History: Fiction or Science? (Chronology, No. 1)

Book Description

Recorded history is a finely-woven magic fabric of intricate lies about events predating the sixteenth century. There is not a single piece of evidence that can be reliably and independently traced back earlier than the eleventh century. This book details events that are substantiated by hard facts and logic, and validated by new astronomical research and statistical analysis of ancient sources.

Customer Reviews:

Calculations are only as good as your numbers.......2007-08-03

Yes, we can all agree that mainstream history is nearly 100% BS due to politics, economics, ego, problems with dating techniques, and various conspiracies. Agreed. But, I've been researching the distinct possibility that human history (in terms of civilizations) are much more ancient than we've been told, so coming across this book was very interesting to me. I wondered how Fomenko could be wrong (if at all) because he is very persuasive in his presentations. Then it dawned on me. If at previous times in prehistory, due to the various catastrophies that are well documented (comets, asteroids, planetary disruptions, plasma discharge, pole reversals, etc) the Earth was in a different position in relation to the sun, different tilt on its axis, different orbit, different rotation (in terms of velocity and DIRECTION), and the continents were in different positions, then would this not cause the ancients to see the sky (constellations) differently? In other words, is Fomenko making erronious assumptions about the physics of the Earth in pre-history, which then corrupt his data with regards to dating the relevant astrology? The last event to seriously disrupt our planet occured roughly 3500 years ago, according to other good researchers, so is it possible Fomenko has been confused by this? The vastly different physics of our planet in the not so distant past may explain this confusion, which is not to say the "mainstream" version of history is correct; on the contrary. I am not an expert in these fields, but wanted to see if this idea could spark discussion.

Pants on fire?.......2007-07-19

Will people ever read before spamming? Yes, Jesuits could not rewrite world history alone, they had help. Anyway, Dr Prof Acad A.Fomenko does not point to jesuits as the driving force of world wide history manipulation in published volumes 1,2,3;, actually he barely mentions the poor devils. Check it with 'Search inside' feature, please. China is rarely mentioned either, in fact, Dr Fomenko is completely eurocentric. Right, his theory contradicts all mainstream schools of history, because in their actual state they are all built on blatantly erroneus chronology. You don't need a mysterious cabal (conspiracy) to falsify history, the falsification is its modus operandi. It is inherent to history(ians) to falsify (distort) events, as it is inherent to humans to boast as it is inherent to power (authority) to legimize itself by referrring to glorious past made to its own order. Dr Prof Fomenko and team have identified scores of instances of such manipulation in Russian, European, etc.. history, and delivered valid statistical proof thereof. His own 'reconstruction' is completely another story. Forget c14 as a valid method of dating. W.Libby has initially discovered a brilliant method of INDEPENDENT dating. Too bad, c14 method has become a joke after a forced marrige with dendrochronology with consensual chronological scale inbuilt. Radiocarbon method can't stand blind tests, but is so very productive as a rubberstamp.

Accepted History & Chronology Must Be Changed. .......2007-04-09

There is no doubt that history as most know it is a sham, & institution's version of History both University & Church is fradulent & inaccurate. Everything was established with an agenda, The real "Dark Ages" are now when we have access to incredible amounts of information past authorities & more important 'common folk' didn't have but our institutions & educators are slow to evolve because of what has ignorantly & arrogantly been taught for too long. This is on many subjects not just Chronology.

For anyone to question "Why would a Mathematician have anything credible to say of History?" The answer is from Dr. Fomenko's preface in the book: "It would be worthwhile to remind the reader that in the XVI-XVII century Chronology was considered to be a subdivision of Mathematics." These volumes could possibly be some of the most important works to date & should be read by everyone with an interest in History, especially professors & educators who have a duty to the public. I have read both books & must say that 'Chronology 1' has some very eye opening & revolutionary information. Even if these volumes are part true the implications are profound & opens the doors to further investigations & questions which must be done. I speak several different lanquages & must say the logic Dr. Fomenko uses with "inflection" of words & words being read from left to right in one region & right to left in another then written backwards, the removal of vowels & get down to basics of words, or different cities & locations having the same name etc. is correct. Vowel usage has always been optional & varied, actually complicating linquistics & study. The first thing one has to understand is that words never had a fixed spelling in history like we do now, the spelling of words was mutable & regional, as well as names & titles of people were vast, varied & changed, NOTHING WAS FIXED or understood linear. Matters of Life & Death as well as financial profiteering yesterday & today were & are made with ignorant, illogical & conspiratorial views of history & reality, it's time people get closer to the Truth & society collectively grow up.

Very Interesting.......2007-03-07

It is a good proposal and I believe it will mature into something even better in the future. I think it deserves to be read.

History as Science Fiction.......2007-01-10

Anatoly Fomenko has written a very intriguing book, full of pictures, charts, and computer 'proof' of his thesis: backwards of AD900 we don't really know what happened or when. Between AD900 and AD1600 there is more certainty, but there is still a lot of fuzzy ground, and things don't get reliable until we get past the 1600's where the printing press made it very difficult for the perpetrators of this timeline manipulation to change anything that had been committed to print. The Dark Ages did not happen. Books were burned for a reason. One organization has doubled the actual length of its existence by expanding the real chronology. Read why.

I had always wondered why Christ died about AD33 and yet men waited until the 11th century to form the Knights Templar, the Cathars, etc and go after the Holy Land by force. Why the 1000 year gap? Turns out there wasn't more than a 10-12 year gap and he proves it using astronomy. This also implies that the planet is not as old as we have been told, and current Christian and other creationist scientists are already championing that idea without being aware of Fomenko's book. The two groups, creationist scientists and the Russian mathematical analysts corroborate each other. Fascinating.

Of course, all this flies in the face of what we have been told traditionally is the 'proper' chronology of western civilization, and most readers will experience 'cognitive dissonance' in reading this book. It means that our history going backwards from AD1600 becomes progressively more incorrect and unreliable until it cannot be trusted at all... in the space of 700-800 years.

Naturally, the curious, open-minded reader will want to know WHO did this, WHY, and did any of the events we think of as really ancient ever happen?
Dr. Fomenko is a respected scientist/mathematician at Moscow State University who has already answered these questions to the satisfaction of his initially skeptical colleagues. Most of them are now believers, a few still refuse to believe (the usual diehards), and of course the western press has ignored Fomenko's work -- for obvious reasons when you read the book. The ones who perpetrated this chronology ruse have a lot to answer for. They are still with us. That's why this book is a well-kept secret.

I gave the book a 4-star rating because I was unable to check out some of his claims; those I checked were as he said. But if even 1/3 of his claims are true, this punches a big hole in what we think is our history, the meaning of western civilization, our educational process (for repeating the ruse as gospel), and the trustworthiness of the organization that perpetrated this ruse, well-intentioned or not.

This book relates to current research into a Young Earth paradigm, to John Keel's discoveries about our planet, and Fr Malachi Martin's insights (in his now out-of-print books). We are indeed sheep who are manipulated and kept ignorant -- for a reason. While knowing what these men have to say may be the "booby prize" (as in: 'what can you do with this knowledge?'), it will provide interesting reading. Didn't someone say: "...and the Truth will set you free."?? For you to judge if this book contains the truth.

Apocalypse 2012: A Scientific Investigation into Civilization's End

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Waiting to Exhale
If this is science I am Superman
Not Proof, But Good Science
A Logical Inquiry Into An Otherwise Hysterical Topic
Projection and Make-belief

Apocalypse 2012: A Scientific Investigation into Civilization's End
Lawrence E. Joseph
Manufacturer: Broadway
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

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ASIN: 0767924479
Release Date: 2007-01-23

Book Description

Don’t look up

It won’t help. You can’t get out of the way, you can’t dig a hole deep enough to hide. The end is coming, and there’s nothing you can do about it.

So why read this book?
Because you can’t look away when not just the religious fanatics are saying we’re all going to be destroyed but the scientists are in on the act too. Here’s what they’re saying:

• We’re a million years over due for a mass extinction.

• The sun at radiation minimum is acting much worse than at solar maximum, and one misdirected spewing of plasma could fry us in an instant.

• The magnetic field—which shields us from harmful radiation—is developing a mysterious crack.

• Our solar system is entering an energetically hostile part of the galaxy.

• The Yellowstone supervolcano is getting ready to blow, and if it does, we can look forward to nuclear winter and 90 percent annihilation.

• The Maya, the world’s greatest timekeepers ever, say it’s all going to stop on December 21, 2012.

So, see? There’s nothing you can do, but you might as well sit back and enjoy the show.

That’s why you should read this book.

*****

Dear Reader,

If there were a chance that opening this book could set off a chain of events that would lead to Apocalypse, to the end of Life as we know it, would you be tempted? Finger poised uncertainly above the flashing red button? How about if the Apocalypse promised to result in a new age of enlightenment, a Heaven on Earth like never before?

Personally, I’ll take the security of my cozy life over a chance at nirvana. But status quo may no longer be an option, for any of us. This book will convince you that there is a nonnegligible chance that the year 2012 will be more tumultuous, catastrophic, and, quite possibly, revelatory, than any other year in human history.

Parts of this book are best read with a bowl of popcorn: looking into the jaws of a great white shark in search of the meaning of death; touring a picturesque Guatemalan town with Mayan shaman just weeks before it is utterly destroyed. Other sections go better with a tranquilizer, such as the impending eruption of the Yellowstone supervolcano, or the mass extinction headed our way—on the scale of the great collision that destroyed the dinosaurs and 70 percent of all other species, our best scientists contend that it’s now overdue. Nail-biters should beware the fact that the next peak in the sunspot cycle, due in 2012, is widely expected to set records for the number and intensity of solar storms pummeling the Earth with radiation and igniting natural calamities such as earthquakes, volcanoes, and Katrina-sized hurricanes. And that our entire solar system appears to be moving into a dangerous interstellar energy cloud.

Is it a coincidence that the burgeoning war between Christianity and Islam seems hell-bent for Armageddon? Or that numerous other religions, philosophies, and cultural traditions are signaling that the end is near, with 2012 emerging as the consensus target date? A new era is about to be born, with all the pain and blood and joy and release that birth naturally entails.

Facing oblivion, or at least mega-metamorphosis, is something that few of us are emotionally prepared to do. Thus my excuse for the gallows humor that pervades this story. In a memorable Mary Tyler Moore episode, Mary cracks up laughing at the funeral of Chuckles the Clown who, dressed as a peanut while marching in a parade, was shucked to death by an elephant. If Mary can giggle in the face of death, so can we.

With kind regards,
Lawrence E. Joseph

Customer Reviews:

Waiting to Exhale.......2007-09-27

Something in the world has changed. We all know it. We all feel as though we are holding our breath. I have observed birds feeding in places where they've rarely been seen before. I have observed butterflies this year become increasingly aggressive. Bees in California are disappearing. Weather patterns are shifting. Governments seem to be spiraling downward in an attempt to control, control, control. So what's going on?

Lawrence E. Joseph takes us with him on his journey to discover the source of our unease. We travel with him through all the possible scenarios beginning with the Mayan prediction of world disaster in 2012. He doesn't go looking for the boogey-man in the closet. He looks to the scientific world for answers. The answers that he finds are not encouraging. Sunspots are active. Never mind the Celebrity Disaster of the Year--global warming, the entire universe may be heating up. Then there is my personal favorite, the reversal of the poles.

Joseph does not overlook mankind's potential contribution to the disaster scenario either. He zeros in on the heart of prophecy, mysticism and madness. He looks at religion.

It is the Jewish prophecy that brings with it the greatest potential for self-fulfillment and the greatest potential for the destruction of mankind. The U.S. government seems to be a willing accomplice in bringing Rabbi Yitzhak Kaduri's vision into focus. The bombing of Afganistan began after sundown on October 13, 2001.

"The Gog and Magog conflict is prophesied to last for seven years at which time, autumn 2008, a major revelation concerning Mashiach (Messiah) will be made." (See page 195)

Apocalypse 2012 is a measured, sometimes amusing, well-written adventure into the world of potential disasters. The author does wobble a bit at the end. He apparently felt compelled to offer some type of direction or comfort to his readers. There is none. More to the point, once you accept that a disaster will occur without knowing its source, you can't do anything more than live your life for the moment, the best way you know how.

Lawrence E. Joseph can be forgiven for wobbling. After all, the entire earth wobbles in its rotation. The last wobble resulted in a disruption of energy streaming from the Milky Way, 26,000 years ago. The next disruption is expected to occur on 12/21/2012 at 11:11 pm Universal Time. (See page 33)

If this is science I am Superman.......2007-09-25

This book is a tour through some of the cutting edge research in; volcanology, geology, astronomy as viewed by some controversial figures in those fields. Mostly a non-scientific look into the fringe elements surrounding 2012, the end of the Mayan Long Count. The book dissapoints on two counts; it promises to add some insight into the 2012 popular discourse, and it claims to be a scientific investigation. Unfortunately it does neither, as it adds nothing new to the understanding of 2012, the Maya or the Mayan Calendar, and it fails miserably to explain any valid scientific research. But It does expound profusely on controversial research without ever presenting it in a scientific manner. In the growing universe of popular culture 2012 literature, this book sits at the bottom of the pile.

Not Proof, But Good Science.......2007-09-17

This book is not centered on Mayan calendar analysis, but rather on science. And it doesn't prove any date or time but does point in a very substantial way the ideas of a possible catastrophe. It relates to the recent (within 10 years, especially in 2003) solar flares on the Sun and subsequent earth storms and how they very much interact with each other. The Sun storms recorded are the most active in recent times possible the affects of hurricane Katrina and other Earth storms. Also, what is important is the gravitational pull, as well as the magnetic pull of the planets in our solar system, the sun affected much easier, as it being a gelatin like substance, not solid.

In addition, the entire solar system, according to Lawrence, is moving and about to enter an interstellar energy cloud which will have a major affect on magnetic pulls, a possible pole reversal, which could result in major electrical storms and other serious consequences. This will also affect the sun and solar system. Right now they are saying that there are serious cracks in the magnetic fields and there is more to this, as well as holes in the ozone which may be the result or something more than aerosol.

There are also other things to consider, such as the Wyoming supervolcano which, if erupted, is predicted to bring a major death toll over the earth as well ash to bring on a short term (10 years) ice age, which is one way the planet earth (Gaia- the theory of the earth being a living organism, as opposed to simply rock and elements - James Lovelock) can cool itself. This also relates to the earth's nuclear core being hot, in need of cooling when it gets overheated.

There is also the idea of the glaciers melting bringing less pressure on the Teutonic plates underneath, allowing more seismic activity and earthquakes. Not sure what to make of all this, except that the solar activity, the level of volcanic activity, the melting of glaciers, the interstellar cloud, as well as other theories of the overheated earth core and the ice melting fresh water in the salt oceans, possibly shutting down the conveyor belts all come into play. Now along with this, the Mayan calendar, and global warming in general, which Al Gore states will flood the oceans 24 feet, killing untold millions in land loss, agricultural disasters and famines, which then brings on major disease in poorer countries. It leaves us a lot to think about. I will say that if this interstellar cloud has the significance they are speaking about, then the magnetic reversals have the possibility of ending life as we know it.

I'd like to believe the optimistic escapee, the doomsday, wanna be believer and magick seeking individual, hopes that there is a noosphere (the idea of a psychic collective layer part of the organism earth) and looks towards the Mayans belief, that a consciousness transformation will take place, as our bodies and brains are made up of water and electricity. Who knows? It's a mystery, but there is global warming and definite climate changes ahead.

A Logical Inquiry Into An Otherwise Hysterical Topic.......2007-09-10

This informative book is geared towards adults with an analytical bent, who wish to enter into an objective inquiry into the various predictions and talk of future catastrophe associated with the year 2012. The author succeeds in exploring these matters from an objective, non-judgmental point of view. His artful use of humor throughout the book serves to lighten the mood of an otherwise morbid and bleak subject.

The discussion draws from diverse sources of knowledge including several branches of the physical sciences, metaphysics, and a wide variety of religious points of view, in order to offer a well-rounded survey of the subject at hand. The book includes an extensive bibliography showing the vast wealth of information the author consulted. Indeed, it would seem that he left no stone unturned. The author successfully guides the reader through a systematic and logical thinking process about such matters, thereby dispelling the hype and hysteria, which so commonly follow topics of this type.

Overall, I found this book to be a well-balanced and logical overview of the issues now facing humanity regarding what the near future may have in store for us. We tend to think that the world will go on just as it always has, and so the exploration of these topics makes us stop and consider that we may not be as invulnerable as we think we are. We all take events like the Sun rising and setting on schedule, the regular turning of the seasons, and the rising and falling of the tides, for granted. This book refocuses the lens, so to speak, to show that in the whole of the Earth's history, things have not always been stable and constant; but that the Earth has, in fact, gone through many great cataclysms throughout its history. What would make us immune to experiencing one such event, or events, of great upheaval and change?

If for nothing else, exploring these ideas is a great opportunity to do a personal survey of why we are here, living on this little planet, within the vast universe; and what our personal purpose for living might be. It is also an opportunity to pause and realize just how fragile life is, and really take to heart the need to make the most of what we have, and to protect the resources that God, through nature, graciously provide for us.

Projection and Make-belief.......2007-09-06

Remember Y2K? So much nonsense perpetuated by paranoid folks trying to impose their ungrounded fears onto others. We create our future. 2012 may be a self-fulfilling prophecy. In this new millennium it may be wise to step beyond superstition and stop being victims. Gaia is overpopulated and raped of its resources. What really needs to happen is collaboration and cooperation beyond the holy dollar - businesses changing their profit models away from growth only. And people honoring the planet beyond a blind consumerist and throw away culture. Rome's teachings waiting to be implemented globally...

Nature's Open Secret : Introductions to Goethe's Scientific Writings (Classics in Anthroposophy)

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Get to know your neighborhood

Nature's Open Secret : Introductions to Goethe's Scientific Writings (Classics in Anthroposophy)
Rudolf Steiner , and Johann Wolfgang Von Goethe
Manufacturer: Steiner Books
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

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ASIN: 0880103930

Book Description

The holistic paradigm, Gaia, deep ecology, new alchemy, all have a hidden ancestor: Johann Wolfgang von Goethe (1749-1832). At the young age of twenty-one, Rudolf Steiner was chosen to edit Goethe's scientific writings for a new collection of Goethe's complete works. Goethe's literary genius was already universally acknowledged; it was Steiner's task to understand and comment on Goethe's unique scientific achievement. Rudolf Steiner recognized the compelling power of Goethe's work with nature and developed Goethe's theory of knowledge in remarkable and far-reaching ways. Here, in fact, began Steiner's own training in epistemology and spiritual science.

Natural science had created a powerful tool for understanding the inorganic world, but failed to comprehend the phenomenon of life. Goethe discovered how thinking could be applied to organic nature, and he understood that this experience requires not just rational concepts but a whole new way of perceiving. This volume, Steiner's introduction to Goethe, is nothing less than a re-visioning of what it means to know the world.

In an age when science and technology have been linked to great catastrophes, many are seeking a different way to address nature. With a fundamental declaration of the interpenetration of our consciousness and the world, Rudolf Steiner shows in Nature's Open Secret how Goethe's approach points the way to a more compassionate, intimate involvement with nature.

Customer Reviews:

Get to know your neighborhood.......2007-02-20

Read with slow intent, Nature's Open Secret leads the reader into the world with the sincere reverence of a poet's gaze. What is openned up to the reader is the living ideas, the source of one's joy in the beauty, behind what the senses tell one of nature. One can begin to approach plants, animals and other phenomena of nature personally, with the entire self, rather than by the detatched way of a disective thinking.

History: Fiction or Science? Chronology 2 (Chronology)

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Check and see
Suprise! Suprise!
Prescient St Augustine?
Something of a disappointment
Romulus courts Helen, Paris founds Rome, Moses goes to Troy..

History: Fiction or Science? Chronology 2 (Chronology)
Anatoly T Fomenko
Manufacturer: Delamere Resources LLC
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

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ASIN: 2913621066

Product Description

`History: Fiction or Science? Chronology 2` is the second volume of the most explosive and astounding tractate on history ever written - however, every theory it contains, no matter how unorthodox, is backed by rock solid scientific data. The book is easy and pleasant to read; it is well-illustrated, contains hundreds of charts, graphs and illustrations, copies of ancient manuscripts, and countless facts attesting to the falsity of the chronology used nowadays. You will be amazed to discover: - That the chronology universally accepted today and taken for granted is simply wrong; - That ALL methods of dating of ancient sources and artefacts known today are erroneous or non-exact; - That there is not a single document that could be reliably dated earlier than the XIth century; The Author refers to the Middle Ages as the Antiquity and proves mutual superimposition of the Second and the Third Roman Empire, both of which become identified as the respective kingdoms of Israel and Judah. Furthermore, he asserts that the famous reform of the Occidental Church in the XI century by Pope Gregory Hildebrand was the reflection of the XII century reforms of Byzantine emperor Andronicus who in his turn identifies with Jesus Christ. The Trojan war counted by Homer happened only as late as of the XIII century A.D. and the great poet actually lived in XIV century A.D. No stone in history of Antiquity is left unturned. Literally. This book is the beginning of a major correction to the chronology we live with.

Customer Reviews:

Check and see.......2007-06-21

I don't care what other people say of this book. Those affirmig it's fake, they hadn't ever read it. Or have some special reasons to do so. "Living is easy with eyes closed, misunderstanding all you see..." This book won't make you feel comfortable. It'll make you feel free. It'll make you feel you're "not the only one" to feel you'd been lied to for centuries.

Suprise! Suprise!.......2007-03-22

Here is a serie of books which turns "the whole world" upside down. I learned a lot of it and I hope that a new book from A.T. Fomenko will follow very quick. A absolute must for everybody who is interested in history or even a little bit from it.

Prescient St Augustine?.......2006-02-05

We can so far divide the New Chronology into the following three parts:

a) The verifiable theory that proves consensual chronology wrong with the aid of astronomy, statistics and mathematics;

b) The new chronology hypothesis based on a new understanding of known historical facts and the most likely logical explanation of the most obvious inconsistencies inherent in the official version of history;

c) The history conjectures, that is experimental historical reconstructions based on assumptions that the authors believe to make sense in the light of their research and linguistic parallels - void of ironclad factual support to date.

Fomenko's theory complies with the most rigid scientific standards as a whole:

It gives a coherent explanation of what we already know.

- It is consistent: independent lines of inquiry all lead to the same conclusion.

- The predictions it makes are confirmed empirically.

Fomenko goes by the following axioms:

- Chronology is the basis of history;

- Human evolution has always been linear, gradual and irreversible;

- The "cyclic" nature of human civilization is a myth, likewise all the gaps, duplicates, "dark ages" and "renaissances" that we know from consensual history;

- The accumulation of geographical knowledge as reflected in cartography is a gradual and irreversible process;

- The chronological distance between a given manuscript and the events described therein is proportional to the amount of distortions it contains;

- There is no "useless" information in authentic ancient sources.

Why the mainstream historians do not shower mathematician Academician Dr.Prof Fomenko with thanks and laurels?

The Russians:

Because Fomenko asserts that there was no such thing as the Tartar and Mongol invasion followed by three centuries of slavery, providing a formidable body of documental evidence to prove his assertion. The so-called "Tartars and Mongols" were the actual ancestors of the modern Russians, living in a bilingual state with Arabic spoken as freely as Russian. The ancient Russian state was governed by a double structure of civil and military authorities. The hordes were actually professional armies with a tradition of lifelong conscription (the recruitment being the so-called "blood tax"). Their "invasions" were punitive operations against the regions that attempted tax evasion. Fomenko proves that Russian history as we know it today is a blatant forgery concocted by a host of German scientists brought to Russia by the usurper dynasty of the Romanovs, whose ascension to the throne was the result of coup d'état, charged with the mission of making their reign look legitimate. Fomenko proves Ivan the Terrible to be a collation of four rulers, no less. They represented the two rival dynasties - the legitimate rulers and the ambitious upstarts. The winner took it all! Over some 30 years of controversy, Russian historians have made a most remarkable transition - they were initially accusing the young mathematician Fomenko of anticommunist dissident activity and attempts to deface the historical legacy of Soviet Russia; nowadays the middle-aged mathematician is accused of adhering to "pro-communist Russian nationalism" and defacing the proud historical legacy of Great Russia.

The Westerners:

Because Fomenko blows consensual Russian history to smithereens, successfully removing a crucial cornerstone from underneath the otherwise impeccable edifice of World History. Fomenko adds insult to injury, wiping out one by one the Ancient Rome (the foundation of Rome in Italy is dated to the XIV century A. D.), the Ancient Greece and its numerous poleis, which he identifies as the mediaeval crusader settlements on the territory of Greece, and the Ancient Egypt (the pyramids of Giza become dated to the XI-XV century A. D. and identified as the royal cemetery of the Global "Mongolian" Empire, no less). The civilization of the Ancient Egypt is irrefutably dated to the XII-XV century A. D. with the aid of the ancient Egyptian horoscopes cut in stone. He was the first one to decipher and date all such horoscopes, coming up with mediaeval dates in every case. English historians rage at the suggestion that the history of Ancient England was de facto a Byzantine import transplanted to the English soil by the fugitive Byzantine nobility. To reward the English historians who consider themselves the true scribes of World History, the cover of the present book portrays Tintoretto's Jesus Christ crucified on the Big Ben.

The Chinese:

Because Fomenko wipes out the Ancient History of China outright. No such thing. Full point. The compilation of the so-called Ancient Chinese History is reliably datable to the XVII-XVIII century only. It is perfectly recognizable as the Ancient European history, reworked and transcribed in hieroglyphs as yet another historical transplantation, this time performed on the Chinese soil by the loving Jesuit hands. The Chinese are the next in line to go berserk. Chinese history is inevitably bound to get both more ancient and more eventful, proportionally to the growing involvement of China in the world affairs. Chinese historians will keep on finding valid proof of prehistoric Chinese spaceflights until the Politburo orders them to shut up.

The Arabs:

Too bad. Islam with all its key figures is datable to XV-XVI century A. D. Arabic historians may find consolation in the crucial historical role of the Ottoman Empire in the XVI-XVII century. The trouble is that this empire was initially a Christian state, with Hagia Sophia identifiable as Temple of Solomon, according to Fomenko! We can only guess if the acquisition of Alexander the Great (a Macedonian and a Christian) as the founder of the Muslim World Empire will make Fomenko's theories more acceptable to the Arabic mainstream. He certainly does not spare any holy cows at all, claiming The Stone of Qa'Aba in Mecca to contain the lost Arch of the Covenant.

The Divinity:

Despite of reiterated statement that his theory is all about chronology and not Religion, Fomenko stirs up a whole condominium of wasp nests. His collection of anathemas, fatwa, and other condemnations from all parties concerned is already considerable. Little wonder, considering that the history of religions à la Fomenko looks as follows: the pre-Christian period (before the XI century and JC), Bacchic Christianity (XI-XII century, before and after JC), JC Christianity (XII-XVI century) and its subsequent mutations into Orthodox Christianity, the Catholicism, Islam, Buddhism, and so on.

According to Fomenko we know strictly NOTHING about the events that predate the X century A. D.

St Augustin was prescient when he spoke unto us: "be wary of mathematicians, particularly when they speak the truth."

Something of a disappointment.......2005-09-09

After having read the first volume of this expected series of 7 volumes I was triggered by the thesis of these authors that ancient Greek and Roman history did in fact take place in the Middle Ages. So I started studying medieval history of the Middle East - also known as Islamic history - to find out if the opponents of the ancient Greeks and Romans - the Acheamenid Persians, Sassanids, Scythians, Egyptians, etc. - also have their duplicates in medieval history. My search was disappointing: none of the many medieval Islamic dynasties seemed to correspond to the ancient middle eastern rulers.

However, I did find a close correspondence between Herodotus' Persian kings and medieval events:

- the defeat and capture of an Anatolian king - the Lydian Croesus - by the Persian conqueror Cyrus is identical to the defeat and capture of another Anatolian king - sultan Bayezid - by the Asian/Mongol conqueror Tamerlane;
- the Persian conquest of Egypt by the cruel tyrant Cambyses reds almost exactly as the Ottoman conquest of Egypt by Selim the Grim (note the nickname!);
- Darius the Lawgiver of the Persian Empire looks very much alike to Sulayman the Magnificent, the Lawgiver in Islamic history;
- Xerxes, whose main claim to fame is to be defeated by the Greeks at the naval battle of Salamis, looks like Selim II (the Sot) whose main claim to fame is to be defeated by a Spanish-Italian alliance at the naval battle of Lepanto.

I should have expected Fomenko et al. to arrive at similar conclusions, however, they claim that the Persian kings are the alter egos of the Angevin kings of Sicily whose biographies do not contain the exploits of the Persian kings.

The similiarities I indicate lead to the conclusion that Herodotus must have written his Histories at the close of the 16th century. But this is extremely late, given that Herodotus is "the Father of History", so therefore all other "ancient" histories must have been fabricated even later. Yet, the founders of modern chronology - Scaliger and Petavius - laid their foundations also at the close of the 16th century and had the full corpus of ancient histories already at their disposal.

It seems to me that Fomenko has to address these inconsistencies, maybe in the forthcoming 5 volumes?

Another critique of their book is that the correspondencies between different rulers are often based on a superficial comparison of the biographies; upon a more thorough comparison many details appear that do not correspond at all.

Finally, the authors rely heavily on the works of Gregorovius (1821-1891!!) - his medieval histories of Rome and Athens - as the source of medieval history; these works are - at least in the West - hoplessly outdated and have been superceded by more up-to-date works (for instance, Julius Norwich's trilogy on Byzantine history is not even cited).

Romulus courts Helen, Paris founds Rome, Moses goes to Troy.........2005-07-30

If you agree with Fomenko that Roman chronology is basically the foundation of the entire edifice of global chronology; you would also certainly agree that despite its numerous gaps and inconsistencies, Roman history is the best-documented field of ancient history, and thus a reference scale. But how well is the actual date of the Eternal City's foundation known?

Firstly, Rome is supposed to have been founded by the Trojans who had to flee after the fall of Troy. Some claim Rome to have been founded by Aeneas and Ulysses shortly after Troy had fallen; others are of the opinion that there was an entire dynasty that ruled for 500 years between the fall of Troy and the foundation of Rome.

Well, that's just an innocent 500 years long misunderstanding compared with what heretic Fomenko says, asserts, proves in his second volume: Second Roman Empire, Third Roman Empire, Biblical Kingdom of Israel, Biblical Kingdom of Judah, Holy Roman Empire are stories about basically same events, written from different points of view at different times. The underlying events have actually taken place during xii-xv cy. These histories have been written and perfected by multitude of highly talented humanist and clerical writers of xiii-xvi cy disguised as "ancients" with glorious names like Homer, Pluto, Thucydides etc..Chronology 2.0 beta..

Historians are kindly invited to report the bugs.

Introducing Students to Scientific Inquiry: How Do We Know What We Know?

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Introducing Students to Scientific Inquiry: How Do We Know What We Know?
Susan Etheredge , and Al Rudnitsky
Manufacturer: Allyn & Bacon
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Geology: A Self-Teaching Guide

ASIN: 0205348122

Scientific Visualization: The Visual Extraction of Knowledge from Data (Mathematics and Visualization)

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many neat display ideas

Scientific Visualization: The Visual Extraction of Knowledge from Data (Mathematics and Visualization)
Bonneau
Manufacturer: Springer
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ASIN: 3540260668

Book Description

One of the greatest scientific challenges of the 21 ^st century is how to master, organize and extract useful knowledge from the overwhelming flow of information made available by todayâ€™s data acquisition systems and computing resources. Visualization is the premium means of taking up this challenge. This book is based on selected lectures given by leading experts in scientific visualization during a workshop held at Schloss Dagstuhl, Germany. Topics include user issues in visualization, large data visualization, unstructured mesh processing for visualization, volumetric visualization, flow visualization, medical visualization and visualization systems. The book contains more than 350 color illustrations.

Customer Reviews:

many neat display ideas.......2006-07-28

The many colour illustrations in the book are one of its neatest features. They help greatly in conveying what can be done with good visualisation ideas.

You might usefully combine reading this book with another recent text from Springer - "Visualising the Semantic Web" by Geroimenko and Chen. The latter book has more emphasis on XML encoded data that is geared towards the Semantic Web. Whereas this book takes a more general approach towards the data being researched. But the combination of both books may give insight into your visualisation issues.

The book covers a wide range of subjects. One section deals with volume visualisation in the medical field. Typically, there is medical data that comes from or maps to a 3 dimensional volume inside a body. How then to usefully display this?

While another section involves displaying vector fields. There is even a chapter delving into grid computing and how to handle the massive amounts of data generated.

The Riddle of the Compass: The Invention That Changed the World

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I'm a bit disappointed
Fascinating Tale of Discovery & Use of the Compass
Interesting but Left Some Explanations Open
Amateurish and poorly researched.
The Invention with a Mysterious Past that Changed the World

The Riddle of the Compass: The Invention That Changed the World
Amir D. Aczel
Manufacturer: Harcourt
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

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ASIN: 0151005060

Book Description

Sometimes it pays to be in the right place at the right time. Certainly the mariners in Amalfi in the twelfth century were. Here the compass was first invented and used in navigation, eventually helping to make Italians the world's greatest sailors.
But the story of the compass is shrouded in mystery and myth. It begins in ancient China around the birth of Christ. A mysterious lodestone whose powers affected metal was known to the Emperor. This piece of metal suspended in water always pointed north and was put to excellent use in feng shui, the Chinese art of finding the right location. However, it was the Italians who unleashed the compass's formidable powers on ships at sea.

Throughout the ancient world, sailors navigated by wind, and stars, and the routes of migrating birds, but bad weather and winter storms impeded their travels. When the compass migrated to Italy, the modern world began: Venice, trade with the East, the Age of Discovery. The compass made it all possible, and this is its fascinating story.

Customer Reviews:

I'm a bit disappointed.......2007-01-02

It started out strong then the author began to continuously repeat himself and the book became reminiscent of a section out a high school text book. He was very vague about most if not all his accounts of significant accomplishments through the use of the compass. When it comes down to it the book seemed a bit rushed and lacked the detail most readers would like from a book tackling such a "riddle". Overall it's a short enough read providing a few interesting points and tid-bits that may warrant your precious time.

Fascinating Tale of Discovery & Use of the Compass.......2005-04-14

The "Riddle" is well researched and written in a down to earth, flowing, enjoyable, fascinating and educational journey of discovery. Good illustrations help clarify text descriptions. To emphasize the *importance of the compass to navigation*, there is a quote from an English Augustinian monk, Alexander Neckam (1157-1217) from his book, `De Naturis Rerun':

"The sailors, moreover, as they sail over the sea, when in cloudy weather they can no longer profit by the light of the sun, or when the world is wrapped in the darkness of the shades of night, and they are ignorant to what point of the compass their ship's course is directed, they touch the magnet with a needle. This then whirls round in a circle until, when its motion ceases, its point looks direct to the north." (p 30-31)

Aczel opens the story of the "Riddle" by first relating his childhood memories of growing up on a passenger ship in the Mediterranean where learned how to navigate from his father, the ship's captain. "As the years went by, I developed a feel for the compass and the wheel" (p 2)

This gives him a unique perspective in tracing the origins of the compass and the discovery of magnetism and it's application to the navigational compass. So years later, when he set sail on the journey to find the origins of the compass, he was first directed to Amalfi, Italy where the first European invention of the compass was supposedly credited to a man named Flavio Gioia in 1302. Although the city of Amalfi boasts of the discovery of the compass with statues and the like, it doesn't take long to find serious flaws in this legend and the unfolding of that story makes for a fascinating tale in itself.

The true history of magnetism and the compass is presented in a fascinating overview that also includes the historical use of the stars, reading of ocean currents, weather and migrating birds that helped early mariners in navigation over the centuries.

The Chinese are credited by most historians as being the discoverors of magnetism and this possibly as far back as 1000 BC. They found that magnetic lodestone had an effect on metal and when a piece of spoon-shaped metal was magnetised by it and then placed in water, it always pointed South. Initially, this discovery was used for divination and land coordinates, but eventually was adapted to sailing for navigation.

From the ancient Chinese, Phoenicians, Greeks, Romans, Europeans to the modern times, the story of the compass and so much more is thoroughly covered. This is an excellent read!

As a companion to Aczel's fine book and for more compass info, I also recommend "The Compass" by Paula Z. Hogan, 1980. Although written for children, it is informative and suitable for all ages and backgrounds and in 60 pages, packs more compass facts than any other book I have seen.

Interesting but Left Some Explanations Open.......2004-11-03

The topic was certainly interesting, but the device is so simple that it's a little difficult to go much deeper than the author did. He certainly cites enough documents, but, not too unexpectedly, they seem to talk to human events rather than of anything technical. It's good to know about how the sixteen points came about, but he offered no explanation about what I consider the somewhat bizarre naming of the points. Maybe I'm missing something, but is the scheme for name ordering the points between, say, N and E, the same as from, say, E to S?

The section of Flavio Gioia left me almost as confused about the supposed inventor of the 'modern' (1302?!!) compass as the Italians who erected a statue in 1902 to this apparently fictional character. The name Gioia appears from nowhere.

I would like to have more detail about how early navigators actually did some of their navigation, but what he did supply was still interesting. Not too long ago I was in the Maritime Museum in Greenwich, and saw some interesting devices the Scandinavians used. Unfortunately, a huge crowd of students made it difficult to really figure out and even see what the exhibit had to offer. It would have been good to see the detail offered there expressed in such a book as this.

I found a section near the very end of the book a little puzzling. He talks about how the Chinese were very secretive about their discoveries, and mentions they had a cure for malaria for some two centuries. Only recently has it become known to the West. It's based on a herb that's not only found in China but in N. America. He never mentions what it is! This is somehow how I felt about the book. It seemed to leave the door open for other answers to items discussed in the book.

Amateurish and poorly researched........2004-09-01

I'll put it simply: this is a poor history of the compass. For almost ten years, publishers have been throwing money at anyone who might attempt to repeat the success of Dava Sobel's 'Longitude', and here we see the worst outcome of that lust for success. This book is worthless.

The Invention with a Mysterious Past that Changed the World.......2004-08-25

+++++

The author, Amir Aczel states, "This book explores the series of riddles that make up the story of the [magnetic] compass--the mysteries of the invention that changed navigation, commerce, and the world economy."

Some riddles or questions discussed are as follows:

(1) Who or what group of people are thought to have invented the magnetic compass?
(2) How did people discover that a magnetic needle, suspended in air or water, could be used to indicate the north?
(3) What year is it thought that the magnetic compass was invented?
(4) Was the compass developed independently in two or more different countries?
(5) Where did what we now call compass directions (north, south, east, and west) originate?
(6) Where was the compass perfected so it could be adapted for navigation?
(7) How did mariners learn to use the compass directions of riddle (5) above?
(8) How did sailors navigate the seas before the advent of the compass?
(9) How did sailors begin to use the compass for navigation?
(10) What was the immediate consequence of the invention of the compass for navigation?

This book composed of twelve chapters can be roughly divided into three parts:

1. This part consists of chapters one to seven. It is here that the possible answers to the riddles of the compass are explored.
2. The next part consists of chapters eight to eleven. It attempts to answer the riddle of how the compass became known throughout the world. Here, the "Great Age of Exploration" is examined where "Columbus, da Gama, Magellan, [Cook], and other Spanish and Portuguese navigators conquered the oceans."
3. The last part consists of chapter twelve. It states the author's conclusions and summarizes chapters one to eleven.

This book is very easy to read and thus is a fast read. There are illustrations throughout it. Personally, I learned a lot from this slim book.

People who like concrete answers will probably not enjoy this book. Why? Because much about the compass is unknown and "shrouded in mystery." Thus, what Aczel has done is gather the best evidence he could from "books, manuscripts, and pamphlets of specialized academic circulation" some of which were written "hundreds of years ago" and "often written in Italian, French, or German" (of which he had to translate). From this mass of material, he drew certain inferences and conclusions.

The author briefly mentions the navigational chronometer and refers the reader to the excellent book by Dava Sobel entitled "Longitude" (1995). Interested readers may also want to check out the book entitled "The Illustrated Longitude" (1998).

Finally, there were a few problems I had with this book:

1. The book's title. Some readers may try to look for a single riddle. This book is not about a riddle but about a series of riddles or better still, mysteries. Thus, a better title might be "The Riddles of the Compass" or "The Mysteries of the Compass."

2. The author includes a diagram that has the caption "How the magnetic compass works." Actually, what is depicted is the Earth's magnetic lines of force. The author explains that the Earth's magnetic poles have a different location than its geographical poles. Yet, the diagram shows the magnetic lines of force running from the Earth's geographic North Pole to its geographic South Pole. Why?

3. There is a chapter on Marco Polo and his navigational journeys. The author states that Polo said nothing about the compass in his writings. Thus, I could not understand why this chapter was included.

4. The author tells us that he did not list all his footnote sources. In a work of this nature, I felt he should of (even though there was a "large number of sources used and...these materials are not accessible to most readers").

In conclusion, this is a good, solid, concise story about the compass. Once you read this book, you will agree with the author when he says that the compass is "the invention that changed the world."

(first published 2001; preface; 12 chapters; main narrative 160 pages; illustrated; references; acknowledgements; index)

+++++

Conjeturas Y Refutaciones/ Conjectures and Refutations: El Desarrollo Del Conocimiento Cientifico/ the Growth of Scientific Knowledge (Paidos Basica / Basic Paidos)

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Conjeturas Y Refutaciones/ Conjectures and Refutations: El Desarrollo Del Conocimiento Cientifico/ the Growth of Scientific Knowledge (Paidos Basica / Basic Paidos)
Karl Raimund Popper
Manufacturer: Ediciones Paidos Iberica
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

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Leplin's labyrinth

A Novel Defense of Scientific Realism
Jarrett Leplin
Manufacturer: Oxford University Press, USA
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

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Scientific Realism: How Science Tracks Truth (Philosophical Issues in Science)

ASIN: 0195113632

Book Description

Vigorous and controversial, this book develops a sustained argument for a realist interpretation of science, based on a new analysis of the concept of predictive novelty. Identifying a form of success achieved in science--the successful prediction of novel empirical results--which can be explained only by attributing some measure of truth to the theories that yield it, Jarrett Leplin demonstrates the incapacity of nonrealist accounts to accommodate novel success and constructs a deft realist explanation of novelty. To test the applicability of novel success as a standard of warrant for theories, Leplin examines current directions in theoretical physics, fashioning a powerful critique of currently developing standards of evaluation. Arguing that explanatory uniqueness warrants inference, and exposing flaws in contending philosophical positions that sever explanatory power from epistemic justification, Leplin holds that abductive, or explanatory, inference is as fundamental as enumerative or eliminative inference, and contends that neither induction nor abduction can proceed without the other on pain of generating paradoxes. Leplin's conception of novelty has two basic components: an independence condition, ensuring that a result novel for a theory have no essential role, even indirectly, in the theory's provenance; and a uniqueness condition, ensuring that no competing theory provides a basis for predicting the same result. Showing that alternative approaches to novelty fall short in both respects, Leplin proceeds to a series of test cases, engaging prominent scientific theories from nineteenth-century accounts of light to modern cosmology in an effort to demonstrate the epistemological superiority of his view. Ambitious and tightly argued, A Novel Defense of Scientific Realism advances new positions on major topics in philosophy of science and offers a version of realism as original as it is compelling, making it essential reading for philosophers of science, epistemologists, and scholars in science studies.

Customer Reviews:

Leplin's labyrinth.......2007-10-15

I distinguish realism and ontology.

Realism is the primordial acknowledgment of mind-independent reality and of the fact that reality is the object of human cognition. We are born into reality without our permission, we face its recalcitrance while we live, and it continues without our permission after we die. This acknowledgment is a universal prejudice. But since Descartes none save a few academics have seriously thought realism admits - much less needs - argument or proof.

Ontology is our characterization of reality with our language, in which we presume our prejudicial realism. The mind has an active role in the characterization process. We are more or less successful in our characterizing efforts, such that our statements are more or less realistic and thus more or less true. Ontological issues pertain to one or another of our specific theories. In the contemporary pragmatism with its thesis of ontological relativity, we let the empirical adequacy of the tested theory determine question of ontology. This also forces us to accept pluralism, in which we cannot determine for a time which of several theories is truer.

If I understand Leplin, I think we agree that statements can be more or less true. But it appears to me that he thinks he can establish realism by addressing issues of instrumentalism and ontology. I see such an effort as an inversion. Furthermore in his effort he caricatures the contemporary pragmatism.

Therefore, I see this book as basically misconceived, as a strenuous exercise in futility.

Thomas J. Hickey
History of Twentieth-Century Philosophy of Science

Distilling Knowledge: Alchemy, Chemistry, and the Scientific Revolution (New Histories of Science, Technology, and Medicine)

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the cutting edge of historical scholarship
Like a breathe of fresh air

Distilling Knowledge: Alchemy, Chemistry, and the Scientific Revolution (New Histories of Science, Technology, and Medicine)
Bruce T. Moran
Manufacturer: Harvard University Press
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

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ASIN: 0674014952

Book Description

Alchemy can't be science--common sense tells us as much. But perhaps common sense is not the best measure of what science is, or was. In this book, Bruce Moran looks past contemporary assumptions and prejudices to determine what alchemists were actually doing in the context of early modern science. Examining the ways alchemy and chemistry were studied and practiced between 1400 and 1700, he shows how these approaches influenced their respective practitioners' ideas about nature and shaped their inquiries into the workings of the natural world. His work sets up a dialogue between what historians have usually presented as separate spheres; here we see how alchemists and early chemists exchanged ideas and methods and in fact shared a territory between their two disciplines.

Distilling Knowledge suggests that scientific revolution may wear a different appearance in different cultural contexts. The metaphor of the Scientific Revolution, Moran argues, can be expanded to make sense of alchemy and other so-called pseudo-sciences--by including a new framework in which "process can count as an object, in which making leads to learning, and in which the messiness of conflict leads to discernment." Seen on its own terms, alchemy can stand within the bounds of demonstrative science.

Customer Reviews:

the cutting edge of historical scholarship.......2007-10-11

Bruce Moran is a heavy in the world of academic alchemical studies, and this book is exactly what the history of science needs--after having neglected the serious study of alchemy for too long for the wrong reasons. Of all his books, this is the best place to start for somebody with a general interest in the subject, or those who wish to better understand the true place of alchemy in the development of modern scientific method, as well as the history of chemistry. This book contains a powerful argument for the relevance of alchemy in the development of the modern conception of what scientific knowledge should be understood as consisting of, and should dispel for anyone with "eyes to see" the negative rumours about alchemy being foolish superstition. Alchemy was early modern matter theory, deeply concerned with many of the issues modern scientists can't fail to neglect. Now historians of science cannot neglect them either.

Like a breathe of fresh air.......2007-05-07

After reading several popular books on alchemy, it was a relief to find this scholarly, yet easy-to-read, history. Moran sets alchemy in context through time and shows how it fits into the scientific revolution. All the major alchemical heavies are there--including some fascinating material on Paracelsus. Also discusses such things as the evolution of the alchemy/chemistry teaching laboratory. Really a satisfying and fascinating read.

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