What's New? Random Roundup Achives

JULY 22 - 25th
EXTRA! EXTRA! Edition

FIGHTING CHESS 2010 - Congratulations Tatev!

"I'm so glad that Goddesschess and 9Queens are promoting and celebrating fighting spirit among female chess players, and look forward to enjoying the beautiful and skillful display of chess mastery at the US Women's Chess Championships," said Grandmaster Kosteniuk.... who selected Tatev Abrahmayan as the recipient of this year's Fighting Chess Award.

Tatev Abrahamyan wins bronze medal at U.S. Women’s Chess Championship July 21, 2010 - PanARMENIAN.Net - Armenia’s Tatev Abrahamyan scored 7.5 points and shared the 2nd-3rd places with Anna Zatonskih at the US Women's Chess Championship in Saint Louis. According to additional results, Abrahamyan was awarded bronze medal.

Tatev Abrahamian takes bronze in St. Louis

Gentlemen start your vuvuzelas!

MORE - Photos of Tatev Abrahamyan

This is actually Tatev's second Fighting Chess Award. She won previously In 2008 when GM Susan Polgar selected her as the winner of the $500 Goddesschess Fighting Chess Award ($350 from Goddesschess and $150 from the Susan Polgar Foundation) for her record of six wins, no draws, and three losses. She finished in 4th place overall and has quickly emerged as a force in the world of women's chess.

“As part of Goddesschess' commitment to encouraging more girls and women to play chess, we are extremely pleased in 2010 to partner with 9 Queens to sponsor a Fighting Chess Award of $1,000, the largest award yet, in keeping with the prestige of this event,” explained Jan Newton official spokesperson from Goddesschess.

Since 2007, Goddesschess has been awarding prizes to players in the U.S. Women’s Chess Championship. Last year Anna Zatonskih won the Fighting Chess Award for her commitment to keep fighting even after she clinched the tournament with her astounding 8.5/9 score.

Archaeologists Discover “the Bulgarian Machu Picchu” 22 July 2010 - A team of archaeologists recently discovered a unique residence of the rulers of the Odrysian Kingdom - a union of the ancient Thracian tribes that lasted between the fifth and the third centuries BC, in central Bulgar

Wooden "Stonehenge" Emerges From Prehistoric Ohio Timber circles, like U.K. monument, aligned to summer solstice, study reveals. Published July 20, 2010 - Just northeast of Cincinnati, Ohio, a sort of wooden Stonehenge is slowly emerging as archaeologists unearth increasing evidence of a 2,000-year-old ceremonial site. Among their latest finds: Like Stonehenge, the Ohio timber circles were likely used to mark astronomical events such as the summer solstice.

Central Pa. petroglyphs tantalize investigators By DIANA FISHLOCK - The (Harrisburg) Patriot News - July 20, 2010 - From a few yards away, they look just like rocks. But as Paul Nevin pulls his motorboat closer, his finger traces a shape in the air, and suddenly, in the golden, waning light, the image of a bear practically leaps off the rock. Native Americans carved images in rock on islands in the middle of rocky rapids in the Susquehanna River, near Safe Harbor, Lancaster County. They came to this place, where rock and sky and water meet, to be closer to their mother earth, Nevin believes.

Archeologists found sculpture of Diana, Goddess of hunt S. Božinovi? - 21. 07. 2010. - Komentara: At the site of the ‘Felix Romuliana’, an imperial palace near the Town of Zajecar, German experts of the Archeology Institute in Frankfurt, together with the colleagues of the Archeology Institute in Belgrade have discovered a sensational sculpture, unique in this area of the Balkans. This marble statue originates from the first half of the third century.

'It's mind blowing': 900-year-old figurine found during work on new river bridge BY GEORGE PAWLACZYK - News-Democrat If just one more shovel of earth had been removed, the curious figurine of a kneeling woman carved about 900 years ago might have ended up in a 19th century curio shop. Or lost forever. Instead, archaeology graduate student Steve Boles found the rare, 6-inch-high artifact this spring at a massive archaeological dig now under way at the old National Stock Yards to make way for construction of a new $670 million Mississippi River bridge. The figurine and the whole excavation have caused great excitement among archaeology professionals and students.

Archaeologists virtually excavate Stonehenge Archaeologists will map an area of 14km around Stonehenge - Archaeologists are carrying out a virtual excavation of Stonehenge to discover what the area looked like when the monument was built. The multi-million pound Euro study will map the terrain and its buried archaeological remains with pinpoint accuracy, organisers claim. http://news.scotsman.com/scotland/A-second-Venus-found-in.6426346.jp

A second Venus found in Orkney as archeologists create history- 19 July 2010 By Jenny Fyall - A PARTNER has been found for a rare 4,500-year-old Neolithic figurine discovered at an archaeological dig site on a remote Scottish island. The second carved figure was unearthed just 100 feet from the spot in Westray, Orkney, where the artefact dubbed the Orkney Venus was found last year.

Top 10 Scottish Artefacts Abroad Submitted by Malcolm J - 10/06/2009 - 12:40 The Lewis Chessmen aren’t the only historical artefacts of Scottish origin that the Scots stake a fierce claim to, or have had to fight to get back.

Stones of Wonder is a Web guidebook to prehistoric monuments in Scotland (dating to the Neolithic or the Bronze Age) which have orientations to the sun, moon or stars. It gives the background to the archaeology of the sites, to archaeoastronomy and to the previous work which has been done. The main part of the guidebook is a listing of the monuments which can be visited, and the best time of year to see them and observe for yourself the sunrises, sunsets, moon rises and moon sets. The work is based on original surveys, of which full details are given.

Ancient City of Petra Tombs Reveal 61 Burials and Islamic Gold Medallion Submitted by owenjarus on Fri, 07/23/2010 - Inside this tomb archaeologists found a gold medallion, with an Islamic inscription, that may have been used to ward off evil. Outside they found the remains of a stone platform that can be seen in this photo. Archaeologists have made two major tomb discoveries at the ancient city of Petra in southern Jordan. They discovered a rock-cut tomb that contained the skeletal remains of 61 individuals, along with a wealth of wooden artefacts, animal bones and ceramics.

Window into the past September 20 - Djulirri in north-western Arnhem Land is home to the most expansive and spectacular discovery of Aboriginal rock art spanning ancient and modern humanity. With motifs dating back more than 15,000 years and drawings of naval ships and early 20th century biplanes, guns, cars and bicycles it provides the first real insight into how the indigenous population reacted to these intrusions.

Macassan trepang trade in N.Australia: archeologists admit 1600's + earlier indigenous-Muslim ties

"What in the World:" A Famous TV Show on Archaeology - Published January 26, 2009 by: Vincent Summers - "What in the World?" was a CBS presentation originating in the 1950's that featured Dr. Froelich G. Rainey (1907 - 1992) and a group of three experts. Dr. Rainey was the director of the Director of the University of Pennsylvania Museum of Archaeology and Anthropology. The three experts would be shown an archaeological specimen that was described to the viewer, but not to the panel, as to what it was, how it was used, and the object's place and time of origin. The panel had one guest and two who were considered regulars.

The History of Dice - Rolling Thunder...

July 18, 2010

ROUND 8 Edition

“These two fields feature fierce competitors,” Rich said. “We’re sure to see plenty of fighting chess throughout.”

Fighting Chess at the Chess Club and Scholastic Center of St. Louis St. Louis, Missouri

2010 U.S. Women's Chess Championship Sunday, July 18, 2010

Pairings round 9

1 IM Anna Zatonskih 7.0 2518 - WGM Sabina Foisor 2.5 2356
2 WGM Katerina Rohonyan 4.5 2322 - WFM Tatev Abrahamyan 6.5 2403
3 WGM Camilla Baginskaite 3.0 2387 - WIM Beatriz Marinello 1.5 2206
4 IM Irina Krush 7.0 2521 - WFM Abby Marshall 0.5 2211
5 WIM Alisa Melekhina 4.5 2323 - WIM Iryna Zenyuk 3.0 2286

Fighting Chess Players

Fighting Chess Players
32 sec - 19 Jun 2010 - Uploaded by Karpkg
Window Display of Zonko's Joke Shop at Wizarding World of Harry Potter

Chess goes quantum

Quantum entanglement holds together life's blueprint 15 July 2010 by Anil Ananthaswamy - THE most celebrated molecule in biology - the DNA double helix - might owe its shape to a mysterious quantum property called entanglement.

In recent years, animals have been shown to use quantum processes to their advantage. For example, some birds' eyes use quantum trickery to "see" the Earth's magnetic field, and light-harvesting molecules in algae and bacteria rely on quantum processes to transfer energy efficiently. Now it seems the blueprint of life could also owe its functioning to such phenomena.

Setting the Historical (Hysterical?) Record Straight at Uncyclopedia Chess is an ancient game of luck played with small figurines and dice in dark cellars by people who were rejected by their school's other clubs. It should not be confused with Checkers, a game known for being played by people significantly less intelligent than Chess players. The game was a popular pastime for centuries among prisoners, each of whom sought to topple their king the fastest.

Cambridgeshire Quarry throws up 4,500-year-old find July 16, 2010 (PhysOrg.com) -- A remarkable piece of Neolithic rock art, unlike anything previously found in Eastern England, has been unearthed in the Cambridgeshire village of Over.The hand-sized artefact, which could date back to 2,500 BC, was found by a participant in a geological weekend course which was being run by the University of Cambridge's Institute for Continuing Education.

Relic of Harpocrates, the god of secrecy and silence, found at Silchester Archaeological dig at abandoned Roman city in Hampshire yields earliest representation of an Egyptian deity found in Britain Maev Kennedy - guardian.co.uk, Friday 16 July 2010 -

Professor Mike Fulford with a Roman writing tablet found at the Silchester dig. Photograph: Graham Turner for the Guardian - A battered and corroded thumb-sized piece of bronze has turned out to be a unique find, the earliest representation of an Egyptian deity from any site in Britain – and appropriately, after almost 2,000 years hidden in the ground, it is Harpocrates, the god of secrecy and silence.

Is Holy Land Archaeology Being Hyped by Politics? Matthew Kalman - JERUSALEM (July 15) -- Bible-era scholars say they are getting fed up with headline-grabbing archaeological discoveries that seem more influenced by modern political agendas and showmanship than by scholarship. Some recent announcements have been tainted with "exaggeration and speculation the likes of which haven't been seen since pieces of the 'true cross' were found all across Europe in the Middle Ages," said Jim West, adjunct professor of biblical studies at the Quartz Hill School of Theology and moderator of an influential online forum for Bible scholars.

Discovery of earliest illuminated manuscript By Martin Bailey - June 2010 Published 14 Jul 2010 Revised dating places Garima Gospels before 650—none from Ethiopia previously dated before 12th century -

What could be the world’s earliest illustrated Christian manuscript has been found in a remote Ethiopian monastery. The Garima Gospels were previously assumed to date from about 1100AD, but radiocarbon dating conducted in Oxford suggests they were made between 330 and 650AD.

Looted from Italy and now in a major Spanish museum?

Madrid’s National Archaeological Museum may have bought trafficked items By Fabio Isman - 13 Jul 10 - Suspiciously similar? On top are Polaroids seized in the Geneva store of convicted antiquities trafficker Giacomo Medici, and on the bottom are images of antiquities purchased by the National Archaeological Museum, Madrid in 1999 from their catalogue

Drought shows up south Oxfordshire bronze age graves 10:30am Tuesday 13th July 2010 - By Liam Sloan - THE hot dry weather is revealing some of Oxfordshire’s Bronze Age history normally hidden from view. Hot air balloon pilot Michael Wolf, of Reading Road, Wallingford, was training another pilot near North Stoke when they spotted several dark circles in a farmer’s field...

Floods in Haryana may have consumed a piece of ancient Indian history. The archaeological site of Jognakhera, from where copper smelting furnaces along with copper slag dating back nearly 5,000 years to the Indus Valley Civilization were unearthed, was ravaged and submerged under nearly 10 feet of water from Sutlej-Yamuna Link Canal breach.

Female Icons I.mov
These ancient female figurines are the world's original spiritual art, in all its diversity and its deep continuities and resonances. Ancestral mothers and goddesses are missing from most accounts of history and religion.

Restoring Women to Cultural Memory
Overview of women's history, the omissions and distortions that skip the crucial female spheres of power and achievement. Excerpt from Women's Power dvd by Max Dashu of the Suppressed Histories Archives.

July 11, 2010

Let the games begin!

Circle in the Sand Belinda Carlisle Video

“These two fields feature fierce competitors,” Rich said. “We’re sure to see plenty of fighting chess throughout.”

Fighting Chess at the Chess Club and Scholastic Center of St. Louis St. Louis, Missouri

2010 U.S. Women's Chess Championship Sunday, July 11, 2010

R2 results:

Foisor/Rohonyan 0-1
Baginskaite/Zatonskih 0-1
Krush/Abrahamyan 1-0
Melekhina/Marinello 1-0
Zenyuk/Marshall 1-0

The streak of all-decisive games continues. GM Nakamura, who has done commentary the first two rounds of the Women's and Junior's Championships, seems somewhat perplexed and, perhaps, even astonished by this. But darling, it's just women's fighting chess :) He's just not had much exposure to it, the young'n

Primitive Cinema Used Echoes and Rock Engravings Jeremy Hsu LiveScience Senior Writer - Thu Jul 8, 3:50 pm ET - A Copper Age tribe may have enjoyed a primitive cinematic experience by making stone engravings in an echo-filled Alpine valley, researchers say. Torchlight and flickering shadows would have made the engravings on stone walls seem to come alive at night. And spoken words that became magnified in a natural outdoor theater could have awakened the storytelling imaginations of observers.

Words for 'canoe' point to long-lost family ties Canwest News Service July 8, 2010 - An obscure language in Siberia has similarities to languages in North America, which might reshape history, writes Randy Boswell. A new book by leading linguists has bolstered a controversial theory that the language of Canada's Dene Nation is rooted in an ancient Asian tongue spoken today by only a few hundred people in Western Siberia

Research looks at Bering Strait land bridge By Mary Beth Smetzer FAIRBANKS DAILY NEWS-MINER FAIRBANKS, Alaska -- Research illuminating an ancient language connection between Asia and North America supports archaeological and genetic evidence that a Bering Strait land bridge once connected North America with Asia, and the discovery is being endorsed by a growing list of scholars in the field of linguistics and other sciences.

The Unsinkable Paul!

Paul the psychic octopus and friends Paul the psychic Octopus is not the first creature to be credited with supernatural abilities.By Sarah Graham Published: 9:00AM BST 09 Jul 2010 - The use of animals to predict the future has a long history, dating back to the practice of extispicy by ancient Babylonian, Greek and Roman civilisations. Extispicy was an ancient form of augury, which involved inspecting animal entrails and using any anomalies found to predict future events.

Psychic octopus Paul unfazed by death threats, says keeper Paul the psychic octopus is one of the unlikely stars of World Cup 2010 but his ability to correctly forecast the outcome of Germany's matches threatens to land him in hot water.

Pyramid Construction Supervisor's Tomb Found Analysis by Rossella Lorenzi - Thu Jul 8, 2010 12:16 PM ET It's considered among the most distinguished Old Kingdom tombs.

Dating from around 4,300 years old, the burials feature vividly colored wall paintings -- as fresh as if they were just painted. They were found in the ancient necropolis of Saqqara near Cairo by an Egyptian team working in the area since 1986.

Debate over industry impact on WA rock art Thursday, 8 July 2010 - Anna Salleh - Experts are divided over whether a huge gallery of ancient Aboriginal rock art in Western Australia is withstanding the effect of industry in the area. "The rocks have not only proven to be largely impervious to nature, but also now appear to be withstanding the effect of nearby heavy industry," says geologist Professor Brad Pillans of the Australian National University in Canberra

Ancient tomb site uncovered Well preserved: The Phung Nguyen burial plot found in Dinh Trang, Dong Anh District. — Photo courtesy of the Viet Nam Archaeology Institute HA NOI — Archaeologists working at a site in Ha Noi's Dong Anh District have stumbled across 11 tombs dating back to the Phung Nguyen culture, days before they were about to wind up the dig. The Phung Nguyen remains, the best-preserved of any found in and around the city, date back about 4,000 years, archaeologists from the Viet Nam Archaeology Institute said.

Platovan? A Musical Message Discovered In Plato's Works by NPR STAFF July 3, 2010 It sounds like something out of a Dan Brown novel, but a scholar in Manchester, England, claims to have found hidden code in the ancient writings of Plato. If true, the secret messages would have made the ancient philosopher and mathematician a heretic in his day.

Alexey Root on Teaching with Chess

Alexey W. Root is a senior lecturer in education at The University of Texas at Dallas, Richardson, TX, and a former U.S. Women's chess champion. Her previous books include the Libraries Unlimited titles "People, Places, Checkmates: Teaching Social Studies with Chess"; "Children and Chess: A Guide for Educators"; "Science, Math, Checkmate: 32 Chess Activities for Inquiry and Problem Solving"; and "Read, Write, Checkmate: Enrich Literacy with Chess Activities".

100 chess book reviews, Part 1

Mini reviews of every one of my chess books. The first of many installments. Reviewed from the perspective of a crappy club player.

Letsplaychess.com presents Chess Books
This are some of the chess books that I own

I've Got a Secret - Bobby Fischer

“Chess is a bit of a Rorschach test, in that everyone sees a different benefit,” Barrett said.

Rorschach Review

July 4, 2010

Crazy Horses Edition

Compuer Labs for Kids - South Central Los Angeles Project! Sunday, July 4, 2010 It's a horse of a different color. The newest program involves only a small number of young people and volunteers, but is taking place over a period of several weeks, so the children will receive intensive instruction. Each child who completes the program will receive his or her own laptop computer...

The Queen’s in town: An irreverent guide
What to do when the Queen stops to speak with you...

Nice pic of the Queen in her battle wagon..

The Queen's Plate All the Queen's horses and all the Queen's men... I wonder what a close up of those wheels would reveal?

3,200-Year-old Bronze Tablet Identified as Battle Chariot Linchpin When carrying out a scrutinizing study of ancient Egyptian reliefs depicting chariot battles, Mr. Cohen discerned a unique decoration: the bronze linchpins fastening the chariot wheels were decorated with people's faces - of captives, foreigners and enemies of Egypt. He also noticed that these decorations characterized those chariots that were used by royalty and distinguished people

Used horse lot, or just a lotta used horses?
Unusual 17th-century Dutch horse burial site found
AMSTERDAM – Archeologists have uncovered a mass grave with the complete skeletons of 51 horses buried side-by-side, probably the long-forgotten equine victims of a 17th century battle over a strategic Dutch river.

Horsies take revenge! (Mad horses at Bellevue?)
Horses take off, injure 24 people at Iowa parade BELLEVUE, Iowa – Two runaway horses raced along a Fourth of July parade route in a small Mississippi River town in eastern Iowa on Sunday, trampling children who were in the street picking up candy and injuring 24 people, police said.

Shaken - not stirred...
Cleopatra Killed by Drug Cocktail? Legends allege that the last queen of Egypt died from a snakebite. But a new study could rewrite history. According to Christoph Schäfer, a German historian and professor at the University of Trier, the legendary beauty queen was unlikely to have committed suicide by letting an asp -- an Egyptian cobra -- sink into her flesh.

How to avoid this sad, sad outcome...
Picture of local pawn being strangled and hung out to dry before Lady Justice...

Ah, those were the days...

Miranda: Sweet lord, you play me false.
Ferdinand: No, my dearest love, I would not for the world.

Montrealer's illusions work like magic By Pat Donnelly, The Gazette July 3, 2010 At the Stratford opening of The Tempest, I caught sight of a familiar face: that of Montreal actor, director and novelist Greg Kramer. When he told me he was the production's magic coach, I was intrigued.

Meanwhile, on another enchanted isle...

Montreal (Quebec) is back with its 90th City Championship September 10 to 12, a five-round Open Swiss with a guaranteed prize fund of $6,000 that will crown a new Men’s Champion and a new Women’s Champion. Due to the season’s change at that time of the year, the nature in Montreal and the vicinity becomes quite colourful and enjoyable.

Last year’s Championship attracted 191 players, including 1½ Americans (the half is for the guy who said he was going to play but never showed up).
Goddesschess is one of the sponsors of this event. We are extremely pleased that our young rising star Alisa Melekhina will participate. We will watch her performance with great interest.

Interested in participating? Go to www.echecsahuntsic.com and check out the details in the Montreal Championship tab.

Look Ahead - avoid the gallows!

HHCF Life Strategy of The Day: The Poison Pawn Video: Adisa Banjoko explains how the poisoned pawn on the board can mirror life situations. The pawn I used in this presentation came from www.thechesspiece.com !

Don't take the poison pawn!
Video: Tutorial on the Poison Pawn Trap

Nepal's 'living goddess' passes school leaving exam By Gopal Sharma – Sat Jul 3, 3:02 am ET KATHMANDU (Reuters Life!) – Perhaps divine intervention helped. A Nepali girl revered by many as a "living goddess" has become the first sitting deity to pass the high school leaving certificate exam, setting her on course for a career in banking. Chanira Bajracharya, 15, called Kumari, was among nearly half a million children who took the exams in March. The results were declared late on Friday.

Earliest reference describes Christ as 'magician' By Jennifer Viegas - 10/1/2008 7:23:37 -

A team of scientists led by renowned French marine archaeologist Franck Goddio recently announced that they have found a bowl, dating to between the late 2nd century B.C. and the early 1st century A.D., that is engraved with what they believe could be the world's first known reference to Christ.

Divination (Ifa) is practiced to explain misfortunes and help to prevent them. In western Africa, the Yoruba people of Nigeria and Benin use a decorated tray for divination.

This round, rectangular, or half-moon-shaped board is carved with geometric and anima motifs and one or more images of Eshu, the Yoruba trickster deity, who is thought to deliver messages to and from the spirit world. The divining process begins by covering the board with white chalk. The diviner then throws palm nuts onto the board and interprets the markings they make on its surface.

Divination Objects were used to communicate with gods, spirits and ancestors to understand or influence one's fate. Many African works fit that definition but our exhibit focuses on the Yoruba people of Nigeria. It includes many wonderful examples of their divination trays (opon Ifa) on which the sacred signs (odu) were traced, bowls (agere Ifa)which contained the 16 palm nuts to be cast, beaded bags (which carried tools and supplies) and tappers ( which were tapped to summon and greet the spirits). The quality of the pieces enhanced the diviner's status and inspired confidence in their skill. We also have several Kuba animal friction oracles and a Baule mouse oracle (gbekre) on display.

HAMILL GALLERY http://www.hamillgallery.com/index.html

Kuba BarkclothTextile 38 Numbers 31-39 are of a new type for us, quilted from odd geometric pieces, often with both sides equal in quality. (The barkcloth does not need hems like woven material.) 31, 33, 37 and 38 have raffia borders similar to those on raffia skirts. We have not seen this form in any reference book and although they are Kuba, we are not sure how, or if, they were used.

For those of you who like larger objects but haven't figured out where to put them, we offer a couple of views of our front yard.

Omo Ekofa (Young girl who studies Ifa Philosophy)

The Ifa Divination System

16 Pieces is a collection of paintings commissioned by Ifa-Yoruba Contemporary Arts Trust to depict the 16 major Odus of Ifa, the divination system of the Yoruba. The purpose of the exhibition was to locate syncretized altars of Yoruba culture in the Western Hemisphere.

African Drums: Dundun, The Talking Drum Screener