letslook4treasure:

Striped Icebergs

Icebergs sometimes have stripes, formed by layers of ice deposited on different conditions. Blue stripes are created when a crevice in the ice sheet fills up with meltwater and freezes so quickly that no bubbles form. Green stripes form when an iceberg falls into the sea and a layer of water rich in algae freezes onto the bottom.  Brown, black and yellow lines are caused by sediment, picked up when the ice sheet grinds downhill towards the sea. 

(Photos: Antarctica Series by Steve Nicol)

Artificial cranial deformation, head flattening, or head binding is a form of permanent body alteration in which the skull of a human being is intentionally deformed. It is done by distorting the normal growth of a child’s skull by applying force. Flat shapes, elongated ones (produced by binding between two pieces of wood), rounded ones (binding in cloth) and conical ones are among those chosen. It is typically carried out on an infant, as the skull is most pliable at this time. In a typical case, headbinding begins approximately a month after birth and continues for about six months.

In the Old World, Huns and Alans are also known to have practised similar cranial deformation. In Late Antiquity (AD 300-600), the East Germanic tribes who were ruled by the Huns, adopted this custom (Gepids, Ostrogoths, Heruli, Rugii and Burgundians). In western Germanic tribes, artificial skull deformations have rarely been found.

romulanxale:

What is Taught: The first mention of man in flight was by Roger Bacon, who drew a flying apparatus. Leonardo da Vinci also conceived of airborne transport and drew several prototypes.

What Should be Taught: Abbas ibn Firnas of Islamic Spain invented, constructed, and tested a flying machine in the 9th century CE. Roger Bacon learned of flying machines from Arabic references to Firnas’ machine. The latter’s invention antedates Bacon by 500 years and Da Vinci by some 700 years.

Abbas ibn Firnas (810–887 CE)was the first person to make a real attempt to construct a flying machine and fly. In the 9th century he designed a winged apparatus, roughly resembling a bird costume. In his most famous trial near Cordoba in Spain, Firnas flew upward for a few moments, flying a considerable distance before falling to the ground and partially breaking his back. His designs would undoubtedly have been an inspiration for famed Italian artist and inventor Leonardo da Vinci’s hundreds of years later.

biomedicalephemera:

The Ornithorhynchus

This illustration makes me feel like I could train a platypus to beg for treats…they’d probably stab me with their venomous leg-spikes. Well, the males, at least. 

Types of Animal Life. St. George Mivart, 1893.