Clancy Tucker's Blog, page 44

18 September 2021 - PHOTOS OF THE WORLD'S OLDEST TREES

 

PHOTOS OF THE WORLD'S

 OLDEST TREES 

G'day folks,

Beth Moon, who is a photographer based out of San Fransisco, has been looking for the worlds oldest tree for the last 14 years. 

 

Because of her interest in these trees, she’s been able to travel the world looking for the oldest tree in even the most remote of locations. She wrote, “Standing as the earth’s largest and oldest living monuments, I believe these symbolic tress will take on a greater significance, especially at a time when our focus is directed at finding better ways to live with the environment.” Luckily for us, Beth Moon is releasing a book called, “Ancient Trees: Portraits of Time” and we have a sneak peek!

 

Clancy's comment: These pictures definitely showcase how important the world is, and the impression we can have on all living things around us after we are gone. It’s important to take care of the world we are a part of, so future generations can be as lucky as we are, surrounded by pure beauty.

I'm ...

 

 

17 September 2021 - MAN SPENDS YEARS BUILDING NOAH’S ARK

 

MAN SPENDS YEARS 

BUILDING NOAH’S ARK

 

G'day folks,

 A man in The Netherlands had a dream a few years ago that he was meant to create a new Noah’s Ark from the Bible. So he spent the next few years making it happen. The ark is now finished, and these images show just how massive it is!

This is the ark replica. It was created as close to the specifications in the Bible as possible. The exact measurements are 410 feet long, 95 feet wide and it weighs in at 2,500 tons. This thing is massive!

 The ark was constructed at a cost of $1.6 million. It has since drawn hundreds of thousands of visitors as an attraction. The ark has 5 levels, with some having 75 foot tall chambers. There is even a media area for visitors to learn more about the ark.

 Johan plans to sail this thing half way across the world.

   Clancy's comment: This thing is absolutely incredible. The fact that someone took it upon themselves to build this is astonishing vessel is really amazing. It doesn’t take away from the planning and care that was needed to create something this large that would actually float.

 I'm ...

 

 

 

16 September 2021 - THOMAS ARNE and 'RULE BRITTANIA'

 

THOMAS ARNE

 and

'RULE BRITTANIA'

 

G'day folks,

Every year the Promenade Concerts are held at the Royal Albert Hall in London, culminating in the “Last Night of the Proms” – a patriotic (some would say jingoistic), flag-waving musical jamboree where the audience joins in lustily with perennial favourites such as Rule, Britannia!, Land of Hope and Glory and Jerusalem.

Composer Thomas Arne is responsible for setting the widely misunderstood Rule, Britannia! to music from words by the poet James Thomson.

He wrote it at a time in the 18th Century when Britain did not rule the waves – the Dutch, France and Spain possessed formidable fleets – but Thomson foresaw that by sticking to their guns, so to speak, the British could emerge as the world’s Number One naval power. “Rule, Britannia! Britannia, rule the waves,” he pleaded.

It was a message of hope and encouragement, much like excited sports fans today yell, “Come on!” when their team is pressing an advantage.

This, however, appears to be lost on many of the concert-goers, known as “promenaders” at the Royal Albert Hall. There, the words are inevitably rendered as “Rule Britannia! Britannia rules the waves”, which isn’t the same thing at all.

The missing commas and the substitution of “rules” for “rule” change the meaning completely and turn the phrase into imperialist triumphalism.

None of this detracts from the spectacle and fervour of the Last Night which, in recent years, has been shown simultaneously on giant screens in London’s Hyde Park and other venues across the country, not to mention the millions watching on television around the world.

And it’s largely thanks to Henry (later Sir Henry) Wood who became the first conductor of The Proms in 1895 and who built the repertoire as the series developed from year to year.

His bronze bust is brought out and placed in front of the organ at the start of each season.

Promenade concerts were originally held in London’s pleasure gardens and were so-called because the audience would stroll around as the musicians played.

There is no room to do that nowadays in the Albert Hall, which is packed for most of the prom concerts through the eight-week season.

But it is the Last Night that is the big draw. The best seats for the 2017 event were selling at the beginning of the year for £1,540 ($1,900) each. And that’s the official price – before the touts got their hands on them!

Clancy's comment: And the best of British luck to you all.

I'm ...

 

  
 

 

 

 

 

 

15 September 2021 - THE SECRETIVE MANHATTAN PROJECT

 

THE SECRETIVE 

MANHATTAN PROJECT

 

G'day folks,

The Manhattan Project was the codename for the American effort to develop and test nuclear weapons during World War II. 

 Run by General Leslie Groves, the construction of the actual bomb was overseen by Robert Oppenheimer, who was head of the Los Alamos Laboratory where it was developed.

In 1939 a letter written by Leo Szilard and signed by Albert Einstein was delivered to US President Franklin D. Roosevelt. The letter urged the United States to develop uranium stockpiles and commence research efforts, especially as Nazi Germany might do the same.

Two bomb types were developed: Little Boy, a uranium bomb, and Fat Man, a plutonium bomb. The work was carried out with extreme secrecy; many of those working on the project had no idea what they were working towards. Despite the security, Soviet spies managed to penetrate the project, and were aware that the US had developed the bomb.

On July 16, 1945, the Trinity test became the first detonation of a nuclear weapon. Less than a month later, President Harry Truman authorized the use of nuclear weapons on Hiroshima and Nagasaki, to date the only use of nuclear weapons in history. The bombs brought about the quick end of World War II without the need for a catastrophic invasion of Japan, but with an exceptionally high loss of civilian life in the two destroyed cities.

Clancy's comment: Mm ... and things sure have changed since then. 

I'm ...

 

 

 

 

 

 

11 September 2021 - HITLER AND THE EIFFEL TOWER

 

HITLER AND THE EIFFEL TOWER

 

G'day folks,

Alexandre Gustave Eiffel  became a civil engineer responsible for the tower that bears his name and which became the iconic symbol of Paris – and, indeed, France itself. But he also played an important role in building the equally iconic symbol of the United States – the Statue of Liberty.

 

The Eiffel Tower was built as the main exhibit of the 1889 Exposition Universelle (World’s Fair), held to commemorate the centennial of the French Revolution. Eiffel designed and oversaw construction of the project, which was completed on 31 March, 1889.

The tower remained the world’s tallest man-made structure for 41 years until the completion of the Chrysler Building in New York in 1930. The original plan was that it would be dismantled after 20 years but it was saved because of its use as a wireless telegraph transmitter.

It also went on to become a growingly popular attraction despite fears by critics at the start that it would be an ugly structure dominating the Paris skyline.

Such was its status in 1940 that it was one of the first locations where Adolf Hitler chose to be photographed after he invaded France in 1940.

Interestingly, though the French could do nothing about Hitler's presence, Resistance fighters were determined that the Fuhrer would not have the satisfaction of ascending the structure – so the lift cables were cut before the Germans got there. Reaching the top then meant a climb of 1,665 steps.

Nazi soldiers were nevertheless ordered to climb to the summit and hoist the swastika – which they managed to do. But the flag was so large it blew away after a few hours and had to be replaced by a smaller one. Hitler's reaction is not recorded.

Early in his career, Eiffel had built a number of bridges for the French railway network and had developed a reputation as a man who knew a thing or two about wind resistance. Just the man to tackle the problems posed by a giant statue designed to stand in New York Harbor.

The Statue of Liberty, a gift from the people of France to the people of the United States, was designed by French sculptor Frédéric Auguste Bartholdi and built by Eiffel. It was dedicated in 1886.

To make the edifice stable, Eiffel came up with a four-legged pylon structure which would support the copper sheeting that made up the body of the statue. The entire structure was assembled at his works in Paris, then dismantled and shipped to the United States in crates.

But he will probably be best remembered for the Eiffel Tower – a structure that was lucky to survive the Second World War. In August 1944, Allied troops were advancing towards Paris and it became obvious that the Germans would soon be driven out.

A furious Hitler sent orders to General Dietrich von Choltitz, the military governor of Paris, to turn the city into rubble – including the Eiffel Tower. Thankfully, Choltitz did not carry out the command.

The much-loved tower is 324 metres tall (including antennas) and weighs 10,100 tonnes.

The French car manufacturer Citroen treated it as a giant billboard between 1925 and 1934 using a quarter of a million light bulbs to emblazon their name on the structure. The Guinness Book of Records recorded it as the world’s biggest advertisement.

But perhaps the most bizarre incident involving the tower came in 2008. A woman with an objects fetish "married" the Eiffel Tower, changing her name to Erika La Tour Eiffel in honour of her "partner". The "bride," who was at one time a US soldier, was obviously attracted by strong, silent types.

There's no telling what Gustave Eiffel would have made of it all. He died in 1923, aged 91.

Clancy's comment: I'm glad his tower survived so I could visit it and view Paris.

I'm ...

 

 

 

 

14 September 2021 - MURDER AT LONDON'S WEST END THEATRE

 

 

MURDER AT LONDON'S

 WEST END THEATRE

 

G'day folks,

London’s famous West End was haunted for years – and still might be – by the ghost of a leading actor savagely murdered at the stage door of a theatre on this day.

Suave William Terriss was one of the biggest stars of the late Victorian era and had it all – talent, charisma, good looks and an ability to turn in fine performances playing anything from a swashbuckling hero such as Robin Hood to comedy roles and melodrama. He was equally adept at classic drama and was a noted Shakespearean actor.

On this day he arrived at the stage door of the Adelphi Theatre to prepare for an evening performance of a melodrama called Secret Service when, according to a witness, “somebody rushed from across the road and struck him two blows most rapidly on the back.”

When the stunned Terriss turned around, the assailant “raised his arm a third time and plunged a large knife deep into the actor’s chest.”

Terriss cried out: “My God, I am stabbed! Arrest him!” A number of theatre staff rushed to his aid and, according to one newspaper report, “formed all too late a bodyguard.” Terriss was carried into a passage behind the stage door and propped up on pillows but he could not be saved. As he died, his lover, actress Jessie Millward, heard him whisper: "I will come back."

The killer was a deranged actor named Richard Prince who, because of his drinking and mental instability, had become unemployable. Although Terriss had helped him in the past, Prince blamed his plight on the West End star and had lain in wait to carry out revenge.

He was put on trial for murder and found guilty but insane. He was sent to Broadmoor Criminal Lunatic Asylum, where he spent the rest of his life.

Terriss’s promise that “I will come back” apparently came true in 1928. According to reports, a young actress was resting in her dressing room before a performance at the Adelphi Theatre when her couch began to shake. When it happened again she saw a green mist. Then something grabbed her arms and held her down. Her ordeal continued until there were two knocks on the door.

She learned later that the room had belonged to William Terriss who, through superstition, would always knock twice on the door with his cane before entering. In the 1950s Terriss was reported to have been seen emerging from a green mist at the theatre.

At nearby Covent Garden Tube Station, ticket collector Jack Hayden said in 1955 that he saw Terriss walking along the platform. “He was wearing an opera cloak and gloves, holding a cane, and had a very, very sad face and sunken cheeks,” he said.

The actor is even said to have been seen walking through a closed cafeteria door. The last reported sighting was in 1972.

Why Terriss should haunt the theatre and surrounding area is anybody’s guess. But as everyone knows, thespians just love making an appearance . . .

Clancy's comment: Ah,  love the West End of London. 

I'm ...

 

 

 

 

 

 

10 September 2021 - DANIEL LAMBERT - LARGER THAN LIFE

 

DANIEL LAMBERT 

- LARGER THAN LIFE -

 

G'day folks,

Nobody knows what was wrong with Daniel Lambert who was born in 1770, but he went from being a slim, athletic, sports-loving youngster to a mountain of a man in his thirties, so huge that he entered record books as the heaviest person ever to have lived.

Lambert was born in Leicester, England, to a family passionate about hunting, gamekeeping and field sports. He joined eagerly in these pursuits and excelled at them. He was also an excellent swimmer and taught children to swim across the river that runs through the city.

There is a story that one day his dog slipped loose and bit a dancing bear performing in one of the city’s streets. The keeper removed the bear’s muzzle so that it could attack the dog but Lambert stepped forward and punched the bear’s head, sending it sprawling to the ground and allowing the dog to escape. Such was his strength and fitness.

It all seemed to start going wrong in 1791 when, aged 21, Lambert took over from his father as Keeper of the local Bridewell prison or House of Correction, as it was known. Ten years later, his weight had ballooned to 40 stone (250 kg) – and rising.

Lambert, a genial and much-liked person, was as mystified as doctors by his condition. He did not drink alcohol and he ate much the same as anyone else. But still he piled on the pounds.

By 1805 35-year-old Lambert weighed 50 stone (320 kg) and became unemployable when, in that year, the Bridewell prison closed, leaving him without a job.

At first he became a recluse but faced with the need to earn money he decided in 1806 that he had no choice but to make an exhibition of himself, and moved to London where he charged visitors to visit his home and gaze at his enormous bulk.

Despite his physical difficulties, Lambert remained cheerful, engaging his visitors in amiable conversation and fascinating many of them with his extensive knowledge of hunting, fishing, shooting and horse racing.

It became fashionable in London society to visit his house at Piccadilly, where Lambert soon drew about 400 paying visitors every day. By late 1806 Lambert was a wealthy man and returned to Leicester. But he continued to exhibit himself, making tours that took in a number of English towns and cities.

It was while on tour in 1808 and staying at an inn that he was suddenly taken ill and died at the age of 39. His body could be removed from the inn only by taking down a wall. A few days earlier Lambert had been weighed and tipped the scales at 52 stone 11 pounds (335 kg).

His coffin measured 6 feet 4 inches long, 4 feet 4 inches wide and 2 feet 4 inches deep (193 cm × 132 cm × 71 cm). It was built on wheels and a sloping approach was created to his specially dug grave in the local churchyard. Even so, it took 20 men about half an hour to ease him into his resting place.

There was no post-mortem examination and nobody knows what killed Lambert. But he has not been forgotten. Several public houses have been named after him and museums continue to display his clothes and other memorabilia. In the town of Stamford where he died, the local football team is nicknamed "The Daniels" after him.

In 2009, on the 200th anniversary of his death, Leicester celebrated Daniel Lambert Day, and the local newspaper described him as "one of the city's most cherished icons”.

Clancy's comment: Poor man. That's some coffin, eh?

I'm ...

 

 

13 September 2021 - FAMILY PLANTS 2 MILLION TREES TO RESTORE ECOSYSTEM

 

FAMILY PLANTS 2 MILLION 

TREES TO RESTORE ECOSYSTEM

 

G'day folks,

Since 1990, the human race has destroyed over 129 million hectares of forest. This is a total area of land roughly the same size as South Africa. Every year an area roughly the size of Panama is lost due to deforestation. 

This produces a significant amount of greenhouse gas emissions furthering the issue and pushing out natural habitats and species. It is getting worse, not better and we need to make an immediate change if we wish to sustain this planet we all share.

A Brazilian photographer named Sebastião Salgado and his wife Lélia Deluiz decided to start to make a difference by showing what a passionate group of dedicated and hard-working people can do if they work together with the same goal in mind.

Sebastião returned from photographing the Rwandan genocide in the 1990’s exhausted both physically and emotionally after documenting the horrific ordeal. He returned to his native home in Brazil which was once beautiful, lush and green, to see it completely devoid of life from deforestation. There was no wildlife, no trees, nothing.

His wife believed that the land could be restored to its former glory. “The land was as sick as I was – everything was destroyed” stated Sebastião. They decided to replant the forest tree by tree and slowly the insects, birds and fish returned. “Thanks to the increase of trees, I, too, was reborn – this was the most important moment”.

Sebastião and Lélia founded Instituto Terra, which is a small organization that has planted 4 million saplings and brought the forest back from the dead. They study the land in order to plant the native trees. The native trees ensure that the animals will enjoy the area and return.

Making sure that only native plants are returned to the land, the area has absolutely flourished in only 20 years. The wildlife has returned and birds and bugs are filling the air with noises.

Over 172 species of bird have returned as well as 33 species of mammals, 293 species of plants, 15 species of reptiles and 15 species of amphibians. An entire ecosystem has been rebuilt from scratch by a handful of people.

 

Clancy's comment: What the Salgado’s have done is nothing short of amazing and proves that we still have hope for our home. We have done nothing but ultimately abuse and shorten our sustainability here on this rock we are so lucky to have. If we work together with a motivated and healthy attitude, we can bring our earth back to thriving. We need to raise awareness and work together making small impacts to eventually make a bigger impact.

 I'm ...

 

6 September 2021 - A SMART GIRL WITH FORESIGHT

 

A SMART GIRL

 WITH FORESIGHT

 

G'day folks,

Tilly Smith, a 10-year-old girl from Surrey, England, was spending Christmas vacation of 2004 with her family on a beach in Phuket, Thailand. As she and her family walked along the sand, Tilly noticed something strange. The water was bubbling over and had become frothy. It was nothing that caused any heads to turn but worried Tilly immensely.

She recalled a lesson she’d received in school about tsunamis only a few weeks earlier. The class was shown a video of the ocean just prior to a tsunami and it was overtaken with froth. Tilly watched the water on the beach and told her parents that the water was showing signs of an oncoming tsunami. Her parents were dismissive at first but after her insistence continued for a few more minutes, her father relented and took her to the resort's security personnel.  
He told them of his daughter’s fear, a theory which was corroborated seconds later by another guest who informed them that Sumatra had been hit with an earthquake earlier that day. Within moments, and less than 10 minutes from when Tilly first noticed the bubbles, the hotel’s security staff were evacuating the beach. The ground floor of the resort had just barely been cleared when the tidal wave hit, decimating a sizable portion of the hotel. The 2004 tsunami resulted in over 200,000 deaths across the area. In Tilly’s hotel, though there were numerous injuries, there were no fatalities thanks to her insistence and swift action.

 Clancy's comment: Go, Tilly! Sadly, I lost close friends in that Tsunami. 
I'm ... 

9 September 2021 - DIVER RESCUES WHALE FROM FISHING NET

 

 

DIVER RESCUES WHALE

 FROM FISHING NET

 

G'day folks,

Cesar Espino was out on his boat with a friend off the coast of the Canary Island of Fuerteventura, Spain, when they encountered the large marine mammal tangled in illegal fishing line. 

 

Unfortunately this is all too common in today’s world.  The men realized quickly that the giant mammal was in distress caused by the fishing line. This started what turned out to be an hour-long rescue operation.

Cesar dove into the water without any hesitation or second thought for his own safety. He soon noticed that the fishing line was attached to a buoy and anchored by rope and hooks used for selective fishing. The hooks from the lines were stuck in the whale’s mouth and the ropes were wrapped around its body and tail.

 

 Cesar and his friend swam the length of the whale for over an hour, cutting each individual rope that was restraining her. After the ropes were cut, they were able to remove the hooks that were lodged in the whale’s mouth.

 The rescue became more difficult with each rope that was being cut however. The whale would regain movement and strength when a rope was cut, making it difficult for them to keep hold of the whale. They were ultimately able to free the whale and do an incredibly good deed in the process.

 

Clancy's comment: What Cesar and his friend did was incredibly heroic. It’s extremely sad that wildlife are put in danger daily by the irresponsible actions of humans around the world. Hopefully we will live in a world someday where humans and animals can coexist without either hurting the other.  

I'm ...