Cross Fertilisation

Looking back at the first post, listing some of the subjects that I'll be covering here, it's clear to see that there is a lot of cross fertilisation.  Interest in one subject easily leads to an interest in another.  Just for a bit of fun, let's look at some of the links from the previous page.

The longest held interest mentioned has got to be the Moon landings.  As I mentioned yesterday, I clearly remember watching the later missions as a child. There were countless documentaries on the subject during the 1970's as I was growing up.  I especially enjoyed the film from Apollo 16 taken as they drove across the Lunar landscape in the rover.  From this it's an easy step to an interest in conspiracy theories.

One of the few things that really annoys me is the whole "the Moon landings were hoaxed" discussion.  All of the claims related to the so called hoax have been debunked time and again and yet they persist.  Even though we now have pictures from all the Apollo landings sites, taken from the Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter, as well as a range of non-NASA sources.  One of my favourites is this site which lists some of the many amateurs who followed the missions by radio and telescope.

Some Apollo-didnt-landers, especially those making money from their claims, deliberately cherry pick from the available evidence to lend weight to their opinions.  The reason it annoys me?  Firstly, it is a subject that I have spent a lot of time researching and I've seen convincing proof that the landings took place. One that springs to mind is the behaviour of the dust kicked up by the rover and astronauts.  We are all familiar with the way a dusty surface reacts when its disturbed and it is completely different to the way the Lunar dust behaves, as can be seen here, where the dust particles follow ballistic arcs which look strange because it's so different to what we see here on Earth.  The astronauts took huge risks and knew that there was a fair chance that they would not return.  To label than as cheats and liars does them a huge injustice.

Another link between interests flows indirectly from the above.  It was President Kennedy who pushed through the Apollo missions that led to the Moon landings. One of the best know areas of conspiracy theory is his assassination.  Was it the work of a lone nut, or two lone nuts if you include Oswald's killer Jack Ruby?  Or were greater forces at work?  It seems that nearly every researcher has their own theory as to what happened that day in Dallas.  It is always hard to accept that such world changing events could "simply" the result of one man's troubled mind.

The waters have been muddied further by other factors.  For example, Lee Harvey Oswald had defected to the Soviet Union and then returned to America with his Russian bride.  It should also be remembered that the assassination came hot on the heals of the Bay of Pigs and Cuban Missile Crisis at the height of the Cold War. What now seems like signs of a sinister cover-up may well have originally been attempts to avoid a nuclear holocaust and World War III.

Again, the above leads on to one of my other interests, Discordianism.  This religion (see a later entry for more details) was founded by two friends Kerry Wendell Thornley and Greg Hill.  What I didn't realise until a few years ago was that Thornley had known Lee Harvey Oswald whilst they were both Marines and he always suspected that he had been some how caught up in a conspiracy to assassinate the President.  More information on Thornleys suspicions (or paranoia) can be found here.

Such webs of Synchronicity always fascinated me and will, no doubt, feature in future posts.

The Realitorium

This blog will bring together my different interests into one place, mainly for my own reference but, if you are also reading this, welcome aboard!

The subjects covered will include (but probably not limited to):-

Reviews.  One of the things I feel lucky to be able to do is review books for the BBC Sky at Night Magazine.  An example of this can be seen online with my review of Dr. Clarke's excellent book How UFOs Conquered the World.  This blog will allow me to widen that interest by reviewing anything that takes my fancy. Should any reviews be of products supplied at either reduced or no cost, this will be made clear up front.  Unless it specifically states otherwise, you can rest assured that the things I choose to review are simply those that have prompted a strong response, either positive or negative.

The Apollo Moon Landings.  This is something that I've been interested in for as long as I can remember.  In fact, one of my earliest memories is the tension surrounding the return of the stricken Apollo 13 mission and I clearly remember following the final three missions.  More recently, I did some more in depth reading on the subject and have written a couple of articles for the BBC Sky at Night Magazine.  Starting with some of the many books on the subject, (I would recommend David Woods How Apollo Flew To The Moon as a great starting point if you are interested) I moved on to some of the excellent online resources such as the Apollo flight and surface journals that contain the complete transcripts of radio chatter between the crews and mission control.  They are fascinating reads for anyone with a serious interest in the subject. 

Philosophy.  My degree is in philosophy and my interest is still as keen as it was then.  I went to university as a mature student and graduated back in the mid 1990s.  My particular interest concerns the philosophy of mind and it has been amazing to see how the subject has gone from a purely philosophical debate to one informed by scientific investigations.  Advances in brain imaging gives us a real chance to finally unlock some of the mysteries of the mind/brain.  Science is, after all, a branch of philosophy.  My interest in philosophy also leads on to the next subject.....

Religion.  A hot topic that can cause even the closest friends to argue!  Whether one is religious or not, it effects all our lives.  From the basis of many laws and ethical points of view through the sometimes difficult relationship between science and religion to the rise of extreme viewpoints that seem to feature more in the daily news.  Once again, this interest leads on to the next....

Discordianism.  Described by some as a joke masquerading as a religion and by others as a religion masquerading as a joke.  I first came across Discordianism through the writings of Robert Anton Wilson, who also crystallised my interest in philosophy as well as introducing me to the work of The Church of the SubGenius

And finally, for now....

Conspiracy Theories.  I should, first of all, make it clear that I believe that the vastly overwhelming majority of so called conspiracy theories are complete and utter bunkum.  To return to the top of this list, there are numerous claims made about the Moon landings from being hoaxed or a cover for some covert military action to claims that the astronauts found proof that alien artifacts were discovered.  Most of these theories can be easily dismissed once you really start to research the subject.  It serves to remind me, when reading about subjects that I am less well informed about, that a little knowledge can indeed be a dangerous thing.  It's also true that some of the authors of such theories are either blinded to contradictory evidence by their desire to support a particular point of view or actively mislead their readers for either fun or profit.

Conclusion.  So, this blog will attempt to cover a fair bit of ground on a variety of topics that will usually fall into one or more of the above categories.  They may be rants, serious research, points of views or idle musings.  They will help me in keeping things in one place online and may prove to be of some use or entertainment to some people out there.  So, welcome to the Realitorium.