Stonehenge birthdate discovered by archaeologists

Archaeologists have discovered Stonehenge's birthdate, solving one of the historic site's longstanding mysteries.

By Jon Swaine

Archaeologists say Stonehenge was a prehistoric Lourdes - the stones famed for their healing properties. ; http://link.brightcove.com/services/link/bcpid1488655367/bctid1811454216 http://www.brightcove.com/channel.jsp?channel=1139053637

The monument's original stones were erected in about 2300 BC, it has been discovered - 300 years later than had previously been thought.

Analysis has indicated that the original circle of bluestones was transported to the site from the Preseli hills, 150 miles away in South Wales - an extraordinary feat.

The finding came in an ambitious project, involving the first dig inside the historic stone circle for 44 years.

Professors Timothy Darvill and Geoffrey Wainwright, the project leaders, are set to disclose other early findings.

The pair have found evidence suggesting Stonehenge was a centre of healing. They have compared the monument to a "Neolithic Lourdes", to which sick people travelled from far away, hoping to be healed by the stones' powers.

An "abnormal number" of remains found in tombs nearby display signs of serious disease, they say, while teeth found in graves prove that about half the bodies there were "not native" to the local area.

Prof Darvill said: "Stonehenge would attract not only people who were unwell, but people who were capable of healing them. Therefore, in a sense, Stonehenge becomes 'the A & E' of southern England."

Discovering the site's birthdate - which was done by sending 14 samples for carbon dating at Oxford University - was described as a "dream come true" by Prof Wainwright. "It's an incredible feeling," he added.

Before the project it was believed the first stone circle dated from between 2600 BC and 2400 BC. The new testing has rounded this down to between 2400BC and 2200 BC - and a more precise date is expected by the end of the project.

"We told the world we were going to date Stonehenge. That was a risk, but I was always confident," said Prof Darvill.

Experts said the new discovery was a major milestone in the history of Britain's most famous monument.

Dr Simon Thurley, the chief executive of English Heritage - which maintains Stonehenge - described the dig as "tremendously exciting".

He said: "The bluestones hold the key to understanding the purpose and meaning of Stonehenge.

"Their arrival marked a turning point in the history of Stonehenge, changing the site from being a fairly standard formative henge with timber structures and occasional use for burial, to the complex stone structure whose remains dominate the site today."

Dr Andrew Fitzpatrick, of Wessex Archaeology, said: "This is a great result - a very important one.

"The date of Stonehenge had been blowing in the wind. But this anchors it. It helps us to be secure about the chronology of events."

The last time an excavation was allowed inside the sarsen stone pillars was in 1964.

A documentary on the dig has been recorded by BBC Timewatch and will be broadcast on Saturday.

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Nightclub fire in China kills 43, injures 88

A fire that broke out late Saturday inside a nightclub near the Hong Kong border caused a stampede of panicked partygoers trying to escape killing at least 43 people, and leaving more than 88 injured. What caused the inferno is said to be fireworks which were a part of a show featured inside the nightclub.

Chinese firefighters and investigators check the burnt out 'Dance King' nightclub in the city of Shenzhen. The fire broke out at around 11:00 pm on September 20, and a subsequent stampede killed 43 people and left 88 injured in the latest deadly incident highlighting China's abysmal fire safety record.

A fire caused by fireworks set off inside a nightclub and a stampede of panicked partygoers trying to escape has killed at least 43 people in southern China, state media and government officials said Sunday.

The fire, which broke out late Saturday, also injured at least 88 people, an official with the Shenzhen Work Safety Bureau said. Like many Chinese officials, the man refused to give his name.

Shenzhen is just over the border with Hong Kong in Guangdong province.

The official Xinhua News Agency said the fire broke out in a club called King of the Dancers while hundreds of people were watching a show.

An initial police investigation showed that the blaze was triggered by fireworks ignited during the show, Xinhua said.

Many partygoers were hurt in a stampede to escape down "a narrow aisle,“ a club staff member was quoted by the agency as saying.

"I saw people rushing out ... and all the lights were off,“ it quoted Yang Zhi as saying. Xinhua said Yang suffered burns to his neck.

Video footage aired Sunday by Hong Kong’s ATV news showed the smoke-filled nightclub after the fire. Overturned tables, broken glass and shoes lost by partygoers littered the floor.

Guangdong Province Governor Huang Huahua blamed poor ventilation for the deaths.

"There was something wrong with the architectural design,“ Huang told Hong Kong media after inspecting the nightclub.

"If there was a better ventilation system, there wouldn’t be so many deaths in the fire,“ he said.

ATV said the nightclub had no windows and only one exit.

Hong Kong’s government-run broadcaster RTHK reported that Shenzhen authorities had detained 12 people after the fire.

An injured Hong Kong man surnamed Cheng said the fire started after one performer on the stage set off fireworks.

"I saw one of the performers shoot fireworks to the ceiling. I had no idea what the performance was, but the fire started,“ Cheng told ATV from his Shenzhen hospital bed.

"Many people fell to the floor. They shouted for help and cried. It was like in hell,“ said Cheng, whose first name was not given.

Fires and accidents in bars, theaters and other public places are common in China despite government pledges to improve safety. Many are caused by negligence and lax safety procedures, such as a lack of fire extinguishers and emergency exits.

In China’s worst recent nightclub disaster, a fire blamed on a welding accident tore through a disco in the central city of Luoyang in December 2000, killing 309 people.

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Fort Drum Highlights Suicide Prevention

by David Sommerstein

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David Sommerstein for NPR

Staff Sgt. Chad Wood writes a note on a memorial banner to a comrade who committed suicide after returning from Iraq in 2003. Wood and other soldiers took part in a walk at Fort Drum designed to raise awareness about suicide in the military.

The U.S. Army is nearing a grim statistic: The number of soldiers who committed suicide this year is on pace to be an all-time high. The record was set in 2007 when there were 115 suicides.

The Army says there have been 62 confirmed suicides by active duty members in 2008, with 31 unconfirmed cases that appear to be suicides.

The Army has responded with suicide prevention programs, but the trend has yet to be reversed.

To draw attention to the issue, Fort Drum, an Army base in upstate New York, hosted a march on Sept. 12 to remember victims of suicide.

Sgt. 1st Class Joseph Marshall, one of 40 soldiers and civilians who joined the walk, remembers when one of his soldiers returned from a tour in Afghanistan. Marshall says the gunfire, violence and stress took the soldier, a private, by surprise.

"He didn't want to be here no more. He didn't want to be in the Army. He didn't want to live. He just wanted to end it all," Marshall says.

The soldier is still alive; Marshall identified the signs in time and his platoon rallied around the private.

Getting Help

Army officials acknowledge repeated deployments to Iraq and Afghanistan are taking their toll. They hope events like this memorial march will help reverse the trend.

Penny Pierce, who works at Fort Drum, helped organize the march. She says the taboo surrounding suicide makes soldiers particularly vulnerable.

"They feel like they're supposed to be tough and strong all the time and that asking for help is something that they don't want to do," she says.

Despite the Army's recent attention to mental health issues, Staff Sgt. Chad Wood, whose colleague committed suicide when they returned from Iraq in 2003, says seeking help is too often still seen as a sign of weakness. Wood tries to teach his unit otherwise.

"I try to enlighten a lot of the new soldiers that have not deployed to make sure that they understand that my door is open to come and talk to seek the right help if they are encountering any sort of issues," he says.

A few dozen walkers along a soggy road seem almost invisible on this sprawling base of more than 17,000 soldiers. Fort Drum officials say any light shed on the dark, painful reality of suicide is a step in the right direction.

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