Cave record of Britain's pioneers

When humans returned to the British Isles after the ice sheets retreated the Cheddar Gorge was one of the first places they returned to. Radiocarbon testing on bones found in Gough's Cave shows people were there 14,700 years ago. The re-occupation closely follows the warming of the climate and man could have returned to the area just a couple of years after the climate warmed.

Watergate Hotel to be sold

Probably the most famous hotel in the world and (indirectly) responsible for any recent scandal to be suffixed with -gate, the Watergate Hotel is to be sold at auction. The hotel, in Washington DC USA, has been closed since 2007 after the previous owners ran out of money.

Of course the hotel rose to fame (or infamy) when it was where burglars in the pay of President Nixon stayed before they broke into the Democratic Party office at the adjoining Watergate Office Complex. The trail investigators followed eventually led to the White House and the fall of Nixon of course.

Update : the sale did not attract any bids.

World's oldest man dies

Henry Allingham, the world's oldest man has died at the age of 113. He was one of the last surviving veterans of World War 1 and the last survivor from the founder members of the RAF. Now when someone dies at such a great age i am always fascinated by how much "history" they have seen in their lives. Henry was born in 1896 so:

• Despite being a founder member of the RAF was 7 before man actually first took to the air in an aeroplane
• Was 9 when my grandmother was born
• Was 22 when World War 1 ended
• Was nearly 40 when my parents were born
• Was nearly 50 when World War 2 ended
• Was 56 when Queen Elizabeth II came to the throne
• Topically was 73 when men first landed on the moon
• And was 75 when i was born!

Full steam ahead to the final TMA

I completed TMA05 this week, a source analysis essay examining and comparing two documents by Stalin and Hitler. I'm glad its over as i have totalitarian dictator fatigue. Now i have just one TMA left to complete for this year's course, its the big one though. TMA06/07 is a double assignment where we are left to study a subject on our own from a list of suggested topics. I have chosen resistance in WW2 and how effective it was against fascism.

I actually started the TMA in a way back in April when i read the first of two books on resistance in western Europe. Now i will likely re-read the four books i have bought on the subject (and i have a couple already in my military book collection), i started reading a book on the resistance in Italy in the latter part of the war after 1943.

I shall be looking at Italy and France for my essay. I did consider looking at three countries but that would mean i would not be able to go in as much depth. Of course with France i can include Vichy too so it is almost 2.5 countries to examine! The deadline is September 15th so i have plenty of time, i probably will not start writing until late August.

Tomb of St. Paul found?

The Vatican is claiming that human remains found in a tomb discovered in 2006 belong to St. Paul the Apostle. Fragments of material and bone were found in the tomb which has remained closed but investigated using a small probe. The bone was carbon-dated to the 1st century AD. Vatican experts point to the tomb's position in the the basilica of St Paul Outside the Walls in Rome underneath an epigraph "Paulo Apostolo Mart (Paul the Apostle and Martyr)" as being proof the remains are of St. Paul.

Oldest musical instrument found

A 35,000 year old flute has been found, the oldest musical instrument discovered. The five hole flute was found in Germany's Ach Valley and was carved from the wing bone of a large vulture. The flute is nearly intact, three other flutes in fragments have been found plus a female figurine. The flutes show that music played a part in the Aurignacian culture which lasted from 40K to 10K years ago.

Past the 40%

I got back TMA04 today and my highest mark of the year so far (just above the mark for TMA03) which pleases me no end as i was a little unsure about my essay which discussed the revolutions of Germany, Austria-Hungary and Russia at the end of WW1 and whether they were a consequence of the war. The tutor liked my essay though it was not flawless but i did explain why i felt the way i did about the subject which is important.

This morning i created a spreadsheet for my assignment scores which also works out the weighting for each one to give the overall assignment mark. I have just passed over the 40% with my scores to date which is the pass for the assignment part of the course. The next 2 TMAs (which include the last one which is worth 25% of the overall score) are thus purely a bonus though of course i will aim to get good scores again. Just the exam then to pass as well of course!