20. “If past history was all there was to the game, the richest people would be librarians.”

Warren Buffett
Given that most librarians aren’t very wealthy, I think the Oracle of Omaha was on to something here. He obviously isn’t doing much for the sale of get–rich-quick books.

19. “I refuse to feel guilty. I feel guilty about too much in my life but not about money. I went through periods when I had nothing, so somebody in my family has to get stinkin’ wealthy.”

Jim Carrey
Okay, the comic from Newmarket, Ontario, isn’t necessarily a genius, but he’s certainly honest about how he feels about having a lot of money.

18. “There is only one boss. The customer. And he can fire everybody in the company from the chairman on down, simply by spending his money somewhere else.”

Sam Walton
During the last few years of his life the founder of Wal-Mart was the richest man in the world. Yet he freely admitted that there was somebody more powerful than he was: his customers. Perhaps that’s why Walton treated customers like cattle—he was afraid of them.

17. “You know, my main reaction to this money thing is that it’s humorous, all the attention to it, because it’s hardly the most insightful or valuable thing that’s happened to me.”

Steve Jobs
Anybody that’s ever taken a look at Apple’s stock valuation ($588 a share on December 3, 2012) in recent years knows that Steve Jobs didn’t think money was a joke. I have to wonder if this quote, given to Playboy in 1985, was his idea of a joke.

16. “It’s more fun to be a pirate than to join the navy.”

Steve Jobs
This quote might be more revealing about Mr. Jobs’ character than anything else. He was far more than just a hippy turned computer nerd, as he liked to portray himself. I have to wonder if being hanged at the yardarm was his idea of fun. That’s what the navy used to do to pirates.

15. “Thinking is the hardest work there is, which is probably the reason why so few engage in it.”

Henry Ford
I have to wonder if Ford was talking about politicians when he made that statement or simply people in general. Either way, there’s more truth in that statement than most of us will ever admit. It’s also pretty scary if you think about it for a minute; particularly when you realize that the majority of those who don’t think drive the invention Ford is most famous for: the automobile.

14. “I’ll keep having sex until I’m 100. I have three girlfriends, a TV show, and a hugely popular men’s magazine.”

Hugh Heffner
There’s nothing like a man who enjoys his “work” and stays committed to it. Of course, commitment is easy when your “job” is living in a luxurious mansion filled with beautiful women.

13. “I didn’t really expect to make any money. If I could make enough to cover the rent and buy some food that would be fine. As it turns out, it turned out to be quite valuable in the end.”

Ellon Musk
The man who created zip drives and founded PayPal and sold it for billions now owns his own rocket ship and space capsule. Musk owns Space X, which has developed a working space capsule and the world’s most powerful rocket. Unlike Richard Branson’s “spaceship,” Musk’s craft actually goes into space and visits the International Space Station. He also owns the electric car company, Tesla Motors. Mr. Musk obviously made some money even though he didn’t expect to.

12. “I believe in benevolent dictatorship provided I am the dictator.”

Sir Richard Branson
That rather frightening quote probably defines the way the Virgin chairman actually sees the world. Hopefully he’ll never get into politics or into the super villain business. Perhaps the real reason he’s interested in space travel is that Branson wants his own planet to rule.

11. “The financial markets generally are unpredictable. So that one has to have different scenarios… The idea that you can actually predict what’s going to happen contradicts my way of looking at the market.”

George Soros
No billionaire has been maligned more in recent years than George Soros. The man who made billions of dollars manipulating the markets is famous for his left wing political opinions. He got particular criticism for his childish attacks on another George, George W. Bush, whom he once compared to Hitler. Like the Koch Brothers, Soros is often attacked because he gives large amounts of money to politicians that share his “views.” Like Donald Trump, he also likes to say stupid things.

10. “Be nice to nerds. Chances are you’ll end up working for one.”

Bill Gates
Obviously, the man knew what he was talking about. Bill Gates became the world’s richest man by selling software and founding Microsoft.

9. “Life is not fair; get used to it.”

Bill Gates
A little common sense from a very rich man; unfortunately, few people take it.

8. “Television is not real life. In real life, people actually have to leave the coffee shop and go to jobs.”

Bill Gates
Perhaps it isn’t profound, but this piece of wisdom from a very rich man sure is entertaining.

7. “Do you know the only thing that gives me pleasure? It’s to see my dividends coming in.”

John D. Rockefeller
It’s easy to see how he became the person modern historians consider the richest person in human history. He did so by stifling competition and getting total control of the oil supply.

6. “The way to make money is to buy when blood is running in the streets.”

John D. Rockefeller
Strangely enough, he wasn’t in the munitions business—he was in the oil business. He also considered himself a good Christian who tried to live by the precepts of the Bible. It’s obvious his “Christianity” stopped when he went to work.

5. “A man always has two reasons for doing anything: a good reason and the real reason.”

J. P. Morgan
J.P. Morgan was considered the greatest financier in history. He reportedly saved the U.S. government from default on two separate occasions. He was also a very cynical man, as you can see. The frightening thing is that the quote is very true.

4. “The first man gets the oyster, the second man gets the shell.”

Andrew Carnegie
I don’t know what Mr. Carnegie was talking about here, but it is certainly entertaining. When he wasn’t having union members shot, Andrew Carnegie founded the steel industry and financed the public library system in the United States.

3. “Every woman should have four pets in her life. A mink in her closet, a jaguar in her garage, a tiger in her bed, and a jackass who pays for everything.”

Paris Hilton
It’s easy to see why the actress, heiress, and playgirl was cut off from the family fortune. Her grandfather founded the Hilton hotel chain. Today she has to make her living, which she apparently does, according to the tabloids.

2. “These are stupid people that say, ‘Oh didn’t Trump declare bankruptcy? Didn’t he go bankrupt?’ I didn’t go bankrupt.”

Donald Trump
Actually, Trump has gone bankrupt on a number of different occasions. He himself admits that at one point in his life a homeless person begging on the street was in better shape financially than he was.

1. “Lots of people want to ride with you in the limo, but what you want is someone who will take the bus with you when the limo breaks down.”

Oprah Winfrey

10. Chris Brown

Chris Brown is one of the most public men ever to abuse a woman. Most of us know of the image of Rhianna, the famous singer beaten by Chris Brown. This famous Singer/rapper lost a contract with a famous Gum company, and lost many of his fans because of the abuse of Rhianna. The couple has since been on again and off again relationship, although there was restraining order put against Chris Brown seeing Rhianna. It has also been reported that the young couple might get married despite the turmoil surrounding their relationship.

9. Ike Turner

Ike Turner was a famous man that abused the famous singer Tina Turner and held many hats as a musician, song writer, arranger, talent scout, and record producer. In the movie,” What’s Love got to do with it” which was an autobiography of sorts of Tina Turner, scenes were shown of the actor that played Ike hitting Tina. Ike turner had a long-term affair with drugs, which may have contributed to his downfalls and abuse. Ike’s last year as a musician was in 2007. He also performed in the 1997 Long Beach Blues Festival.

8. John Daly

John Daly, a golfter has won a lot of prestigious awards such as 1991 rookie of the year and 2004 PGA player of the year. John Daly who was wed 4 times had very hard relationships with his wives. In John Daly’s second marriage he threw his wife against the wall; he was also charged with third degree assault because of it in 1992. John Daly has not admitted to battering any of his wives and has said in his autobiography that he has never hurt a woman.

7. Mel Gibson

Mel Gibson has won many awards for his acting and directing. He is best known for one of his earlier movies Braveheart. He also directed a controversial movie called Temptation of Christ. Mel Gibson was caught on tape hitting his girlfriend, Oksana. Mel Gibson also admitted to hitting Oksana, his girlfriend at the time twice in the face. In the tape, he was reported to be spouting racial slurs and abusing the young lady mentally as well as physically.

6. Mike Tyson

Mike Tyson had 58 fights in his boxing career and 44 knockouts. At the height of his career many learned of the boxer’s abuse of Robin Givens on a Barbara Walters special were an interview of the two was reported on television. Robin Givens proceeded to tell the world of Mike Tyson hitting her and told of the “pure hell” she was in married to the boxer. Shortly after that Robin Givens received a divorce from Mike Tyson. Recently, Mike Tyson has founded a foundation that helps children from broken homes called Mike Tyson Cares.

5. Charlie Sheen

Charlie sheen an actor that was arrested for abusing his wife. This long time actor was once part of the “brat pack” which was comprised of the latest hot actors in Hollywood during the eighties. On Christmas morning in Colorado Charlie Sheen was arrested for domestic violence. There has been other cases, in which he was said to have battered other women in his company. Charlie Sheen is currently working on a television series called Anger Management, and has announced that he will give $1 million to the USO.

4. Ronnie Radke

Rocker Ronnie Radke who grew up in Las Vegas, Nevada is known for song writing, playing various instruments such as guitar, and modeling was arrested for domestic abuse in 2012. Pictured here is his mug shot before he posted bail. Like some on the list Ronnie Radke has admitted to a drug addiction. Currently, Radke threw microphone stands at a crowd at the end of a concert, which some of the former fans in the crows received injuries from.

3. Darryl Strawberry

Darryl Strawberry who was once a famous baseball player that won numerous awards for his outstanding baseball career. He had a troubled life with drugs in the past, and he abused his ex-wife and put a gun to her face during their marriage. He has since been seen on 700 club announcing his faith, and he also tried The Apprentice show, but he was homesick and went home.

2. Tommy Lee

Tommy Lee a Rocker that plays many instruments who was born in Greece has had a very public and dramatic life. He began is rock career with the very famous Motley Crue. His incidents of abuse were against Pamela Anderson a former playmate of Playboy and actress. During Tommy and Pamela’s relationship a much publicist sex tape circled the Internet. Tommy Lee served six months jail time because of his domestic violence against Pamela. Presently, Tommy Lee still performs.

1. Charles Monzon

Carlos Monzon was another famous person that was highly revered, and was a hero to his hometown Argentina. In fact, his town would virtually stop just to hear his fights on the radio. Carlos Monzon, the boxer performed 100 fights and had 59 knockouts. He battered his girlfriends and wives. One of the more publicized fights between him and his wife was when, he threw his wife over the balcony. He even jumped the balcony himself. He served an 11-year sentence for the balcony murder incident. Carlos Monzon died in 1995 because of a car accident.

10. Nurse

Killer Nurse: Orville Lynn Majors leaving a courthouse

Some angels of mercy are actually angels of death. Like the medical profession, the nursing profession has attracted a score of serial killers. Among other things, it provides easy access to victims that can’t fight back and some tools of murder, such as poison. It also gives you a means of administering a lethal injection without restraining the victims. Arnfinn Nesset, a registered nurse, was convicted of giving 22 people lethal injections at the care home he managed in Norway. Like the killer doctors, Nesset stole from his patients and forged their names on legal documents in order to embezzle their money. Unbelievably, Nesset was released from prison after serving a 12-year term and now is now living somewhere under an assumed name. Hopefully, he hasn’t taken up nursing again. Another killer nurse, Stephan Letter, murdered at least 29 elderly people while working at a nursing home in Bavaria. In 2003, Charles Edward Cullen told police that he had killed at least 40 people while working at 10 different hospitals in New Jersey. Some experts estimate that Cullen may have actually been responsible for as many 400 murders, making him the greatest serial killer in American history. Orville Linn Majors, a practical nurse from Clinton, Ind., is suspected of murdering as many 130 of his patients between 1993-1995. He was only convicted of six of the murders. There are also female killer nurses. Marianne Nolle, a German nurse from Cologne, was sentenced to life imprisonment in 1993 for seven murders. She is believed to have killed as many as 16 patients and tried to kill 18 more. So it isn’t hysteria if you get nervous the next time a friendly nurse wants to give you an injection; there might be something deadly in the needle.

9. Professional Criminal

Contrary to popular belief, many serial killers make their living by committing other less ghastly crimes. Many serial killers have long criminal records, and many of them spent time in prison for other lesser crimes before gaining notoriety as butchers. Charles Albright, the Eyeball Killer, who murdered three women in Dallas, Texas in the early 1990s, was no stranger to police. He had been committing thefts since he was a teenager. After he was expelled from college for stealing from the school, Albright came back and stole the proper paperwork to forge a fake degree. Egypt’s most notorious serial killer, Ramadan Abel Rehim Mansour (or al-Tourbini), who raped and murdered at least 32 children and threw many of them from moving trains, was a well-known street gang leader. John George Haigh, the London Acid Bath Murderer (or Acid Bath Killer) of the 1940s, even figured how to combine everyday crime with serial murder. After disposing of his victims, Haigh stole money from their bank accounts, as well as their property, and even forged his name on the pension cheques of an elderly couple he had killed. Before he started dissolving victims in acid, Haigh was an ordinary embezzler and car thief.

8. Webmaster

Hiroshi Maeue. Japan’s suicide website murderer

The most innovative serial killer of all time was probably Hiroshi Maeue, who operated a so-called online suicide club in Japan 2005. He operated a website which preyed on the suicidal. He promised his victims that he would help them commit suicide, but strangled them instead. It’s easy to commit serial murder when the victims come to you and want to die. Interestingly enough, Maeue later did commit suicide by not contesting the death penalty.

7. Red Hot Lover

Gigolo–turned-lonely hearts killer Raymond Fernandez

Why bothering working for a living when there are lots of lonely women to rob and kill? Wining and dining the ladies, stealing their money, and killing them is a good way for a psychopath to make a living. Some wolves even become full-fledged serial killers, and one of the most famous was Henri Desire Landru, who murdered at least 10 women between 1915-1919 in Paris and burned their bodies in his kitchen stove. He also killed the teenage son of one of his victims who had become suspicious. He contacted the ladies by placing “lonely hearts” ads in the newspapers. Like a number of other serial killers, Landru also embezzled and stole money from his victims. Strangely enough, Landru’s story has been made into several movies, one of which even starred Charlie Chaplin. At least one American serial killer found love and a partner-in-crime through the want ads. Raymond Fernandez and Martha Beck, the notorious Lonely Hearts Killers, murdered at least 20 women from 1947-1949. Like Landru, they placed lonely hearts advertisements in newspapers to lure lonely women to their deaths, then steal their money and possessions. Fernandez apparently started the slaughter, but Beck joined in after meeting him through one of the ads. The duo’s most loathsome crime was the drowning of a young girl whose mother they had also killed. So it is a good idea to think twice about looking for love on those romance websites. Modern-day serial killers are probably trolling them for victims right now.

6. Farmer

Those horror movies about psychotic killers living on remote homesteads might be closer to real life than you think. A farm is a pretty good place to commit a murder; it is remote and rural, and there are plenty of digging tools around. More importantly, nobody is going to question why you’re digging up the backyard. Even elderly farm couples are to be suspected. Ray and Faye Della Copeland, an elderly couple, lured at least five men to their farm in rural Missouri and murdered them. They promised the men work and killed them to avoid paying them. They were the oldest couple ever sentenced to death row in the United States; both died of old age before they could be executed. So be leery on remote country roads after dark.

5. Cult Leader

Adolfo de Jesus Constanzo. A cult leader, drug dealer, and serial killer. A true triple threat

This might be the best possible day job for a serial killer because it provides a tax-free income and a group of unpaid henchmen to do the dirty work. Mexican-American maniac Adolfo Constanzo, or the Godfather of Matamoros, started out as a petty criminal and drug dealer, but graduated to cult leader and serial killer. He and several followers terrorized the Mexican city of Matamoros in the late 1980s by murdering and dismembering at least 12 people. History’s most prolific serial killer was probably Thug Behram, a leader of the thuggee cult in India that financed its activities by strangling and robbing travellers. British East India Company officials that investigated Behram’s activities believe that he may have strangled as many as 931 people.

4. Police Investigator

Serhiy Tkach in court

This might be the ideal day job for a serial killer that doesn’t want to bother with the trouble of setting up a cult because it provides the perfect means of covering up the crime. Serhiy Tkach, a police investigator in the Ukraine, claims to have killed 100 people. To make matters worse, at least 10 innocent people were imprisoned for Tkach’s crimes and one of the accused hanged himself. Tkach used his police training to cover up his activities.

3. Witch

The Vampiress of Barcelona. She was actually a witch doctor.

This seems like a natural job for a serial killer, but there has only been one example of a modern witch killing children. Enriqueta Marti (a.k.a. the “Vampiress of Barcelona”) was a Spanish woman who covered up her night job as a procurator of children for paedophiles by killing the victims and using their bodies in her “magic.” She actually made “medicine” from their bones, hair, blood, and skin and sold it to unsuspecting customers. If that wasn’t enough, she also ran a brothel that offered the services of children as young as three years old. Ms. Marti lured her victims to servitude and death by offering them candy. So it seems that fairy tales were right about witches.

2. Crime Reporter

Vlado Tanevski, courtesy the Guardian

This might be the dumbest job possible for a serial killer. In 2008, police in Macedonia caught journalist and serial killer Vlado Tanevski by reading his articles in a local newspaper. The articles contained details of three murders that only the killer or the homicide detectives could have known. That’s right, Tanevski apparently put details of the crimes that were not released to the public in his articles. Among other things, he named the murder weapon. Obviously, publicising details of the crimes is not the way to have a long criminal career. Tanevski killed himself shortly after an arrest, possibly because of embarrassment.

1. Doctor

Harold Shipman: Britain’s Dr. Death

More than a few physicians have moonlighted as serial killers over the years. One reason why serial killers may be attracted to the medical profession is that it brings them into contact with a lot of potential victims. It also provides a lot of tools for murder. Maxim Petrov, or “Doctor Death”, a Russian serial killer who operated in St. Petersburg, visited patients at their homes, gave them a fatal injection, and stole their possessions. If that wasn’t bad enough, Petrov even took rings off the fingers of his victims. Petrov had nothing on John Bodkin Adams, a British doctor who had 160 patients die in suspicious circumstances in the 1940s and 50s. Like Petrov, Adams also stole from his patients after he murdered them. Incredibly, Dr. Adams was never convicted and allowed to return to the practice of medicine. The only British doctor ever found guilty of being a serial killer was another “Doctor Death”, Harold Shipman, who was convicted of murdering 15 of his patients. Like Petrov and Adams, Shipman stole from those he murdered. He actually forged wills so he could inherit money from his victims. Some historians think Shipman may have killed as many as 165 people. The medical profession might be the perfect job for a serial killer, so it might pay to take a close look at your family physician, especially if he becomes interested in your will.

10. 3-D Printing

This could potentially be the most disruptive technology introduced since the personal computer. A 3-D printer is literally a factory in a box; a person puts in raw material, pushes a button, and the box makes an object. Today’s 3-D printers make plastic models or metal parts for machines. They’re called printers because they make three dimensional objects the way printers put images on paper. In the future, when you go to the garage, instead of ordering parts, the mechanic could look them up online, then download the designs into a 3-D printer that could make them. Huge numbers of inventors and engineers all over the world are working on 3-D printers. There are plans for printers that make food, clothing, chemicals, and drugs. A pharmacist using a drug printer could manufacture your prescription while you wait. A company named Contour Crafting even has plans to make buildings with 3-D printed components. If 3-D printing works out, the changes it brings could be vast. Instead of factories in China making our clothes and a vast transportation structure, there could be a machine in a shop at the mall that makes clothing. There’s also a dark side to this; for example, how will gun control laws be enforced if anybody can download the plans to an AK-47 and make one using a printer?

9. Maglev

A Maglev Train on the Yamanashi Test Track in Japan

A magnetic levitation, or Maglev train, uses magnetism to literally levitate right above a track. This enables the train to move across the ground at speeds of over 300 miles per hour using minimal energy and few moving parts. That means it provides high speed ground travel at little or no cost. A person using one would be able to travel from Las Vegas to Los Angeles in about an hour. The Transrapid combine from Germany has perfected maglev and built a 19-mile long maglev that carries commuters between Pudong International Airport and the Chinese City of Shanghai. A 10-mile long Maglev commuter line is under construction in Beijing. The Japanese government has given preliminary approval for the Chuo Shinkansen, the world’s first Maglev bullet train, which would travel between Tokyo, Osaka, and Nagoya at speeds of 505 kilometers (313 miles) an hour. Current plans call for service to begin in 2027. Several other maglev lines are planned around the world, including some in the U.S. The effects of Maglev travel could be as disruptive as earlier transportation advances like cars. Maglev could allow a person to live in Altoona, Penn., or Rochester, N.Y. and commute to a job in Manhattan everyday. It could also greatly reduce the cost of shipping and travel. The only thing blocking this technology would be the high cost of building Maglev lines. Several Maglev projects have been proposed in Germany, but cancelled due to costs. Successful lines in Japan and elsewhere could change that.

8. Fuel cells/Energy servers

Clear Edge’s Residential Fuel Cell. This technology is almost in your home

Imagine a future without power lines or an electric power grid. That’s what these advances could promise. Instead of thousands of miles of wire, all the energy needed for your home could be produced by a box in your basement. Other advances could be electric cars that could run for a year or more on a unit. That’s the promise of a fuel cell, a device that converts fuel such as hydrogen, natural gas, or gasoline directly into electricity. The technology has been around for a long time, but it is getting perfected. Big companies like Wal-Mart are now buying devices called Bloom Boxes that employ fuel cells as backup power generators. The gas company in Great Britain is readying home fuel cells that operate on natural gas, these would produce both heat and electricity. A company in the U.S. called Clear Edge Power is promoting a home fuel cell that would serve as a hot water heater and an electric generator that would run on propane or natural gas, and it is being sold online right now. The effects of this technology could be interesting if a large percentage of its former customers unplug from it and start making their own power at home.

7. Hydroponics

The Gotham Greens Hydroponics greenhouse in Brooklyn could be a preview of the factory farm of the future

This is the science of growing plants in water and liquid fertilizer in a greenhouse instead of a farm’s field. This method could produce better fruits and vegetables, and it’s been around a long time since World War II. The only thing that’s prevented its adoption has been the high cost of energy. New technology, some of it interestingly enough developed by illegal marijuana growers, is making it viable again. One advantage such operations have would be lower transportation costs; food could be grown in warehouses and other buildings in large cities and provide vegetables all year long. Another advantage is that hydroponics does not require pesticides or herbicides, so it uses fewer chemicals and is healthier. There is no risk of cancer or other side effects caused by pesticides because none of them are used. It could also be used to grow large amounts of food in areas where extra land is not available or cropland has been exhausted by overfarming. If energy costs are kept down, it would be competitive with food shipped over long distances. Hydroponics is already being tested in the U.S. A company called Gotham Greens is pioneering hydroponics in New York City with a large scale greenhouse in an old bowling alley in Brooklyn. It produces organic lettuce and basil for sale to the city’s restaurants. If energy costs can be kept down, this could be the agriculture of the future. One technology that could do that is cold fusion. If crops can be grown 12 months a year in a climate controlled greenhouse, how will traditional farms compete?

6. Hot Fusion

Hot fusion basically attempts to recreate the process that the sun uses to generate heat and light. Hot fusion would generate vast amounts of heat and could be used to run steam turbines to generate electricity. It could also be used for waste disposal, particularly the burning of hazardous waste. An example of the use of hot fusion would be a plant under the streets of Manhattan that would provide all the heat and electricity the skyscrapers above need and burn up all the garbage they produce without producing any pollution. Governments and big corporations have been working on it for decades with little or no success. A consortium of nations called the ITER is building a demonstration hot fusion plant in France that could prove its feasibility. Currently, its plant is supposed to start making super hot plasma and demonstrate the viability of hot fusion in 2019. Unfortunately, its plans do not call for large scale power generation by hot fusion until the 2030s. The private sector might beat ITER to the market. Several private companies, including General Fusion in Canada and Lawrenceville Plasma Physics in the U.S., are also working on fusion and could beat ITER to the punch. These companies have not achieved success yet, but they have high level support. Bill Gates and Steve Bezos of Amazon are among the wealthy investors who have shelled out money to support their work. If it works, hot fusion could make electricity production cheaper, and it would apparently be safer than traditional nuclear reactors.

5. Wireless Electricity

WiTricity, a Massachusetts company, is developing an energy hotspot that could transmit electricity to all the gadgets in your home

We’re all familiar with the wireless internet in which you can access the web through radio signals. Well, how about wireless electricity in which electronic devices literally pull power out of the air? Instead of extension cords, you would have an electric hotspot that would provide power to your gadgets. In the future, phones could draw power from the cell phone network in the way they draw signals today. Long-term electric cars could draw power from transmitters by the road. Or electricity could be transmitted like microwave signals are today, eliminating the need for an expensive power grid. That’s the promise of wireless electricity, it’s not a new idea. Nikola Tesla, Edison’s great rival and the inventor of the electric grid, tried to develop it in the last century. Companies like Powercast and WiTricity are developing it now. WiTricity uses technology developed at MIT. WiTricity already has light bulbs that can run off radio waves, and is currently working on two applications of the technology, direct wireless power, in which devices will be powered only by wireless, and automatic wireless charging, in which device recharges itself when it gets in a wireless electric hotspot. With this technology, an electric car could recharge itself in a parking lot without being plugged in. WiTricity currently has contracts to work on wireless charging for electric vehicles with companies like Toyota and Mitsubishi. It’s also working on the wireless charging of medical implants, such as pacemakers. The only thing stopping it is the lack of power; if it could be perfected, it could be as big a game changer as Cold Fusion.

4. Robotic Vehicles

Robotic vehicle being developed by U.S. Defense Contractor General Dynamics and the Pentagon’s weird science agency DARPA (the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency)

Remote-controlled drones and robot planes are already changing the face of warfare and will soon be moving into other fields. Some examples could be buses and taxi cabs that drive themselves. Drones could soon be doing surveillance for the police and covering news stories for TV stations in our cities. Imagine a rental car that drives back to the Avis or Hertz location when you no longer need it. Or delivery trucks without drivers. Another potential development would be pilot-less air shuttles that could pick people up and take them where they want to go. Other examples could be construction machines like bulldozers that run themselves. Or even robot tanks to patrol the battlefield of the future. Smaller robotic vehicles, including robotic fish that actually swim underwater and mini drones that fly like hummingbirds, could have even other uses we are not aware of. These devices could be used for surveillance or to deliver bombs in warfare. More peaceful uses could be robotic street sweepers to keep our cities clean or robotic lawnmowers in public parks.

3. Biological Therapy

An artist’s representation of how biological therapy fights cancer on a molecular level

Also called vaccine therapy, biotherapy or biological response modifier therapy is an approach that literally reprograms the human immune system to fight disease and its symptoms. It does this with substances made by the body itself, rather than drugs. The immune system is reprogrammed by adding biological modifier substances that change the operation of cells. Some of these substances can program white blood cells to destroy cancer cells or destroy cancer cells on a molecular level. They can even alter the growth patterns of cancer cells so they operate like healthy tissue. Today it’s being used as a cancer treatment, but in the future, it could be used as a treatment for other diseases. Some biological therapies can counteract the symptoms of cancer. It is possible that someday biological therapies that could counteract or even reverse some of the symptoms of aging could be developed. New treatments are being developed, include cancer vaccines. Doctors at the Hassadah University in Israel are even testing a new cancer vaccine that could keep 90 percent of cancers from coming back. The vaccine is being developed by a company called Vaxil Bio Therapeutics. Future developments in this field could be vaccines for allergies, infections, viruses (including AIDS and the common cold), and the effects of diseases such as Parkinson’s and Alzheimer’s.

2. Cold fusion, or Low Energy Nuclear Reaction (LENR)

What a Cold Fusion Powered Hot Heater/Boiler Might Look Like

This technology would give the world an almost limitless source of energy that would not produce greenhouse gases or dangerous radiation. This technology could end the use of fossil fuels and eliminate the threat of global warming. The idea behind this technology is to create a low-powered nuclear reaction by using an electrochemical process. The reaction would be small enough to be contained in a device about the size of a car engine. Yet, the potential power here would be incredible. A 2009 report from the U.S. Defense Intelligence Agency estimates that nuclear fusion could release 10 million times more energy per unit mass than present day fuels like gasoline. Uses for this could be a car that could run for years without refueling or a truck or a locomotive that could cross North America without refueling. This idea has been around since the 1920s and it is generally dismissed by mainstream science, but in 1989, distinguished scientists Marin Fleischmann and Stanley Pons claimed to have achieved it. Their claims were refuted, but a number of scientists and inventors have worked on it and achieved some results. Since then, around 10,000 reactions have been created in laboratories, and work to build a working cold fusion generator is well under way. Even though the U.S. Department of Energy dismisses cold fusion, the Pentagon apparently thinks it is possible. The U.S. Navy has also done quite a bit of research into it. Italian inventor Andrea Rossi claims to have a working cold fusion device based on a nickel-hydrogen reaction which he calls an e-cat, or Energy Catalyzer. Currently the e-cat can boil water or produce low pressure steam, and Rossi is selling it as a commercial water heater. One of Rossi’s first customers was reportedly the U.S. Navy. He’s also working on a smaller version for use in the home. Two other companies, Defkalion in Greece and Brillouin Energy Corp in the U.S., also claim to have working cold fusion boilers. Defkalion has announced plans to bring its technology to market next year. Working cold fusion boilers would dramatically lower the cost of heating and a lot of industrial processes, including food production. Among the changes cold fusion could bring would be cars and power plants that do not pollute. It could also put a device in your basement that could produce all the electricity, hot water, and heat your family needs with a few dollars’ worth of nickel and hydrogen. If that wasn’t enough, it could end the energy crisis and eliminate the causes of the greenhouse effect.

1. Meat without livestock

Pork being grown from stem cells in a Dutch Lab

This game-changing idea is so new and radical, that it does not even have a proper name yet. Terms used for it include “carnaculture,” “cultured meat” and “in-vitro meat.” The idea is a simple one, grow meat in a tank or vat the way yeast is grown. Scientists such as Mark Post, a physiology professor at the Eindhoven University of Technology in the Netherlands, are trying to grow meat from stem cells, but so far, their efforts have not been very successful. Post estimates that it would cost about $250,000 to grow enough meat to make a sausage with his process. People who have tasted Post’s meat have described it as chewy and tasteless. Any commercial application of this process is years away because scientists have not figured out how to produce something that looks like meat. Yet there could be some real benefits from in-vitro meat if it could be perfected. It could help reduce the greenhouse effect because cattle are a major generator of greenhouse gases. It would also end the damage livestock grazing does to the land and eliminate the vast amounts of pollution created by big and chicken farming. Another benefit of cultured meat is that cultured fish could provide protein and the overfishing of the oceans. A final benefit would be that the vast amounts of grain now fed to livestock could be used for food for the poor or as the ingredients for biofuels. Carnaculture could also provide meat for future space travelers. These promises have led to the formation of a group of European scientists for the development of cultured meat. It would also end the practice of slaughtering animals for meat, which many people find inhumane. Even if the process could be perfected, there are hurdles, such as people finding the idea disgusting, and it could even be illegal under the U.S. Food and Drug Administration regulations. There’s also the cost, and one of the scientists developing it, Dr. Vladimir Mironov of the Medical University of South Carolina, estimates it would cost $1 billion to develop carnaculture. Yet, he hasn’t been able to get any steady funding for his work. So the future of meat grown in a vat is questionable.

Rumors don’t even have to be true to destroy a life. Even allegations of wrongdoing can wreck a career or sabotage ambitions. The internet and social media make the situation worse by spreading even the most ridiculous rumors quickly. Some of those destroyed by rumors include:

10. Sarah Palin

The bizarre former governor of the state of Alaska and 2008 Republican vice presidential candidate has been turned into a joke by all manner of rumors. The biggest of the rumors is Palin faked a pregnancy in order to cover up her 17-year-old daughter’s pregnancy. More recently, Palin has become tabloid fodder with rumors of affairs with basketball players flying. Palin’s political career is dead, but she lives on as a B-list celebrity. During the last presidential campaign, nobody paid any attention to her.

9. J. Edgar Hoover

FBI Director J. Edgar Hoover has been turned into something of a joke by rumors in the decades since his death. The weirdest of these stories involves rumors that photographs of Hoover wearing a dress exist. The rumors are centered on claims that Hoover was a crossdresser and gay. No historian has been able to dig up any evidence verifying these stories, even though accounts of Hoover’s personal life suggest that he was gay. These stories were apparently spread by people that hated Hoover enough to ruin his reputation and they succeeded 20 years after his death.

8. Walt Disney

Not even the dead are safe from the destructive power of rumors. Since his death, Uncle Walt’s reputation has been seriously damaged by a wide variety of bizarre rumors. The rumors have made this beloved American icon look more like a whacko and even a traitor in hindsight. The strangest story is that Walt’s body was frozen and stored somewhere in Disneyland after his death in hopes that he might be brought back to life in the future. The rumor is so pervasive that even former Walt Disney Company Chairman Michael Eisner reportedly believed it. Disney’s body was actually cremated shortly after his death. The main reason this rumor has so much credence is that there is no grave or memorial for Walt, even though his family owns a funeral plot. Nor was a funeral ever held for the man. Another bizarre rumor is that Walt Disney was a Nazi. Biographies indicate that Disney was probably an anti-Semite, but he was a patriotic American and a strong supporter of America’s war against Nazi Germany. Disney’s company even made anti-Nazi propaganda films for the U.S. government during World War II. There is also no evidence that Disney was a racist, as some allegations claim, so the rumors are false, but widely believed. Those rumors can be traced to episodes of the animated shows Family Guy and Robot Chicken that show Walt as a Nazi. Even obvious satire can create destructive rumors and destroy reputations.

7. Michael Jackson

Nobody seems to have been the subject of more rumors than Michael Jackson. Popular rumors when he was alive involved child molestation, sleeping in an oxygen chamber, and plastic surgery to make himself look whiter. The rumors obviously damaged his career long before he died. Even though Michael is dead, he is still being plagued by bizarre rumors including:

• Michael Jackson became a born-again Christian right before he died. Jackson was a lifelong member of the Jehovah’s Witnesses, an apocalyptic denomination in the United States. There is no evidence he changed his faith, but the rumor attracted a lot of attention online.
• A Jackson Five reunion tour with a hologram of Michael as one of the performers is being planned.
• Jackson’s brain was removed from his body before it was buried. Oddly enough, this is apparently true.

6. David Patterson

David Patterson being badgered by reporters

David Patterson served as Governor of the state of New York and attracted attention as the first blind man to serve as a governor. Since leaving office in 2010, Patterson has been plagued by rumors that he used drugs and engaged in bizarre sex in the governor’s office. The rumors are made worse by efforts to keep reporters from getting access to Patterson’s email. There have been constant rumors that a major newspaper, usually The New York Times, was about to run an explosive story about Patterson’s sex parties and drug use. The story has never been released, but the rumors keep spreading. Other rumors about Patterson include allegations that Patterson wrongly gave a syndicate (that included Rapper J-Z) a license to operate a casino in New York City. Patterson’s political career is obviously dead, but the rumors about him live on and on.

5. George Entwistle

The director general of the British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) is one of the most powerful people in the United Kingdom, yet even that power and prestige couldn’t protect him from some very destructive rumors. They included allegations that the BBC staff knew of allegations of child molestation against a prominent politician that were false, even though they ran a News Night documentary making them. Another rumor was that News Night also refused to run an expose on child molestation charges against BBC presenter Jimmy Savile. Entwistle only served as the BBC director general for a few weeks before he was fired. Since his ouster, Entwistle has been the subject of more rumors, including one that he would only resign if he was paid a huge sum of money.

4. Prince Charles

Not even royalty are immune from rumors. The Prince of Wales and heir to the British throne has had his reputation ruined by all sorts of rumors. The weirdest rumor is that Charles eats seven hardboiled eggs for breakfast, which isn’t true. Strangely enough, Charles actually went out of his way to debunk that rumor on his website. There has even been speculation that all the rumors about Charles and his wife, Camilla Parker Bowles, will keep him from inheriting the throne. Nobody knows if that will happen or not, but the fact such speculation is taken seriously shows the power of rumors in today’s world.

3. Keanu Reeves

Keanu Reeves became a major star with Speed in 1994, but since The Matrix trilogy wrapped up, he’s almost completely dropped out of sight. Part of the reason might be rumors that Reeves, who shuns the spotlight, is gay. The rumors apparently date from a minor 1984 movie called Wolfboy; the movie contained a scene in which Reeves got a kiss from a man. More recently, Reeves has been plagued by rumors that he had married actor Alan Cummings in 2004. In real life Reeves is married to a woman and he has kids. He has also been linked with billionaire music mogul and political contributor David Geffen. Interestingly enough, Geffen has claimed he has never even met Reeves. Part of the reason why these rumors are so persistent is that Reeves is a very private person who stays out of the spotlight. If that wasn’t bad enough, Reeves was also the subject of false death rumors; the rumors claimed that he had been killed in a snowboarding accident in Switzerland. The rumors thrive because nobody really knows that much about Mr. Reeves or his life, so it is easy to spread rumors about him.

2. Kevin Clash

Kevin Clash with Elmo the iconic puppet he operated for decades

Kevin Clash the puppeteer and creator of a pop culture icon. As a puppeteer for the Children’s Television or Sesame Workshop in New York, Clash was the genius behind one of the most popular children’s characters on American television, the childlike puppet Elmo. During the 1990s, Elmo became one of the most popular characters on the hugely popular children’s television show, Sesame Street, and one of the best-selling toys of all time. In 2012, rumors that Clash once had a sexual relationship with a 16-year-old boy began spreading. The rumors were never proved, but the boy apparently took a $125,000 settlement from Clash. This allegation led to rumors that Clash visited gay telephone chat lines looking for boys to have sex with. Another accuser came forward and filed a lawsuit against the puppeteer. Clash resigned from his job with Sesame Street. The official reason for the resignation was that the rumors were distracting Clash from his “important work.” So far, there is no word on how this will affect Elmo or Sesame Street.

1. Justin Bieber

Even though he seems to be hot, Justin Bieber is currently the most popular target for rumor mongers. People seem to be willing to believe just about anything about this singer, which will probably destroy him sooner or later. Among the most bizarre rumors are that Bieber caught syphilis and that Kim Kardashian was pregnant with Bieber’s baby. Both rumors proved to be false, but they generated a lot of searches, according to Google. Bieber seems to be a magnet for rumors because lots of people hate him. They want to see him destroyed, so they’ll spread rumors about him in an attempt to achieve that goal. The rumors might end soon, because like Bieber himself, they might quickly degenerate into jokes.

Many historical beheadings weren’t always the result of a conviction. Some were plain cruel acts, committed with pure evil intent. There are even instances of political “mistakes” being made, resulting in the execution of innocent people. You would think that with so many other options available to carry out a death sentence, the act of beheading would be lost. Ironically, in many lands, it is still seen as the ultimate punishment for criminals.

Below is a list of 10 beheadings that have taken place over the course of time. Some are familiar, while others are virtually unheard of. Whether they are popular or not, they happened. They should provoke thought and make anyone wonder, how far we have really come as a civilization if this ancient method of death is still being used?

10. Ruyati Binti Sapubi

On June 18th 2011, Ruyati Binti Sapubi was beheaded in Mecca. She was convicted of murdering her employee, Khairiya bint Hamid Mijlid, with a meat cleaver. The woman murdered her boss after she was denied the opportunity to leave the kingdom and return to her family in Indonesia. Ironically, the maid had been being held captive by her employer for 14 years.

The Saudi government issued an apology after the truth of the woman’s hostage situation was revealed. They neglected to inform the embassy of their plan to execute Ruyati. Had they done so, the woman may have been pardoned. Since her execution, the Indonesian government has put a halt to exporting workers to Saudi Arabia. The Saudi government has vowed to no longer carry out executions of foreign workers without first contacting the consulate or embassy, to avoid another future mishaps of this nature.

9. Thomas More (1478 – 1535)

Known to the Catholic Church as Saint Thomas More, this man wore many hats; he was a lawyer, an author, an advisor of Henry VIII and Lord Chancellor. Seen as a martyr by the church, he spoke in opposition of the Protestant reform. He also made no secret his thoughts on Martin Luther or William Tyndale. Of all of the things he did for the Catholic Church, he will always be remembered for publicly opposing the King’s separation from the church and his refusal to accept him as the church’s head.

The beheading of Thomas More was rather senseless in the mind of many. In 1533, he rejected an invitation to the coronation of Anne Boleyn; who as the King’s wife, was to be crowned Queen. This act of rejection wasn’t considered treason since More had put his acknowledgement of her queen-ship on paper. However, King Henry wasn’t pleased with his behavior and chose to act in response.

More was soon charged with the crime of accepting bribes. The false charges were dropped since he had a fierce reputation as an immovable judge. The following year, he was charged with conspiracy. It was alleged that he had teamed up with a nun who “foresaw” the end of the king’s rule. Those charges were also dropped when evidence that he had told the nun to refrain from interfering with the king’s affairs was produced.

With all of the attempts to bring something against More failing, there was little left to do. The presence of Thomas More was requested before the commission. He was instructed to proclaim his allegiance to the Act of Succession. He was willing to accept Parliament’s choice to make Boleyn queen but he would not swear his allegiance to the relationship that the Kingdom and the church had; he was a firm believer of Papal Supremacy. He also openly rejected the king’s annulment from his former wife, Catherine. All of these things led to him being charged with, tried for and found guilty of treason. Thomas More was ordered to death by beheading.

8. Anna Mansdotter

Anna Mansdotter played a part in one of the most famous murder cases in Sweden. Along with her son, Per Nilsson, she murdered a woman. The woman was her son’s wife. Both parties involved in the crime gave multiple stories. None of them were ever the same. No one was ever able to find out the motive behind the murder.
However, years after the murder, many people began to say that Anna may have committed the crime on her own. These suggestions were based on the fact that during the trial, an incestuous relationship was revealed. It was believed that Anna Mansdotter was jealous of the relationship between her son and his wife. Also, because of the unnatural relationship between mother and son, the bond that they shared was strange. People familiar with the case believe that the murder may have been carried out by Anna, but she did so with the blessing of her son. On August 7th 1890, Anna Mansdotter was the last woman to be executed in Sweden.

7. Anne Palles

At the age of 74, Anne Palles was the last witch to be legally put to death in Denmark. The crime that she was charged with was sorcery.
In 1962, Anne was named amongst many others by a woman who was being accused of poisoning a man. During her questioning, she confessed practicing magic and provided authorities with the names of her 3 partners. She also have them a list of nearly 100 clients.

That same year, Anne was accused of multiple crimes; using magic to enchant a bailiff, murder and destroying a man’s crops after he forced her son to join the military. When her trial began, Anne confessed to being a witch, having met Satan, having help from her “familiar” and attending the Witch’s Sabbath. She was sentenced to death based on her own confession.

After her sentencing, Palles tried to recant her statements. She revealed that she only made the confession because she was tortured during her stay in prison. Anne stated that before her trial even began, she was interrogated by the priests; who were awaiting her arrival at the prison. The priests had threatened to remove her tongue if she said anything different once her trial began. With her sentencing already passed down, Anne’s pleas went unheard. And her sentence to die was carried out. People accused of sorcery were usually burned alive. However, it was ordered that Anne be beheaded prior to throwing her body on the stake. The other women were simply set ablaze.

6. Amina bint Abdulhalim Nassar

In December of 2011, Amina Nassar was beheaded after being charged and convicted of practicing witchcraft. It was reported that the Saudi woman called herself a healer and would sell vials of unknown liquids and veils to clients who believed she had healing powers. She made $400 from each sale. Upon investigation and searching her home, authorizes discovered Amina’s witchcraft books, veil, bottles and liquids. She was tried and sentenced to public death. The decision was supported by all judicial systems.

5. Marisol Macias Castanedas

In 2011, the beheaded body of Marisol Macias Castanedas, was found close to the U.S. border. Marisol was an editor for a Mexican newspaper. Her head was placed atop a large rock and her body sprawled in the grass, nearby. A poster board with a handwritten note was found with the body, as a warning.

Mexican drug cartels, the Zetas, were believed to be responsible for the gruesomely violent death. It was said to be in retaliation for comments that Castanedas had posted on a social networking site. Marisol often used her social network pages to voice her opinions and share her points of view. This act of “free speech”, proved to be a deadly choice for the budding newswoman.

4. Daniel Pearl (1963 – 2002)

Another tragic, yet historic, beheading that occurred during in the 21 century. Mr. Pearls an American journalist for the Wall Street Journal. Serving as the South Asia Bureau Chief, he was stationed in India. On a trip to Pakistan, to research possible connections between the Richard Reid and Al-Qaeda, Daniel was kidnapped and beheaded.

There will never be any clarity as to who was truly responsible for his death. In the summer of 2002, one man was sentenced to hang for the crimes against Pearl. However, in 2007, a prisoner in Guantanamo Bay assumed personal responsibility for the beheading of Pearl. Even after this confession, more men were alleged to be connected to the crime. Who did it is irrelevant. It was another example of senseless cruelty, carried out by a terrorist cell.

3. Eugene Armstrong

This beheading has been etched into history. Senseless and pure evil, it’s the beheading death of Eugene Olin Armstrong. Mr. Armstrong was a construction contractor, employed by Gulf Supplies Commercial Services of the United Arab Emirates. On September 16th 2004, “Jack” (as he was lovingly known to those who loved him), was kidnapped by a terrorist cell. He was held hostage with two other Americans.

Four days after being taken hostage, Eugene Armstrong was beheaded by militant groups. One man, Abu Musab al-Zarqawi, was proud to take responsibility for the beheading of this innocent man. A video of the horrific crime was placed on the World Wide Web for all to see. This heinous act was clearly an act of terrorism that was meant to get the message of Al-Qaeda’s intent to continue their war against those people believed to be their oppressors.

2. Marie Antoinette (1755-1793)

Marie Antonia Josepha Johanna was born on November 2nd, 1755. She was the fifteenth child of Maria Theresa and the Holy Roman Emperor, Francis I. At the age of 15, on the day she married Louis-Auguste, she became the Dauphine of France. She became the Queen of France and Navarre at the age of 19 when her husband, Louis XVI, took the throne after the death of Louis XV.

Once thought to be charming and beautiful, the people of France eventually began to dislike Marie Antoinette. They considered her to be reckless and “loose”. They also felt that she was too sympathetic to the country’s foe; which unfortunately happened to be her homeland, Austria.

It was during the French Revolution that the royal family was forced to flee to after the royal Varennes due to attempts to abolish the monarchy. Within 24 hours, the royal family was captured and held in the Temple Prison. There were many schemes concocted to break her out of prison but Marie refused them all. On October 16th 1793, Marie Antoinette was convicted of treason and beheaded at the guillotine; just nine months after the execution of her husband.

1. John the Baptist (c. 6BC – c. 30-36)

This is undoubtedly the most famous beheading in the history of the world. John the Baptist was a traveling preacher and a great figure in many religions. Some Gospels describe him as a relative of the man known as Jesus. This iconic religious figure is considered by many as the thriving force behind the baptismal movement that took place along the Jordan River. He was considered a prophet in many faiths; including Christianity, Islam, Baha’i and Mandaeism. John the Baptist is also the man who baptized Jesus Christ; an act that opened the gates of heaven.

According to the Gospels, John was thrown into prison for criticizing King Herod’s marriage to Herodias; who was once the wife of his brother. This was a direct violation of an Old Testament law. Further along in the Gospel, Herod’s stepdaughter (Salome) performs as dance for the King. In return for her performance, Herod offers a favor. Her mother, Herodias, instructs the young girl to request the head of John the Baptist…on a plate.

However, many historians believe that Herod ordered the beheading of John the Baptist because he had too much influence over the people. He had the power to cause rebellion. To avoid a revolution, Herod felt the best thing to do was remove the threat. Either way, this will remain the most famous beheading in history. All of these years later, reference to the beheading of John is made on a regular basis. It’s the source of the phrase, having someone’s “head on a platter”.

As you can see, some of these beheadings are very well-known. They are spoken of often and referred to on a regular basis. There are many beheadings that may always be considered some of the most famous decapitations to ever take place. Others, although less popular, are linked to circumstances that have made their marks on the world; such as witch hunting and accusations of sorcery. As inhumane as it may be, it seems that the act of beheading will not only be a part of the world’s history; but it will be a part of its future as well.

Whether it was for fortune, land, or political gain, barbarian raids, although terrifying to imagine, actually shaped the way the world views outside groups in general. By identifying with what compelled these tribes and clans to purge, destroy, maim and murder could ultimately help us understand the same thing in today’s society. Much of it came down to intolerance, while some of it had everything to do with human survival.

10. Rome Raided by Ostrogoths and Visigoths

Rome, along with Britain, was often main targets for barbarian groups. In 376 AD, they became the target of one of the most violent and plundering clans in history. The Visigoths, as well as the Ostrogoths were Germanic tribes who spent years sacking, robbing and raiding villages of the rich and poor alike. After a peaceful settlement by the Visigoths in the Roman-controlled region of Dacia, a great famine broke out, causing disease as hunger spread rapidly throughout the territory. The Roman Empire at the time felt like they were doing everything they could do aid in the epidemic, though the tribe of the Visigoths were left out of the relief. This led to the organizing of an army and six years of invasion and terror swept upon the Roman Empire in the Baltic region, with many dead, including a Roman Emperor, the demise of an entire army at the Battle of Adrianople in 378 AD. Matters were not completely settled until the eventual fall of the Roman Empire.

9. Attila The Hun: The Barbarian Invasion

When the Attila and the Mongolian Huns invaded Europe in 370 AD under their leader Vund, and later Balamber, it set them on a path towards historical dominance, with their sheer aggression, brutality, and solid leadership. The establishment of the Hun Empire, led by Attila himself, would be one that would challenge any kingdom in the area with their swift displays of absolute power and warrior skills.

One of the last major battles during military operations of the western Roman Empire, through the use of Visigoth soldiers, came to a climactic battle at the Catalaunian Plains near Gaul when the Huns and their allies, led by Attila, were defeated handily by the Romans and their allies in 451.

The trouble began as Roman control in this area of modern France was beginning to crumble, due in part to the restless and fragile social nature of local Germanic and Celtic tribes, who were forming their own armies and selecting their own leaders. It seemed during this time, the only area that was 100% controlled was the Mediterranean coastline. During the social upheaval, Attila and his allies crossed the Rhine River and began a path of destruction, slaughtering villages in Rheim, Paris, and other areas surrounding the kingdom in Gaul. They eventually reached their destination of Aurelianum, greeted by Theopholus.

The Huns historically have been used to being the dominant force in battle. This would prove not to be the case in this siege. There is no number to the casualties, though it is rumored to heavy on both sides. Legend has it that Attila and his allies outnumbered their enemies by 30,000 soldiers, though with the failed siege on the Roman stronghold, and the ultimate destruction of their nearby encampment, the Huns had little chance, and retreated.

Little is known about the ease of the central-Asian Huns who swept through Europe in the 4th century and dominating parts of Germany, the Ukraine, and the Balkans. Under the rule of Attila, the Huns would face defeat at Gaul in France, but find success in the taking of southern Italy. Using brutal tactics unseen in history and that time, and continued until the death of Attila in 469 AD.

8. England Invaded by Scottish Barbarians

Called by legend, the ‘tainted’ or ‘tattooed’ people, mainly by those that feared their aggression, the Picts were a group of nomads in Scotland who became a huge part of the ‘Great Migration’ of the early century. Their history dates back as far as the early Dark Ages, and rose to power quickly in Northern Britain, due simply to the fact that there was no dominant power, and thus no competition.

Their repeated and relentless sacks of British and Roman forces are often compared to the tactics and politics of the Mongols. Their tenacity in victory and defeat ultimately led to the taking of Anglian kingdoms throughout the region and the pirating and raiding of Roman outposts.

Picts and Scot culture ruled Northern Britain for generations following. They brought with them technology not seen, and deemed ‘untouchable,’ by the Roman Empire.

7. The Muslim Conquest

When it comes to barbarian attacks, the Muslim, or Arab Conquest bare a slightly different image. Though the aggressive displays of power by the Islamic followers of the Conquest, the thing that separated these tribes and groups from others is passion and perseverance. There is no other way to describe the tenacious 116 year war between the Byzantine Empire and the followers of the Arab Conquest. Led by the taking of the Arabian Peninsula by the early followers of the prophet Muhammad, the uprising began with the siege on the Sassanid Empire, leading to the century long war with the Byzantines.

The first portion of the uprising began with the conquests of Syria, Amania, Egypt, and the first of two sieges on North Africa, in modern Morocco, led by the Caliphs of Rashidun, or ‘Rightly Guided Caliphs.’ Successively, under the Umayyads Caliphs, they twice sieged Constantinople, along with Hispania and Georgia. Muslim conquests took place sporadically up until the late 18th century, with battles in Crete, southern Italy, and Nubia. The end of the Arab Conquest is said to be due to the increase in power of the Middle-Eastern Ottaman Empire, the Safavid Empire, as well as the Mughai of India.

6. German Tribes Sack Italy and Greece

In the midst of religious unsettlement in in the early part of the 160 A.D., there was a new threat for the country of Greece, in the form of Germanic tribes, who scouted out and ultimately sacked the kingdoms there and in Italy.

Little is known about the reasons why these tribes brutally invaded, killed and enslaved Italian and Greeks during this time-period. Some of these same barbarian tribes are also said to be a contributor into the ultimate fall of the Roman Empire. The Great Migration was centered out of the area of the Rhein, and as expansion grew, so did the chaos and carnage that often ensued. The German raids on Italy and Greece during this time period is not well documented, most likely due to the instability and plague that was ensuing all over Europe during this period.

5. Barbarian Conquer The Roman Empire

The Vandals, from what we have learned from history, were one of the bloodiest and most powerful barbarian tribes on record. There relentless pursuits led them into battle after battle, and whether they achieved victory or defeat, they seemed to march forward. In 455 AD, they marched right into Rome, something not every tribe or clan was willing to do.

The Romans thought that they were in the clear, with the death of Attila and the quick deterioration of the Hunnic Empire, and looked to bring the Vandals in as allies. Valentinian III, who was behind the peace talks, was dethroned by means of murder by Petronius Maximus, in a feeble effort to gain control of the Empire. This only angered the Vandals, particularly their leader, Genseric, who was promised the hand in marriage of Valentinian’s daughter. They quickly devised and executed a plan to attack Rome.

After achieving peace with Constantinople, the Vandals were able to focus on the Romans, who in turn were bent on the destruction of their barbaric invaders. It is rumored that the reason why the powerful Vandals were so weakened, was by Genseric receiving blessings from Pope Leo the Great, resulting in religious tolerance, which eased of tensions between the groups, and ultimately ending the conflict. Leo the Great is credited for saving Rome from the Vandals.

4. Vandal Barbarians Surge into Africa in A.D. 429

When it comes to barbarians during the Great Migration period and throughout the reign of the Roman Empire, one group sticks out the most-The Vandals. The word ‘vandalism’ is taken from the way that the Vandals sacked, looted, destroyed and murdered their way into the history books. Gaining many friends, as well as hated enemies during the time period, the Vandals spawned many of history’s first copycats. Polish, Slavic, and Germanic barbarian groups often coined similar terms.

After years of success, in 429, under the rule of their leader Geiseric, the Vandals, nearly 80,000 strong, crossed into northern Africa; after a heavy losing battle with the Roman Empire, before moving on to the small, walled-in village of Hippo Regius in Numidia. With the Vandals ruling this area, disease and hunger spread rapidly, until an aid agreement was made with the Roman Empire. As we will soon learn, peace between the two parties would be very short-lived.

3. The Saxons Invasion of Britain

Britain has always been a target for a well-planned invasion, or even those sporadic ones. It was no different in 421 AD when the Saxons lay siege to Britain. This would become one of history’s greatest barbarian raids and Great Migration showdowns. The Saxons were one of the many tribes who waited until the decline of the Roman Empire before migrating and claiming land by whatever brutal means necessary.

The resulting siege would form the basics of the Anglo-Saxon faction. Along with Frisians and Jutes, the Anglo-Saxons invaded British territory, starting with the southern shores of Britannia. The original effort was a guise, however, as the faction convinced many that they were there to protect people from the Picts, Irish and the Scots, all of whom were migrating into Britain at the time.

In the end, the siege created four realms in the kingdom-Essex, Middlesex, Sussex, Wessex. Britain would eventually receive full unification under the reign of Alfred the Great in the 871 AD.

2. Mongols Attack Europe

The Mongol Empire is one of history’s most notorious barbarian tribes to ever sack a village. Under strict leadership for centuries, the Mongols perfected the art of war, and used these skills to wreak havoc all over the world.

The European invasion by the Mongols began in 1237 with the taking of Poland, and the ensuing battles in Russia, specifically in the cities of Kiev and Vladimir. The grandson of legendary Mongol leader Ghengis Khan led his army as the invasion began.

Through the years, the Mongols would go on to invade and sack Croatia, Romania, Hungary, and other parts of Central Europe. Historians argue about what caused the cease in the advancement of the Mongols. Many say it was the weather in Germany and other Slovak area, and their inexperience in dealing with such conditions. Others believe it was the transition from the Khan-era that brought down the ruthless endeavors of one of history’s greatest, and bloodiest, armies.

1. The Vikings Wreak Havoc across the Lands

The earliest recognized invasions by the Vikings began in 793 when the Norse invaded Lindisfarne, England. Historians differentiate three phases to the Viking invasions. The first phase of attacks was from 790-840. The Vikings used shallow long ships, which were preferably armed for a surprise invasion of coastal locations throughout Europe and Britain. The armadas were small, making the “hit-and-run” attack successful. This type of attack enabled the Viking raiders to row away as swiftly as they had stormed the coastal villages. The attacks were usually seasonal and isolated in small bands of Viking raiders. These attacks began along the coastal cities in England and France and continued down along the river communities. The Carolingian Empire was deeply affected by the raids at this time. Frisia and Aquitaine in modern day France were two of the first provinces attacked by the Vikings, Aquitaine being attacked by Norwegian raiders returning from Ireland. The most notable attack was on the monastery at Noirmountier. This island monastery was attacked every summer. The monks tried many defenses, but they eventually left the island for safer lands. The trading centers in Frisia, particularly Dorestad, were favorite targets of the Vikings in 834-839.

The important thing to know about these barbarian raids is that they have not altogether ceased to exist. It still happens all over the world, only in this day and age, it is more intelligent, covert, and deadly that ever before. Not only is that, in this tech-age, the consequences far more severe.

Though we don’t have Vandals, Goths, Huns, and Franks tearing apart our cities with fire and bloodshed, we can learn a thing or two from these events in regard to power, greed, authority and violence.

10. The Number 9 (Judgment)

The number 9 occurs at least 50 times in the Bible. Although the number 9 is used in a variety of ways, it’s considered to represent judgment. In the Old Testament, 9 men were stoned to death. When Jesus came to live upon earth, his life was to come to an end when he was nailed to the cross. Jesus expires at the 9th hour and several days later he appears to his disciples 9 times after his resurrection.

In the book of Ecclesiastics, the speaker states that there are 9 things that make me happy. When Hoshea, son of Elah, became king in Samaria, he reigned for 9 years. The number 9 has been used a few times to represent the time of day when people prayed—the 9th hour.

The number 9 has also been used to describe the spiritual gifts that Jesus has given to people, as well as the fruit of the spirit. In the New Testament we learn about the 9 spiritual gifts: faith, knowledge, wisdom, healing, miracles, distinguishing spirits, speaking in tongues, prophecy and interpreting tongues. As a person accepts Christ into his/her life, he or she obtains at least one of these spiritual gifts. Most likely the most familiar use of the number 9 is the fruit of spirit: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, trustfulness, gentleness and self-control.

9. The Number 30 (The Right Moment)

Because the number 30 is significant in the Bible, some people believe months that contain just 30 days (September, April, June and November) are months in which new opportunities need to be embraced. For example, it may be the time to look for a new job, set a new goal or make an investment.

Thirty is also the combination of 3 and 10 that are both represented to be good biblical numbers.

The number 30 represents a higher degree of divine order. Jesus was sent to the earth as a baby and when he was 30 years old, he began his ministry. Joseph, who believed in Jesus and studied his teachings, began his ministry at age 30. David, another follower of Jesus, began his reign at age 30. During this era, a priest would be considered as a deacon for five years from ages 25 to 30 and then would began his priest duties at age 30.

It’s interesting to note that all three of the men mentioned above were betrayed at some point. When Judas betrayed Jesus, it was for 30 pieces of silver. This was the going rate for selling a slave.

8. The Number 70 (Restoration)

The number 70 is a combination of two perfect biblical numbers (7×10) and represents restoration, the use of spiritual power. In the Old Testament there were 70 nations before the Tower of Babel. When Israel first entered Egypt, 70 men built up the nation. The court of law in Israel, known as the Sanhedrin, was comprised by 70 elders. In the book of Exodus we learn that 70 elders met with God on Sinai and shared a sacred meal together. There was also the 70 year of exile to Babylon. In the New Testament, Jesus chose 70 student disciples to teach and perform apostle duties. Later he invites 12 to become his close disciples.

One of the most interesting use of the number 70 can be found in Matthew 18: 21, 22: 21 when Peter came to Jesus and asked, “Lord, how many times shall I forgive my brother or sister who sins against me? Up to seven times?” 22 Jesus answered, “I tell you, not seven times, but seventy-seven times.” There’s been much debate as to what is meant by this passage. Some people interpret the passage to mean that Jesus mentioned at least up to 7 times, that a person needs to forgive another person regularly. Others interpret the scripture to mean that Jesus was clarifying that a person needs to be able to forgive someone 70 x 7 times.

7. The Number 4 (Creation)

The biblical significance of the number 4 is creation and is believed to represent God’s absolute control over the world. The Bible makes reference to the 4 corners of the earth which relate to our 4 cardinal directions of North, South, East and West. When we think about the 4 seasons, it’s a reminder of creation since each season is unique. The universe is made up of 4 things: time, energy, space and matter. There are 4 lunar phases. We often refer to 4 elements, known as earth, water, fire and air. During biblical days daylight had 4 divisions: dawn – 9AM, 9AM-Noon, Noon-3PM and 3PM to sunset. Today, we refer to the 4 divisions as morning, noon, evening and night.

Throughout the Bible reference continues to be made with 4 in the form of creation…the 4 winds, 4 horses, 4 beasts, 4 cherubim, etc. Four women gave birth to the fathers of the 12 Tribes of Israel. The number 4 also marks time as seen with the 4 days of Lazarus and the 4th generation. Four rivers flowed out of Eden. In the book of Proverbs alone, the number 4 is used several times. The New Testament starts out with the 4 gospels written by the apostles Matthew, Mark, Luke and John.

6. The Number 2 (Union/Division)

The number 2 is one of the most fascinating significant numbers in the Bible. At times it represents unity and other times just the opposite. Thus, the number 2 is quite often referred to as reciprocals. We experience reciprocals daily…flipping a coin, having a good/bad day, feeling ugly/pretty, etc.

In terms of unity, there are several neat examples. The Bible begins with the book of Genesis and we learn about Adam and Eve. On the sixth day of creation God created Adam and Eve and two of each animal. The union of these two people produced generations and generations of other people. Remember the story of Noah and the Ark? The animals boarded the ark 2 by 2. God had 2 of each animal so that they could multiply after the flood ended. When a person accepts Christ, there is a union between the 2 of them.

In regards to division, the main division is heaven and hell. God is ruler of heaven and Satan has dominion over hell. According to the Bible, a person cannot serve 2 gods. Either a person believes in God or enjoys earthly treasures.

Some other uses of the number 2 include: on the 2nd day of creation, God created light and darkness (opposites). Throughout the New Testament there’s reference to Jesus being the 2nd person of the Father-Son-Holy Ghost Trinity.

5. The Number 40 (Trials)

The number 40 is significant because it represents trial or judgment. Let’s look at Noah again. Can you imagine building an ark when the weather is beautiful and there’s no sign of rain? Did his neighbors think he was nuts? Then imagine being stuck on a boat with God only knows how many animals for 40 days! Not a fun time!

Noah wasn’t the only one who had to learn to endure. Check this out:

• For 40 years Israel ate manna
• Moses went and stayed on a mountain for 40 days to receive the Law of the Sinai Covenant
• During those 40 days the children of Israel were tested
• Moses spent 40 years in Egypt and 40 years in Midian
• The Israel spent 40 years in the wilderness before they camped by the Jordan River
• Eli judged Israel for 40 years
• For 40 days Ezekiel lay on his right side to symbolize the 40 years of Judah’s transgressions
• There were 40 years of war between the Philistines and Israel
• Jesus fasted in the wilderness for 40 days

Several people also held their position for 40 years. David ruled as King of Israel for 40 years. Solomon rules Israel for 40 years. Josiah rules Judah for 40 years.

4. The Number 12 (Governmental Perfection)

What do you think of when you see the number 12? A dozen eggs? Twelve hours of day and 12 hours of night as represented on a clock? The 12 months? The 12 zodiac signs? The movie “Cheaper by the Dozen”?

The most significant use of the number 12 in the Bible is Jesus’ 12 disciples. Jesus taught a large number of people and selected 12 men to be his disciples. Quite often a tribe of people is thought to be 12 or more people based on Jesus selecting 12 men for his “tribe”.

The Old Covenant Church of Israel was founded by 12 physical fathers. The New Covenant Church was founded by 12 spiritual fathers, the 12 Apostles. The use of 12 is used numerous times throughout the Bible. There were 12 tribes of Israel, 12 pillars were built on Mt. Sinai, 12 statues of oxen held up a water basis in Solomon’s Temple, 12 legions of angles and the 12 gates of the New Jerusalem. The Bible also says that the trees of life in the new creation will bear 12 kinds of fruits.

The number of 12 is also used in reference to people. Jesus was 12 years old when he questioned the scholars in the temple. Twelve men were chosen by God to conduct the census. There were 12 spies sent to Canaan.

3. The Number 7 (Completeness)

What’s the second most common used number in the Bible? The number 7; some people believe that God took the divined number 3 and added it to the perfect world number 4. Thus, the number 7 is considered to be the most sacred number to the Hebrews. Seven is considered to be completeness from the union of heaven and earth.

The number 7 has been used throughout the Bible, beginning with creation. God created the heavens and the earth, along with mankind, and then rested on the 7th day. In the Old Testament, Jacob served Rachel for 7 years. There was a Good Harvest for 7 years, followed by 7 years of famine. Even a Pharaoh had a dream that contained 7 cows followed by another dream with 7 ears of corn!

In the tabernacle as described in the book of Exodus, there were 7 lamps for the tabernacle. In the book of Judges, Samson was described as having 7 locks of hair. In Joshua, there were 7 priests with 7 trumpets who compassed the city 7 times on the 7th day.

The New Testament also supports 7 as being a significant number. In Matthew, Jesus uses seven small loaves of bread to feed a crowd. Read a little further into the New Testament and you’ll discover a story of 7 brother and the 7 devils of Mary Magdalene. Revelation, the last book of the Bible uses 7 in terms of: golden candlesticks, stars, angels, lamps, seals, horns, eyes, trumpets, thunders, heads, crowns, plaques, mountains and kings.

2. The Number 3 (Complete)

The number 3 represents “complete”. Throughout the Bible you’ll discover the use of three terms that work together to form a whole or completeness. The main 3-fold is the Father (God)-Son (Jesus) and Holy Ghost (Holy Spirit). To believe in one of these, is to believe in all 3 of them. It also means that even though they are 3 separate entities, they are “one”. A good illustration of this is an egg. An egg contains a yolk, white and shell. Each part is unique, but together it’s one egg.

Because the main purpose of the Bible is to help people discover who God is, the role of 3 is extremely significant. The use of 3 is used to describe how someone can find God. Matthew 6 says that a person needs to ask-seek-knock. Jesus is referred to as the way-truth-life. In the New Testament it explains how faith-hope-love need to work together and that you can’t have one without the others.

Today, many people focus on spirit-soul-body. This 3-fold thought is that to achieve overall wellness, you need to spend time on each of these areas. If a person chooses just to improve his physical fitness, but not his emotional well-being, his life will be out of balance.

1. The Number 1 (Unity)

The number one significant number used in the Bible is the number 1 which refers to unity or entity. There is only one God, although he contains three parts (Father, Son, Holy Ghost). In the New Testament Jesus explains that there is only 1 way to heaven and that’s through accepting him.

Throughout the Bible God refers to himself as “I AM”. This singular (1) reference is given 811 times; God! God explains he is—the way, the truth, the light, etc. God also has many names throughout the Bible in addition to “I AM”. Here’s just a few: King of kings, Lord of lords, Emmanuel, Wonderful Counselor, the Solid Rock, the Good Shepherd and the Everlasting Father. In fact, depending on what translation you read through, there are over 200 names given to God!

Even the Bible itself is referred to as one book, even though it’s made up of several small books which are divided between the Old Testament and the New Testament. When Jesus refers to the scriptures as he speaks, he usually calls it “The Word”, once again implying there is only 1 word not multiple words.

10. Cao Dai

Cao Dai is a religion of fairly recent times and is largely the product of Vietnam. Many of its principles are borrowed from Buddhism, but its attitude to the afterlife extends beyond our terrestrial concepts of reincarnation. The same fundamental accumulation of karma has a bearing on the life into which one will be reborn with the idea of an improving or a declining state of life. But, rather than simply considering rebirth into levels of existence on this planet, Cao Dai recognizes that there are actually thirty-six levels of heaven to which one can aspire and seventy-two different planets that sustain life and can be destinations for one’s next experience. Within this structure it may be worth realizing that our Earth is rated planet sixty-eight and that planet seventy-two is the nearest to Hell. In fact, so great is the difference between planets that the lowest citizen on planet sixty-seven would never willingly trade places with even a king on planet sixty-eight. Moreover, the demise of a being on this planet, which is overloaded with negative karma, could see them banished to a planet that is colder and darker than the Earth. On this basis it is understandable that vast numbers of people fear being left on planet seventy-two for a whole lifetime.

9. Yomi

Of the realms of the dead that are on offer to us after we have finished with this life, Yomi is one of the least daunting. Apparently there is no sense of retribution and everyone, whatever their feats or sins continue to live a life of sorts in shadows and gloom. Some point out that many references to Yomi involve rotting corpses and slow decomposition, but given that once one has eaten at the hearth of Yomi, there is no escape it would seem that the process would have to be suspended at some wonderfully disgusting point. The mythical Queen of Yomi, Izanami, was found by her pursuing husband, Izanagi, partially rotted and infested with maggots before she began chasing him, so this might be a guide for how far the decomposition goes. The exits of Yomi are guarded by truly wretched and terrifying creatures, but once the inhabitants are over the idea of escaping back to the human world, it seems that they can live a fairly torment-free existence for all eternity. That is, if course, in shadow and semi-darkness, which probably has its own issues, but is a significant improvement on being so cold that your skin cracks or being impaled on a spear of fire.

8. Reincarnation

Although the basic premise of Reincarnation is that of learning, growth and development toward a final state of enlightenment, there can be no doubt that some people find the very thought of having to face life again terrifying. No doubt, if they have lived their life in the best spirit of learning and righteousness, they will progress to a higher state and their next iteration should be more pleasant, but is that enough? Regardless of the ease and comforts that a privileged life may offer, there is no escaping the hardships of the human condition. For many, the very thought of having to go through the pain of love, loss and adolescence again can create fear and trepidation. The trials and trauma of trying to raise children to adulthood is so frightening and frustrating that once is certainly enough. The fear of death, the helplessness as it draws one in and the yearning for some sense of certainty to be made visible from behind the curtain of inevitable darkness offers neither comfort nor constancy. Mae West once said, “You only live once, but if you work it right, once is enough.” Yet for many people, “You only live once, thank God. Now let’s do something else.”

7. Yamalok

The beliefs of Hinduism hold that the jiva, a limited entity or being, leaves this life through death in the understanding that death only closes one lifetime of experiences and learning. The jiva then rests and is prepared for the next life that they will live where their learning will continue and their journey will progress. However, within this structure there have been, at times, considerations for a variety of heavens and hells that respond to the needs of the individual jiva. The most undesired of these is Yamalok, a temporary resting place where the Lord Yama reigns. In this place, Yama is assisted by Chitragupt, a chronicler, who maintains a record of all the good and bad done by every person on earth. In the court of Yama, the jiva must face the reading of Chitragupt’s register of their deeds and it is judged by Yama. The least pure souls are then held in Yamalok and they suffer punishment and torment until the bad karma that they have accumulated it washed away. While the idea of judgment is common to many systems of belief, in a religion that is noted for its determination to teach and rehabilitate souls through as many births, lives and deaths as are required, the condemnation to Yamalok holds a sense of having gone as far as we can. It is the closest such a structure has to retribution and one gains the impression that if this doesn’t work, nothing will. To be sent to Yamalok would be a terrifying, discouraging and sorrowful episode.

6. Contemporary Christian Hell

The sophistication and evolution of our society and the beliefs that inform us of what to fear after death have gradually steered away from the purpose of punishment. Hell for contemporary Christians is less to do with the punitive sentencing of the wicked to an eternity of physical pain and more to do with the consequences of their decisions. Just as Hell, in a Christian vision, was the place for those that openly rejected the love of God, many modern believers maintain that this love of God is the central purpose and promise of life. Therefore, rejection of it is no longer a point of punishment. Rather, Hell is now simply a place to isolate those that don’t want to share eternity in the presence of God. Understanding that there is no pleasure comparable to the sublime joy of sharing in the glorious presence of the Creator, to be denied such an experience is considered truly Hellish. The torment of spending eternity without the love of God is only heightened by the knowledge that the decision to do was that of the perpetrator alone. They, rather than God, condemned themselves to the Hell by exercising their own free will.

5. Naraka

Among Buddhist tradition there is the belief of a continuing cycle of birth and rebirth, allowing the transmigration of the soul into a new life. But the accumulation of karma, particularly negative karma, must eventually lead to the question of what happens to those beings that complete their life below a standard that can be reincarnated. In such a case, the being may find themselves in Naraka. Described as a number of layers of caves and caverns that descend into the earth below the human world, Naraka can have up to Eight Cold Narakas and Eight Hot Narakas. Each of these layers has their own form of suffering ranging from chattering teeth to such cold that the frozen skins blisters and crack, exposing the organs which also blister and crack or from being set upon by attendants of the overseeing God to being agonizingly baked in huge ovens. The positive side of Naraka is that, unlike most afterlife experiences, it is finite. While residence in some layers is measured in terms of 1018 years, the fact remains that this is not eternity. After the negative karma is exhausted the being can be reborn into a higher world.

4. Xibalba

In Mayan mythology, the underworld is known as Xibalba, which loosely translates to “place of fear”. It is a world over which the twelve Mayan death Gods reign and their realms include starvation, loss, disease, fear, pain and, of course, death.

Xibalba is a large, labyrinthine city that has buildings in which the dead are tested. The paths to it comprise rivers of blood, pus and scorpions and the Gods take some pride in torturing the travelers. Then the travelers must progress to greater horror and eventually face suffering in houses of torment and pain. So feared was Xibalba that the entrance, believed to be in a cave near Cobán, Guatemala, that it is still considered to be a place of danger and death. Some of the local people believed this entrance to be a gateway to a hidden part of the Milky Way. With such promises of terror, suffering and doom, it’s no wonder that people are petrified at the thought of facing such a place after death.

3. Eternity Deprived of Their Children

Promises of a life of bliss, being entertained by the harps of angels and resting on chiropractically supportive clouds, not to mention the multitudes of virgins that are in store, may be enticing. But a major premise behind the hope of an afterlife is the possibility of rejoining old friends and relatives. For this reason, many people feel that any place that may welcome one after death, but takes them from their children is a fearful place indeed. To be removed from the world is inconvenient enough, but to have one’s children taken from them forever is a cruel and heartless punishment. Every day of a parent’s life can be spent guiding, protecting and loving their child. The thought of anything taking their child from them is the stuff of nightmares. An afterlife that was void of one’s children is one of the most terrifying prospects possible.

2. Traditional Hell

The most common image of Hell is that of the traditional place of punishment and torment. In the New Testament it is characterized by “unquenchable fire” and “gnashing of teeth”; a rich man in the agony of the fire begged that Lazarus be sent to provide even the slightest relief. Such torment was the punishment reserved for those that would sin and reject God. While He would not interfere with the free will that He had given man, God would readily cast those that deliberately distanced themselves from Him into the fires of Hell. This act of rejecting God was evidenced through their willingness to sin. But the traditional concept of Hell was created at a time and place when physicality was more influential and understood than other punishments. For this reason the biblical and early Christian descriptions of Hell are strangely concerned with pain and suffering of a physical nature. This ignores the fact that the one thing that was obviously not travelling to the afterlife with its owner was their physical body.

For those that still regard physical pain as more traumatic and recognizable than emotional or spiritual pain, this vision of Hell remains one of the most feared places after death.

1. The Grave

In the face of torture, endless decay and absence from the love of God, there is only one place to be feared more than all others after death and that is the grave. While it may seem peaceful and unthreatening from this side of our last breath, the suggestion that there is nothing more is truly harrowing. We may decry the impositions of organized religion and we may deny the presence of God. But the blackness of the box at the bottom of a hole, the blunt endpoint to life that crushes any hope and highlights our mortality is more terrifying than any number of layers of torment or punishment. Our society has bred an attitude that rejects religion, but embraces spirituality. Whether in the form of ghosts, spirits moving to another astral plane or as a being vibrating at a different speed that removes us from this physical world, most people hold a hope that there is some “life” beyond the grave. The most horrifying outcome of death, the place that brings cold terror to those who contemplate it is nowhere. It is disturbing notion that this is all there is.

Since this sort of commercial warfare has been in existence for centuries of years, it was only a matter of time before the world of online websites and businesses were compelled to join in on the fun. When the internet first became popular, there were not a big variety of popular websites and online businesses available so there really was not any need for them. However, things have definitely changed in recent years with competing websites and companies rising to the occasion of going to battle with some of the juggernauts or even newer contenders within the industry. Here is a list of the Top 10 internet rivalries.

10. Shoe Dazzle vs. JustFab

When Shoe Dazzle opened in March of 2009, the founders simply wanted to provide an abundance of high quality shoes and handbags for women to choose from without being forced to pay high quality prices for those options. The popular styles offered could easily be sold for well over $100, but they consistently stay below a $40 price point for all of their various products. With Kim Kardashian on board as a celebrity spokesperson and chief fashion stylist, ShoeDazzle was able to increase their member count from 3 million to 13 million within a year. Less than a year after ShoeDazzle was first created, JustFab was established to attempt to cap their growth and introduce some competition into this booming market. They offer similar types of shoes and handbags online for the same price that ShoeDazzle offers to their own customers. With a little over 4 million registered members and female fashion mogul Kimora Lee Simmons as the company’s President and Creative Director, they are projected to truly give ShoeDazzle a run for their money in the very near future.

9. Monster vs. CareerBuilder

When two of the first career websites ever to be created decided to merge together to form Monster.Com in 1999, they revolutionized the traditional job search process forever. Over the past 13 years since it was first established, their company’s database has grown to include more than a million unique job postings at any given moment and stores and provides employers access to almost 200 million resumes to choose from when they are hunting for the perfect candidate. Over the years, other websites have added volume to the online job search industry by giving Monster.Com a little competition. One of the most popular websites that has been able to challenge this heavyweight champion of the market was the underdog contender, CareerBuilder. CareerBuilder has grown to become one of the largest employment websites in the world, maintaining more than 20 million unique visitors daily. Even though they were established 5 years before Monster, they really began to expand and grow even more popular once Monster was introduced to the market. Currently, they provide their online career search services for more than 2,000 partners, including hundreds of newspapers and online portals.

8. Orbitz vs. Priceline

A little known fact is that Orbitz was actually a project developed through a combined multi-million dollar investment made by several major airlines, including Continental, Delta and United. They created Orbitz in order to compete against other travel sites that were already thriving at the time, such as Expedia and Travelocity. Over the 11 years that it has been online, it has grown to a point where it generates close to 2 million flight searches and 1 million hotel searches every single day and had revenue in 2011 of close to $800 million. No longer has the underdog of the market, Orbitz has truly grown to become a beast in the online travel industry. One of the newer underdogs that have jumped into the ring in recent years to battle Orbitz and the travel sites is Priceline. Just like with other rivalries on this list, Priceline started the race before Orbitz when it was created in 1997, but was quickly outdone and outrun by bigger competitors. However, thanks to recent marketing efforts and the popular commercials with William Shatner as the “Priceline Negotiator”, Priceline has been able to become a worthy contender especially when it expanded to provide competitive rates and reservations for flights, hotel stays, car rentals and cruise packages.

7. LivingSocial vs. Groupon

Everyone loves finding a great deal while shopping in the store or scanning through coupons in the newspaper. These two rivals were able to capitalize on that strong desire for deals by guiding those coupon lovers and deal shoppers to the internet. LivingSocial was introduced to the market in 2007 but has recently experienced a spike in overall popularity in recent years. Every day, new deals on products, services and even vacation packages are uploaded to this website and sent out via e-mail to millions of people that have registered their e-mail addresses with the site in the past. The website now even has an official app so people can enjoy their deals on their mobile devices as well as their computers. Groupon decided to join the party in 2008 and has also experienced a drastic increase in daily visits and deal purchases from their customers in recent years. They both offer similar deals for similar prices, so if you can’t find what you are looking for on one site, you are more than likely able to find it on the other.

6. eHarmony vs. Match.Com

The internet has turned newspaper personal ads that used to be popular several decades ago into outdated, old-fashioned alternatives that hardly anyone takes seriously when they are looking for that special someone. In recent years, two of the major competitors within the online dating industry have become eHarmony and Match.Com. Psychologist and famous author of relationship advice books Neil Clark Warren developed a model compatibility system in the late 1990’s that became the foundation of eHarmony.Com when it was established in 2000. Over the past 12 years since then, it has managed to acquire over 30 million members with over 15,000 unique visitors completed their patented questionnaire daily. Before eHarmony came into the picture, Match.Com was really all that was available on the internet so, for the most part, they ruled the industry. Established in 1997, they have expanded to service more than 25 countries around the world with a peak at one time of over 40 million members. They have tried to revamp their marketing strategies to compete with eHarmony in recent years through investing in exclusive advertising through Yahoo as well as investing in the Chinese dating site, Zhenai, Inc.

5. iTunes Store vs. Amazon MP3

Gone are the days when people would go to the record stores to buy the newest albums, CDs and singles released by their favorite artists. In this digital age of technology and electronic convenience, getting your favorite song or album is as simple as a couple of mouse clicks on your favorite internet website or application. The iTunes Store and Amazon MP3 are two of the most dominating forces within the industry of downloading music online. The iTunes Store was developed by Apple in 2001 in conjunction with their iTunes media player. Customers search and find almost any song, album, application or movie in the iTunes Store, purchase it and automatically download it for use either on their PC or other compatible mobile devices. Amazon didn’t want Apple to have all of the fun so they developed their own division of MP3 downloads that comes with its own media player, allowing their customers to download media from their website and play it on compatible devices in the same way that iTunes is able to do.
The competition has really amped up in recent years, with both companies trying to get an edge over the other.

4. Amazon vs. Overstock

Way before they became competitors in the music department, Amazon was already a competitive champion as the world’s largest online retailer. They used to be mostly known for their consumer electronics but have expanded over the years since their establishment in 1994 to provide a wide variety of different products for a diverse range of customers. In order to accomplish their massive expansion, they have been able to acquire a long list of smaller, successful companies that had their own loyal base of customers and clients. They have even been able to invest in another competitive rival on this list, LivingSocial. However, in recent years, Overstock.com has truly been trying to maintain their own customer base within the online retail industry that they have been building since 1997 despite the overall monumental success of Amazon. They started off selling just returned and surplus merchandise, but, like Amazon, have been able to expand over the years to become a thriving online retailer that reported its first billion-dollar year of revenue in 2010.

3. eBay vs. QuiBids

eBay used to be the dominating force of the online auction industry for a number of years without any successful competition trying to get in the way of their exponential revenue increases. Others have tried to match or even be comparable to what eBay has been able to accomplish, but have crashed and burned almost immediately after they were established. That is, of course, until QuiBids was brought to the table. QuiBids introduced a revolutionary alternative to the standard online auction system that eBay has seemingly perfected over the years. They require their bidders to pay less than $1 per bid. From the surface, that might seem like an insane idea – especially when you can bid for items for free on eBay and other auction sites. On the other hand, by eliminating the people that do not want to participate because of that fee, it limits the pool of bidders which is why people are able to get so many great deals on high-end products through QuiBids that they would not be able to get for so cheap through eBay. Thus, even though QuiBids is fairly new to the game, they are definitely a worth competitor that eBay should not take lightly.

2. Hulu vs. Netflix

Media streaming is becoming one of the most popular alternatives for watching cable television. Why? Most of the cable networks are streaming their popular shows through such sites as Hulu and Netflix, so you are able to watch the episodes literally whenever you want or catch up on shows and episodes that you might have missed in the past. Which one is better between the two? Well, that really just depends on what you are looking for when it comes to television shows and movies. Hulu features more recent episodes of your favorite television shows while Netflix focuses more on previous seasons instead of the shows that may currently be on the air. On the other hand, when it comes to movies, Hulu mostly focuses on older movies while Netflix is able to stream newer releases.

1. Google vs. Bing

As a search engine, Google dominated so many others that came before it in ways that hardly anyone expected when Google first came to the online scene back in 1998. Over the past 14 years, Google has expanded into one of the biggest and most visited search engines around the world. With the competitive spirit that inspired so many other advances in technology over the past several decades. Microsoft could not let them remain the only one in the spotlight so they designed and released Bing in 2009. Bing has been developing and expanding over the past several years, building the foundation of possibly becoming a very reliable and successful search engine in the near future. Many have their doubts, though, and feel that it will never measure up to its potential. However, that is the same thing that people said about Google.

Just as in the real world, online businesses and websites are expanding, advancing and improving daily in a grand attempt to become the very best at what they do. The major websites that have had long & successful track records have been able to maintain their status, while still making necessary improvements to keep up with the times and stay ahead of the game. At the other end of the spectrum, there are minor websites and online businesses that are working even harder to try and gain the edge that many people may doubt they will ever be able to obtain. Either way, unlike traditional businesses, most online businesses are able to remain successful for decades – regardless of which side of that spectrum they may be on at any given moment. Therefore, we can rest assured in knowing that these internet rivalries will not be coming to an end any time soon.

10. Perfectionism

At the surface Perfectionism would appear a simple philosophy with traits leaning toward an Obsessive Compulsive Disorder. But that would be to confuse the student of Perfectionism with the plight of the perfectionist. The clear distinction being that one makes a choice to pursue a school of thought, while the other is driven by a psychological disparity. Perfectionism recognizes two important aspects of the quest for perfection. The first of these is that there is no universal state of perfection. Everyone has a different “perfect” world and so the recipe to attain this must be as flexible as each individual demands. Second to this is that the perfect state of existence is almost certainly impossible to attain. Unless one is completely self-centered and can be satisfied with perfection being purely about their momentary state, the influences and demands of the world will probably find a way to stuff something up. The reality is that, a community built on the philosophy of Perfectionism, may not be a particularly happy one. Each individual can do all in their power to live a principled and righteous existence, but the government must be very careful in the regulation it imposes towards a sense of society. Although the idea of a Utopian society is a delightful distraction, the truth behind the perfect world is that it is an individual and unattainable goal that would probably make its citizens miserable in the pursuit.

9. Ethical Egoism

Bordering on “Every man for himself”, Ethical Egoism promotes the belief that all acts are justified and appropriate if they are performed with the intent of fulfilling personal needs. No consideration of the impact of these events on others is necessary; in fact it is discouraged as it sullies the purity of the deeds. On this basis a range of heinous and unfair crimes can be performed and, assuming the victim is also an Ethical Egoist, they will be applauded by all involved. Of course, the retaliatory steps that are taken as a result are also completely reasonable and supported by the philosophy. In some ways, Ethical Egoism appears a sound justification for the humor of The Three Stooges or at least for our enjoyment of such violent slapstick. However, one a more realistic level, it can be an explanation for the work of every cruel, misguided and egocentric tyrant throughout history.

8. Moral Absolutism

The philosophy of Moral Absolutism has a Utopian beauty to it that can only last as long as it takes for the first act of kindness to shatter it. It is as fragile as it is cruel and cannot be sustained in a compassionate society. Moral Absolutism holds that there are only blacks and whites in terms of morality. A lie is a lie and no amount of justification for the lie will change its wrongness; intentionally taking a life is murder and the circumstances of war, self-defense or the protection of property have no bearing on its morality. Ideally, dissolving the greys makes the world a much simpler place. If everyone told the truth at every contest, then there would be no need for trials and juries; we would know be able to identify the wicked with a question and the honorable would be evident at a glance. Sadly, the list of the righteous would soon become a register of those who could bear to do without “little white lies” and the thoughtful half-truths that protect the feelings of the meek. Under such a philosophy, Utopia could quickly become torture.

7. Solipsism

“I think, therefore I am.” – Reneé Descartes, 1637

In his pursuit of a proof of his own existence, Descartes managed to discount the experiences of his five senses as potentially misleading. He was able to remove all aspects of the human condition that might justify his claim to actually living and had almost convinced some of his readers that he didn’t. Then he played his trump card and Part IV of his Discourse on the Method revealed that the very process of thinking his own unique thoughts was enough to demonstrate that he was present. Solipsism is a less positive, but older version of the same or strikingly similar idea. Having first been attributed to the Greek philosopher Gorgias (483 – 375 B.C.E.), the idea behind Solipsism is that the mind is the only thing of which one can be sure. Using similar logic and experiences as Decartes, all other experiences of life are potentially illusion and only our thoughts are real. At a metaphysical level, Solipsism teeters on the boundary between fascinating and disturbing as it raises the idea that, if the mind is the only true indication of existence, then whose mind is it anyway? If it is my mind, then do the other minds around me exist, or are they simply constructs of my own thoughts? If it isn’t my mind, then am I the creation of someone else in the world? If so, who? Within the blink of a mighty eye the religious would leap into the debate with the answer, “God”. Within the blink of the “all-seeing-eye”, the conspiracy theorists would say, “Freemasons”. Within the rest of us, Solipsism remains an amusing, slightly bizarre, yet fascinating philosophy.

6. Objectivism

If you have ever considered the possibility that we are going about the whole philosophical process the wrong way, then you may be an Objectionist. That is not to say that you object to everything from smug predictions of the weatherman on the radio in the morning to the right of the driver in the next lane moving into your lane without your granting permission. Objectivism simply has a problem with the possibly arrogant direction that has been taken by philosophers in the course of their debate. The public discourse on such topics as the meaning of life, the purpose of existence and the discernment of existence itself is often guided and driven by a limited number of thinkers. This monopoly on the rules of the process is one of the greatest obstacles to free thought and the opportunity for individuals to discover their own answers. In fact, the Objectionists would rather everyone create their own philosophical questions and work through answering them in their way. This would broaden the understanding of the population and give each person’s ownership of their own philosophy.
As mentioned in the introduction, a major fear of Objectivism is the possibility that humans, as a race, have taken a wrong philosophical turn; that the people who have directed the discussions so far have made a mistake. This explains why there has been no definitive answer and why, after almost two and a half thousand years, the mysteries of life still elude us. Perhaps the extreme of philosophical silence would be no more effective than the cacophony of theories and best guesses currently being slung about like peas and corn across the dinner table, but there could be an argument for us to stop playing with our food and simply sustain ourselves.

5. Voluntaryism

A refreshingly peaceful, yet determinedly confrontational philosophy, Voluntaryism maintains that all human society and association should occur on a totally voluntary basis. With this in mind, proponents believe that the right of the individual to make decisions as to their interaction with society cannot be dictated by any ruling body or ruling class. However, the form of activism on these matters is resolutely non-aggressive. The tools of the philosophy are education, persuasion and non-violent opposition. Through this principle of non-aggression, Voluntaryists maintain the moral high ground and encourage others to withdraw from potential battlefield. Furthermore, this resistance to face any physical confrontation also reflects the belief that governments, whatever their intentions, will consistently form a “defensive” control over the area that they choose to dominate. They will refuse to recognize any individual or community structured defense arrangements and impose their structures over all. Given their superior numbers and more efficient technology, the government is far more likely to be successful in an armed confrontation. So, the Voluntaryists’ non-aggression policy makes both physical and political sense. A second major element of the philosophy’s stance is the conviction that, despite the efforts to justify their actions, governments gather their income from the individual under the guise of “taxation”. The underlying belief is that individuals should have the right to contribute to the services that they wish to have provided and be freed from those costs that are irrelevant to them. While Voluntaryism may appear a placid and inoffensive philosophy, its promotion of civil disobedience and its passive aggressive rage towards governing bodies would suggest that there is either significant confusion in the core of the philosophy or significant intelligence in its presentation.

4. Work Less Party

The time-saving devices of the second half of the twentieth century should have created a world of greater leisure and reducing stress. Yet, sadly, the degree of stress in modern society is often increasing rather than reducing and those areas that we have worked so hard to satisfy, such as money, job security and personal health, are as unwieldy and troublesome as ever. There appears to be a cyclic nature to these dilemmas. To satisfy our lifestyle, we must find means of reducing our workload; to reduce our workload, we must find means of meeting our expenses; to meet our expenses, we must produce more money; to produce more money, and we must increase our workload. It is a vicious and defeating cycle. The only way the Work Less Party can see to defeat it is to step aside from it. Based in Canada, the Work Less Party has a courageous and fascinating philosophy that suggests that if we all reduce the amount of work we do, we will be emotionally and physically better off. If everyone accepted a working week of about half the current expectation, we would have more time to explore the more important aspects of life. We could delve into the arts and give thought to expressing the more intricate and personal aspects of the human condition. While it may be disconcerting at first, the inability of people to pay the prices being asked for goods and services would cause them to reduce as the market would have to evolve to the needs and capabilities of the consumer. After the initial teething problems, the whole world would find that they could not only survive working half time, but they would thrive. The sophistication of the society would improve and the reduced hours would provide employment, at half-time, for those currently struggling in society. Cynics will brand the Work Less Party’s philosophy as fundamentally lazy and non-productive, but the reality is that those driving employment and work standards are driven by factors other than the good health and lifestyle of their employees.

3. Pythagorean Philosophy

Among the myriad of fascinating, enlightened and slightly bizarre features of Pythagoras, there is the highly regarded belief that he coined the original term “philosophy”. According to some historians, he proclaimed himself the first “philosopher” and taught his community with charisma and great knowledge.
This led to a number of surprising ideals including the ban on eating beans, the statute that silenced newcomers for a year and the truth about transmigration of the soul, but beyond these was his basic belief that “All things are numbers”. To support this ideal, Pythagoras demonstrated the place of mathematics and numbers in music, astronomy and nature and even built the “doctrine of numbers” that elaborated on their importance. Each number has its own characteristics and should be respected as such. The number one is unity, the number of reason and the generator of all numbers. The number two is the first female number, having diversity and opinion, and three is the first male number, offering harmony through the combining of unity and diversity. It follows that five is the number of marriage, bringing together male and female, and, naturally, six is the number of creation, where male and female bring forth the unity of a child. Even numbers were recognized as numbers that could be divided in two parts of equal size and odd numbers were acknowledged as being unable to find such balance. While the premise that places number as the center of all things can be dismissed as a mathematicians limited view of the world, it is interesting to consider how much of our lives and how much of the world around us is defined through the use of numbers. Does this make them useful tools in discussing our world or fundamental to our understanding of it?

2. Innatism

After years of using a keyboard to write letters, emails and reports, it’s not unusual for our fingers to go to the keys we need with little, if any, thought of the characters we are typing. This is a result of physical memory having learned the placement of the keys after years of repetition and subliminal training. But does such knowing and awareness ever actual enter into our genetic coding? Are some ideas and beliefs so common to our way of thinking that they are passed from generation to generation without needing to be learned again? Innatism claims that this can occur to a range of learning including simple mathematics concepts, language ideas and religious beliefs. While this can be quickly dismissed as the propaganda of churches and moralists, the reality is that many species that have survived through evolution have developed instincts. These are little more than behaviors and knowings that are entrenched in the animal’s psyche. They are considered innate to the animal and without them the creature would perish. It then follows that, unless the increased sophistication of thought among human beings is to be blamed for the loss of an intrinsic natural phenomenon, there could be some innate aspects of humans. Simply because we can mount arguments against these knowing, it doesn’t follow that we are right to disregard them.

1. Machiavellianism

There are many sound and well-intentioned political philosophies that, while being profound and valuable, are verging on boring. But, when it comes to a fascinatingly open and bold example of a self-serving and dastardly political practice, cloaked behind the prestige of a philosophy, few dare to risk coming close to Machiavellianism. Defined as the use of “cunning and duplicity in statecraft or in general conduct”, Machiavellianism is regarded as a manner of thought and behavior linked with cynicism. The morality of the philosophy is hard and practical, lacking the sympathy or compassion of general society. Machiavellianism has been blamed for the style of many monarchs and the horrors of a number of cruel military actions against their subjects. Yet, despite the seemingly negative attributes, it was taken on by numerous Italian and French nobles, as well as the English playwright, Christopher Marlowe. There are some schools of thought that regard Machiavellianism as a personality trait rather than a philosophy. This is supported by its inclusion as one of the “dark triad” of personality traits along with narcissism and psychopathy. However, there is a significant difference between a “dark”, but natural, character flaw and the conscious decision to undertake a way of thinking that promotes cold, detached decision-making and a win at all costs attitude. Regardless of attempts at reclassification, Machiavellianism remains a political philosophy that excuses the most simplistic and arrogant acts and tries to justify poor governance.

10. Guerilla

The concept of conventional warfare often rests on the idea of two armies facing each other on a battlefield. Although these armies may be of significantly different size and skill level, they fought with tactics that could resemble a chess game and operated with a sense of honor and pride. But in the event of a much bigger and stronger force, tactics that go back more than two thousand years could be employed successfully. These “little war” or guerilla strategies involved fighting little wars or battles at the edges of the larger army, weakening it through attrition and frustration. A good example of guerilla warfare was that of the National Liberation Front (NLF) of Vietnam during the war with South Vietnamese Forces and then allied forces led by the United States of America. The first important understanding of NLF was that peasants of South Vietnam were “the sea in which the guerrillas needed to swim” (Mao Zedong) and without the support of the peasants the NLF would fail. Where soldiers of conventional warfare, well-illustrated in the Crusades, would take a huge toll on the villages and towns that they moved through, the NLF was very careful to maintain a good relationship with the locals. They would avoid taking or buying the property or crops of the peasants and provided support to them in chores and work. With this support, the guerillas of the NLF were able to make the Vietnam War a long and painfully drawn out conflict. They wore down the opposition by only fighting battles where they outnumbered their enemy or where they could strike and retreat without having to face a larger force. These maneuvers allowed the guerillas to wear down their foes and eventually overpower them and only engage in conventional warfare when the enemy was so weakened by the ordeal that the guerrillas had superior numbers and more motivated forces.

9. Suicide Bombings

The idea of someone courageously laying down their life for the cause or for their companions has always aroused descriptions like “martyr” or “hero”, but the arrival of the suicide bomber shed a whole new light on the concept. Whether through being convinced by a radical leader or as an act of cultural or religious significance, the notion of someone blowing themselves up in a place where the explosion could cause the most damage is unconventional to say the least. There have been such fanatics in the past; the Japanese Kamikaze pilots of World War II were frightening to the Allied Forces, not simply because they caused such damage, but also because this degree of dedication was hard for many soldiers to comprehend. The Kamikaze flyers would accept the role of being a flying bomb and would deliberately fly their plane into sensitive parts of ships to reduce their battle effectiveness and, in turn, to sink them. But more recently, the radical bomber has taken on the role of terrorist and they have caused carnage and fear throughout much of the world. With huge quantities of explosives strapped to them, the suicide bomber is usually dressed in a non-descript clothes and blends in well with the crowd. They move to selected sites and nonchalantly detonate a bomb that can kill dozens of innocent people, as well as themselves.

Regardless of their motives, the mayhem caused or the reward of the martyr, suicide bombers are soldiers in a war that will probably never be fought conventionally.

8. Trojan horse

The capacity for creative and unconventional methods of warfare isn’t something isolated to the last century or so. In fact, in 1200 B.C.E., Odysseus came up with a cunning and new twist on the idea of “killing with kindness”. After nine years of war against Troy over the abduction of Helen from Sparta, the Greeks had grown tired and were looking for a way to end the siege. Odysseus contrived a plot that became legend. The Greeks constructed a huge wooden horse and then, overnight, they departed completely. The only remaining sign of an army that had camped outside the city of Troy for years was the gift of the wooden horse left at the gates of the city. In the morning the Trojans, overjoyed at the departure of the Greeks, dragged the horse inside the gates and began celebrating. The festivities continued into the night, but when the revelers had fallen asleep, the gift of the Greeks showed its inner beauty. A band of Greek soldiers, hidden in the horse, climbed out, opened the gates that had held their army at bay for nine years and allowed the Greek, which had since returned, enter, conquer and raze Troy. While this story has been told many times, the ingenuity of Odysseus and the Greeks in the plan was unconventional and undoubtedly effective.

7. Sticky Foam

Among the ingenious and fantastical tactics and toys of the United States military, Sticky Foam is one of the most intriguing and the most disappointing. Created as a form of nonlethal weapon, the Sticky Foam was developed to be squirted at the enemy, expand on contact and harden quickly, effectively “freezing” them where they stand. Ideally, the attackers would not be hurt and the confrontation could be resolved without risking the life of the U.S. soldiers. The Sticky Foam could be stored and transported in small bottles and promised to be a revolutionary “weapon” in modern warfare. However, at its first outing the Sticky Foam fell short of expectations. Faced with rioters while distributing food in Somalia, the Sticky Foam was misused and sprayed in front of the crowd rather than at it. The foam did exactly what was intended; it expanded on contact with the earth and hardened. But, rather than arresting the progress of the rioters, it produced a simple wall that they climbed over and then continued rioting. When used on a smaller scale to subdue prisoners in a jail cell, the foam successfully bound the man and quelled any potential violence. Sadly, the effects were again ill-considered and the prisoner could not be removed from the cell or dealt with in any worthwhile manner. There would be few methods of warfare more unconventional than Sticky Foam and, although its application was less positive than hoped, the intention of providing soldiers with nonlethal options in warfare must be applauded.

6.Mind power

Although it was hidden behind layers of denial and deflection, and may still be, there are a number of tales that discuss the use of psychic power as a component in the armory of United States super soldiers. In some arenas it was seen as means of extracting information without the need for interrogation, but there were those who hoped to cause physical harm without having to make tangible contact. In his book, “The Men Who Stare At Goats”, Jon Ronson described a project called Goat Lab, where a handful of psychic specialists worked tirelessly to kill a goat simply by stopping its heart with mind power. This would seem a little silly, but Ronson found that one member of the team had been successful and had “dropped a goat”. When pursued further on this feat, the man was found to regularly “drop” hamsters as well. But, despite the potential of this effort, the exertion required to “drop” a person is still well beyond the grasp of modern super soldiers. Furthermore, the perpetrator also suffered severe psychological effects as he realized that the goat was completely innocent and didn’t deserve to die. The use of psychic power in warfare must be acknowledged as an unconventional and slightly bizarre form of warfare. But the reality remains that with a raised consciousness and plenty of practice, this could be the basis of military action in the future.

5. Economic Warfare

It could be a product of evolution that we are becoming more sophisticated and leaving the world dependent on military strength behind us. Or perhaps it’s an admission by the rest of the world that the military superiority of the United States is such that even an alliance of major military powers would not be able to overcome America. Whatever the basis of the shift, there has been a significant move of late away from soldiers and guns to bankers and balance sheets. For a long time the use of economics means to influence the political directions of an enemy country has been a viable practice. But only recently has it become a method of warfare that has taken the attention of the senior military officials as seriously as it has that of economists and treasury advisors. The weapons of such a form of warfare include blockades, embargoes and withdrawal of exports to the enemy state. In the longer term, there are also strategies that reduce the income of a nation and manipulate currency value. These acts can be as devastating as any raid or missile strike and can play a role in reducing the supply and support for soldiers in the field. In 2009, the United States established a war game that took place entirely indoors and via computer. Not a shot was fired, but the damage to hypothetical nations and regions such as China, Russia, countries of the Pacific Rim and, of course, America herself was frightening. Working to cause maximum damage to the economy of the enemy, the result sent shockwaves through the military structures of the U.S., especially as the victor in the exercise was China. With a population of more than 1.3 billion, approximately one fifth of the entire world, China has markets opening that could produce extreme wealth or abject poverty to numerous rival nations. Having also focused on buying up U.S. government debt, China is positioning herself to be a major player in a war that relies on money rather than munitions.

4. Selous Scouts

As unconventional as guerilla warfare and terrorism can be, the work of the Selous Scouts in the arena of antiterrorism and anti-insurgence crossed amazing boundaries. They were the product of a collection of Special Forces and intelligence organizations working in and around Rhodesia and they carried the role of tracking terrorists. However, they also worked as a pseudo-terrorist group and bolstered their numbers with turned terrorists and a number of colored soldiers from the Rhodesian African Rifles. Through such connections, the Scouts were able to infiltrate groups by impersonating terrorists and gaining the confidence of the operatives. Once within the group, the Selous Scouts would carry out extraordinary acts of sabotage and surprise often destroying the terrorist cell from the inside. These activities included drawing terrorists into ambushes, collecting intelligence on terrorist groups and assassinating terrorists from within their own structures. A particularly favorite operation was to have Black Scouts, posing as terrorists, escort highly-prized white prisoners into a terrorist stronghold. When they had established their credentials as captors and captives the Selous Scouts would then open fire and destroy as many of the terrorists as was possible before escaping. At Nyadzonya Pungwe in August 1976, eighty-four Scouts were able to penetrate the Zanla terrorist camp where thousands of terrorists were based. Without warning the Scouts opened fire with an array of weaponry and killed as many as a thousand terrorists at a cost of five wounded Scouts. Along with the tactics of the Selous Scouts the selection process and training of the members was unorthodox, but extremely effective. While they were not the only group in history to work in such a way, they are a brilliant example of highly trained fighters operating in an unconventional, yet highly successful manner to battle terrorism.

3. Crazy Behavior

There are members of the community who would consider any warfare a result or act of crazy behavior. Yet there are military strategists who will recognize that crazy behavior is an unconventional, but effective tactic in the course of battle. Aside from the new and unusual weapons that he brought to the battlefield, in 219 B.C.E. Hannibal employed a technique of irregular and apparently disorganized maneuvers on one side of the Trebia River. The Romans, dismayed by the pathetic military structures and shaking their heads in disbelief at the woeful foe they were to confront, were drawn across the river and on to the territory Hannibal needed. He then unleashed his elephants and a highly disciplined army to decimate the Romans. This approach isn’t unique to Hannibal as a band of warriors, the Wendigokan, who were part of the Ojibwa tribe, engaged a similar principle. Among other bizarre behavior, the Wendigokan would deliberately yell instructions and proclamations that were exactly opposite to their intentions. This brought about great confusion in their foes and alarmed them so that they avoided conflict with the Ojibwa. Interestingly, the same tactics moved from the realm of mortal battle into the ring of pugilistic confrontation, especially demonstrated by the great Muhammad Ali. In 1962, then Cassius Clay behaved so outrageously in his challenge of Sonny Liston, that when his fighting technique followed similar eccentricities, the Heavyweight Champion was at a loss and did not know what to expect. Clay won this bout when Liston declined to answer to the bell at the start of the seventh round. While there are many examples of people behaving unusually in warfare solely through fear or confusion, the strategy that exploits the impact of crazy and unpredictable behavior in an unconventional, but highly effective, one.

2. Political Warfare

Against the backdrop of conventional symmetric war, the place of Political Warfare is often difficult to recognize and even harder to understand. Ranging from the use of diplomacy to influence potential allies to the blatant lies and deceptions of propaganda this method of warfare operates without the use of firearms or fury and achieves its goals subtly. While the use of diplomacy to enlist the support of ally nations has been a natural and longstanding aspect of warfare, its role in the less obvious context of convincing others not fight is equally significant. When the German ambassador shared a meal with Winston Churchill, the then Minister for the Navy, immediately before the beginning of World War I, he asked if England would be able to stay out of a conflict where Germany attacked France. Churchill has since expressed his disappointment at not being able to acquiesce to the request, but the profound effect of a quiet discussion between gentlemen could have echoed throughout Europe and the world for decades after. Similarly, the art of propaganda has been refined and developed until the ability to manipulate the hopes, dreams and fears of its victims is almost a science. The spreading of false information and the sowing of seeds of doubt has always been a tactic that has worked against the insecure. But, the use of propaganda to support a war movement by playing on the sympathies and sensitivities of the public can result in the enlisting of the aid of a whole nation in the “War Effort”. The use of political means in the context of warfare is a more sophisticated method of resolving disputes, although it is rarely one that can be employed without some risk of harm, even if that is only to the confidence of a people in their government.

1. Terrorism

Beyond instances of suicide bombings, the broader realm of terrorism is one of the most commonly recognized forms of unconventional warfare. With similarities to guerilla warfare in that it provides an opportunity for a grossly outnumbered militia to enter into conflict with a force superior in size and technology. As is suggested by the name of this method of warfare, it employs terror as its central currency. The more this behavior can intimidate and unsettle the non-military public, the greater is the potential to coerce a community into changing attitudes and conduct. To achieve this, terrorist groups can employ a range of techniques including kidnapping, assassination and arson. These acts often have a specific target and, while unsettling, have a lesser impact on the general population. However, in cases such as the murder of Lord Louis Mountbatten in 1979, which evoked a significant amount of public feeling, the act of the terrorists may have unified the public against the perpetrators, effectively working against the assassins. More general terrorist undertakings, like bomb threats and hijackings, have a greater impact on the man in the street. The random nature of the victims damages the confidence of the community. Public opinion can then press the government to consider negotiation and conciliation. It then takes strong and determined leadership to withstand the political pressure. Even though the physical danger is imperative and ever present in the application of terrorism, its greatest effectiveness is in the uncertainty and insecurity that permeates the community in its aim.