Christopher Columbus uses his knowledge of a lunar eclipse that night to convince Native Americans to provide him with supplies on February 29, 1504

Christopher Columbus uses his knowledge of a lunar eclipse that night to convince Native Americans to provide him with supplies: Christopher Columbus, in an effort to induce the natives of Jamaica to continue provisioning him and his hungry men, successfully intimidated the natives by correctly predicting a total lunar eclipse for March, 01 1504 (visible on the evening of February 29 in the Americas), using the Ephemeris of the German astronomer Regiomontanus.

On October 12, 1492, Columbus came ashore on an island northeast of Cuba, which he later named San Salvador (Holy Savior). Over the next 10 years Columbus would make three more voyages to the “New World”. On his fourth and final voyage, while exploring the coast of Central America, Columbus found himself in dire straits.

Columbus left Cádiz, Spain, on May 11, 1502, with the ships Capitana, Gallega, Vizcaína and Santiago de Palos. Unfortunately, thanks to an epidemic of shipworms eating holes in the planking of his fleet, Columbus was forced to abandon two of his ships and finally had to beach his last two caravels on the north coast of an island now known as Jamaica, on June 25, 1503.

Initially, the native peoples (Arawak Indians) welcomed the castaways, providing them with food and shelter, but as the days dragged into weeks, tensions mounted. Finally, after being stranded for more than six months, half of Columbus' crew mutinied, robbing and murdering some of the Arawaks, who themselves had grown weary of supplying cassava, corn and fish in exchange for little tin whistles, trinkets, hawk's bells and other trashy goods. With famine now threatening, Columbus formulated a desperate, albeit ingenious plan.

Almanac to the rescue

Coming to the admiral's rescue was Johannes Müller von Königsberg (1436-1476), known by his Latin pseudonym, Regiomontanus. He was a highly regarded German mathematician, astronomer and astrologer. Before his death, Regiomontanus published an almanac containing astronomical tables covering the years 1475-1506.

Regiomontanus'almanac turned out to be of great value, for his astronomical tables provided detailed information about the sun, moon and planets, as well as the more important stars and constellations to navigate by. After it was published, no sailor dared set out without a copy. With its help, explorers were able to leave their customary routes and venture out into the unknown seas in search of new frontiers.

Columbus, of course, had a copy of the almanac with him when he was stranded on Jamaica. And he soon discovered from studying its tables that on the evening of Thursday, February 29, 1504, a total lunar eclipse would occur, beginning around the time of moonrise.

Armed with this knowledge, three days before the eclipse, Columbus requested a meeting with the Arawak chief and informed him that his Christian god was very angry with his people for no longer supplying him and his men with food. Therefore, he was about to provide a clear sign of his displeasure: Three nights hence, he would all but obliterate the rising full moon, making it appear “inflamed with wrath”, which would signify the evils that would soon be inflicted upon all of them.

Bad moon rising!

On the appointed evening, as the sun set in the west and the moon started emerging from beyond the eastern horizon, it was plainly obvious to all that something was terribly wrong. By the time the moon appeared in full view, a small but noticeable dark scallop had been removed from its lower edge. [How lunar eclipses work (Infographic)]

And, just over an hour later, as evening twilight ended and full darkness descended, the moon indeed exhibited an eerily inflamed and "bloody" appearance: In place of the normally brilliant late winter full moon there now hung a dim red ball in the eastern sky.

According to Columbus' son, Ferdinand, the Arawaks were terrified at this sight and “with great howling and lamentation came running from every direction to the ships laden with provisions and beseeching the admiral to intercede with his god on their behalf”. They promised that they would happily cooperate with Columbus and his men if only he would restore the moon back to its normal self. The great explorer told the natives that he would have to retire to confer privately with his god. He then shut himself in his cabin for about 50 minutes.

While in his quarters, Columbus turned an hourglass every half hour to time the various stages of the eclipse based on the calculations provided by Regiomontanus' almanac.

Just moments before the end of the total phase Columbus reappeared, announcing to the Arawaks that his god had pardoned them and would now allow the moon to gradually return. And at that moment, true to Columbus' word, the moon slowly began to reappear, and as it emerged from the Earth's shadow, the grateful Arawaks hurried away. They then kept Columbus and his men well supplied and well fed until a relief caravel from Hispaniola arrived on June 29, 1504. Columbus and his men returned to Spain on November 7.

AccuWeather / Wikipedia / New World Encyclopedia.org / Space.com / Gutenberg.org / Quart / Christopher Columbus uses his knowledge of a lunar eclipse that night to convince Native Americans to provide him with supplies on February 29, 1504 (YouTube)

Understanding Military Terminology

Nerve Agent

(DOD) A potentially lethal chemical agent that interferes with the transmission of nerve impulses.

Joint Publications (JP 3-11) Operations in Chemical, Biological, Radiological, and Nuclear Environments

Net Explosive Weight

1. The actual weight in pounds of explosive mixtures or compounds, including the trinitrotoluene equivalent of energetic material, that is used in determination of explosive limits and explosive quantity data arcs.

Joint Publications (JP 4-09) Distribution Operations - Federation Of American Scientists

2. The total weight of all explosives substances (i.e., high explosive weight, propellant weight, and pyrotechnic weight) in the ammunition or explosive, expressed in pounds, used for transportation purposes.

Also called NEW.

DOD 6055.09-M, Volume 1 DoD Ammunition and Explosives Safety Standards: (DODM 6055.09) General Explosives Safety Information and Requirements

Networked Munitions

Remotely controlled, interconnected, weapons system designed to provide rapidly emplaced ground-based countermobility and protection capability through scalable application of lethal and nonlethal means.

Joint Publications (JP 3-15) Barriers, Obstacles, and Mine Warfare for Joint Operations

The Old Salt’s Corner

Going Ashore

During your period of training, it is possible that the ship will visit a port (foreign or domestic). Tradition requires that you obtain permission from the OOD to leave the ship (in the same fashion that you obtained permission to board originally). When requesting permission to leave, present your ID card and have a copy of your orders with you. Before making your way to the Quarterdeck, obtain permission to leave from your supervisor. Formal permission to leave the ship is requested in the following manner:

Salute the OOD and say, “I request permission to go ashore, sir.” (In the same manner as boarding, always address the OOD as “sir”, as he or she represents the authority of the ship’s commanding officer.). The OOD will reply, “Very well”, and return the salute. If the ship is tied up in port, proceed down the gangplank. Remember to pause halfway and face to salute the national ensign aft during daylight hours. If at anchorage, make your way to the launch boarding area. When returning to the ship, follow the same boarding procedure outlined earlier in this section.

When going ashore by launch, junior officers always board first and take the forward seats. Senior officers and VIPs take the rear seats of the launch. Disembarking the launch is done in the reverse order; namely, seniors leave first followed by juniors.

Order of Debarkation

Maritime tradition dictates an order of debarkation at the conclusion of each at-sea period that is never deviated from.

Debarkation at the end of cruise is in the following order:

● Bodies of any casualties.

● Wounded.

● Ship’s commanding officer and/or his personal aide

● Mail.

● All ship’s personnel who have permission to go ashore

“I’m Just Sayin”

“The question that sometimes drives me hazy:

Am I,

or the others crazy?”

“Your imagination is your preview of life’s coming attractions.”

“As our circle of knowledge expands,

so does the circumference of darkness surrounding it.”

~ Albert Einstein

“Thought for the Day”

“Everybody wants to go to Heaven,

but no one wants to die to get there!”

“I don't think anybody steals anything;

all of us borrow.”

“You only live but once,

and when you’re dead you’re done,

so let the good times roll.”

“Growing up,

I was taught that a man has to defend his family.

When the wolf is trying to get in,

you gotta stand in the doorway.”

~ B.B. King

“What I Learned”

“Ignorance can be educated.

Crazy can be medicated.

But there is no cure for stupid.”

“Addiction doesn't kill the addict.

It kills the family,

kids and people who tried to help!”

“One who refuses to seek the advice of others will eventually be led to a path of ruin.

A mentor helps you to perceive your own weaknesses and confront them with courage

The bond between mentor and protege enables us to stay true to our chosen path until the very end.”

~ Anonymous

Second Hand News: Articles from Week 09 - February 24, 2020 - March 01, 2020

Iowa Democratic caucuses debacle are finally coming down to a photo finish with 97% of precincts reporting: Sanders 44,753; Buttigieg 42,235 • Republican senators request Hunter Biden travel records from Secret Service • 'Voted to betray:' Clinton slams Senate Republicans after Trump acquittal

He never thought ICE would come for him. Sixteen years and four DUIs later, they did • 'Industry wants parents to stop steering children away from manufacturing • House Democrats want to take California 'gig economy' regulations national

CNN commentator calls Trump Super Bowl spot the 'I freed a Negro' ad • Reporter hollers at Iowa Democratic Party chairman: 'How can anyone trust you now?' • Supreme Court opens door to deciding Obamacare's fate ahead of 2020 election

MOST READ: Omar and Tlaib among Democrats who don't stand for Tuskegee Airman at State of the Union • White House may be drafting executive order to make federal architecture more classical • 'Disgusting:' CNN's Jim Acosta slammed for accusing Rush Limbaugh of 'racism' after Medal of Freedom award • Trump more popular in Utah than Romney, as senator weighs impeachment • WATCH: Pelosi rips up Trump's State of the Union address manuscript Washington Examiner

Bill Gates calls coronavirus a 'once-in-a-100-years' pathogen and says it is 'more severe' than the 1957 influenza pandemic that killed more than 66,000 Americans • Dow plunges another 1,000 points for the third day this week as markets sound alarm bells of a possible global RECESSION and coronavirus panic wipes $6 TRILLION off world stocks • Democrats accused of 'hoping coronavirus kills millions so they can end Donald Trump's streak of winning'

Mike Pompeo will sign peace deal with the Taliban TOMORROW says Donald Trump - opening way for thousands of U.S. troops to leave Afghanistan • Joe Biden FINALLY admits he was NOT arrested while trying to visit Nelson Mandela - but says he WAS 'stopped' and separated from black Congressmen by 'Afrikaners with guns' • Ukrainian court forces probe into Joe Biden over claims he pressured Kiev officials to fire country's top prosecutor in 2016

Drunk driver who caused fiery crash that killed three teenagers begs for forgiveness as she is jailed for 51 years while victim's mother holds up an urn with her son's ashes in court • Police arrest 30 protesters as major fire hits Paris's Gare de Lyon station: Arsonists start blaze then clash with firefighters during protest against concert • Retired Navy SEAL Eddie Gallagher who was acquitted of murdering an ISIS prisoner in Iraq admits posing for a photo with the body was 'wrong'

Fox Nation host Britt McHenry reveals she has a brain tumor and will undergo surgery as she thanks her 'amazing' medical team • Pope Francis is still unwell and has postponed all official audiences for Friday, the Vatican confirms without detailing his sickness • White House chief of staff dismisses coronavirus as being hyped to 'bring down' Trump - but admits schools will 'probably' shut and says president did NOT sleep before chaotic presser Daily Mail UK

Mr. Answer Man Please Tell Us: Why do we have Leap Year?

Nearly every four years, we add an extra day to the calendar in the form of February 29, also known as Leap Day. Put simply, these additional 24 hours are built into the calendar to ensure that it stays in line with the Earth’s movement around the Sun. While the modern calendar contains 365 days, the actual time it takes for Earth to orbit its star is slightly longer - roughly 365.2421 days.

The difference might seem negligible, but over decades and centuries that missing quarter of a day per year can add up. To ensure consistency with the true astronomical year, it is necessary to periodically add in an extra day to make up the lost time and get the calendar back in synch with the heavens.

The Egyptians were among the first to calculate the need for a leap year, but the practice didn’t arrive in Europe until the reign of the Roman dictator Julius Caesar.

Before then, the Roman calendar had operated on a muddled lunar model that regularly required adding an extra month to maintain celestial consistency. Finally, in 46 B.C., Caesar and the astronomer Sosigenes revamped the Roman calendar to include 12 months and 365 days. This “Julian Calendar” also accounted for the slightly longer solar year by adding a leap day every four years.

Caesar’s model helped realign the Roman calendar, but it had one small problem. Since the solar year is only .242 days longer than the calendar year and not an even .25, adding a leap year every four years actually leaves an annual surplus of roughly 11 minutes. This minute discrepancy meant that the Julian Calendar drifted off course by one day every 128 years, and by the 14th century it had strayed 10 days off the solar year.

To fix the glitch, Pope Gregory XIII instituted a revised “Gregorian Calendar” in 1582. In this model, leap years occur ever four years except for years evenly divisible by 100 and not by 400. For example, the year 1900 was not a leap year because it was divisible by 100, but not 400. The Pope’s updated calendar remains in use to this day, but it’s still not perfect—experts note that the remaining discrepancies will need to be addressed in around 10,000 years.

History Channel / Wikipedia / Encyclopedia Britannica / Quora / National Geographic / EarthSky.org / The Old Farmer's Almanac Why do we have Leap Year? (YouTube)

NAVSPEAK aka U.S. Navy Slang

Ladderwell: Stairs. (This is a holdover from when all climbing was done by ladders.)

Lady Lex: Either of the two aircraft carriers named “Lexington”.

LBFM: (derogatory) Little Brown Fuck Machine: A foreign prostitute or B-girl, especially an Asian one.

LBFMPBR: (derogatory) Little Brown Fuck Machine Powered By Rice. See “LBFM”.

LBGB: (derogatory) Little Bitty Gook Boat: One of the small indigenous fishing boats occasionally run over by the craft of the Tonkin Gulf Yacht Club.

LDO: Limited Duty Officer: generally a senior and highly qualified enlisted person (E6–E8) who has earned a commission through a competitive process and continues to work in their field. By definition a technical manager.

LDO Security Blanket: Good conduct ribbon. Even though an LDO can choose to wear only his/her top three ribbons, they never do; because they always have at least three higher than Good Conduct and they need to have that one on display lest they be mistaken for a real junior officer. LDOs need their Good Conduct ribbons every bit as much as Linus needs his security blanket.

Wiktionary.org

Just for you MARINE

Ladder Well: Stairway or ladder connecting different decks of a ship, so named because naval stairs tend to be so steep as to almost be vertical.

Laminated: Laminated - perceived semi-permanent state of issue for a normally temporary status.

Lance Colonel: Derivation of Lance Corporal denoting a junior Marine with extended time in service or grade. See also Terminal Lance.

Lance Coolie, Lance Criminal, or Lance Coconut: derogatory terms for Lance Corporal.

Lance Corporal Underground or Lance Corporal Network: Joking reference to the gulf between non-NCOs and their superiors; also refers to the spread of foolish rumors that a more experienced Marine would immediately recognize as false.

Wikipedia.org

Naval Aviation Squadron Nicknames

HSC-11 Helicopter Sea Combat (HSC) Squadron ELEVEN - nicknamed the “Dragonslayers”

United States Navy Naval Air Station - Helicopter Sea Combat (HSC), Naval Air Station North Island, Naval Base Norfolk, Norfolk, Virginia / Squadron Lineage: HS-11: June 27, 1957 - June 2016 / HSC-11: June 27, 2016 - present.

Where Did That Saying Come From?

“A place for everything and everything in its place:”

Meaning: The proverbial notion that there should be 'a place for everything and everything in its place' is the idea that everything should have somewhere to be stored and that it should be tidily returned there when not in use.

History: This proverb is variously associated with Samuel Smiles, Mrs Isabella Beeton and Benjamin Franklin. The Oxford Book of Quotations dates it from the 17th century. Such a reference is usually accurate, although the authors supply no evidence for their assertion. If correct, it would pre-date all of the above notables.

If it is indeed that old, it has made heroic efforts to keep itself out of print. It may be that the Oxford book is making a reference to a line in A Century of Sermons, John Hacket, Bishop of Lichfield, 1675:

“The Lord hath set every thing in its place and order.”

That isnt the full proverb as we now use it though, which I can't find any printed citations of from before the late 18th century. It appears in a story published by the Religious Tract Society in 1799 - The Naughty Girl Won:

“Before, however, Lucy had been an hour in the house she had contrived a place for everything and put everything in its place.”

Phrases.org UK

Science & Technology

New study investigates the role of Tambora eruption in the 1816 'year without a summer' • Bioengineering organ-specific tissues with high cellular density and embedded vascular channels • Researchers say the age of Saturn's rings is difficult to determine • Investigating robot illusions and simulations of reality • Stony-iron meteor caused August impact flash at Jupiter • Painting the molecular canvas in super-resolution Phys.org / MedicalXpress / TechXplore

Bizarre News (we couldn’t make up stuff this good - real news story)

What a Waste! Frozen Poop Knives Are Crappy Cutters, Scientists Find

“They were not functional”, the researchers reported

Scientists ponder a wide variety of probing questions in pursuit of knowledge. One of those questions - can a knife made of frozen feces cut flesh? - has just been answered.

An anthropologist reported in the 1990s that there was “a well-known account” of a stranded Inuit man crafting a knife from his own, frozen excrement that was sharp enough to kill and butcher a dog. The tale quickly spread through academic circles, its fame growing over the decades. But no evidence suggested that the incident ever took place or that such a blade would even be possible to shape or use.

That is, until now. A team of researchers in a laboratory that reverse-engineers ancient tools was intrigued by the story and decided to put it to the test. In the name of science, the lab's co-directors generated the experiments' raw materials and then crafted their own frozen poop knives, describing the process - and the disappointing outcome - in a new study.

In 1998, anthropologist and ethnobotanist Wade Davis published the book “Shadows in the Sun: Travels to Landscapes of Spirit and Desire”. It included the remarkable account of an elderly Inuit man left alone during a freezing storm with no tools; he allegedly survived the ordeal by carving a knife from his frozen feces, “sharpened with a spray of saliva”, Davis wrote.

Then, the man killed a dog with the knife, butchered the beast and “disappeared into the darkness” riding a sled that he made from the animal's rib cage.

Davis later said that he suspected the Inuit man who told him the story may have been toying with him. True or not, the story has since grown to become “one of the most popular ethnographic accounts of all time”, according to the study.

Surprising Uses for Pee and Poop

“Real knife, or fake news?”

When lead study author Metin Eren was still in high school, he heard Davis telling the story of the knife-wielding Inuit man on the radio; Erin told Live Science that the experience fueled his decision to become an anthropologist - he's currently an assistant professor at Kent State University in Ohio, and co-director of the university's Eren Laboratory of Experimental Archaeology.

It was in that lab where the next chapter of the poop-knife story unfolded. The dubious case of the frozen poop knife presented Eren with an intriguing subject for the lab's hands-on approach to unraveling how ancient tools work.

Given the current political climate, in which so-called alternative facts are alarmingly common and accusations of “fake news” are freely flung, “I thought it would be really important to do a project that tests some sort of urban legend, or something that is pervasive in the academic and public sphere that hasn't been well-tested and supported by experimental data”, Eren said.

Human Skeleton Sheds Light on First Americans

Before conducting any experiments, Eren; co-author Michelle Bebber, also an anthropologist at Kent State; and their lab colleagues needed raw material for shaping the knives. Eren therefore adopted an eight-day “arctic diet” that was high in protein and fatty acids. His menu included lots of beef, turkey and salmon, with isolated helpings of applesauce, mac and cheese, and butternut squash risotto, according to the study.

By the fourth day, he was producing samples that were suitably “arctic” and usable in the experiments. The researchers froze the specimens to temperatures of minus 58 degrees Fahrenheit (minus 50 degrees Celsius), sharpening the poop blades with metal files and keeping them chilled with dry ice until they were ready to be tested on refrigerated pig hide.

“I was surprised at how hard human feces could get when frozen”, Eren said. “I started to think, 'Oh my gosh, this might actually work!'”

But in the end, the poop knives simply didn't make the cut.

“Like a crayon, it just left brown streaks on the meat - no slices at all”, he said.

Bebber then provided additional sample material of her own, but knives from the new poo fared no better.

“This idea that a person made a knife out of their own frozen feces - experimentally, it is not supported”, Eerin said.

hough the experiments demonstrated that a blade made of frozen waste couldn't carve flesh - or even penetrate it - the researchers' efforts were far from wasted, Eren said.

“Data is key, and really, that's where this study is meant to draw the reader. Science is about describing and explaining reality. Especially in this day of alternative facts and fake news, evidence needs to come back to the fore.”

• Journal of Archaeological Science: Reports

• Mad Geniuses: 10 Odd Tales About Famous Scientists

• The Coldest Places on Earth

• How Much Do You Poop in Your Lifetime?

Live Science (09/15/2019)

Second Hand News: Articles from Week 09 - February 24, 2020 - March 01, 2020

Bloomberg Implies Voters In 2016 Were Wrong To Rebel Against ‘Intelligentsia’ • Attorney General William Barr: “Remarkably Monolithic Press” Aids Progressives In Making Us All “25-Year-Olds Living In The Government’s Basement” • South Carolina Is Where The Democratic Party’s Future Will Be Decided

How ‘White Fragility’ Theory Turns Classrooms Into Race-Charged Power Struggles • South Carolina Isn’t Quite Ready For The Bernie Sanders Revolution • Michael Bloomberg Hasn’t Jettisoned Enough Of His Masculinity For Democrats, But He’s Trying • Viral TikTok Shows Teenage Girls Giggling While One Gets An Abortion

MOST READ: How A Russian’s Grocery Store Trip In 1989 Exposed The Lie Of Socialism • Dear Joe Scarborough: More Americans Hate America Than You Think • Everything You Think You Know About Cuba Is A Lie • Nadler Cancels Judiciary Hearing On FISA Reform, Avoids Bipartisan Amendments • How Do You Solve A Problem Like Ilhan Omar? The Federalist

CORRUPTION CHRONICLES: It Ain’t Over For Former FBI Deputy Director Andrew McCabe

“Investigating the Investigators:” New Clinton Email Revelations, “Whistleblower” and Soros Records

U.S., Soros-Funded Ukrainian HIV Charity Under Criminal Probe for Embezzlement

CIA Won’t Confirm or Deny Documented “Whistleblower” Records Judicial Watch

OUTING FAKE NEWS OMISSIONS and DISTORTIONS: NBC HAILS Mitt Romney: ‘President of the Republican Resistance’ to Trump • Petulant CNN: Jim Acosta Hails ‘Profile in Courage’ Romney and Panel Gangs Up on Santorum • CNN's 'New Day' Has No Pro-Trump Guests to Discuss State of the Union • MSNBC Disgraced Brian Williams Questions the 'Faith' of Some Senators After Acquittal

'Double Jeopardy Does Not Apply:' CNN Looks for More Impeach Charges • MSNBC Cheers ‘Historic’ Romney Vote: ‘Unlocking His Super Power’ • ABC &ldquoThe View” Hosts Lose It Over 'Racist' Limbaugh Getting Award: 'Supposed to Go to People Who Actually Did Stuff' • ABC &ldquoThe View” Joy Behar Praises Pelosi Shredding Speech: 'Playing Hardball' With 'Criminals and Fascists'

Telemundo Highlights Incendiary Words in Report About Trump's State Of The Union Address • CLASSLESS AND CRUEL: ABC, NBC, CNN... Liberals Attack Limbaugh Receiving Medal of Freedom • Late Night Stephen Colbert Freaks Over Trump's State Of The Union Address: 'Are Our Checks And Balances Broken? • 'That Felt Good:’ Hollywood Satisfied As Pelosi Tears Trump's State Of The Union Address Speech News Busters