Showing results by narrator "Steve Knupp" in All Categories

In the early years of Christianity, it was forbidden to move and share the remains of saints and martyrs, and they were protected so that their final resting places, such as catacombs and cemeteries, remained intact. The earliest recorded Christian relics, specifically the bones and ashes of martyrs, date from the second century. Two hundred years later, St. Ambrose and others set out to dig up the corpses and honor them. At that time, it was considered that every holy body could be dismembered and divided among the faithful to worship it.

An undercover CIA officer discovers that the company he is investigating produces an artificial intelligence product that manipulates the behavior of the general public, and he must prove it to the media or be killed by a powerful corporation that has its own military.

Get ready to test your knowledge and embark on an adventure through various categories, including history, pop culture, science, sports, and more. With volume two, the trivia quest becomes more exhilarating, pushing the boundaries of your expertise and keeping you engaged from start to finish.

People have always been fascinated with the hidden, the mysterious, and the unexplained. Every society has its tall tales and ghost stories, its odd legends, and heroes. Also, every society has its stories of strange beasts, dangerous or benign, that live in the twilight world between the everyday and the legendary.

The Moors are well-known for their presence on the Iberian Peninsula during the Middle Ages and for the conflicts they fought in Europe, but the term Moor is a historical rather than an ethnic name. It is an invention of European Christians for the Islamic inhabitants of Maghreb (North Africa), Andalusia (Spain), Sicily, and Malta, and it was sometimes used to designate all Muslims.

One of the most important and memorable events of the United States’ westward push across the frontier came with the discovery of gold in the lands that became California in January 1848. Located thousands of miles away from the country’s power centers on the east coast at the time, the announcement came a month before the Mexican-American War had ended, and among the very few Americans that were near the region at the time, many of them were Army soldiers who were participating in the war and garrisoned there.

Partly out of dire circumstances and partly from a cultural worldview, it was the Soviet Union who first pressed female pilots into direct combat when Hitler invaded Russia. Ahead of Stalingrad, Stalin publicly declared that “women should be given the right to fly and fight for their country.” As a result, more than 800,000 women served in the Soviet military during the war years.

In the third century CE, as Roman leaders vied with each other for power and constantly fought civil wars, Rome’s famous roads fell into disrepair, the economy was crippled, the continent-wide trade system that had flourished in the previous years was replaced with a basic barter system, and there was a reduction in international trade. People became ever more fearful for their personal safety, and the imperial crisis saw an increasing trend toward sacrificing personal liberties and rights in return for guarantees of safety from wealthy landowners.

When trains were introduced as a popular means of transportation, some of the first tracks laid terminated in New York, and the expansion of railroads led to the birth of train stations across the country. In general, these were small buildings where passengers could buy tickets and wait for their trains to arrive. Trains were run by steam as far south as 14th Street and pulled from there by horses.

Before the advent of the digital age, the ability to write clearly and succinctly was mandatory for many walks of life, including commercial, diplomatic, academic, philosophical, and historical pursuits. George Orwell’s campaign for perfectly written English in an artistic and content-oriented sense might seem obsessive now, but the importance of written accuracy and well-conveyed meaning for that age cannot be overstated.

Andy Lammers, a young man with big dreams, begins his path as a college student with a goal to serve his country. What follows is a deep and emotional look into the life of someone working behind the scenes to protect others, even when no one knows his name. As Andy trains and travels through dangerous places like Uganda, Sudan, and the Congo, he faces not only high-stakes missions but also powerful emotions, especially when he falls in love with Kim, a fellow operative.

The ability to remain and travel underwater for an extended period of time has long been a dream for a good portion of mankind, perhaps second only to that of flying. The first “submersible” may have been a kind of glass container made for Alexander the Great so that he could observe undersea life firsthand. Despite this early attempt, fate decreed the idea of traveling beneath the surface of the water would lie fallow for nearly another 2,000 years after this experiment in about 332 B. C. Alexander’s death the next year effectively squashed any further developments.

Thanks to the various components that have been put together, the International Space Station is bigger and brighter than all other artificial satellites. With relatively low power magnification, people can see the solar panels radiating outward from the numerous international modules which make up the ISS. The reality of that platform, at the edge of the ocean of space, is pretty astounding when looked at from the perspective of history. Only 120 years ago, mankind did not know if it was possible to fly in a heavier-than-air vehicle.

In Evolution’s Stumbling Blocks, author Chris Nitardy takes listeners on a bold and thought-provoking journey through the scientific, philosophical, and biblical challenges facing Darwinian evolution. With clarity, logic, and engaging storytelling, this book examines fossil gaps, the Cambrian explosion, irreducible complexity, mutations, origin-of-life theories, and the reliability of Scripture.

James Douglas's book Under an August Moon is a coarse and intimate memoir that outlines the severe undermining of a toxic relationship. Beginning with the heartache of personal loss and moving through the rough stages of an abusive marriage, Douglas incorporates a story that is as emotionally engrossing as it is brutally honest. Furthermore, the book grasps the sophistications of love, betrayal, and self-discovery in a setting of small-town life and societal intimidations.

Jerry Krause’s ‘Farm Boy From Wyoming’ is a story of resilience, discovery, and devotion that begins on a family farm in rural Powell, Wyoming, and extends into the worlds of aviation, technology, and international leadership. Born in 1940, Jerry grew up in the shadow of Yellowstone Park, where farm chores, community bonds, and the hard lessons of loss shaped his early years. Those experiences gave him resourcefulness, determination, and a belief in the value of relationships—qualities that carried him far beyond the fields of his childhood.

What we can see lets us protect ourselves, but what about the things we can't see? The most dangerous threats are often the ones that catch us off guard, forming an abrupt and unsettling feeling that just doesn’t sit right. In "Right Before My Eyes," Angela Diane skillfully incorporates a psychological thriller that obscures the lens between perception and reality. The novel follows Sarah, a college sophomore working to find her place in the world. She flounders with faith, identity, and the eerie feeling that someone—or something—is watching her.

From narrow Venetian alleyways to the vastness of the Adriatic, Shadows Within the Storm is a tale of resilience, self-discovery, and the human spirit’s ability to navigate uncharted waters. Amidst stolen moments of joy and haunting whispers from the past, Liam discovers more than just new destinations. Glenn Blekicki crafts an exciting narrative that masterfully blends travel, suspense, and personal transformation, taking listeners on a journey through iconic landscapes and emotional depths.

Was he “the greatest human being ever to occupy 10 Downing Street,” or a man whose “brilliant but unsound judgement resulted in detrimental consequences for Britain and for the world”? Decades after his death, debate still rages over Sir Winston Churchill’s contribution to history, though all agree that it was profound no matter which way it’s viewed. But now that wartime nostalgia has mostly washed away, the views of Churchill are more divergent than ever.

Given that there’s such little margin for error in a submersible, many submarine losses remain sources of intrigue and mystery, and during World War II, few sinkings were as controversial as the Surcouf, a Free French submarine that disappeared in the Caribbean in 1942. When the Surcouf launched in 1929, it was a technological marvel. This wasn’t a conventional submarine at all, but a 3,300-ton, 300-foot-long submersible light cruiser.