PRIVATEERS OF THE 17TH CENTURY

Buccaneering or privateering is to the 17^th century which the captains engage in the same sort of activity (robbing and fighting) but with a commission from the government and they attacked only Spanish ships.

Sir Francis drake is probably the most famous privateer and one of the most notable sailors and the naval commander of the seventeen century. An Englishman who played an important role in creating a model pirate in the new world. Sir Francis Drake was Elizabethan privateer with pirate manners, always hungry for more treasure. Countless victories against the Spanish fleets brought him fame. This England's hero was born in Tavistock, Devonshire around 1540. He was a son of Mary Mylwaye and Edmund Drake, protestant farmers. Soon after his birth, his family moved to Kent, where he fell in love with the sea and naval life. Drake, as many legendary sailors spent their entire youth at the sea. When he was 13 years old, he decided to follow his dreams and started naval career. In a short time period; he achieved rank of captain of a small ship. It was easy to see how good commander he was and how high his goals were. In 1565, Drake sailed to the Caribbean and commanded a ship under Sir John Hawkins.

SIR FRANCIS DRAKE

Woodes Rogers was certainly one of the most notable persons that ever lived in the Caribbean. This Englishman had two big obligations in his life. At first, he was a privateer and later became the first the first governor of Bahamas. In both his duties, his main targets were pirates. Woodes Rogers took a great part in suppressing pirates in most of the Caribbean Sea. Woodes Rogers was born in Bristol, England around 1679. In the beginning of his career, Rogers was just an ordinary seaman and merchant. During the period between 1708 and 1711 he was assigned to lead a privateering expedition with two ships, the “Duke” and the “Duchess”. Authorized by a group of Bristol merchants, Woodes’ crew were supposed to harass the Spanish colonies throughout the coasts of pacific.

WOODES ROGERS 

William Dampier (September 1651- 1715) was the first Englishman to explore parts of what is today Australia and the first person to circumnavigate the world 3 times. He has also been described as Australia’s first natural historian, as well as the most important British explorers of the period between Sir Walter Raleigh and James cook.

William Dampier

Henry Morgan despite some of his actions were brutal and illegitimate, Henry Morgan was not a pirate. The Welshman was a magnificent buccaneer, certainly the most famous one. Described as a remarkable leader and a fearsome conqueror, he had a couple of legendary battles and unique tactics which brought him fame and wealth. Because of all his deeds, Morgan was a true hero of the Caribbean and the English nation.

Henry Morgan

Goolab Jamun

Ingredients:

1 cup skimmed milk powder
1/2 cup white flour
2 ozs butter or margarine
1 tsp baking powder
Oil for frying
Milk for mixing
Syrup:
2 cups white sugar
2 cups water
2 drops yellow colouring
6 cardamoms
Instructions:
Mix milk powder, flour, baking powder and margarine till mixture looks like breadcrumbs.
Knead with milk to form a soft dough.
Set aside for a few minutes.
Form small balls with mixture. (If mixture has hardened, add more milk and knead).
Heat oil on low flame, fry a few at a time and set aside.
Boil sugar and two cups of water for five minutes.
Add yellow colouring and cardamoms.
Add the fried balls and boil for five minutes.
Cover and let stand for six hours without opening. (Yields 20-25 Gulab Jamuns)

Egyptian History Part 6

EGYPTIAN MUMMIES

The ancient Egyptians believed that when someone died, their soul left their body. The soul would then return and be reunited with the body after it was buried.

Over many centuries, the ancient Egyptians developed a method of preserving bodies so they would remain lifelike. The process included embalming the bodies and wrapping them in strips of linen. Today we call this process mummification. Mummification was mainly done to the wealthy people as poorer people could not afford the process.

The chief embalmer (a person who treats dead bodies with preservatives to keep them looking lifelike) was a priest wearing a mask of Anubis. Anubis was the jackal headed god of the dead. He was closely associated with mummification and embalming, hence why priest wore a mask of Anubis.

Priest wearing a mask of Anubis during Mummification

MUMMIFICATION PROCESS

Step by Step process of Mummification:

1. First, the body is taken to the tent known as 'ibu' or the 'place of purification'. There the embalmers wash the body with wine and spices and rinse it with water from the Nile.

2. They cut in the left side of the body near the tummy and remove many of the internal organs. It is important to remove these because they are the first part of the body to decompose. (A hook is use to pull the brain out from the nose. The liver, lungs, stomach and intestines are washed and packed in natron (salt) which will dry them out and then they were placed in hollow canopic jars. The heart is taken out, washed and place back into the body because it is the center of intelligence and feeling and man will need it in the afterlife.)

3. The body is now covered and stuffed with natron which will dry it out.

4. After forty days the body is washed again with water from the Nile. Then it is covered with oils to help the skin stay elastic.

5. The body is stuffed with dry materials such as sawdust, sand, leaves and linen so that it looks lifelike.

6. Finally the body is covered again with good-smelling oils. It is now ready to be wrapped in linen.

Cancer Part #2

HOW TO PREVENT CANCER?

There are several ways to prevent cancer. They includes:

• Stop smoking
• Keep a healthy body weight
• Eating a healthy, balanced diet
• Drink clear, pure water
• Limit the use of alcohol
• Don’t use tobacco
• Always be physically active
• Avoid certain infection
• Protect your skin from the sun
• Get regular medical care

 

HOW IS CANCER TREATED?

Cancer is treated with surgery, radiation therapy, chemotherapy, immunotherapy, hormone therapy or biological therapy. Patients with cancer are often treated by a team of specialists, which may include a medical oncologist (specialist in cancer treatment), a surgeon, a radiation oncologist (specialist in radiation therapy), and others. The doctors may decide to use one treatment method or a combination of methods. The choice of treatment depends on the type and location of the cancer, the stage of the disease, the patient's age and general health, and other factors. Cancer treatment depends on the type of cancer, the stage of the cancer (how much it has spread), age, health status, and additional personal characteristics. There is no single treatment for cancer, and patients often receive a combination of therapies and palliative care.

Two ways to treat Cancer are by:

SURGERY

Surgery is the oldest known treatment for cancer. If a cancer has not metastasized, it is possible to completely cure a patient by surgically removing the cancer from the body. This is often seen in the removal of the prostate or a breast or testicle. After the disease has spread, however, it is nearly impossible to remove all of the cancer cells. Surgery may also be instrumental in helping to control symptoms such as bowel obstruction or spinal cord compression.

RADIATION THERAPY

Radiation treatment, also known as radiotherapy, destroys cancer by focusing high-energy rays on the cancer cells. This causes damage to the molecules that make up the cancer cells and leads them to commit suicide. Radiotherapy utilizes high-energy gamma-rays that are emitted from metals such as radium or high-energy x-rays that are created in a special machine. Early radiation treatments caused severe side-effects because the energy beams would damage normal, healthy tissue, but technologies have improved so that beams can be more accurately targeted.

 

PIRATES OF THE I6TH CENTURY

Piracy is to the 16^th century and pirates attacked ships of any nationality. They made robbing and fighting at sea their profession.

Bartholomew Roberts was the most successful pirate the world ever knew. A rumor goes that he plundered 400 ships. The main reason for a constant success was his boldness. This fearless pirate terrorized every ship he encountered throughout the Caribbean Sea, which included many warships, which even the bravest pirates would avoid. He was known as ‘Black Bart’, which represents all his violent activities. He was born in South Wales and his real name was John Roberts. Since his youth, he had been on many ships, preparing for a naval life. While serving on a British Slaver “Princess” he was enslaved. A pirate Howell Davis captured that ship near Guinea Coast. The pirates forced Roberts to join the crew, but soon he realized that this trade was an ideal opportunity for him to become a pirate. 

PIRATE BARTHOLOMEW ROBERTS

Edward Low (1690-1724) is today remembered as one of the most notorious pirates in the golden age of piracy. He was an English pirate. During his active years, he terrorized western coast of North America gaining reputation of an extremely violent pirate. Stories of his cruel management of captured ships and their passengers soon reached the governments of America and England, and they quickly marked Low as one of the most sought criminal of his age. In his youth, Low was working as dock worker and shipmate, and then he and his crew soon turned against their captain and took control over the ship. Low, now a pirate captain managed to capture several trade ships of the coast of Boston and New York, which gave him funds to relocate to more lucrative waters of the Caribbean.

CAPTAIN EDWARD LOW

Charles Vane was certainly one of the most skillful English pirate captains. His navigating and ship combat skills were unmatchable, and he successfully plundered a number of vessels. However, he didn’t get along with his crew, which completely ruined him and put an end to his career. His pirating days began in 1716, when he became a crew member under Henry Jennings, Jennings like many other pirates raided ships and camps of the sunken Spanish galleons’ salvagers on the coast of eastern Florida. In 1718, Vane became a captain and continued sailing on his own. Captain Vane became quickly infamous, because he captured many vessels, tortured and murdered many prisoners.

PIRATE CHARLES VANE

Edward England he was born in Ireland. His real name was Edward Seegar. Edward’s career as a pirate began while he was working on a sloop as a first mate. During a trip from Jamaica to Providence, the ship was taken by a pirate Captain Winter. Soon after, he gained pirates confidence and became one of them. While the other pirates from his crew surrendered to king’s pardon, Edward England refused and he was forced to leave the Caribbean. It was Woodes Rogers, a former privateer and the governor of Bahamas that attacked his stronghold. So, the Irishman was forced to sail to Africa to continue his plundering.

THE IRISHMAN, EDWARD ENGLAND

Calico Rackham Jack had average accomplishments as a pirate. His fame comes from the fact that the two most famous woman pirates, Anne Bonny and Mary Read sailed under his flag. Calico Jack got the nickname Calico, because he was always wearing lousy striped calico pants. Calico Jack Rackham never had enough manpower to attack heavily protected treasure ships. He preferred to use a small sloop and attack fishing vessels and local merchants.

CALICO RACKHAM JACK

Anne Bonny it is hard to separate the legends from the facts of Anne Bonny. The only thing we can be sure of is that Anne Bonny was a strong, independent Irish woman, who was still ahead of her time, 18^th century, was a time when men made all important decisions, a time when women did not have many rights. In this men’s world, it was hard for Anne Bonny to become an equal crewmember and a respected pirate.

ANNE BONNY

Egyptian History Part 5

THE EGYPTIAN AFTERLIFE

The ancient Egyptians believed in an afterlife. The afterlife was a heavenly place complete with a heavenly Nile river. The ancient Egyptians called this lovely place “land of the two fields”. In the afterlife there was no sickness, no disappointment and of course no death.  They believed that the god Ra was in charge of transporting them to the afterlife and Ra would choose who could get on the “magical” boat to the afterlife. In the beginning, they believed that only pharaohs could board Ra magical boat and travel to the afterlife. But God Osiris changed that, he was a famous and important god to the ancient Egyptians because he opened the door to the afterlife to everyone. Just dying could not get you to the afterlife. You had to earn a place in Ra’s boat. To board Ra’s boat, your heart had to be light.  To keep your heart light, the ancient Egyptians believed you had to spend a lifetime doing good deeds. Crime was low in Egypt because people really wanted a light heart, to get on Ra’s boat. There were a couple other requirements you had to satisfy before you could an eternity in the afterlife. You had to have your name written down somewhere, and you had to have a preserved body. Why? Because the ancient Egyptians believed that everyone had a soul. If something happened to your preserved body, or if your name was not written down somewhere, a part of your soul would get lost and you would disappear and no longer be able to reach your afterlife. That’s why grave robbing was the most horrible crime in ancient Egypt. Grave robbers not only stole someone’s wealth, they stole their chance to live happily ever after in the land of the Two Fields.

Mammals: POLAR BEARS

Polar Bear

Polar bears are marine mammals and are large, white bears that like cold climates. They are the largest land predators in the world. They can weigh up to 1500 pounds and are twice as large as a lion. Polar bears can be up to 10 feet long. The polar bear is a carnivorous bear.  Polar bears are good swimmers.

 

 

Although polar bears look cuddly and nice, they are very dangerous and aggressive. They often wrestle to practice fighting with each other, but rarely actually hurt each other. A mother will staunchly defend her cubs, so don't go anywhere near a mother and her cubs.

A Polar Bear's Diet

Polar bears hunt on land and on sea. They are comfortable in the icy water and swim with their front paws similar to dogs. Seals are the polar bear's main source of food, but polar bears eat all sorts of things including small animals and berries. Polar bears will often hide by a hole in the ice where seals come up for air. When the seal comes up for air, the polar bear will grab the seal with its sharp claws. 

Reproduction

Females usually give birth during the months of November or December, after a gestation of eight months. In preparation, the animals dig a cave from a snow bank in which to have their cubs. This cave is called a maternity den.

Polar bear babies are called cubs. They are born in the winter. When first born, a polar bear cub weighs only 1 pound. It can't hear or see and has very little fur. Cubs will stay with their mother for a few years and she will teach them how to hunt and forage for food.

 

A female polar bear typically gives birth to twins, though singles and triplets have been recorded. Cubs depend on their mothers for warmth and fattening milk. By spring, the cubs are outside the den, exploring, and at two years of age they are fully mature. Polar bears live around 15 to 20 years.

 

Polar Bear Mother and her Cubs

Polar Bear Cubs

Polar Bears Play Fight

Polar Bear Swimming

Fun Facts about Polar Bears

• They can see great under water.
• The fur of a polar bear isn't actually white, but is actually clear tubes of hair that make them look white.
• They are patient and will wait for hours above a seal hole for a chance to catch dinner.
• They have a great sense of smell and can smell a seal that is up to 20 miles away.
• They don't hibernate, but they do stay warm in the winter by sleeping in a den.
• They have been known to go on long swims of over 100 miles.
• They are at the top of the food chain in their environment.