LINKS - May 25th, 2022
Welcome to LINKS — my attempt to provide Rhapsody readers with five interesting stories that tell us something about what it means to be human. LINKS is published every Wednesday. Have a link you want to share? Drop it in the comments.
Long-Hidden Ancient Pyramids, Settlements Discovered in Remote Amazon Region
By Aylin Woodward, The Wall Street Journal
“The landmark findings, made possible with the help of advanced laser-mapping technology capable of penetrating the dense vegetation that has long stymied research efforts in the region, upend long-held beliefs among many experts that the region lacked sophisticated societies until European colonizers arrived in the 16th century.”
What We Know about Mass School Shootings—and Shooters—in the U.S.
By James Densley, Jillian Peterson, The Conversation/Scientific American
“When the Columbine High School massacre took place in 1999 it was seen as a watershed moment in the United States – the worst mass shooting at a school in the country’s history.
“Now, it ranks fourth. The three school shootings to surpass its death toll of 13 – 12 students, one teacher – have all taken place within the last decade: 2012’s Sandy Hook Elementary attack, in which a gunman killed 26 children and school staff; the 2018 shooting at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, Florida, which claimed the lives of 17 people; and now the Robb Elementary School assault in Uvalde, Texas, where on May 24, 2022, at least 19 children and two adults were murdered.”
Black-hole image sheds light on Milky Way mysteries
By Davide Castelvecchi, Nature
“The wealth of new information about the black hole, called Sagittarius A*, joins many other lines of evidence that are now painting a detailed picture of the Galactic Centre. Taken together, the results suggest that Sagittarius A* is sucking in matter at a slow pace, making it unusually dim compared with the central black holes of other galaxies. The observations also hint that Sagittarius A* could have been spectacularly active only a few million years ago. Meanwhile, the latest data are raising fresh questions about some of the largest structures seen in and around the Milky Way.”
Now Monkeypox
“Overall, I would say that this is in the don't-panic-but-keep-a-close-eye-on category. We have not had a monkeypox event like this before, and while it's unlikely to turn into a global pandemic itself, it's not impossible, either. We just really do not need another viral burden spreading around, nor another big public health concern. The best case is that this outbreak damps down, the infected people recover smoothly, and we go back to not reporting weirdo cases of monkeypox in places it's never been seen before.”
What the Vai Script Reveals About the Evolution of Writing
By Piers Kelly, Sapiens
“It’s not the first time in recent history that a new writing system has been invented from scratch. In the 1820s, the nonliterate polymath Sequoyah created a special script for his native Cherokee language, and similar Indigenous inventions have emerged elsewhere in the world on the margins of expanding colonies. But the evolution of Vai has been especially well-documented, making it a useful case study for researchers of writing.”