Who Discovered America Besides Columbus and the Vikings?

[Andre]

So how does magnetic dating work?

http://pda.physorg.com/lofi-news-rock-footprints-years_8657.html

...Many rocks retain evidence of their orientation at the moment they cool in the form of iron oxide grains magnetized in a direction parallel to the Earth's magnetic field at the time of cooling. Because the Earth's field has repeatedly flipped throughout the planet's history, it is possible to date rock based on its magnetic polarity.

Feinberg found that the rock grains in the volcanic ash had polarity opposite to the Earth's polarity today. Since the last magnetic pole reversal was 790,000 years ago, the rock must be at least that age. Because the Earth's magnetic polarity changes, on average, every 250,000 years, the argon/argon date is consistent with a time between 1.07 and 1.77 million years ago when the Earth's polarity was opposite to that of today.

 

[quantumcarl]

http://pda.physorg.com/lofi-news-rock-footprints-years_8657.html

Where can I get a pair of those 1.77 million year old vintage shoes they were wearing through the volcanic ash! ?

 

[Tojen]

See Charles Hapgood's "The Ancient Mariners". Title could be slightly different.

Maps of the Ancient Sea Kings, by Charles Hapgood. Looks intriguing. There doesn't seem to be much support for it, but I'm willing to give it a go.

Another thing about crossing oceans in ancient times: If storms are getting worse because of warmer temperatures these days, is the converse true? Back when the climate was colder, were storms much less severe?

The Canadian RCMP use its detailed and forensic aspects in the field. There is one case where up to 100 archaeologists were employed over several years in recovering evidence.

Would that be the Picton case? I know they were recruiting archaeologists from across Canada, I think, for that. A friend of a friend who is an archaeology student worked on that for a while. Digging through pig manure isn't as glamourous as unearthing ancient secrets, but the wages were good, as you said. And the scotch, I'm sure.

There's still a lot questions about the footprints in Mexico, but they're sure intriguing. Wouldn't that be something if the first human visitors here weren't the first hominids here.

 

[Mk]

How can we possibly use magnetic dating well? Geomagnetic reversals are extremely erratic and wouldn't all the feromagnetized iron particles be aligned either north to south or south to north? That only gives us two states!

http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/0/02/Geomagnetic_late_cenozoic.png

What does pre-Clovian mean?

 

[Tojen]

Someone else will have to explain magnetic dating, but Clovis refers to a style of projectile points that first appeared in the Americas about 12,000 years ago. Since that fit nicely with the theory of the time, that the Americas were first populated by Asians about 12,500 years ago, it was assumed the Asian migrants had brought the technology with them. Those assumptions appear to be wrong, and that people were coming here prior to 12,500 ybp, or pre-Clovis.

And as quantumcarl pointed out, the Clovis technology appears to be a product not of Asia, but an evolution of the Solutrean style in Europe about 20,000 years ago. That is supported by an apparent genetic link to Europe at about that time.

 

[Mk]

So what was up with the Kenniwick man anyway? It is thought he was of a isolated Native American tribe?

 

[Tojen]

From a post earlier in this thread:

September 12, 2004 - Discovery

DNA analysis of skulls found in Baja California that belonged to an extinct tribe called the Pericues reveal that the Pericues likely were not related to Native Americans and that they probably predated Native Americans in settling the Americas.

The finding, released at the British Association for the Advancement of Science (BA) Festival of Science in Exeter, England, adds support to the theory that a number of groups arrived in the Americas via different routes and at varying times, possibly as early as 25,000 years ago.

The study also suggests that the two oldest known Americans — Peñon woman and Kennewick Man — might have belonged to the Pericues tribe.
http://www.crystalinks.com/pericues.html (this is a copy of the original article at Discovery.com which no longer exists)

The Pericues lived on the southern tip of the Baja Peninsula when the Spaniards first arrived. Their obvious physical and linguistic differences from other tribes around them were noted immediately by the Spaniards. They died out soon after, but DNA analysis on some of their skeletons suggests they were not related to other American Indians and that their ancestors arrived in the Americas before those of present day Natives, that is, before 12,000 years ago, maybe as much as 20,000-25,000 ybp. As far as I know, no DNA testing has been done on Kennewick Man, but comparisons have been made with the Pericues on the basis of skull shape.

 

[quantumcarl]

Maps of the Ancient Sea Kings, by Charles Hapgood. Looks intriguing. There doesn't seem to be much support for it, but I'm willing to give it a go.

Thank you for correcting my incorrect title for Hapgood's book. It was published long before the imaging technology that mapped the ice-covered coast line of Antartica was available. The book has the Piri Re'is Map that shows the correct coast line as though it has no ice to obscure mapping proceedures.

Hapgood employed James H. Campbell, a mathematician-engineer as well as many other accredited professionals in his bid to uncover the truth about past and present geological and meterological events on earth. Charles Hapgood is documented to have exchanged ideas and theories with Albert Einstein in a series of letters and visits. Einstein is said to have not only "supported" Hapgoods efforts... but was also quite shaken by the implications of Hapgoods findings.

Another thing about crossing oceans in ancient times: If storms are getting worse because of warmer temperatures these days, is the converse true? Back when the climate was colder, were storms much less severe?

If you've followed any of Andre's writing on this forum you'll note that Earth's climate has gone from cooling to warming during several periods and due to various causes. Although the cycles are long in relation to human standards, it looks as though the global climate and weather has been up and down the barometer/thermometer a few times before and since the proported 20,000 year old ancient mariners and Egyptian traders etc... were getting around.

Would that be the Picton case? I know they were recruiting archaeologists from across Canada, I think, for that. A friend of a friend who is an archaeology student worked on that for a while. Digging through pig manure isn't as glamourous as unearthing ancient secrets, but the wages were good, as you said. And the scotch, I'm sure.

This is an ongoing case. Pig manure is nothing compared to the details of the case which I will not repeat here. I'm sure those who want to will be able to catch it on FOX.

 

[cronxeh]

Maps of the Ancient Sea Kings, by Charles Hapgood. Looks intriguing. There doesn't seem to be much support for it, but I'm willing to give it a go.

I actually just got that book by mail, yesterday. I've ordered it last week, the funny thing is I find it fascinating that 1-3 mile thick ice has never been drilled all the way through, and nobody knows just what is on the surface of Antarctica or Greenland. Heck, there could be an entire civilization or even *GASP* aliens!

 

[quantumcarl]

I actually just got that book by mail, yesterday. I've ordered it last week, the funny thing is I find it fascinating that 1-3 mile thick ice has never been drilled all the way through, and nobody knows just what is on the surface of Antarctica or Greenland. Heck, there could be an entire civilization or even *GASP* aliens!

Here's some news on what's under the 1 - 3 miles thick ice covering the land mass of Antartica

Secret rivers found in Antarctic
By Helen Briggs
BBC News science reporter


Hundreds of lakes lie beneath the frozen wastes of Antarctica

Antarctica's buried lakes are connected by a network of rivers moving water far beneath the surface, say UK scientists.

It was thought the sub-glacial lakes had been completely sealed for millions of years, enabling unique species to evolve in them.

Writing in the journal Nature, experts say international plans to drill into the lakes may now have to be reviewed.

Any attempts to drill into one body of water risks contaminating others.

"What this paper shows is that not only could you contaminate a lake, you could contaminate the whole drainage system," lead author Duncan Wingham, of University College London, told the BBC News website.

Source: http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/sci/tech/4908292.stm

There have also been fossils of Dinosaurs found in Antartica.

http://www.abc.net.au/science/news/stories/s1056189.htm

More about Antartica, concise and cool site:

http://www.bu.edu/alumni/bostonia/2000/winter/antarctic/