The most terrible rituals in the world that exist to this day. Incredible and scary facts about the things that surround us

Humanity has existed for thousands of years, and many historical secrets have been revealed in our time, but there are still many mysteries in the world. Many discovered artifacts baffle modern archaeologists, so the search for truth only becomes more interesting.

Today we will tell you about the most remarkable finds that scientists are still scratching their heads over.

1.Giant stone balls Costa Rica
In the first half of the 20th century, while clearing the jungle for new plantations, workers discovered mysterious huge stone balls of the correct shape,

whose origin is unknown. There were legends among the local population that there was always gold inside such balls,

therefore many of them were split and blown up. Of course, no gold was found there, so they were definitely not used as a safe.

The purpose for which these petrospheres were created has not yet been determined, but it is assumed that they either imitated planets or determined the boundaries of tribes.

2. Baghdad battery
In the 30s of the 20th century, during archaeological excavations near Baghdad, it was found mysterious artifact, thanks to him we can say that the ancient Mesopotamians were much smarter and more inventive than we are used to thinking about them.

The found artifact was dubbed the “Baghdad Battery”; it consisted of a small vessel through the neck of which an iron rod with traces of corrosion was passed.

Inside there is a cylinder made of copper, and in the cylinder there is an iron rod; after disassembling this structure, scientists decided that it was most likely a battery that is capable of generating a current of 1 volt.

It is not clear why the technology for producing these batteries was lost and why nothing similar was discovered anywhere else.

3.Voynich Manuscript
The strangest manuscript in the world, written in unknown language and having inexplicable symbols that are unlike any of the known alphabets.

The Voynich manuscript is named after the antiquarian who acquired it in 1912. No one has yet been able to decipher the inscriptions, and this has turned the manuscript into a famous subject of cryptology.

One of the scientists in his writings suggests that the manuscript is an encrypted message

4.Golden figurines of the Incas
The world-famous figurines resemble flying machines; it is known that in ancient times people tried to recreate from the materials available to them what they saw,

and this is where it arises main question, but what could they see??
German aircraft modelers exact copies golden airplane,

only of course not made of gold and with a motor, and these planes flew perfectly, moreover, they were able to perform aerobatic maneuvers, which had to be proven

5. Genetic drive
This unique disc depicts things and processes, it would seem that there is nothing wrong with this, but we, modern people we can observe these processes only under a microscope,

one wonders how ancient people could have known about them. Most likely, the process of birth and development of the embryo is shown.

Despite the fact that this disk exists, it is simply impossible to produce a similar one.

6. Antikythera mechanism
This mechanism is essentially the oldest computer due to the complexity of its design; after a detailed study of it, scientists found out

that it not only shows the position of the sun, moon, the movement of planets, but also predicts eclipses and even events such as the Olympic Games.

Heated debates among scientists flare up around this mechanism, because The Antikythera mechanism is at least 1000 years ahead of similar types of technology.

In the conditions of fierce competition between hotels, everyone survives as best they can, each hotel tries to provide visitors with maximum comfort, entices them with some of its zest or unusual service. We have collected the most unexpected offers for you.

1. Room for crying
As you know, women love to cry, sometimes even for no reason, and the Japanese hotel chain Mitsui Garden Yotsuya decided to take advantage of this.

they provide women who use tears to relieve stress with a room in which everything is done to evoke pity and tears.

The room is filled with books with sad plots, maudlin melodramas and plenty of cashmere napkins to wipe away snot and drool.

After the client has cried enough, she is of course provided with all sorts of services to put herself in order. Accommodation in the “crying room” is possible only alone, and the cost of such a room is approximately 4,500 rubles.

2. Companion fish
A British hotel in Cheshire offers guests who are traveling alone and really miss the opportunity to feel loved,

they offer to rent goldfish for about 500 rubles per day and come to the room to enjoy her company,

after all, the fish will be happy to listen to everything that you have accumulated during a hard day of work.

3. Accommodation for the “homeless” class
In Sweden, the Faktum Hotel is trying to draw attention to the problem of homeless people and part of the proceeds goes to help them.

The essence of the service is simple: people who live in abundance are invited to feel like homeless people, for a small fee of 100 Swedish kronor they can spend the night under a bridge, under a cart in a port, in a park, by a river or in an abandoned factory.

The hotel offers several options for amenities when placing a sleeping bag, cardboard or newspaper, a homemade tent, or they will simply offer you to lie down on a bench.

4. Deep sleep
Most best sleep The Berlin hotel Swissotel offers a package of services " deep dream"is a combination of techniques to promote relaxation and sleep,

developed by the hotel together with German sleep specialists for guests who suffer from stress and sleep problems. Starting in the morning, guests are prepared for a sweet night's sleep for only 200 euros per day.

Before going to bed, the client receives a warm chocolate-based drink and breathes mountain air for 30 minutes. A small device built into the pillow recreates binaural waves, which help the body transition into a state of sleep.

5. Sex menu
The Drake Hotel, located in Toronto, offers its guests a relaxing... full program, if you are planning a romantic evening with champagne candles and rose petals on the floor throughout the room, then perhaps you will be pleasantly surprised by the additional menu, which consists of big list sex toys, of course they are all disposable and have a color and size for every taste.

6. Perfume bar
The Berlin Ritz Carlton hotel offers unique cocktails, all of them based on well-known flavors.

Cocktails replicate the scents of Giorgio Armani, Yves Saint Laurent and other equally famous brands. Strange as it may seem,

bartender Arnd Heissen does not keep the ingredients of the drinks a secret and describes everything in detail in the “perfume menu.” The cost of these unique drinks is not high, ranging from 11 to 14 euros.

7. Camp of missed opportunities.
The AKA Central Park hotel chain is something like a camp, only for adults; in addition to standard recreation, you will be offered a unique Live It program,

in which you can learn anything you want from circus tricks to painting lessons and cooking apple pies.

Also, there is a “reboot” program, which includes a huge number of services, including changing your appearance.

8. Divorce without problems
Guests of some hotels in the Netherlands are given the opportunity to have a nice party, but not everyone needs romantic evenings, after all, you need to please everyone!

So, there they will offer you all kinds of help, both psychological and legal, they will help you remain friends as much as possible and if you want to arrange a banquet

on this occasion with cake and fireworks. As a rule, a couple stops on Friday and already on Monday they are free as the wind.

The average hotel divorce costs about $5,000.

9. Walk with lions
IN south africa Protea Hotel bets on amateurs wildlife and offers walks with lions,

of course this happens under supervision good specialist, but a cat is a cat, big or small, and it is very difficult to predict what will come to her mind at the next moment, so these walks of course cause a large influx of adrenaline.

Guests should not forget that even though the hotel’s lions are accustomed to people, they are still a terrible predator whose attacks kill about 100 people every year.

10. Ayurvedic rituals sending you to nirvana
In Nicaragua, the Mukul Beach hotel offers to experience nirvana for yourself,

ancient, almost magical Ayurvedic rituals that will relieve you of depression and chronic fatigue,

and will also release subtle energies that will help calm and clear the mind. Massage points on the face, wrap with herbs and pour on the forehead in the area

"third eye" warm mixture of natural vegetable oils stimulate deep brain centers that are responsible for the production of endorphins - hormones of happiness.

Our history is full of various strange, and at times downright shocking facts. We all know that much of school curriculum removed so as not to traumatize the fragile child’s psyche. But is this right? Users of popular social network Reddit decided to tell us what they know about the story and what scary facts their teachers never told them.

Parents ate their children to avoid starvation

People's heads were cut off and loaded into cannons.

Scientists from Unit 731 performed horrific experiments, such as cutting fetuses from the mother's womb

Soldiers raped and tortured millions of innocent people

He killed his own wife and blew up a school, killing many children.

Rosemary Kennedy had a botched lobotomy

Francisco Macias Nguema ordered his soldiers to shoot at the spectators

Their hearts were ripped out while they were still alive

Cannibals in Siberia

Christopher Columbus fed animals to humans

More than a million people were hacked to death with machetes

In this collection I will tell you about incredible scientific facts that will surely surprise you. You will learn about new burial methods, the collision of the Sun with a Red Dwarf, tarantism and the giant laser, as well as many other scientific wonders

1. Let's start with a story about the laser, powerful enough to destroy the sun. Dr. Evil, the hero of the famous film about Austin Powers, would be very surprised to learn that his dream has come true. A few years ago, a laser beam was invented that was a million times brighter than our Sun! Technically, it is a particle accelerator built to simulate nuclear explosions. However, over 10 years of experimentation, the “Z machine” produced up to 2 billion degrees Kelvin, which exceeds the internal temperature of our Sun. The Z machine can even melt a diamond! It's good that this machine is safely stored at the Brookhaven National Laboratory, and not in the lair of some evil genius🙂 The Large Hadron Collider looks more global

2. Next on the list amazing facts there are dances, but not ordinary, but deadly. The phenomenon of dancing frenzy (tarantism) broke out in Europe in the 13th-17th centuries. After the first recorded outbreak in Aachen, Germany in July 1374, dancing rabies reached its peak in 1418 in Strasbourg, soon spreading throughout France and southern Europe. The outbreak of 1418 was so terrible that the whole city was completely devastated. Many scientists have been at a loss as to why the sudden dance fever occurs? This phenomenon for a long time was shrouded in mystery until it turned out that the culprit was the common ergot (claviceps purpurea). Fever swept through entire cities en masse due to the consumption of rye contaminated with Claviceps purpurea. Symptoms of this poisoning include excited convulsions, clouding of the mind, convulsions and even gangrene. These spores include lysergic acid, which is what LSD is made from today. It is likely that these dances, exhausting people to the point of complete exhaustion and even death, were somewhat similar to today's rave parties, only with a much sadder outcome

3. Did you know that zombies actually exist? At least scientists have proven that they exist in the insect world. An example is given of wasps injecting a paralyzing poison into the brains of bugs and cockroaches, which turns them into zombies. In 2007 National Geographic published an article they explain how zombies are born. By injecting poison directly into the beetle's brain, wasps are able to suppress its will. This is done in order to force the beetles and cockroaches to do what the wasps need. In most cases, this is the beginning of the process of killing the victim. The zombie cockroach then independently crawls into the wasp's underground lair, and an egg is laid in its stomach. When the wasp larvae are born, the cockroach serves as a free meal for them. Still alive, but weak-willed, the cockroach is slowly eaten from the inside. This painful process lasts 7-8 days before the cockroach finally dies

4. Interesting fact about astronauts. In fact, they are not in a vacuum, but in a state of constant decline. Let's turn to the science of astrophysics. NASA claims that astronauts don't float in space because there is no gravity. In reality, astronauts are in a continuous state of falling. Gravity in this case is equivalent to acceleration

5. We continue to surprise you with interesting facts. Currently, the most popular method of burial is cremation, but in the near future it will be used new method: The body will be frozen by liquid nitrogen and then broken into small particles by strong sound waves. In Sweden this method has been used since 2005. Because of environmental aspects they decided to abandon traditional cremation, officially adopting the practice as an alternative. As strange as it may sound, it is actually a much healthier and more natural alternative to funerals. ecological type. Nitrogen removes water from the body without destroying its biological identity, thus allowing the earth to recycle it into organic material

6. As of this moment our Sun is on a collision course with a Red Dwarf called Gliese 710, moving at 50 times the speed of sound! Fortunately, Earth's inhabitants don't have to worry about this for at least next million years, since both objects will approach each other only after this time. By that time, we will all be dipped in liquid nitrogen and smashed by sound waves :) You can learn more about stars from our article entitled Interesting Facts about the stars. In general, Gleise 710 is not the only star intersecting with Earth. In fact, there are at least 8 other stars that will eventually intersect with ours. solar system. Undoubtedly, most of them will cross paths with us many millions of years later. It is likely that these planets also have satellites orbiting them, and they may even harbor life. It's likely that on one of these planets right now someone is writing an article about a star called "Earth" and its future collision. Or maybe their best minds are already inventing a huge laser cannon to destroy our planet, thereby avoiding a collision...

According to the late Johnny Carson, the world we live in is full of strange, wild things. Amidst our busy schedules and daily routines, it is easy to forget that very strange things are happening in our universe. This list is a description of only a tiny fraction interesting secrets, which we became aware of through studying our planet.

Below are ten strange scientific facts that will change your view of the world.

10. We eat insects every day

While some cultures eat insects regularly, as a delicacy or as an important source of dietary protein, eating bugs is not the norm in North America...or is it? Office of Sanitary Supervision of Quality food products and medicines allows certain proportions of insect parts characteristic of almost every food group. For example, about 60 parts of insects per 100 grams of chocolate or up to 30 fly eggs per 100 grams of pizza sauce. Basically, you eat insects every day. In fact, the average person eats up to 430 bugs a year without even realizing it, so that's about 1.2 bugs a day! Many of these insects can end up in food products because they were originally found in raw materials, such as vegetable products. If you've ever caught a grasshopper on the street, think about how many grasshoppers there can be in a huge field of wheat! Now think of all the other insects you missed! Does not exist effective way remove all insect parts from food, but if you didn't read this, you wouldn't even notice them.

9. Our skin cells are everywhere


The human body is incredibly fascinating. You create, regenerate, age and die all day, every day. Even your skin is constantly performing its own function while you go about your business. The skin is completely regenerated within a month, which means that the inner layer of skin moves to replace the outer layer and then falls off like leaves from autumn tree. So what happens to all the flakes of old skin cells? Just run your finger over any surface in your home that you haven't dusted off in a while and you'll find out. Skin cells make up about half of the dust in your home. Approximately a billion tons of dust, made up of human skin flakes, floats around the Earth's atmosphere. Literally speaking, old you are a dusty film on your shelves, refrigerator and under your bed. This in turn attracts tiny dust mites that live in the crevices of your home and eat every flake of your old skin! Like pets that you just haven't given a name yet! And they've got plenty of flakes of your skin to chew on, since the average person sheds about 680 grams of old skin per year.

8. Most life on Earth has not yet been discovered


The ocean is a source of endless mysteries and people have spent countless hours and dollars trying to discover and understand all of the ocean's mysteries. Considering we've explored 99 percent of this planet's habitable space but haven't yet explored a full 90 percent of the ocean, is it any wonder why we find it so fascinating? In Challenger Deep, the deepest point in the ocean, which lies approximately halfway between Japan and Papua New Guinea, more than 23 Empire State Buildings can be stacked vertically on top of each other. Imagine a similar ride in an elevator! The most interesting thing is that scientists have discovered that life thrives even at such incredible depths! The ocean currently covers 71 percent of the surface globe, but this percentage is growing steadily. It is believed that more than 50 percent, perhaps even as much as 80 percent, of Earth's life lives in the salty depths and we only know about a fraction of this life. There are still many new species to discover and strange facts that everyone will be amazed by!

7. The largest penis on Earth belongs to...

One of the most incredible life forms in the ocean is the blue whale, the great Leviathan of the abyss! Not only is it the largest animal currently in existence, the blue whale is also the largest animal to ever exist, including dinosaurs. Blue whales carry their young for 10-12 months before giving birth, similar to mammals. This means that newborn blue whales drink 400 liters of milk per day for almost seven months. Adults can eat approximately four tons of krill per day. Heart blue whale comparable in size to the Mini-Cooper, and its penis is larger than that of any other creature on the planet and its average length is 2.7 meters. When copulating, a male blue whale ejects almost 20 liters of sperm at a time. If you want to see this huge organ with your own eyes, then know that there is a penis museum in Iceland, which has 280 exhibits. This collection contains only the dried end of a giant blue whale phallus, 170 centimeters long.

6. This Living Fossil Saves Lives


Another of the most fascinating creatures in the ocean is the humble horseshoe crab. It is considered a "living fossil" because it has undergone virtually no genetic change compared to horseshoe crabs present in the fossil record going back to 450 million years ago (which was approximately 200 million years before the dinosaurs).

They are not actually crabs, but are more closely related to spiders and scorpions. People have discovered that horseshoe crabs are very beneficial as an organism. Their nitrogen-rich bodies make excellent fertilizers, and harvesting horseshoe crabs for this purpose was once a thriving industry on the East Coast. Their shells are made of a substance known as chitin, which when applied to wounds allows for better healing of skin wounds and improves healing. Many medical instruments, such as needles and sewing threads, are coated with chitin for this purpose. Their blood is blue in color due to the use of copper to carry oxygen, as opposed to iron, which causes the red color of blood in the human body.

However, the most interesting thing about horseshoe crabs is the presence of amoebocytes in their blood. Amebocytes function a little like our own white blood cells. Amebocytes react in the presence of gram-negative bacteria and create a viscous gel that surrounds and inactivates the bacteria. Scientists are collecting the blood of horseshoe crabs to isolate this useful element. In addition, all intravenous or injectable medications and prosthetic devices are tested with amoebocytes contained in horseshoe crab blood as required by the Food and Drug Administration. The need for amoebocytes has led to the overharvesting of horseshoe crabs on the East Coast of the United States.

5. Alcohol has many health benefits.


People like to have a drink or two. There is not a single place in the world where people have not invented some form of alcohol. In the US alone, alcohol sales are estimated to bring in around $200 billion in revenue each year. Compare that figure to the roughly $14 billion the porn industry generates annually, or the $28 billion a year that McDonald's makes annually. People love their frothy drinks.

Consider the fuss regarding alcoholic beverages during Prohibition. Moonshiners and bandits made insane amounts of money producing and distributing alcoholic beverages, even if it was illegal. Alcohol production simply cannot be stopped and, as it turns out, there is no point in even trying. Researchers have found that one 350-milliliter bottle of beer contains amounts of antioxidants that promote heart health (through blood thinning). However, if you drink three or more 350ml bottles of beer a day, the exact opposite happens. High blood alcohol levels cause the formation of free radicals, which oxidize cells and contribute to premature aging.

Vodka is useful for preventing Alzheimer's disease. It represents an effective home remedy from fevers and herpes of the lips. Plus, it's actually an amazing antiseptic. Mixtures of rum and wine, flavored with lime juice, were given to British soldiers to prevent scurvy while they were at sea. A primitive brew similar to beer was given to the slaves who built the Great Pyramids. It functioned as a mild sedative and was good source carbohydrates for energy and was purer than Nile water. Did you know that hops are a member of the hemp family and are closely related to marijuana? Do you think it's a coincidence?

4. Marijuana is healthier than we think


Speaking of marijuana...let's talk about one of the world's favorite herbs! Whether you use it or not, it's hard to deny the benefits of this plant. First, the part that people smoke is the bud, which is the flowering part of the female plant. The leaves can also be smoked, but they are less potent as they contain only a small fraction of the volume of THC compared to the bud. Tetrahydrocannabinol is chemical, which has a mind-altering effect when smoked.

In terms of global consumption, marijuana is second only to alcohol. Scientific research have shown time and time again that marijuana use is much less harmful to the body than alcohol or tobacco. In fact, there is a compound derived from marijuana that freezes the growth and stops the spread of cancer cells. Additionally, marijuana helps cancer patients undergoing chemotherapy by stimulating their appetite (for snacks). Hemp, which is derived from a species of marijuana plant with a lower concentration of THC, has an incredibly diverse range of industrial uses, including textiles, paper, biodegradable plastics, biofuels, and construction uses. However, hemp production is strictly regulated. Besides, if the apocalypse happens, the best thing you can have with you is a pocket of marijuana seeds: they contain all the essential amino acids and are one of the only things that can help a person survive for a long period of time without other supplemental nutrition .

3. Being in love is akin to obsessive-compulsive disorder.


Another of the favorite things in the world is love. Anything that makes us feel “good”, such as alcohol, marijuana and love, has become one of humanity’s obsessions. So what else don't you know about love? Did you know that, neurologically, the feeling of falling in love is very similar to the sensations experienced when using cocaine? Did you know that people who are in love experience prolonged periods of low serotonin levels, which are similar to the levels found in people with obsessive-compulsive disorder, which could explain why people behave so erratically when they get into relationships. Did you know that people looking for long-term relationships are more likely to look for someone with an attractive face rather than an attractive body? People who are looking for an attractive body in to a greater extent looking for a sexy date, not something long lasting. Did you know that people who are on roughly the same “level” of attractiveness are more likely to have a long-term relationship than a couple in which one partner is either extremely attractive or extremely unattractive? So if you want Serious relationships, then you should look for a person who matches your attractiveness.

Did you know that falling in love gives you the same feeling as if you were walking into oncoming traffic? This is not true, but sometimes this is how love feels.

2. Breakups can be dangerous.


In fact, a breakup is one of the most painful things a person can experience psychosomatically. Research has shown that the emotional experience of a breakup can cause physical manifestations, including heart pain, known as "stress syndrome." broken heart" Research has also shown that the physical and emotional pain of a breakup can be alleviated somewhat by looking at a photo of the person you broke up with. On the other hand, magnetic resonance imaging scans of people whose partners broke up show activity in the part of the brain that experiences and manages anger rather than sadness. In fact, according to one study, 40-70 percent of murdered women were killed by their spouses or partners because losing love makes you crazier than finding it.

1. The Earth Could Be Repopulated With Half a Cup of Sperm


Below are a few interesting things you might not know about your "other" favorite activity... intercourse. Even though it only takes one sperm to fertilize an egg, men produce about 300 million sperm per teaspoon of semen, so in theory, it would be possible to repopulate the Earth to its current level with half a cup (24 teaspoons) of sperm. Depending on which source of information you trust, semen has 5 to 20 calories per teaspoon and about the same protein content as egg white (in case you were ever wondering). Sperm can travel at a speed of approximately 18 centimeters per hour and can remain alive in the female reproductive system for up to 9 days. Most women only lay one egg per month and, by the way, the egg is actually the only individual human cell that is visible to the naked eye. At one time, British spies used semen as an almost undetectable invisible ink, but abandoned the practice due to the smell that came from old documents... and now you know it, even if you didn't mean it...

Medical cannibalism

Cannibalism was indeed widespread in Europe in the 16th and 17th centuries. European doctors used human flesh and preparations made from corpses as often as herbs, roots and tree bark.

Nowadays Egyptian mummies a great rarity, not because over thousands of years in their tombs they crumbled into dust, but because they were in great demand in Europe in the 17th century - Europeans used Egyptian mummies crushed into powder to treat the sick.

"Demons" that have taken over human bodies

In the Middle Ages, it was believed that near-death convulsions were caused by demons that entered the human body and prevented it from either dying or being resurrected. Medieval Christians believed that demons were disembodied spirits that often inhabited the soulless bodies of the dead. Those bodies that were believed to be possessed by demons, i.e. any body that was in convulsions after death was destroyed without delay.

The Fijian chief Udre Udre is believed to have been the world's most voracious cannibal. He ate nothing but human flesh and devoured at least 872 people in his entire life. Most often, his “dinner” was the bodies of enemies killed by the warriors of his tribe.

In India, there once was a ritual in which the wives of deceased husbands (presumably voluntarily) allowed themselves to be burned on their husband's funeral pyre.

If a widow refused to participate in this ritual, she was condemned by the community and became an outcast, so the “voluntary” nature of such self-immolation raises questions.

The funeral of a Viking leader was marked by cruelty - not so much for the deceased, but for his slaves who "voluntarily" joined him in the afterlife.

According to the description of the 10th century Arab traveler Ahmad ibn Fadlan, the Viking funeral ceremony was long and merciless.

The leader's body was placed for 10 days in a hut built on the deck of his ship. Near the body was old woman- "Angel of Death". She and her daughters guarded the slave girl around the clock, who volunteered to accompany the leader to the afterlife. The girl was doped with alcoholic drinks in the hope of putting her into a trance and was subjected to strange rituals. At the end of the rituals, the “angel of death” pierced the girl with a dagger, and the ship with the bodies of the leader and the girl was set on fire.

The Romans used urine as a mouthwash. If the urine is left on long enough long time in some container, it will turn into ammonia, which can whiten teeth. Catullus, the Roman poet, even wrote about this in his works.

In the XVII and XVIII centuries It was fashionable to make bindings from human skin, especially for anatomical books and erotica. This type of binding is called "anthropodermic", and it is claimed that 47 books bound in human skin can be found in libraries and universities around the world, 9 of which have been verifiably confirmed.