All that Glitters is Not Diamond
Bloomberg
Encyclopedia: The biggest diamond ever discovered is the Cullinan, found near Pretoria in South Africa in 1905. It was cut into several polished gems, the two largest of which — the Great Star of Africa and the Lesser Star of Africa — are set in the Crown Jewels of Britain.
The discovery of the Lucara (a Canadian Company) diamond occurs as "a collapse in diamond prices as the industry faces headwinds in nearly all its major markets. That has been compounded by too much supply and growing erosion in some categories from synthetic stones."
My Comment:?Contacts in both Botswana and Zambia have responded to my article on the trifecta of energy resources and have communicated that solar projects are advancing in both these countries.??
At the same time, The New York Times reported about the transition of the coal power stations located in the U.S. Midwest, (Minnesota) farmlands to solar. These areas have much in common, not only because of their energy transformation, but also because these countries and this region have not taken advantage of the latest scientific and technological developments in energy.?
that have occurred in the U.S. and Germany. (Carl Sagan?)
Zambia has a copper belt located in its north. Botswana and Southern Africa have, in addition to large diamonds, platinum and rhodium group metals that can be used to more efficiently catalyze the hydrolysis of water. This more efficient hydrolysis means that less acreage needs to be devoted to solar power and more can be devoted to agronomy. Additionally, Jeffrey D. Sach’s?
has identified a region of Africa known for geothermal energy: "Geothermal Energy associated with the East African Rift System (EARS) extending through Tanzania, Burundi, Rwanda, Uganda, Kenya, Ethiopia, Djibouti, and Eritrea." This energy has not been exploited. Nor have the rich wind energy resources of MENA been.?
The concept of Desertec, for example:
has devolved to such a degree that engineers view it as a means of concentrating solar power?so as to deliver electricity via cable to Europe.?This lack of vision ignores the needs and resources of entire regions of Africa?and the world:
that would benefit from solar irradiation, nanotechnology, wind and geothermal energy to produce the green hydrogen that can be stored, shared and transmitted to the rest of Africa and the world.?
I have informed in this medium, that the solar irradiance resources of Morocco are sufficient to power all of Sub-Saharan Africa.?
Ouarzazate
Scientific Advancement
There is considerable evidence that the ancient Egyptians coated their pyramids with perovskite in order to generate photoelectricity. The pyramids were large batteries that powered the energy needs of this "ancient Kingdom."?
Enter Carthage
The Carthaginian Empire
A Little History of the New City
Wikipedia:?Ancient Carthage?(/?kɑ?rθ?d?/?KAR-thij;?Punic:?????????????????, lit.?'New City') was an?ancient Semitic?civilisation based in?North Africa.[4] Initially a settlement in present-day?Tunisia, it later became a?city-state?and then an?empire. Founded by the?Phoenicians?in the ninth century BC,?Carthage?reached its height in the fourth century BC as one of the largest?metropoleis?in the world.[5] It was the centre of the?Carthaginian Empire, a major power led by the?Punic people?who dominated the ancient western and central?Mediterranean Sea. Following the?Punic Wars, Carthage was?destroyed by the Romans?in 146 BC, who later rebuilt?the city?lavishly.[6][7][8]
Carthage
Qart-?ada?t
c. 814 BC – 146 BC
Carthaginian Empire in 323?BC
Capital
Common?languages
Religion
Government
Historical era
Founded by?Phoenician?settlers
c. 814 BC
??Independence from?Tyre
middle of the 6th century BC
??Destroyed?by?Roman Republic?in the?Third Punic War
146 BC
Population
??221 BC[3]
3,700,000–4,300,000 (entire empire)
Currency
My intercalation: Google: the shekel
About 237–227 BC. Silver. While the drachma was the monetary unit of the Greek world,?the shekel?was that of the Phoenicians and?Carthaginians.
Carthage was?settled around 814 BC by colonists?from?Tyre, a leading Phoenician city-state located in present-day?Lebanon. In the?7th century BC, following Phoenicia's conquest by the?Neo-Assyrian Empire, Carthage became independent, gradually expanding its economic and political?hegemony?across the?western Mediterranean. By 300 BC, through its vast patchwork of?colonies,?vassal states, and?satellite states, held together by its naval dominance of the western and central Mediterranean Sea, Carthage controlled the largest territory in the region, including the coast of?northwest Africa, southern and eastern?Iberia, and the islands of?Sicily,?Sardinia,?Corsica,?Malta, and the?Balearic archipelago.[9]?Tripoli?remained autonomous under the authority of local?Libyco-Phoenicians, who paid nominal tribute.[10]
Among the ancient world's largest and richest cities, Carthage's strategic location provided access to abundant?fertile land?and major maritime?trade routes.[11] Its extensive?mercantile?network reached as far as?west Asia?and?northern Europe, providing an array of?commodities?from all over the?ancient world, in addition to lucrative?exports?of?agricultural?products?and?manufactured goods. This commercial empire was secured by one of the largest and most powerful navies in the?ancient Mediterranean, and an army composed heavily of foreign?mercenaries?and?auxiliaries, particularly?Iberians,?Balearics,?Gauls,?Britons,?Sicilians,?Italians,?Greeks,?Numidians, and?Libyans.
As the dominant power of the western Mediterranean, Carthage inevitably came into conflict with many neighbours and rivals, from the?Berbers?of North Africa to the?nascent?Roman Republic.[12] Following?centuries of conflict?with the?Sicilian Greeks, its growing competition with Rome culminated in the?Punic Wars?(264–146 BC), which saw some of the largest and most sophisticated battles in antiquity. Carthage narrowly avoided destruction after the Second Punic War, but was destroyed by the Romans in 146 BC after the?Third Punic War. The Romans later founded a new city in its place.[13] All remnants of Carthaginian civilization came under Roman rule by the?first century AD, and Rome subsequently became the dominant Mediterranean power, paving the way for its rise as?a major empire.
Despite the cosmopolitan character of its empire, Carthage's culture and identity remained rooted in its Canaanite heritage, albeit a localised variety known as Punic. Like other Phoenician peoples, its society was urban, commercial, and oriented towards seafaring and trade; this is reflected in part by its notable innovations, including?serial production,?uncolored?glass, the?threshing board, and the?cothonharbor. Carthaginians were renowned for their commercial prowess, ambitious explorations, and unique system of?government, which combined elements of?democracy,?oligarchy, and?republicanism, including modern examples of?checks and balances.
Despite having been one of the most influential civilizations of antiquity, Carthage is mostly remembered for its long and bitter conflict with Rome, which threatened the rise of the Roman Republic and almost changed the course of?Western civilization. Due to the destruction of virtually all Carthaginian texts after the Third Punic War, much of what is known about its civilization comes from Roman and Greek sources, many of whom wrote during or after the Punic Wars, and to varying degrees were shaped by the hostilities.?Popular and scholarly attitudes towards Carthage historically reflected the prevailing Greco-Roman view, though archaeological research since the late 19th century has helped shed more light and nuance on Carthaginian civilization.
Continued with?Transition, Transformation and Global Trade