A year and a half ago I read one of the most interesting, interdisciplinary books I've ever read, "Noah's Flood," by Ryan and Pitman. Not a religious book, but a book combining oceanography, geology, fish biology, pottery studies, DNA analysis, mythology, and several other fields. The big news today was the announcement that human habitation remains have been found where the Ryan and Pitman theory predicted. This has profound significance for our culture, for understanding the spread of Indo-European language, and for the apparent "diaspora" happening at around this time. (It would not surprise me if the earliest known agricultural implements are found in the next few years.) This is not a Cypherpunks topic, but I believe I've mentioned the Ryan and Pitman book here before. And it shows how science is done. To quote one of the many stories appearing today: Wednesday September 13 3:00 AM ET New Evidence of Great Flood Found By RANDOLPH E. SCHMID, Associated Press Writer WASHINGTON (AP) - The first evidence that humans lived in an area now covered by the Black Sea - perhaps inundated by the biblical flood - has been found by a team of explorers. ``Artifacts at the site are clearly well preserved, with carved wooden beams, wooden branches and stone tools,'' lead researcher Robert Ballard said. ... Columbia University researchers William Ryan and Walter Pittman speculated in their 1997 book ``Noah's Flood'' that when the European glaciers melted, about 7,000 years ago, the Mediterranean Sea overflowed into what was then a smaller freshwater lake to create the Black Sea. Last year Ballard found indications of an ancient coastline miles out from the current Black Sea coast. The new discovery provides evidence that people once lived in that now inundated region. (end excerpt) -- ---------:---------:---------:---------:---------:---------:---------:---- Timothy C. May | Crypto Anarchy: encryption, digital money, ComSec 3DES: 831-728-0152 | anonymous networks, digital pseudonyms, zero W.A.S.T.E.: Corralitos, CA | knowledge, reputations, information markets, "Cyphernomicon" | black markets, collapse of governments.