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Search Begins for Battlefield Lost for Centuries

Battle of Brunanburh helped define English, Scottish identities

(Newser) - Scotland is poised to vote on independence this year—and before it does, researchers are hoping they'll be able to track down the site of a battle at the root of the English-Scottish divide. There are more than 40 sites across Britain where experts have suggested the vicious Battle...

Stealth Carbs in Paleo Diet Rotted Ancients' Mouths

Acorns, pine nuts caused pus-filled gums, rotted teeth in Morocco

(Newser) - Ancient hunter-gatherers tended to have fine sets of teeth—at least, serious tooth decay was rare since people mainly munched on meat, tubers, and berries, and laid off the carbs, NPR reports. That's why a study from London's Natural History Museum is surprising—and pretty disgusting. Of the...

France Seeks a Rarity: A Woman for Its Pantheon

Only 2 of 73 buried there are female

(Newser) - France's Pantheon, completed in 1790, seeks to honor the country's "great men"—but the powers that be agree that the next great man probably should be a woman. Since the Pantheon's creation, only 73 people have been interred there. Only two of those are women,...

2K US Veterans Lobotomized in '40s, '50s

'WSJ' profiles Walter Freeman's medical legacy

(Newser) - In the first detailed account of the Veterans Administration's psychosurgery program, the Wall Street Journal reveals the extent to which lobotomies were used on veterans in the 1940s and '50s, before antipsychotic drugs came on the market and public opinion dipped. Unearthed documents show how one of the...

1858 Memoir by Black Inmate Found at Estate Sale

Yale acquires it, says it's the earliest such book on record

(Newser) - Someone poking around an estate sale in Rochester, NY, stumbled across an 1858 manuscript that has turned out to own a small niche in history—it's the earliest known prison memoir written by an African-American, reports the AP . Yale has acquired the 304-page memoir, titled The Life and Adventures ...

Culprit Found in 13th-Century Eruption That Rocked Earth

Polar traces indicate Indonesian volcano

(Newser) - An eruption in 1257—the biggest in the last 3,700 years—was so vast that it left its mark at opposite ends of the Earth and exacted a profound short-term impact on the climate, including a "year without a summer." Its chemical signature appears in Arctic as...

Gettysburg Photo Now Has 2 Would-Be Lincolns

Amateur historians differ on which one is the real Abe

(Newser) - A fascinating photo debate is underway regarding Abraham Lincoln at Gettysburg, reports USA Today . An amateur historian thinks he's spotted Lincoln in a photo by Alexander Gardner. The controversy? A different amateur historian identified another figure as Lincoln in the same photo six years ago. The two would-be Lincolns...

When Has Congress Declared War?

Hill hasn't formally declared war since 1942

(Newser) - With President Obama turning to Congress for a decision on Syria, BuzzFeed offers a quick Hill history lesson. Congress hasn't formally declared war since 1942, the site notes. But before that, it wasn't such a rare move:
  1. Congress backed war against Britain in 1812, by way of a
...

Group Found Earhart Plane, Kept It Quiet: Suit

TIGHAR rejects accusation

(Newser) - About two weeks ago, TIGHAR (that's the International Group for Historic Aircraft Recovery) announced that it may have spotted the location of Amelia Earhart's downed plane during a 2012 search. The most important part of that sentence, according to an angry donor, is the year: Timothy Mellon says...

American Woman Key to Cracking Ancient Code

Michael Ventris built off Alice Kober's notes to crack Linear B

(Newser) - The British genius known for decoding a then-unknown 3,500-year-old language may not have been all he was cracked up to be. According to newly catalogued archives, Michael Ventris, who decoded Linear B in 1952, owes much of his praise to an American woman. "Alice Kober is the great...

Sonar Image May Show Earhart's Plane

Off island of Nikumaroro

(Newser) - A team of experts that has been chasing Amelia Earhart's elusive trail for years may be closer than ever to solving the mystery of her 1937 disappearance. The International Group for Historic Aircraft Recovery (TIGHAR) had more than a decade ago pinpointed the Pacific island of Nikumaroro as the...

Scientist's Quest: Unlock Secret of Ancient Coins

He's returning to islands where WWII soldier found 1K-year-old coins

(Newser) - Ancient coins, a map with an "X," a secret cave: It sounds like something out of a kid's book. Instead, it's an Australian professor's archaeological quest. During World War II, a soldier stationed on the Wessel Islands off northern Australia found several mysterious coins in...

Wright Brothers Weren't First to Fly: Expert

But Smithsonian refutes claim

(Newser) - A newly discovered photo is fueling a controversial theory that a German immigrant in Connecticut was really "first in flight"—not the Wright brothers. An amateur historian found a photo in Germany that some say shows the real first plane flight, by one Gustave Whitehead. The photo—which...

Aftermath of Richard III Discovery: Hate Mail

Plus: Another historical figure discovered under parking lot

(Newser) - No one could accuse the Brits of a lack of passion for their history. As the feud continues over where to bury Richard III , the head of the York Minster church is getting hate mail, AFP reports. Nine of Richard's descendants have called for his reburial at York, where...

Vienna Philharmonic Was Packed With Nazis in WWII

Investigation reveals details 75 years later

(Newser) - Following accusations that it's kept quiet about its Nazi ties, the Vienna Philharmonic opened itself to a historical investigation. And ahead of tomorrow's 75th anniversary of Austria's Nazi annexation, the results are coming to light: Some 60 of 123 orchestra members belonged to the Nazi party, the...

Berlin Wall to Be Razed for ... Luxe Housing

Petitions spring up to protect East Side Gallery

(Newser) - Once again, the Berlin Wall is coming down—but this time, it's so swanky apartments can rise up in its place. And Berliners aren't happy about it, the Local reports. Thousands have signed online petitions against the move, confirmed by an eastern Berlin mayor, who argues that razing...

Alamo Commander's Famed Letter Returns Home

William Travis sought reinforcements, vowed to never surrender

(Newser) - The iconic "Victory or Death" letter written by Alamo commander William Barret Travis is back in San Antonio for the first time since it left by courier at the start of the famous siege at the old Spanish mission 177 years ago. Travis' letter seeking reinforcements to bolster his...

Do We Really Need the Constitution?
 Do We Really Need 
 the Constitution? 
OPINION
Dec 31, 2012 12:29 PM CST

Do We Really Need the Constitution?

Louis Seidman: Why should long-dead white men be calling the shots?

(Newser) - A Constitutional scholar has an announcement to make: That old document is obsolete. "Our obsession with the Constitution has saddled us with a dysfunctional political system, kept us from debating the merits of divisive issues, and inflamed our public discourse," writes Louis Michael Seidman in the New York ...

WWII Message's Code May Be Unbreakable

Experts seek help decoding newly discovered missive

(Newser) - While renovating his chimney, a UK man discovered a long-lost coded message from World War II attached to the remains of a pigeon. Now experts are trying to figure out what the message said—and so far, they're at a loss, the BBC reports. A British intelligence agency is...

Dig Thinks It's Found Richard III Under Car Park

Archeologists find skeleton with curved spine, arrow through back

(Newser) - Archeologists in England think they may have indeed found the remains of the "tyrant king" Richard III in a dig under a car park in Leicester, reports the Daily Mail . They announced today that a number of factors that make them think it's the real deal, most notably...

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