Weighing of the Heart History/Myth ~ ANCIENT EGYPT ~ After a person died, Anubis took their Ka (soul) to the underworld. The Egyptian underworld was an expansive land with deserts, islands, rivers, and lakes of fire that were all inhabited by demons. The souls needed the Book of the Dead to cast spells to give them a safe journey. Once the deceased reached the throne room of Osiris, they had to declare themselves innocent of certain crimes (similar to sins) before a panel of 42 judges. The heart, which represented the conscience of the deceased, was then weighed on a scale against the feather of Ma’at (Goddess of Truth). Thoth would record the result. When the person was innocent, the heart was lighter than the feather, and if the person was guilty, the heart was heavier. The Book of the Dead contained a spell to keep the heart from being heavy with guilt. Once judged innocent, the soul was made pure and aloud entrance to the paradise called the Field of Reeds (heaven) where they became able to move among the gods. If they were guilty, Ammut, The Devourer of the Dead (sometimes called the Devourer of Souls), ate their heart and they were condemned to eternal pain and torment in the Field of Iaru. Other times, it was said the when Ammut ate the heart, it was as it the person never existed. Ammut was a female beast with the head of a crocodile, the front half of a lion, and the back half of a hippopotamus. The Show (Stargåte SG-1) ~ Daniel performs the ceremony at Amonet/Sha-re’s funeral on Abydos (310 – Forever In A Day).

Willoughby Popular Culture ~ TELEVISION ~ "A Stop at Willoughby" was an episode of the original Twilight Zone. It was written by Rod Serling and originally aired on May 6, 1960. In the episode, an overstressed ad executive, Gart Williams, dreams of Willoughby, a quaint and peaceful town, during his train commute (He is working on the "Bradbury Account;" a reference to sci-fi writer Ray Bradbury). One day, Williams decides to get off the train at Willoughby, when he has actually jumped from the moving train and killed himself. The Willoughby & Son Funeral Home takes his body away in a hearse. The Show (Stargate Atlåntis) ~ Dr. Weir wakes up at Willoughby State Psychiatric Hospital near Washington, D.C. Dr. Adam Fletcher, her psychiatrist, tells her that she has never left Earth and that she is there because she had a break with reality when her boyfriend Simon was killed in a car crash three weeks ago. Actually, Dr. Weir is in a coma after being attacked by Asuran nanites (306 - The Real World).

Wormhole Science ~ Right now, wormholes only work in theory. To create a wormhole, one must make a cavity or hollow in space. Then carefully bend space until your destination lines up with the cavity, and "glue" the space to the end of the cavity. The hole is held open with anti-gravity and because there is no event horizon (like in a black hole), two-way travel is possible. For more information, go here: David Darling: Wormhole and Creating a Traversable Wormhole. The Shows (Stargåte SG-1; Atlåntis) and the movie (StarGate © 1994) ~ The Stargate works by creating a wormhole through space. The wormholes of the Stargate can be kept open for 38 minutes.

Wraiths Folklore ~ GREAT BRITAIN ~ (From Old Norse vörthr, "watcher, guardian") Originating in Scotland, they were initially called warth, and were guardian angels or the ghosts of the recently deceased who were harbingers of warnings or protectors. In the literary definition, they have been described as pale, transparent ghost of the recently deceased, usually in grey, flowing dress. Another name for a Wraith is "Fetch" or "Fetch-Light," which is the disembodied ghost of a living person. The Fetch appear to distant relatives at the very moment before the death of those they represent. Multiple people can see the same Fetch at the same time, and it is said that you can see your own Fetch. If your Fetch is seen in the evening, death is near, however if your Fetch is seen in the morning, you will enjoy a long life. Usually Fetches and Wraiths only appear in folklore, however they have been slowly been making their way into modern writing. Some of the most famous Wraiths appear in the Lord of the Rings trilogy. Learn more: The Encyclopedia of Arda: Wraiths. The Show (Stargate Atlåntis) ~ The Wraiths are suggested to be a native race of the Pegasus Galaxy. It is learned from the Hologram-Lady in Atlantis that the Wraith were responsible for the decimation of the Ancients. The SGA team encounters a small group of Wraith on Athos and follows them back to their base world, where they encounter a Wraith mothership embedded in the hillside and covered with trees. There is a small contingent of Wraith awake who protect the others who sleep. The Wraith have incredible healing abilities. They feed off the life force of other beings, mainly humanoids. In a fight with the small group of Wraiths that had been terrorizing Athos, Sheppard kills "The Keeper," and inadvertently wakes the rest of them (101/102 – Rising). While they hibernate, their life signs are undetectable. Their ability to heal their wounds is relative to how recently they have fed (112 – The Defiant One). During their feeding process, the victim is slowly injected with a special enzyme, which temporarily strengthens the human body and ensures that the heart continues beating to extend the available feeding time before the victim dies. Also, the Wraith faster-than-light travel is not as efficient as the Asgard hyperdrive aboard the Daedalus. The Wraith ships are slower and must make series of jumps (201 – The Siege). They sometimes use the people they capture for hunting practice. Teyla’s people have relegated stories of these "Runners" to folklore. Ronon is the first she has met (203 – Runner). They are physically able to eat and drink like humans, however they do not gain nourishment through eating (205 – Condemned). As children, the Wraith survive on normal food, which explains why they have a digestive system. It is thought that they develop a chemical deficiency that destroys their ability to receive nourishment from normal food as they age (207 – Instinct). The Iratus Bug is the ancestor of the Wraith (208 – Conversion). They are able to restore life to those they feed upon, if they choose (307 – Common Ground). They are working on a way to override the Asurans’ Wraith-killing-activation-code (403 - Reunion). Their hive ships are grown; they are a bio-polymer with organo-metallic compounds (502 - The Seed). Through hibernation, they have extremely long life spans. "Todd" tells of how he was alive 10000 years ago when the Ancients first used the Attero Device (510 - First Contact).

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