Author: A_C_Unit

The content below is from Episode 104 of the Who’d a Thunk It? Podcast

RECOMMENDATION SEGMENT

• Shannon recorded the recommendation segment this week. Tune in to the audio podcast to hear what recommends you check out.

NOW FOR THE MAIN EVENT

• Micheal Clark Rockefeller was the youngest of 5 children raised by Mary Todhunter Rockefeller and Nelson Rockefeller.
  • He was born on May 18th of 1938.
  • Mike’s father Nelson was a New York Governor and former U.S. Vice President.
  • He was the grandson of American financer John D. Rockefeller Jr. and the great grandson of Standard Oil co-founder John D. Rockefeller. 
  • Basically Mike was American Royalty.
    • His story is one of those bios I read and can’t help but self reflect by saying to myself: “look at all the amazing crap this dude in his life by the age of like 25… what am I doing?”
    • But then I realize I wasn’t born in to one of the top 10 most wealthiest familes to have ever existed. Also, I realize I’m a happy person and that’s what matters most to me. … MOVING ON! lol
  • After attending The Buckley School in New York, and graduating from the Phillips Exeter Academy in New Hampshire, where he was a student senator and exceptional varsity wrestler, Rockefeller graduated cum laude from Harvard University with a A.B. in history and economics.
  • Though his father expected him to follow in his footsteps and help manage the family’s vast business empire, Michael was a quieter, more artistic spirit. When he graduated from Harvard in 1960, he wanted to do something more exciting than sit around in boardrooms and conduct meetings.

• In 1960, he served for six months as a private in the U.S. Army and then went on an expedition for Harvard’s Peabody Museum of Archaeology and Ethnology to study the Dani tribe of western Netherlands New Guinea.
  • It was then known as western Netherlands or Dutch New Guinea. It is a massive island off the coast of Australia.
    • Today, New Guinea (the worlds 2nd largest island) doesn’t all fly the same flag.
    • New Guinea is administratively divided into two parts: its western half comprises the Indonesian provinces of Papua and West Papua (collectively, formerly called Irian Jaya); and its eastern half comprises the major part of Papua New Guinea, an independent country since 1975.
    • It is an island of immense cultural and biological diversity, it’s known for its beaches and coral reefs. Inland are active volcanoes, granite Mt. Wilhelm, dense rainforest and hiking routes like the Kokoda Trail. There are also traditional tribal villages, many with their own languages

• Michael Rockefeller’s expedition filmed Dead Birds, an ethnographic documentary movie produced by Robert Gardner, and for which Rockefeller was the sound recordist.
  • “Michael said he wanted to do something that hadn’t been done before and to bring a major collection to New York” said Karl Heider, a graduate student of anthropology at Harvard who worked with Michael. By collection he was referring to a art or “primitive art” as they called it at the time.
  • Michael’s father Nelson Rockefeller was a prolific art collector. He had recently opened the Museum of Primitive Art, and its exhibits, including Nigerian, Aztec, and Mayan works. And this seemed to captivate young Michael.

• Rockefeller and a friend briefly left the expedition to study the Asmat tribe of southern Netherlands New Guinea. After returning home from the Peabody expedition, Rockefeller returned to New Guinea to study the Asmat and collect Asmat art.

• Michael’s upbringing had already given him ample experience with travel.
  • He had traveled extensively already, living in Japan and Venezuela for months at a time, and he craved something new: he wanted to embark on an anthropological expedition to a place few would ever see.
• By the 1960s, Dutch colonial authorities and missionaries had already been on the island for almost a decade, but many Asmat people had never seen a white man.With severely limited contact with the outside world, the Asmat believed the land beyond their island to be inhabited by spirits, and when white people came from across the sea, they saw them as some kind of supernatural beings.
  • When Mike Rockefeller and the other white people with him wondered in to their territory they were an unwelcomed curiosity.
  • The locals put up with the team’s photography, but they didn’t allow the white researchers to purchase cultural artifacts, like bisj poles, intricately carved wooden pillars that serve as part of Asmat rituals and religious rites.
  • Michael was undeterred. In the Asmat people, he found what he felt was a fascinating violation of the norms of Western society — and he was more anxious than ever to bring their world back to his.
  • At the time, war between villages was common, and Michael learned that Asmat warriors often took the heads of their enemies and ate their flesh. In certain regions, Asmat men would engage in ritual homosexual sex, and in bonding rites, they would sometimes drink each other’s urine.
  • His journal read: “Now this is wild and somehow more remote country than what I have ever seen before.”
  • When the initial scouting mission concluded, Michael Rockefeller was energized. He wrote out his plans to create a detailed anthropological study of the Asmat and display a collection of their art in his father’s museum.

“It’s the desire to do something adventurous, at a time when frontiers, in the real sense of the word, are disappearing.”

Michael C Rockefeller

He spent his time in Netherlands New Guinea actively engaged with the culture and the art while recording ethnographic data. In one of his letters home he wrote:

“I am having a thoroughly exhausting but most exciting time here … The Asmat is like a huge puzzle with the variations in ceremony and art style forming the pieces. My trips are enabling me to comprehend (if only in a superficial, rudimentary manner) the nature of this puzzle…”

Michael C Rockefeller

• Although adventure seems to fill those of us who crave it with a imense sense of purpose and thrill, it is also dangerous.
  • In fact, the danger is what makes it so damn fun.
  • While attributes such as experience, grit, strength, and intellect can partially negate the dangers of adventure; even the most battle-hardened adventurers are still mere humans and therefore can fall victim to these dangerous circumstances.
  • Mike was very intelligent, strong, and had all the resources imaginable at his disposal, and yet he did fall victim to the dangers of adventure.

• On November 17, 1961, Rockefeller and Dutch anthropologist René Wassing were in a 40-foot (12-metre) dugout canoe about 3 nautical miles (6 kilometres; 3 miles) from shore when their double pontoon boat was swamped and overturned. Their two local guides swam for help, but it was slow in coming.
  • After drifting for some time, early on November 19, 1961, Rockefeller said to Wassing: “I think I can make it.” He then swam for shore. The boat was an estimated 12 nmi (22 km; 14 mi) from the shore when he made the attempt to swim to safety, supporting the theory that he died from exposure, exhaustion, or drowning.
  • Wassing was rescued the next day, but Rockefeller was never seen again, despite an intensive and lengthy search effort. At the time, Rockefeller’s disappearance was a major world news item. His body has never been found.
  • Rockefeller was declared legally dead in 1964.

• Rich and politically connected, Michael’s family ensured that no expense was spared in the search for the young Rockefeller. Ships, airplanes, and helicopters scoured the region, searching for Michael or some sign of his fate. Even his parents flew to New Guinea to help in the search for their son.
  • The Dutch interior minister was quoted saying “There is no longer any hope of finding Michael Rockefeller alive,” just 9 days after he had gone missing.
  • His official cause of death was written down as drowning.

• While that is the official story, it is not the end of our story.
  • and could you imagine if it was?
    • Rick boy goes on an adventure and disappears, never to be seen again. The end. Thanks for coming. Good night… no. Now we delve into what most THINK happened to Michael C Rockefeller.
  • In 2014, Carl Hoffman, a reporter for National Geographic, revealed in his book Savage Harvest: A Tale of Cannibals, Colonialism and Michael Rockefeller’s Tragic Quest for Primitive Art that many of the Netherlands’ inquiries into the matter resulted in evidence that the Asmat killed Michael.
  • Apparently there were 2 dutch missionaries that had lived among the Asmat people for years. They spoke their language well and were told by Asmat people that they had killed a white man around that time. Based on the Missionaries’ description, the Asmat people beleived their own had killed Michael Rockefeller.
  • There was also a police officer by the name Wim van de Waal who also was convinced Michael had been killed by the Asmat people. He supposedly was given a skull by the Asmat that they claimed was Michael’s.
  • But the police report was classified and never shown to the Rockefeller family. They were told anything beyond his disapearance was mere rumor.
• How Michael Rockefeller Died At The Hands Of Cannibals according to Carl Hoffman… over 50 years later.
  • Carl travelled to New Guinea, specifically to Otsjanep.

• Apparently his guide overheard a couple of locals say something like “don’t talk about the white American that died here,” or something like that.
  • I find this a bit hard to beleive because who talks about something that happened 50 years ago? … but whatever, I wasn’t there.
  • Carl asked his interpreter to pry. The interpreter asked who the man was that the locals were talking about, and he was told it was Michael Rockefeller. He learned that it was common knowledge on the island that the Asmat people of Otsjanep killed a white man, but they shoulnd’t talk about it for fear of revenge or whatever.
• But Carl and his interpreter also learned more about Michael’s supposed murder.
  • Just 3 years before Michael arrived on in Otsjanep there was war between the Asmat people. The Otsjanep people were having it out with the Omadesep and dozens of men from each side were killed.
  • The Dutch had just recently taken control of the island and wanted to keep their new land as colonizable as possible. So the Ducth colonial government tried to put an end to the violence… (because when foreigners try to put an end to age-old wars it always works out just fine lol).
  • The Dutch tried to disarm the Otsjanep tribe, but it didn’t go well. The two cultures were so different that communications were bound to break down. It ended witht he Dutch open firing on the Otsjanep people.
  • This was one of the Otsjanep people’s first time coming in to contact with white people and western cultures. It was definitely their first time with firearms. And what happened? The village watched as 4 of their jeus (war leaders) were shot and killed.
  • Try to imagine what their impression of white people was at the time. Just 3 years later and a young Michael Rockefeller was swimming ashore right up to these people…
• Well according to one of those Dutch missionaries, the Otsjanep tribespeople who first saw Michael in the water thought he was a crocodile, but quickly realized he was a Dutch colonizer or a tuan as the locals called them.
  • These first people on the banks to see Michael were jeus themselves, but not just any jeus. They were the sons of the men who were gunned down just 3 years prior. They had a score to settle. “People of Otsjanep, your’ve always talking about headhuting tuans. Well, here is your chance,” cried one of the jeus.
  • At first the villagers were hesitant, probably for the consequences of their actions. But it wasn’t long before their spears were thrust in to the exhausted Michael who had just swam 12 miles.
  • Then it got pretty gruesome. Once he was dead they cut off Michael’s head, cracked open his skull and ate his brain like a coconut. They cooked his body on a spit over a fire and ate his flesh.
  • No part of his body went to waste. His thigh bones were used to make daggers and his tibias were sharpened to make fishing spear points.
  • His blood was drained. The Otsjanep tribesmen bathed in it while they performed ritual dances and sex acts.
    • This all sounds like some sick and evil act. And maybe it is in some objectionabley kind of judgement that we humans don’t have access to.
  • But in the minds of these tribesmen this was the right thing to do. It was their beliefe, their theology. The Otsjanep people believed in a balance of the world and that they should restore this balance. To them: the “white man tribe” had killed 4 of their highest ranking warriors. It was setting the balance of the world back to normal when they took Michael’s power. They consumed his body and absorbed his energy, the very same energy that had been taken from them.
    • Again, this is all according to Carl Hoffman in his book written in 2014 from a translator who was talking to Dutch missionaries.
    • That is quite a long line for this information to pass along (kind of like the telephone game). Also, 50 years is a long time for information to be distorted or fabricated all together. So who knows if this really happened.
    • Though many Asmat people told this story to Hoffman, no one who took part in the death would come forward; all simply said it was a story they had heard.

• Aftermath
  • Of course the Otsjanep people didn’t just forget about it the next day. They couldn’t because it wasn’t long at all before the search for Michael came to their doorstep.
  • Remember, his mom and dad scoured the area with every ship, plane, and helicopter the Rockefeller fortune could buy. And for the Asmat people this must have seemed like the equivalent of a UFO army landing on the White House lawn. They had never seen these types of vessels before.
  • Not long after, cholera swept through the Otsjanep village and surrounding area. These villagers probably connected this sickness to the murder of the white man.
• Then, one day when Hoffman was in the village, shortly before he returned to the U.S., he saw a man miming a killing as part of a story he was telling to another man. The tribesman pretended to spear someone, shoot an arrow, and chop off a head. Hearing words relating to murder, Hoffman began to film — but the story was already over.

Hoffman was, however, able to catch its epilogue on film:

“Don’t you tell this story to any other man or any other village, because this story is only for us. Don’t speak. Don’t speak and tell the story. I hope you remember it and you must keep this for us. I hope, I hope, this is for you and you only. Don’t talk to anyone, forever, to other people or another village. If people question you, don’t answer. Don’t talk to them, because this story is only for you. If you tell it to them, you’ll die. I am afraid you will die. You’ll be dead, your people will be dead, if you tell this story. You keep this story in your house, to yourself, I hope, forever. Forever…”

• Does Carl Hoffman’s story read like complete mullarky? Yes. To me it does. It seems too sensational to be true. However, I wasn’t there. Sometimes sensational and horrible things happen.
• Should I have saved this episode for Ocotober and make it part of the Who’d a Thunk It? FRIGHTFEST where I post only spooky stories all month? Perhaps, but I couldnt’ help myself. This story surprised me.
  • I couldn’t believe I had never heard it before. Michael C Rockefeller was practically American Royalty and a lot of people believed he was eaten by cannibals?!
• Anyway, THANKS FOR LISTENING WHO’D A THUNKERS!
  • until next week

CREDIT

• https://www.smithsonianmag.com/history/What-Really-Happened-to-Michael-Rockefeller-180949813/
• https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Michael_Rockefeller
• https://allthatsinteresting.com/michael-rockefeller

The content below is from Episode 103 of the Who’d a Thunk It? Podcast

RECOMMENDATION SEGMENT

• This week I recommend you check out the Hulu original series Pam and Tommy
  • The show is about the real-life story of Pamela Anderson and Tommy Lee’s honeymoon sex tape that was stolen and leaked to the public.
  • I was born in 1993 so I don’t remember much at all about this scandal as it was happening. But I do know it was the first viral video. The tape was spread all over the place and just about everyone around at the time saw it. I also know of Pamela Anderson because I was a teenage boy once and she was on Playboy lol.
  • But what makes this show so interesting is how it shows each person involved as actual people.
  • Pamela Anderson wasn’t just a bimbo as many might have thought.
    • She was a small town canadian girl with dreams of becoming a mom.
  • Tommy Lee wasn’t just a rockstar.
    • While the show did portray him as a straight up asshole to his contractors, they also portrayed him as a loving husband and mournful father.
  • The subject material is obviously full of raunchy comedy stuff, but I think the overall message of the show is to highlight what the internet has done to our society as a whole. Whether for better or worse, the internet has connected us all. It is a great power that can be a great help to people, or it could ruin people’s lives.
    • Pam and Tommy’s sex tape is one of the first examples of that.

NOW FOR THE MAIN EVENT

• Back in 1958 the Hurst Performance Inc. was founded by Bill Campbell and George Hurst in Warminster Township Pennsylvania. The company manufactured and marketed products for enhancing the performance of automobiles, most notably muscle cars.
  • George Hurst built a thriving business around motor racing, building floor-mounted gear shifts for race cars.
    • By the early 1960s, Hurst transmission shifters and other products had become legendary in auto racing, particularly in drag racing, and among custom car makers. Many automobile enthusiasts replaced flimsy factory shifters (and steering column shifters, as well) with Hurst floor shifters to obtain better control of gear selection, particularly for competitive driving. As automotive historian Mike Mueller noted, “If you didn’t have a Hurst shifter in your supercar, you were a mild-mannered loser.”
  • His company’s hand in enhancing the performance of some of American’s most beloved cars brought George Hurst to Indianapolis Motor Speedway in 1961.
  • While at the races back in 61′ he witnessed a crash and watched as the rescue crews took over an hour just to extract the driver from the wreckage.
  • An idea came to him in that grimm moment: “there has to be a better way.” This idea occurs to many people, but it takes that entrepreneurial spirit to get things done.

• Hurst got to work. He had to come up a process or tool to make wreckage extraction more efficient.
  • He started by examining the current tools used: circular saws.
    • Besides taking much too long to cut in to the frame of a car, these saws were extremely loud (which distresses those who are trapped), and they create sparks which greatly increase the chance of an explosion (considering car wrecks typically have fuel spilled everywhere).
    • Other attempts to free trapped victims were done with a crowbar or halligan bar, but in doing so, rescue crews often made vehicles unstable. Prying open car doors giant metal bars works, but isn’t a quick job. It takes a lot of time and man power. Plus, all that jostling around shifts the car and could endanger the trapped victim further.
  • So Hurst came up with a different tool: the Hurst Power Tool
    • The first prototype was a patented hydraulic rescue tool that weighed 350 pounds. This of course was far too heavy for rescue crews to weild properly, but it was a start.

• Within a decade, the Hurst Power Tool was cut down to about 65 pounds, making it MUCH more useful and marketable.
  • In 1971, they took the Hurst Power Tool to the SEMA trade show  for specialty equipment marketers in California. The spotlight propelled their device into stardom, and soon, fire departments were carrying it on their firetrucks.
  • The world of rescue soon realized hydraulic spreader-cutters are quieter, faster, stronger, and more versatile: they can cut, open, and even lift a vehicle.
  • Another little cool detail about the Jaws of Life is about the hydraulic fluid used:
    • Oil is the most commonly used incompressible fluid for hydraulic machines. However, the Jaws of Life equipment uses a phosphate-ester fluid, which is fire resistant and electrically non-conductive. At a crash scene, this type of synthetic fluid is favored over conventional oil.
    • The little details like that are what make this piece of equipment so cool. It was created by a company that developed badass car parts that are known for being dangerous, but their rescue equipment is made for safety. Down to the type of hydraulic fluid used.
  • When an occupant is trapped the tool is used to pry or cut the car to remove the occupant. It takes about two minutes to take the roof off a car. 
  • What used to take an hour, now only took rescue crews about 3 minutes.
    • As the Hurst website notes, “In three minutes, the average person can listen to a song, make their bed or brush their teeth. In three minutes, first responders can save a life with HURST Jaws of Life tools.”
  • Firefighters can elect to carry a combination tool that is the Swiss Army knife of the Jaws of Life, with cutting and spreading functions that increase the speed of extrication. Some departments also carry individual-function Jaws of Life machines that spread, cut, and ram. The StrongArm was adapted to meet the standards of law enforcement and military communities, adding a capable tool to their breaching arsenals. 
    • From what I can tell, it seems 5,000 pounds per square inch is the standard amount of forced used with these tools. I’m sure they can go higher, but that is the standard.
    • For comparison: the strongest bite ever recorded was a saltwater crocodile with 3,700 psi and we humans bite in to a steak with about 150 to 200 psi.

• The Hurst Power Tool adopted the nickname the “Jaws of Life” for its role in snatching victims from the “jaws of death.”
  • Mike Brick (the man Hurst hired to market his invention) coined the phrase “Jaws of Life” after he observed people saying that their new device “snatched people from the jaws of death”, then used as a registered brand name for Hurst products. The name “jaws of life” is, however, used colloquially to describe other hydraulic rescue tools.
  • In the marketing and public relations field, this name is regarded as an amazing idea. The Jaws of Life sounds badass and it represents an invention that is super cool… that also happens to save lives on a regular basis.
  • Jaws of Life is still a trademarked brand name. But could be in danger to losing their rights to the name to genericization of the trademark.
    • A generic trademark, also known as a genericized trademark or proprietary eponym, is a trademark or brand name that, because of its popularity or significance, has become the generic term for, or synonymous with, a general class of products or services, usually against the intentions of the trademark’s owner.
    • Back in episode 12 “Trademark, Patent, or Copyright?” of the Who’d a Thunk It? Podcast I talked more about this.
    • Trademarks such as Band-Aid, Escalator, Laundromat, and Popsicle were once owned by companies as official brand names, but now lost their exclusive rights to the names. Once their product names became common use words that weren’t brand-specific they became entries in the dictionary and not specific names owned by companies.
    • The name “jaws of life” is such a badass name that it is used colloquially to describe other hydraulic rescue tools. This puts the trademark as risk.
  • I know I went on a tangent there, but I studied communication law in college and it fascinates me.

• Another great Public Relations campaign conducted by Hurst is the Green Cross Award
  • Straight from JawsofLife.com:
    • The Green Cross is the symbol of recognition for those who have used HURST Jaws of Life^® products to save lives. It’s our way of celebrating the bravery shown by rescue teams worldwide. Since the program’s inception, we’ve acknowledged tens of thousands of men and women around the globe with this prestigious honor.

• I have a lot of respect for this company and their Public Relations tactics. It comes off as a nice story:
  • Founder of Hurst built his fortune by making muscle cars more efficient and drive faster. – One day he sees the other side of his industry when he whitnesses a crash. The danger associated with his work shocked him and he felt compelled to do something. So he invents life-saving tool that cuts the time of a rescue (situations where every second counts) down by over 55 minutes. With this invention he completely changes how fire and rescue operations are conducted all over the world.
    • It kind of reads like the Iron Man story. I love it.
    • And it just so happens his invention (along with having one of the coolest names for any piece of equipment ever) also looks like a badass piece of equipment. Similar to how little boys look upon modern constructions equipment like dump trucks and backhoes with admiration, I found myself googling what it would cost to buy my very own Jaws of Life… it is like $13,000 LMAO

• The Hurst Performance company was bought out in 1970 by Sunbeam Products.
  • George Hurst was promised an executive position and seat on the board of directors as part of the buyout, but Sunbeam did not follow through. (According to one variation of this account, Sunbeam specifically informed Mr. Hurst that he would no longer be affiliated with the company.)
  • In 1987, the Hurst operations were sold by Sunbeam and became part of the Mr. Gasket Company. In 2007, B&M Racing and Performance Products bought the Hurst brand.

• George Hurst died in 1986 at the age of 59. His invention, without a doubt, is one of the most instrumental tools used to save lives of the 20th century and it is still in use today all across the world.

CREDIT:

• https://coffeeordie.com/george-hurst-jaws-of-life/
• https://www.firerescue1.com/extrication/articles/5-times-jaws-of-life-saved-a-life-rpDDh55NsTMcbgnE/\
• https://www.jawsoflife.com/the-green-cross/three-minutes-to-save-a-life
• https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hurst_Performance#:~:text=In%201987%2C%20the%20Hurst%20operations,Products%20bought%20the%20Hurst%20brand.
• https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hydraulic_rescue_tool
• https://auto.howstuffworks.com/car-driving-safety/accidents-hazardous-conditions/jaws-life.htm

The content below is from Episode 101 of the Who’d a Thunk It? Podcast

RECOMMENDATION SEGMENT

• This week I recommend you check out the HBO Max series Peacemaker.
  • From creator James Gunn, Peacemaker is weird, fun, and explicit… just like all of James Gunn’s work.
    • It follows the story of a comic book character known as Peacemaker
    • Peacemaker is the name of a series of fictional characters originally owned by Charlton Comics and later acquired by DC Comics. The original Peacemaker first appeared in Fightin’ 5 #40 and was created by writer Joe Gill and artist Pat Boyette back in 1966.
  • Is Peacemaker a hero or villain? Hard to say what the world would call him, but he calls himself a hero.
  • James Gunn’s version of Peacemaker is played by John Cena.
    • Cena does a wonderful job portraying this damaged psychopath as he tries to safe the world from the alien race known as Butterflies.
    • He likes 1980s rock ballads, his best friend Eagley (who is an intelligent bald eagle), and creating peace at any cost.
  • Also, this show has one of the best intro sequences I have ever seen.
    • At first I thought it was weird and corny (and it is), but then it grew on me. Watch the intro for yourself:

NOW FOR THE MAIN EVENT

• I love beer. Probably too much.
  • But I ain’t the only one: Around the world, humans consume over 50 billion gallons of beer every year and it is the most widley consumed alcoholic drink on the plant.
  • So for this episode I wanted to go in to the history of beer and how it shaped our world today.
  • There a few questions I have always had surrounding beer and I thought I would share the answers I found here!

• First let us start with the History of Beer
  • Beer is old, very old. People have been making and drinking beer for so long that dating the origin of beer is rounded to the nearest thousand-year mark.
    • The first beer in the world was thought to be brewed by the ancient Chinese around the year 7000 BCE (known as kui). In the west, however, the process now recognized as beer brewing began in Mesopotamia at the Godin Tepe settlement now in modern-day Iran between 3500 – 3100 BCE.
    • But sources differ on this. Martin Zarnkow, a brewing historian in the Center of Life and Food Sciences at the Munich Technical University said “(ancient) Sumerians didn’t discover beer, nor did the Egyptians, as some people believe. Theories point to beer being produced in the Neolithic Revolution more than 11,000 years ago.”
    • What I take away from all these different sources giving different dates is that beer has been around for so long that we aren’t exactly sure how old it is.
    • As almost any cereal containing certain sugars can undergo spontaneous fermentation due to wild yeasts in the air, it is possible that beer-like drinks were independently developed throughout the world soon after a tribe or culture had domesticated cereal. Chemical tests of ancient pottery jars reveal that beer was produced as far back as about 7,000 years ago in what is today Iran. This discovery reveals one of the earliest known uses of fermentation and is the earliest evidence of brewing to date.
  • What we know is what it would take to create beer, and that does give us some clues.
    • Beer is made with grain. So it stands to reason a civilization would need more grain than what was needed to feed their population.
      • Because if you are starving, you will probably eat the grain before brewing up a 6 pack.
    • In addition to grain you also need a water source and storage so the brew can sit. This storage space and time allows the brew to go through the fermentation process.
      • Fermentation being yeast eating sugars to create alcohol.
    • So for the first people to make beer they needed a lot of grain, probably in the form of a farmed feild.
    • The first beer makers were almost certainly not nomadic in nature because it isn’t easy to haul big jugs of water and beer around as you wait for it to ferment.
    • Some historians theorized that beer was a big part of why humans started to give up their nomadic ways and start to settle in specific places. But the same argument can be made that argriculture as a whole was the reason.
      • Still is a fun thought that beer was the thing that tamed humanity from roaming all over.
    • So even though historians can’t agree on when beer brewing started, it is a safe bet that it didn’t start before agricutlure.

• Beer even infiltrated ancient mythologies
  • Back in 1800BC, a poem was written down on a clay tablet that gave instructions on how to brew beer. It is known as the Hymn to Ninkasi.
  • Ninkasi is the tutelary goddess of beer in ancient Sumerian religious mythology.
  • The Hymn to Ninkasi is at once a song of praise to Ninkasi, the Sumerian goddess of beer, and an ancient recipe for brewing. Written down around 1800 BCE, the hymn is no doubt much older as evidenced by the techniques it details which scholars have determined were actually in use long before the hymn was written.
  • The Hymn to Ninkasi is the oldest record of a direct correlation between the importance of brewing, and the responsibility that women had with regard to supplying both bread and beer to the household. Ninkasi is female, and the fact that a female deity was invoked in prayer with regards to the production of brewed beverages illustrated the relationship between brewing and women as a domestic right and duty.
  • The repetitive nature of the poem suggests that it was used as a tool in order to pass down information from generation to generation as a way of learning.

• In the Christian religion there is Saint Brigid of Kildare or Brigid of Ireland
  • Saint Brigid of Kildare or Brigid of Ireland ( 451 – 525) is the patroness saint (or ‘mother saint’) of Ireland, and one of its three national saints along with Patrick and Columba. According to medieval Irish hagiographies (which are biographies of saints), she was an abbess (or head nun) who founded several convents of nuns, most notably that of Kildare, which was one of the most important in Ireland.
  • There are few historical facts about her, and early hagiographies are mainly anecdotes and miracle tales, some of which are rooted in pagan folklore.
    • St. Brigid is one of the appropriated saints meaning the Christians made her a saint to appeal to the local’s religious beliefs in hope that they would convert to Christianity.
  •  Saint Brigid shares her name with a Celtic goddess. She is patroness of many things, including poetry, learning, healing, protection, blacksmithing, livestock and dairy production… and of course beer. 
    • Brigid pre-dates Christianity and is said to have created an entire lake of beer in order to help a leper colony.
• Here is St. Brigid and/or Celtic Goddess Brigid’s prayer about beer in heaven:

I would like a great lake of beer for the King of Kings.

I would like to be watching Heaven’s family drinking it through all eternity.

I’d like to give a lake of beer to God.

I’d love the Heavenly Host to be tippling there For all eternity.

I’d love the men of Heaven to live with me, To dance and sing.

If they wanted, I’d put at their disposal Vats of suffering.

White cups of love I’d give them, With a heart and a half; Sweet pitchers of mercy I’d offer To every man.

I’d make Heaven a cheerful spot, Because the happy heart is true.

I’d make the men contented for their own sake I’d like Jesus to love me too.

I’d like the people of heaven to gather From all the parishes around, I’d give a special welcome to the women, The three Marys of great renown.

I’d sit with the men, the women of God There by the lake of beer We’d be drinking good health forever And every drop would be a prayer.

• There is a theory that whenever the Bible is talking about wine, it was most likely beer.
  • The area in which the Bible takes place in an area of the world that wasn’t very condusive to growing red wine grapes. Instead, Jeruselem and other parts of the middle east would have had much more grain and honey at their disposal than grapes.
  • The reason why the modern version of the bible assumes it was wine is because the scholars that interpretted it were from Italy and France where the common alcoholic drink is wine.
  • But in reality, it is MUCH more likely the alcohol that the characters of the bible were drinking was Beer, Mead, or some combination of the two.

• Speaking of Christianity and Beer, where did the association of monks and beer come from?
  • The short answer is charity. Before the industrial revolution, beer wasn’t just a party beverage, it was a food source.
  • Monastaries would brew beer as a liquid alternative to bread and provide it to the poor and starving.
  • Before the discovery of yeast and how it played a major role in the creation of alcohol, it was thought that alcohol only came to be due to a divine blessing.

• America’s History of Beer
  • Prior to Prohibition, there were thousands of breweries in the United States, mostly brewing heavier beers than modern US beer drinkers are used to.
  • Beginning in 1920, most of these breweries went out of business from prohibition and the depression, although some converted to soft drinks and other businesses.
  • Bootlegged beer was often watered down to increase profits, beginning a trend, still on-going today, of the American markets heavily advertising the weaker beers and keeping them popular.
    • I find that fascinating. Because of the stock market crash and the outlawing of alcohol in America, beer started to be sold illegally and unregulated. Because it wasn’t regulated, distributors began watering down their brews to maximize profits. That is when the American public got a taste for really light beers and that is why we still love them today.
      • THIS IS WHY I FIND HISTORY TO BE SO AMAZING
      • It is like connecting the dots and seeing the entire picture.
  • Consolidation of breweries and the application of industrial quality control standards have led to the mass-production and the mass-marketing of huge quantities of light lagers. Advertising became supreme, and bigger companies fared better in that market.
  • The decades after World War II saw a huge consolidation of the American brewing industry: brewing companies would buy their rivals solely for their customers and distribution systems, shutting down their brewing operations.
  • In the last 150 years there as been a trend in the American Brewery scene:
    • Despite the record increases in production between 1870 and 1895, the number of firms fell by 46%. Average brewery output rose significantly, driven partly by a rapid increase in output by the largest breweries.
    • As late as 1877, only four breweries topped 100,000 barrels annually. By 1895, the largest sixteen firms had greatly increased their productive capacity and were all brewing over 250,000 barrels annually; and imports have become more abundant since the mid-1980s. The number of breweries has been claimed as being either over 1,500 in 2007 or over 1,400 in 2010, depending on the source. As of June 2013, The Brewers Association reports the total number of currently operating US breweries to be 2,538, with only 55 of those being non-craft breweries.

• I’ve always wondered about the different kinds of beers
• Lager
  • Lagers are a typical entry point into beer for new drinkers. Made with bottom fermenting yeast that has a lower tolerance to alcohol, lagers can taste light and a little malty. Classic lagers in America include Miller High Life, Coors, Budweiser and Yuengling. Lagers are a great launching pad for newcomers to beer.
    • Yuengling is America’s oldest brewery. One of their sayings is “We aren’t the best because we are the oldest. We are the oldest because we are the best.” The Yuengling Company started in 1829 in Pottsville Pennsylvania. They are legendary here in my home state. We Pennsylvanians are mighty proud of Yuenglings.
• IPA
  • India Pale Ales (IPAs), which encompass numerous styles of beer, get their characteristics largely from hops and herbal, citrus or fruity flavors. They can be bitter and contain high alcohol levels, though the final product depends on the variety of hops used. Some IPAs can taste like pure citrus, while others are strong and bitter. Prominent IPA styles include West Coast IPA, British IPA and New England Style IPA.
  • Fun little origin story behind the name of an Indian Pale Ale: The IPA was invented in Britain. Here’s the abridged version: British sailors, while sailing to India, loaded up barrels of beer with hops, because hops were a preservative. The hops hung around in the beer for so long that they lost their fruity flavor and left a bitter tasting beer. 

• Pale Ale
  • Pale ales are usually hoppy but carry a lower alcohol content than IPAs. Most types of pale ale, which can include American amber ale, American pale ale, blonde ale and English pale ale, are malty, medium-bodied and easy to drink.
• Pilsner
  • Pilsner is a type of pale lager. It takes its name from the Bohemian city of Plzeň, where it was first produced in 1842 by Bavarian brewer Josef Groll. The world’s first pale lager, the original Pilsner Urquell, is still produced there today

• Stout
  • A dark beer, the flavor of stouts depend on where they come from. Sweet stouts largely originate from Ireland and England and are known for their low bitterness. In fact, Ireland’s Guinness brand produces some of the world’s most recognizable stout beer.
  • According to the Beer Judge Certification Program (BJCP), which ranks and evaluates all styles of beer, stouts are a “sweet, full-bodied, slightly roasty ale that can suggest coffee-and-cream, or sweetened espresso.” While the darker color of the beer gives the impression it’s tough to drink, these stouts carry sweetness from unfermented sugars that offset any bitterness.
  • Stouts produced in the U.S. combine the typical dark body and creamy notes with the hoppy bitter flavors characterized by American beers. American stouts are strong, highly roasted, bitter and hoppy, with high malt flavors that give them the taste of coffee or dark chocolate, according to the BJCP.
• Porters
  • Porter is a style of beer that was developed in London, England, in the early 18th century. It was well-hopped and dark in appearance owing to the use of brown malt. The name originated from its popularity with street and river porters.
  • Porter is actually the great-grandpa of today’s stout. It was, and still is, made with dark malted barley, a good amount of hops, and top-fermenting ale yeasts. The end result is usually a dark medium-bodied beer with a nice balance of malty sweetness and bitter hoppiness.
  • According to the Beer Judge Certification Program a Stout is defined as “a very dark, roasty, bitter, creamy ale,” while a Porter is described as “a substantial, malty dark ale with a complex and flavourful character.” … Basically a Stout has roasted malts and associated flavours, whereas a Porter does not.”

• Belgian Beer
  • Belgium’s rich beer culture has poured into the U.S. over the years, giving enthusiasts on this side of the Atlantic a deep appreciation for the wide variety of Belgian-style flavors. Belgian beers span pale ales, dark ales, fruity beers and sour ales. WebstaruantStore, which provides equipment and information for restaurants, bars and other establishments, generally defines Belgian-style beers as carrying fruity, spicy and sweet flavors with a high alcohol content and low bitterness.
• Wheat Beers
  • Then we have wheat beers which are typically disgusting and are the only type of beer I really don’t care for lol
  • Wheat beers rely on wheat for the malt ingredient, which gives the beverage a light color and alcohol level that makes it perfect for kicking back with during the summer and for combining it with fruit, like a slice of lemon or orange. Some wheat beers, with their funky and tangy flavors, fall under Belgian-style brews while the ones made in the U.S. have a light flavor that recalls bread.
• Sour Beer
  • Sour beer has shot up in popularity in the U.S. over the last few years, becoming an enticing beverage to people looking to branch out their beer palates or to those wanting to try something new. Highly tart, sour beers can take on many forms, including Belgian-style Lambic beer, fruity Flanders ale and lemony Berliner Weisse beer. With the addition of fruits like cherry, raspberry or peach, sour beers marry sweet and sour to make beer flavors completely unlike the lagers and IPAs of yore.

CREDIT:

• https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/History_of_beer
• https://www.iheart.com/podcast/stuff-you-missed-in-history-cl-21124503/
  • Stuff You Missed in History Class – Beer History with Erik Lars Myers
  • https://podcasts.google.com/feed/aHR0cHM6Ly9mZWVkcy5tZWdhcGhvbmUuZm0vc3R1ZmZ5b3VtaXNzZWRpbmhpc3RvcnljbGFzcw/episode/aHR0cDovL3d3dy5wb2R0cmFjLmNvbS9wdHMvcmVkaXJlY3QubXAzL3BvZGNhc3RzLmhvd3N0dWZmd29ya3MuY29tL2hzdy9wb2RjYXN0cy9zeW1oYy8yMDE3LTAxLTA0LXN5bWhjLWhpc3Rvcnktb2YtYmVlci5tcDM?sa=X&ved=0CAgQuIEEahcKEwiY3fXZtpb2AhUAAAAAHQAAAAAQLA
• https://www.worldhistory.org/article/223/beer-in-the-ancient-world/
• https://www.dw.com/en/were-the-ancient-sumerians-the-worlds-first-brewers/a-15678894
• https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ninkasi
• https://vinepair.com/articles/hymn-to-ninkasi-infographic/
• https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Brigid_of_Kildare
• https://www.sacredheartmillhill.com/post/st-brigid-the-lake-of-beer
• https://eh.net/encyclopedia/a-concise-history-of-americas-brewing-industry/
• https://time.com/5218581/types-of-beer-guide/