May 2011 Archives
« April 2011 | Main | June 2011 »
May 31, 2011
New Old Statue of Amenhotep III Found
During a routine excavation at the funerary temple of the 18th Dynasty king, Amenhotep III (c. 1390-1352 BC), at Kom el-Hettan area on Luxor’s west bank, the mission of the Colossi of Memnon and Amenhotep III Temple Conservation Project unearthed...Read all of "New Old Statue of Amenhotep III Found"
Posted by Duane Smith at 11:51 AM
| Read more on Archaeology |
| Abnormal Comments (0)
| TrackBack (0)
| Abnormal Archive Link |
May 28, 2011
Babies are Bayesians?
From the abstract of a recent paper in Science: When 12-month-old infants view complex displays of multiple moving objects, they form time-varying expectations about future events that are a systematic and rational function of several stimulus variables. Infants’ looking times...Read all of "Babies are Bayesians?"
Posted by Duane Smith at 8:19 AM
| Read more on Odds and Ends |
| Abnormal Comments (1)
| TrackBack (0)
| Abnormal Archive Link |
May 27, 2011
3D Printable Tablet Replications Ready For Download
The idea has been around for some time but now you can download your own printable 3D replications of clay tablets from Cornell’s Creative Machines Lab. All you need is a powder-based ink-jet printer, preferably the ZCorp ZPrinter 650. This...Read all of "3D Printable Tablet Replications Ready For Download"
Posted by Duane Smith at 7:57 AM
| Read more on Akkadian |
| Abnormal Comments (0)
| TrackBack (0)
| Abnormal Archive Link |
May 25, 2011
On Genesis 3:1a And The Common English Bible
The Common English Bible translates Genesis 3:1a, וְהַנָּחָשׁ֙ הָיָ֣ה עָר֔וּם מִכֹּל֙ חַיַּ֣ת הַשָּׂדֶ֔ה אֲשֶׁ֥ר עָשָׂ֖ה יְהוָ֣ה אֱלֹהִ֑ים, “The snake was the most intelligent of all the wild animals that the LORD God had made.” The whole of their translation of...Read all of "On Genesis 3:1a And The Common English Bible"
Posted by Duane Smith at 4:17 PM
| Read more on Hebrew Bible |
| Abnormal Comments (3)
| TrackBack (0)
| Abnormal Archive Link |
May 24, 2011
What To Do?
Shirley and I are putting together a little exhibit for our local public library that will feature some of the pots I discussed in my old Friday Pot Blogging series. It will include a few other things archaeological plus some...
Posted by Duane Smith at 2:45 PM
| Read more on Archaeology |
| Abnormal Comments (0)
| TrackBack (0)
| Abnormal Archive Link |
May 22, 2011
Speculation On Speculation
I’ve been speculating about speculation in the study of ancient texts and how explicit one should be in noting it in one’s own work. Specifically, I’ve been speculating about historical and linguistic arguments that depend on evidence of questionable relevance....Read all of "Speculation On Speculation"
Posted by Duane Smith at 8:43 AM
| Read more on Hebrew Bible |
| Abnormal Comments (0)
| TrackBack (0)
| Abnormal Archive Link |
May 21, 2011
“Bunkagesis,” “Offalgesis,” or “Fecalgesis”
Mike Heiser is in a quandary about which of these words best describes the kind on nonsense propagated by the Harold Campings of this world. I go for “Fecalgesis.” Head over to The Naked Bible and let Mike know what...Read all of "“Bunkagesis,” “Offalgesis,” or “Fecalgesis”"
Posted by Duane Smith at 8:30 PM
| Read more on Hebrew Bible |
| Abnormal Comments (0)
| TrackBack (0)
| Abnormal Archive Link |
This Story Raises More Questions Than It Answers
Can you redo a prayer? A prayer at Friday’s session of the Minnesota House given by anti-gay preacher Bradlee Dean erupted a firestorm of criticism among DFL legislators and some in the GOP. Dean, whose fiery brand of anti-LGBT preaching...Read all of "This Story Raises More Questions Than It Answers"
Posted by Duane Smith at 9:21 AM
| Read more on Religion |
| Abnormal Comments (1)
| TrackBack (0)
| Abnormal Archive Link |
Anyone Missing?
It’s now after 6:00 PM in much of Europe and places east. Are there an unusually number of people unaccounted for? I didn’t think so. Harold Camping needs to go back to his calculations and see who he can con...
Posted by Duane Smith at 8:57 AM
| Read more on Religion |
| Abnormal Comments (0)
| TrackBack (0)
| Abnormal Archive Link |
May 20, 2011
Wondering The Tracks Exhibits
Aydin Örstan of Snail’s Tales has a long running series on boxcar graffiti. I think his last post featured contribution 74. I’ve seen a good deal of boxcar graffiti myself but nothing to compare with the artistic merit of most...
Read all of "Wondering The Tracks Exhibits"
Posted by Duane Smith at 1:25 PM
| Read more on Odds and Ends |
| Abnormal Comments (0)
| TrackBack (0)
| Abnormal Archive Link |
May 19, 2011
So You Think Our Political Rhetoric Is Over The Top
Because I had State Archives of Assyria volume 3 checked out of the library, I'd thought I browse through it for anything abnormally interesting. A political incantation against one Bel-eṭit was the first thing that I didn’t otherwise know about...Read all of "So You Think Our Political Rhetoric Is Over The Top"
Posted by Duane Smith at 9:35 AM
| Read more on Akkadian |
| Abnormal Comments (1)
| TrackBack (0)
| Abnormal Archive Link |
May 18, 2011
It’s Not Just About The Future
The Akkadian tablet K. 4730 + Sm 1816, commonly called “The Sin of Sargon,” is one of the strangest compositions I know of. The beginning and end are now lost but after a brief introduction the text features a speech...Read all of "It’s Not Just About The Future"
Posted by Duane Smith at 9:14 AM
| Read more on Akkadian |
| Abnormal Comments (0)
| TrackBack (0)
| Abnormal Archive Link |
May 17, 2011
The Press And The Crazy
Jim West actually has a good idea. Here’s my suggestion: when some ridiculous claim is made by the Simchas of the world and someone writes or discovers a reasonable, responsible, scholarly debunking each and every one of us copy the...Read all of "The Press And The Crazy"
Posted by Duane Smith at 9:37 AM
| Read more on Current Events |
| Abnormal Comments (0)
| TrackBack (0)
| Abnormal Archive Link |
May 16, 2011
The End Is Coming
If it weren’t for reports that Jesus will return on May 21 and that some god will destroy the world on October 21, blog traffic here would be normal. But traffic is abnormally high for this time of year. Something...Read all of "The End Is Coming"
Posted by Duane Smith at 11:22 AM
| Read more on Religion |
| Abnormal Comments (5)
| TrackBack (0)
| Abnormal Archive Link |
May 14, 2011
On Theologians Economists
Peter Radford, at Real World Economics, writes of failed economists, They are still teaching whatever they first thought. No amount of empirical data threatens their prestige. Why? Here’s the great scam: because economics is a self-contained, self-referential pursuit disconnected, very...
Read all of "On Theologians Economists"
Posted by Duane Smith at 11:17 AM
| Read more on Odds and Ends |
| Abnormal Comments (2)
| TrackBack (0)
| Abnormal Archive Link |
May 13, 2011
Sealed And Delivered
The other day Glen Gordon, proprietor of Paleoglot and frequent commenter here, called our attention to a collection of images of things ancient provided by Holly Pittman of the University of Pennsylvania. An image of a cylinder seal impression on...Read all of "Sealed And Delivered"
Posted by Duane Smith at 2:55 PM
| Read more on Ugarit |
| Abnormal Comments (0)
| TrackBack (0)
| Abnormal Archive Link |
May 12, 2011
A Well Aged Wine
I enjoy a small class of wine every evening. I normally drink the cheep stuff but once in a while, I’ll splurge on something whose vantage is indicated in years rather than days. But this is ridiculous. Archaeologists have discovered...Read all of "A Well Aged Wine"
Posted by Duane Smith at 10:22 AM
| Read more on Archaeology |
| Abnormal Comments (0)
| TrackBack (0)
| Abnormal Archive Link |
May 11, 2011
Dreaming Of A Flood
One of the strangest oneiromancy reports occurs in Ea’s reply to Enlil in Gilgamesh tablet XI. It was not I who disclosed the secret of the great gods. I caused Atrahasis to have a dream, and so he heard the...Read all of "Dreaming Of A Flood"
Posted by Duane Smith at 12:24 PM
| Read more on Akkadian |
| Abnormal Comments (1)
| TrackBack (0)
| Abnormal Archive Link |
May 9, 2011
The Proper Order Of Things
I’m working on an essay that I plan to submit to an open access journal that publishes stuff on the Hebrew Bible. But every time I read my evolving but nearly complete drafts, I worry that there is something wrong...Read all of "The Proper Order Of Things"
Posted by Duane Smith at 11:04 AM
| Read more on Humor |
| Abnormal Comments (3)
| TrackBack (0)
| Abnormal Archive Link |
May 7, 2011
Happy Birthday David Hume
This is David Hume’s 300th birthday. He was born May 7, 1711. According Henry Farrell at Crooked Timber, we’re supposed to post Hume quotations. So here is a couple that I thought I remembered, at least partially, but actually had...Read all of "Happy Birthday David Hume"
Posted by Duane Smith at 6:30 PM
| Read more on Odds and Ends |
| Abnormal Comments (0)
| TrackBack (0)
| Abnormal Archive Link |
May 6, 2011
Among The Problems With Anti- Sharia Legislation: Halachah
With conservative lawmakers across the United States trying to outlaw sharia, or Islamic religious law, Jewish organizations are concerned that halachah could be next. If the state legislative initiatives targeting sharia are successful, they would gut a central tenet of...Read all of "Among The Problems With Anti- Sharia Legislation: Halachah"
Posted by Duane Smith at 3:45 PM
| Read more on Current Events |
| Abnormal Comments (0)
| TrackBack (0)
| Abnormal Archive Link |
May 5, 2011
Solid Liberal
I took the political typology quiz from the Pew Research Center. And guess what? Based on your responses, YOU are a… Solid Liberal Along with 14% of the public No real surprise there. I was a little surprised that so...
Posted by Duane Smith at 8:42 AM
| Read more on Odds and Ends |
| Abnormal Comments (2)
| TrackBack (0)
| Abnormal Archive Link |
May 4, 2011
A Jolly Edition Of The Biblical Studies Carnival Is Up
Jim Linville has done a bang-up job with this month’s Biblical Studies Carnival, the Jolly Great Hodge Podge edition. The illustrations are amazing and many of the links are abnormal. Amazing! Give it a look....Read all of "A Jolly Edition Of The Biblical Studies Carnival Is Up"
Posted by Duane Smith at 8:15 AM
| Read more on Hebrew Bible |
| Abnormal Comments (0)
| TrackBack (0)
| Abnormal Archive Link |
May 2, 2011
Osama bin Laden’s Death
I consider it beyond unseemly to celebrate any death, particularly the killing of a fellow human being. However, that doesn’t keep me from feeling that the killing of Osama bin Laden’s was a positive development....Read all of "Osama bin Laden’s Death"
Posted by Duane Smith at 1:21 PM
| Read more on Current Events |
| Abnormal Comments (1)
| TrackBack (0)
| Abnormal Archive Link |
May 1, 2011
Strange Demographics
Shirley and I attend two group activities that appear to me to have strange demographics. We attend the Skeptics Society lecture series, mostly book tour lectures, and concerts at our local colleges. My impression is that in both cases the...Read all of "Strange Demographics"
Posted by Duane Smith at 6:30 PM
| Read more on Odds and Ends |
| Abnormal Comments (0)
| TrackBack (0)
| Abnormal Archive Link |