Around 21 human species have lived on Earth.

SCIENCE & INDUSTRY

Each one of the billions of people living on Earth today belongs to the same species: Homo sapiens. But we weren’t always the only humans. The Smithsonian Institute estimates that some 21 different human species have roamed the Earth (though the number varies due to conflicting definitions of what is “human”). Many of those species are in the genus Homo, which has only one surviving species today (that’s us). The list of hominids also includes other species considered by most scientists to be early humans, such as the Australopithecus afarensis, a member of the genus Australopithecus.

The first humans in the same genus as Homo sapiens were Homo habilis, Homo rudolfensis, and Homo erectus, and evidence suggests they coexisted in East Africa some 1.9 million years ago. This kind of cohabitation was a familiar fixture of human evolution. When Homo sapiensfirst appeared around 300,000 years ago, our ancestors lived among many other now-extinct human cousins. Modern humans famously fraternized with Neanderthals, Denisovans, and other populations. Homo sapiens also shared the planet with lesser-known species such as Homo floresiensis, Homo naledi, Homo luzonensis, and the straggling survivors of Homo erectus. But because some of these groups lived in remote communities, it’s possible that modern humans never even laid eyes on them. Scientists theorize that our ancestors wiped out many of these human species (Neanderthals were the last to fall, beginning to go extinct around 40,000 years ago) by demonstrating superior strategizing and cooperation skills. Our ancestors’ social intelligence helped them rise to the top of the food chain, and the population grew exponentially. Today, modern humans stand alone in the genus Homo, but we only have ourselves to blame. 

Dwain Northey (Gen X)

Who could’ve predicted that Donald, want to be King, would be found guilty on all 34 counts?

Finically justice has been served, it wasn’t a kangaroo court as the right wing claims, it wasn’t Biden’s DOJ punishing dear Donny, it was 12 person jury of his peers that renderer the verdict. No they weren’t anti-Trump plants,they were 12 individuals that were agreed upon by both the prosecution and the defense . The information presented by the prosecution was so compelling and definitive that no one that actually paid attention was able to say that crimes were not committed.

The great business man has been adjudicated guilty for falsifying business records. This was not a trial about hush money. It was a trial about election interference and falsifying tax records to hide the fact that impropriety had happened prior to an election to keep it from the voting public.

That being said, I am curious, having been a military veteran that carried a security clearance and knowing that if I had had a felony on my record, I could not obtain a security clearance. How can a convicted felon presumptive Nemone to the Republican party be allowed national security briefing? That in my mind is an absolute conflict of interest.

Where Did the Beer Myth Come From?

Given the plentiful amount of clean drinking water available during the Middle Ages, it’s natural to wonder how the myth of beer-guzzling medieval folk formed to begin with. One theory is that it stemmed from various written works at the time that highlighted excessive drinking as a popular activity — William Shakespeare’s plays, for instance, are full of inebriated characters, none so famous as Sir John Falstaff. But the myth was also likely perpetuated by the fact that people often drank beer along with water, as the former was a staple in many medieval diets. 

Ales were frequently consumed by farmers and other workers as a type of energy drink. The ales brewed at the time often had a lower alcoholic content than modern-day beers, with an average ABV as low as 1%, versus an average around 5% today. (There were stronger beers, too, but they were harder to come by.) These low-alcohol ales still contained plentiful amounts of calories, though, especially compared to water. That’s why at the end of a long shift, it was common for workers to enjoy several glasses of ale not only to quench their thirst but also to provide them with caloric fuel to recoup the energy they lost that day.

The upper classes, meanwhile, often turned to fancy wines and liquor as their beverages of choice, as they believed water to be the drink of the common folk. While everyone could easily acquire water for free, only those of a higher status could afford the most expensive and decadent wines. Members of high society who chose to drink water often added ingredients that only the wealthy could afford, such as ice, honey, fruit, and spices. Nevertheless, it’s likely that people in medieval times weren’t inebriated any more frequently than people in any other era of history, and when they were, it wasn’t for a lack of safe drinking water. 

George Washington spent an entire campaign budget on booze.

FAMOUS FIGURES

Before he was the first President of the United States, George Washington was a member of the Virginia House of Burgesses from 1758 until 1775. He actually lost his first election, however, and “attributed his defeat to his failure to provide enough alcohol for the voters,” according author Daniel Okrent. At the time, it was common for candidates to woo voters by plying them with food and liquor. Washington avoided the same mistake during his second run, spending nearly the entire campaign budget on 28 gallons of rum, 50 gallons of rum punch, 34 gallons of wine, 46 gallons of beer, and two gallons of cider royal served to 391 voters — nearly a half-gallon per voter. (He also spent 3 pounds on dinner for friends, which very likely also included booze.) His campaign even rolled barrels of liquor to polling places on Election Day, a custom in Virginia at the time. The practice of winning over voters with booze was widespread despite being technically illegal, and was known as “swilling the planters with bumbo.”

Washington didn’t need to woo anyone in order to become President; quite the opposite, in fact, as he did no campaigning and had to be convinced to even accept the role, despite being unanimously elected. He also planned to retire after his first term but was persuaded to remain in office, running unopposed in the 1792 election and once again winning unanimously. Politicians today could only dream of such popularity.

Lyle Northey (Silent/Boomer)

 Have we reentered the dark ages of the time when the majority of the people could not read or write and the religious leaders were the ones making laws. That is so scary, worse even than another term or Trump as President. 

   More and more bills are being introduced in states led by Republican legislators to increase the punishment of women that defy the abortion laws. Laws that say a woman should go to prison or suffer death if she chooses to not have a baby or another baby or a deformed  baby.  So have these meat heads figured out who is going to raise any previous children this woman may have had, or any of that sort of thing? Please, oh please let the first trial that takes place with this violation be the wife, daughter, or some close relative of someone that helped bring this law into being.

   Women have gained a lot of power since the days when they had no rights, it is unimaginable to think that even in a repressive state like Texas they are going to sit still for this kind of nonsense. Women fought to get the vote, and they had demonstrations and burned their bras to make a point about other rights. Why should they allow this kind of idiocy from their male counterparts? 

   Where are the laws that say if a man is identified as a rapist that he be castrated. Where are the laws that say if there is a baby born with defects caused by some problem the father had in his genes that he should be put to death? Not happened yet, and probably won’t because it is men with the power that are making these bills and hoping they become law. The only thing these guys really are capable of seeing is  shit because they all have their heads up their asses.

   There are nations that have laws that require women to be covered from head to toe when they are in public. They are not allowed to do most things like drive etc. They are, however, subject to being beaten if they are observed doing something someone deems improper. That beating is easy for the one doing it because this is just a bundle of clothes, not a person that is known, just an object of no consequence. These same men that advocate this restriction on women are very different when they get the chance to travel.

   Then they are looking for the places where the female form is on display and they hire women for sex and drink and do all the things they cannot do at home. It is rather like the legislators of our more repressive state going to DC or New York or Las Vegas. How morally upright are all these far right conservatives when they are away from home? 

   The desire to control is reaching far beyond the bounds of common sense and doing more harm than good to our society. Whether it is limiting women’s health issues, or controlling what is taught in a classroom or offered in a public library, those that are elected need to remember they are supposed to represent all of us not just their personal bias or religious tenets.