Planetary proprioception

Yesterday's post examined the fascinating subject of "proprioception," a word apparently introduced in 1906 by English neurophysiologist and Nobel laureate Charles Scott Sherrington to describe the awareness of the body's position based on the feedback mechanisms of the body, and discussed some of the implications raised by a thoughtful Radiolab program which delved into the interface between brain and body (or perhaps mind and body).

That Radiolab program was all about the sense of location conveyed by the body to the brain, and issues arising from hitches or disruptions in this sense of location and body-awareness.  After continuing to think about this concept of "proprioception," it occurs to me that it might be valuable to expand the examination a little bit and think about the idea of our awareness not simply of the location and relative motion of our own body but our awareness of our position on the earth and our awareness of the motion of the earth.

In other words, how aware are we of the giant spinning ball upon which our point of consciousness is located (in its attendant body)?  How aware are we of the direction it is spinning and the way that this motion causes the objects that we see "out the window" (the sun, moon, stars, and planets, in other words) to travel past as we spin around?  How aware are we of our location on that ball and the orientation of the ball relative to the direction we are facing at any given moment?  Do different people have different levels of this awareness?  (It seems clear that they do).  Is there an inborn or innate ability of some people to perceive these things more readily than others, or is such awareness more learned than innate?   

These all seem like interesting questions that are something of an extension of the concept of bodily proprioception elucidated by Charles Sherrington and other researchers.

We might call such awareness in different individuals "planetary proprioception."

To help focus on your own "planetary proprioception" at any given moment, it is probably best to start outdoors somewhere.  Then, you can start to imagine the earth that you are standing or sitting upon turning with you on it towards the east (knowing which way is east would certainly be part of this concept of planetary proprioception, as would knowing which way is north and west and south).  So far, that's probably pretty easy and constitutes a level of proprioception that most people have most of the time (to greater or lesser degrees at different parts of the day and to greater and lesser degrees depending on whether they are in a very familiar or a very unfamiliar location).

But to really get a good feeling for the planet that we are standing or sitting upon, it is necessary to have a bit of an idea of where we are in terms of latitude north or south of the equator, and how our location impacts our mental image of the planet that is turning in space (with us on it).  

For instance, if we are located on the equator or just five or ten degrees of latitude from the equator, then our minds can think of the fact that as we orbit the sun we are standing up almost on the same plane that the earth is orbiting upon, and thus the path that the sun takes as we spin towards the east will be nearly vertical as we spin towards it in the morning and as the western horizon rises up to obscure it in the evening.   If we are located instead near the north pole or the south pole, or just five or ten degrees of latitude from it, then our "proprioception" of the planet beneath us should be very different: we then should be able to envision ourselves spinning along a little circle that sort of "skull-caps" the globe, and if we can envision that then it will help us to understand why the apparent path of the sun through the sky looks the way it does (arcing very close to the southern horizon for a viewer at the north pole, for instance).

Much of the world's population lives in the northern hemisphere in the latitudes between the tropics and the extreme arctic, and so the sense of the position on the globe must be adjusted to an awareness that is in between the above two descriptions.  One "mental image" to help those located in the temperate latitudes of the northern hemisphere is to imagine what the earth's turning would be like if you were standing right on the equator, and what the sun, moon, stars and planets would look like, arcing across the sky, as the earth turned with you on it towards the east.  Keeping this image going in your mind, imagine turning towards the north pole and literally reaching out with both arms to grasp the north pole (if there really were a pole there) and pulling it towards you, as the earth continues to spin, until you are standing on the spinning globe about halfway between the equator and the pole.  Now keep imagining the sun, moon, stars and planets arcing through the sky, but realize that their paths will have been altered by the shift in your latitude.

Additionally, to try to get a feel for what the globe is doing with you on it, the video above might be helpful.  Although it is discussing the impact of the tragic Japan earthquake of March 11, 2011 upon the earth's axis and rotational speed, it also contains a very helpful animation of the rotating earth (especially between 0:25 and 0:45 in the video).  If you watch the spinning earth -- tilted on its axis -- and try to see the spot where you are located on the globe and focus on that spot as it spins, it can help you to imagine what the view of the heavens from that spot should look like, and thus help you to engender a greater level of this planetary proprioception.  

For instance, if you are located somewhere on North America, you can closely watch as North America spins around, focusing on one point on North America rather than just watching the whole globe spinning.  You might even "pause" the video at about 0:28 and then think carefully about what a person on a specific point on North America should see the sun do each day, based on the angle of the axis and the rotation of the earth.  Then, press "play" again and keep thinking about it.

Another helpful tool to help develop increased planetary proprioception are the diagrams and discussion in previous blog posts about the Polynesian Voyaging Society (especially this post).   The incredible navigation accomplished by the wayfinders of the Polynesian Voyaging Society is done without modern instrumentation -- meaning that it is done by maintaining constant and very accurate "planet proprioception," based upon knowledge of the angle that the sun and stars should be rising out of the ocean and the point at which they should be rising out of the ocean based on where the ship and the wayfinder are located at any given moment.

The PVS has an excellent discussion of the motions of the heavens here, complete with circles that show the paths traced out by the stars each night, and the angles those circles would have at various latitudes where the PVS voyages.  If you can go outside and envision these circles in the sky (you can do it during the day or the night, although it might actually be easier to do at night), then this can aid you in envisioning the turning planet beneath your feet.  

If you think of the circle centered around Polaris (for those in the northern hemisphere) and then think of the arc traced out by stars further and further from Polaris (such as the arc traced out by the stars of the Scorpion, far to the south), then you can envision your latitude on the rotating, tilted planet and envision in your mind the reason that the circles are tilted the way they are tilted for an observer where you are.  From there, you can envision in your mind the rest of the spherical globe that you are standing on as it rotates towards the east.  Bingo!  Enhanced planetary proprioception!

Once you start thinking this way, you can practice focusing on your planetary proprioception at various times as you go about your daily (and nightly) activities.  It may help to enhance your awareness of the globe you are spinning upon, and eventually it may even expand your consciousness.  Perhaps analysts will do some study in the future to see how much expanded planetary proprioception can be achieved using various techniques, and whether there are any positive benefits to expanding one's awareness of the position and motion of the planet.

It may be advisable to exercise caution if you focus on the motion of the planet too intently while you are driving or operating heavy machinery. 

For more discussion of the impact of the Japan earthquake on the earth's rotational speed etc., see this previous post.

The body and the mind

Special thanks to TRB in California, who used the Mathisen Corollary Facebook page to suggest that the above episode of Radiolab -- entitled "Where am I?" -- would resonate strongly with some of the recent posts on the question of consciousness.

Radiolab showcases the curious minds and creative talents of Jad Abumrad and Robert Krulwich and a team of researchers and writers who orchestrate journalistic pieces of art exploring the "blur between science, philosophy, and human experience," accompanied by rich layers of sound effects and rapidly juxtaposed segments of interviews and other footage.

In the program above, the team examines a range of fascinating and unsettling aspects of the relationship between "the brain and the body," and the disorienting effect of disruptions in that relationship, which most of us take for granted.  

The show visits with various guests including doctors exploring the phenomenon of brains which still feel limbs that have been amputated ("phantom limbs"), an individual working to overcome a devastating loss of his proprioception, and military jet pilots and researchers who have been studying the incidence of out-of-body experience triggered when severe G-forces cause the blood to drain from the head and send the brain into altered states.

All of the segments resonate with the question of consciousness and the way in which the body influences what we might call "the mind" (rather than "the brain," as the show insists on doing, positing a distinction between "the brain and the body" when in fact the brain is probably more accurately described as part of the body, and the distinction being explored perhaps more precisely seen as that between body and mind, or even body and consciousness).

Most pertinent to previous posts on this blog, perhaps, is the last segment of the show, discussing out-of-body experiences described by pilots during actual high-G maneuvers and also during centrifuge training (including centrifuge training specifically designed to explore this phenomenon).  That segment begins at about the 44:20 mark in the above audio file, and you can also follow a link to that specific segment of the interview here.  

The descriptions of hallucinations and out-of-body experiences when the centrifuge causes the blood to "drain out of the head" definitely recalls the discussion of "One of the most famous NDEs ever," in which Pam Reynolds had to undergo a harrowing surgery known as a "standstill operation" in which her body temperature was deliberately lowered to 60 degrees Fahrenheit and her heart was arrested with injections of potassium chloride, and then "the head of the operating table was tilted up, the cardiopulminary bypass machine was turned off, and the blood was drained from Pam's body like oil from a car."

The interviews in the Radiolab show suggest that "out-of-body experiences" (perhaps including the one described by Pam Reynolds after that successful operation in 1991) might be caused by the disoriented brain's perception of the body's lack of responsiveness, which the mind then fills in with its "best guess" of what might be going on.  

For example, one centrifuge participant subjected to massive G-forces began to black out, and his limbs were thrashing around.  When he revived, he described an experience in which he had thought he was bass fishing on a lake -- perhaps because his brain perceived the unfamiliar flailing motion of his arms and his mind took that cue to assume it was receiving the stimuli associated with the familiar activity of fishing, which it "dreamed about" as consciousness flickered off and on.  Another centrifuge subject interpreted similar limb motions to the activity of shopping in a grocery store and reaching for tubs of ice cream in the dessert aisle, only to find that it was impossible to make his arms retrieve the ice cream (a scenario reminiscent of the sort of thing that happens in dreams sometimes as well).

In his excellent book Science and the Near-Death Experience, reviewed in this previous blog post, Chris Carter spends some time examining explanations of this sort for the phenomenon of near-death experiences, and presents some analysis suggesting that the classic near-death experience (as well as the slightly different phenomenon of the deathbed vision) probably involves something more than what is taking place in the two centrifuge examples above.

All of these examples, however, provide some valuable windows into the question of consciousness, and how it is related to the physical bodies that we inhabit, and whether it is in fact "manufactured" or "generated" by the physical material of the body (and in particular the brain) or whether it involves something more than that.  

The same Chris Carter wrote a very interesting essay on this topic entitled "Does Consciousness Depend on the Brain?" which was mentioned in the previous post on "Titanic, premonitions, and the nature of consciousness."  In that essay (and in the book linked above as well), he explores the difficulty of scientifically explaining how something called "consciousness" could be generated by the physical matter of the brain, and likewise how our mind's desire to move the body is actually translated into brain impulses that then send orders to the nerves that trigger the muscles in the desired body parts.  Scientists can study the way the brain generates those impulses, but the much more difficult question is how our mind, our consciousness, our volition if you will, get transmitted to the brain to start those chemical and neural processes in the physical world.

On page 7 of the above essay, for instance, he writes:

Strictly speaking, the most we can ever observe is concomitant variation between states of the brain and states of mind – when brain activity changes in a certain way, then consciousness changes also. The hypothesis of production, or of transmission, is something that we add to the observations of concomitant variation in order to account for it. A scientist never observes states of the brain producing states of consciousness. Indeed, it is not even clear what we could possibly mean by observing such production. 

The Radiolab piece also explores the question of how the brain makes sense of all the orders sent and reports received to and from the various parts of the body, but since it does not really distinguish between the mind and the brain, it does not explore the question of how the thoughts we have in our mind or our consciousness (our "disembodied" thought) translate into those physical and chemical orders.  Perhaps this is because its angle on the issue tends towards the position that those "thoughts" or the "mind" itself are not in any way separate from the physical matter of the brain, although as Chris Carter's essay (and his books) point out, this question is still very much open to debate (and the evidence may in fact favor the conclusion that the mind is not simply a product of the physical matter of the brain).

All of these issues seem to be very important ones, and worth a lot of contemplation by everyone possessed of a body and a mind.  There can be no doubt that the experience of inhabiting a body has a profound impact our "mind" -- and that the interaction between the body and the mind is extremely complex and fraught with potential disorientations, as the Radiolab examination so brilliantly illustrates.  

Perhaps it is appropriate to close with the fascinating quotation from Ross Hamilton in his book Mystery of the Serpent Mound (quoted previously in this blog post about the hexagon on Saturn), in which he gives his own view of the matter at hand:

each and every individual spirit owns a "mass" which, united with its native homeland, essentially becomes the spherical shape.  In the body, however, the spiritual currents of the little soul become plastic in order to fit the mold of the human being by way of the nerve fibers.  At the time of death or initiation at the hands of a competent Mastersoul, the microsoul undergoes the return, however temporarily, to its original shape, experiencing great relief and high joy.   26

The mysterious Baltic Sea Object (objects)

You may have been following the fascinating case of the "Baltic Sea Object," reported by the Ocean X team of Sweden earlier this year.

Ocean X Team is a deep-sea "treasure-hunting" outfit created by Peter Lindberg and Dennis Åsberg of Sweden, which searches for shipwrecks which contain salvageable items that they can recover and sell. In 1997 the team recovered champagne from a 1916 wreck which they report being able to sell for record prices through Christie's of London.

Earlier this year, Ocean X released images and descriptions of an object they discovered in the Baltic Sea between Finland and Sweden which has captured the imaginations of viewers around the globe. The team actually took the original imagery in June of 2011 but only noticed the anomaly later on when reviewing the footage. Sonar images appear to show a nearly circular object, as well as what may be a long "track" along the sea-floor stretching away from the object in one direction. The team reports that the object is approximately 60 meters (close to 200 feet) in diameter.

The team has conducted two further expeditions to the site this year. Due to the visibility conditions of the Baltic Sea, which can be quite limited, visual images of the object (which rests on the seafloor at a depth of approximately 275 feet) had to be taken from quite close on these expeditions, and the team also reported electronic difficulties and equipment problems. However, divers passing close above the object photographed what appears to be a circle or ring of about 25 to 30 stones on one side of the circular object.

A photograph of that circle can be seen in this article by Linda Moulton Howe on her Earthfiles website. That site also discusses a secondary object or formation seen in the Ocean X side-scan sonar about 600 feet from the circular object. Ocean X reports that closer examination of this other formation revealed numerous right angles, as well as what appear to be large "stairs" leading up to it from the ocean floor.

Ocean X reports that both objects are elevated from the sea-floor itself, the circular object by as much as 50 meters (164 feet) and the angular object by about 10 meters (almost 33 feet).

Below is an interview with Peter Lindberg of Ocean X on Red Ice Radio in which he describes the two objects and some of the theories that have been put forth so far by various people in reaction to the findings:

That interview is conducted by Henrik Palmgren of Red Ice, an excellent interviewer who has a great talent for adapting his interview questions to his guest and allowing the guest to tell his or her story, while offering insightful questions that help to bring out some of the most interesting aspects of the subject at hand.

One possibility discussed in the interview is the possibility that the formations might be volcanic or the remnants of an ancient volcanic flow or eruption. At about 16:30 in the interview above, Peter Lindberg notes that geologists have been quite skeptical of this possible explanation, as it does not accord with the tectonic paradigm which currently dominates most geological analysis.

Other possible explanations which have been put forward include some kind of military project from the Second World War, perhaps the wreck of an advanced experimental German "saucer"-shaped aircraft, or some kind of an anchor for a large anti-submarine net that would have been affixed to the bottom of the sea to prevent submarine incursions into the Baltic during that war.

However, in the interview (around 34:00), Peter Lindberg points out that there are some problems with explaining it as a human construction from any recent century. For one thing, if that circle of stones on top of the circular formation was created by humans rather than being a random arrangement of stones (and it certainly appears to be deliberate), then the object must have been there for a very long time, from a time when its current location was not below the level of the sea.

When was the sea so much lower that a point that is now lying beneath 275 feet of seawater was dry land? The answer one gives to that question depends on the geological paradigm one uses, but in any case it was a very long time ago -- certainly prior to World War II. Of course, one could argue that someone went down in more recent years and placed the stone ring there, but since it was only discovered recently, that explanation seems to be unlikely (unless Ocean X is being less than truthful about the entire object). If Ocean X is not pulling an elaborate hoax, then it would seem that the object has been there for a very long time -- and if it is indeed man-made then it would argue for a quite remote date of construction for what appears to be a fairly advanced structure (certainly not what those operating within the paradigm of conventional history would expect human beings to be building at that time).

Another "non-human construction" explanation has been that the objects are large meteorites. Peter Lindberg points out that there does not appear to be any sort of crater around the objects on the sea-floor, but does say that if the meteorites hit during the Ice Age and struck a thick layer of ice, they might have made a huge crater in the ice and then later settled to their current location when the ice melted.

And of course there is the most sensational explanation, that the object (especially the circular one) is related to extraterrestrial activity -- based on its "spaceship-like shape" it has invited the description of "Baltic Sea UFO." In the interview above, Peter Lindberg points out: "I should say we never have said it was a UFO" (at about 12:00), and later on he reiterates: "we don't know what it is." Ocean X has taken samples from the site to Stockholm University and are currently awaiting results from their analysis, and they have expressed interest in conducting another expedition this year before weather conditions become too difficult later this fall, and hoping "to have some real scientists" from various disciplines accompany them to help guide the search for clues. In other words, it does not appear that Ocean X is pushing a sensational interpretation of the object's origin -- far from it. In fact, it appears that they are sincerely interested in getting opinions and analysis from those who can honestly help to come up with the explanation that best fits the evidence.

The UFO theory that dominates much of the coverage of this story does not seem like a necessary conclusion based upon what has been found so far, but for further discussion of possible evidence of extraterrestrial contact with ancient humans, see for example the previous post "Supernatural or Extraterrestrial." So far, it seems difficult to definitively argue that the object or objects must represent alien technology and could not have been built by ancient humans -- if indeed they are not natural geological formations of some sort.

More interesting in light of the subject matter discussed on this blog is the question of when the oceans would have been low enough to allow the possibility that these objects (or at least the stone ring, if it was put there by humans) were built by people when the area was dry land. Because they are at a depth of 275 feet, conventional theories can explain possible human construction by noting that the end of the Ice Age could explain sea-level rise of up to 300 feet.

As discussed in numerous previous posts (such as this one), the hydroplate theory of Dr. Walt Brown also provides an explanation for greatly lowered sea levels and higher continents as well -- conditions which were intimately connected to the causative mechanism for the Ice Age (see also this post for more discussion of that concept). The hydroplate theory, in fact, appears to explain some of the other "anomalous" sea-level-related evidence around the world (including other undersea structures that may also be man-made, and the alleged Antarctic contours shown on the Piri Re'is map) far better than conventional theories do. Thus, the ongoing examination of the Baltic Sea Object(s) is of great interest for any clues it may offer that could shed light on the explanatory powers of the hydroplate theory versus other theories.

The Baltic Sea Object (or objects) thus offers yet another example of the need for good critical, but open-minded, analysis. So far, it would appear that these structures may well invite explanations that are outside of the conventional tectonic geological paradigm, as well as outside of the conventional paradigm of ancient human history. Like a "Scooby Doo mystery" (or a Sherlock Holmes story), it would appear wise to keep an open mind in this case, and investigate all the possible explanations carefully before rejecting any of them.

We wish Ocean X and all those involved in the analysis the very best with their continuing efforts in the Baltic Sea.

Tectonics and dinosaur evolution?

Recently, a group of paleontologists published a fascinating paper entitled "Mountain Building Triggered Late Cretaceous North American Megaherbivore Dinosaur Radiation."  You can read the entire text of that analysis by Terry A. Gates, Albert Prieto-Marquez, and Lindsay E. Zanno by by following the link in the upper-right portion of the screen at the site above.

Their thesis proposes accelerated speciation among certain herbivorous dinosaurs in North America (duck-billed saurolophines and horned ceratopsids) caused by increased geographic isolation brought on by the rise of mountain ranges and inland sea-barriers caused by tectonic forces.

The paper's authors argue that "Late Cretaceous orogenesis commenced weather patterns" which changed "annual temperatures and rainfall patterns" that would then change "local plant composition"  (6).  At the same time, these changes created isolated regions as "orogenic uplift and basin segregation" prevented plants and animals from migrating along with the changes in geography and weather.  They conclude that: "Modified plant communities may have acted in combination with potential geographic barriers (such as the Castelgate river / delta system and Wind River Mountains) to spur ecological barriers to herbivorous dinosaurs, preventing gene flow, and creating endemic centers of megaherbivorous dinosaur evolution."

The scientists provide fossil evidence to back up their thesis, arguing that various species evolved into other species in a certain progression that shows greater "radiation" or speciation in areas that were isolated by the tectonic uplift proposed by their geological timeline (see chart below, from page 6 of the paper).

While the paper displays a well-argued thesis with supporting evidence, it is argued within a specific geological paradigm that may in fact be completely incorrect. 

There is a tremendous amount of evidence suggesting that the tectonic theory is wrong.  The tectonic theory was an important step forward, because it was better than the theories that came before it, and it opened our eyes to the fact that the plates did at one time slide, but it is quite possible that instead of sliding gradually and continuously, they slid catastrophically just one time, and created most of the geology we see today during that one catastrophic event.

This radically different geological paradigm, proposed by Dr. Walt Brown and called the hydroplate theory, may be ridiculed or ignored, but so was Alfred Wegener's theory of continental drift during his lifetime.  If the tectonic theory as it is understood today is incorrect, then the careful logical progression of the authors of the above paper, while not incorrect in and of itself, is built upon a flawed foundation.  It is a way of explaining the evidence, but there are other ways to explain the evidence as well.

If the hydroplate theory is correct, then the mountain ranges we see today were all thrust upwards rapidly and violently, while the earth was still covered with mud-laden water.  When the mountain ranges rose and water drained powerfully away, many large animals were trapped (see the discussion of the numerous fossil whales of the Atacama desert, on the Pacific side of the Andes Mountains).   It is quite possible that the number and variety of species is indeed influenced by geology and mountain ranges, but that their number and prevalence is influenced by the way that water flowed off of those ranges and buried large animals, not by increased speciation caused by imagined evolutionary mechanisms in isolated areas.

This type of discussion, however, is exactly what science should be all about -- looking at the evidence and proposing different explanations that appear to fit the evidence that is available, and then arguing the merits of the various theories.  Pointing out that different geological paradigms will lead to very different conclusions is not intended to be in any way derogatory -- to the contrary, I believe it is very important to acknowledge the impact of different geological theories and to argue about which ones appear to best fit the evidence.

Therefore, I applaud the work of the paper cited, even though I believe that the geological assumptions underpinning its arguments will one day be found to be in need of correction.

For more discussion of this recent paper, see this article entitled "Dinosaur boom linked to rise of Rocky Mountains," which contains some great additional quotations from the paper's authors describing their theory.

Look for Jupiter in Taurus (and a few final Perseids)

If you followed the links in the previous post, you found a good video from Sky & Telescope discussing the motion of Mars and Saturn in the western sky after sunset (near the star Spica), as well as discussing the Perseid meteor showers which have been dazzling in the evening sky for the past few nights.  There was also a link to a previous blog post showing the location of Perseus and the Pleiades.

You may have seen some of the beautiful meteors that lit up the night sky over the weekend.  Although the Perseids have now peaked, there may still be some jetting around in the vicinity of Perseus and the other beautiful constellations that dominate the eastern sky in the hours before sunrise.  This excellent meteor shower guide from EarthSky contains discussion of the prospects for seeing Perseids the night of August 13, as well as some terrific photos that readers sent in of meteors that they saw in the past couple days.

Even if you don't see any more meteors, it is still worth while to rise a few hours before sunrise if possible and enjoy the view to the east of Jupiter and Venus aligned in the east, surrounded by important constellations, truly a breathtaking spectacle. 

The diagram above shows the lineup for a viewer looking to the east around 4:30 in the morning on August 13 (that's when I was watching Perseids on August 12, when the view was much the same although the moon was slightly higher).  The waning crescent moon will be the easiest landmark to start with, rising in advance of the sun (which is rapidly overtaking it enroute to a new moon on August 17).  The two bright planets of Jupiter and Venus show the general line of the ecliptic, glowing like jewels in a string on either side of the moon, Jupiter above and Venus closer to the horizon.

From Jupiter, if you look closely, you can easily perceive the most important stars of the constellation Taurus, especially the "V"-shaped Hyades and the two points of the "horns" (each arm of the "V" of the Hyades points to one such tip -- see diagram above).  Jupiter will be situated between the Hyades and the two horn-tip points (located closer to the upper arm of the "V" of the Hyades than to the horn-tips).

Above the Hyades you should be able to clearly make out the silvery net of the Pleiades, and if you pull out your binoculars you can observe them in all their beauty.  

Moving your gaze from the Pleiades towards your left, between the Pleiades and the "W"-shaped constellation Cassiopeia, you should come across the stars of Perseus.  His brightest stars make up the trapezoidal shape of his torso, and you should be able to make out his outstretched arms (on the "Cassiopeia side" of Perseus).  Additionally, you should be able to see the bright outline of Auriga the Charioteer "below" Perseus (not included in the diagram above for simplicity but discussed extensively in this previous blog posts, with diagrams to help you find him).  Perseus marks the direction to focus on for any remaining Perseids.

However, even after the Perseids are over, this beautiful lineup of Venus and Jupiter among the constellations described above is worth getting up early to observe.  We have discussed previously the theory, advanced by Giorgio de Santillana and Hertha von Dechend in their 1969 text Hamlet's Mill, that ancient myths often encode descriptions of the motions of the planets (the gods) as they wander through the background of the fixed stars.

If they are correct, then we should expect to find some trace in ancient mythology of the passage of the planet Jupiter through the constellation Taurus, as is taking place right now and clearly visible in the eastern sky.  Is there a story in which Jupiter (or Zeus) turns into a bull, perhaps?  Sure enough, there is the well-known story of Zeus and Europa, in which Zeus turns into a bull and abducts the princess Europa, carrying her across the sea to become the Queen of Crete (she bore Zeus three sons: Minos, Sarpedon, and Rhademanthos).

If you doubt that such ancient myths actually encode celestial events such as the passage of a planet through a constellation of the zodiac, take a look at the discussion here about the story of Ares and Aphrodite being caught in a net, or the discussion here about Zeus unsuccessfully pursuing Aphrodite and Aphrodite being seduced by Hermes.  

Saturn and Mars and the star Spica

It's a beautiful time of year for looking at the stars, and a beautiful time of the month for looking at them as well, with the moon out of the sky until after midnight each evening, providing brilliant views of the summer constellations.

Right now as you look to the west, there is a spectacular triangle low in the sky above the horizon, formed by the planets Saturn and Mars and the bright star Spica (part of the constellation Virgo).

They are unmistakeable, forming a near-equilateral triangle tonight, but their geometry will be changing rapidly over the next few nights. This excellent video from Tony Flanders, the cheerful and informative associate editor of Sky & Telescope, gives a nice animation of what will take place as Mars continues to close the gap with Saturn and eventually passes in between Spica and Saturn.

That video also provides some discussion of the upcoming Perseid meteor showers. Here is a link to a previous post discussing this wonderful annual meteor event, and here is a link to a different previous post which contains a diagram and directions for locating the constellation Perseus.

It is well-worth the effort to go outside and look at the triangle formed by Saturn, Mars and Spica. Ancient mythology often encodes the approach of two or more planets, sometimes adding details about the background constellations through which they are moving as they pass one another. This previous post discusses that concept, with examples.

"Five feet high the door and three may walk abreast"

In Hamlet's Mill, the seminal 1969 examination of the transmission of ancient wisdom through myth, written by Giorgio de Santillana and Hertha von Dechend, the authors cite the Grimnismal, the "sayings of Grimnir," in the Old Norse Poetic Edda, as an example of esoteric myth containing a surprising hidden precessional number.

They write:

It is known that in the final battle of the gods, the massed legions on the side of "order" are the dead warriors, the "Einherier" who once fell in combat on earth and who have been transferred by the Valkyries to reside with Odin in Valhalla -- a theme much rehearsed in heroic poetry.  On the last day, they issue forth to battle in martial array.  Says the Grimnismal (23): "Five hundred gates and forty more -- are in the mighty building of Walhalla -- eight hundred 'Einherier' come out of each one gate -- on the time they go out in defence against the Wolf."  That makes 432,000 in all, a number of significance from of old.  162.

You can read the passage yourself online in the 1936 translation by Henry Bellows here.  His translation is slightly different from that used in Hamlet's Mill, and reads:

23. Five hundred doors | and forty there are,
I ween, in Valhall's walls;
Eight hundred fighters | through one door fare
When to war with the wolf they go.

Interestingly enough, that translation has always reminded me of a significant passage in the beloved tale by J.R.R. Tolkien (1882 - 1973) which first came to the attention of a publisher in the same year (1936), none other than The Hobbit: or There and Back Again.   

As everyone knows (or almost everyone, and the rest will soon enough, with the release of a much-anticipated movie version by Peter Jackson), the plot of that adventure involves regaining the mighty halls of Thror (King under the Mountain) from the dragon Smaug.  Vital to the plans of the thirteen dwarves and the hobbit Bilbo Baggins is the knowledge of a secret door, disclosed on a map made by Thror which is revealed to Thror's grandson Thorin by Gandalf inside the parlour of Bilbo's hobbit-hole.

Take a look at the runes above and listen to Gandalf's translation and see if they do not remind you somewhat of the cadence of the description of Valhalla's doors in Grimnismal 23:

"Five feet high the door and three may walk abreast," say the runes, but Smaug could not creep into a hole that size, not even when he was a young dragon, certainly not after devouring so many of the dwarves and men of Dale.  26.

While it may not seem like a direct parallel, it is a fact that in addition to authoring The Hobbit and the Lord of the Rings trilogy, Tolkien was a respected scholar of Old English and an Oxford Professor, and he acknowledged the influence of Old Norse and Old English sources upon his own fiction, including the influence of the Poetic Edda. 

I believe it is highly likely that this important passage from the Grimnismal lent its cadence to the description of the size of the secret door in The Hobbit.

The encoding of the important precessional number 432 in the ancient Eddas is discussed in context in the video "Precession = The Key" if you want a fuller discussion of the connection between the doors of Valhalla and the celestial mechanics of the circling skies above us.

As it turns out, Professor Tolkien used another clear reference to a very important "precessional" figure in his Middle Earth books, and that is his reference to Earendil, who -- it turns out -- is none other than Orion, who is Osiris (for more on those connections, see also "Leo, the Lion King, Hamlet and Osiris."  The fact that Tolkien clearly borrowed the name Earendil lends some support to the assertion that his runic description of the secret door in the Lonely Mountain may also have had influences from early poetic texts, texts which he clearly loved and devoted much study towards.

Incidentally, it is also clear that he created the story of The Hobbit prior to the publication of the 1936 translation of the Grimnismal quoted above, so it is almost certain that he had his own personal translation of the Eddas, perhaps even including the formulation of "eight hundred can walk abreast."

In any event, it is an interesting connection for anyone who loves The Hobbit, and it makes one wonder how much else J.R.R. Tolkien knew about precession and the esoteric encoding of ancient knowledge in the stories of "myth."