The Down Range Forum
Member Section => Down Range Cafe => Topic started by: Dakotaranger on August 06, 2010, 03:03:31 AM
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http://www.gadling.com/2010/01/30/roman-swiss-army-knife-goes-on-display/ The Romans were an inventive bunch. They had running water, flush toilets, and mass media two thousand years ago. They also had their own version of the Swiss Army knife.
401diggsdiggThe curious artifact pictured here is part of the newly remodeled displays at The Fitzwilliam Museum in Cambridge, England. "Discovering Greece and Rome" reopened today after a £950,000 ($1.5 million) refurbishment that involved eighteen months of careful research, conservation, and construction.
The Roman Swiss Army knife has a knife, spoon, fork, spike, spatula, and small pick. Archaeologists think the spike might have helped in extracting meat from snails, a popular Roman food, and the spatula in poking sauce out of narrow-necked bottles. The pick could have served as a toothpick. This isn't the only Roman folding knife that's been found, but they're usually bronze and this one is silver and has a lot more gadgets. It dates to the third or fourth century A.D.
The museum has thousands of rare and one-of-a-kind artifacts from the Classical world, including a 3,000 year-old cosmetics box, intricately carved sarcophagi, elegant Greek vases, and everyday items from the civilizations that gave us so much of our own culture. Maps and a time line put everything into context.
During the refurbishment, museum staff removed a series of ancient stone inscriptions from one of the gallery's false walls and discovered a time capsule placed there by the team that did the last remodel back in the 1960s. Inside was a copy of the Cambridge News dated Friday 10 May 1963, a selection of contemporary coins, and the names of the 1960s team carved into the cement. The Fitzwilliam didn't say if they repeated the time capsule trick. The next team will just have to find out for themselves sometime in the future.
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I will admit to being a history geek. I spent 6 hours at The Museum of The Rockies, in Bozeman Montana. The first two hours? It was an unscheduled screw up. There was supposed to be a 1/2 tour of their "living history garden". "Sorry, it wasn't supposed to run on Sunday". Yet a senior curator was there. For the next 90 minutes this amazing old fart gave me an MS level education in heirloom produce, politics of the Mo./Ks border during the CW, native american farming practices, and learning more than I wanted to about fish farming. Just because he could and I wanted to learn. The remaing four hours were taken up with working scale models of Da Vinci's machines that you could play with and manipulate. Needless to say, I walked away humbled at what our ancestors did. Best twenty bucks I ever spent. That isn't even counting the T-Rex bones. If you are ever in Bozeman, spend a full day feeding your inner geek. You will not regret it.
FQ13
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I will admit to being a history geek. I spent 6 hours at The Museum of The Rockies, in Bozeman Montana. The first two hours? It was an unscheduled screw up. There was supposed to be a 1/2 tour of their "living history garden". "Sorry, it wasn't supposed to run on Sunday". Yet a senior curator was there. For the next 90 minutes this amazing old fart gave me an MS level education in heirloom produce, politics of the Mo./Ks border during the CW, native american farming practices, and learning more than I wanted to about fish farming. Just because he could and I wanted to learn. The remaing four hours were taken up with working scale models of Da Vinci's machines that you could play with and manipulate. Needless to say, I walked away humbled at what our ancestors did. Best twenty bucks I ever spent. That isn't even counting the T-Rex bones. If you are ever in Bozeman, spend a full day feeding your inner geek. You will not regret it.
FQ13
*drooling That would be a blast
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No cork screw or bottle opener? Had the Romans invented pull tabs and twist off bottle caps or were their priorities just screwed up?
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No cork screw or bottle opener? Had the Romans invented pull tabs and twist off bottle caps or were their priorities just screwed up?
Actually Iron City Beer was the first out with those!
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Very cool.
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I will admit to being a history geek. I spent 6 hours at The Museum of The Rockies, in Bozeman Montana. The first two hours? It was an unscheduled screw up. There was supposed to be a 1/2 tour of their "living history garden". "Sorry, it wasn't supposed to run on Sunday". Yet a senior curator was there. For the next 90 minutes this amazing old fart gave me an MS level education in heirloom produce, politics of the Mo./Ks border during the CW, native american farming practices, and learning more than I wanted to about fish farming. Just because he could and I wanted to learn. The remaing four hours were taken up with working scale models of Da Vinci's machines that you could play with and manipulate. Needless to say, I walked away humbled at what our ancestors did. Best twenty bucks I ever spent. That isn't even counting the T-Rex bones. If you are ever in Bozeman, spend a full day feeding your inner geek. You will not regret it.
FQ13
I love history too but i would've been all over that just for the fish farming element alone. I've really been reading up on that subject but getting it from a book is nothing like getting it from someone first hand. When we move in a year or so I've been thinking of dedicating an acre or two as a fish pond, not really for commercial use although it would be a possibility on a small scale. More like something for my family and friends or neighbors, maybe as a bartering instrument. I watched a tv special on a couple guys that are farming organic shrimp in MD that are approx. 50 miles from the ocean, which would be almost the exact setup for our property so I had some interest there as well.
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I love history too but i would've been all over that just for the fish farming element alone. I've really been reading up on that subject but getting it from a book is nothing like getting it from someone first hand. When we move in a year or so I've been thinking of dedicating an acre or two as a fish pond, not really for commercial use although it would be a possibility on a small scale. More like something for my family and friends or neighbors, maybe as a bartering instrument. I watched a tv special on a couple guys that are farming organic shrimp in MD that are approx. 50 miles from the ocean, which would be almost the exact setup for our property so I had some interest there as well.
This guy, who was pushing 90 was one of the founders of the wildlife and fish programs at MSU. He was one of those tough old bastards that could probably walk you into the ground. He'd be slower, but just keep going, you know the type. ;D Anyway, his stories about the old days were amazing. He started out of school at a hatchery, then it was onto a rant about not reinforcing natives rather than bringing in rainbows, then to whirling disease, then on how it can be done cleanly in salt water, a sidetrip into sturgeon farming, a detour to why the chinese are screwing it up, a visit to Brazil and giant catfish etc. etc. Not my specialty, but you couldn't help but be amazed at how much this guy knew. I should have had a recorder.
As far as your pond, go talk to the ag extension guys. They will help you, and (at least here in Fl.) sell you cheap fish. The thing to remember is to pay the boys with the grader some overtime. You want plenty of bottom contour, not just a bowl. Little "sea mounts", ledges, undercuts, that sort of thing.
FQ13
PS there was a neat little study done on bass that demonstrated how structure oriented they are. They dumped some largemouths in a featurless pool that had three short horizontal lines painted on one of the walls. That was where they all hung out. Be sure to throw in some piles of cinder blocks, brush piles etc. and be sure that bottom has all sorts of features. Good luck.
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To add to FQ's post, old tires, and even ships, have been sunk to create artificial reefs .
The ship thing is probably impractical for you, but the old tires can be stacked before the pond is flooded, any shifting or tumbling of the stack simple helps to disguise it's man made nature.
Another benefit is that by having a "fire pond" providing immediate access to water, should get you a good size discount on fire insurance.