History's Most Overlooked Mysteries Tuan C. Nguyen | July 25, 2007 10:23am ET Credit: Photographed by Aurel Stein, circa 1910 Although many of life's great mysteries remain unsolved, there are some lesser known ones that also have stumped researchers for centuries. Earth's Mysterious Hum Explained Even planets can get a bad case of tinnitus, according to a new study that explains Earth's mysterious, never-ending hum. Scientists have long known that earthquakes can make the Earth sing like a bell for days or months. However, in the late 1990s, seismologists discovered the world also constantly vibrates at very low frequencies even when there are no quakes. This so-called microseismic activity is too faint for humans to feel. Now, researchers say ocean waves are the culprit behind these mysterious tremors. Many scientists had previously turned to ocean waves to explain our planet's unusual humming. But neither idea could account for the entire range of vibrations seen on earthquake sensors. "I think our result is an important step in the transformation of mysterious noise into an understood signal," lead study author Fabrice Ardhuin, an oceanographer at the French Research Institute for Exploitation of the Sea, told Live Science.
Buddhist flower that blooms once every 3000 years discovered under nun's washing machine // Current To Our Faithful Current.com Users: Current's run has ended after eight exciting years on air and online. The Current TV staff has appreciated your interest, support, participation and unflagging loyalty over the years. Your contributions helped make Current.com a vibrant place for discussing thousands of interesting stories, and your continued viewership motivated us to keep innovating and find new ways to reflect the voice of the people. We now welcome the on-air and digital presence of Al Jazeera America, a new news network committed to reporting on and investigating real stories affecting the lives of everyday Americans in every corner of the country. You can keep up with what's new on Al Jazeera America and see this new brand of journalism for yourself at Thank you for inspiring and challenging us. – The Current TV Staff
Top 10 Beasts and Dragons: How Reality Made Myth by Ker Than | March 01, 2011 03:39am ET Credit: © Kira Kaplinski | Dreamstime.comDragons are awe-inspiring patchwork creatures found in the myths and legends of cultures all around the world. In Europe, they are nightmarish fire-spewing reptiles, large and lizard-like, with the forked tongue of a snake and wings like a bat. In the legends, they are reviled and feared because they liked to imprison maidens, destroy villages and hoard over mountains of gold. In the ancient cultures of Mexico and South America, a divine feathered serpent known by various names was believed to renew the world after each cycle of destruction. In China, dragons are amphibious creatures that dwell in oceans, lakes, rivers and even raindrops. Despite their differences, many of the mythical dragons found throughout the world all began as vague serpentine ideas modeled after real creatures, beginning with a snake or some other fearsome reptile. Author Bio Ker Than Ker Than on
34,000-Year-Old Organisms Found Buried Alive! | Climate Research, Salt Crystals & Ancient Organisms It's a tale that has all the trappings of a cult 1960s sci-fi movie: Scientists bring back ancient salt crystals, dug up from deep below Death Valley for climate research. The sparkling crystals are carefully packed away until, years later, a young, unknown researcher takes a second look at the 34,000-year-old crystals and discovers, trapped inside, something strange. Something … alive. Thankfully this story doesn't end with the destruction of the human race, but with a satisfied scientist finishing his Ph.D. "It was actually a very big surprise to me," said Brian Schubert, who discovered ancient bacteria living within tiny, fluid-filled chambers inside the salt crystals. Salt crystals grow very quickly, imprisoning whatever happens to be floating — or living — nearby inside tiny bubbles just a few microns across, akin to naturally made, miniature snow-globes. "They're alive, but they're not using any energy to swim around, they're not reproducing," Schubert told OurAmazingPlanet.
Case Closed? Columbus Introduced Syphilis to Europe | Sexually Transmitted Diseases | Origin of Syphilis & Syphilis Epidemic In 1492, Columbus sailed the ocean blue, but when he returned from 'cross the seas, did he bring with him a new disease? New skeletal evidence suggests Columbus and his crew not only introduced the Old World to the New World, but brought back syphilis as well, researchers say. Syphilis is caused by Treponema pallidum bacteria, and is usually curable nowadays with antibiotics. Untreated, it can damage the heart, brain, eyes and bones; it can also be fatal. The first known epidemic of syphilis occurred during the Renaissance in 1495. "Syphilis has been around for 500 years," said researcher Molly Zuckerman at Mississippi State University. Stigmatized disease The fact that syphilis is a stigmatized sexually transmitted disease has added to the controversy over its origins. Armelagos originally doubted the so-called Columbian theory for syphilis when he first heard about it decades ago. Armelagos and his colleagues took a closer look at all the data from these prior reports. In the seafood?
Did UFOs Disable Minuteman Missiles at Malmstrom AFB in 1967? When it comes to the existence of UFOs, I have to admit that I'm rather agnostic about the subject. Its simple for me, over the past 53 years, I've never seen a UFO. I don't rule the phenomenon out completely, but I'm of the mind frame that you have to "show me the saucer" or better yet, I need to see one with my own eyes. The case of the Malmstrom AFB UFO incident that allegedly happened in 1967 caught my attention about a year ago. Malmstrom was my first Air Force assignment, stationed there from 1981 to 1985. I was assigned to the 490th Strategic Missile Squadron as a Minuteman II launch officer. A UFO Mysteriously Causes 10 Minuteman ICBMs to Drop Off Alert On the morning of March 16, 1967, Capt Eric Carlson and Lt Walter Figel were finishing up their alert cycle at the 10th Strategic Missile Squadron's Echo-01 Launch Control Center located near Winifred, MT. Fast forward three decades. Robert Jamison Robert C. Who Saw the UFOs? 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 2. 1. 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 1. 1. 2.
Conspiracy Theories – Top Ten Conspiracies by Benjamin Radford, Live Science Contributor | May 19, 2008 10:58am ET Credit: NASA Conspiracy. Just saying the word in conversation can make people politely edge away, looking for someone who won’t corner them with wild theories about how Elvis, John F. Yet conspiracies do exist. Many conspiracy theorists go much further, though, and see a hidden hand behind the world’s major events. At least that's what they want you to think ... Author Bio