LENNY KRAVITZ…..had an impromptu intermission during a concert in Italy to answer a phone call from his buddy Denzel Washington……“I’m sorry, my big brother just called me up on the phone to say ‘Hi,’” …..Kravitz said Friday to the crowd at the Umbria Jazz Festival….. “Y’all know Denzel Washington?”…..The “Fly Away” singer took the moment to show a smiling Washington to the crowd, which erupted in cheers…… “All right, brother, I love you. I’ll call you later,” …..Kravitz said, then ended the call.
MODERN HUMANS…..first appeared about 200,000 years ago…..but record keeping didn’t begin until about 6,000 years ago…..this means that about 97% of human history has been lost
IN 1973…..the Australian rock group AC/DC was founded. Angus Young, the lead guitarist, and Malcolm Young, the rhythm guitarist, established it……Angus, lead vocalist Brian Johnson, drummer Phil Rudd, bassist Cliff Williams, and Stevie Young…..who is Angus and Malcolm’s nephew, play rhythm guitar in the current lineup…..the band just refers to their music as “rock and roll,”……but it has also been called heavy metal, blues rock, and hard rock…..they are credited with helping to shape the current generation of British heavy metal bands…..including Saxon and Def Leppard…..in 2003, AC/DC was admitted to the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame
MANY PEOPLE……are thinking that Africa had no history…..however, historical and archeological studies have proven that Africa has a richer and greater history than ancient historians have tried to have us believe.
1. The human race is of African descent….the oldest known skeletal remains of anatomically modern humans (or homo sapiens) have been unearthed at sites in East Africa…..human remains were discovered in Omo, Ethiopia and date back to 195,000 years, the oldest known in the world.
2. Prehuman skeletons were discovered in Africa between 4 and 5 million years ago….the oldest known ancestral type of mankind is thought to be Australopithecus ramidus….which lived at least 4.4 million years ago.
3. Africans were the first to organize fishing expeditions 90,000 years ago…..in Katanda, a region in the northeastern part of Zaire (now Congo)….a series of finely crafted harpoon tips were recovered, all thoroughly polished and barbed…..a tool, equally well designed, was also discovered, it is believed to be a dagger…..the findings suggest the existence of a first aquatic or fish-based culture.
4. Africans were the first to start mining 43,000 years ago…..in 1964, a hematite mine was discovered in Swaziland on the Bomvu ridge in the Ngwenya mountain range….eventually, 300,000 items were recovered, including thousands of stone mining tools…..Adrian Boshier, one of the archaeologists present at the site, dated the mine to an astonishing 43,200 years old.
5. Africans pioneered basic arithmetic 25,000 years ago…..the Ishango bone is a tool handle with engraved notches found in the Ishango region of Zaire (today called Congo) near Lake Edward….the bone tool was originally thought to be over 8,000 years old.
ON THIS DAY……July 18, 1863 – Sgt William Harvey Carney was awarded the Medal of Honor for his bravery while fighting for the Union cause as a member of the 54th Massachusetts Colored Infantry…..but it wasn’t until May of 1900 that Carney actually received his award, and he was the first African American to receive the MOH……Carney was born into slavery in Norfolk, VA, in 1840…..his family was eventually granted freedom and moved to MA, were Carney was looking to pursue a career with the church….but decided that he needed to serve for the Union and was attached to Company C, of the 54th Massachusetts….the 54th Massachusetts was formed in early 1863…..on 19 July 1863, the 54th volunteered to lead the assault on Fort Wagner…..a highly fortified outpost on Morris Island that was part of the Confederate defense of Charleston Harbor…..struggling against a lethal barrage of cannon and rifle fire….the regiment fought their way to the top of the fort’s parapet……Sgt William Harvey Carney, seeing that the units color guard was shot and going down….he scrambled to catch the falling flag and crawled with it up to the walls of the fort and was wounded there while planting the US flag…..the regiment’s white commander….Colonel Robert Gould Shaw, was killed, and his soldiers were overwhelmed by the fort’s defenders and had to fall back…..despite his wound, Carney refused to retreat until he removed the flag…..and though successful, he was shot again in the process. severely wounded and with a great loss of blood…..Carney still refused to release the flag until he received assistance, never once allowing it to touch the ground…..the 54th lost 281 of its 600 men in its brave attempt to take Fort Wagner…..which throughout the war never fell by force of arms……Carney eventually recovered and was discharged with disability on June 30, 1864….but it wasn’t until 1900…..thirty-seven years later that he was awarded for his extraordinary courage and sacrifice on that 19th of July day in 1863……Carney passed away in December of 1908, and is buried in the family plot in the Oak Grove cemetery in Bedford, Massachusetts…..engraved in his tombstone is an image of the Medal of Honor.
KING HEROD’S PALACE…..also known as Herodium, is indeed a remarkable archaeological site located in the Judean Desert near present-day Bethlehem in Israel…..built by King Herod the Great around 23-15 BCE….Herodium served multiple purposes as a fortress, palace, and ultimately as the final resting place for the king himself…..the site features impressive remains of the palace complex, including luxurious living quarters, bathhouses, and other structures indicative of Herod’s grand architectural style…..one of the most notable features is a unique circular structure believed to be Herod’s tomb, showcasing the king’s ambition and intricate planning……Herodium stands as a testament to Herod’s vision and remains a significant historical and archaeological landmark in the region…..offering valuable insights into ancient Judean architecture and royal life during the time of King Herod the Great.
THE DEEP SEABED……is defined as the region that is more than 200 meters deep….extending to the abyssal plains that range from 3,000 to 6,000 meters…..beyond these plains are ocean trenches….such as the famous Mariana Trench….which reaches an impressive depth of up to 11,000 meters…..these abyssal and hadal areas host a diversity of life adapted to extreme conditions of pressure and darkness…..and are crucial for understanding the geological and biological processes that occur in the deep ocean.
ACCORDING TO SENEGALESE HISTORIAN…..Dr. Cheikh Anta Diop….the ancient name of Africa was Alkebulan…..which means “mother of mankind” or “garden of Eden”….the name was used by the Moors, Nubians, Ethiopians, and other indigenous people…..the name Africa was given to the continent by the ancient Romans and Greeks…..some experts believe that the name Africa comes from two Phoenician words, “friqi” and “pharika”….which translate to “corn” and “fruit”…..the word “Africa” came into existence in the late 17th century….initially, it only referred to the northern part of the continent…..around that time, the continent had been colonized, and the Europeans ruled over its people as slaves…..they influenced the change of identity from Alkebulan to its present name.