Gnostika

23/09/2022

Announcement:
This has been a fun journey of learning & discovery for us.
Writing the blog articles has been a pleasure and we will always continue learning.
The Gnostika Blog will be going on Indefinite Hiatus, due to time commitments & not being able to work on frequent content as often as we would like to.

But like the Righteous Pharaohs that have been laid to rest, this might not be the End and we might return some time in the future...

Thank you to every person that has followed the Blog & our social media pages & most of all to anyone who has enjoyed reading our content.
Keep on learning & discovering. 🤓✌️🧠

04/07/2022

01/07/2022

20th Blog Post for Gnostika!
This is a special one! 😁🦖🦕
So, a couple of months ago, I had the amazing privilege to visit the Iziko South African Museum. These are the highlights of our visit!

https://gnostika-channel.blogspot.com/2022/06/day-at-iziko-museum.html

#

30/06/2022

It's Gnostika Hero time!

We're shaking it up a bit this month with a Gnostika Hero of a different nature, someone who we greatly admire for their philosophical insight, ground breaking novels and all round interesting guy. If you're an Animal Farm fan or au fait with Nineteen Eighty Four, then here's some cool facts about the author you probably didn't know. Yes, no other than Eric Arthur Blair, better know to the rest of us mere mortals as George Orwell.

1. By the time of his death he could speak seven different languages.
From a young age he learned French (interestingly from Aldous Huxley, the author of Brave New World). While living in India and working for the Imperial Police he taught himself Burmese until he was fluent and able to easily converse with the locals in the highest of dialects. He also learned Greek, Spanish, as well as Latin and German.

2. He coined several phrases still used today. One of the best of these is “cold war” which came from his essay “You and the Atom Bomb.”

3. He had tattoos on his knuckles
During his youth, while he served for five years with the Indian Imperial Police, Orwell got small tattoos on each of his knuckles. Cool guy!

4. He nearly drowned in 1947
During the period that he was writing 1984, while living in Scotland, Orwell nearly drowned on a boating trip. He took his son, as well as a niece and nephew, out on the Gulf of Corryvreckan in the western part of the country. There, at the site of what is the world’s third-largest whirlpool, the small boat capsized. Luckily, everyone survived.

5. He got arrested – on purpose
During his time in Paris and London, Orwell investigated the poorest areas of the two cities. He sought out the darker distracts of London and one time got drunk that he was arrested on purpose and was able to learn about prison. He drank a great deal and then made a scene that got him arrested. He spent only 48 hours in custody before being released. This is one of the many experiences that helped inform his memoir Down and Out in Paris and London.

Thank you Book Analysis for these awesome facts! If you would like to read more about George Orwell, please visit here:

https://bit.ly/3NLIPyh

George Orwell is remembered today as the conscience of a nation. His gripping horrifying novels and his penetrating essays are still read around the world.

30/06/2022

We have been quiet for a little while...
Don't worry!
Here is a little sneak peak of our upcoming Blog article!
We are doing a special post for our 20th Blog article.

Have a great Weekend everyone! 😁🦖

11/06/2022

Read the 3rd & Final Blog Post from our "Jurassic Park - Fact or Fiction?" Series now! 🤓🦖🦕🧬
https://gnostika-channel.blogspot.com/2022/06/jurassic-park-fact-or-fiction.html

In this Blog Series we looked looking at some Dinosaurs portrayed in the Jurassic Park/World film series, and compared some of the inaccurat...

10/06/2022

Read the New Blog Post from our "Jurassic Park - Fact or Fiction?" Series now! 🤓🦖🦕🧬
https://gnostika-channel.blogspot.com/2022/06/jurassic-park-fact-or-fiction-raptors.html

Let's look at the inaccuracies of the Velociraptor, portrayed in the Jurassic Park & Jurassic World films. I already covered different rapto...

10/06/2022

Jurassic World Dominion is released today!
Any Dino-Freaks really excited to see this movie? 😁🦖🦕

We have a Dino-Themed suprise, regarding our blog.... details to follow soon.

07/06/2022

It's Dino Trivia Time!!! 🤓🦖🦕

In anticipation for the release of Jurassic World Dominion, that is on 10 June 2022, aka. this Friday, we want to ask you Dino-Fans a question. 😁

Tell us… What Dinos/Prehistoric Animals are you excited for most, to see in this new film!? 🧬😁

According to Jurassicpark.fandom.com, the following Prehistoric Creatures will be featured in Jurassic World Dominion:

Allosaurus
Ankylosaurus
Apatosaurus
Atrociraptor
Baryonyx
Brachiosaurus
Carnotaurus
Compsognathus
Dilophosaurus
Dimetrodon
Dimorphodon
Dreadnoughtus
Gallimimus
Giganotosaurus
Iguanodon
Lystrosaurus
Microceratus
Moros Intrepidus
Mosasaurus
Nasutoceratops
Oviraptor
Parasaurolophus
Pteranodon
Pyroraptor
Quetzalcoatlus
Sinoceratops
Stegosaurus
Stygimoloch
Therizinosaurus
Triceratops
Tyrannosaurus Rex
Velociraptor

I mean, It wouldn't be a Jurassic World/Park film without the last 2, right? 😅

04/06/2022

Read the first Blog Post of our "Jurassic Park - Fact or Fiction?" Series now! 🤓🦖🦕🧬
https://gnostika-channel.blogspot.com/2022/06/jurassic-park-fact-or-fiction-real.html

In this Blog Series we will be looking at some Dinosaurs portrayed in the Jurassic Park film series, and compare the inaccurate film version...

01/06/2022

Calling all Dino-Freaks!!! 😃🦖🦕

Who else has been blown away by the Amazing new documentary series, Prehistoric Planet?

What are your favorite dinos in this series?

The ultra realistic CGI and interesting storylines definitely blew us away, and of course the excellent narration by the legendary David Attenborough!

If you haven't already, check out Prehistoric Planet!

24/05/2022

Time for a Nostalgic Childhood Story, regarding the 1st Jurassic Park Film! 🦖🦕😁

The year was around 1996. I was about 5 years old. I was a bit of an "animal & "dino-freak" when I was a young boy.
My parents had a couple of movies on VHS Tape. 1 of these films was the very first Jurassic Park movie. I really wanted to watch this movie so badly, once I heard of this movie and perhaps saw a trailer or the dinosaurs in this film.
My parents did not want me to watch it yet, since I was a toddler at this time, and some of the violent scenes might be a bit much for a 4-5 year old.

I schemed a "masterplan" to beg my "babysitters" to allow me to watch this movie, and convince them that I would not be scared, and so my plan succeeded.
Unfortunately there was some merit to my parents' concern, and I was "scared sh*tless" after a certain scene!
Everything went great in the beginning, and I really enjoyed the story and amazing visuals and of course all the dinos in this cinematic masterpiece.
It was the "T-rex escape scene" that frightened me very much, or it was the part where the T-rex basically ripped the goat to shreds and its left overs fell on the roof of the park cruiser vehicle!
Needless to say I felt very scared and a little guilty that I outmaneuvered my parents. I had a nightmare or 2 and struggled to sleep that night, but my terror faded quickly and a couple of months after that night I gave the movie another try, and I loved it so much on this 2nd attempt. I begged my mom to visit the cinema when the sequel, The Lost World was showing so we could watch this movie.
The fear was gone and the excitement was on!

An interesting turn of events, of conquering fear, and realizing as a child that "This was only a movie". I have been a massive Jurassic Park Franchise fan ever since.

Whether you find this story amusing or not, I decided to share this story for a reason, because our next blog series will be related to the Jurassic Park Franchise & Paleontology, regarding the Hype of Jurassic World Dominion, that will be released next month! 😁🦕

19/05/2022

It's Dino Trivia Time again!!! 🤓🦖🦕

In anticipation for the release of Jurassic World Dominion, we want to jump on the “Dino Hype” too!
Tell us… What is your favorite Dinosaur portrayed in any of the Jurassic Park/World franchise? Whether it was from one of the Movies, the Camp Cretaceous Netflix series or one of the many Video Games associated with this franchise. 🧬😁

13/05/2022

Part 3 (The Final Part) of the Roman Empire series is out! Read now...🤓

https://gnostika-channel.blogspot.com/2022/05/roman-empire-series-part-3-sins-of-our.html

You are probably very familiar with the proverb "The Apple doesn’t fall far from the Tree". Well, when it comes to Roman emperor Marcus Aure...

12/05/2022

Today, on her birthday, we celebrate a formidable lady often called “The Lady with the Lamp”, but better known to most as Florence Nightingale. She contributed greatly to making hospitals a safer and cleaner place to be and in doing so saved countless lives, but that’s not all she did. Here’s some really cool facts about this incredible woman you probably didn’t know.

Florence Nightingale was born on May 12, 1820, in Florence, Italy. Although her parents were from England, she was born in Italy while they were traveling. Both Florence and her older sister, Parthenope, were named after the Italian cities where they were born.

As a teenager, she believed she had a calling from God to help the sick. Her parents however did not encourage or approve of her choice to become a nurse, but eventually her father allowed her to travel to Germany for a few months of training and thereafter she traveled to Paris to study with the Sisters of Mercy. By the time she was 33, Nightingale was already making a name for herself in the nursing community. She returned to England in 1853 and became the superintendent and manager of a hospital for “gentlewomen” in London. This was an incredible achievement for a woman of her age and time.

When the Crimean War began in 1854, the British were unprepared to deal with the number of sick and injured soldiers. The lack of medical supplies, overcrowding, and unsanitary conditions caused many people to complain. Newspapers began to report about the terrible state of medical care. The Secretary of War, Sidney Herbert asked Nightingale to manage a group of nurses that would go treat the wounded soldiers. She agreed, and on November 4, 1854, Nightingale and 38 nurses arrived at the British camp outside of Constantinople. The nurses brought supplies, nutritious food, cleanliness, and sanitation to the military hospital. They also provided individual care and support. Nightingale was known for carrying a lamp and checking on the soldiers at night, so they gave her the nickname “the Lady with the Lamp.” Within six months, Nightingale and her team transformed the hospital. The death rate went down from 40 percent to 2 percent because of their work.

When Nightingale returned from the war, she continued to improve the conditions of hospitals. She presented her experiences and her data to Queen Victoria and Prince Albert in 1856. This data was the reason they formed a Royal Commission to improve the health of the British Army. Nightingale was so skilled with data and numbers that in 1858 she was also elected as the first woman member of the Royal Statistical Society. She is also credited with creating one of the first versions of the pie-chart.

Two years after her death, the International Committee of the Red Cross created the Florence Nightingale Medal, that is given to excellent nurses every two years. Also, International Nurses Day has been celebrated on her birthday since 1965.

So happy birthday Florence and happy International Nurses Day as we celebrate not only our heroes from history, but our everyday heroes too.

👩‍⚕️🚑🩺💉🦠🛌

Thank you National Women's History Museum - for the awesome info.

👩‍⚕️🚑🩺💉🦠🛌

06/05/2022

Part 2 of the Roman Empire blog series is out! Read now...🤓

https://gnostika-channel.blogspot.com/2022/05/roman-empire-series-part-2-1st-dictator.html

It is no coincidence that the calendar that is used in most of the modern world has a Month named after 2 of the most well-known historical ...

01/05/2022

This week's blog post is macabre & humorous! 🤓

https://gnostika-channel.blogspot.com/2022/05/roman-empire-series-part-1-horrible.html

The were a couple of truly insane Roman leaders in ancient history, with a few exceptionally wise emperors as well. This first part of the s...

22/04/2022

Geological Rock Stratum & Geological Time?
Time to explore this Interesting Topic! 🤓🌎

https://gnostika-channel.blogspot.com/2022/04/understanding-geological-time.html

What are the Geological Rock Stratum & Geological Time? Graphical representation of Earth's history as a spiral. https://commons.wikimedia.o...

21/04/2022

Hey Gnostika Fans!

Incase you missed our series of articles on the Easter & Passover Historical events....
Check out the posts here: 🤓

PART 1:
https://gnostika-channel.blogspot.com/2022/04/passover-apocalyptic-preacher-part-1.html

PART 2:
https://gnostika-channel.blogspot.com/2022/04/passover-apocalyptic-preacher-part-1_16.html?m=1

PART 3:
https://gnostika-channel.blogspot.com/2022/04/passover-apocalyptic-preacher-part-3.html?m=1

19/04/2022

Hi there Gnostika fans! This month we’re honoring the legend himself, Leonardo da Vinci, who has his birthday this month. Born in Florence in 1542, this awesome guy gave us magical inventions, the Mona Lisa and the Vetruvian man and is considered to be the ultimate Renaissance man. Here’s a couple of fun facts you probably didn’t know about him!

HE HAD NO REAL LAST NAME

Though often referred to simply as “da Vinci,” the reality is that Leonardo did not have a last name, at least not as we think of it in the modern sense. Da Vinci literally translates to “of Vinci,” which is his hometown. This was common at the time. During Leonardo’s lifetime, hereditary surnames become more popular with the upper class but wouldn’t be common practice until the mid-16th century. That’s why you’ll still find that most museums and academic books simply refer to him as Leonardo.

HE DIDN'T PAINT THAT MUCH

Though Leonardo is considered one of the greatest artists of all time, his artistic output was relatively small. In fact, there are only about 17 surviving works that can be definitively attributed to him.
Part of this was due to his busy mind. Occupied with scientific research and engineering matters, he often went through long stretches where he wasn’t accepting commissions or painting much.

Some of his famous works, like The Battle of Anghiari and Leda are known only through preparatory sketches or copies made by other painters after having been lost, destroyed, or deteriorated over time. However, his unparalleled reputation speaks to the power of his artistry. Even with so few complete paintings, it’s impossible to deny his influence on artists of his own day and for generations to come.

HE WAS AN ANIMAL-LOVER AND POSSIBLY A VEGETARIAN

Many sources—including Leonardo's notebooks and the writing of his contemporaries—have described Leonardo's passion for animals and wildlife. Moreover, he challenged the morality of consuming animals in his writing. Altogether, this evidence strongly suggests that he was a vegetarian.

Renaissance art historian Giorgio Vasari recounted a story of Leonardo, in which the young artist would purchase birds for sale so that he could set them free.

BILL GATES OWNS HIS NOTEBOOK

With such a great appetite for knowledge, it should come as no surprise that he was a prolific writer. Many of Leonardo’s notebooks are in prominent institutions like the British Library and the Victoria & Albert Museum, but one, in particular, is in the hands of a modern genius.

Leonardo’s Codex Hammer, also called the Codex Leicester, was purchased by Microsoft co-founder Bill Gates in 1994 for $30.8 million.

The 72-page notebook was written between 1506 and 1510. It contains a number of scientific musings on everything from the reasons why the sky is blue to the luminosity of the Moon to how the movement of water works and how fossils originated.

HE WORKED AS A MILITARY ARCHITECT AND ENGINEER

A few years after the end of the equestrian sculpture, Leonardo entered into an agreement with the notorious Cesare Borgia. Son of Pope Alexander VI, he was commander in chief of the papal army and known for the ruthless way he maintained control and tried to dominate different Italian states.

Leonardo spent 10 months as a “senior military architect and general engineer.” As such, he traveled around Borgia’s different territories to survey them. He also created many city plans and topographic maps, which foreshadow modern cartography.

Thank you My Modern Met for the cool info! Remember to keep an eye out for all our new posts and videos. Till next time!

17/04/2022

The 3rd & Final Part of this series of articles! 🤓

https://gnostika-channel.blogspot.com/2022/04/passover-apocalyptic-preacher-part-3.html

Allegory & Metaphorical literary elements in the Gospels "Give us Barabbas!", from The Bible and Its Story Taught by One Thousand Picture L...

16/04/2022

Part 2 of this series of articles! 🤓

https://gnostika-channel.blogspot.com/2022/04/passover-apocalyptic-preacher-part-1_16.html?m=1

Pontius Pilot & Jesus's Trial - Historical Sources & Context Ecce Homo ("Behold the Man"), Antonio Ciseri's depiction of Pilate presenting a...

14/04/2022

Have a fantastically blessed Passover & Easter Weekend Everyone! 😀

First part of a series of articles on the subject! 🤓
https://gnostika-channel.blogspot.com/2022/04/passover-apocalyptic-preacher-part-1.html

Passover & Yom Kippur: Ancient Traditions in History Agnus Dei c. 1635–1640, by Francisco de Zurbarán, Prado Museum. https://commons.wikimed...

06/04/2022

Amazing thought about our Human Existence & Life on Earth. 💡🧬🌏

Had life and humans first come to be hundreds or even thousands of years ago, we might know most of what’s important about our past. There might be very little of significance about our history that’s hidden from us.

Our reach might extend easily to the beginning. But instead, our species is hundreds of thousands of years old, the genus Homo millions of years old, primates tens of millions of years old, mammals over 200 million years old, and life about 4 billion years old.

Our written records carry us only a millionth of the way back to the origin of life.

Quoted from:
Shadows of Forgotten Ancestors
by Carl Sagan & Ann Druyan

31/03/2022

ONLY THE TRUE NATURE NERDS MIGHT GET THIS ONE! 😂🤓

30/03/2022

A Little Mid-Week Motivation!
Be a Ceola-Can! 🐟
You can do it! 😁

27/03/2022

Richard Dawkins - Science Hero (Top 5 Books)

Ever since evolutionary biology sparked my interest and I became almost a bit obsessed to gain a broader understanding of earth's natural history, I have been an avid fan of Dawkins's work since discovering his books.

Read our new Blog Post where I discuss my favorite scientific books written by Richard Dawkins. 🤓📚

https://gnostika-channel.blogspot.com/2022/03/richard-dawkins-books-my-top-5-picks.html

Richard Dawkins - Science Hero My 5 Favorite Dawkins Books: a Homosapien reading The Ancestor's Tale: A Pilgrimage to the Dawn of Life 5. Th...

26/03/2022

Happy Birthday to Richard Dawkins!

Our 2nd Science Hero for March 2022.

He first came to prominence with his 1976 book The Selfish Gene, which popularised the gene-centred view of evolution and introduced the term "Meme". Yes, he is the "Father of the Meme", and coined that term.🤓

Ever since evolutionary biology sparked my interest and I became almost a bit obsessed to gain a broader understanding of earth's natural history, I have been a fan of his lecture videos, documentaries, books & audiobooks.

Dawkins explains scientific terms & studies with such simplicity and precision, which makes it easier to understand if your science education is not intermediate.

New Blog Post where I will be discussing my favorite scientific books written by Richard Dawkins, coming soon... 🤓📚

24/03/2022

Trivia Time!
What does an "Evolutionary Arms-Race" Mean? 🤓

This week’s theme is… Evolutionary Biology! 🧬

23/03/2022

Since this week’s theme is Evolutionary Biology....
Check out this amazing illustrated Phylogenetic Tree of Life! 🧬🌳

Image Source:
https://www.open.edu/openlearn/nature-environment/natural-history/tree-life