History is happening every day and new things are constantly being discovered or, as is the case with this blog, revisited. I’ve stated as a goal when starting Histastrophe! years ago that not only did I want to focus on learning more about history myself, but that I wanted to find an audience that I could discuss my passion for when it came to things long dead and gone. I’ve been trying to think of ways to better engage my visitors and what better way than to provide a weekly curation of the goings on in the history world?

Every week I want to give an internet round-up of the discussions, discoveries, controversies, or hilarity that is happening in the world of history (or that have piqued my attention!). I feel as if we few with a love of the past are sometimes living on the fringe as far as interests and hobbies go, but if doing this can help keep us all engaged and up-to-date with current History things, I feel like it’d be worth it.

So, for those of you who’ve finished watching Royal Wedding highlight reels and have had their fill of scones, here’s what else has been happening in the world of History:

There are plenty of resources on the Olympian Gods, but do any of them answer the question, “How would I fare in a fistfight against this guy?”

I got u, bb

SHOULD YOU FIGHT: GREEK #GODS EDITION#FolkloreThursday

picture citations at end

— Vengeful_Doe (@Vengeful_Doe) May 10, 2018

This Twitter Thread by @Vengeful_Doe had me rolling on the floor in stitches. Quick hilarious fighting card profiles of Greek Gods and who specifically would be beatable in a fight. For lovers of mythology, this thread is teeming with references and enough jokes that if you were to print this off and pin to your English teacher’s desk, you’ll undoubtedly be rewarded with an A+. You’re welcome.

Frank Sinatra’s Mob Ties and Other Secrets from His FBI File

Frank Sinatra was many things: A crooner who could make bobby-soxers faint, an Academy Award-winning actor, the elder statesman of the Rat Pack. At the height of his career, it was rumored that “every woman wants to have him; every man wants to be him.”

I’m not usually a fan of the History Channel, I mean, anyone willing to serve copious airtime to programs suggesting aliens built the pyramids is sure to get a hard pass from me. But this Frank Sinatra profile that came out this week was certainly fun to see. As my readers have no doubt discerned by now, I’m deeply Italian-American in my roots–and Frankie is still a household name and topic of gossip to this day. I grew up hearing about Frank Sinatra’s mob ties and never once doubted the stories. Having never gone too deeply into research myself, it was nice to see this article float across my radar this week, validating all the stories my family had already spread.

Ancient Lost City of Mardaman Uncovered in Iraq

Ruins from the lost city of Mardaman, which dates back some 4,800 years, have been discovered in the Kurdistan region of northern Iraq, archaeologists just announced. A team from the University of Tübingen in Germany has been digging at the site for years now, but only last summer did they discover 92 cuneiform tablets hidden in a pottery vessel found in the remains of a palace.

Major archaeological discovery in Iraq–Archaeologists just announced that they’ve discovered the lost city of Mardaman. Mardaman was an ancient city in the Fertile Crescent that largely flourished during the Bronze Age. The city itself would have had connections with Mesopotamia, the Akkadians, and the Assyrian Empire to name a few. They’ve been digging there for years and only just found and studied the cuneiform tablets that confirmed the location, so there’s still a lot left to be discovered about this lost city. Always good to see archaeology alive and well in Iraq!

Megan Fox wants to rewrite history. So what’s the harm in that?

MEGAN Fox is a stunning supermodel and credible actress. Add her to a wealth of ancient fables, conspiracy theories and pseudoscientific technobabble. Then add funding from the Travel Channel. Sounds like a perfect fit? For ratings-hungry TV producers – yes. For those who know what they’re talking about – no.

I’m torn on this one. I’m personally a big fan of Josh Gates and his show Expedition Unknown, and though I haven’t really found any complaints about it online, I understand the inherit trouble with shows like these that tend to glamorous and simplify a complex field. Whereas Josh Gates tends to shed light on current expeditions and teams working to unravel discoveries in the making, it looks like this show is specifically focused on fantasy–that you can do all of these things without any feigning of expertise. What’s outlined in the article is an attitude by the show to both present history as accessible to everyone while also denouncing the need and expertise of trained professionals in their given fields. That’s…a little dangerous. These shows are fun, but it’s important to DO YOUR RESEARCH. And while doing that, consult scholarly sources or primary texts yourself. Don’t watch a show with that one girl from Transformers and call it good. Researchers are not infallible, I’ve provided enough examples of doubt and differing opinions among them on my blog before, but these are conversations being had by people firmly rooted in the knowledge necessary to discern fact from fiction. We should probably be listening to them.