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Rising Star Cave System
The Rising Star cave system (also known as Westminster or Empire cave) is located in the Malmani dolomites, in Bloubank River valley, about southwest of Swartkrans, part of the Cradle of Humankind World Heritage Site in South Africa. Recreational caving has occurred there since the 1960s. In 2015, fossils found there two years prior were determined to be a previously unknown extinct species of hominin named ''Homo naledi''. Names In the 1980s, the names "Empire", "Westminster", and "Rising Star" were used interchangeably. The species's name, ''naledi'' (Sesotho for "star"), and the "Dinaledi Chamber" (incorporating the Sotho word for "stars")Sesotho ''dinaledi'' is a class 10 plural noun built on the class 9 noun ''naledi'' "star" Bukantswe v.3 dictionary). were so named by members of the Rising Star Expedition in reference to the species and chamber's location in Rising Star Cave. A portion of the cave, used by the excavation team en route to the Dinaledi Chamber, is cal ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Krugersdorp
Krugersdorp (Afrikaans for ''Kruger's Town'') is a mining city in the West Rand, Gauteng Province, South Africa founded in 1887 by Marthinus Pretorius and Abner Cohen. Following the discovery of gold on the Witwatersrand, a need arose for a major town in the west of the reef. The government bought part of the Paardekraal farm and named the new town after the Transvaal president, Paul Kruger. Krugersdorp no longer has a separate municipal government after it was integrated into Mogale City Local Municipality along with surrounding towns. It is now the seat of government for Mogale City. History Krugersdorp is the site of a December 1880 gathering at which more than 6,000 men vowed to fight for the Transvaal's independence. Founded in 1887 by Marthinus Pretorius after the discovery of gold on his farm, ''Paardekraal'', thereafter the mining industry played an important role in the development of the city. Two important events in the history of South Africa: the Transvaal ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Caving Organizations
There are a number of caving organizations throughout the world. UIS The Union Internationale de Spéléologie (UIS) is the international umbrella organization for caving and speleology. Austria The Austrian Speleological Association, formed in 1949, represents over 20 caving clubs, with some 2500 members and about 30 show caves in Austria, and is the Austrian member of UIS and FSE. Australia *Australian Speleological Federation (ASF) is a national organisation formed in 1956. It is an environmental organisation promoting the protection of Australia's unique cave systems. Bosnia and HerzegovinaThe Speleological Society Ponir (SD Ponir) was founded in 1984 in Banja Luka. The main activities of the society are cave exploration and research. In furtherance of this, SD Ponir conducts training of new members through courses and caving expeditions. The tra ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
National Geographic Society
The National Geographic Society, headquartered in Washington, D.C., United States, is one of the largest nonprofit scientific and educational organizations in the world. Founded in 1888, its interests include geography, archaeology, natural science, the promotion of environmental protection, environmental and historical preservation, historical conservation movement, conservation, and the study of civilization, world culture and World history (field), history. The National Geographic Society's logo is a yellow page orientation, portrait frame—rectangular in shape—which appears on the Margin (typography), margins surrounding the front covers of its magazines and as its television channel logo. Through National Geographic Partners (a joint venture with The Walt Disney Company), the Society operates the National Geographic, magazine, National Geographic Global Networks, TV channels, a website, worldwide events, and other media operations. Overview The National Geographic S ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
National Research Foundation Of South Africa
South Africa’s National Research Foundation (NRF) is the intermediary agency between the policies and strategies of the Government of South Africa and South Africa's research institutions. History It was established on 1 April 1999 as an autonomous statutory body in accordance with the ''National Research Foundation Act''. Dr Fulufhelo Nelwamondo has been appointed as Chief Executive Officer of the National Research Foundation of South Africa with effect from 1 April 2021. The NRF Board is chaired by Prof Mosa Moshabela. Functions The NRF has three main functions: #to support research and innovation, through its agency, ''Research and Innovation Support and Advancement'' (RISA); #to encourage an interest in science and technology through its business unit, the South African Agency for Science and Technology Advancement' (SAASTA); # to facilitate high-end research through its ''National Research Facilities'' ( South African Institute for Aquatic Biodiversity; Hartebees ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
The Atlantic
''The Atlantic'' is an American magazine and multi-platform publisher based in Washington, D.C. It features articles on politics, foreign affairs, business and the economy, culture and the arts, technology, and science. It was founded in 1857 in Boston as ''The Atlantic Monthly'', a literary and cultural magazine that published leading writers' commentary on education, the abolition of slavery, and other major political issues of that time. Its founders included Francis H. Underwood and prominent writers Ralph Waldo Emerson, Oliver Wendell Holmes Sr., Henry Wadsworth Longfellow, Harriet Beecher Stowe, and John Greenleaf Whittier. James Russell Lowell was its first editor. During the 19th and 20th centuries, the magazine also published the annual ''The Atlantic Monthly Almanac''. The magazine was purchased in 1999 by businessman David G. Bradley, who fashioned it into a general editorial magazine primarily aimed at serious national readers and " thought leaders"; in 201 ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
University Of The Witwatersrand
The University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg (), commonly known as Wits University or Wits, is a multi-campus Public university, public research university situated in the northern areas of central Johannesburg, South Africa. The university has its roots in the mining industry, as do Johannesburg and the Witwatersrand in general. Founded in 1896 as the South African School of Mines in Kimberley, South Africa, Kimberley, it is the third oldest South African university in continuous operation. The university has an enrollment of 37,295 students as of 2025, of which approximately 20 percent live on campus in the university's 17 residences. 63 percent of the university's total enrollment is for Undergraduate education, undergraduate study, with 35 percent being Postgraduate education, postgraduate and the remaining 2 percent being Occasional Students. The university has, as of 2024, an acceptance rate of approximately 4.5%, having received 140,000 applications but only having a ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Lee Rogers Berger
Lee Rogers Berger (born December 22, 1965) is an American-born South African paleoanthropologist and National Geographic Explorer-in-Residence. He is best known for his discovery of the ''Australopithecus sediba'' type site, Malapa; his leadership of Rising Star Expedition in the excavation of ''Homo naledi'' at Rising Star Cave; and the Taung Bird of Prey Hypothesis. Berger is known not only for his discoveries, but also for his unusually public persona in paleoanthropology, and for making his most notable discoveries open-access projects. He gives hundreds of talks per year, and has had a close relationship with National Geographic for many years, appearing in several of their shows and documentaries. Early life and education Berger was born in Shawnee Mission, Kansas in 1965, but was raised outside of Sylvania, Georgia in the United States. As a youth, Berger was active in the Boy Scouts, Future Farmers of America, and president of Georgia 4-H. In 1984, Berger was named Ge ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Peter Schmid (archaeologist)
Peter Schmid (29 November 1926 – 28 November 2022) was a German archaeologist. He spent his entire career at the , of which he was director from 1973 to 1991. Life and career Schmid was born in Hamburg on 29 November 1926. In 1944, while attending the gymnasium he was drafted into the Wehrmacht. He was subsequently made prisoner of war under British forces. From 1947 to 1948 he was an intern at the (NIHK). From 1948 to 1954 he studied prehistory, early history, geography and geology at the University of Kiel, obtaining his PhD on 31 July 1954 with a dissertation titled: "Die vorrömische Eisenzeit in den Nordseemarschen". The next day he was excavation leader at the Feddersen Wierde. In 1954 Schmid returned to the NIHK to work as a scientific assistant. In 1963 he was named custodian, being promoted to chief custodian in 1969. In 1973 Schmid became director of the institute and in 1978 was named lead scientific director as well. He retired in 1991. Schmid was elected a foreign ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Becca Peixotto
Rebecca (Becca) Peixotto is an American archaeologist who is best known for her contribution to the Rising Star Expedition as one of the six Underground Astronauts, a group of scientists tasked with excavating the Rising Star Cave System. She has also participated in the Great Dismal Swamp Landscape Study and is an experienced wilderness educator. Education Peixotto received her Ph.D. in Anthropology, Archaeology Specialization, in 2017 from American University with her dissertation ''Against the Map: Resistance Landscapes of the Great Dismal Swamp''. Peixotto obtained a B.A. in Slavic Area Studies and Mathematics from the University of Alabama in Huntsville. She pursued further studies abroad at the University of Amsterdam, obtaining an M.A. in Discourse and Argumentation Studies. She returned to the U.S. to attend the American University in Washington, DC, where she earned a M.A. in Public Anthropology, Archaeology Specialization, in 2013. Rising Star Expedition In Oct ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Hannah Morris
Hannah Morris is an American anthropologist, known for her contribution to the Rising Star Expedition as one of the six women Underground Astronauts. She is currently a Ph.D. student in the Warnell School of Forestry and Natural Resources at the University of Georgia, studying "the implications of human actions on vegetative ecosystems". Education Morris attended the University of Georgia, earning a B.A. in anthropology in 2007. She participated in archaeological projects in the United States and Mexico, before returning to her studies at Ohio State University, earning an M.A. in anthropology in 2012 with a special focus in paleoethnobotany. Rising Star Expedition In October 2013, Morris, Becca Peixotto, Marina Elliot, Alia Gurtov, K. Lindsay Eaves, and Elen Feuerriegel were chosen to be part of a specialized excavation team for the Rising Star Expedition. The purpose of the twenty-one day expedition, sponsored by The National Geographic Society and the University o ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
John D
John is a common English name and surname: * John (given name) * John (surname) John may also refer to: New Testament Works * Gospel of John, a title often shortened to John * First Epistle of John, often shortened to 1 John * Second Epistle of John, often shortened to 2 John * Third Epistle of John, often shortened to 3 John People * John the Baptist (died ), regarded as a prophet and the forerunner of Jesus Christ * John the Apostle (died ), one of the twelve apostles of Jesus Christ * John the Evangelist, assigned author of the Fourth Gospel, once identified with the Apostle * John of Patmos, also known as John the Divine or John the Revelator, the author of the Book of Revelation, once identified with the Apostle * John the Presbyter, a figure either identified with or distinguished from the Apostle, the Evangelist and John of Patmos Other people with the given name Religious figures * John, father of Andrew the Apostle and Saint Peter * Pope Jo ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Alia Gurtov
Alia Gurtov is an American paleoanthropologist who is known for being one of the six Underground Astronauts of the Rising Star Expedition. Education Gurtov attended Wellesley College, majoring in French and anthropology. In 2006, she was granted a Jerome A Schiff Fellowship for her research project "Using the Past in the Construction of National Identity" In 2007, Gurtov obtained a B.A.in anthropology from Wellesley and was awarded the Thomas J. Watson Fellowship for 2007–2008. During that year, she participated in research and field work in China, Germany, Netherlands, South Africa, and Turkey. From 2008 to 2009 Gurtov attended Leiden University, Netherlands where she obtained a master's degree in prehistoric archaeology. She returned to the U.S.to pursue further studies at the University of Wisconsin Madison, receiving her master's degree in anthropology in 2012 and a PhD in archaeology and biological anthropology in 2016. Rising Star Expedition In October 2013 ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
