 | In ancient Egyptian mythology, the Hall of Ma'at, goddess of Truth and Justice, was the place where evidence was weighed and judgement reached. Here, we consider the evidence for alternative theories of history and science. |
Lost Civilizations and Pre-Columbian Contact
Methodological Problems
A Critique of Graham Hancock’s Forced Numerical Relationship between the Great Pyramid of Giza and Earth’s Dimensions – 2: Appendices
(From Part 1) APPENDIX A - RADII OF THE EARTH It is impossible to singularly describe the radius of the...
A Critique of Graham Hancock’s Forced Numerical Relationship between the Great Pyramid of Giza and Earth’s Dimensions – 1
Graham Hancock regularly draws attention to what he considers mystical relationships between the Great Pyramid of Giza and the radius,...
Counter-Knowledge: How we surrendered to Conspiracy Theories, Quack Medicine, Bogus Science and Fake History (Book Review)
Damian Thompson, pp x + 196, Atlantic Books (London), 2008 This review article first appeared in The Skeptic (UK) 21:4 (2009), 25...
Skepticism on ‘Fringe’ and ‘Mainstream’
This article first appeared in The Skeptic, Vol.20, No.2, pp 24-29. Reproduced with permission My main question here is: How...
Archaeological Fantasies: How pseudoarchaeology misrepresents the past and misleads the public
Archaeological Fantasies: How pseudoarchaeology misrepresents the past and misleads the publicEdited by Garrett G. Fagan Did aliens build the pyramids?...
Fingerprints of the Gods: A Review
Discussions in Egyptology 34, 1996, pp135 - 142 Reproduced with permission Even before we have a chance to read the...
Tracing Graham Hancock’s Shifting Cataclysm
Skeptical Inquirer , Volume 26, No.4, July/August 2002, p 45-9 Reproduced with permission By the late 1960s the theory of...
Nic Flemming’s Channel 4 Encounter
Nic Flemming has contacted me concerning Graham Hancock’s comments about his review of Flooded Kingdoms of the Ice Age, and...
The Gentle Art of Myth Management
In the introduction to the new edition of Fingerprints of the Gods (2001) Graham Hancock declares that: …the strongholds of...
Definition of Peer-Reviewed Journals: A Rebuttal to the Lunatic Fringe
A common accusation levelled at academics is that "The Establishment" (false terminology) band together with the express aim to quash...
An Analysis of the Quality of Graham Hancock’s Science
Leaving aside the fallacies already well-exposed by the other articles on this site, I would like to concentrate the reader's...
Myth of the Open Mind
Graham Hancock frequently uses the argument that the academics and scholars that oppose his theories have closed minds whereas those...
The Absence of Evidence
Recent developments have confirmed a worrying trend among the most prominent advocates of the Lost Civilisation theory towards devaluing, if...
Three Basic Principles of Archaeological Research
There appears to be confusion in the alternative camp (among both its proponents and supporters) as to how archaeology as...
Analysis of Hancock’s Position Statement on C-14
I read with interest Graham Hancock's "Position Statement on C-14 Dating," as posted to his website on March 14, 2001....
Ancient Astronauts
Von Däniken’s Chariots: A Primer in the Art of Cooked Science
Skeptical Inquirer Vol. 1, No. 1, Fall/Winter 1976, pp 58-68 Reproduced with permission I am not
Afrocentrism
LANGUAGE ON THE FRINGE 47 – Riders on recent entries and other items
This review article first appeared in: The Skeptical Intelligencer, 20:4 (2017) Reproduced with permission Review of two books by the Ethiopian...
Multiculturalism, Cult Archaeology, and Pseudoscience
From : Cult Archaeology and Creationism: Understanding Pseudoscientific Beliefs about the Past, edited by Francis B.Harrold and Raymond E.Eve, An...
Stolen Legacy (or Mythical History?) Did the Greeks Steal Philosophy from the Egyptians?
Skeptic, Vol. 2, No. 4, 1994, pp 98-103 Reproduced with permission Since its publication in 1954 Stolen Legacy, by George...
Comments on Pitfalls in Multicultural Science Education
Note: In 1996 I was a member of a Committee on Multicultural Science Education set up by the Michigan State...
Spreading Scientific Illiteracy Among Minorities – Part II: Magic Melanin
Skeptical Inquirer, Vol. 16, No. 2, Winter 1992, pp 162-166 Reproduced with permission Afrocentric beliefs include a range of tenets....
Spreading Scientific Illiteracy Among Minorities – Part I: Multicultural Pseudoscience
Skeptical Inquirer Vol. 16, No. 1, Fall 1991, pp 46-50 Reproduced with permission There is general agreement that minorities are...
Robbing Native American Cultures: Van Sertima’s Afrocentricity and the Olmecs
CA FORUM ON ANTHROPOLOGY IN PUBLIC Current Anthropology, Volume 38, Number 3, June 1997, pp 419-441 Reproduced with permission. Abstract...
Orion Correlation Theory
Longing for Leo Or: Spin the Tale on the Zodiac
An important aspect of the so-called "Orion Correlation" is that the Great Sphinx at Giza is supposedly associated with the...
Aldebaran and the Dashour Pyramids
An Argument presented by Jane B. Sellers, Author of The Death of Gods in Ancient Egypt It has taken me...
Orion and the Giza pyramids
Discussions in Egyptology 30, 1994, pp 101-114 Reproduced with permission Peter Ackroyd’s Nicholas Dyer had his own reasons when he...
Dancing with Lions
Joanne Conman’s close reading of “The Sphinx Blinks,” one of my monthly articles on astronomy and culture for Sky &...
The Orion Correlation and Air-Shaft Theories
Discussions In Egyptology 33, 1995, pp 45-56 Reproduced with permission In recent articles in this journal, a number of references...
Going Orion in a Circle (Or: The Challenging Cayce of 10,500BC)
The Rise and Fall of a Correlation The way the, so called, Orion Correlation Theory has degenerated over time is...
Astronomical Integrity at Giza
In 1999, Robert Bauval, coauthor of The Orion Mystery and The Message of the Sphinx, enlisted the astronomical support of...
The Sphinx Blinks
Sky & Telescope, March 2001.Copyright (c) 2001 by Sky Publishing Corp. Reproduced with permission. Despite the worldwide fame enjoyed by...
Pyramid Marketing Schemes
Rambling Through the Skies Sky & Telescope, February 1997.Copyright (c) 1997 by Sky Publishing Corp. Reproduced with permission. Magical incantations...
Astronomer Tony Fairall and Secret Chamber
In 1998 the South African astronomer, Professor Tony Fairall, launched a show at the Cape Town Planetarium (which he heads)...