhard’s The Life of Charlemagne, I have been careful not to omit any facts that could come to my knowledge, but at the same time not to offend by a prolix style those minds that despise...Read all of "Unfortunately, A Quotation For The Ages"
Posted by Duane Smith at 10:09 AM
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December 24, 2010
A Journey To Bethlehem
Because I’m busy lazy today, I decided to repost my December 24th post from last year. On this day before Christmas, I thought I'd share Mark Twain's report of his visit to Bethlehem. He and a group of other innocents...Read all of "A Journey To Bethlehem"
Posted by Duane Smith at 8:45 AM
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December 23, 2010
Please Stand To The Side
Ed Brayton posted an rant about clueless walkers. He proposes that people who walk around in public places should be required to take training and acquire a license. But in listing several of walker offenses, Ed missed one of my...Read all of "Please Stand To The Side"
Posted by Duane Smith at 10:26 AM
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December 22, 2010
Good News For The Humanities
At least good news for the humanities at the University of Wisconsin-Madison: In nearly every corner of the world the humanities have been under fire and under budgeted for some time. Now it looks like there may be a real...Read all of "Good News For The Humanities"
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December 21, 2010
The Devil You Say!
I’m working on a compulsory “See, I know the history of interpretation” footnote for a paper on the snake in Genesis 3. One weirder part of that history of interpretation is the identification of the snake with Satan or the...Read all of "The Devil You Say!"
Posted by Duane Smith at 10:11 AM
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December 20, 2010
On Not Seeing Your Ears
In "A Fable," Mark Twain has the cat express the moral, "You can find in a text whatever you bring, if you will stand between it and the mirror of your imagination. You may not see your ears, but they...Read all of "On Not Seeing Your Ears"
Posted by Duane Smith at 10:19 AM
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December 17, 2010
I Get Comments
Generally, more than half of them are spam comments but today I got an extra load. Here’s one I practically liked but didn’t agree to post. “As a contractor, I address some of these issues are (sic) a regular basis...thanks...
Posted by Duane Smith at 2:27 PM
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December 16, 2010
The Rabbis And Akkadian Omens
While doing research for a paper I’m working on, I ran across a couple of interesting passages from Rabbinic literature. The first is from Sifrei Deuteronomy 171. It offers examples divination. For instance, if he says that bread has fallen...Read all of "The Rabbis And Akkadian Omens"
Posted by Duane Smith at 9:06 AM
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December 15, 2010
Science Fiction As Religion
A few months ago I posted “Biblical Minimalism, Science Fiction and Myth” in which I built upon an observation by classicist Elizabeth Vandiver. Simply put, science fiction is, in part(?), a response to our desire to make myth. Well, from...Read all of "Science Fiction As Religion"
Posted by Duane Smith at 10:24 AM
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December 14, 2010
Cassuto And The Snake
Referring to the snake of Genesis 3:1-7, in 1944 Umberto Cassuto wrote, The documents and pictures of the peoples of the ancient East do not assist us to solve the problem of the serpent in our section. We find there...Read all of "Cassuto And The Snake"
Posted by Duane Smith at 10:04 AM
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December 13, 2010
Polyglot Meme
I’ve been tagged. Jim Getz has called me out. He wants to know what languages I know no matter how poorly I may know them. As drafted by James McGrath, who proposed this exercise, here’s the criteria. I've decided to...
Posted by Duane Smith at 6:07 PM
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New Old Temple Discovered In Syria
Global Arab Network is reporting the discovery of a “pre-Hellenistic” temple at Tal Ahmar in Southern Syria. Stone stairs and the foundations of a temple built on the ruins of an older temple from the pre-Hellenistic period were unearthed at...Read all of "New Old Temple Discovered In Syria"
Posted by Duane Smith at 11:14 AM
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December 11, 2010
Four Stone Hearth 107 Is Up
Ooops! I’m a couple of days late but not too late to mention that the anthropology web carnival Four Stone Hearth is up at Archive Fire. It’s also not too late you to give it a look....Read all of "Four Stone Hearth 107 Is Up"
Posted by Duane Smith at 1:29 PM
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December 10, 2010
On The Crafty Snake
In Genesis 3:1 we are told, “Now the snake was the craftiest of all the animals of the field that YHWH God had made.” I’m being somewhat literal in part of this and somewhat arbitrary in another part of it....Read all of "On The Crafty Snake"
Posted by Duane Smith at 10:24 AM
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December 9, 2010
What’s In A Name?
If you haven’t seen it, Darrell Pursiful, aka Dr. Platypus, has posted a very helpful, not to mention abnormally interesting, list of (mostly) “Online Resources for Ancient Names.” Good stuff, check it out....Read all of "What’s In A Name?"
Posted by Duane Smith at 7:00 AM
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December 8, 2010
Things To Remember
This is fundamental to understanding what's happened to the American economy in recent decades: a little bit of money from a large number of people becomes a very large amount of money when it gets channeled into the bank accounts...Read all of "Things To Remember"
Posted by Duane Smith at 10:38 AM
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December 7, 2010
Finkelstein and Qeiyafa
Over at Roses and Razorwire, Owen Chestnut has written a two part response to Israel Finkelstein’s SBL paper on Qeiyafa. I call particular attention Owen’s comments on the identification of the site and the issue of the scale of the...Read all of "Finkelstein and Qeiyafa"
Posted by Duane Smith at 8:38 AM
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December 6, 2010
On Ancient Translations – “Consistently Diverse”
Theodorus Anthonie Willem van der Louw wrote in his 2006 Leiden dissertation, Transformations in the Septuagint: towards an interaction of Septuagint studies and translation studies, Our survey of thoughts on language and translation in Antiquity presents a consistently diverse picture....Read all of "On Ancient Translations – “Consistently Diverse”"
Posted by Duane Smith at 4:09 PM
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December 5, 2010
The World Won’t End On October 21, 2011
And Jesus won’t return on May 21, 2011 but there sure will be a lot of excuses after those dates. This web site serves as an introduction and portal to four faithful ministries which are teaching that WE CAN KNOW...Read all of "The World Won’t End On October 21, 2011"
Posted by Duane Smith at 1:28 PM
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Death More Lively Than Vierne’s Messe Solennelle
It’s one of those times of the year when concerts come one after another. A couple of nights ago we attended the Holiday Concert of the Claremont Concert and Chamber Choir’s. These are the vocal ensembles of Claremont McKenna, Harvey...Read all of "Death More Lively Than Vierne’s Messe Solennelle"
Posted by Duane Smith at 10:42 AM
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December 4, 2010
Old Photos From Palestine and Environs
Palestine Exploration Fund has posted a large collection of great old pictures on Flickr. Everyone of them is a gem in its own right. I particularly enjoyed those of the Jaffa Gate and Damascus Gate areas of old city Jerusalem....Read all of "Old Photos From Palestine and Environs"
Posted by Duane Smith at 4:06 PM
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December 2, 2010
More On Hazor
Jennie Ebeling has an instructive summary of the recent excavations at Hazor. Head over to Bible and Interpretation and check it out. While all the work there is important, none is more so than the continued discovery of tablets. In...
Posted by Duane Smith at 3:56 PM
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December 1, 2010
Biblical Studies Carnival נז Is Up
Deane Galbraith has the latest Biblical Studies Carnival up at Religion Bulletin. With many bibliobloggers spending much of November hanging out in hotel bars drinking find wine and discussing the usual stuff – audio visual equipment fees and sausages -...Read all of "Biblical Studies Carnival נז Is Up"
Posted by Duane Smith at 7:12 AM
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