May The 4th Be With You! Happy Star Wars Day!  

Archeology Today by Monty Python       

   Reblogged from Merritt Burton  https://twitter.com/chaotichamster Thanks to Bernie S. for the find:

You guessed the obvious (considering the source ;-) folks! That is right, Archaeology!  Yep - 24% of Brits sampled in a 2,000 person survey listed Archaeology as the number one job they daydream about giving up their regular 9-5 job (you know, the ones with benefits, insurance, vacation, and co-workers with a slightly above average sense of acceptable hygiene). And of this sample one in four women surveyed choose archaeology as their number one choice of new profession.  But...you know what the #2 and #3 jobs were? Treasure Hunter (21%) and Adventurer (21%). Somehow I think these people surveyed might have a slightly distorted idea of what these "jobs" entail...and is "Adventurer" really even a job? The survey did find that in this sample set people spent about 12 minutes a day fantasizing about a different career. It also found that four in ten have also looked into moving out of Britain to find a different...

This is What Real Archaeologists do - Punch Nazis

It is what we do. I have reached out to ILM Intellectual Property to see if I can get a license to sell this on t-shirts, etc... I will keep you all updated.  ~R. Joe

COLUMBUS, OH—Marveling at how well preserved the archaic opinions were, a team of archaeologists from the Smithsonian Institution announced Thursday the discovery of a fully intact 17th-century belief system in Ohio congressman Jim Jordan (R-OH). “It’s just extraordinary to come across a perspective that dates back to the the mid-1600s and shows absolutely no signs of decay,” said Dr. Claire Goedde, explaining that while it’s not uncommon to encounter partial remains of convictions from that era, it’s exceedingly rare to recover a specimen this pristine. “All the 400-year-old viewpoints remain almost completely untouched, from religion’s place in society to the rights of women to the attitude toward science. I can only imagine the insights this single sample will provide as to how people who lived centuries ago saw the world around them.” Goedde added, however, that the congressman’s belief system was fragile even in near-perfect condition and could deteriorate rapidly if examined too much.  ...

  And don't forget kids! Cinco de Mayo is not Mexican Independence Day. That is celebrated on September 16. The Cinco de Mayo holiday celebrates an unexpected victory: the Mexican victory over the French at the Battle of Puebla on May 5, 1862. The Mexican army won the battle despite being smaller and ill-equipped. Have a great day! (Thanks to Dr. Gloria Everson for the nice summation!)

Antioch: Turkey Turkish archaeologist Demet Kara has excavated a 2,400-year-old mosaic that features a laid-back skeleton, reclining with a cup next to a bottle of wine and loaf of bread, surrounded by the wise words: "Be cheerful, enjoy your life,".  The mosaic dates to the third century B.C. The mosaic contains the quote "Be cheerful, enjoy your life" which sums up things pretty nicely.

While I respect the writings of Dr. Shaena Montanari  and her conclusion that Archaeologist Semir Osmanagich is wrong about his interpretation of his recent discovery is Bosnia "Archaeologist Semir Osmanagich, known as the “Bosnian Indian [sic] Jones”,  says a 3 meter wide stone ball found in the forest of Visoko Valley in Bosnia was made by an unknown civilization that used to live in the area over 1000 years ago, but there are many reasons to cast doubt on this outlandish claim." she has made an egregious error. This is no "Concretion", it is obviously a scale model of the Death Star.     Alternatively is might be evidence that the Real Indiana Jones was actually based in fact. (hat tip to Tom Hesser!)   http://www.forbes.com/sites/shaenamontanari/2016/04/18/that-massive-stone-sphere-in-bosnia-is-probably-not-from-a-lost-civilization/

"Marshall revealed in his interview that the latest installment will be a “continuation” of the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull story."" Please God, no. That is all. http://screenrant.com/indiana-jones-5-crystal-skull-continuation/  

Donald Trump Proves that there is no such thing as Intelligent Design.      

What is the best song that sums up the life of an archaeologist? I was in Copan, Honduras when the Joshua Tree by U2 came out in March of '87. Mail was slow and expectations were high when someone finally got the cassette mailed to them. But this song made me me chuckle thinking of the fate of all archaeologists: "Still Haven't Found What I'm Looking For" So what's your best example of a song that sums up the life of an archaeologist? (Please provide a link to the track if possible, or the lyrics) Post here or on facebook  

The ShovelBums version of the Kübler-Ross 5 Stages of Grief when losing/breaking your first trowel My long time friend Penny DuFoe Minturn posted today that she had lost her first trowel - which she mentioned has been around since a project we were together in '88 at Pueblo Grande - which is where my First Trowel actually broke (but that's another story). So I wrote this for her (see the bottom for a link to another 5 stages of grief on Trowel loss that has been pointed out to me).     Just as the Chinese philosopher Laozi (c 604 bc - c 531 bc) said in the Tao Te Ching (Laozi 581 bc)  "A journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step" every archaeologist begins their career with their First Trowel. In the US it is often a Marshalltown, while a few outliers favor Goldblatt and in the UK the WHS is...

Thanks to  Lorna Richardson for this! ‏ @ lornarichardson Check out Colleen Morgan's new poll for archaeologists " Do you still use film in archaeology? Or are you purely digital "

Happy Father's Day! So whose your daddy? Watch this great video by Jurian Möller a Dutch graphic designer that beautifully illustrates the last 550 million years of evolution of your daddy!  Julian not only gives you a running tabulation of the species visualized and the corresponding dates, but he also gives you a great grandfather+ generation count! The grandfather count tops out around 317,000,000.  The video takes you from your dad (who I is THE modern man) to primate ancestors, amphibian and all the way to Animalia and back again in seconds. IMHO this video is a brilliant depiction of where you came from. Something to reflect on this Father's Day.  I am not affiliated with Jurian in anyway, but if you want to own this animated artwork that he has put into a 30-meter-long book, you can order it from his website here:  http://evoboek.nl/en/       Happy Father's Day (with Ham)     Happy Father's Day (without Ham)...

I do not believe these are OSHA approved. I have said enough.  

In honor of Vince Gaffney & Co announcing the discovery of "Super Henge" near Stonehenge  (aka "Mini Henge") I thought you all might enjoy Ylvis singing "Stonehenge".              

Target Target Target... Archaeologist's Don't Dig Dinosaurs!

Easter Island and "Keister Island" Somehow in my years I have missed the Keister Island humor. I don't really consider that a fail in life ;-)