The Pyramid at Chichen Itza (before 800 A.D.) Yucatan Peninsula, Mexico.

Chichén Itzá, the most famous Mayan temple city, served as the political and economic center of the Mayan civilization. Its various structures – the pyramid of Kukulkan, the Temple of Chac Mool, the Hall of the Thousand Pillars, and the Playing Field of the Prisoners – can still be seen today and are demonstrative of an extraordinary commitment to architectural space and composition. The pyramid itself was the last, and arguably the greatest, of all Mayan temples.Chichen Itza was a major focal point in the northern Maya lowlands from the Late Classic (c.600–900 AD) through the Terminal Classic (c.800–900) and into the early portion of the Early Postclassic period (c.900–1200). The site exhibits a multitude of architectural styles, reminiscent of styles seen in central Mexico and of the Puuc and Chenes styles of the northern Maya lowlands. The presence of central Mexican styles was once thought to have been representative of direct migration or even conquest from central Mexico, but most contemporary interpretations view the presence of these non-Maya styles more as the result of cultural diffusion.

Chichen Itza was one of the largest Maya cities and it was likely to have been one of the mythical great cities, or Tollans, referred to in later Mesoamerican literature. The city may have had the most diverse population in the Maya world, a factor that could have contributed to the variety of architectural styles at the site.

Christ Redeemer (1931) Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.

This statue of Jesus stands some 38 meters tall, atop the Corcovado mountain overlooking Rio de Janeiro. Designed by Brazilian Heitor da Silva Costa and created by French sculptor Paul Landowski, it is one of the world’s best-known monuments. The statue took five years to construct and was inaugurated on October 12, 1931. It has become a symbol of the city and of the warmth of the Brazilian people, who receive visitors with open arms.Cristo Redentor is a statue of Jesus of Nazareth in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil; considered the largest Art Deco statue in the world and the 5th largest statue of Jesus in the world. It is 39.6 metres (130 ft) tall, including its 9.5 metres (31 ft) pedestal, and 30 metres (98 ft) wide. It weighs 635 tonnes (625 long,700 short tons), and is located at the peak of the 700-metre (2,300 ft) Corcovado mountain in the Tijuca Forest National Park overlooking the city. A symbol of Brazilian Christianity, the statue has become an icon for Rio de Janeiro and Brazil. It is made of reinforced concrete and soapstone, and was constructed between 1922 and 1931.

The Roman Colosseum (70 – 82 A.D.) Rome, Italy.


The Colosseum, or the Coliseum, originally the Flavian Amphitheatre (Latin: Amphitheatrum Flavium, Italian Anfiteatro Flavio or Colosseo), is an elliptical amphitheatre in the centre of the city of Rome, Italy, the largest ever built in the Roman Empire, built of concrete and stone. It is considered one of the greatest works of Roman architecture and Roman engineering.
Occupying a site just east of the Roman Forum, its construction started in 72 AD[2] under the emperor Vespasian and was completed in 80 AD under Titus, with further modifications being made during Domitian's reign (81–96). The name "Amphitheatrum Flavium" derives from both Vespasian's and Titus's family name (Flavius, from the gens Flavia).
Capable of seating 50,000 spectators,the Colosseum was used for gladiatorial contests and public spectacles such as mock sea battles, animal hunts, executions, re-enactments of famous battles, and dramas based on Classical mythology. The building ceased to be used for entertainment in the early medieval era. It was later reused for such purposes as housing, workshops, quarters for a religious order, a fortress, a quarry, and a Christian shrine.
Although in the 21st century it stays partially ruined because of damage caused by devastating earthquakes and stone-robbers, the Colosseum is an iconic symbol of Imperial Rome. It is one of Rome's most popular tourist attractions and still has close connections with the Roman Catholic Church, as each Good Friday the Pope leads a torchlit "Way of the Cross" procession that starts in the area around the Colosseum.

Nostradamus Facts

Michel de Nostredame[1] (14 or 21 December 1503[2] – 2 July 1566), usually Latinised to Nostradamus, was a French apothecary and reputed seer who published collections of prophecies that have since become famous worldwide. He is best known for his book Les Propheties (The Prophecies), the first edition of which appeared in 1555. Since the publication of this book, which has rarely been out of print since his death, Nostradamus has attracted a following that, along with the popular press, credits him with predicting 

many major world events.Most academic sources maintain that the associations made between world events and Nostradamus's quatrains are largely the result of misinterpretations or mistranslations (sometimes deliberate) or else are so tenuous as to render them useless as evidence of any genuine predictive power.[3] Nevertheless, occasional commentators have successfully used a process of free interpretation and determined 'twisting' of their words to predict an apparently imminent event. In 1867, three years before it happened, for example, Le Pelletier did so to anticipate either the triumph or the defeat of Napoleon III in a war that, in the event, begged to be identified as the Franco-Prussian war, while admitting that he could not specify either which or when.

Strange Facts About Nostradamus

• Nostradamus treated plague victims with pills he made from rose petals. He instructed patients to keep the pills under their tongues at all times and also claimed the rose remedy helped fight bad breath and tooth decay.
• In addition to astrology and medicine, Nostradamus knew his way around a kitchen. In 1555, he published a book of recipes for cosmetics, perfumes and fruit preservatives.
• Nostradamus predicted the world will end in 3797.
• While living in Salon-de-Provence in the 1550s, Nostradamus invested heavily in an ambitious canal project designed by engineer Adam de Craponne to bring an irrigation system to the arid region. The canal was a success and still stands today.
• In late 1561, Nostradamus was arrested and briefly detained for failing to obtain proper permission from the authorities to publish his 1562 almanac.
• According to legend, Nostradamus once encountered a young Franciscan monk herding pigs in Italy. To the surprise of onlookers, Nostradamus respectfully addressed the lowly monk as "Your Holiness." In 1585, years after Nostradamus died, that monk, Felice Peretti, became Pope Sixtus V.
• Legend holds that Nostradamus was buried with a document containing the secrets to his prophecies. In 1700, officials in Salon-de-Provence decided to relocate his coffin to a more optimal location. In the process, they decided to look inside. No document was located; however, a medallion inscribed with "1700" was reportedly found around Nostradamus' skeleton, leading people to believe the prophet had correctly predicted the year his coffin would be opened.
• Although Nostradamus died in the middle of 1566, his 1567 almanac was published because he had the foresight to prepare it before his death.
• The house in Salon-de-Provence where Nostradamus lived with his second wife and their children still stands today and is open to the public as a museum. Every summer, the town holds a festival honoring its world-famous former resident.
• According to the New York Times, in the days following the 9/11 attacks, the top search term on Google was "Nostradamus."

Saturn Facts

The density of Saturn is around 0.687 grams per cubic centimeter. Its density is so low that if it is kept on a water body, it would actually float on it. The speed with which Saturn completes one rotation is so high that it ends up flattening itself. It has 60 moons and in the ancient times the rings were thought to have been the moons of the planet. Saturn has no solid surface and the day is only 10 hours and 35 minutes long. It takes almost 30 years for the planet to complete one revolution around the sun and during these 30 years there are times when the rings around the planet seem to have been disappeared. Saturn in Horoscope represents hard work and discipline. There are theories that Saturn is astrologically powerful planet and it is used as advertising tool for many corporations like: Nike (that Nike logo represents Saturn's ring), cars, oil companies etc. Planet was named after the Roman god of agriculture Saturn. God Saturn was father of: Neptune, Pluto, Jupiter and Ceres. Day Saturday was also named after the Roman God Saturn. Saturn is the one of the five planets that are visible from the Earth with the naked eye (to see the actual rings you will have to find yourself a decent telescope). 

Sacagawea
"Sacagawea" (1910), North Dakota State Capitol, Leonard Crunelle, sculptor.
Born	c. 1788 Lemhi River Valley (near present-day Salmon, Idaho)
Died	December 20, 1812 (aged 24) Fort Lisa, present-day NorthDakota (probable)
Other names	Sakakawea, Sacajawea, Sakagawea
Ethnicity	American Native (Shoshone)
Known for	Accompanied the Lewis and Clark Expedition
Spouse	Toussaint Charbonneau
Children	jean baptiste charbonneau lizette charbonneau

Sacagawea Facts

Sacagawea (also Sakakawea, Sacajawea; English pronunciation: /ˌsækədʒəˈwiːə); (c. 1788 – December 20, 1812; see below for other theories about her death) was a Lemhi Shoshone woman, who accompanied the Lewis and Clark Expedition, acting as an interpreter and guide, in their exploration of the Western United States. She traveled thousands of miles from North Dakota to the Pacific Ocean between 1804 and 1806.

                   She has become an important part of the Lewis and Clark legend in the American public imagination. The National American Woman Suffrage Association of the early twentieth century adopted her as a symbol of women's worth and independence, erecting several statues and plaques in her memory, and doing much to spread the story of her accomplishments.[1]

In 2000, the United States Mint issued the Sacagawea dollar coin in her honor, depicting Sacagawea and her son, Jean Baptiste Charbonneau. The face on the coin was modeled on a modern Shoshone-Bannock woman named Randy'L He-dow Teton. No contemporary image of Sacagawea exists.
In 2001, she was given the title of Honorary Sergeant, Regular Army, by then-president Bill Clinton.

  

Early Facts:

Reliable historical information about Sacagawea is very limited. She was born into an Agaidika (Salmon Eater) tribe of Lemhi Shoshone between Kenney Creek and Agency Creek about twenty minutes away from present-day Salmon in Lemhi County, Idaho.[citation needed] In 1800, when she was about twelve, she and several other girls were kidnapped by a group of Hidatsa (also known as Minnetarees) in a battle that resulted in death among the Shoshone of four men, four women and several boys. She was taken as a captive to a Hidatsa village near present-day Washburn, North Dakota.[citation needed]
At about thirteen years of age, Sacagawea was taken as a wife by Toussaint Charbonneau, a Quebecer trapper living in the village. He had also taken another young Shoshone named Otter Woman as a wife. Charbonneau was reported to have purchased both wives from the Hidatsa, or won Sacagawea while gambling.

The lewis and clark expedition:

Sacagawea was pregnant with her first child when the Corps of Discovery arrived near the Hidatsa villages to spend the winter of 1804–05. Captains Meriwether Lewis and William Clark built Fort Mandan. They interviewed several trappers who might be able to interpret or guide the expedition up the Missouri River in the springtime. They agreed to hire Charbonneau as an interpreter when they discovered his wife spoke Shoshone, as they knew they would need the help of Shoshone tribes at the headwaters of the Missouri.
Lewis recorded in his journal on November 4, 1804:
                      "a French man by Name Chabonah, who speaks the Big Belly language visit us, he wished to hire and informed us his 2 squars ("squaws") were Snake Indians, we engage him to go on with us and take one his wives to interpret the Snake language…" 
                    Charbonneau and Sacagawea moved into the expedition's fort a week later. Clark nicknamed her Janey.[3] Lewis recorded the birth of Jean Baptiste Charbonneau on February 11, 1805, noting that another of the party's interpreters administered crushed rattlesnake rattles to speed the delivery. Clark and other European Americans nicknamed the boy "Little Pomp" or "Pompy".
                    In April, the expedition left Fort Mandan and headed up the Missouri River in pirogues. They had to be poled against the current and sometimes pulled from the riverbanks. On May 14, 1805, Sacagawea rescued items that had fallen out of a capsized boat, including the journals and records of Lewis and Clark. The corps commanders, who praised her quick action, named the Sacagawea River in her honor on May 20.
By August 1805, the corps had located a Shoshone tribe and was attempting to trade for horses to cross the Rocky Mountains. They used Sacagawea to interpret and discovered that the tribe's chief was her brother Cameahwait.
                      Lewis recorded their reunion in his journal:
"Shortly after Capt. Clark arrived with the Interpreter Charbono, and the Indian woman, who proved to be a sister of the Chief Cameahwait. The meeting of those people was really affecting, particularly between Sah cah-gar-we-ah and an Indian woman, who had been taken prisoner at the same time with her, and who had afterwards escaped from the Minnetares and rejoined her nation."

Later life and death:

After the expedition, Charbonneau and Sacagawea spent three years among the Hidatsa before accepting William Clark's invitation to settle in St. Louis, Missouri in 1809. They entrusted Jean-Baptiste's education to Clark, who enrolled the young man in the Saint Louis Academy boarding school.

Sacagawea gave birth to a daughter, Lizette, sometime after 1810. According to Bonnie "Spirit Wind-Walker" Butterfield, historical documents suggest Sacagawea died in 1812 of an unknown sickness:

"An 1811 journal entry made by Henry Brackenridge, a fur dealer at Fort Manuel Lisa Trading Post on the Missouri River, stated that both Sacagawea and Charbonneau were living at the fort. He recorded that Sacagawea "…had become sickly and longed to revisit her native country." The following year, John Luttig, a clerk at Fort Manuel Lisa recorded in his journal on December 20, 1812, that "…the wife of Charbonneau, a Snake Squaw [the common term used to denote Shoshone Indians], died of putrid fever." He went on to say that she was "aged about 25 years. She left a fine infant girl". Documents held by Clark show that her son Baptiste had already been entrusted by Charbonneau into Clark's care for a boarding school education, at Clark's insistence (Jackson, 1962)."

A few months later, fifteen men were killed in an Indian attack on Fort Lisa, then located at the mouth of the Bighorn River. John Luttig and Sacagawea's young daughter were among the survivors. Toussaint Charbonneau was mistakenly thought to have been killed at this time, but he apparently lived to at least eighty. He had signed over formal custody of his son to Clark in 1813.

"Sacagawea" statue in (1910),
 North Dakota State Capitol,
Leonard Crunelle, sculptor.

                          As further proof that Sacagawea died in 1812, Butterfield writes: "An adoption document made in the Orphans Court Records in St. Louis, Missouri states, 'On August 11, 1813, William Clark became the guardian of 'Tousant Charbonneau, a boy about ten years, and Lizette Charbonneau, a girl about one year old.' For a Missouri State Court at the time, to designate a child as orphaned and to allow an adoption, both parents had to be confirmed dead in court papers."
The last recorded document citing Sacagawea's existence appears in William Clark's original notes written between 1825–1826. He lists the names of each of the expedition members and their last known whereabouts. For Sacagawea he writes: "Se car ja we au- Dead." (Jackson, 1962)."
There is no later record of Lizette among Clark's papers. It is believed that she died in childhood.

"Sacagawea" (1905),
Washington Park (Portland, Oregon),
 Alice Cooper, sculptor.

 Sacagawea's son Jean-Baptiste Charbonneau continued a restless and adventurous life. He carried lifelong celebrity status as the infant who went with the explorers to the Pacific Ocean and back. When he was 18, he was befriended by a German Prince, who took him to Europe. There, Jean-Baptiste spent 6 years living among royalty while learning 4 languages and fathering a child in Germany named Anton Fries.[10]
After his infant son died, Jean-Baptiste came back from Europe in 1829 to live the life of a Western frontiersmen. He became a gold miner, hotel clerk, and in 1846, he led a group of Mormons to California. While in California he became a magistrate for the San Luis Rey Mission. He did not like the way Indians were treated in the Missions and left to become a hotel clerk in Auburn, California, once the center of gold rush activity.[11]
After working 6 years in Auburn, the restless son of Sacagawea left in search of riches in the gold mines of Montana. He was 61 years old, and the trip was too much for him. He became ill with pneumonia and died in a remote area near Danner, Oregon on May 16, 1866.

Film:

Sacagawea cast in Night at the museum

Several movies, both documentaries and fiction, have been made about Sacagawea.

• Night at the Museum 2: Battle of the Smithsonian (2009) – played by Mizuo Peck
• The Spirit of Sacajawea (2007)
• Night at the Museum (2006) – played by Mizuo Peck
• Bill and Meriwether's Excellent Adventure (2006) – played by Crystal Lysne
• Journey of Sacagawea (2004)
• Jefferson's West (2003) – played by Cedar Henry
• Lewis & Clark: Great Journey West (2002) – played by Alex Rice
• The Far Horizons (1955) – played by Donna Reed

Easter Island Facts

Easter Island (Rapa Nui: Rapa Nui, Spanish: Isla de Pascua) is a Polynesian island in the southeastern Pacific Ocean, at the southeasternmost point of the Polynesian Triangle. A special territory of Chile that was annexed in 1888, Easter Island is famous for its 887 extant monumental statues, called moai, created by the early Rapanui people. It is a World Heritage Site (as determined by UNESCO) with much of the island protected within Rapa Nui National Park. In recent times the island has served as a warning of the cultural and environmental dangers of overexploitation. Ethnographers and archaeologists also blame diseases carried by European colonizers and slave raiding of the 1860s for devastating the local peoples.

              MOAI /ˈmoʊ.aɪ/, or mo‘ai, are monolithic human figures carved from rock on the Chilean Polynesian island of Easter Island between the years 1250 and 1500.[1] Nearly half are still at Rano Raraku, the main moai quarry, but hundreds were transported from there and set on stone platforms called ahu around the island's perimeter. Almost all moai have overly large heads three-fifths the size of their bodies. The moai are chiefly the living faces (aringa ora) of deified ancestors (aringa ora ata tepuna).The statues still gazed inland across their clan lands when Europeans first visited the island, but most would be cast down during later conflicts between clans.

The production and transportation of the 887 statues[3] are considered remarkable creative and physical feats.[4] The tallest moai erected, called Paro, was almost 10 metres (33 ft) high and weighed 82 tons;[5] the heaviest erected was a shorter but squatter moai at Ahu Tongariki, weighing 86 tons; and one unfinished sculpture, if completed, would have been approximately 21 metres (69 ft) tall with a weight of about 270 tons.

 

Facts About Jupiter

Jupiter is the Roman god of the sky and thunder, the planet Jupiter technically has no surface as it is entirely made out of gas. Jupiter can be seen without a telescope because of its huge size. The gravitational pull of the planet is so high that anything and everything that passes the planets gets pulled towards it. Jupiter has 63 moons and one of them is volcanically active and it is the only moon in the entire solar system to be in such a state. The fastest spinning planet of all, Jupiter has clouds that are up to 50 km thick and the average day on Jupiter lasts around 10 hours. After Venus, Jupiter is the second brightest planet in the Solar System (Venus reflects 70% of sunlight). Mars outshines Jupiter only when approached very close to the Earth.If you weigh 100 pounds on Earth, you would weigh 264 pounds on Jupiter.Jupiter has a mass 318 times greater than the Earth's and a diameter that is 11 times larger.The mass of Jupiter is 70% of the total mass of all the other planets in our Solar System.Jupiter's volume is large enough to contain 1,300 planets the size of Earth.Jupiter rotates faster than any planet in the Solar System.It rotates so quickly that the days are only 10 hours long...But it takes 12 Earth years for Jupiter to complete an orbit around the sun.

Harry Potter Facts

Meteora Facts

Meteora, an area that attracts thousands of tourists from all over the world every year is situated in Greece. Meteora is famous for its monasteries that are built on eroded rocks. The name itself means "suspended in the air". The monks built these monasteries on the top of the rocks. Earlier there were many monasteries but now only six are left. Meteora was inhabited by hermit monks first. The climate here varies with sweating summers to chilly winters. The area experiences rain all through the year. The rocks on which these monasteries stand are believed to be almost sixty million years old and their weathering and evolving makes the place perfect for hiking. Tourists here enjoy visiting monasteries, hiking and exploring caves. The best way to reach the place is by taking a bus from Athens. There are good hotels to stay in a village of Kastraki. The nearby places worth visiting are Mount Olympus, Athens, Santorini and many more.

The Pyramids Were White

The stereotypical vision of the Egyptian Pyramids are large mountain like brown piles of stone uprooting from the desert having a rough contour. Though when first constructed around 2500 BC. The pyramids were paper white and as smooth as glass, toping the pyramid was a golden capstone that gleamed in the desert sun. It was an amazing spectacle. The pyramids somewhat stayed in this state until the Arab invasion of Egypt around AD 500. The Arab invaders stripped the pyramid of it's smooth limestone and built a huge section of Cairo. Many of the Mosques and Palaces of Cairo consist of the Ancient stones of the pyramids. Quite sad actually.

Fire Rainbow Facts

A beautiful work of nature, fire rainbows are not a common sight. Fire rainbows are circumhorizon arcs commonly known as CHA in scientific language. Fire rainbows occur in cirrus clouds which are wispy and thin.For this incredible sight the cirrus clouds should be at 20000 feet height with sun at 58 degrees. The amount of ice crystals in the clouds need to be appropriate and properly aligned for the light to pass through it. The phenomenon is the result of refraction of light when it passes through vertical side and exits from the rear as it is in the case of a prism. If the inclination is of 90 degrees the colors can be seen well arranged and the cloud seems bursting with colorful flames. Though the name suggests it to be a hot, flammy phenomenon but it is cold like ice. This spectacular event of nature lasts for a short time and is a rare sight as all factors need to be available at correct time and at correct position.

Why is universe dark?

Olbers' paradox, a part of astrophysics and physical cosmology, is basically a squabble about the sky being dark at night. This paradox is also phrased as the 'dark night sky paradox'. The paradox states that an inert, considerably old universe with an equal number of stars scattered in the proportionately large space should be bright rather than being dark at night.

The question of sky being dark at night might seem ridiculous with a much obvious answer, and the topical answer might surprise you. This question has been studied by the best physicists who have reached an answer that is simple but not so obvious. In order to find an answer to the Olbers' paradox, the scientists and physicists had to struggle a lot to learn about the behavior of energy involved in the concept.

One argument given by the scientists against the dark night paradox is that the light of distant stars might be hidden by the dust clouds. But this answer is again contradicted by the statement that these dust clouds should reach the temperature of the stars by their heat. Another statement contradicting the Olber's paradox is that these distant stars might be too tiny and far that they can be seen in the vicinity. Besides, there might be numerous stars at increasing distances such that their smaller perceptible size is formed of by their bigger numbers.

Another theory is of the time and age of the universe. Universe is 13.73 billion years old which states that light of the starts had certain time to light up the universe. Most of the starts we see today, in our night sky, do not exist anymore. We can see their light because it takes ages for their light to travel around the universe. So we could say that stars in the universe had certain amount of time to contribute to the illumination of the whole universe.

Please read comments bellow for additional theories. However, as much as we searched this subject, it still remains a paradox.