My photo shows a Paleo-Babylonian clay tablet inscribed with cuneiform text, still partially enclosed in its original clay envelope. The clay is pale orangey-brown in colour displayed against a grey display case background. The outer envelope has been broken open, revealing the inner tablet beneath. Both surfaces are covered with densely packed wedge-shaped characters, which record a contract for the sale of a house purchased by Mannum-balu-Samas at the price of 1/3 shekel and 15 grains of silver. This is followed by the names of the numerous witnesses including the mayor Sin-magir and the courier Apil-ilisu. The same text is repeated on the envelope in the event of a dispute, which was broken to inspect the internal document. It is dated 32nd year of Hammurabl's reign, 10th month, c. 1750 BC. The clay envelope measures 87 mm (height) × 55 mm (width), while the inner tablet measures 64 mm (height) × 43 mm (width). On display at the Museum of Antiquity in Turin. Collection number MAT 740.

A 3,750 year-old contract for the sale of a house recorded on a clay tablet, still in its original clay envelope!

Museo di Antichità, Turin
📷 by me

#Archaeology

Let everyone who can, work from home. Emit less, however we can.

Maybe it’ll slow the changes in the #AMOC.

Otherwise we’re really screwed, dictators or no dictators.

This #AMOC slowdown is what’s going to change our world in shocking ways. If we can reverse or slow this change we must.

The impacts will be everywhere, intensifying rain and drought in California and weakening life-giving rain in India.

Lilies of the Valley, violets and forget me nots, ferns, small butterfly. Painting.

Lilies of the Valley, Albert Durer Lucas, 1888.

Félix Vallotton - Le phare, soir, 1915. Oil on canvas, 54 x 72 cm

Such a great song about ethnic difference, imagination and the experience of class in America.

That’s my take anyway! I could have been that kid.

1. Starfish and coffee
2. If I was your girlfriend
3. When doves cry

Every good story needs a villain… it’s the heat 🔥

Governments and other employers did push the use of email in the early ‘90’s - it was a hard sell at first. The idea that your boss could email you at 7 pm and expect you to email back, and have a new work product by 9 am for them to review…. That was new and very difficult to accept at the time.

This is so important. New study shows 90% odds of the #AMOC being 50% weaker by 2100.
Now Europe and E Canada have to prepare to be colder and face intense storms, and the rest of the northern hemisphere has to prepare for heavier rain … while India and west Africa are likely to have less. Bonkers.

Sigh.

Are we ready to drastically cut emissions yet? No?

Synergistic impact of marine heat waves and rapid intensification exacerbates tropical cyclone destructive power worldwide Marine heat waves supercharge tropical cyclones, leading to unprecedented strengthening and greater economic damages worldwide.

“We use 40 yrs of global data to demonstrate that TCs experiencing Rapid Intensification during Marine Heat Waves resulted in 60% more billion-dollar disasters… produced consistently higher maximum wind speeds, storm surges, and precipitation rates.” www.science.org/doi/10.1126/...

Lots of algae in the Bay lately- probably from that record-breaking warm March spell.

What you’re really agreeing to when you use an LLM

As usual, I’m sure THIS IS FINE.

Too soon, IMHO, to make a joke.

Those women Swalwell appears to have assaulted are really hurting and being very brave right now.

But I know there’s the temptation to be cynical about it all. I just want the victims to be centered here a while longer. They’re going to be put through a wringer.

Not to be humorless, but I actually think his mistake was that he assaulted women.

And yes I know you were kidding.

Screenshot Lucavi @lucavi_ftw good news everyone SPACE com Potatoes are better than human blood for making space concrete bricks, scientists say.

Were

Were those the only two options

Celebratory dance in Hungary

This figure should make everyone in the state of CA furious. Market rate multifamily building costs in CA are 2.5x+ Texas.

This is also, for the record, the kind of thing that drives insurance premiums through the roof. If builders pay this to build, insurers pay it to rebuild.

Guardian article discussing the coffee chain’s pledge to remove Pride flags

Uh oh, Philz coffee in Cali is really going to feel this… there’s a boycott coming, I’m sure.

I’m sure this is fine

the year is 2026. you're a jewish american woman. the world leader you most respect is the catholic pope. everything's fine.

the unique thing today is not the existence of a powerful fascist movement. it's the existence of a powerful fascist movement (mostly) relegated to a single party.

Exactly. And my laundry awaits.

Amazing treasures of medieval legal history to distract one briefly from current news and marking - the Catslechta ˙ (or Cat-sections) - an old Irish legal text on cats (the Senchas Már) which even sets out various categories of cats based on various characteristics or talents.
#medievalsky

Throw “suddenly needing to know what the Avignon Papacy is” on the pile of reasons why higher education shouldn’t cancel humanities programs.

Thinking about how funny it is that "digital" has come to be associated with dematerialized conditions when etymologically it comes from like, fingers, the thing you use to touch stuff

Here too

Armageddon is terrible, but our only other option was diversity trainings at work.