Saturday, June 16, 2012
Two Hundred Years of Surgery
Surgery is a profession defined by its authority to cure by means of
bodily invasion. The brutality and risks of opening a living person's
body have long been apparent, the benefits only slowly and haltingly
worked out. Nonetheless, over the past two centuries, surgery has become
radically more effective, and its violence substantially reduced —
changes that have proved central to the development of mankind's
abilities to heal the sick. MORE HERE.
Saturday, June 09, 2012
Ye olde vampire slaying kit: Victorian oak box complete with wooden stakes, garlic paste and vials of holy water up for auction
- Casket contains set of rosary beads, three glass bottles containing holy water, holy earth and garlic, and a book of common prayer dated 1857
- Macabre artefact expected to fetch up to £2,000
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They say you can never be too prepared... but even for the most superstitious person this may be overkill.
A 19th century Vampire slaying kit, which includes a wooden mallet and four oak stakes, glass vials of holy water and garlic paste is expected to fetch up £2,000 when auctioned later this month.
The macabre artefact also has a percussion cap pistol - invented in the 1830 - and a steel bullet mold, all carefully crafted to offer the best protection against any creatures of the night.
Precautions: The case contains 1) a rosary 2)
crucifix 3) a handwritten psalm (Luke 20:27) 4) a pistol 5) four oak
stakes 6) a bottle of consecrated earth 7) a common prayer book 8) a
wooden mallet 9) silver bullet mold 10) a cloth 11) two glass bottles
containing garlic paste and holy water
Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2155799/Vampire-slaying-kit-1890s-complete-wooden-stakes-garlic-paste-vials-holy-water-comes-auction.html#ixzz1xI6Iv8hO
Are you sure digging him up is a good idea? Archaeologists find Bulgarian 'vampires' from Middle Ages with iron rods staked through their chests
By Daniel Miller|
If you thought vampires were simply the stuff of myth and legend - and perhaps the odd teen horror film - think again.
Archaeologists in Bulgaria have unearthed two skeletons from the Middle Ages pierced through the chest with iron rods to keep them from turning into the undead.
They are the latest in a succession of finds across western and central Europe which shed new light on just how seriously people took the threat of vampires and how those beliefs transformed into the modern myth.
Scroll down for video
Find: Two skeletons, believed to be those of suspected Medieval vampires,
were discovered with iron poles plunged through their chests in the Bulgarian Black Sea town of Sozopol
Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sciencetech/article-2154837/Vampire-skeletons-unearthed-Bulgaria-iron-stakes-plunged-chests.html#ixzz1xI5okIZ2
Old portraits of children with creepy 'ghostmothers' in the background show how far mums would go for a good photo
By Daily Mail Reporter|
In the early days of photography, many well-off families jumped at the chance to have their precious children's likeness captured for eternity.
The one trick that they had to deal with next, after finding photographers willing to set up the bulky equipment and travelling to the portrait location, was getting the little babies to sit still for the entirety of the session.
As a result, many photographers enlisted the help of the children's mothers, with often creepy outcomes.
Tricks: Mothers covered themselves in black
cloth and hold their children upright while getting portraits taken back
in the 1800s, resulting in odd figures in the photos
Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2155681/Old-portraits-children-creepy-ghostmothers-background-far-mums-good-photo.html#ixzz1xI59doFG
Sunday, December 11, 2011
Friends say classmate killed self after bullying on sexuality
Students at a local school are grieving a classmate. Friends say the young man took his own life because he couldn't take any more bullying.
And they say school officials knew about the torment but didn't do enough to stop it.
Tally ho chaps! First-ever British surfer caught on film taking to waves on home-made board... in 1929
- Experts say the two-hour video footage is a 'national treasure'
- Clip shows adventurer on homemade 8ft board carved from balsa wood
Riding the waves: Some of the earliest ever video of surfing which shows Lewis Rosenberg on a surfboard at Holywell Bay in Newquay, Cornwall
Shepherds who bit off lambs' testicles at special farming event hit by violent 'food poisoning' bug
By Gavin Allen
Last updated at 2:16 PM on 9th December 2011
Two shepherds who bit off lambs' testicles as part of a special farming event were hit by a violent food poisoning bug.
The stomach-churning case was documented by the Wyoming Department of Health after it investigated the mini-outbreak of Campylobacter jejuni enteritis.
The pair, who had taken part in an event in which 1,600 lambs were to be castrated over several days, ended up with punishing vomiting and diarrhea, stomach cramps and fever. One of the men was affected worse than the other and spent a night in hospital. MORE HERE!
WARNING: GRAPHIC IMAGES
Mouth method: A shepherd castrates a sheep with his teeth in the TV show Dirty Jobs - these are not the two men who fell ill
Monday, December 05, 2011
Fatal attraction: Europe's top cemeteries
Friday, December 2, 2011
When I'm traveling in Europe, I often see stupid "torture museums" that are cleverly marketed. They make lots of money by appealing to the lowest desires of dumbed-down travelers, even though none of them has any real artifacts. If you're looking for the macabre side of Europe, skip these hokey rip-offs and visit a cemetery — they're authentic, artsy, and oozing with history. Here's a list of some of my favorites. More here!
Sunday, November 27, 2011
Saturday, November 26, 2011
Thursday, November 10, 2011
'We want Joe back!'
'We want Joe back!' Thousands of Penn State students go on rampage after university fires Coach Paterno over sex scandal
- Joe Paterno, in charge for 46 years, will never coach another game
- Penn State president Graham Spanier also forced out by Board of Trustees
- Thousands of students flock to university campus to chant Paterno's name
- Two school officials accused of a covering up the sexual abuse
- Authorities will investigate whether Penn State officials violated federal law
- One boy said he was assaulted at least 20 times at Jerry Sandusky's home
- Pennsylvania's top police officer says Paterno should have done more
Last updated at 4:06 PM on 10th November 2011
A riot involving thousands of Penn State football fans erupted last night at the announcement their long-term head coach Joe Paterno would be sacked with 'immediate effect' for his role in the sex scandal which has rocked the university.
The college's Board of Trustees also forced the resignation of president Graham Spanier after allegations that for years the school's former football defence coordinator Jerry Sandusky sexually abused young boys.
Mr Paterno, 84, had said he would retire at the end of the 2011 season but the trustees stepped in to tell the legendary coach he will never take charge of another game following the allegations of a cover up.
Assistant coach Tom Bradley has been named interim football coach while Penn State provost, Rodney Erickson will become interim president.
Scroll down for videos of the firings, the rioting, and Paterno on his doorstep
Waving to the crowd: Joe Paterno and his, wife, Susan, stand on their porch to thank supporters gathered outside their home after the football coach was sacked
Wreckage: The students clambered on top of the news van after flipping it over and pelting rocks at a fire truck which attempted to clean up the resulting oil spill
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