The UnMuseum Newsletter for August 2006

Science Over the Edge

A Roundup of Strange Science for the Month
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In the News:

*Mammoths: Blond, Brunette or Redhead? - Researchers have extracted DNA from
a 43,000-year-old bone that leads them to believe that mammoths may have
come in various hair colors, including red and blond. The gene, "Mc1r",
codes for a protein that affects hair color in mammals. Reduced activity of
that gene produces red hair in humans and yellow hair in such animals as
mice, horses and dogs. The research was lead by Holger Roempler of the
University of Leipzig in Germany

*Cosmic Close Call - Early in July a half-mile wide asteroid zipped by the
planet Earth, missing it by about the distance of the moon. While this might
seem a huge margin to some, scientists note that it astronomical terms the
asteroid, designated 2004 XP14, was the largest object to pass this close to
the our planet in the last few years. The space rock was visible as a small
moving dot to amateur astronomers with telescopes in North America. 2004XP14
will have other encounters with Earth this century, but according to
scientists, none will be a threat for collision. Estimates show that a
typical asteroid of this size would create a fireball six miles wide and a
crater 7 miles in diameter from a 100,000 megaton explosion if it hit earth.

*Carnivorous Kangaroos Surprise Scientists - Kangaroos are usually thought
of as cute, pleasant and somewhat unusual animals, that lope across the
Australian outback. That wasn't the case in prehistoric times.
Paleontologists have found the remains of a much more scary meat eating
version of kangaroo that lived between 10 and 20 million years ago. The
animal had fangs similar to those of a modern wolf. The species found at the
excavation had "well muscled-in teeth, not for grazing. These things had
slicing crests that could have crunched through bone and sliced off flesh",
said vertebrate paleontologist Sue Hand, a member of the research team. The
scientists also found a large duck-like bird that may also have been
carnivorous. The scientists jokingly refer this specimen by the name of the
"demon duck of doom."

*Inflatable Space Station Test Successful - Last month a private commercial
space company managed to put an experimental satellite, named Genesis I,
into orbit to test the possibility of building a space station using
inflatable modules. Real estate magnate Robert Bigelow is bankrolling the
project. Bigelow has committed $500 million toward building the station and
so far, $75 million has been spent. The object of this recent flight was to
see if the test module could successfully inflate in orbit and indications
are that the test was a success. Unlike the rigid aluminum construction of
the international space station, the test module consists of a flexible
outer shell built with such tough materials such as kevlar, which is found
in bulletproof vests.

*Bacteria has Midas Touch - Scientists have identified a bacteria that seems
to be able to create solid gold. Ralstonia metallidurans has been found on
gold nuggets in widely separate locations and scientists think that this
bacteria takes gold in its dissolved form and converts it into less toxic,
solid form. Since heavy metals are toxic to most microorganisms, being able
to detoxify its immediate environment gives Ralstonia metallidurans a
metabolic advantage. This research is the strongest evidence so far that
bacteria could play an important role in creating solid gold, although how
this actually works is not yet known.

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What's New at the Museum:

*Comet Halley: Harbinger of Death?: Man has always found comets a bit scary,
so when Comet Halley flew past the earth in 1910 leaving a trail of
poisonous gas, people got just a little nervous... >
(http://www.unmuseum.org/halleycomet.htm)

*The Lost World (Remix) - Our graphic novel version formatted as a book so
you can can download and print it out at home.>
(http://www.unmuseum.org/graphicclassic/lostw/lostworld.pdf)

*From The Curator's Office: The LAN Party - Pour in eight teenage boys, mix
with a room full of powerful computers and let bake all night... >
(http://www.unmuseum.org/notescurator/lanparty.htm)

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Ask the Curator:

*Thai Water Elephant - I saw this being talked about on the web and wondered
if you knew anything about this "legend" and cryptid. Have you ever heard of
it? I've read volumes of stuff on Cryptozoology, but I've never heard of
this one. It is supposedly a "Thai Water Elephant" - Anonymous

I have to admit that this was so obscure I couldn't find anything about it
in any of my regular cryptozoological resources. However, snooping around
the web I seem to have found out that this creature falls into the same
category as the "jackolope:" a quite normal creature in life that has been
altered by taxidermy to be something quite unusual in death. In the case of
the jackolope, a deceased rabbit is altered by giving it the antlers of a
deer.

In the case of the "Thai Water Elephant" it sounds like the perpetrators
have started with a shrew. A shrew is a small mouse-like mammal with a long
pointed snout, making it already vaguely elephant shaped. The taxidermist
does his work removing and adding bones and flesh in different places (for
example, apparently the front legs bones below the knees are removed and
shaped into the tusks). In the end the hoaxer has something that looks like
a tiny elephant. These can then be sold in the tourist trade as novelties.
Although several have shown up on Ebay with prices running in the thousands,
apparently they can be acquired from street vendors in Burma for a
reasonable price.

The story of the water elephant goes back at least to the 1800's. It is said
that they spend their lives in the water and that their tusks carry venom
that can kill a man (this part of the story might have some basis in fact as
the shrew is one of the few mammal that are poisonous). Only experienced
hunters are able to capture them, which is why they are so rare and
expensive (at least that is how the story is told by the curiosity shop
owner that wishes to sell you one). It is not clear whether the story of a
water elephant has any place in traditional folklore, or if it was simply
invented after the first hoaxer discovered he could turn a dead, worthless
shrew into a rare, valuable water elephant and need a story to go along with
it.

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In History:

*Moon Hoax - In August of 1835 The New York Sun newspaper published a series
of stories reporting that astronomers had observed creatures on the moon
that were four feet in height, covered with glossy copper-colored hair, and
had wings on their backs. Though the articles were supposed to be a reprint
from the Edinburgh Journal of Science (which was nonexistent) the material
was actually written by Sun reporter Richard Adams Locke. The series became
known as the "Moon Hoax." Locke said his motives for writing the story were
satirical as he wanted to poke fun at the idea there could be life on other
planets. The "Moon Hoax" remains one of the best examples of 18th century
hoax journalism (http://www.unmuseum.org/jourhoax.htm), a widespread
practice at that time.

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In the Sky:

*Perseid Meteor Shower - The peak of this shower will occur on August 12th
between midnight and first light. Look for the shooting stars to appear
anywhere in the sky, but traveling from the direction of the constellation
of Cassiopeia. These meteors are dust left by the comet Swift-Tuttle. As the
earth moves though the comet's path these tiny particles hit our atmosphere
and make spectacular streaks across the night sky as they burn up.

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Observed:

*Bigfoot Dispute Hits Court - According to a story in the Mercury News, a
lawsuit has broken out between C. Thomas Biscardi, a self described Bigfoot
expert, and Carole Rubin and Robert Shorey, president and vice president of
the Great American Bigfoot Research Organization. According to Biscardi's
lawyer, Biscardi was hired by the group for $250,000 to act as a consultant
and guide for expeditions. As a part of the deal Biscardi would also allow
the group to use his library which includes plaster footprints, films,
photos and sound recordings of the beast. Biscardi's lawyer says the group
only paid him $65,000 and will not return his collection. Biscardi's lawyer
says he is willing to drop the suit if the Organization will return his
library collection.

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On the Tube:

Currently we are only able to give accurate times and dates for these
programs in the United States. Check local listings in other locations.

*NOVA - Who Killed the Red Baron? - Forensic experts investigate the most
famous aviation mystery of World War I. On the PBS: August 22 at 8 pm ET/PT

*Europa: Mystery of the Ice Moon - Does life exist on one of Jupiter's
moons? Europa, the planet's fourth largest moon, may hold the answer.
Scientists have found evidence that water exists there, and they are probing
to see if Europa's oceans could, or did at one time sustain life. On the
Science Channel: AUG 01 2006 @ 10:00 PM; AUG 02 2006 @ 01:00 AM; AUG 02 2006
@ 05:00 AM; AUG 02 2006 @ 11:00 AM; AUG 02 2006 @ 03:00 PM; AUG 06 2006 @
06:00 PM; ET/PT

*Prophets Of Science Fiction - Examine the strange lives of the visionaries
of science fiction. The secrets of their uncanny ability to foretell the
future are revealed. On the Science Channel: AUG 06 2006 @ 10:00 PM, AUG 07
2006 @ 01:00 AM, AUG 07 2006 @ 05:00 AM, AUG 07 2006 @ 11:00 AM, AUG 07 2006
@ 03:00 PM, AUG 13 2006 @ 09:00 AM; ET/PT

*The Mystery of the Jurassic - A remote plateau in Patagonia, Argentina
reveals an incredible dinosaur graveyard that scientists believe could be
the most significant find ever. This area reveals fossils from the Middle
Jurassic, the most mysterious period in dinosaur history. On The Science
Channel: AUG 21 2006 @ 08:00 PM, AUG 21 2006 @ 11:00 PM, AUG 22 2006 @ 03:00
AM, AUG 22 2006 @ 09:00 AM, AUG 22 2006 @ 01:00 PM, AUG 26 2006 @ 04:00 PM;
ET/PT.

*Shark Week! - Discovery Channel does their annual Shark Week starting
August 1st. Some featured shows will be Sharks: Are They Hunting Us? AUG 02
2006 @ 09:00 PM, AUG 03 2006 @ 01:00 AM, AUG 05 2006 @ 04:00 PM; Shark
Rebellion AUG 03 2006 @ 09:00 PM, AUG 04 2006 @ 01:00 AM, AUG 05 2006 @
05:00 PM; and MythBusters - Jaws Special AUG 02 2006 @ 10:00 PM. On The
Discovery Channel.

*Triassic Giant - Ichthyosaurs were swimming, air breathing creatures that
resembled whales and dolphins. A team excavates the giant fossil from a
riverbank in British Columbia that is believed to be the largest Triassic
ichthyosaur ever found. On The Discovery Channel: AUG 05 2006 @ 09:00 PM,
AUG 06 2006 @ 01:00 AM ; ET/PT.

*The Real Tomb Hunters: Snakes, Curses, and Booby Traps - Fighting Nazis;
grabbing golden treasure; fleeing angry natives; dodging pitfalls in a
booby-trapped temple--we all know how fictional explorers and archaeologists
spend their days. But does real life compare? We follow some of the most
daring archaeologists and take on the dangers they face--Egyptian
archaeologist Zahi Hawass steps into a booby-trapped tomb; American Arthur
Demarest fights looters in the jungles of Cancuen; and in Chiapas, angry
villagers kidnap Australian-born Peter Mathews. We also examine stories of
past explorers who helped shape the "Indiana Jones"
stereotype--paleontologist Roy Chapman Andrews battled venomous snakes and
Mongol bandits in the Gobi Desert; John Pendlebury, the British
archaeologist, fought Nazis on Crete; and Sylvanus Morley, who was the first
American archaeologist/spy. There are no special effects, no stuntmen, and
no retakes...and for these real-life archaeologists, no guarantee they'll
survive for a sequel.On History Channel: August 5 @ 5pm ET/PT


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