The purpose of this blog is the creation of an open, international, independent and free forum, where every UFO-researcher can publish the results of his/her research. The languagues, used for this blog, are Dutch, English and French.You can find the articles of a collegue by selecting his category. Each author stays resposable for the continue of his articles. As blogmaster I have the right to refuse an addition or an article, when it attacks other collegues or UFO-groupes.
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Deze blog is opgedragen aan mijn overleden echtgenote Lucienne.
In 2012 verloor ze haar moedige strijd tegen kanker!
In 2011 startte ik deze blog, omdat ik niet mocht stoppen met mijn UFO-onderzoek.
BEDANKT!!!
Een interessant adres?
UFO'S of UAP'S, ASTRONOMIE, RUIMTEVAART, ARCHEOLOGIE, OUDHEIDKUNDE, SF-SNUFJES EN ANDERE ESOTERISCHE WETENSCHAPPEN - DE ALLERLAATSTE NIEUWTJES
UFO's of UAP'S in België en de rest van de wereld Ontdek de Fascinerende Wereld van UFO's en UAP's: Jouw Bron voor Onthullende Informatie!
Ben jij ook gefascineerd door het onbekende? Wil je meer weten over UFO's en UAP's, niet alleen in België, maar over de hele wereld? Dan ben je op de juiste plek!
België: Het Kloppend Hart van UFO-onderzoek
In België is BUFON (Belgisch UFO-Netwerk) dé autoriteit op het gebied van UFO-onderzoek. Voor betrouwbare en objectieve informatie over deze intrigerende fenomenen, bezoek je zeker onze Facebook-pagina en deze blog. Maar dat is nog niet alles! Ontdek ook het Belgisch UFO-meldpunt en Caelestia, twee organisaties die diepgaand onderzoek verrichten, al zijn ze soms kritisch of sceptisch.
Nederland: Een Schat aan Informatie
Voor onze Nederlandse buren is er de schitterende website www.ufowijzer.nl, beheerd door Paul Harmans. Deze site biedt een schat aan informatie en artikelen die je niet wilt missen!
Internationaal: MUFON - De Wereldwijde Autoriteit
Neem ook een kijkje bij MUFON (Mutual UFO Network Inc.), een gerenommeerde Amerikaanse UFO-vereniging met afdelingen in de VS en wereldwijd. MUFON is toegewijd aan de wetenschappelijke en analytische studie van het UFO-fenomeen, en hun maandelijkse tijdschrift, The MUFON UFO-Journal, is een must-read voor elke UFO-enthousiasteling. Bezoek hun website op www.mufon.com voor meer informatie.
Samenwerking en Toekomstvisie
Sinds 1 februari 2020 is Pieter niet alleen ex-president van BUFON, maar ook de voormalige nationale directeur van MUFON in Vlaanderen en Nederland. Dit creëert een sterke samenwerking met de Franse MUFON Reseau MUFON/EUROP, wat ons in staat stelt om nog meer waardevolle inzichten te delen.
Let op: Nepprofielen en Nieuwe Groeperingen
Pas op voor een nieuwe groepering die zich ook BUFON noemt, maar geen enkele connectie heeft met onze gevestigde organisatie. Hoewel zij de naam geregistreerd hebben, kunnen ze het rijke verleden en de expertise van onze groep niet evenaren. We wensen hen veel succes, maar we blijven de autoriteit in UFO-onderzoek!
Blijf Op De Hoogte!
Wil jij de laatste nieuwtjes over UFO's, ruimtevaart, archeologie, en meer? Volg ons dan en duik samen met ons in de fascinerende wereld van het onbekende! Sluit je aan bij de gemeenschap van nieuwsgierige geesten die net als jij verlangen naar antwoorden en avonturen in de sterren!
Heb je vragen of wil je meer weten? Aarzel dan niet om contact met ons op te nemen! Samen ontrafelen we het mysterie van de lucht en daarbuiten.
06-09-2024
These Enigmatic “Yooperlites” Found in Michigan Reveal a Luminous Surprise Under Ultraviolet Light
(Credit: James St. John/Flickr.)
These Enigmatic “Yooperlites” Found in Michigan Reveal a Luminous Surprise Under Ultraviolet Light
In Michigan’s Upper Peninsula, a unique mineral that produces a stunning “cosmic” glow when exposed to ultraviolet (UV) light is capturing the fascination of the rockhounding world.
These unusual stones, dubbed “Yooperlites” by Erik Rintamaki, who is credited with their discovery in 2017, have unique fluorescent qualities that resemble fire escaping from the heart of the surrounding stone when placed under a UV flashlight.
The mineral behind these unique displays is formally known as sodalite, a tectosilicate mineral that, due to its often vivid coloration, is used for ornamental purposes. Sodalite, when seen in large quantities, often has an opaque appearance, although the smaller individual crystalline structures are either transparent or translucent, part of which gives rise to the sodalite’s unique appearance when viewed under UV light.
However, despite Michigan’s well-documented mineralogy, the presence of this fluorescent mineral had gone virtually unnoticed in the state until just a few years ago. In 2017, Erik Rintamaki, an avid local rock collector, began to discover syenite pebbles along the stony shores of Lake Superior that contained small crystalline pockets of sodalite.
According to Rintamaki, the discovery occurred while teaching his brother-in-law how to locate agates along Lake Superior’s beaches. He had previously recalled reading about how many rockhounds had begun using UV lights to aid in detecting and identifying minerals and decided to obtain an inexpensive UV flashlight for such purposes.
On one of his initial expeditions, Rintamaki struck out in the early morning hours to scour Lake Superior’s beaches. Under the illumination of his UV flashlight, he began to find a few small, fluorescent stones, which he began calling “yooperlites,” a name derived from the nickname given to residents of Michigan’s upper peninsula. With time, the small pebbles eventually began to be replaced by larger and larger samples of these curious stones.
Yooperlites produce striking fluorescent qualities when seen under UV light (Credit: James St. John/Flickr).
It soon became apparent that the strong fluorescent qualities these stones possessed were something unique, and with the aid of geologist Gabe Reyna, the unique characteristics the samples displayed, including their translucent appearance and distinctive mineral composition, led to the positive identification of sodalite, a mineral that somehow had gone unnoticed in previous mineralogical surveys of Michigan’s upper west peninsula.
Under detailed analysis, the Yooperlites Rintamaki discovered were revealed to exhibit fluorescence consistent with hackmanite, a rare chloric sodium aluminum silicate mineral that is rich in sulfur. Most often appearing in pink or violet shades, it can sometimes also appear in tones of grey or even white. However, due to a unique optical quality hackmanite possesses known as tenebrescence, this unique mineral has the unusual ability to change its coloration under certain kinds of light and even glow in the dark, qualities that helped it garner a rather fitting nickname: “the chameleon stone.”
Hackmanite (above) exhibiting fluorescent qualities similar to “Yooperlites” when observed under UV light
(Credit: Parent Gery/Wikimedia Commons).
In addition to its hackmanite-like fluorescence, tests of Rintamaki’s samples involving scanning electron microscopy and energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy carried out at Michigan Technological University helped reveal several key elements. The presence of aluminum, chlorine, oxygen, silicon, and sodium was confirmed in the samples, all of which were consistent with sodalite.
At the time, the positive identification of sodalite had been something of a mystery. Although syenite clasts are a relatively common feature in Michigan, the fluorescent syenite samples containing sodalite that Rintamaki had revealed with the aid of his UV flashlight probably had origins much further away, along the north side of Lake Superior within the Coldwell Alkaline Complex in Ontario, Canada. So how could the samples have made their way all the way to the lake’s southern shores where “Yoopers” like Rintamaki could find them?
As far back as 1779, Swiss geologist Ferdinand de Saussure described massive granite boulders that had somehow found their way onto limestone deposits in the sub-alpine Jura Mountain range. These out-of-place granite bounders were dubbed “erratics” by de Saussure, derived from the Latin word errare meaning “to wander.” For a time, these curiosities of nature baffled early geologists, although, by 1840, Swiss-American geologist J.L.R. Agassiz proposed that these massive “wandering” boulders had actually been transported thousands of years ago with the help of glaciers that once blanketed the northern hemisphere.
Much like the erratics that once baffled 18th—and 19th-century geologists, the samples Rintamaki had discovered along the shores of Lake Superior had also been transported there from their original home far to the north through natural processes related to continental glaciation during the last Ice Age.
The discovery of “Yooperlites” in Michigan helps to reveal the extent to which the region’s mineral diversity remains underexplored and has helped to almost double the number of mineral species now recognized in the state. Indeed, it could be that there are still other minerals in the region that remain undiscovered, awaiting the discerning eye of collectors like Rintamaki who are willing to employ unique methods—and often at odd hours—in their search for mineral wonders and curiosities that would otherwise remain hidden along the shores of the Great Lakes.
For those interested in learning more about Yooperlites, Rintamaki’s official YouTube channel provides a wealth of information about these unique gemstones and other aspects of his rock-hounding pursuits.
De geheimen rond de Bermudadriehoek De wateren rond Bermuda, dat Brits grondgebied is, hebben van meer dan 1.000 mensen het leven geëist. Veel schepen en vliegtuigen zijn op onverklaarbare wijze verdwenen in het gebied dat ligt tussen Bermuda en Miami. Door veel piloten zijn verhalen verteld over kompassen die niet meer werkten.
Mysterieuze verdwijningen en bizarre verhalen hebben geleid tot talloze complottheorieën en er heerst een akelig gevoel omtrent de Bermudadriehoek. Bekijk deze galerij om enkele van de meest intrigerende onverklaarde mysteries rond het eiland en zijn wateren te ontdekken.
George Somers Hij vertrok vanuit Plymouth in Engeland met een vloot van zeven schepen. Zijn vlaggenschip, de Sea Venture, bracht kolonisten, voedsel en goederen met zich mee.
George Somers De vloot kwam in een zware storm terecht en de schepen werden van elkaar gescheiden. Na een aantal dagen begon de Sea Venture vol met water te lopen en in een poging van wanhoop voer de uitgeputte kapitein het schip naar de riffen van wat Bermuda bleek te zijn.
George Somers Gelukkig hebben alle 150 passagiers die aan boord waren het overleefd. Ze verbleven tien maanden op het eiland en stichtten de eerste nederzetting van Bermuda.
Bermuda Volgens het toerismebureau Bermuda Attractions liggen er meer dan 300 scheepswrakken op de zeebodem rond het eiland. Waarom er zoveel schepen zijn gezonken in de wateren rond Bermuda blijft een raadsel.
Flight 19 In een groep van vijf vliegtuigen waren er in totaal veertien man aan boord, waaronder de ervaren luitenant Charles C. Taylor. Ze verdwenen allemaal spoorloos. Naar verluidt zei een van de piloten via de radio: "beide kompassen werken niet meer en ik probeer Fort Lauderdale in Florida te vinden."
Flight 19 Een opsporingsteam doorzocht in vijf dagen ruim 300.000 vierkante kilometer grondgebied. Helaas zijn er nooit overblijfselen van Flight 19 gevonden. Een boot met een zoekteam van dertien mensen verdween ook toen het op zoek was naar de vliegtuigen.
Christoffel Columbus Naar verluidt schreef hij in een van zijn memoires dat hij een vuurvlam in de zee zag slaan en dat er een paar dagen later in de verte een vreemd licht verscheen.
Mary Celeste Volgens Bermuda Attractions werd het schip drijvend in de Atlantische Oceaan aangetroffen terwijl er niemand aan boord was. Er bestaan complottheorieën rondom het mysterie van de Mary Celeste die gaan van ontvoeringen tot buitenaardse wezens, natuurrampen en zelfs paranormale activiteiten.
USS Scorpion De USS Scorpion was een kernonderzeeër van de Amerikaanse marine. Hij vertrok op 15 februari 1968 uit Norfolk, gelegen in de Amerikaanse staat Virginia, voor een operatie van drie maanden en had een 99-koppige bemanning
USS Scorpion Volgens History Net, een Amerikaanse uitgever van tijdschriften die artikelen publiceren over onderwerpen uit de geschiedenis, werd er een zoekteam ingezet toen de onderzeeër niet terugkeerde naar zijn thuishaven. De 76,5 meter lange onderzeeër verdween spoorloos.
USS Scorpion Het wrak van de onderzeeër werd in de Atlantische Oceaan voor de kust van de Azoren gevonden, maar complotdenkers hebben het mysterie van de USS Scorpion in verband gebracht met de Bermudadriehoek.
Carroll A. Deering Volgens Bermuda Attractions was er een lichtschip in staat om via de radio met de Carroll A. Deering te communiceren. De kapitein van het lichtschip hoorde een bemanningslid zeggen dat ze hun ankers waren kwijtgeraakt en dat dit aan het hoofdkwartier doorgegeven moest worden, maar de Carroll A. Deering stopte niet en voer langs het lichtschip.
US Air Force KC-135 Stratotanker In 1963 kwamen naar verluidt twee KC-135-vliegtuigen van de Amerikaanse luchtmacht met elkaar in botsing en stortten ze neer in de Atlantische Oceaan. Ze werden echter gevonden op twee verschillende locaties die ruim 260 kilometer uit elkaar lagen.
De Ellen Austin De Ellen Austin was een schip dat regelmatig tussen Londen en New York door de Bermudadriehoek voer. Tijdens een van haar reizen in 1881 kwam de Ellen Austin een ander schip tegen waarop niemand aan boord was.
De Ellen Austin In een poging het verlaten schip te redden stuurde de kapitein van de Ellen Austin enkele van zijn bemanningsleden. Twee dagen lang zeilden de schepen zij aan zij totdat ze door een storm van elkaar werden gescheiden. Het verlaten schip en de nieuwe bemanning zijn nooit gevonden.
Niet opgelost en onverklaard Ondanks dat er ruim duizend mensen om het leven zijn gekomen, blijven de wateren rond Bermuda een van de drukst bevaren plekken ter wereld. Zou dit de illusie kunnen wekken dat er hier meer incidenten plaatsvinden of is er echt iets mysterieus aan de hand?
Since the launch of geo-browser Google Earth in 2001, people have stumbled upon strange structures and bizarre formations lurking across the globe. The luxury of free access to the entire planet from the comfort of the desk has attracted over 1 billion peopleto sign up for the tool and pore through the photo artifacts available. In 2020, a YouTuber who goes by MrMBB333 (@MrMBB333)and who describes himself as “The Earth Watchman,” shared avideo in which he claimed to have found a 400-feet “ice ship” on the surface of Antarctica. The strange discovery prompted hundreds of people to cook up assorted theories about the mysterious vessel frozen in ice.
Representative Image Source: Pexels | Nathy
Google Earth is a computer program that provides detailed views of Earth including 3D representations, created mostly using satellite imagery. It covers more than 98% of the world. Sometime that year, some eagle-eyed Google Earth fans sent some coordinates to MrMBB333, which depicted some mysterious object frozen between icebergs. The YouTuber explored the location himself and shared about it in the video.
The clip shows a large chunk of ice emerging out of an icy landscape found 100 miles off the shore of Antarctica and just below New Zealand. The YouTuber said that it “looks like an old torpedo thawed out into the ice” or “maybe a small submarine” or “a large bowling pan.” He put the map into 3D view to get a better view of the unusual shape. He then said that the shape actually resembled the outline of a ship 428 feet long. "You look down on it and it looks like the outline of a ship. This measures 400ft long, whatever that looks like it looks like a ship,” he said.
Representative Image Source: Pexels | Francesco Ungaro
He noted that the ship was as big as a five-story building and it contained a hull, the main deck area, and chimneys on the top. "An ice ship if you want to call it – a 400ft yacht just sitting there off the coast of Antarctica," he concluded. Furthermore, examining the ship, he reflected that it was probably built with a purpose. "Looks like a random iceberg, but one part looks like it's built with purpose, looks like an entryway and the symmetrical features look like it has been created," he said, and added, "It doesn't look random but as if it had a purpose."
The discovery of this “ice ship” has since sparked bizarre theories of its formation, which include everything from Nazis’ secret bunkers to a government building, UFO, booster rocket, and even Noah’s Ark. “Germany did have a base there, from Hitler,” commented @kaboom6227. @juanitazook9797 added, “Probably bunkers down there for the elite.”
@josht777 said, “That ship probably ended up there from the Bermuda Triangle,” whereas, @aussietiger3036 thought “That yacht could be the infamous Noah’s Ark, and that boomerang craft could be the same one as the infamous Phoenix lights.” But some people, like @gnexus01, believed that it was just a plain old chunk of ice lying at the coordinates “66°54'16.36" S, 163°13'39.03"E” on Google Earth. Whatever its true story, the abandoned ice boat’s mystery is surely a digital adventure that curious Google Earth fans will not want to miss.
For decades, a massive anomaly sprawling across 1.2 million square miles on the Indian Ocean floor has baffled scientists. This phenomenon, known as the “gravity hole,” has sparked endless debate and curiosity. Read on as we uncover this mystery, officially named the Indian Ocean Geoid Low.
The Indian Ocean’s Gravity Anomaly So, what’s the deal with this vast region of the Indian Ocean that sits up to 106 meters below the global average sea level? It turns out there’s a significant dip in Earth’s gravity here. This gravitational anomaly has puzzled scientists for years, but recent studies are shedding light on its origins and linking it to deep geological processes.
Understanding the Geoid Low Geologists have a term for this “hole”—a geoid low, where Earth’s gravity is weaker than average. It might sound alarming, but it’s just a natural part of our planet’s gravitational landscape. Recent research suggests that molten rock plumes rising from deep beneath Africa are responsible for this phenomenon; these plumes are at the edge of an ancient sea bed.
Earth’s Shape and Gravitational Variation Ideally, Earth would have uniform gravity, but it’s not a perfect sphere. It’s flatter at the poles and bulges at the equator, causing variations in gravity. Different regions exert varying gravitational pulls based on the crust, mantle, and core mass distribution. Such complexity contributes to gravitational anomalies like the low geoid of the Indian Ocean.
The Potsdam Gravity Potato To visualize these gravitational tugs, scientists use gravity measurements from sensors and satellites to create models like the “Potsdam gravity potato.” The model highlights Earth’s gravitational highs and lows, helping scientists understand the mass distribution beneath the surface. It’s like taking off each layer of an onion, discovering more with every peel.
Discovery and Confirmation of the IOGL The Indian Ocean Geoid Low (IOGL) was discovered by Dutch geophysicist Felix Andries Vening Meinesz in 1948 during a ship-based gravity survey. Since then, subsequent shipboard expeditions and satellite measurements have confirmed its presence. This IOGL is the planet’s most prominent gravitational anomaly, covering over three million square kilometers.
Investigating the Origins Researchers Attreyee Ghosh and Debanjan Pal compared various computer models of the region’s formation over the past 140 million years. Each model used different variables for the convection of molten material within the mantle. Their goal? To pinpoint the cause of the IOGL. Their findings point to a distinctive mantle structure influenced by ancient geological events.
The Role of the Mantle and the African Blob The study suggests that the IOGL is due to a unique mantle structure combined with an adjacent disturbance under Africa known as the “African blob.” This large low-shear velocity province (LLSVP) consists of hot, low-density material, thought to be remnants from ancient seafloor slabs, which influence the region’s gravitational characteristics.
Connection to the Tethys Ocean Geologists believe Tethyan slabs, remnants of an ancient seafloor from the Tethys Ocean, form the African blob. Over 200 million years ago, the Tethys Ocean existed between the supercontinents Laurasia and Gondwana. As India moved northward, it created the Indian Ocean and left behind these geological traces.
Evolution and Persistence of the IOGL Around 20 million years ago, the geoid low probably formed its current shape as plumes began spreading through the upper mantle. The mantle material flow from the African blob sustains this anomaly. As long as these flows continue, the geoid low will persist.
Future Implications The IOGL will eventually dissipate when temperature anomalies cause it to move, which could take many millions of years. Studying this geoid low provides valuable insights into Earth’s internal processes and the dynamic nature of its mantle.
The Batagay megaslump is a result of the ground thawing and collapsing as Arctic temperatures rise.
It's an extreme case of a changing Arctic landscape accelerating the climate crisis.
A giant hole in the earth is breaking open the land in Siberia, and photos from space show it's growing rapidly.
It resembles a stingray, a horseshoe crab, or a giant tadpole. It started as a sliver, barely visible in declassified satellite imagery from the 1960s.
Declassified satellite imagery from 1965 shows the very beginnings of the hole growing in Siberia.
The hole tripled in size between 1991 and 2018, according to the US Geological Survey.
Satellite images from 1999 and 2017 show how much the Batagay megaslump has grown (and how much satellite imaging has improved). NASA Earth Observatory/Jesse Allen/Landsat data from the US Geological Survey
The Batagay crater, sometimes referred to as Batagaika or the "gateway to hell," represents a much larger, often invisible problem that affects the entire planet.
What is this hole in Siberia?
The Arctic is heating up faster than the rest of Earth, and that's quickly thawing the permafrost, which is a thick layer of soil that's permanently frozen — at least, it used to be.
The Batagay crater isn't actually a crater at all. It's the world's largest "retrogressive thaw slump," a pit that forms when permafrost thaw causes the ground to cave in, creating a landslide as the earth at its edges slumps into the pit.
There are thousands of thaw slumps across the Arctic. But the size of the Batagay "crater" has earned it the title of megaslump. It's named for the nearby town of Batagay.
A drone view of the head of the Batagay megaslump.
"Permafrost is not the most, let's say, photogenic of subjects," Roger Michaelides, a geophysicist at Washington University in St. Louis, told Business Insider. "You're talking mostly about frozen dirt underground, which by definition you often can't see unless it's been exposed somehow, like in this megaslump."
That makes the Batagay pit a bit of a permafrost celebrity and an omen of what lies ahead.
The Batagay megaslump could help decode our planet's future
As permafrost thaws, all the dead plants and animals that have been frozen inside it for centuries start to decompose, belching carbon dioxide and methane into the atmosphere.
Those are powerful heat-trapping gases, which cause global temperatures to rise even more, triggering even faster permafrost thaw.
This vicious cycle could have dire effects. Permafrost covers 15% of the land in the Northern Hemisphere and contains twice as much carbon as the atmosphere.
One study estimated that permafrost thaw could emit as much planet-warming gases as a large industrial nation by 2100 if industries and countries don't aggressively rein in their own emissions today.
"There's a lot we don't know about this feedback loop and how it will play out necessarily, but the potential is there for very large changes to the climate system occurring over very, very fast geologic timescales," Michaelides said.
In short, permafrost thaw could quickly make the climate crisis much worse. But it's still a mysterious process. Studying extreme sites like the Batagay megaslump can help scientists understand permafrost thaw and see into the future.
In a study published in the journal Geomorphology in June, researchers used satellite and drone data to construct 3D models of the megaslump and calculate its expansion over time.
They found that about 14 Pyramids of Giza's worth of ice and permafrost had thawed at Batagay. The crater's volume increases by about 1 million cubic meters every year.
"These values are truly impressive," Alexander Kizyakov, the study's lead author and a scientist at Lomonosov Moscow State University, told BI in an email.
"Our results demonstrate how quickly permafrost degradation occurs," he added.
The researchers also calculated that the megaslump releases about 4,000 to 5,000 tons of carbon each year. That's about as much as the annual emissions from 1,700 to 2,100 US homes' energy use.
Michaelides said those numbers didn't surprise him, but they can help inform models of future permafrost thaw and emissions.
"I think there is a lot we can learn from Batagaika, not only in terms of understanding how Batagaika will evolve with time, but also how similar features might develop and evolve over the Arctic," Michaelides said. "Even if they're a tenth or a hundredth the size of Batagaika, the physics is fundamentally the same."
If you enjoyed this story, be sure to follow Business Insider on Microsoft Start.
This American Scientist Explains Why Death Does Not Exist: Dreams Are More Real Than Anyone Thought!
This American Scientist Explains Why Death Does Not Exist: Dreams Are More Real Than Anyone Thought!
American scientist Robert Lanza explained why death does not exist: he believes that consciousness is a fundamental property of the universe and that death is just an illusion created by the linear perception of time. He said Dreams Are More Real Than Anyone Thought!
Robert Lanza is a renowned American scientist and author who has made significant contributions to various fields, including Biology and theoretical physics He has received prestigious recognitions, including TIME magazine’s “100 Most Influential People in the World”, Prospect magazine’s “Top 50 World Thinkers.”
Lanza has achieved groundbreaking accomplishments, such as: Cloning the world’s first human embryo, Cloning the first endangered species, and Publishing the first reports on the use of pluripotent stem cells in humans. He is a leading figure in the scientific community, known for his innovative work and influential ideas.
A new scientific theory called biocentrism challenges our understanding of death. In quantum physics, certain events can’t be predicted with certainty, but rather have a range of possible outcomes with different probabilities. The “many-worlds” interpretation suggests that each possible outcome corresponds to a separate universe in the multiverse.
Biocentrism builds upon this idea, proposing that there are an infinite number of universes, and every possible event or outcome occurs in some universe. This means that every possibility, no matter how small, actually happens in some universe or other. This theory has profound implications for our understanding of death, suggesting that it may not be the terminal event we think it is. Instead, death could be a transition to another universe or reality, where another version of ourselves continues to exist.
Death does not exist in any real sense in these scenarios. All possible universes exist simultaneously, regardless of what happens in any of them.
Although individual bodies are destined to self-destruct, the alive feeling – the ‘Who am I?’- is just a 20-watt fountain of energy operating in the brain. But this energy doesn’t go away at death. One of the surest axioms of science is that energy never dies; it can neither be created nor destroyed. But does this energy transcend from one world to the other?
Scientists conducted experiments that showed that they could change what had happened in the past. Particles acted based on a later decision made by the observer. This suggests that our choices can influence past events. The connections between different events go beyond our usual understanding of time and space. The energy used is like a projector showing different results based on the observer’s choice.
According to Biocentrism, space and time are not the hard objects we think. Wave your hand through the air – if you take everything away, what’s left? Nothing. The same thing applies for time. You can’t see anything through the bone that surrounds your brain. Everything you see and experience right now is a whirl of information occurring in your mind. Space and time are simply the tools for putting everything together.
Death does not exist in a timeless, spaceless world. In the end, even Einstein admitted, “Now Besso” (an old friend) “has departed from this strange world a little ahead of me.
That means nothing. People like us…know that the distinction between past, present, and future is only a stubbornly persistent illusion.” Immortality doesn’t mean a perpetual existence in time without end, but rather resides outside of time altogether.
A new vision of reality
What would it mean to fully embrace biocentrism and the perspective on reality that “Observer” advances? More than just arcane physics, biocentrism has deep metaphysical implications. (Source)
At the most fundamental level, biocentrism provides a picture of a living, conscious universe, rather than a mechanical, clockwork cosmos. The empty void of outer space is re-envisioned as teeming with life and mind.
Consciousness becomes universal and interconnected through space and time. As Dr. Lanza describes, this promotes a sense of oneness and diminishes feelings of separation and loneliness. Death also loses its finality — while bodies perish, consciousness persists.
Biocentrism opens up intriguing possibilities like backward time travel by unshackling us from the typical limitations of spacetime. If time is merely a construct of the mind, maneuvering through it must not be constrained to one direction.
Above all, biocentrism aligns science and spirituality to allow both to co-exist on equal footing. “Observer” and its fictional world show that science can be a bridge to profound meaning, rather than a rigid materialist dogma.
Reexamining reality through the lens of biocentrism leads to a paradigm shift in our understanding of existence. Although counterintuitive, the theory rests on solid science from fields like quantum mechanics and biology.
As “Observer” playfully imagines, manipulating the workings of consciousness could allow us to access entirely new dimensions. While the book’s futuristic flourishes are fiction, the message is clear — we must be open to radical new perspectives.
Dreams Are More Real Than Anyone Thought
The secrets dreams can unlock ultimately derive from the basic fact that reality is a process that involves us―a conscious observer. We assume the everyday world is “out there” in a more real or independent sense than is the world of our dreams, that we play a lesser role in its appearance. Yet recent studies show that day-to-day reality is every bit as observer-dependent as dreams are. (Source)
Dr. Lanza explains Dreams are far more than the spontaneous, random firing of neurons that some insist they are. They must likewise be far more than the activation of random memories already contained in the brain’s neurocircuitry.
True, dreams often contain a mix of emotions and things we have previously experienced, but in dreams, there are often people, faces, and interactions that the dreamer has never experienced before. A dream is an instantaneous, nonstop narrative that often seems as real as real life itself.
How could this tapestry of enormously complex interactions and scenarios be the result of nothing but random electrical discharges?
In dreams, we’re not just watching an “external world” and passively imprinting memories in our neural circuitry. How is it possible for the brain to do this?
How are all the components of the experience fabricated from scratch?
While dreaming, we’re not observing events and perceiving stimuli. We’re in bed, asleep—yet our minds are able to flawlessly create new people and settings and have them all interact effortlessly in four dimensions. We’re witnessing an awesome occurrence: the ability of the mind to turn pure information into a dynamic multidimensional reality. You’re actually creating space and time, not just operating within it like a character in a video game.
While it’s easier to appreciate the astounding nature of this process when it comes to dreams, it’s the same process that applies to our nondream lives. According to biocentrism, we’re always not just observing but creating reality.
During dreams, however, the brain has fewer limitations since it needn’t obey sensory inputs that themselves are limited by physical laws, and thus the mind can generate experiences unlike the consensus world we’re aware of during the day.
Observers define the structure of reality
New research by theoretical physicist Dmitriy Podolskiy, in collaboration with the author and Andrei Barvinsky, a leading expert in quantum gravity and quantum cosmology, has revealed something remarkable. The presence of extended networks of observers defines the structure of physical reality and spacetime itself. Source
In dreams, we leave the consensus universe and experience an alternate cognitive model of reality, very different from the one shared by other observers while awake. In dreams, the fine structure of the wave function of the universe around us is delocalized and largely unstable. This instability explains why you often have more power while dreaming; the values of observables representing the basis of reality are more fluid. The new research also suggests that the presence or absence of observers influences the very dimensionality of the universe.
Biocentrism says space and time are tools of the mind, and dreams seem to further support this idea. If space and time were truly external and physical, as commonly believed, how could the brain create something indistinguishable from them within a dream? We think our experiences at night are just dreams and not real. But dreams and what we perceive as reality are essentially of the same nature. By following the implications of quantum mechanics without bias, we arrive at the unification of everyday reality and dreams. Persistent puzzles about the nature of dreams, reality, and our lives all fade away.
Ancient mysteries of Russia's sacred Mountain Vottovaara
Ancient mysteries of Russia's sacred Mountain Vottovaara
The world is full of mysterious places, and Vottovaara Mountain in Russia's Republic of Karelia is one of them. This site has been revered for thousands of years by ancient Saami tribes and shamans, who considered it a sacred place surrounded with powerful energy.
Image credit: Universe Inside You
Vottovaara is home to numerous strange megalithic structures and ruins that many believe couldn't have formed naturally. Among these are around 1,600 sacred stones, known as "seids," arranged in a puzzling pattern. These stones, often unusually shaped, are precariously balanced on small rocks in ways that defy simple explanations. While scientists suggest that this was the result of natural processes during the Ice Age, the sheer number and precision of these balanced stones challenge the idea that they occurred by chance.
Another intriguing feature of Vottovaara is a structure referred to as "the well," which locals believe to be an ancient, man-made water reservoir.
As you climb Vottovaara, you'll notice an eerie transformation in the trees. None of the trees on the summit are older than a few decades, and while young pines and firs start growing normally, they soon begin to twist and deform in bizarre ways. This phenomenon is thought to be caused by some unknown energy affecting the trees.
Known as Death Mountain, Vottovaara also is believed to be connected to ancient spirits that are said to inhabit the area, adding to its aura of mystery.
Scientists are calling for a new analysis of the Shroud of Turin amid a seemingly growing body of evidence that challenges the idea it's a fake.
There are also claims that bad data was used in a landmark 1988 UK study which found the shroud was a Medieval forgery and not the cloth Jesus was buried in.
A new review by researchers from France and Italy has revisited those 30-year-old findings and claims to have discovered discrepancies in the data which were not made public and raise doubts about the definitiveness of the results.
Tristan Casabianca, a French independent researcher, who made the find, told DailyMail.com that his findings do not confirm the shroud is older or the burial cloth used to lay Jesus to rest.
But Casabianca - who was an atheist until he began investigating the shroud 20 years ago - said those factors could not be ruled out 'without a re-analysis.'
The research in question is a 1988 study that conducted radiocarbon dating on a piece of the shroud. Pictured are the sample containers that held strips of the cloth
Graphic designer Otangelo Grasso created a progression of what Jesus may have looked like based on the shroud image
The 1988 study used a technique known as carbon dating to determine the age of the controversial Shroud of Turin.
The team determined with '95 percent confidence' the relic was manufactured sometime between 1260 and 1390 AD, long after the time of Christ's resurrection.
The conclusion was reached after analyses performed on a corner of the ancient fabric by three different labs - at the universities of Arizona, Zürich and Oxford.
But after obtaining the raw data, Casabianca found the results varied by decades.
One of Zürich's estimates in the Nature study said the cloth was up to 733 years old, but 595 years in the raw data.
Oxford's shroud sample was between 730 and 795 years old, but the raw data featured estimates that were off by up to 55 years.
Arizona's linen was between 591 and 701 years old, with the raw data showing a difference of up to 59 years.
Even though that would still places the cloth in the Middle Ages, hundreds of years after Jesus, Casabianca said it raises doubts.
He continued to explained that 'the lack of precision seriously affects the reliability of the 95 percent,' suggesting it was no more than 41 percent.
Anything lower than 60 percent suggests that there is a lot of disagreement or inconsistency among the results, according to the 2019 study published in Archaeometry.
'We can say with confidence that the 1988 radiocarbon dating process led to a failure,' said Casabianca, who is an independent researcher in France.
'It was supposed to close a book, and it has only opened a new chapter. This failure could have been avoided with a better protocol.'
The raw data obtained by Casabianca showed it varied by decades than what was published in the Nature study. The red are changes made by the laboratories between their raw radiocarbon dates and the radiocarbon dates mentioned in the Nature article
The Shroud of Turin is a 14-foot-long piece of linen featuring a faint image of the front and back of a man who Christians believe to be Jesus
The 1988 research was conducted in three laboratories: The University of Arizona, Zürich in Switzerland and Oxford University in the UK. Each lab received a strip from the original piece cut, which were then reduced to smaller sizes for the research
But Dr AJ Timothy Jull, who worked on the 1988 analysis, told DailyMail.com that even if the teams did re-run the analysis, 'The results would be the same, but the data would be less scattered.'
Dr Jull was part of the team at the University of Arizona.
'Zürich was close to ours, but Oxford was a bit different,' Dr Jull said.
'But that does not change the results. Others use this argument to say there is something wrong with the measurements, Casabianca tries to do this.'
The cloth was first presented to the public in the 1350s when it was exhibited in the small collegiate church in Lirey, a village in northern France.
Christians believe those wounds were miraculously imprinted on the burial shroud after Jesus was resurrected from the dead, scorched into the fibers by a burst of energy when he came back to life.
Some believe it to be a Medieval fake, which Dr Jull and his team determined in the 1980s.
The piece was cut from the bottom corner on the back of the shroud, which experts said was not mended in the Middle Ages
However, a research involved with the 1988 study said that the radiocarbon dating of the shroud was done correctly
The cloth was first presented to the public in the 1350s when it was exhibited in the small collegiate church in Lirey, a village in northern France
The 1988 study saw scientists take a 10 mm by 70 mm piece of the shroud from the corner, which was cut into smaller pieces and distributed to the different labs.
Co-author Emanuela Marinelli, an independent researcher in Italy, told DailyMail.com: 'The sample was not representative of the full cloth because it is different [from one corner from another].
'The [1988] study found dating was more or less 150 years, so it is impossible to say the age of the entire 14-foot cloth.
'But for us, it was the statistical analysis that is the reason to reject to carbon dating.'
This technique estimates the age of organic materials based on the amount of radioactive isotope of carbon in them.
The results were collected and collated by London's British Museum, which held on to the raw data until Casabianca and his team issued a legal request under the Freedom of Information Act to obtain the raw information for the first time.
'I received a reply from the British Museum with more than 200 pages of documents,' Casabianca said.
'Our access to the documentation kept in the archives of the British Museum showed that the statistical analysis is supported by the documentation.
'In it, we find that the samples were contaminated (including cotton and rogue fibers). This suggests that the sampling was suboptimal, to say the least.'
Dr Jull told DailyMail.com that he conducted another in 2010 to characterize the shroud samples, finding 'odd bits of cotton.'
The agonizing crucifixion of Jesus from the Bible details how he endured severe beatings, punctures and nails driven into his hands and feet.
Christians believe those wounds were miraculously imprinted on the burial shroud after Jesus was resurrected from the dead, scorched into the fibers by a burst of energy when he came back to life.
Now, a new analysis of the Shroud of Turin - also known as the Holy Shroud - claims to have uncovered evidence that the crucifixion may be historically accurate.
An engineer from the University of Padua in Italy used modern technology to reanalyze samples taken from the cloth in the 1970s, finding tiny blood particles showing signs of organ failure, trauma, disease and radiation.
Materials that were typical in ancient Jerusalem were also said to be discovered, suggesting that the shroud may have originated in the region and not in Europe where many skeptics think it was created as a medieval forgery.
The new study analyzed blood samples taken from the shroud in 1978, which were collected using adhesive tape. This blood, according to the study, showed signs of disease, trauma and radiation
Independent experts dismissed the findings, however, saying blood could have contaminated the cloth at any point in the past 700 years.
The Shroud of Turin is a 14-foot-long piece of linen featuring a faint image of the front and back of a man who Christians believe to be Jesus.
The cloth was first presented to the public in the 1350s, when it was exhibited in small collegiate church in Lirey, a village in northern France. Some believe it to be a Medieval fake.
It was not until 1978 when the first physical samples were removed from the cloth, done using adhesive tape to carefully lift particles from the front fibers and a vacuum to collect dust from the back.
But, back then, the results were inconclusive about whether or not blood had been present in the samples.
Now, University of Padua professor Giulio Fanti has placed those samples under modern-day microscopes capable of highlighting details down to the size of individual particles.
The reanalyzed particles showed the presence of hemoglobin, which is a key component of blood, and also two different types of blood that Fanti labeled Type A and Type B.
Fanti says this suggests the cloth was used on someone with bloody injuries, rather than forged using ink, dye, paint or other techniques.
Traces of creatine were also identified in the shroud sample, which is released into the blood stream when a person undergoes muscle breakdown or some type of trauma.
Your body produces creatine from amino acids in your liver, kidneys, and pancreas. It is also present in foods.
The body releases the chemical into the bloodstream when cells in the brain, heart or skeletal muscles are damaged.
It was not until 1978 when the first physical samples were allowed to be taken from the cloth, which was done using adhesive tape to carefully remove particles off the front fibers. Dr. Max Frei, a Swiss criminologist, can be seen taking samples from the shroud
The Shroud of Turin features hundreds of reddish spots, varying in shapes and sizes, across the imprinted body image
The expert found another type of blood that was shed while Jesus was still alive. It also contained signs of radiation, which Christians believe was released when Jesus rose from the dead
'The high percentage of creatinine found in [the sticky tape samples], may be explained, especially during Jesus' last hour before dying on the cross, by a reduced blood flow to the kidneys also caused by hypovolemia and by severe dehydration,' the study reads.
Fanti claimed that his findings align with John 19:28 that states 'Jesus said, I thirst.'
The samples also featured signs the person whose blood allegedly stained the shroud had suffered from uremic syndrome which occurs when the kidneys are unable to eliminate waste products.
While the condition typically happens from kidney disease, it can also be brought on by blunt trauma to the organ, which Fanti believes may have occurred when Jesus was whipped.
John 12:1 reads, 'Then Pilate took Jesus and had him flogged.'
'I would refer to Type A blood as that which came out of the corpse and therefore postmortem blood; it consists of microcytes which indicate the respiratory suffering of Jesus on the cross,' Fanti, a Christian who has been studying the shroud for 25 years, told DailyMail.com.
This new finding came in stark contrast to a 1988 study which found the shroud to be a fake, after researchers determined it had been produced between 1260 and 1390 AD.
The study analyzed samples taken from the 1970s. Researchers collected particles using adhesive tape. Pictured are the samples zoomed in 1,500 times
The 1970s research also collected samples from the back of the shroud using a vacuum. Pictured are dust particles with traces of blood attached
In his study, Fanti found the blood particles he labled 'Type B' to mostly have a darker color than the 'Type A' blood and sharper edges.
He claims this suggests Type B came from before Jesus had died, with the differences being due to clotting characteristics.
'Type B consists of coagulated blood crusts probably formed when Jesus was on the cross or ascended Calvary,' said Fanti.
Both types of blood also had traces of earth materials that Fanti said are typically found in Jerusalem, such as clay and limestone, suggesting that the shroud may have originated in the region.
Mark 15:46 explains how Joseph, one of Jesus' disciples, removed Christ from the cross and 'bought a linen shroud, and taking him down, wrapped him in the linen shroud and laid him in a tomb that had been cut out of the rock.'
Some believe that Jesus' body was not washed during that time, but quickly placed in the tomb, which means he was not cleaned of earthy materials before being wrapped.
'When I went to Jerusalem to analyze the earthy material taken from the Holy Shroud, geologist Amir Sandler of the Geological Survey Of Jerusalem recognized among other things, like smectite and illite, which are typical of the Jerusalem soil as well as other material coming from the Sahara winds,' Fanti explained.
The blood detected by Fanti was also said to have evidence of possible radiation in different forms.
The Type A blood contained Beta particles that are electrons of great kinetic energy emitted by some radioactive nuclei, such as Potassium-40 used in explosives and fireworks.
Photon radiation particles were identified in the Type B samples - these are also known as Gamma rays, which are typically formed by a nuclear reaction.
However, Dr Lawrence Kobilinsky, a forensic scientist who is a professor emeritus at John Jay College, told DailyMail.com that the 'blood' was likely a 'secondary thought.'
'Earlier work... found a pigment [coloring agent] constituted the image,' he said.
Indeed, American chemist Dr Walter McCrone, who analyzed the tape strips in 1978, found the image consisted of red ochre and a gelatin solution.
'The simplest explanation is that this shroud was placed over a statue covered with pigment in certain areas, which transferred to the cloth, and gave it this three-dimensional configuration when you do the right kind of photography,' Dr Kobilinsky said.
The shroud features a faint image of a man with long hair and a beard, which many believe is the face of Jesus
The burial cloth has captivated the imagination of historians, church chiefs, skeptics and Catholics since it was first presented to the public in the 1350s. It is housed in Turin, Italy inside this chapel
Both types of blood had earth materials that Fanti said are typically found in Jerusalem, such as clay and limestone, suggesting that the shroud may have originated in the region. The image shows elements captured from the surface of the fibers
A study in 2018 also determined the shroud to be a fake after a new forensic investigation showed that its bloodstains were left by someone who had been standing – rather than crucified.
Researchers concluded that the bloodstain patterns were also not consistent with a face-down corpse.
Dr Matteo Borrini, a forensic scientist at Liverpool John Moores University, worked with chemist Luigi Garlaschelli, of the University of Pavia in Italy, looking at the orientation of the shroud's stains.
They sought to answer whether the crucifixion shown on the shroud was T-shaped, Y-shaped, or revealed another type of ancient Roman execution.
What they found, however, was that the bloodstains were not consistent with any one pose in particular. This suggested that someone who had been standing was used to imprint the famous patterns at different angles for the hands, chest and back.
Christians have claimed the imprints were created by energy released from Christ's body at the moment of resurrection.
A controversial linen shroud - regarded by some to be the one Jesus was buried in - has baffled the world for more than centuries.
When it was first exhibited in the 1350s, the Shroud of Turin was touted as the actual burial shroud used to wrap the mutilated body of Christ after his crucifixion.
Also known as the Holy Shroud, it bears a faint image of the front and back of a bearded man, which many believers is Jesus' body miraculously imprinted onto the fabric.
But research in the 1980s appeared to debunk the idea it was real after dating it to the Middle Ages, hundreds of years after Christ's death.
Now, Italian researchers who used a new technique involving x-rays to date the material have confirmed it was manufactured around the time of Jesus about 2,000 years ago.
Scientists have used a technique called Wide-Angle X-ray scattering to predict that the age of the shroud of Turin is close to 2000 years old
Italian researchers used a special X-ray technique to look at how the Shroud of Turin's threads (pictured) have aged, revealing it was manufactured around the time of Christ
They say the fact the timelines add up lends credence to the idea that the faint, bloodstained pattern of a man with his arms folded in front were left behind by Jesus' dead body.
The Bible states that Joseph of Arimathea wrapped the body of Jesus in a linen shroud and placed it inside the tomb.
Matthew 27:59-60 reads: 'Then Joseph took the body and wrapped it in a new linen cloth. He put Jesus’ body in a new tomb that he had dug in a wall of rock. Then he closed the tomb by rolling a very large stone to cover the entrance. After he did this, he went away.'
The burial cloth has captivated the imagination of historians, church chiefs, skeptics and Catholics since it was first presented to the public in the 1350s.
French knight Geoffroi de Charny gave it to the dean of the church in Lirey, France, proclaiming it as the Holy Shroud.
The Bible states that, Joseph of Arimathea wrapped the body of Jesus in a linen shroud and placed it in a new tomb
It has been preserved since 1578 in the royal chapel of the cathedral of San Giovanni Battista in Turin, Italy.
The cloth appears to show faint, brownish images on the front and back, depicting a gaunt man with sunken eyes who was about 5ft 7 to 6ft tall.
Markings on the body also correspond with crucifixion wounds of Jesus mentioned in the Bible, including thorn marks on the head, lacerations on the back and bruises on the shoulders.
Historians have suggested that the cross he carried on his shoulders weighed around 300 pounds, which would have left contusions.
The Bible states Jesus was whipped by the Romans, aligning with the lacerations on the back, who also placed crown of thorns on his head before the crucifixion.
The 14-foot-long Shroud of Turin is touted as wrapping used for Jesus' body after the crucifixion, which shows a faint, bloodstained pattern of a man with his arms folded in front
In 1988, a team of international researchers analyzed a small piece of the shroud using carbon dating and determined the cloth seemed to have been manufactured sometime between 1260 and 1390 AD.
This technique used the decay of a radioactive isotope of carbon (14C) to measure the time and date objects containing carbon-bearing material.
Some experts have said that the linen's authenticity should no longer be disputed, claiming it was made from flax grown in the Middle East and features a helmet-style crown of thorns on the man's face.
However, others have held on to the notion that it is fake due to the 1988 radiocarbon dating analysis conducted at three different laboratories, which all determined it was only seven centuries old.
The Shroud of Turin features the image of a man with sunken eyes, which experts have analyzed under different filters to study it (pictured)
For the new study, scientists at Italy's Institute of Crystallography of the National Research Council conducted a recent study using wide-angle X-ray scattering (WAXS).
The technique measures the natural aging of flax cellulose and converts it to time since manufacture.
The team studied eight small samples of fabric from the Shroud of Turin, putting them under an X-ray to uncover tiny details of the linen's structure and cellulose patterns.
Cellulose is made up of long chains of sugar molecules linked together that break over time, showing how long a garment or cloth has been around.
To date the shroud, the team used specific aging parameters, including temperature and humidity, which cause significant breakdown of cellulose.
The scientists obtained small samples of the shroud of Turin (left) and exposed it to Wide-Angle X-ray radiation to create an image of the linen sample (right) which was used for dating
What is the Shroud of Turin?
The Shroud of Turin is a 14-foot-long linen cloth with a faint image of a crucified man.
The image on the shroud is believed to reflect the story of Jesus' crucifixion, giving rise to the belief that the cloth is the burial shroud of Jesus himself.
The authenticity of the shroud has been frequently brought into question over the years but there are also many studies claiming to validate its origin.
It is considered to be one of the most intensely studied human artefacts in history.
Since it first emerged in 1354 Vatican authorities have repeatedly gone back and forth on whether it should be considered the true burial shroud.
The shroud is currently stored at the Cathedral of St. John the Baptist in Turin but is only publicly displayed on special occasions.
Based on the amount of breakdown, the team determined that the shroud of Turin was likely kept at temperatures at about 72.5 degrees Fahrenheit and a relative humidity of around 55 percent for about 13 centuries before it arrived in Europe.
If it had been kept in different conditions, the aging would be different.
Researchers then compared the cellulose breakdown in the shroud to other linens found in Israel that date back to the first century.
'The data profiles were fully compatible with analogous measurements obtained on a linen sample whose dating, according to historical records, is 55-74 AD, found at Masada, Israel [Herod's famous fortress built on a limestone bedrock overlooking the Dead Sea],' reads the study published in the journal Heritage.
The team also compared the shroud with samples from linens manufactured between 1260 and 1390 AD, finding none were a match.
'To make the present result compatible with that of the 1988 radiocarbon test, the Shroud of Turn should have been conserved during its hypothetical seven centuries of life at a secular room temperature very close to the maximum values registered on the earth,' the study reads.
Lead author Dr Liberato De Caro said in a statement that the 1988 test should be deemed as incorrect because 'Fabric samples are usually subject to all kinds of contamination, which cannot be completely removed from the dated specimen.'
'If the cleaning procedure of the sample is not thoroughly performed, carbon-14 dating is not reliable,' he added.
The shroud has been preserved since 1578 in the royal chapel of the cathedral of San Giovanni Battista in Turin, Italy
Previous studies have also used X-ray analysis to confirm that the flax used to make the linen in the shroud (pictured) was grown in the Middle East
'This may have been the case in 1988, as confirmed by experimental evidence showing that when moving from the periphery towards the center of the sheet, along the longest side, there is a significant increase in carbon-14.'
Scientists have long been studying the Shroud of Turin with hopes of solving the centuries-old mystery.
More than 170 peer-reviewed academic papers have been published about the mysterious linen since the 1980s, with many concluded it to be genuine.
Testing in the 1970s looked at whether the images were made through painting, scorching or other agents, but they none could be confirmed.
Another group of experts from the Institute of Crystallography announced in 2017 that they had found evidence that the shroud featured the blood of a torture victim.
They claimed to have identified substances like creatinine and ferritin that are usually found in patients who suffer forceful traumas.
The alleged findings contradicted claims the face of Jesus was painted on by forgers in medieval times.
Carbon dating, also referred to as radiocarbon dating or carbon-14 dating, is a method that is used to determine the age of an object.
Carbon-14 is a carbon isotope that is commonly used by archaeologists and historians to date ancient bones and artefacts.
The rate of decay of carbon-14 is constant and easily measured, making it ideal for providing age estimates for anything over 300 years old.
It can only be used on objects containing organic material - that was once 'alive' and therefore contained carbon.
The element carbon apears in nature in a few slightly different varieties, depending on the amount of neutrons in its nucleus.
Called isotopes, these different types of carbon all behave differently.
Most of the stable, naturally occurring carbon on Earth is carbon 12 - it accounts for 99 per cent of the element on our planet.
While carbon-14 is a radioactive version of carbon.
Carbon-14 occurs naturally in the atmosphere as part of carbon dioxide, and animals absorb it when they breathe.
Animals stop taking it in when they die, and a finite amount of the chemical is stored in the body.
Radioactive substances all have a half-life, the length of time it takes for a material to lose half of its radioactivity.
Carbon-14 has a long half-life, 5,370 years to be exact.
This long half-life can be used to find out how old objects are by measuring how much radioactivity is left in a specimen.
Due to the long half-life, archaeologists have been able to date items up to 50,000 years old.
Radiocarbon dating was first invented in the 1940s by an American physical chemist called Willard Libby. He won the 1960 Nobel Prize in Chemistry for his discovery.
Zijn mythen gewoon fantasieverhalen? Mensen hebben een grote verbeeldingskracht. Toch ontstaan verhalen, mythen en legendes niet altijd simpelweg uit de creativiteit van een bevoorrechte geest.
Wat als het waar is? In het geval van oude legendes en mythen is het mogelijk dat de verbeelding met de werkelijkheid speelde. Fenomenen en gebeurtenissen die destijds niet zo gemakkelijk te verklaren waren, werden anders geïnterpreteerd. Laten we samen uitzoeken wat de wetenschappelijke en historische basis is achter enkele (zeer bijzondere) legendes uit de oudheid.
De zondvloed Niet alleen in de Bijbel, maar ook in tal van andere mythische tradities in het Oosten en de klassieke wereld, waren er verhalen over een vreselijke storm die de aarde 40 dagen lang hevig deed schudden.
Hoe verklaart de wetenschap het? Dit verhaal is het onderwerp geweest van verschillende hypothesen. De meest erkende is dat het verwijst naar een overstroming die in 5000 voor Christus het gebied trof dat overeenkomt met de huidige Zwarte Zee.
De ark van Noach De zondvloed, volgens de bijbelse traditie, werd door God gestuurd om mensen te straffen. Slechts één van hen kon worden gespaard, Noach. Dankzij Gods wil, bouwde hij een groot schip waarin hij een mannetje en een vrouwtje van alle levende dieren verzamelde. Die zouden de planeet opnieuw bevolken zodra de vloed voorbij was.
Wat zit er achter dit verhaal? Mensen gaven zichzelf in die tijd verklaringen voor dingen die ze nog niet konden begrijpen. Bijvoorbeeld voor de ontdekking van visfossielen op hoge bergtoppen. In de oudheid kon dit alleen maar het werk van een god zijn geweest. Wie weet kwamen mensen daarom met het verhaal van Noach op de proppen? Nu weten we echter dat het vinden dan visfossielen op bergtoppen het resultaat is van aardplaten tektoniek.
De Chimaera De Ilias is een epos dat wordt toegeschreven aan de Griekse dichter Homerus. Hierin werd ook de de mythe van de Chimaera vereeuwigt. Een vuurspuwend monster met een slangenstaart en een leeuwenkop. Het monster werd verantwoordelijk gehouden voor de periodieke verwoesting van de kusten van het huidige Turkije.
De realiteit die waarschijnlijk op deze mythe is geïnspireerd Achter de mythe van een vuurspuwend monster, kunnen volgens sommige geleerden de eeuwige vuren schuilgaan die vandaag de dag nog steeds te zien zijn op de berg Chimera in Turkije. De vuren worden aangedreven door methaangas dat uit de rotsen gutst vlakbij de archeologische opgravingen van Yanartaş. Hoogstwaarschijnlijk werden de vuren in de oudheid door zeelieden gebruikt als oriëntatiepunt. Als ze dit vanaf hun boten zagen, zou dit hebben bijgedragen aan het ontstaan van de mythe.
Orakel van Delphi Pythia was de priesteres die verantwoordelijk was voor het reciteren van de antwoorden van het orakel van Delphi. Ze kon dit alleen doen toen ze een staat van mystieke extase bereikte. Dit werd veroorzaakt door de dampen die uit een rots ontsnapten, althans dit is wat de Griekse historicus en filosoof Plutarchus ons vertelt.
De meest erkende hypothese over de oorsprong van de 'zoete dampen' De 'zoete dampen' die Plutarchus noemde, zijn het onderwerp geweest van talrijke studies en verhitte debatten. Wat bekend is, is dat de tempel gewijd aan Apollo in Delphi zich in een actief seismisch gebied bevindt. Er zijn twee breuklijnen onder gevonden. De meest erkende hypothese is dat een aardbeving langs de breuklijn de gassen veroorzaakte waarnaar de Griekse auteur verwijst.
Maar wat voor gas? Wat voor soort gas het was en of het hallucinogene eigenschappen had, daar zijn wetenschappers het niet over eens. Degenen die de aardbevingshypothese ondersteunen, geloven dat deze gassen de gassen waren die normaal in deze gevallen worden uitgestoten, zoals koolstofdioxide en zwavelzuur. Andere wetenschappers spreken van een mix van methaan en ethyleen.
De mythe van Atlantis Volgens de mythe, 'achter de Zuilen van Hercules' (die voor de Grieken het einde van de wereld vertegenwoordigden) werd een legendarisch eiland bewoond door zeer machtige halfgoden: Atlantis. Het einde van dit koninkrijk zou echter op één dag komen. Het zou vernietigd worden door een catastrofe nadat het tevergeefs had geprobeerd de stad Athene binnen te vallen.
Wat zou de inspiratie zijn voor deze legende? Velen zijn het erover eens dat dit verhaal geboren zou kunnen zijn na de uitbarsting van een vulkaan, Thera, in het gebied waar Santorini tegenwoordig staat.
Van Griekenland naar Hawaï Volgens de mythe werd de Kilauea-vulkaan bewoond door de vuurgodin Pele. Een onstuimige, opvliegende en wraakzuchtige godheid. Wraak zou het motief zijn geweest voor een van haar meest extreme acties: een heel bos in brand steken en een man in de vulkaan gooien, omdat hij niet voor haar koos, maar haar zus. De zus van de godin Pele was wanhopig en groef onvermoeibaar in de vulkaan om haar geliefde te vinden terwijl ze de lucht vulde met vonken en vulkaansteentjes.
De gevolgen van de uitbarsting van Thera Deze natuurramp, die ongeveer 3500 jaar geleden plaatsvond, was verantwoordelijk voor de ineenstorting van een deel van het eiland. Het veroorzaakte verschrikkelijke tsunami's en een gaswolk die hoogstwaarschijnlijk leidde tot het verval van de Minoïsche beschaving van het nabijgelegen Kreta.
Uitleg De historische hypothese en het ontstaan van deze oude 'soapserie' verwijst naar de eindeloze uitbarsting in de 15e eeuw. Uiteindelijk werd 430 vierkante kilometer bos op het eiland getroffen en duurde het 60 jaar. Het wanhopige graven van Pele's zus zou de verklaring zijn die mensen zichzelf gaven over de vorming van de Kilauea-caldera vulkaan
Namazu, de aardbevingsmeerval Een populaire Japanse legende betreft een gigantische meerval genaamd Namazu. Hij ligt verborgen onder de oppervlakte van Japan. Vastgehouden door de god Kashima, dankzij een gigantische steen op zijn kop. De gewelddadige aardbevingen die Japan doen schudden, zouden plaatsvinden wanneer, Namazu fladdert en zijn vinnen schudt als hij wil ontsnappen aan de controle van Kashima.
Wat is de wetenschappelijke basis van de legende? Het is bekend dat Japan op de verbindingslijn van verschillende tektonische platen ligt. Het land heeft talrijke vulkanen en wordt doorkruist door breuklijnen met een hoge mate van seismische activiteit. De meerval zou, volgens de populaire traditie, een dier zijn dat in staat is aardbevingen te voorspellen. Al deze oorzaken hebben hoogstwaarschijnlijk geleid tot het ontstaan van de legende.
Het meer dat doodt Een Kameroenese legende zegt dat, tijdens een tijdperk waar veel mensen het land verlieten, de mensen van de Bamessi besloten om andere mensen te verwelkomen. Mensen van de Kom, een andere stam die ze voor een periode bij hen lieten wonen. De mensen van de Kom waren echter te vruchtbaar. Na verloop van tijd waren er te veel. Daarom overtuigde de koning van de Bamessi zijn volk ervan dat ze een bedreiging vormden. Ze smeedden een complot om alle mannetjes van de Kom te doden.
De wraak van de koning en de betovering Uit wraak zei de leider van de Kom tegen zijn zus dat hij zelfmoord zou plegen. Zijn bloed zou een meer vol vissen vormen. Hij waarschuwde dat de mensen van de Kom daar uit de buurt moesten blijven. De mensen van de Kom verlieten het land. Het meer bleef bij de Bamessi. Op de visdag explodeerde het meer en doodde de mensen die in de buurt waren.
Kratermeer in Oregon (VS) Een andere legende over een meer is die van Crater Lake. Een vulkanisch meer gelegen in de caldera van Mount Mazama. Volgens de mythe zou dit het toneel zijn geweest van een bloedige strijd tussen de god van de onderwereld, Llao, en die van de lucht, Skell. Het gevecht tussen de twee goden zou, na aanvallen met stenen en vlammen, geëindigd zijn met het instorten van de vulkaan en de val van Llao. Dankzij de daaropvolgende regens zou het huidige meer zijn gevormd.
De realiteit Als we de strijd tussen de goden buiten beschouwing laten, wordt in de legende herhaalt wat er bijna 8000 jaar geleden gebeurde: er was een angstaanjagende vulkaanuitbarsting, de krater van de vulkaan stortte in en de regen vulde het bassin.
De legende van Rapuanate Volgens een legende op de Salomonseilanden werd een jongeman genaamd Rapuanate smoorverliefd op een vrouw van het eiland Teonimanu. Helaas werd zijn broer ook verliefd op haar en koos ze voor hem. Om wraak te nemen, stortte Rapuanate het land van zijn geliefde met een spreuk in zee.
Historische waarheden Het was een aardbeving die het eiland Teonimanu deed zinken. Het is een van de vele verzonken eilanden in dit deel van de Stille Oceaan. Door de aardbeving zou het eiland in de oceanische diepte van de Filipijnen zijn verdwenen. Toch is het verhaal van de familie-soap misschien interessanter om door te geven.
10 Things Scientists Can't Explain and Attribute to God It’s human nature to try and explain what we see around us. Many religious teachings came to be as a way to explain the unexplainable.
As the centuries passed and our scientific understanding of the world and the wider universe developed, new scientific theories rendered some of these religious ideas obsolete. There are, though, still some areas where science simply cannot produce an explanation.
The Universe and Its Origins Let’s start with a big one — the existence of the universe. Scientific understanding of the universe and how it came to be has come a long way from the Biblical notion of God creating existence with a few words.
But there’s still a lot that science doesn’t have an answer for. Scientific opinion has shifted from the universe being infinite to it having a beginning point. If it has a beginning, then something outside of the universe brought it into existence. Perhaps something divine.
A ‘Goldilocks Universe’ The universe is also finely tuned, with conditions being “just right” to allow for the existence of life on Earth. Any sort of change one way or the other, and life could not exist.
The nature of the fundamental physical laws of the cosmos is very precise. Some feel that they’re too precise to have occurred by accident and instead point to some sort of intelligent design.
Consciousness The scientific definition of the nature of life is extremely limited. We can describe the biological processes in great detail and talk about how the anatomy of the brain permits higher thought, but science cannot really explain consciousness.
And life in the truest, philosophical sense is all about consciousness. The concept of biocentrism takes a more spiritual view of existence that factors in consciousness and much of what religion might describe as the human soul.
Similarly, science can handily explain basic, almost animalistic responses humans have to the world around us, such as why we as a species might have shared “fight or flight” threat responses.
But beyond this, we as a species also have a shared morality. We have ethics. Similar moral constructs crop up time and again in different cultures and civilizations totally independently of one another. Science cannot explain why the animal species we call humans have this fundamental, shared, complex moral code.
Materialistic Desire If we again think of humans as animals, we can explain why there is a biological imperative to secure resources necessary for our survival. But what if we remove this survival need?
We still seek out and cling to things for materialistic or sentimental values. Science is far weaker at explaining these phenomena. Sentimentality in particular is something that is far better explained in the realm of spirituality.
The Design of Life DNA is essentially the code of life. Sequences of nucleotide base pairs describe how to create specific proteins, basically working a lot like computer code for a piece of software.
Science cannot sufficiently explain the chemical evolutionary origins of complex DNA sequencing. If we stick with the software analogy, one explanation could be that it’s a purpose-built design tool for an intelligent designer to use to “program” life in the universe.
The Existence of Miracles Miracles are present in the world, if we define a miracle as some surprising outcome that defies scientific conventions, laws and theory and yet happens all the same.
Beyond this, there are coincidental occurrences that stretch credulity. Scientific thinking holds that there is an underlying reason for why things happen, but scientific theory can fail to explain how some of these seemingly impossible coincidences or miracles occur. Instead, there might be the divine at play.
Human Connection There are biological reasons to explain why humans within the same families seek connection. Again, there is a biological imperative to stay connected and make sure your lineage’s genes are passed to the next generation.
But what about connections that aren’t about basic, animalistic survival? Why do we seek meaningful connections with others, a connection that has no survival benefit? Again, this is more about the spiritual meaning of what it is to be human rather than the scientific meaning
Life After Death It’s one of the great mysteries that has preoccupied human existence — what happens after we die? It’s a question that permeates philosophy, culture and literature — the world beyond death is Hamlet’s “undiscovered country.”
The limitations of the scientific definition of life mean that science also struggles to tackle what happens after death. The biological processes end, but what of the consciousness? Even science states that everything in existence must be conserved, so our “souls” must go somewhere.
The Meaning of Life A common theme seems to be that science is very good at explaining the “how” of things but less equipped to tackle questions of “why.” We can explain the origins of life scientifically, but not its purpose.
Some scientific thinking navigates this by removing the idea of purpose entirely — there is no meaning to life, life simply is. Many scientists, however, do not accept this and continue their scientific explanation of the mysteries of the universe, holding a spiritual belief that there is some meaning to it all. A meaning they cannot define.
When Science Meets Faith Science is, fundamentally, the pursuit of answers. Just because science cannot explain something yet, that doesn't mean that scientists relent and accept something as inexplicable.
But by the same token, the fact that science cannot explain something can be taken as proof that the explanation lies beyond the realm of science and exists in the spiritual. Furthermore, science can be great at providing explanations for the world around us but falls short of religion when it comes to giving meaning to everything.
Paul Amadeus Dienachborn in 1884 near Zurich, was a simple professor of French and German, but what happened to him (regardless of the explanations that can be given) was truly incredible. His extraordinary story is based on his personal journal, which was first published in Greek in 1972. During a year-long coma, Dienach wrote about his incredible experiences living in the year 3906. His journal entries are extremely detailed, revealing a life he claimed to have lived centuries in the future.
Dienach was a Swiss-Austrian teacher who struggled with fragile health. His father was a German-speaking Swiss, and his mother was an Austrian from Salzburg. Despite his health issues, Dienach was determined to live a fulfilling life. In the autumn of 1922, he traveled to Greece, hoping the mild climate would improve his condition.
While in Greece, Dienach taught French and German language lessons to support himself. One of his students, George Papahatzis, had a deep appreciation for Dienach and remembered him as a “very cautious and very modest man who used to emphasize the details.” Papahatzis described Dienach as a dedicated teacher who was passionate about sharing his knowledge.
Dienach’s background was marked by a love for learning and helping others. He grew up in a suburb of Zurich and spent his teenage years in a nearby village. He later studied subjects focused on cultural history, classical languages, and helping others. His interests and passions defined his life’s work.
Sadly, Dienach’s life was cut short when he likely died of tuberculosis in Athens, Greece, or while returning home through Italy in early 1924. Despite his passing, Dienach’s journal remains, offering a fascinating glimpse into his extraordinary experiences and insights.
Before Paul Dienach died, he gave his diary to Papahatzis, asking him to translate it from German to Greek to improve his language skills. Papahatzis thought it was a novel, but as he translated, he discovered it was actually Dienach’s diary… from the future!
Papachatzis was a Professor of Administrative Law at Panteion University from 1943 to 1967 when he was dismissed from the Greek military junta of 1967–74. He was among the prominent Greek Professors of the first period of the Panteion University after its foundation in 1927, which contributed to the university’s curriculum. He also served as Rector of the university from 1964 to 1965.
Dienach likely had a rare brain disease called encephalitis lethargica. The first time he fell asleep because of it, he was out for 15 minutes. The second time, he was in a coma for a year. While in a Geneva hospital, Dienach claimed his mind entered the body of a man named Andreas Northam, living in the year 3906 AD.
After waking up, Dienach didn’t tell anyone about his experience, fearing they’d think he was crazy. Instead, he wrote down everything he remembered about the future. He even quit his job to focus on writing as much as possible.
Dienach described the world and people of 3906 AD based on what he could understand as a man from the 20th century. It was hard for him to grasp everything he saw since he wasn’t familiar with their technology or way of life. The story of Paul Amadeus Dienach is reported in the 2015 book “Chronicles from the Future” by Achilleas Sirigos.
The book has so many details that some people think the author must have lived in a spiritual way in the year 3906 or in some future world. This is because of how detailed the book is. On the other hand, 1921 wasn’t very exciting, so there wasn’t much to inspire writers or spark their creativity.
In his memoirs, Dienach says that people in the future understood his strange medical condition, which they called “conscious slide.” They told him about the events from the 21st to the 39th century. However, they didn’t tell him about the 20th century, fearing that if he returned to his time (which he did), knowing the future might change history or his life.
Papahatzis began reading and translating the diary from French to Greek. In the 800 pages, Dienach wrote about how, during his coma, his consciousness left his body and entered the body of someone from the year 3906. Dienach repeatedly says in the diary that he is not a writer or someone with a lot of imagination or attention to detail.
Dienach lived in the future as Andreas Northam
In his diaries Dienach tells of how he lived, for a year, reincarnated as Andreas Northam, an Italian scientist in hospital following an accident on board a flying car, in 3906. Going beyond the events of his alleged existence in the 40th century.
2000-2300: humanity is still grappling with the problems of overpopulation, environmental pollution, economic inequalities, local wars, and food shortages for all.
2204: The large colonization of Mars by 20 million people is completed, but sixty years later, there will be an environmental catastrophe on the red planet that will leave no escape for anyone. As a consequence, humanity will never attempt to colonize any planet again for many centuries to come.
2309: environmental and humanitarian problems become increasingly worse, causing a major natural disaster and leading all nations into atomic war. Western nations prevail over China, and the consequences of the atomic bomb lead to a dramatic decline in the world population and large mass migrations.
2396: this catastrophe leads to the establishment of a Global Parliament where all nations are represented and united without distinction. In this new world order, power is entrusted to scientists, technocrats, and humanitarian figures. Money as we know it no longer exists, wealth has decreased, and the population can finally redistribute every resource equally. From this moment, we start counting again from year 1. However, there is still resistance to this change from some national governments, which will continue for a couple of centuries. After another five centuries, humanity will have become accustomed to the idea of global belonging, bringing the Dark Ages to an end in 3400.
3382: from this year, something phenomenal happens—a mutation of the human brain that allows a new ability called hyper-vision. It leads to the discovery of astounding concepts never before imagined.
3400-4000: The Golden Age begins after more than 1000 years of the “Dark Age.” In the government, there are no longer scientists and technocrats, but the so-called Universal Creators—personalities who incorporate skills from every field of human knowledge. This new world society is free from all the material and conceptual chains that have hindered the spiritual development of humankind. You work for just two years (from 19 to 21) in “glothners” or electrical production factories; after this period, you officially become cives, citizens of the world. The State, now a global body, takes care of the livelihood of the one billion people that Earth hosts, inevitably preserving it with birth control.
What’s interesting is that history up to the year 3906 seems to follow the ideas of Giambattista Vico (1668–1744). He believed that human history is a never-ending cycle of highs and lows. Humanity always faces challenges that lead to difficulties and sadness. Each time, humanity has to correct its negative actions with big changes. No matter how much technology or spiritual growth we achieve, we are doomed to never reach a permanent state of happiness.
Some fact check:
The man you saw in the thumbnail is actually not Paul Dienach. That is the mug shot of Daniel ‘Lohill’. The photograph was mislabeled as Daniel ‘Lohill’ at the time it was taken in 1908; the real name of this handsome rogue is Daniel TOHILL, and he was convicted of theft in Napier, New Zealand, and sentenced to 4 months of hard labor on March 2, 1908. (Source)
Daniel Tohill (incorrectly labelled as Daniel Lohill), born in 1881 in New Zealand. Charged with theft and sentenced to 4 months hard labor on 2 March 1908 in Napier. Image credit: New Zealand Police Museum.
Does that mean Paul Dienach’s story is a hoax? Not really. The Why Files gave a good explanation…
Paul Dienach lived in Zurich in the 1920s. This isn’t very long ago, and Zurich keeps records of everyone who lived there at that time. Athens does too, where Dienach was supposed to be teaching, but there are no records of anyone by that name.
George Papahatzis, the translator and publisher of the story, said he tried to find Dienach years later but couldn’t. He thinks Dienach might have changed his name before moving to Switzerland, where he was safe during World War I, which makes it hard to find out his real name.
Papahatzis also said that the original handwritten diary is missing. He claimed that while living in Greece during the war, Greek soldiers seized the notes because they were in Germany and never returned them. This sounds suspicious.
Others have noticed that the story is similar to an H.P. Lovecraft tale called “The Shadow Out of Time.” Lovecraft’s story is written like a diary, where the main character goes into a coma and wakes up at a different time. Dienach’s story is about waking up in the future, and Lovecraft’s story was published in 1936. If Dienach’s story was inspired by Lovecraft, then it couldn’t have been written in the 1920s.
It’s unlikely that Papahatzis was fooled by a hoax. He was a respected law professor and intellectual in Greece, even serving on their highest court. He was very interested in law, social studies, and humanities, which are themes in Dienach’s diary. It seems more likely that the book was an intellectual exercise on human spirituality, with Papahatzis adding a sci-fi twist.
Some people might find this hard to believe, but a well-known author named Caroline Leavitt said something similar happened to her. While she was in a coma, she felt like she was living someone else’s life. We still don’t understand a lot about dreams and how they connect to our minds. This makes us wonder if there’s more to our abilities as humans than we think. (Source)
Towering over the Tibetan plateau, Mount Kailash stands as a majestic pyramid of rock and ice. This sacred peak transcends geographical boundaries, holding immense significance for Hinduism, Buddhism, Bon, and Jainism. For centuries, pilgrims have undertaken arduous journeys to circumambulate its base, seeking spiritual fulfillment and a connection to the divine. Beyond its breathtaking beauty, Mount Kailash harbors a multitude of unsolved mysteries that continue to intrigue and mystify. Join us as we delve into 20 enigmas that shroud this sacred mountain, fueling our imagination and sparking a deeper exploration of its secrets.
1. The Unexplored Summit: A Peak Untouched: Mysteries of Mount Kailash
Unlike most Himalayan giants that have succumbed to the will of determined climbers, Mount Kailash remains unconquered. No expedition has ever successfully reached its summit. Religious reverence for the mountain plays a significant role in this. Hindus believe it to be the abode of Lord Shiva, the destroyer and regenerator, and consider climbing it disrespectful. Similarly, Buddhists revere it as the earthly manifestation of Mount Meru, the mythical axis mundi. The challenging terrain, characterized by extreme weather conditions, steep icy slopes, and unpredictable crevasses, further discourages attempts. However, some believe a more profound reason lies behind the mountain’s inviolability. Legends whisper of an unseen force that prevents human intrusion, protecting the sanctity of the peak.
2. Vanishing Acts: Where Do They Go?
The legend of disappearances on Mount Kailash adds another layer of mystery. Stories abound of pilgrims and adventurers venturing onto the circumambulation route, the Kora, and simply vanishing. Search efforts often yield no trace, leaving behind a chilling sense of the unknown. Are these disappearances due to the harsh environment and treacherous terrain? Do they fall victim to accidents or succumb to the unforgiving elements? Or could there be something more at play? Some believe the mountain itself has a role, perhaps transporting those deemed unworthy to another realm. The truth remains shrouded in the mists that cling to the mountain’s slopes.
3. Magnetic Anomalies: Compasses Gone Wild
Modern technology seems to malfunction in the shadow of Mount Kailash. Reports from pilgrims and trekkers detail compasses spinning wildly or pointing in erratic directions. While some attribute this to unusual mineral deposits in the surrounding rocks, others believe it’s a sign of a powerful energy vortex emanating from the mountain itself. This supposed energy vortex is said to have a profound effect on those who visit, influencing their thoughts, emotions, and even their physical well-being. Science may offer explanations based on magnetic field variations, but for many, the experience remains deeply mystical.
4. The Face of Shiva: A Divine Illusion or Geological Wonder?
Legends associated with Mount Kailash are deeply intertwined with its physical characteristics. One such legend claims that a natural formation on the south face of the mountain resembles the face of Lord Shiva. As pilgrims circumambulate the peak, the light and shadow play create a captivating image, seemingly confirming the legend. However, is this a divine message etched into the mountain’s surface or a trick of light and perspective? Geological explanations point to natural rock erosion patterns, but for the faithful, it remains a powerful symbol of the mountain’s connection to the Hindu deity.
5. The Unmelting Snow Cap: A Perpetual Crown of White
Despite its high altitude and harsh climate, the snow cap of Mount Kailash appears to defy nature. Even during warmer months, when surrounding peaks lose their white mantle, Kailash remains crowned with pristine snow. This has sparked various theories. Some believe unusual weather patterns create a microclimate around the mountain, preserving the snow. Others propose the existence of a self-regulating mechanism within the mountain itself, ensuring a perpetual icy cap. The scientific basis for this phenomenon remains elusive, adding to the mountain’s mystique.
6. The Perfect Pyramid: A Creation of Nature or Man?
Unlike other jagged, snow-capped peaks of the Himalayas, Mount Kailash boasts an almost geometrically perfect pyramid shape. Its four near-equal sides and sharp ridges rise majestically towards the sky. This unique form has fueled speculation for centuries. Is it a marvel of nature, sculpted by millions of years of geological processes? Or could it be the work of an advanced civilization, a forgotten pyramid built for a purpose yet unknown? Theories abound, ranging from comparisons to the Egyptian pyramids to suggestions of extraterrestrial intervention.
7. The Mythical Mount Meru: Earthly Abode of the Divine
In Hinduism and Buddhism, Mount Kailash is considered the earthly manifestation of Mount Meru, the mythical axis mundi. This sacred mountain is believed to be the center of all physical and spiritual universes. It serves as a bridge between the earthly realm and the celestial heavens. Whether Mount Kailash is purely a symbolic representation of this cosmic axis or if it has a more literal connection to another dimension remains a mystery. For pilgrims, circumambulating the peak is akin to journeying around the entire cosmos, a powerful act of devotion and spiritual purification.
8. The Alignment with Mount Fuji: A Bridge Across Continents?
Some researchers have noted an intriguing alignment between Mount Kailash and Mount Fuji in Japan. These two sacred peaks, separated by thousands of kilometers, are said to be positioned on a ley line, a hypothetical line of energy that connects various geographical locations with spiritual significance. This alignment could be purely coincidental, a result of our planet’s spherical geometry. However, some believe it holds deeper meaning, suggesting a connection between seemingly disparate cultures and their reverence for mountains as sacred places. Could these peaks be anchors for a vast energy grid that encircles the Earth? The answer remains elusive, but the possibility sparks the imagination.
9. The Singing Sands: A Symphony of the Natural World?
The remote region around Mount Kailash is known for its vast sand dunes. Travelers report hearing strange sounds emanating from these dunes, often described as a low humming or a melodic chanting. Some attribute these sounds to the wind whistling through the sand grains, creating a natural resonance. Others believe the sand itself possesses mystical properties, causing it to “sing” under certain conditions. The true nature of these sounds remains a mystery, adding to the otherworldly aura surrounding Mount Kailash.
10. Celestial Connections: A Gateway to Other Realms?
Legends associated with Mount Kailash often weave a narrative of celestial connections and portals to other realms. The mountain is said to be a point of convergence for cosmic energies, where the veil between dimensions is thinnest. This belief has led some to speculate that the peak serves as a gateway to otherworldly abodes or higher planes of existence. While such ideas may seem fantastical, they highlight the deep human fascination with the unknown and the potential for sacred mountains to act as bridges between the physical and the spiritual.
11. The Footprint of Shiva: A Divine Mark on the Earth
A natural rock formation near Mount Kailash bears a remarkable resemblance to a giant footprint. For Hindus, this is a powerful symbol, believed to be the footprint of Lord Shiva himself. The presence of this formation reinforces the mountain’s association with the deity and serves as a constant reminder of his presence in the region. Whether this is a divinely placed mark or a product of natural processes is a matter of interpretation. For pilgrims, it’s a tangible connection to the divine, a sign that they walk in the footsteps of their god.
12. The Lakes of Yin and Yang: A Duality Reflected in Nature
Two sacred lakes lie nestled near Mount Kailash: Rakshas Tal (Lake of Demons) and Manasarovar (Mind Lake). These lakes are believed to represent Yin and Yang, the opposing and complementary forces that exist in the universe. Rakshas Tal, with its dark, brackish water, embodies the destructive and chaotic aspects of nature. Manasarovar, with its crystal-clear, turquoise water, represents purity, creation, and compassion. The proximity of these lakes and their contrasting qualities highlight the interconnectedness of all things and the balance that exists within the cosmos.
13. The Unexplored Caves: Secrets Waiting to be Unveiled?
Numerous caves dot the landscape surrounding Mount Kailash. These hidden chambers have remained largely unexplored, their depths shrouded in mystery. Legends abound about these caves, some believed to hold hidden treasures or be the dwelling place of mythical beings like yetis or kinnaras (celestial musicians). The harsh environment and the spiritual significance of the caves have deterred extensive exploration. However, the possibility of these caves holding secrets from the past or harboring unique ecosystems fuels the imagination and beckons future exploration.
14. The Language of the Stones: A Code Waiting to be Cracked?
Some researchers have proposed that the rock formations and natural patterns around Mount Kailash may hold a hidden language or set of symbols waiting to be deciphered. These patterns could be remnants of an ancient civilization or a form of communication left behind by a higher intelligence. Deciphering this “language” could unlock secrets about the mountain’s history, its purpose, or even the origins of humanity. While this theory remains highly speculative, it highlights the enduring human desire to find meaning in the natural world and to connect with the past through symbols and patterns.
15. The Energy Vortex: A Conduit for Spiritual Transformation
Mount Kailash is often described as a powerful energy vortex, a place where the earth’s energy field intensifies and interacts with the human body in profound ways. Pilgrims report experiencing heightened states of awareness, increased clarity of thought, and a deep sense of peace while circumambulating the mountain. Some believe this is due to the mountain itself acting as a conduit for spiritual energy, facilitating a connection to something greater than oneself. While the scientific basis for such claims remains elusive, the undeniable impact that Mount Kailash has on many visitors suggests a powerful force at play. Perhaps it’s a combination of the mountain’s majestic presence, the demanding physical journey, and the deep faith of the pilgrims that creates this transformative experience.
16. The Sacred Sounds: A Symphony of the Divine
Many pilgrims report hearing unusual sounds during their circumambulation of Mount Kailash. These sounds can range from ethereal chanting to melodious music, often described as beautiful and otherworldly. Some believe these sounds are a manifestation of the mountain’s energy, a way for it to communicate with those who are open to receiving its message. Others attribute them to the natural world, the wind whistling through the rocks or the calls of unseen birds. Regardless of the source, these sounds add to the mystical aura of Mount Kailash and contribute to the sense of awe and wonder experienced by pilgrims.
17. The Changing Colors: A Play of Light or an Illusion?
Some visitors to Mount Kailash report witnessing the mountain change colors throughout the day. The peak, typically a stark white or gray, is said to shift through hues of gold, pink, and even purple depending on the time of day and the angle of the sunlight. While this phenomenon could be attributed to the interplay of light and shadow on the snow and rock, some believe it’s a sign of the mountain’s inherent dynamism, a way for it to reveal its hidden beauty to those who are worthy. The ever-changing nature of Mount Kailash reflects the impermanence of all things and the constant flux of the universe.
18. The Legends of Shangri-La: A Paradise Lost or a Realm Unseen?
For centuries, the mythical paradise of Shangri-La has captivated imaginations. This hidden utopia, said to be a place of eternal youth and peace, has been variously located in the Himalayas. Some believe the region around Mount Kailash is the true home of Shangri-La, its entrance veiled by the mountain’s mystical energies. While the existence of such a physical paradise remains unproven, the legend speaks to humanity’s yearning for a perfect world and the potential for sacred mountains to serve as gateways to these idealized realms.
19. The Unexplained Lights: A Glimpse into the Unknown?
Reports of strange lights appearing in the night sky near Mount Kailash have fueled speculation about UFO activity or other unexplained phenomena. These lights, often described as orbs or streaks of colorful light, have been witnessed by pilgrims and trekkers alike. While some dismiss them as natural phenomena like meteors or ball lightning, others believe they are signs of intelligent extraterrestrial life or evidence of interdimensional travel. The unexplained nature of these lights adds to the mystery surrounding Mount Kailash and reinforces its reputation as a place where the veil between worlds might be thin.
20. The Personal Transformation: A Journey Within
Perhaps the greatest mystery of Mount Kailash is not something external or readily explained. It lies in the profound personal transformation experienced by many who undertake the pilgrimage. The arduous journey, the breathtaking scenery, and the deep spiritual significance of the location all contribute to a transformative experience. Pilgrims often report a renewed sense of purpose, a deeper connection to their faith, and a greater understanding of themselves. This internal transformation is the ultimate takeaway from a journey to Mount Kailash, a testament to the mountain’s power to influence not just the physical landscape, but also the human spirit.
A Beacon of Mystery and Wonder
Mount Kailash stands as a powerful symbol of the unknown, a place where the boundaries between the physical and the spiritual blur. The 20 mysteries we have explored are just a glimpse into the mountain’s enigmatic aura. Whether you approach it from a religious perspective, a scientific one, or simply as a place of breathtaking beauty, Mount Kailash has the power to inspire, challenge, and transform. The journey to unravel its secrets is an ongoing one, a testament to humanity’s enduring curiosity and our desire to connect with something greater than ourselves.
Mount Kailash – “Precious Jewel of the Eternal Show”.
Rising at an elevation of 6656 meters, Mount Kailash is the most mysterious and sacred mountain in the world. It is the highest peak of Kailash Range which spread in Tibet, Nepal and India. Also, it is a part of the Trans-Himalaya in the Tibetan Autonomous Region of China.
Due to the surroundings of mountains, it is like a majestic creation of nature.
Mount Kailash lies around the origin of the four longest rivers of Asia the Indus River, Sutlej, Brahmaputra and Karnali River.
Strangely but its shape is like the pyramid of Egypt. Therefore, it is known as the “Biggest Man-made Pyramid”. It is rated as “Pillar of the World”. And like this, there are many interesting things about Mount Kailash that will surprise and force you to visit this mystic creation of nature. So grab a cup of tea and take a look at the 13 unsolved mysteries of Mount Kailash:
13 Unsolved Mysteries of Mount Kailash:
1: Who lives at Kailash?
The Hindus consider the Kailash Parvat is the abode of great Lord Shiva and his wife Parvati. While the Tibetan Buddhist believes that Kailash is the abode of the tantric meditational deity Demchog.
And Jains consider the Kailash as the site at which their first Tirthankar attained nirvana. But Bon believes it is a sacred mountain and center of the world and home of all gods.
All of them have a different perspective about who lives at Kailash and that makes it more mysterious and sacred. But hikers from the world goes over oh their for doing parikrama. Back to Top
2: Geographical location of Kailash Parvat
According to some strange disbelief, axis Mundi is the center of the earth and the connection between the physical world to the spiritual world.
It is on the axis of the earth and to keep all living beings alive it maintains the atmosphere. Its location is in synchronization with all other ancient monuments in the universe and earth poles. And it is located at an exact 6666 km from the monument of Stonehenge.
3: Why No One Able to Climb at Mount Kailash?
Mount Kailash is a sacred mountain in all four religions and trekking at the top could hurt the religious sentiments of people. The fear of trespassing the sanctity of the mountain and disturbing the divine energizes residing there makes it unclimbable as according to Hindus Mount Kailash is the abode of Lord Shiva.
Even though number of people tried to climb on Kailash Parvat but till now no one gets succeeds. According to a scientific hypothesis, the mountain keep changes its position for those who want to climb it. Afterward, many people’s journeys have failed to climb its peak.
Till the 21st century, no one reaches the peak of Mount Kailash. Keeps changing position make it more strange and scary.
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4: The Mysterious shapes of Manasarovar and other lakes
The word Manasarovar comes from Sanskrit and a combination of two words Mans means mind and Sarovar means lake.
Mansarovar lake is famous for its amazing beauty and the color of the water that changes blue from around the shores to emerald green at the center.
Located southeast of Mount Kailash, Lake Manasarovar is rated as the adobe of Purity. According to legends before it creating on earth, its image was incepted in the mind of Bharma.
This lake is very sincere and calms irrespective of weather.
The Manasarovar lake is the highest freshwater lake in the world but strange as well because of its round shape and its twin named Rakshas Tal Lake which is located next to it.
Rakshas Tal is also known as the devil’s lake while Manasarovar lake is known as God Lake. Rakhast Tal lake is one of the biggest saltwater lakes in the world. And its shape like the moon.
The other two lakes represent solar and lunar forces, bad and good energy respectively.
5: Time Travel on Kailash Parvat
Many passengers reported that time travels quickly around the Kailash Parvat which is not witnessed anywhere in the world.
Many Hikers have reported that they feel like their nails and hairs are growing quickly within 12 hours. But in the normal environment, the same growth of hair and nails takes 2 around week time.
This is very strange, isn’t it?
6: Man-Made Pyramid
According to a Russian theory, “Mount Kailash could be the biggest ancient Man-Made pyramid, the center of an entire complex of the smaller pyramid (100 in total) and is linked with Pyramid of Giza and Teotihuacan.
Mount Kailash could be the center of the world that connecting other monuments or sites from where the paranormal activates have been observed.
7: Importance of Kailash Parikrama
Kailash Parvat is one of the most mysterious, religious and sacred mountains in the world. The one circumambulation (Parikarma) of Mount Kailash symbolizing the phases of life, death, refinement, and resurrection.
Jains and Buddhists refer to this circumambulation as Kora and Hindus refer as parikrama. A single circumambulation is equaled to the one turn of the wheel of life that will clean away the guilt of whole life. But the circumambulation of Kailash Parvat is very difficult and dangerous.
8: The magical Gauri Kund
Gauri Kund that is also known as Lake of Compassion, a water body that lies in transit while going on downwards from Dolma.
This lake is famous as Parvati Sarovar where goddess Parvati had procured her child Ganesha.
According to Hindus Scripture, Goddess Parvati had framed her child Lord Ganesh from the cleanser foam of her body and breathed life into it.
9: A link between Earth to Heaven
According to Hinduism, Buddhism and Jainism Mount Kailash could be the gateway to heaven. And Vedas also describe the same that Mount Kailash is a link between earth to heaven. If we consider the story of Mahabharata then Pandavas along with Draupadi are believed to have achieved moksha.
10: Om Parvat
Om Parvat is another interesting mystery, as the snow falls on the peak and takes the shape of OM.
11: Formation of Swastika
During sunset, the mountain is said to cast a shadow, which has a striking likeness to the religious symbol of Swastika, which is rated as an auspicious sign by Hindus.
12. The Yam Dwar
Yam Dwar is one of the most prominent destinations in the Kailash Manasarovar Yatra which is situated in Tarboche 30 minutes drive from Darchen.
The meaning of Yam Dwar is “The Gateway of God of Death”. It is also known as Chorten Kang Ngyi which means two legged stupas in Tibet.
Yam Dwar is more associated with heaven and the soul.
13. No Mortals allowed to climb atop Mount Kailash
According to some ancient text, no one allowed to climb at the top of Mount Kailash. And who dare to climb to see the face of God will be put to death. And due to its religious significance, government don’t allow anyone to climb it.
10 Interesting Facts About Mount Kailash:
1. The Russian Theory
The biggest mystery of mount Kailash is its Shape. According to Russian scientists, it’s not a mountain rather than it’s a Man-Made Pyramid.
2. Twin Lake
There are two lakes surrounding mount Kailash – The first one is Mansarovar or the God Lake and the second one is Rakshas Tal or the devil lake. Many ancient texts claim that Mount Kailash stands as the balance between the two and teach us that there isn’t any evil external to us; we are the evil.
3. Who Climb at Mount Kailash?
The interesting fact about Mount Kailash that it has never been climbed by anyone apart from a person named Milarepa. There are many stories claimed that mystic Tibetan seer and poet name Milarepa is the only person who successfully climbed atop of Mount Kailash.
4. Source of 4 Major River
The origin of the four most religious rivers of Asia lies around 50 KM radius of Mount Kailash and in four different directions:
Through west flows the great Ganges.
Through south flows the great Karnali.
Through east flows Maa Brahmaputra.
And through north flows river Indus.
5. Place of Ultimate Nirvana
Jain claims Mount Kailash as Mt. Asthapada and believe that their religious originator, Rishadev, achieved Nirvana – State of Happiness or Another form of Moksha.
6. Ancient Monasteries and Caves
As per the Buddhists and Hindus scriptures, around Mount Meru inside the existing caves and ancient monasteries the blessed sages live in their material and unpretentious bodies. Only few lucky ones can see them.
7. Kailash Parikarma
Every year, a number of pilgrims come Tibet for Pilgrimage to the sacred mount Kailash (Kailash Parikarma) but only some of them able to finish outflank the Mount Kailash.
8. Journey of Lifetime
Mount Kailash is one of the most sacred places in the world and known as the Navel of the Universe. Therefore, it attracts many scholars and researchers from all over the world. And Mount Kailash provides a spiritual, enriching, unique and truly rewarding journey of a lifetime.
9. Kang Rimpoche:
Buddhism religion has a special religious connection with Mount Kailash. For them, it is known as Kang Rimpoche or “Precious One of Glacial Snow”.
10. Four faces:
Mount Kailash has four different faces and each of them aligned with four directions. According to Puranas, it is a spiritual center of the earth and also says that each face is made of Gold, Ruby, Lapis Lazuli and Crystal. Back to Top
Here is the list of strange mysteries of mount Kailash: So come; visit the abode of the Gods (Lord Shiva and Parvati) and receive their blessings! And share it with your friend.
Most Frequently Asked Questions About Mount Kailash
Q1: Why no one has climbed mount Kailash?
It’s not that mountaineers from different part of the world have not tried to climb the mount Kailash but they couldn’t because according to some strange believes the mountain keeps changes its position for them who wants to climb it. Truly there is something which not be understandable for common men.
Q2: Is anyone climbed mount Kailash?
Yes, Buddhist monk, Milarepa is said to have climbed atop Mount Kailash.
Q3: What is inside Mount Kailash?
According to Hindus Mount Kailash is the adobe of Lord Shiva but Tibetan Buddhists believe that Kailash is the abode of the tantric meditational deity Demchog. Jains consider the Kailash as the site at which their first Tirthankar attained nirvana. But recently Russain put has an idea that Mount Kailash could be the biggest ancient man-made pyramid.
Q4: Does Lord Shiva live in Mount Kailash
Yes, according to Hindus Kailash Parvat is the adobe of great Lord Shiva and his wife Parvati. And the death of Atheists and Adharmis proved that Mount Kailash is not a normal mountain that can be climbed. According to Russian Research, Mount Kailash is the center of the earth and could be the biggest man-made pyramid.
Q5: Can Plane fly over Mount Kailash?
No, no planes can fly over Mount Kailash. If you talk about scientific reason then the main reason is the elevation of the Himalayan Mount range which is around 30000 ft and the highest cruising altitude that is allowed to planes is around 25 to 35000 ft. And there could be another reason as well like supernatural theories, India-China relation and many more.
Q6: How old is Mount Kailash?
The Kailash range is around 30 million years old.
Q7: Is Mount Kailash a Pyramid?
Yes, according to the Russian report Mount Kailash could be the biggest Man-Made pyramid and the center of the earth.
Q8: Why is Mount Kailash sacred?
Mount Kailash is one the most sacred place in the world not for only one religion but for all 4 religions Hindu, Buddhists, Jain and Bon. Hindus considered this is the home of Lord Shiva and Goddess Parvati while Tibetan Buddhists believe that Kailash is the abode of the tantric meditational deity Demchog. Jains consider the Kailash as the site at which their first Tirthankar attained nirvana.
Mystery at Mount Kailash: Strange ancient anomaly found near the summit
Mystery at Mount Kailash: Strange ancient anomaly found near the summit
Mount Kailash is a mountain in Ngari Prefecture, Tibet Autonomous Region of China. It lies in the Kailash Range of the Transhimalaya, in the western part of the Tibetan Plateau. The peak of Mount Kailash is located at an elevation of 6,638 m, near the trijunction between China, India and Nepal.
In Tibetan Buddhism, Mount Kailash holds a special place as the Axis Mundi, or the center of the universe. Imagine it as the heart of everything, where heaven and earth meet. This sacred mountain isn't just a random peak; it's like the cosmic hub, connecting different realms together.
In the year 1999, an expedition of Russian Scientists led by Dr Ernst Muldashev claimed that Mount Kailash is too perfectly shaped for a natural mountain. They have discovered that the top of Mt. Kailash is actually a man-made vacuum pyramid. It is surrounded by more than 100 other small pyramids. According to preliminary estimates, the direct height of the pyramid complex is between 100 and 1,800 meters, while the Egyptian pyramid is only 146 meters
It is also believed to be the site of Lord Shiva, the god of destruction and rebirth as well as where the first human beings were created.
According to the legend Shiva has left a giant footprint on the summit of the mountain. Despite extensive searches, no concrete evidence of this footprint has ever been found.
While exploring Mount Kailash on Google Earth, I spotted a large, unusual anomaly near the summit. It resembles two hands, each with four visible fingers, positioned opposite each other and seemingly carved into the rock.
Could these huge hands be a kind of a 'footprint' of Shiva that people have been searching for?
As for climbing up the summit, some daring mountaineers have attempted to do so, but with no luck. It also is said that who climb Mount Kailash age quickly. The time that human takes to age two weeks only take 12 hours in the mountain. Numerous hikers have detailed that they feel like their nails and hairs are developing rapidly within 12 hours.
Trekking all the way up to the peak of Mount Kailash is held to be a forbidden act among Hindus for the fear of trespassing the sanctity of the mountain and disturbing the divine energies residing there.
Even planes don't fly over Kailash as Mount Kailash is said to possess a mysterious magnetic anomaly that disrupts navigational instruments and disrupts compass readings. This phenomenon has puzzled scientists with no concrete explanation offered to date.
Coordinates: 31° 4'4.83"N 81°18'24.47"E
Mount Kailash is still a mystery. The unconquered peak remains wrapped in myths, legends, and spiritual tales.
Most of us associate sinkholeswith frightening abysses, but in China, they’re considered “heavenly” for good reason.
Far from being mouths of doom, a number of these have been discovered containing pristine ancient forests.
Most recently, in August last year, cave explorers stumbled upon one of these giant holes, which experts said likely contained species of small animals that were unknown to science.
This extraordinary hole reportedly measures a whopping 300 metres (1,000 feet) in length, 150 metres (500 feet) in width and is more than 190 metres (630 feet deep).
It is located in China’s southwestern karst landscape and is now one of 30 such holes known as “tiankeng” – which translates as “heavenly pits” – in the region.
The reason for the trenches’ otherworldly name is that they are some of the last-remaining natural refuges for ancient forests and are home to species unseen anywhere else in the world.
Indeed, describing his own encounter with a tiankeng back in 2016, researcher Tang Jianmin wrote: “The scene down there was stunning: an underground pristine forest with no trace of human activities, with 40 metre-high ancient trees and a group of endangered wild plants from the times of dinosaurs.”
Given their depth, very little light reaches the bottom of the tiankeng, and yet, they harbour an abundance of plants.
For years it remained unclear how this was possible, but a new study, published on 20 July, has revealed how a number of species have been able to thrive in their depths.
The researchers found that nettles, ferns and other plants that live inside them thrive off of abundant stocks of nitrogen, phosphorus, potassium, calcium and magnesium.
These elements limit plant growth in other environments, where they are scarce, but because they are so bountiful in the tiankeng, the plants have evolved to devour them, enabling them to grow tall and benefit from the trickles of sunlight that reach them.
"Plants can adapt to adverse environments by adjusting their nutrient content," the study’s authors wrote, according to a translation by Live Science.
"Due to the towering cliffs and steep terrain of the tiankeng, it has been less disturbed by human activities.”
The deep holes host plants that favour moisture and shade, including species unique to the region, the researchers add. These include modern karst forest plants, such as the Nepali hog plum (Choerospondias axillaris) and the Chinese rain bell (Strobilanthes cusia).
So how do these tiankeng and their forests form?
These remarkable sinkholes emerge when the roof of an underground chamber enlarges and collapses, according to Jianmin.
Some 30 per cent of the world’s tiankeng are found in China’s Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous region among its World Heritage listed karst formations.
Karst landscapes are shaped by the erosion of soluble carbonate rocks such as limestone, creating features such as sinkholes, caves and underground rivers.
The South China Karst are a UNESCO World Heritage site
(Ko Hon Chiu Vincent via UNESCO)
In a piece for The UNESCO Courier, Jianmin further explains the formation of these sinkholes, writing: “Karst tiankeng is a relatively closed environment with high humidity, low temperature and a high concentration of negative oxygen ions.
“Its bottom is connected with underground water flow, nurturing a lush green oasis all year round.
“Primitive ecosystems with unique animal, plant and microbial resources are formed there.”
In total, 300 tiankeng have been discovered across the globe, with China home to two-thirds of them. They have also been found in Papua New Guinea, Malaysia and Madagascar, Slovenia, Croatia, Italy and Spain, among other countries.
Why are they important?
More than just a jaw-dropping natural phenomenon, these sinkholes are important ecological havens.
Jianmin noted that he and fellow researchers have discovered many rare and endemic plants in the tiankeng area, cementing its status as a “refuge for endangered plants and primitive forest ecosystems”.
“There is also a good chance that previously unknown species will be discovered in these environments,” he added.
Video released of Seffner sinkhole that claimed life of Jeff Bushyoutu.be
Een reis naar lokale legendes over de hele wereld Etherische figuren, die doen denken aan eeuwenoude legendes, komen op subtiele wijze tevoorschijn uit het tapijt van culturen en wenken nieuwsgierigen en dapperen om de blijvende kracht van folklore te ontdekken. Deze verhalen zijn het gefluister van generaties, die de essentie van het mysterieuze en magische vastleggen, en in deze galerij worden ze gevierd als de schatten van ons gedeelde menselijke erfgoed.
LEES VERDER door de galerij om de verhalen van weleer te ontdekken!
Het fluisterende bamboe (China) In het hart van het oude China fluistert een verhaal over twee geliefden, getransformeerd in bamboe, voor altijd samen zwaaiend in de wind. Deze legende, diep geworteld in de Chinese folklore, spreekt over de blijvende kracht van de liefde die echoot door de ritselende bamboebladeren. Het is een herinnering aan de veerkracht van de liefde en de eeuwige aanwezigheid in de natuur.
Anansi's Web (West-Afrika) Onder de Afrikaanse hemel weeft Anansi de Spin meer dan alleen maar webben; hij weeft verhalen over wijsheid. Deze bedrieger, een prominent figuur in West-Afrikaanse verhalen, leert levenslessen door zijn sluwe en avontuurlijke heldendaden. Elke streng van zijn web symboliseert de complexiteit van de beslissingen in het leven en de wijsheid die hij door ervaring verkrijgt.
Het noorderlicht (Scandinavië) Terwijl je in de Scandinavische nacht staart, ben je getuige van de etherische dans van de Aurora Borealis. Folklore vertelt over deze lichten als een hemels fenomeen, waar de geesten van de overledenen in de hemel spelen, verhalen van verwondering weven en het aardse rijk overbruggen met het mystieke.
Het monster van Loch Ness (Schotland) Gehuld in de mist van de Schotse folklore ligt Loch Ness, de thuisbasis van Nessie, het ongrijpbare monster. Deze legende geeft de essentie weer van de enigmatische charme van Schotland, waarbij Nessie de mysteries symboliseert die op de loer liggen in de diepten van onze verbeelding en in de donkere wateren van het meer.
Baba Yaga's Hut (Rusland) In het hart van de Russische folklore staat de hut van Baba Yaga, een bijzondere verblijfplaats op kippenpoten. De enigmatische heks, die vaak een cruciale rol speelt in verhalen over heldendom en speurtochten, belichaamt de dualiteit van de natuur – soms een helper, soms een belemmering, maar altijd een belangrijke figuur in het rijke tapijtwerk van de Slavische mythologie.
De Feniks (Midden-Oosten) Uit de as van oude verhalen uit het Midden-Oosten rijst de Feniks op, een prachtige vogel die vernieuwing en het eeuwige leven symboliseert. Dit mythische wezen, helder brandend en herboren uit zijn eigen ondergang, vertegenwoordigt de eindeloze cyclus van leven, dood en wedergeboorte, een krachtig embleem van veerkracht en hoop in de folklore.
Kraken (Noordse Zee) In de diepe, koude wateren van de Noordse Zeeën schuilt de Kraken, een legendarisch zeemonster dat gevreesd wordt door zeilers. Dit enorme wezen, vaak vergeleken met een reuzeninktvis, belichaamt de mysteries en verschrikkingen van de oceaan, een bewijs van de eeuwenoude fascinatie en angst van de mensheid voor de onbekende diepten van de zee.
El Dorado (Zuid-Amerika) Diep in het hart van Zuid-Amerika fascineert de legende van El Dorado, de stad van goud, ontdekkingsreizigers al eeuwenlang. Dit prikkelende verhaal spreekt over grenzeloze rijkdom en ambitie en weerspiegelt de eindeloze zoektocht van de mensheid naar ontdekkingen en de ongrijpbare aard van onze grootste verlangens.
De Banshee (Ierland) In de Ierse folklore is het treurige gejammer van de Banshee onder het maanlicht een voorbode van de dood. Deze spookachtige figuur, gehuld in mysterie, belichaamt de Keltische eerbied voor de overgang van leven naar dood, een aangrijpende herinnering aan de dunne sluier tussen het levende en het spirituele rijk.
Tengu (Japan) Hoog in de Japanse bergen wonen de Tengu: mystieke wezens die deels mens en deels vogel zijn. Deze wezens staan bekend als zowel beschermers als bedriegers van de bossen en symboliseren de complexiteit van de natuur en menselijke interactie, waarbij ze kattenkwaad en wijsheid vermengen in het rijke tapijtwerk van de Japanse folklore.
Bigfoot (Noord-Amerika) In de uitgestrekte, onbekende bossen van Noord-Amerika roept de legende van Bigfoot, een mysterieuze reus, nieuwsgierigheid en debat op. Dit ongrijpbare wezen, vaak omschreven als een torenhoge, harige figuur, belichaamt de wilde en onbekende aspecten van de natuur. Bigfoot dient als symbool voor de mysteries die nog steeds verborgen liggen in de afgelegen wildernis.
De regenboogslang (Australië) Centraal in de Aboriginal mythologie wordt de Regenboogslang vereerd als een krachtige scheppende godheid. Dit levendige, slangachtige wezen, geassocieerd met water en leven, weeft door de verhalen van de inheemse bevolking en symboliseert de schepping, vruchtbaarheid en de onderlinge verbondenheid van alle levende wezens.
La Llorona (Mexico) Het verhaal van La Llorona, gefluisterd langs de rivieroevers, spreekt over een spookachtige vrouw, die eeuwig rouwt om haar verdronken kinderen. Dit aangrijpende verhaal, doordrenkt van Mexicaanse folklore, dient als een waarschuwend verhaal over liefde, verlies en de gevolgen van iemands daden, dat door de eeuwen heen weerklinkt.
De Djinn (Midden-Oosten) In verhalen uit het Midden-Oosten zijn de Djinn bovennatuurlijke wezens, noch geheel goed, noch slecht. Deze raadselachtige wezens worden vaak geassocieerd met het vervullen van wensen en weerspiegelen de dubbele aard van menselijke verlangens en de complexe gevolgen die de vervulling ervan met zich meebrengt.
De Krampus (AlpenEuropa) In de ijskoude Alpengebieden vormt de Krampus een schril contrast met de feestelijke vreugde van Kerstmis. Deze gehoornde figuur, bekend om het straffen van zich misdragende kinderen tijdens de kerstperiode, belichaamt de oude gebruiken en duistere aspecten van wintervieringen en herinnert aan de balans tussen welwillendheid en discipline.
Valkyries (Noorse mythologie) In de Noorse mythologie kozen Walkuren, goddelijke vrouwelijke figuren, het lot van krijgers in de strijd. Deze krachtige wezens, die door de lucht vliegen, vertegenwoordigen de concepten van het lot en het hiernamaals, een integraal onderdeel van de Viking-overtuigingen en -cultuur.
De rattenvanger (Duitsland) De rattenvanger, een mysterieuze figuur uit de Duitse folklore, staat erom bekend een stad van ratten te bevrijden en later zijn kinderen weg te lokken. Zijn verhaal is een waarschuwend verhaal over beloften en gevolgen, dat door de eeuwen heen weerklank vindt.
De Nian (China) Het angstaanjagende beest Nian zou in de Chinese folklore zijn verslagen met behulp van rode lantaarns en vuurwerk. Deze legende symboliseert de triomf over angst en tegenspoed, gevierd tijdens het Chinese Nieuwjaar.
De Golem (Joodse folklore) In de Joodse folklore werd de Golem, een tot leven gewekt kleifiguur, gecreëerd om de gemeenschap te beschermen. Dit krachtige verhaal onderzoekt thema's als creatie, controle en de onbedoelde gevolgen van onze acties.
Kappa (Japan) De Kappa, waterwezens uit de Japanse folklore, staan bekend om hun kattenkwaad, maar toch zijn ze gebonden aan een beleefdheidscode. Deze wezens symboliseren de genuanceerde relatie tussen mensen en de natuurlijke wereld en weerspiegelen het delicate evenwicht van co-existentie.
The Selkie's Secret (Schotse en Ierse folklore) Selkies, zeehondenmensen uit de Schotse en Ierse overlevering, belichamen de thema's identiteit en vrijheid. Hun verhalen, vaak romantisch en tragisch, spreken over de transformerende aard van selkies en hun diepe verbinding met zowel land als zee, en reflecteren op het universele verlangen naar iemands ware thuis.
New investigations into humanity’s ancient interactions with an enigmatic “lost” species are revealing the complex world our early ancestors once shared.
The recent research conducted by an international team of geneticists and AI experts has revealed that the lives of early modern humans and Neanderthals were more interconnected than previously thought. Significantly, the study points to waves of interbreeding over time that fundamentally shaped the genetic makeup of modern humans and offers new insights into the mysterious disappearance of the Neanderthals.
Led by Joshua Akey from Princeton University, the team says it has discovered evidence of such genetic exchanges dating back as far as 250,000 years. This data challenges existing theories about human migrations in the ancient world and what factors may have steered human evolution over time.
The new findings point to a far deeper level of interaction that once occurred between ancient humans and our Neanderthal cousins.
THE NEANDERTHAL ENIGMA
First discovered in 1856, what eventually came to be recognized as the first known Neanderthal bones were found in a limestone quarry in the Neander Valley near Düsseldorf, Germany. The discovery introduced these mysterious archaic hominins to the paleoanthropological record and prompted serious scientific interest in what factors shaped human evolution over time.
Once mischaracterized as slow and lacking intelligence, mounting evidence of traits exhibited by Neanderthals, including advanced stone toolmaking and the possibility that they may have treated each other’s injuries, is continually reshaping our ideas about their intelligence levels.
While similar to us in many ways, the differences between Neanderthal remains and those of modern humans have long remained intriguing to scientists, raising questions that have deepened in recent years with the discovery of another hominin group, known as the Denisovans, that once also populated parts of Asia and South Asia as recently as the latter part of the last Ice Age.
Now, Akey and his team at Princeton’s Lewis-Sigler Institute for Integrative Genomics are uncovering deeper insights than ever before into the genetic history modern humans share with the Neanderthals, who mysteriously vanished from the fossil record around 40,000 years ago.
According to Akey and his team, multiple different waves of interbreeding between Neanderthals and modern humans appear to have taken place.
“We now know that for the vast majority of human history, we’ve had a history of contact between modern humans and Neanderthals,” Akey recently said.
Liming Li, a professor at Southeast University in China who was also a contributor to the study, called the team’s findings “the first time that geneticists have identified multiple waves of modern human-Neanderthal admixture.”
COMMON ORIGINS WITH AN INTELLIGENT “LOST” SPECIES
The findings help to confirm that around 600,000 years ago, modern humans and Neanderthals split from an earlier common ancestor. More than 350,000 years would pass before each group developed distinctive physical characteristics that clearly defined them as separate species.
However, over the course of the 200,000 years leading up to their disappearance, humans continued to interact with Neanderthals. In their research, Akey and the team used genomes collected from 2,000 living humans, as well as genomes from three Neanderthals and one Denisovan, to map the flow of genetic information between these groups spanning a period of about 250,000 years.
Additionally, the team’s research was aided by a machine learning tool called IBDmix, which helped them identify three major waves of contact that occurred between 200,000 and 250,000 years ago, 100,000 to 120,000 years ago, and a final wave between 50,000 and 60,000 years ago, just before the last known Neanderthals vanished from the fossil record.
The team made additional insights into the presence of modern human DNA in Neanderthal genomes, an approach that helped identify that offspring from such interbreeding events were likely to remain in Neanderthal populations, with no traces present in the genomes of living humans.
According to Akey and his team, this very dynamic state of early human movement also complements archaeological evidence of cultural and tool exchanges that were believed to have occurred between these hominin relatives.
Finally, the Princeton research team’s findings offer a revision to past estimates of the size of Neanderthal populations. They reveal that past figures were interpreted as being greater than they actually were, reducing the breeding population of Neanderthals the team observed in their data by close to 1000 individuals
Although Akey prefers the notion of slow assimilation into human populations over the idea of extinction, he nonetheless concedes that the disappearance of the Neanderthals had been foreshadowed by population decline over a fairly long period.
“Neanderthals were teetering on the edge of extinction, probably for a very long time,” Akey says.
Ultimately, the steady growth in modern human populations coinciding with the slow decline and assimilation of Neanderthals resulted in their absorption. Akey and his team’s research strongly support this gradual assimilation model, offering what may be the clearest picture yet of the rise and fall of the enigmatic Neanderthals.
“Modern humans were essentially like waves crashing on a beach, slowly but steadily eroding the beach away,” Akey said in a statement.
“Eventually, we just demographically overwhelmed Neanderthals and incorporated them into modern human populations.”
Akey and his team’s findings were published in a recent study, “Recurrent gene flow between Neanderthals and modern humans over the past 200,000 years,” which appeared in the journal Science.
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Over mijzelf
Ik ben Pieter, en gebruik soms ook wel de schuilnaam Peter2011.
Ik ben een man en woon in Linter (België) en mijn beroep is Ik ben op rust..
Ik ben geboren op 18/10/1950 en ben nu dus 74 jaar jong.
Mijn hobby's zijn: Ufologie en andere esoterische onderwerpen.
Op deze blog vind je onder artikels, werk van mezelf. Mijn dank gaat ook naar André, Ingrid, Oliver, Paul, Vincent, Georges Filer en MUFON voor de bijdragen voor de verschillende categorieën...
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