Sooo... Sumerians invented the blue shell?

First poor Tugger, now an ark... LOL.

I wonder how they will explain how all the animals got there, and how all the animals in the world fit in a rather small boat (large for its age to be sure)... and how it is nearly a word for word copy of a much older Sumerian flood story that the Hebrew people would have learned about during the Babylonian Exile period... and how there is no physical evidence of the flood, let alone the 4500 years ago it would have happened according to the Bible...

Guess we're all supposed to feel bad about slavery, and if the cues weren't subtle enough, it has to be WHOOPIE! explaining it to Picard instead of, say, Riker.

Slavery was a worldwide enterprise for thousands of years. With the possible exception of Eskimos, there is not a race on the planet that hasn't been enlaved (or been the enslavers). Jews, Egyptians, Sumerians, Babylonians, Indians, Greeks, Romans, Chinese, Japanese, English, Irish, all have been slaves.

It's only a certain party of victimhood portraying American Blacks as the only people who were ever slaves.

In addition to the Egyptian theory stated above, I'd like to add the Sumerians into the mix. They invented the sexagesimal system (base 60) and used a unit of length called the "beru". A beru is about 10km and, given a walking speed of 5 km/h, was also used as a unit of time by the Babylonians later on, measuring in at 120 minutes. Since an average day is 12 beru long, it fit rather nicely into their base 60 system and corresponded equally well to the 12 moon cycles in a year.

The Egyptians used seasonal time, meaning their hours didn't have a fixed length -- a mix of seasonal and proper hours was used. The Babylonians, however, used "hours" of a fixed length (~120 minutes), which the Greeks split in half to end up at 24 hours a day.

Or maybe not, can't remember.

Additional tidbit of information: if a positive integer has more divisors than any smaller positive integer, we call it a "highly composite number".>> ^lampishthing:

Anybody know why there's 24 hours in a day? Apart from it being two twelves...

>> ^kceaton1:

>> ^smooman:
>> ^poolcleaner:
>> ^smooman:
when the commentators/comedians were like "what the hell is all that about? no idea" i had an epiphany: i'm fluent in a second language!!
85 smf orc warrior main, full season 11 gear (diehard PVPer). fury since vanilla. still have my tony-the-tiger zg claws with double crusader i dps'd with back in classic. fury or go home
if you understood that, you too, are fluent in wowgeek =D

I dig the proc on those zg claws.

before they changed dual wielding from being a class skill to being a spec ability at the end of wotlk, i used to dual wield em but as arms for fun and when they proc'd i'd hit bladestorm and it did the most intense animation youve seen. lightning everywhere!

Reminds me of the VERY OLD windfury proc's, so sad they killed the timing of the sound and animation--I have NO CLUE why they did that it was PERFECT as working!?!? Maybe they thought the newbies would get scared off by the pretty lights and sounds, I know I run for a ditch and /cover.
Second, as is said elsewhere in a different fashion, I'd like to point out that once they really start talking I have no idea what language they are talking in. It sounds like Sumerian, but I don't specialize in languages that old and dry...


oh god, i remember the original windfury totems when it didnt increase melee haste but instead gave a chance to proc a second attack. it was crack for fury warriors. i'll never forget one zg run we did and windfury proc'd during a huge trash pull on a whirlwind.....after i had popped recklessness....giant yellow crits filled my screen, i pulled mass aggro, and promptly died. but it was badass

not long after i completed the claw set i met a failadin out in epl, they proc'd halfway through the fight, and he bubble hearthed lol

>> ^smooman:

>> ^poolcleaner:
>> ^smooman:
when the commentators/comedians were like "what the hell is all that about? no idea" i had an epiphany: i'm fluent in a second language!!
85 smf orc warrior main, full season 11 gear (diehard PVPer). fury since vanilla. still have my tony-the-tiger zg claws with double crusader i dps'd with back in classic. fury or go home
if you understood that, you too, are fluent in wowgeek =D

I dig the proc on those zg claws.

before they changed dual wielding from being a class skill to being a spec ability at the end of wotlk, i used to dual wield em but as arms for fun and when they proc'd i'd hit bladestorm and it did the most intense animation youve seen. lightning everywhere!


Reminds me of the VERY OLD windfury proc's, so sad they killed the timing of the sound and animation--I have NO CLUE why they did that it was PERFECT as working!?!? Maybe they thought the newbies would get scared off by the pretty lights and sounds, I know I run for a ditch and /cover.

Second, as is said elsewhere in a different fashion, I'd like to point out that once they really start talking I have no idea what language they are talking in. It sounds like Sumerian, but I don't specialize in languages that old and dry...

>> ^bobknight33:

Loving someone enough to tell them that what they are doing is wrong is a good thing. Turning your head and letting wrong behavior continue doesn't help anyone.
Sadly the younger generation has been fed such a pack a moral lies that they don't know the difference between right and wrong.
For the most part what is morally right today was morally wrong 30 years ago. Has man obtained such wisdom in this short period of time to discount the wisdom of the past thousand years?
>> ^bareboards2:
What I find is that some Christians are quick to call it "evil" when more truly loving folk call it "compassion" and "acceptance of diversity."


"Believe me my boy, there is no grey. The world is either black or white!"

When you quote the bible, why do you call it the wisdom of the past thousand years? The bible was written around 300AD. And do you really think that a group of self-proclaimed holy-spirit-hearers 1700 years ago, or some group of clergymen more concerned with the exploitation of their flock than anything to do with love and compassion in 1100AD have the wisdom to judge how we ought to live our lives today?

A lot of the stuff that was considered morally upright 50 years ago is rightfully considered repugnant today.

The true wisdom doesn't lie in trying to find a framework of absolute, unchanging rules by which to live to the end of times. Rather it lies in recognizing that time changes things, and rules have to change with them and constantly be reassessed if they still apply.

The only two rules which I would consider fundamental in inter-personal relationships are:

• Don't treat people like objects (aka treat the other person as you yourself would like to be treated)


• My rights end where your rights begin and vice versa

And while we're at it - consider why the Old Testament is so pro fertility ("Go forth and multiply" or all the anti-homosexual rants). 3500 years ago small semitic tribes were being encouraged to grow rapidly to have a chance to survive in a hostile world where huge enemies where to the south (Egypt) and east (Babylonians/Sumerians) and whoever happened to live to the north at the time. All of whom regularly held their battles where the semitic tribes were living, and all of whom frequently raided the area for slaves. Rules devised for that kind of circumstances ought to no longer be regarded as dogma, in my opinion.

"The head is round so that your thoughts can change direction."
- Francis Picabia, 1922

Lost me after "2 big questions"..

Math/Maths might as well Sumerian to me!

classic astrology at the very least has an actual system, a method, to it that dates back atleast to the sumerians. newspaper horoscopes are just "blah blah blah" and date back to when newspapers got stupid.

All world giant leaders eventually collapse to give rise to a new leader. It happened to the Sumerians, the ancient Chinese, Egyptians, Romans, Ottomans... the list goes on and on.. it will happen someday. The question is ... when and how.

In all likelihood the USA's demise will come about by it's own actions. Whether through mass financial greed and mismanagement (as we see today), or running itself to bankruptcy trying to police and domineer the planet.

I am not anti-USA. I want it to prosper. I want everyone to reach for the American Dream, however.... I am a realist. The US government doesn't work for the good of the people. They are fallible people with great power. As the saying goes, with great power comes great responsibility. Unfortunately the responsibility factor has been thrown completely to the wind. The turds fly in our faces, the mere citizenry, not theirs.

Mass corporate/financial deregulation, warmongering, a brinksmanship political stance with anyone posing a slight threat to military (nuclear) superiority, and most of all.. pure and simple as greed and hunger for individual power.

We the citizens are in for a heck of a roller-coaster ride. Put your seat belt on and hold onto your hat. When you come out the other side all of your remaining pocket change will have fallen out, your clothes will be ragged, your teeth broken.. and you will be shaking in fear and bewilderment.

I hope I am wrong. I really do.

Prehistoric tribal ancestor worship of the Neanderthal was wrong.. and it sank into the swamp. The Sumerians got it wrong, and their religion also sank into the swamp. The ancient Greek and Romans had it wrong for many centuries. Their religion fell over... then sank into the swamp. The Pharaoh (living God) worship of one of the longest reigning and largest ancient civilizations of the world, the Egyptians, was also dead on wrong. Their religion sank into the sand.

Now.. the FINAL AND ONLY CORRECT RELIGION STOOD! Christianity of course in all its divinely inspired holy magical sparkly magic-man infused goodness FINALLY GOT IT RIGHT!

Thats right folks. They finally got it right after many thousands and thousands of years (counting only actual recorded history since the ascent of literacy and writing mind you).

So. Isn't that proof enough?

Yeah. Really. Ok. Sure.

You are wrong.. The Egyptians had it right. No wait. The Greek pantheon was right. No wait.. the Romans had it right. No.. wait.. the Sumerian gods were right. No wait.. the Babylonians had it right. No wait.. the Norse gods were right. No wait.. the Mayans were right. No.. wait .. the Inca were right. No.. wait.. the Neanderthal concept of ancestor worship was right. No.. wait.. the native American concept of nature spirits were right. No.. wait .. the Druidic concept of natural spirits had it right. No... wait.. the Muslim concept is right. No.. wait... the Christian concept God and the invisible magic-man had it right.

So... who is right? Did the Christians finally 'get it right' after millenia of cultures/societies ALL getting it absolutely wrong? Now.. that truly must be an "Evolution" of religion. For so many people to be so absolutely wrong, and to FINALLY, find the Truth(tm). Whatever that means.

Also, National Geographic Channel has just revealed from their programming: the first gunshot in Americas, that Spanish vs Native American battles weren't always what Spanish chronicles claimed.

They were ALWAYS accompanied by Inca's former enemy states. And the siege of Lima (Puruchuco) in particular reveals that most of the fighting was done between Native Americans and the battle won by Native Americans, not by some sheer overwhelming power of horses and muskets.

So politics plays a very critical role in human history than just purely on physical geographic location, critical though it may be.

I'm also bit miffed at what Diamond said when he gave ancient Greeks as evidence of 'cultivation civilization'.

From what I know, Greek cities (Peloponnese) did have large population with heavy population density, but they weren't too big on farming, mainly because the Greek land is not the most ideal place for farming because it's full of jagged rocks and salty coastlines. They had a big animal herding tradition with goats and sheeps, and probably had a big fishing tradition going on, but not to the extent to feed big cities. Plus, that's not really a diverse diet.

There survived mainly as active traders, who got lot of their material needs from other parts of the world by setting up colonies and establishing trade relations (Mycenae, Asia Minor, Egypt, and Dorians later on). They especially had a very close relation with Egyptians, perhaps because they were the largest providers of wheat at the time. They give them fish and sheep skin, Egyptians give them surplus of wheat.

Anyways overall, Diamond comes up with definitely interesting fresh theories, but also comments on some things that are directly against historic evidence. Like how conquistador's guns and swords were such a large factor, enough to compensate their lack of numbers (which he later corrects as germs), how Greeks flourished because of cultivation or that Sumerian writings had influenced Chinese characters... etc etc.

Like, Huh?

And I also couldn't find anything about smallpox and black plague originating from farm animals. As far as evidence goes, some say bubonic plague started from Ethiopia, where Diamond claim domestication of animals didn't take place... that 13 of 14 farm animals all originated from Middle East, which is another point of doubt (he also contradicts himself from 1st part to 3rd part.. what's going on here).

Oh! and why Europeans happened to be the ones to keep colonizing the world, when Ming and Qing China had plenty of capability to do the same, but never did so?

Oh! and how was conquistadors survive in the tropics? or early American pioneers who were dying by hundreds?

This is why this guy is a biologist, and not a Historian. Stay in your own profession old man!

Stick with the original theory of geographic effect in human history. Discard the rest.