Greece, Rome Egypt and the other civilizations that arose around the Mediterranean inform everything about our lives today.  Religion, politics, drama, history, poetry, philosophy and much more were all invented by the ancients - usually in short energetic bursts, as happened in 5th century B.C. Athens. Herewith the coverage of new discoveries about these civilizations.http://www.newser.com/2008 - Newseren-usNewser Feed GeneratorWed, 03 Dec 2008 21:09:27 CSThttp://www.newser.com/story/41354/oldest-hebrew-text-may-shed-light-on-bibles-david.html?refid=rss_all_defaultArcheologists in Israel say they have dug up the oldest known example of Hebrew text, a find that could answer questions about the scope and power of the ancient kingdom of David, Reuters reports. Researchers found the 3,000-year-old pottery shards at an excavation site near where the Bible says David slew Goliath. The inscriptions appear to include words such as "judge" and "king," indicating an advanced society.http://www.newser.com/story/41354/oldest-hebrew-text-may-shed-light-on-bibles-david.html?refid=rss_all_defaultThu, 30 Oct 2008 18:17:04 CDThttp://www.newser.com/story/40885/vikings-recast-as-cultured-fashionistas.html?refid=rss_all_defaultVikings were just as interested in preening and handicrafts as they were in war and pillaging, the Telegraph reports. In a bid to educate youngsters who could well have Viking ancestry, British researchers are trying to change the popular view of the Norse explorers. "It seems that the Vikings may not have been as hairy and dirty as is commonly imagined," says a Cambridge University guide.http://www.newser.com/story/40885/vikings-recast-as-cultured-fashionistas.html?refid=rss_all_defaultSat, 25 Oct 2008 12:16:56 CDThttp://www.newser.com/story/36600/romans-left-conquered-peoples-more-prone-to-hiv.html?refid=rss_all_defaultThe Roman conquest of Europe may explain why populations living in the former empire are more vulnerable to HIV, French researchers say. A genetic variant that protects against the AIDS-causing virus is less prevalent in former Roman colonies such as England, France, Greece, and Spain, though some argue that a larger event like the bubonic plague caused the variation, the BBC reports.http://www.newser.com/story/36600/romans-left-conquered-peoples-more-prone-to-hiv.html?refid=rss_all_defaultThu, 04 Sep 2008 17:07:11 CDThttp://www.newser.com/story/36213/archaeologists-unearth-ancient-gold-wreath.html?refid=rss_all_defaultAn ancient gold wreath buried with human bones in a copper vase has been discovered in the old stomping grounds of Alexander the Great in northern Greece, AP reports. It's rare to find such wreaths, which were generally buried with royalty. Diggers found it in the ruins of Aigai, the first capital of Macedonia and city where Alexander's father was assassinated.http://www.newser.com/story/36213/archaeologists-unearth-ancient-gold-wreath.html?refid=rss_all_defaultSat, 30 Aug 2008 5:38:15 CDThttp://www.newser.com/story/33643/leonardo-lifted-from-chinese-historian-claims.html?refid=rss_all_defaultLeonardo da Vinci’s renowned mechanical drawings were derived from Chinese originals brought to Europe decades before he was born, a British amateur historian contends in a new book. “This was the spark that really ignited the Renaissance,” Gavin Menzies tells Reuters, a claim that could force “agonizing reappraisal of the Eurocentric view of history”—though some remain unconvinced by his findings.http://www.newser.com/story/33643/leonardo-lifted-from-chinese-historian-claims.html?refid=rss_all_defaultTue, 29 Jul 2008 12:35:06 CDThttp://www.newser.com/story/30769/astronomers-trace-homers-wandering-hero.html?refid=rss_all_defaultHomer's Odyssey is 2,700 years old, and the events it describes happened centuries earlier. But two scientists claim in a new paper that they've traced one line in the epic poem—a possible reference to an eclipse—to a real astronomical event. Classicists might take issue, writes the New York Times , but the astronomers say that Odysseus' return to Ithaca coincided with a solar eclipse on April 16, 1178 BC.http://www.newser.com/story/30769/astronomers-trace-homers-wandering-hero.html?refid=rss_all_defaultTue, 24 Jun 2008 7:29:35 CDThttp://www.newser.com/story/29416/lazy-bosses-go-wayyyy-back.html?refid=rss_all_defaultThink your boss is the first to delegate the duties and enjoy sunny days on the links? Such indulgences go way back, writes Stanley Bing in Fortune . Two thousand years ago, Cleopatra ruled Egypt by dazzling the male rulers of her time. More recently, America’s beloved Ben Franklin lived like a star while fans revered his brilliant oratory. The list goes on:http://www.newser.com/story/29416/lazy-bosses-go-wayyyy-back.html?refid=rss_all_defaultFri, 06 Jun 2008 14:02:58 CDThttp://www.newser.com/story/29691/jordan-cave-may-be-worlds-first-church.html?refid=rss_all_defaultArchaeologists have found what might be the world’s oldest Christian church in Rihab, Jordan, the BBC reports. The cavern, located under the also-ancient church of St. Georgeous, dates to between 33 and 70 AD, and doubled as a home.http://www.newser.com/story/29691/jordan-cave-may-be-worlds-first-church.html?refid=rss_all_defaultTue, 10 Jun 2008 14:43:50 CDThttp://www.newser.com/story/28676/damn-straight-leaning-tower-stabilized.html?refid=rss_all_defaultItalian engineers have stabilized the leaning Tower of Pisa, safeguarding it from toppling over for at least another 300 years, the Times of London reports. The famously off-kilter tower began tilting shortly after construction started in 1173, and was in danger of falling. Engineers didn't try to straighten it completely, as Benito Mussolini once dictated, but succeeded in getting it back to its 19th century angle.http://www.newser.com/story/28676/damn-straight-leaning-tower-stabilized.html?refid=rss_all_defaultWed, 28 May 2008 23:50:25 CDT