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NEWS October 2024
OCTOBER 2024 The recent cyber attack on the Internet Archive is deplorable and can be reasonably compared with the repeated burning of the Great Library of Alexandria. I have used the Wayback Machine extensively, but, until the full extent of the permanent damage is clear, I am unable to assess its effect on Atlantipedia. At […]Read More »
Joining The Dots
I have now published my new book, Joining The Dots, which offers a fresh look at the Atlantis mystery. I have addressed the critical questions of when, where and who, using Plato’s own words, tempered with some critical thinking and a modicum of common sense.Read More »
Bruce Masse
Geomythology *
Geomythology is a word coined by the geologist Dorothy Vitaliano in her 1973 book Legends of the Earth[306] to describe “the study of alleged references to geological events in mythology.”
Since then, the term has gradually gained widespread acceptance including an extensive entry in the Encyclopedia of Geology(a). The status of the subject has been consolidated by its inclusion as a separate course at the University of Puget Sound(b). Apart from Vitaliano other writers, such as Gerald Wells, have applied geomythology to the study of Atlantis without necessarily using the term(e). I should point out that mythology is also used to transmit details of spectacular astronomical events as well as more mundane political or military exploits.
Further support for the young discipline came with the publication of Myth and Geology by the Geological Society of London in 2007, with Luigi Piccardi & Bruce Masse as editors[1541].
Patrick Nunn, an Australian geologist, who, although an Atlantis sceptic has begun to reconsider the possibility of ancient myths containing important geological information(c). A 2017 paper by Nunn gave examples of where the application of geomythology has offered solutions to some old mysteries(g).
Also in May 2021, the BBC offered a lengthy paper, by Mark Piesing, on the development of geomythology in recent years and how it may have implications for our planet’s future(f).
>Professor Timothy John Burbery of Marshall University supports the linkage of the eruption of Thera with the Titanomachy in an August 2021 article(c). He has recently published his new book, Geomythology: How Common Stories Reflect Earth Events [1873].<
Cindy Clendenon, presumably inspired by Vitaliano, has launched a related new specialised field of study, which she has named ‘hydromythology’ in her 2009 book, Hydromythology and the Ancient Greek World [0801], a review of which is available online(d).
(a) Wayback Machine (archive.org) *
(d) https://web.archive.org/web/20190927120932/https://bmcr.brynmawr.edu/2010/2010-08-65.html
(e) https://web.archive.org/web/20160527131112/https://www.wrl-inc.org/tag/geomythology
(f) The myths that hint at past disasters – BBC Future
Holocene Impact Working Group
The Holocene Impact Working Group (HIWG)(a) was created by researchers into different aspects of geosciences, who believe that cometary impacts were more frequent during the recent past than generally accepted. It is concerned with the growing number of impact craters being discovered and the evidence of consequent mega-tsunamis. Its membership includes Mike Baillie, Richard Firestone and Bruce Masse(b).>>The Burckle Crater in the Indian Ocean is considered by some to be one such impact crater.<<
I note that the idea of such a Holocene impact is denied by some, such as Jennifer Marion who presents in a 2012 paper “arguments and evidence against the hypothesis that a large impact or airburst caused a significant abrupt climate change, extinction event, and termination of the Clovis culture at 12.9 ka. “(d)
The New York Times reviewed the work of the HIWG in 2006(c).
(a) https://planetarydefense.blogspot.com/2009/02/holocene-impact-working-group-hiwg.html
(b) https://archaeology.about.com/od/climatechange/a/masse_king.htm
(c) https://www.nytimes.com/2006/11/14/science/14WAVE.html?pagewanted=all&_r=0
(d) (99+) Arguments and Evidence Against a Younger Dryas Impact Event | Jennifer Marlon – Academia.edu