Piasa

A fearsome being from the cosmology of the ancient Mississpians, the Underwater Panther ruled the watery Underworld.

I'm volunteering with a museum here in town, putting together an exhibition on Native Americans and their connection to animals. I've been writing a lot of labels, but one of my favorite cases has to do with the Underwater Panther.

Also called the Piasa and Mishipeshu, the Underwater Panther is the ruler of the Underwater realm. To back up a couple of steps, many of the Eastern Woodlands Native Americans believed in a world with four corners that rested on top of a watery realm (the underworld) which then rotated up to form the night sky. Or, in another version, the world was made on a Turtle's back, with creatures diving through the watery Underworld to bring up the dirt necessary to make the land.

The Underwater Panther was described as having the head and body of a cat, perhaps a mountain lion or lynx, the horns of a deer, and the tail of snake. One image of the Underwater Panther was described by Father Jacques Marquette, a French explorer on his travels on the Mississippi River.

Drawing based on Father Marquette's description of the Underwater Panther.

The Underwater Panther uses his tail to whip up whirlpools, and he was said to appear in places where whirlpools occurred. He could be very dangerous, often drowning those who got too close, but for those bold enough to seek him out, he could also give great rewards of power, knowledge, and strength.

The image of the Underwater Panther, particularly his tail, appears all over Eastern Native American imagery.

Piasa pot in the National Museum of the American Indian. (Wikimedia)

The red and white swirl indicate the whirlpool the Underwater Panther creates and allow the artist to distinguish the creature without having to actually depict a long tail, something a bit difficult to do in ceramics.

The tail was also said to be made of copper, a valuable material, particularly in Mississippian times. Many copper items have been found across Eastern North America in shape of spirals, echoing the whirlpool made by the creature from which they came.

Unlike many European cosmologies, the Underworld is not evil, and neither is the Underwater Panther. Powerful spirits, whether they be from the Underworld or the Aboveworld, were dangerous if approached inappropriately. The Underwater Panther is simply a powerful being, one who could use his powers to reward the bold or punish the proud.

Share Spotlight: How Schools Kill Creativity

This week's Share Spotlight comes from Sir Ken Robinson through TED.
How schools kill creativity

In this 20 minute talk from 2006, Sir Ken Robinson, amid numerous jokes, lays out the biggest problem in out current education system: kids are taught that to be wrong or make mistakes is the worst possible thing they can do.

But is a mistake really that bad? Think of all the scientific breakthroughs that came through mistakes. Safety Glass came about because someone didn't clean out a beaker well enough, the first plastic was meant to be a shellac replacement, and tire rubber came from accidentally dropping a rubber mixture onto a hot plate. (Check out this video for more)

How do we make sure that kids (and adults) know that it is alright to make mistakes? What did you think of his other points, on how important the arts are?

Winter Olympics Part V: Sochi Wrap-Up

There were a number of amazing things about the Sochi Winter Olympics, here's a short list of stuff you should know.

Alright, this is it, the last Olympics post! (At least until the Summer Olympics in 2016. Rio, yeah! But I digress.) Before I get back to my regularly scheduled program of international myths, mystery, and history (Hey! I have a regularly scheduled program!), here are the highlights of the XXII Winter Olympics.

New Events
Twelve new events were introduced at Sochi:

• Men and Women's Ski Half-Pipe
• Men and Women's Snowboard Slopestyle
• Men and Women's Ski Slopestyle
• Men and Women's Snowboard Parallel Slalom
• Women's Ski Jumping
• Biathalon Mixed Relay
• Figure Skating Team
• Luge Team Relay

Women's Ski Jumping was an early favorite, won by Carina Vogt of Germany. The Figure Skating Team was also a hit, with Russia taking the Gold, Canada the silver, and the US the bronze, while the world enjoyed a preview of the individual events to come.

Carina Vogt (German), who won the first ever Olympic Gold in Women's Ski Jump (by Manugf [Wikimedia Commons])

US Ice Dancing Gold Medal
 Meryl Davis and Charlie White gave the US their first Gold medal in Ice Dancing, skating to music from "My Fair Lady" in the Short Dance and Scheherazade in the Free Dance. The pair have been skating together for 17 years.

Meryl Davis and Charlie White at the 2011 World Figure Skating Championships (photo by Luu [Wikimedia Commons])

Men's Snowboard Half-pipe
American favorite Shaun White finished fourth in Men's Half-pipe after a pair of runs that were decidedly less than his best (in his defense, he is coming back from a back injury). Iouri Podladtchikov, competing for Switzerland, landed the Gold and flipped his way into superstardom.

*There were numerous concerns about the safety and suitability of the half-pipe, as there have been about several other courses at Sochi.

US Bobsled
The Men's two-man team grabbed the bronze medal, the first medal for the US Men's two-man since 1952.
The Women's two-woman bobsled teams claimed both silver and bronze, behind Canada's gold. This is the first time the US has had two teams medal.
The first run of the four-man team (a men's only event) will happen on the 22nd with the gold medal run happening on the 23rd (at 4:30am E if you're brave enough to watch it live).


Women's Hockey: US vs. Canada
After a loss to the Canadians for Gold in the 2010 Winter Olympics, the US women's hockey team was more than ready for a rematch. They faced Canada in the gold medal match on the 20th, but Canada pulled out a win in overtime, relegating US to the Silver.

The US Men's Hockey team will face Canada in the semifinals today at Noon E. and the gold medal match will happen on the 23rd.

The Olympics will finish up this Sunday, the 23rd. With the way the standings have been fluctuating, I'm not quite sure which country will come out on top, though Russia, the US, Norway, Canada, and the Netherlands seem to have been fighting it out for the last week or so to top the medal counts. Then, of course, there's Germany and Switzerland... I give up. Go Team USA!

So there's my recap, consisting, I will admit, mostly of what I was paying attention to. :) What were your favorite parts of the games?

Share Spotlight: What Price Nonprofit?

This week's Share Spotlight comes from the Center for the Future of Museums blog.
What Price Nonprofit?

The Center for the Future of Museums asks an important question: At what point should nonprofits lose their tax exempt status? In other words, at what point do nonprofits stop being not for profit? In a world where nonprofits are increasingly competing with for profit institutions, where do we draw the line?

Museums have generally been pretty far from this issue, but they are competing with every other entertainment business out there. They either have to strengthen their assertion that they are in fact necessary and worthy of all the tax dollars needed to keep them going or start seriously competing in the world of for profit entertainment and education institutions.

Each museum may need to make its own decision in this matter, but which way should the field go? How might a museum go about implementing either of these options?

Winter Olympics Part IV: The Jamaican Bobsled Team

After a twelve year absence, the Jamaicans are back in the Olympic bobsled competition.

In 1988, Jamaica, a warm, Caribbean country entered a four-man bobsled team in the Calgary Winter Olympics.

Five years later, the team was immortalized in the Disney movie Cool Runnings, a fantastic funny flick, well worth your time. While the movie got many things wrong (for example, the crash happened in the qualifiers, the team was never in the running for a medal), it helped create a legend.

Devon Harris, a member of the 1988, 1992, and 1998 Jamaican Bobsled team, now travels the world as a motivational speaker. (Wikimedia)

Jamaica returned to the Winter Olympics with a four-man team in 1992, 1994, and 1998, and offered a two-man team in 2002. The Jamaicans failed to qualify in 2006 and 2010.

But now, the Jamaican bobsled team is back at the Sochi Olympics with a two-man team.

Winston Watts, who was part of the 1994 and 1994 four-man and the 2002 two-man team, and his brakeman Marvin Dixon qualified by competing in a number of smaller events over the past year. But qualifying was just the start. Getting to the Olympics is an expensive proposition and the Jamaican team didn't have enough money to make it.

But two things have saved them: the Legend and the Internet.

Thanks to the movie, the entire world knows of Jamaica's bobsled team and, with the unifying power of the Internet, fundraisers were set up to help the Jamaicans make it to Sochi. The goal was 80,000 dollars, but as the world came out in support, the Jamaicans were able to raise 120,000 dollars to get them to Sochi.

The Jamaicans are certainly not the favorites for the two-man bobsled, but they have impressed many with their upbeat attitude and bright smiles. Late luggage and bad conditions are no match for this indomitable team.

For a smile, check out this video of a dance-off between the Jamaican bobsled team and the American women's bobsled team.

The two-man bobsled competition will take place on the 16th and 17th, with the gold medal run scheduled for 11a E on the 17th.

Share Spotlight: Women to Watch at Sochi

This week's Share Spotlight comes from the Verily Magazine blog.
Women to Watch at Sochi

It's currently all Olympics all the time here (don't worry, I'll get back to neat factoids about the world and the people who live in it after they finish) and Verily Magazine brings us the stories of five women competing in a variety of sports over the next week.

These are women that most people wouldn't see because they are not in sports we associate with female athletes. From the brand-new women's Ski Jump to the harrowing Skeleton to the thrilling Snowboard cross, these women are incredible athletes doing what few in the world could even dream of doing.

Hopefully I'll be able to catch them when they air, but I've got a few others I'm watching. I love to watch Shaun White on a snowboard, particularly the half pipe (which happens at 10:00a and 12:30p E today). I also love the figure skating and the ice dancing, much for the same reason, the grace and strength exhibited on the ice.

What are your favorite sports to watch? Favorite athletes to cheer for? What stories get you invested in these athletes who go so far from home to compete for the sake of their country?

Winter Olympics Part III: Politics in Sochi

Politics has always played a part in the Olympics, and Sochi is certainly no exception. 

Ever since Sochi was announced as the host of the 2014 Winter Olympics in 2007, tensions have been running high. This is the first Olympics to be hosted in the Russian Federation since the dissolution of the Soviet Union. Every eye has been on Russia and not everyone is liking what they see.

Here's a rundown of the major issues surrounding the 2014 games.

The Circassian Genocide
As I wrote in my last post, the area around Sochi was conquered by Russia in the mid 19th century, an event that ended in the deaths or expulsion of most of the native Circassians.Circassians around the world still remember the genocide and have called for the games to be moved or cancelled unless a formal apology is issued.

Circassians commemorate the banishment of the Circassians from Russia in Taksim, İstanbul
(Wikimedia Commons)

Putin's Anti-LBGT Stance
Check out any of the news sources and this issue will come up, fast. In July, Putin, Russia's President, signed a law that forbids any pro-gay "propaganda" anywhere accessible to minors. Humans Rights Activists have turned the Sochi Olympics into a platform to protest this law and numerous athletes and officials have expressed and are expected to express their disgust with the Russian law.

In front of the Russian Embassy in Helsinki, Finland. In 7 September 2013 a group of activists painted the pedestrian crossing stripes with rainbow colors to protest the Russian anti-LGBT sentimentality and legislation, notably the bans on "homosexual propaganda".(Wikimedia Commons)

Tensions with Georgia
This concerns events that happened during the Beijing Olympics in 2008. Even as the Opening Ceremonies were happening, Russia invaded Georgia. (It was much more complicated than I'm making it out to be, check out this NY Times article for more information) The conflict was short and brutal. Sochi is less than 25 miles from the region of Georgia that was invaded in 2008 and the Olympic security zone has been extended to include parts of Georgia, which has tensions riding high once again.

Terrorist Activities
Two suicide bombings in the region north of Sochi and two threats directed at the Olympics have everyone on high alert. The Caucus Mountains are home to known terrorist groups, including Chechen separatists and Islamist extremists (which may spring from the same sources), and others who feel the Games defiles the land of the native Circassians (see above). The Olympics are a world stage and are always at risk for violent demonstrations, but the Sochi Games seem more at risk than most. Putin has reacted by creating a strong security ring around Sochi (see the note above about the tensions with Georgia) and everyone involved is hoping for an uneventful Games.

On a lighter note, the Opening Ceremonies are tonight. If you live in the US, you can catch them on NBC at 7:30p Eastern. Sorry, NBC refuses to live-stream them.

Share Spotlight: The Sweetest Story

This week's Share Spotlight comes from the Houston Museum of Natural History's blog, BeyondBones.
The Sweetest Story: Learn about the chocolate revolution at an HMNS Distinguished Lecture

Chocolate is, let's face it, awesome. And it has a pretty awesome history, too, as is succinctly expressed in this BeyondBones post. From the Olmec, to the Maya, to the Aztec, to the English drawing room, Chocolate has long been the drink of kings.

So next time you pour yourself a cup of chocolate, don't forget to feel regal!

Do you know any other foodstuffs with interesting histories? Want me to feature one on the blog? Just want to show off your knowledge? Drop me a comment!

January Book Roundup

The Book Roundup for January includes a couple of Science-Fiction/Fantasy thrillers great for a light read.

Odd Thomas by Dean Koontz

            Dean Koontz is known for his thrillers, but Odd Thomas is in a slightly lighter vein. The story of a fry cook with the ability to see the dead (they don’t talk, don’t ask him why), Odd Thomas was a very interesting read. The world building is well done, but left plenty to build on. The end is a little telegraphed, but made me very interested to read the next book in the series. Not a put-down-everything-you-are-doing-and-read-it-now sort of book, but I hope to continue enjoying the series.

Redshirts by John Scalzi

            In every episode of Star Trek, some nameless guy in a red shirt dies while the main characters miraculously survive, despite all odds to the contrary. Buy why do the redshirts continuously do stupid things that get them killed and why do the officers continuously put their ship in situations that make sure someone winds up dead? Redshirts does not take place in the Star Trek universe (they mention Star Trek as a TV show), but its inspiration is clear. The book felt a little off pace for me, since the main storyline finishes about two-thirds of the way through, leaving the wrap up to some oddly framed short stories. This is a book that will mildly mess with your head, as the characters become more and more self-aware. A good read for any sci-fi fan, but, in my opinion, not quite worth the enormous hype surrounding it.

 As always, I'd love to hear what you're reading and what you recommend.