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While it is undisputed that the origins of modern soccer, or football, originated in Britain, there is a great deal of evidence that points to this beloved game as having an older history.

Where did the game of soccer really begin, and how old is it? To understand how many different varieties of "soccer" there are, you need to understand a bit about the older versions of the game and how they have evolved.

Below, you will find a list of the predominant cultures that had a variety of soccer, and learn how each one differs from what we play today. And no, they never used anything like Lotto shinguards back then either!

• Chinese Soccer History

• Japanese Soccer History

• Egyptian Soccer History

• Greek/Roman Soccer History

• British Soccer History

Chinese Soccer History

To many, this is the oldest version of soccer to exist. However, there is quite a lot of controversy of whether or not this is the oldest, or Japan's version is the elder. The Chinese version of the game, originally named "Tsu Chu", involved players on a field that had to hit a leather ball stuffed with fur into a small hole. like Soccer, no hands were permitted during the play of the game, and it was considered an honor to be a member of a team.

The Emperor of the Han Dynasty, when the game was developed, was an avid player and fan, and spread the popularity of this game all over China during his reign. This roughly dates back to 300 B.C., although there is controversy on the subject of dating, which could result in the origins of the game being as far back as 5000 B.C. Regardless, this version of Soccer is extremely old. Despite that, there is still a version of Tsu Chu played today. While the two games are similar, Tsu Chu has had no effect on the modern version of the game, as it was originally developed and created for play in Great Britain.

Japanese Soccer History

Kemari, the Japanese version of "Soccer", is perhaps one of the most different forms of the sport, in comparison to modern soccer. Kemari was a game of "Keep it up", much like modern hacky sacks, although used with a larger ball that was stuffed with saw dust. This version involves a "pitch", or the field, designated by the selection of four trees, the cherry, maple, pine and willow. Many great houses in Japan would grow trees to have a permanent pitch, or field, established.

Kemari was normally played with two to twelve players. Established in roughly 1004 B.C., it vies for position of the oldest game with China's Tsu Chu. In fact, China's Tsu Chu players and Japan's Kemari players were the first to have an "international" game of their versions of Soccer, which is dated to have occurred in roughly 50 B.C., although a definite date of 611 A.D. is known. Regardless, this game stands with China as a sister sport to Soccer, while it never affected the modern version of the game.

Egyptian Soccer History

While not much is known about Egyptian Soccer, or other ball games, it is thought there was a version of a type of ball game played by young women during the age of Baqet III. On his tomb, images of this sport were depicted, although no one is certain how the game was played or whether or not it truly affected the outcome of modern soccer. Recordings of this game date as far back as 2500 B.C., although not much more is known asides the fact that it was played with a ball. The lack of information on the sport and how it was played has eliminated it from runnings as the first evidence of a game similar to soccer.

Greek/Roman Soccer History

Perhaps the closest relative to modern soccer are the games that were formed by the Greeks during the prime of their culture. They had numerous varieties of football style games, some of which required hands, some of which forbade hands. In the end, after the Roman conquering of Greece, the game Harpastum is what modern soccer would be based from. This game, probably a modified version of the Greek's "Harpaston", which translates roughly to handball. While grossly misnamed, this game is what is considered to be one of the precursors to modern soccer.

British Soccer History

In Britain during the 8th century, soccer was created, not as a recreational sport, but as a war game. One of the stories of the original roots of the sport comes from when a Danish Prince was beheaded, and his head was used as a ball and was kicked around. Ever since this 'legendary' tale, villages and other communities would play a game where they would have to kick a ball to a specific goal. It was a violent game, where injury and death were not uncommon, but it was popular nevertheless. In fact, it was so violent, that in 1331, King Edward the III passed laws to try to stop the playing of the game. It did not work, however, and the sport continued on.

There are even stories of soccer games that involved hundreds upon hundreds of players. In these games, there were many deaths, some resulting in the hundreds. It wasn't until 1815 when Eton College set up a series of rules for the game that it became less violent and more of a true sport. At this time, other colleges and universities took up the banner and began to play under similar rules. Later, the rules were evaluated and judged, and the Cambridge rules were created as a result in 1848. In the Cambridge rules, shin-kicking, carrying the ball and tripping were all forbidden. Rugby rules allowed these aspects, and the two varieties of soccer, or football, split to form their own followings.

On October 26, 1863, London schools and sports club sent representatives to the Freemason's Tavern, where the Football association was formed. Rugby supporters left this association to form the Rugby association. This is where the birth of modern soccer began. In 1969, the Football association finalized the modern game of soccer by forbidding the use of hands in the game.

The term "Soccer" was coined when someone was asked if he was a Rugger, which is a Rugby player. The -er signified that the person participated in a a particular sport. The individual, Charles Wreford Brown, replied with "Soccer!", taking the phrase from association, SOC, and adding the -er. The term stuck. While British individuals still call the game Football, Americans and other countries call it Soccer, especially if they have heavy support in American Football present. Ever since the foundation of the association, "Football" has risen in popularity, becoming one of the best love games in the history of Earth. now, hundreds of thousands play the sport, although it lacks the initial violence present at its creation.

Click! Zoom! Click! Here is another picture of a shark in action. It does not matter if it is taking during a shark watch tour, a surfing incident or a shark attack, pictures, even fuzzy ones can help identify the shark species involved. I call these pictures, shark picturesCSI style!

You see, even on shark pictures that are unclear, a bit too dark or too light, there are always clues that can be observed and used to inform people for safety reasons that certain shark specie is roaming in the coastal waters rimming the beach. On ecotourism tours, these specific clues can help you identify the shark specie as the speed of the action prevented you to have a clear image of this apex predator in action.

Depending on the clues provided by the shark pictures, you can identify the size, the shark specie, the approximate weight and even its intentions. What types of clues can you find on the shark pictures?

Well, the shape of shark teeth will differentiate the shark species. An example would be that large triangular-shaped teeth more than likely belong to a great white shark compared to hook-shaped teeth, which would be the ones owned by a tiger shark. The profile or the size of a dorsal fin would help to estimate the size of the right type of shark.

The color and the type of fins would also help in identifying the shark species included in the pictures. It behavior would also help identify the shark specie in the picture. You see, breaching is one of the peculiar behaviors of a great white shark. The angle of the attack would also help in finding out the type of shark attack.

Even things such as the shape of the snout, the eyes, the print on their skin or even some specific details such as barbells can help provide some useful information contained on shark picturesCSI style! Now, let the evidence put you on the right track!

The Playstation 3 controller has been designed to offer many great features for hours of fun and entertainment, it is also very light and fits well in you hand. Most gaming controllers tend to feel awkward as well as heavy. This can lead to having sore fingers and hands after some intense playing time. This controller offers a much better fit that enables you to use if for hours on end to play your favourite Playstation games. The layout of the control button is the same as the Playstation 2, but the serious gamers will notice the difference between them in comfort and weight. For example, the L2 and R2 buttons are a bit larger.

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With the option to use wireless controllers with a usb connection that automatically charges the controller will enhance the enjoyment of Playstation 3 gaming. This is such a great way to ensure hours of run playing your favourite games whilst sitting in the most comfortable spot in the room, and not being restricted to within reach of the controllers cord.

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If you want the excitement of playing online against other players, than you will need to invest in a home router that is either wired or wireless for the Playstation 3. Sony is offering this feature at no cost. However, it will be necessary to obtain a broadband connection from your local service provider.

The Playstation 3 memory card adapter will enable you to pick up right where you left off with the Playstation 2. The memory card adapter will be an excellent investment for those that have worked hard to save their levels from the Playstation 2 onto a memory card. Whilst the games will be compatible with the Playstation 3, it would be necessary to start right back at the beginning without the adapter. This memory card adapter retails for about $15.

There are already many great Playstation 3 games to get you going. Sure, you can still use your Playstation 1 & 2 games, on it, but it would be nice to invest in some of them new games that you see in the store with your new system. They range in price from $40 to $80.

Make sure to check out all the great accessories that are available for the Playstation 3, and invest in any that appeal to you.