Something cool thread

[BleedBNG]

 

 

[BleedBNG]

 

 

[China]

The 41 Mile Abandoned Tunnel Hiding in New York

 

Bryant Park is one of Manhattan’s most popular public spaces. Basking in the shadow of the main branch of the New York Public Library, there you will find a bustling leafy oasis within touching distance of Times Square, filled with outdoor bars and cafes, a carousel, open air reading rooms and leisurely games of pétanque. But travel back in time one hundred and eighty years, and on the same site of this idyllic urban park you’d be faced with something pretty spectacular; a colossal stone structure looking a lot like an Egyptian Temple. Covering 420 square feet of midtown-Manhattan and towering forty five feet above 5th Avenue, what was even more incredible was that this Ancient looking monument was entirely filled with sparkling, clean water.

 

 

For in 1842, Bryant Park was home to the Distributing Reservoir of one of America’s most outstanding and ambitious industrial achievements: a forty one mile aqueduct designed to bring millions of gallons of fresh water into the city every day. Stretching from the Croton River in Westchester County and down into the City, the water supply flowed through an underground tunnel; and although it hasn’t been used since the 1950s, the tunnel is still still there, lying perfectly preserved and untouched. 

 

 

Even more incredibly, above ground, the Croton Aqueduct became a nature trail and public right of way that follows the winding path of this long tunnel into Manhattan. It passes through people’s back gardens, grand mansions, and abandoned ruins; it bisects motorways, Main Streets and dense forests alike. In essence, to wander down the Old Croton Aqueduct Trail is to gain a behind-the-curtain glimpse of a New York that hardly anyone knows is there. 

 

 

In the 1820s and 30s, Manhattan was a far cry from the gleaming metropolis of the Gilded Age forty years away. In fact it was in danger of disappearing altogether under its own filth: teeming with overcrowded slums and with no real sewage system, it was said you could smell New York City from three miles away. In 1836 the New York Mirror reported that the city, “was a realm of mud, its vast floor inundated with a slimy alluvial deposit, of the consistency of batter, of bean-soup, ankle deep……even Broadway was uncrossable.”

 

The chief problem was a lack of clean, healthy water. Despite being an island, it was virtually impossible to find fresh water anywhere in Manhattan: both the old creeks and few wells that existed were long since polluted. Street cleaning was nil, and the city was regularly ravaged by outbreaks of cholera, yellow fever and fires, as the mortality rate soared by the 1830s to an incredible one in every thirty nine people.

 

With Manhattan on the brink of being swallowed up by slime, the need for clean water became imperative. Fayette Bartholomew Tower was a young engineer who would work on the Croton Aqueduct. He published an illustrated guide to the achievement a year after its opening, arguing that, “a supply of pure and wholesome water is an object essential to the health and prosperity of a city.” New York City would build its modern engineering marvel by looking firmly at the past: specifically, the grand aqueducts of Ancient Rome. 

 

 

Click on the link for the full story

[China]

Diver Discovers 900-Year-Old Crusader Sword Off Israel’s Coast

 

A man diving off the coast of northern Israel, not far from his home, recently stumbled onto a 900-year-old sword dated to the time of the Crusades. Shlomi Katzin, a resident of the town of Atlit, spotted the sword and other centuries-old artifacts on the sea bed off the Carmel coast, where shifting sands had apparently made them suddenly visible, reports Nicky Blackburn for Israel21c.

 

 

The four-foot-long sword was covered in shells and other remnants of sea life. Katzin reported the discovery to the Israel Antiquities Authority’s (IAA) robbery prevention unit.

 

“The sword, which has been preserved in perfect condition, is a beautiful and rare find and evidently belonged to a Crusader knight,” says IAA inspector Nir Distelfeld in a statement. “It was found encrusted with marine organisms, but is apparently made of iron. It is exciting to encounter such a personal object, taking you 900 years back in time to a different era, with knights, armor and swords.”

 

 

The sword is now in the hands of the IAA’s National Treasures Department, per Israel 21c. IAA scientists plan to clean and study the weapon before putting it on display to the public.

 

Click on the link for the full article

 

[Jumbo]

 

[China]

I want one:

 

 

 

Only $92K

 

https://www.jetsonaero.com/

[Renegade7]

 

[Renegade7]

 

[Larry]

Was just maybe 15 feet from a bald eagle in flight, for 10-15 seconds. 
 

I was driving on a thru street in my town, and he came down and hit on something in the road in the then-empty oncoming lane. And immediately took flight, in the same direction as I was traveling. So, for maybe 10-15 seconds, he was maybe 15 away from my driver's window, matching my travel speed. 

[China]

THE BEAST OF BANFF Massive 600lb ‘cannibal’ bear dubbed ‘The Boss’ who was hit by a train & lived as tourists warned to stay away from him

 

ROAMING the hills of a national park in Canada is a suspected cannibal bear known as "The Boss" as visitors are urged to stay away from him.

 

The behemoth 600 lb male grizzly - officially designated Bear 122 - is the largest bear prowling Banff National Park.

 

 

His status has been elevated to one of internet legend as fans track his activity and his sightings online.

 

He has become known as one of the world's biggest and baddest bears - with 122 this week making waves once again on Reddit.

 

Video posted to a nature subreddit showed a bear identified as The Boss prowling across a road showing off his mighty claws.

 

The massive mammal is heavier than three grown men, roams the hills and woods near Banff, and is usually the first bear to emerge from hibernation.

 

He is estimated to be around 20 years old and is the biggest bear in the national park, hence his name "The Boss".

 

And perhaps the most horrifying fact about 122, is that he is known to kill and cannibalise other smaller bears.

 

Believed to have killed and eaten several of his brethren, scientists believe he is a very rare example of predatory attacks between bears.

 

It was documented in 2013 when The Boss is thought to have killed and eaten a smaller rival in Sundance Canyon.

 

"It had been completely consumed,"Steve Michel, a human wildlife conflict specialist with Banff National Park told The National Post.

 

"[The Boss] is definitely the dominant animal out on the landscape, so there are very few animals that would compare against him in terms of size," added Mr Michel.

 

He is believed to have sired cubs across his vast home home range, with experts saying his life revolves around "food and mating".

 

He is still known to cross railway lines in his in his 1,000 square mile territory being completely fearless despite his near miss.

 

And just to add to his tough guy reputation, Bear 122 is also reported to have once been hit by a train and survived.

 

Click on the link for the full article

[EmirOfShmo]

 

[BleedBNG]

 

 

[Larry]

I've been thinking for years (yes, I think really slowly) that I'd like to learn some more about astronomy, if that's the right word. 
 

I've learned a little over the years. I can tell which way the moon is going. (Will it be fuller or thinner, tomorrow?)  

 

But for example, I see three bright "stars", all in pretty much the line where the moon is orbiting. (But not quite). And I'd love to know things like whether they're planets, and which ones. And whether my impression that they look like they're below the moon's path is correct. 
 

But I don't know how/where to learn things like that. 
 

Any suggestions?  
 

I would assume that there's apps for my phone that might teach me some. But I look for apps for "star finder", and I see like 30 of them, all of them "free, but we'll push you for money later". 
 

And I'm not sure if those things will tell me what I want, anyway. 
 

Figured I'd ask for advice. 

[EmirOfShmo]

2 hours ago, Larry said:

I've been thinking for years (yes, I think really slowly) that I'd like to learn some more about astronomy, if that's the right word. 
 

I've learned a little over the years. I can tell which way the moon is going. (Will it be fuller or thinner, tomorrow?)  

 

But for example, I see three bright "stars", all in pretty much the line where the moon is orbiting. (But not quite). And I'd love to know things like whether they're planets, and which ones. And whether my impression that they look like they're below the moon's path is correct. 
 

But I don't know how/where to learn things like that. 
 

Any suggestions?  
 

I would assume that there's apps for my phone that might teach me some. But I look for apps for "star finder", and I see like 30 of them, all of them "free, but we'll push you for money later". 
 

And I'm not sure if those things will tell me what I want, anyway. 
 

Figured I'd ask for advice. 

I use Stellarium on my android. It does a good job of identifying planets & constellations. Last night in DC we saw Saturn, Venus & Jupiter over us. Pretty cool. Free & easy to use.

[Dan T.]

A more terrestrial item, but neat nonetheless.  I love the speed, precision and skill:

 

 

Edited December 6, 2021 by Dan T.

[China]

Pearl Harbor Forced A Plane To Fly Around The World To Get Home

 

President Roosevelt called December 7, 1941 a “date that will live in infamy,” an apt description for the attack on Pearl Harbor. Over 2,500 people were killed, another thousand were wounded and the Pacific naval fleet was crippled. For the crew of one Pan American flight, the attack forced them to do what hadn’t been done before: Fly a commercial flight around the world.

 

 

The plane was a Boeing 314 Clipper flying boat, registration NC18602 and called California Clipper before being renamed Pacific Clipper. At 106-feet-long and with a wingspan of 152-feet, it was one of the largest aircraft of its day. It could carry a crew of 10 transporting up to 74 passengers.

 

 

Flying boats had an advantage in the early decades of aviation. Runway infrastructure back then was still developing. And in wartime, runways could be bombed out. For flying boats, so long as you had a body of water you had a runway. Flying boats also often had greater range than land-based aircraft, making them better for crossing oceans.

 

On December 7, NC18602 was headed to Auckland, New Zealand after having left San Francisco six days before. Onboard was a crew of 10 with 12 passengers. Auckland was supposed to be the final leg of the trip before returning to base, notes the Pan Am Historical Foundation.

 

In the morning hours the radio delivered a message informing the crew that Pearl Harbor had been attacked. The crew was instructed to implement Plan A.

 

The Captain was veteran Pan American pilot Bob Ford, and he knew exactly what to do, reports the Washington Post. He pulled a sealed envelope from his jacket. Inside were instructions that the crew was not to let the advanced aircraft fall into enemy hands.

 

Once the plane touched down in Auckland and the passengers disembarked, the crew faced a challenge. They were instructed to strip the plane of identifying marks, then fly west. Their destination: New York City.

 

Click on the link for the full story

[EmirOfShmo]

En fuego...414km/257mph

 

 

[Jumbo]

https://gadgets.ndtv.com/science/news/sea-dragon-ichthyosaur-fossil-rutland-uk-largest-skeleton-2703304

 

Gigantic 180-Million-Year-Old Fossil of 'Sea Dragon' Found in UK Reservoir

 

Researchers in the United Kingdom have found a colossal 180-million-year-old fossilised remains of an ichthyosaur, colloquially known as a ‘sea dragon'. The researchers describe it as one of the most significant discoveries in the region as the fossil is the biggest and most complete skeleton of its kind found in the UK. Ichthyosaurs resembled dolphins in body shape and became extinct around 90 million years ago, after first appearing 250 million years ago.

 

Discovered in a reservoir in Rutland county, the skeleton measures nearly 10 metres in length. Joe Davis, a conservation team leader from Leicestershire and Rutland Wildlife Trust, which operates the nature reserve in partnership with owner Anglian Water, found the specimen during some re-landscaping work which involved draining the water in the lagoon. He first spotted parts of vertebrae in the mud. What followed then was a large-scale excavation in August and September, said the Leicestershire and Rutland Wildlife Trust said in a statement.

 

Davis remarked that the finding was a “career highlight” for him, and went on to add that it was a feeling to even think that this creature once swam in the seas.

 

A report by CNN quoted Dean Lomax, an ichthyosaur expert and current visiting scientist at the University of Manchester, as saying that “the size and the completeness together is what makes it truly exceptional.” Lomax added that the earlier finds of ichthyosaurs in the UK had been “nowhere near as complete and as large as this.”

 

Stating that this discovery was only the “tip of the iceberg,” Lomax said that there was still much more to learn about the ichthyosaur when bits of rock were removed, including the potential that the reptile's last meal was preserved or that the reptile was pregnant.

 

Paul Barrett, Merit Researcher in the Earth Sciences Vertebrates and Anthropology Palaeobiology department at the Natural History Museum in London, told CNN that this was “one of the most impressive marine fossil discoveries from the UK that I can remember at least in the last 20 to 30 years or so.”

 

 

 

[China]

I saw "sea dragon" and thought it was going to be a fossil of this:

 

[China]

50 Things You Probably Never Knew Existed Shared By “Yup That Exists” Instagram Page

 

 

 

 

 

Click on the link for the rest

[CousinsCowgirl84]

Farmers by day; hunters by night 🧐 

[The Evil Genius]

 

Edited February 9, 2022 by The Evil Genius

[China]

Best robot dance:

 

 

[Dan T.]

 

[China]

Bald Eagle on Frozen Sebago Lake Gets a Fish From a Human