CONTENTS
For May, 1956
EFFECTS
OF RADIATION ............................................................................................ 2
JOHN RUSKIN ................................................................................................................ 3
THIRD ANNUAL SPACECRAFT CONVENTION ..................................................... 3
AN INTERVIEW WITH MRS. NORMAN WING .......................................................... 8
FREEDOM THROUGH SPIRIT .................................................................................... 9
DON'T TAKE IT WITH YOU .......................................................................................... 10
THE CAR CELESTIAL .................................................................................................. 10
STEPS TO THE STARS ................................................................................................ 12
TIME OF RECKONING .................................................................................................. 15
A HAPPY THOUGHT FOR THE PEOPLE OF THE WORLD ................................. 15
THE STAFF
EDITOR ................................................................................................... DANIEL
W. FRY
circulating manage .............................................................. evelyn
nicolais
corresponding secretary ....................................................... rhoda
mills
Art work by ................................................................................. ralph
huffman
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UNDERSTANDING
VOL. 1 MAY • 1956 No.
5
One of the most controversial questions in the world today
concerns the effects of radiation produced by the testing of nuclear weapons.
The average citizen has become somewhat bewildered by the mass of contradictory
statements which have been made by men who are in positions of supposed
knowledge and authority.
Those members of the Atomic Energy Commission who favor
the continuation of the tests usually state that the radiation is
"dangerous" only in areas which are comparatively close to the scene
of the explosion. At greater distances, the radiation becomes
"harmless." The Atomic Energy Commission stated as recently as last
year that "The possibility of any genetic effects or changes in hereditary
factors that would cause difficulties in unborn generations is remote." On
the other hand, we must consider the statement of Professor Linus Pauling that
"continued dispersal of radioactive materials into the atmosphere is
creating a critical situation." Dr. A. H. Sturtevant, of California
Institute of Technology, has said: "The bombs already exploded will
ultimately result in the production of numerous defective individuals, if the
human race itself survives many generations."
At first glance, it appears that there is a tremendous
discrepancy between the statements of the officials of the Atomic Energy
Commission and those of practically all of those students of genetics who have
ventured to express their opinions. In discussing this situation, Dr. H. J.
Muller, professor of genetics at the University of Indiana, said: "The
number of mutations produced by the bomb tests to date does not involve a
significant deterioration in the genetic constitution of the population, but
does produce a lot of significant disabilities . . . They are far from negligible,
they are in the tens of thousands."
In the June, 1955, issue of the "Bulletin of the
Atomic Scientists," we find an article by A. H. Rosenfeld, E. J. Story and
S. D. Warshaw on radioactive fall out. In this article the estimate is made
that about 20,000 undesirable mutations have been induced in this country's
population as a result
1
of each series of bomb tests held in Nevada. It is
also pointed out that "Each undesirable mutant gene is passed along from
generation to generation, hampering in some way, each individual in the
chain. (As long as the population is kept constant, then, on the average,
each mutation will show up exactly once per generation.) After perhaps 100
generations, the mutant gene manages, at last, to tip the scales against one of
its unhappy possessors, thus eliminating itself by either the premature death
of the affected individual, or simply by his failure to reproduce. Fortunately,
the more detrimental the effects of a mutation, the more rapidly it eliminates
itself via genetic death."
We can now begin to understand the price which we are
paying for our nuclear weapons tests. Some may feel that the price is not
important since we are not paying it ourselves; we are passing it on to our
children. The true irony of the situation lies in the fact that we are also
proposing to pass along to our children the monetary cost. Through the
tremendous and ever growing national debt, we will force them to pay the
bill for the manufacture of the very poison which we have injected into their
bodies.
In writing editorials for UNDERSTANDING, we have attempted
to maintain an open mind and to examine both sides of every question. However,
after having studied all available arguments in favor of continuing these
nuclear weapons tests, the conclusion appears to be inescapable that something
must have happened to the spirit of our forebears when we so casually sacrifice
our children upon the altar of our own convenience. Something is wrong when we
are willing to condemn hundreds of thousands, and eventually millions, of our
children's children to various degrees of disability or death, simply because
we ourselves are too stupid or too lazy to seek sane answers to our own
problems in international relationships.
——— ♦ ———
Consider whether we ought not to be more in the habit of
seeking honor from our descendants than from our ancestors; thinking it better
to be nobly remembered than nobly born; and striving so to live, that our sons,
and our sons' sons, for ages to come, might still lead their children
reverently to the doors out of which we had been carried to the grave, saying,
"Look, this was his house, this was his chamber."
2
Between seven and eight thousand space fans gathered at Giant
Rock Airport, Yucca Valley, California, for the Third Annual Spacecraft
Convention on Saturday and Sunday, April 28 and 29. The campers began to arrive
as early as Friday afternoon, by trailer, car and truck, but most of the crowd
turned their cars off the main highway in the early Saturday morning hours and
jogged over the sandy spurs that led to the remote airport.
The setting for the convention was typically desert-warm
(and warmer by the hour) sunshine, sand dunes mottled by wispy vegetation, a
blue sky brushed of every last whiff of clouds. Garden umbrellas, folding
chairs and coolie sun hats lent an air of informality.
Shortly after ten o'clock, George Van Tassel, known to
everyone as "Van," opened the two-day session with a brief greeting
to those present and to all space friends around our planet. "Space people
are still people," he said, "in spite of their higher culture and
evolution. We of earth share much with them, among other things, the same
concept of a higher Deity."
The Reverend Morris Ludwig of Portland, Oregon, set the
tone for the convention when, in his invocation, he expressed thanks to God for
being part of a group interested in searching for the higher purposes of life.
"Help us not to force our opinions on others," he said, "but
only to point the way to right living and understanding."
First speaker was Mrs. Dana Howard of Palm Springs. A
gray-haired, energetic woman with a life-long interest in spiritual experience,
Mrs. Howard began: "This is the land of the turtle races! A large
percentage of the world's people live in a shell and, like turtles, are afraid
to stick out their necks! We know that we saucer enthusiasts are the laughing
stock of the world, but we take it with good grace, knowing that the picture will
soon be far different. The flying saucer hysteria is over and the real task has
just begun." Mrs. Howard pointed out that people interested in the space
message are not seeking a pot of gold. "We are seeking peace and
contentment for the entire world! We are trying to open the avenues of space,
to build a bridge across eternity!"
Truman Bethurum, looking quite slender and tanned from a Prescott,
Arizona, winter, next took the speaker's stand. He mentioned the strange
policy of the Air Force which, on one hand denies the existence of UFO's and,
on the other hand, spends great sums of money to investigate them. "It.
will be a great day in America," said Bethurum, "when our scientists
accept space people's knowledge. Peace must come to our nations before we can
have true spacecraft. Peace will depend on the peace-thought of the masses of
people.
3
When we turn our attention from construction for
destruction to construction for production, we may expect to learn the secret
of flying saucers."
It is Mr. Bethurum's belief that, although the threat of
war is kept constantly before the American people, there will not be a nuclear
war; that not a single Nike rocket will ever be fired at an enemy in the air;
that boys under teenage group today will never be gun fodder. "Our space
friends will lend us a hand to see that we do not destroy ourselves. If the
agitators for war were equalled by the agitators for peace - that would be
something! We must elect people of intelligence to places of power so that America
can become the leader in the ways of peace," Mr. Bethurum concluded.
Daniel Fry of El Monte, speaking of the relativity of
reality, said: "If a person of one hundred years ago were to have spoken
of airplanes, television and atomic energy as realities, he would correctly
have been considered psychotic, since at that time these things were not
realities. They were ridiculous impossibilities. The realities of today are not
the realities of yesterday, and they will not be the realities of tomorrow. Let
us, therefore, be tolerant of those whose reality includes things beyond our
comprehension."
Speaking on the question of proof, Mr. Fry stated that
"there simply is no such thing as absolute and unquestionable proof of
anything. The correct definition of the word proof is `evidence of a nature and
degree sufficient to bring conviction to the mind'."
It is Mr. Fry's opinion that above and beyond the
technical knowledge which space people have been trying to give us, their
greatest achievement so far is the change in the thought that a third world war
was inevitable. "A year ago," he said, "it was believed that a
nuclear war was inevitable. Now it is the consensus of opinion that nuclear war
is unlikely."
George Van Tassel, the convention's official host, spoke
on the great scientific knowledge which the space people could give us, if we
were willing to cooperate with them. This technical data would be new to our
scientists and would include knowledge of how to use a free energy principle -
the principle utilized by space people in propelling their craft. "Our
money system," said Mr. Van Tassel, "will not permit this free energy
principle to become known. But people must demand to know. Science knows what
this principle is and so does the Air Force. The truth about flying saucers is
being hidden from the public because it will demand to know about the power
used by space people. Everything in the universe is powered by primary energy.
Disks generate their own field. They depend on our gravity and on a magnetic
field generated by the planets and called secondary energy. Electricity is a
third effect. Atomic energy is a combination of all these forces and is a
4
destructive force. One of our big problems is that of
converting our money system to a non-money system."
In speaking of the size of space ships, Mr. Van Tassel
said that one carrier craft alone can carry 25,000,000 people. As many as
38,000 ships fit in one mother carrier which is itself fourteen to sixteen
miles long. "Space people have been building ships for thousands of years.
They are the original colonizers - the Adamic race of man - of our planet.
There are space people who never live on a planet. They have learned to use
natural forces to supply their every need, and their methods and results seem
to us nothing short of miracles. They know no disease, can grow gardens in
space, have more "time" than anything else.
"There is a Space Confederation of fifty-two solar
systems and 601 planets," according to Mr. Van Tassel. "Space people
say that everywhere they have traveled, they have found people and more
people."
Orfeo Angelucci of Glendale opened his talk with an
expression of thanks for the encouraging growth of this year's convention over
last year's. "Space is a brand new frontier," he said, "and
progress is being made on all fronts. Today the whole world has its thoughts in
the stars. Russia, France and England are keeping pace with us on the space
front. Our own science is rolling up its sleeves for full speed ahead."
Mr. Angelucci said that we must spread the space beings'
message to all people through whatever channels we can reach them. "We can
show the world that from nothing, we have materialized something. There is not
a human being that could believe in flying saucers and at the same time believe
in things that are destructive. Errors are the unreal things in life.
Delinquency is the work of warped minds. Our literature deals with the
unrealities of life. We need new concepts for living."
"The big question is," according to Mr. Angelucci,
"are we really prepared to meet space people? If the world will accept the
fact, publicly and officially, that space beings are in our skies, within a
year we should be on the scientific road to the cure of all disease; we would
be on the way to making a Utopia out of our planet, and within three years, we
could have space visitors dining at our tables - all this merely by announcing
that we have space visitors in our skies." It was this speaker's belief
that the world is not yet ready to accept the full landing of space people. "But
our acceptance of them is the sure road to evolvement. The picture is
developing gradually - metaphysically, spiritually and materially. Soon we will
be in the great geophysical year and we will see our friends in action
again."
In concluding, Mr. Angelucci said, "We cannot kill
life nor make it; we
5
can only manifest it. We have the choice now of destroying
our earth or of entering, with space people's help, into the infiniteness of
the universe. But the world is beginning to waken. An undertow and undercurrent
are building up. There is a promise for all of us."
Another speaker who mentioned the big advancement of space
activity during the past year was young Dick Miller, recently from Detroit, who
now makes his home in Hollywood. His work with space people has been largely
through radio contact and tape recordings. "People have become a little
more conscious of the flying saucer story," he said, "and are willing
to listen to what they would have ridiculed a year ago. Several radio stations
have inquired about the tape recordings made by our group and are considering
playing them over the air. This would be a tremendous step forward! I feel that
I am fortunate in having come to know space people. Much of the information
given to our group has to do with scientific techniques and with instruments to
be constructed for the benefit of earth people. But space people also give us
information about their own society and of their plans to assist us in reaching
up for greater knowledge."
Frank Scully, "Dean of Saucer Writers," took the
speaker's stand next. This early saucerian, a handsome, silvery-haired
gentleman wearing a bright red shirt, has a commanding presence.
"Knowing the truth about saucers is like being too
far ahead of a parade -nobody sees you or knows you are there. If you're ahead
in this world, you're out of step with the parade. So it is with the flying
saucer information."
It was Mr. Scully's belief that radio and television are
more open to new ideas because they are new agencies. "Print is close to
six hundred years old. An encircling movement of radio and television has begun
and these media will bring the saucer story fearlessly to the people. The ears
of the human race are in better condition than their eyes," he concluded.
"Compare the number of people who wear glasses with the number who use
hearing aids!"
Charles Laughead, member of Williamson's Telonic Research
Staff in Prescott, Arizona, brought to the convention the greetings of that
group. "We are entering a period of great geologic changes," said Dr.
Laughead.
"There will be many disturbances in nature, and the
face of our earth will be changed. Europe will go down, so will Asia, and our
own shores will suffer great devastation. Lemuria and Atlantis will rise again.
There will be new migrations of earth people, and new continents will take
form. Out of the turmoil, a new and fabulous civilization will rise."
Dr. Laughead pointed out that we are entering a new phase
in metaphysical work, too. "The mystery schools, long the repositories of
eternal
6
truths, will now come out in the open to disseminate their
ancient wisdom. This is a time of bringing together the groups who will forge
the New Age. We are moving into a new time scale. Now is the time of graduation
and initiation for those who have completed the classroom work on earth. It is
hard to realize that the Kingdom is here and that we are the people of the
Kingdom!"
The drawing card for Saturday evening's program was a
forty-minute technicolor film, "WE'VE SEEN THE SAUCERS," produced by
Andrew Vail, a Southern California saucer enthusiast. The film has had but
three other showings and is not for general theater distribution. It is a
documented record of saucer sightings as related by two San Fernando
housewives, a minister, an airplane pilot, a radar operator, a business
executive and a movie actress. Comments by three military personnel are also
included.
During the convention, "regrets" were read from
George Adamski, Donald Keyhoe, Edward J. Ruppelt and Frank Edwards.
Mr. Carl Anderson, an employee of the Long Beach Naval
Shipyards, related for the first time (on this platform) a saucer sighting and
subsequent experience in the desert about a year and a half ago. His story was
corroborated by his wife Stella and their daughter Betty Ann. This was followed
by a questions and answer period.
A program of entertainment, under the direction of Miss
Joann Norstrom of El Monte, included dances and vocal solos, in addition to
several accordion numbers by her "Rhythm Squeezers" band.
Late Sunday afternoon, Mrs. Bessie Arthur of Los Angeles
made the concluding brief remarks, and the Third Annual Spacecraft Convention
was closed with the extension of God's blessing to all people of the earth..-Evelyn
Dorio Nicolais
—— ♦ ——
AT GIANT ROCK AIRPORT, YUCCA VALLEY, CALIFORNIA
Under the welcome shade of a garden umbrella close to the
elevated speakers' platform, I talked for a few minutes with Darlene Wing about
her family home, Giant Rock.
Darlene and her two younger sisters came to Giant Rock Airport
with their parents, Mr. and Mrs. George Van Tassel, in April of 1948.
"Van," as he is popularly known, had leased the abandoned airport from
the government, with the intention of developing the area into a public desert
resort. This was to include a restaurant and bar, guest ranch and airport
facilities.
7
At the time, Van felt weary of city smog and confusion and
wanted to do something on his own, preferably in the out-of-doors.
Through friends, Van ,became interested in 1949 in
spiritual evolution and metaphysical studies. Soon he realized that he was
undergoing psychic development. Contact with space people followed, and this
contact has be come the major interest of his life. Van is planning for a
future of intense scientific and metaphysical research under the guidance of
space people. "The Rock" itself is an impressive granite mass seventy
feet high (six stories) and weighs approximately 100,000 tons. The two rooms
excavated under the rock are not living quarters; one room is used for storage
space and the other, as a meeting place for the public. East of the rock is the
airfield strip, 5600 feet long.
There is a grim note in Giant Rock's earlier history. Back
in 1936, a German national, Fritz Critzer, made his home here. The story is
that during World War II, he was accused of being a German spy, and that this
accusation, for which there is no substantiating evidence, resulted in his
blowing himself up in a blast of dynamite.
Darlene and her married sister, Mrs. Norman Poulsen of Yucca
Valley, each have a young son. Saundra, the youngest sister, lives at the
airport with her parents. All three daughters help their father with
secretarial detail connected with his work. And all three, together with
"Mrs. Van," exemplify an intense devotion and loyalty to Van.
"We all love The Rock, too," says Darlene with
evident enthusiasm showing on her attractive face. "I just love this
place! I've had the best times of my life here!"
I glanced about at the drab desert scene. No grass, no
flowers, no shrubbery relieved the sandy expanse. There wasn't a Joshua tree or
a yucca plant in sight, both of which grow abundantly in the Morongo Valley to
the south; nothing but sunbeaten boulders and grayish sandhills.
"What is the basis for that attachment?" I
asked. "Is it the sky? The stars at night?"
"No," Darlene shook her head. "I think my
love centers around the quiet, the peacefulness. It's the silence that lasts
from dawn to dusk and to dawn again. It's the lasting quiet, week after week
and month after month. That's what I treasure."
Later when I turned cityward over the sand road that
spreads across the desert like a random scribble made by a giant hand, I
wondered how long it would be before I heard again the words: quiet,
peacefulness, silence.Evelyn Doric, Nicolais
8
What is freedom? Where is it found, and how is it found?
What meaning does it have for mankind today? These are some of the questions
being asked by the multitude which sees no prospect for immediate and lasting
peace. In his search for freedom, man has fought many wars, has entered into
many pacts, has drawn up countless resolutions. The idea of brotherhood has
been stressed and the plan for one world discussed as groups and nations have
tried to bring about such peace through outer means. Opinions and ideals
differ, and mankind struggles bravely on.
The union of groups or nations does not necessarily
constitute a formula for peace. It can be brought about only through the unity
of spirit. The consciousness of unity does not require sameness of thought or ideals,
neither does it come through togetherness as opposed to apartness. It is born
only through the spirit of the integrated whole. It is through unity in
diversity that all things are brought together as they belong together. That
unity does exist wherein "all are baptized into one body, whether we be
Jews or Gentiles, whether we be bond or free." No two men are alike in
stature or condition of being. The same is true of every creature or living
thing, yet the uniqueness of anything is not contrary to the principle of
equality. All are made to drink of that ONE SPIRIT.
It is only through unity of spirit that man can come to
live spontaneously and joyously the truth of his own being, and in perfect
relationship with all men and life. When all phases of life become integrated
through spirit, man is free, and in the spontaneity of life he lives, moves and
has his being. Now he enters into the spirit of life in all his relationships
as readily as he once entered into the spirit of the game on the football
field, or the spirit of Christmas, or the spirit of some fine musical
composition. Now he understands the need for all peoples to unite as ONE in the
universal spirit of truth. This is the hope and the glory of all mankind-with
BROTHERHOOD as its eternal livingness.- Isaphene McGuire
——— ♦ ———
Peace must be individual and collective before you can
attain the Golden Age. You cannot come into it by friction or force. You must
educate and prepare yourself for it NOW. This perfect state can only come when
man, above all, becomes true to his own self. - Lawrence River
9
(From a sermon by the Reverend Pieter Schafer)
As a than travels along the path of spiritual development,
he finds that the climb is not a steady one. There will be long level stretches
ending in abrupt rises to new levels of consciousness. Frequently these cliffs
of development will be too steep and too high for the traveler to scale by his
own ability. Some men become discouraged and turn back to spend the rest of
their lives upon that plane. Others who are wiser or more determined begin to
seek a ladder. If the search is persistent, the ladder will always be found. It
may be a bit of elemental philosophy, or the understanding assistance of a
friend. Whatever the `ladder' may be, the traveler finds that by its help he is
able to scale the bluff and to emerge upon a new level of understanding.
Many of these travelers, however, make the mistake of
attempting to carry the ladder with them for use in the next scaling operation.
They seem to feel that, because it has been of assistance at one level of
development, it should be the key to all levels. As a result of this mistaken
belief, many a sincere pilgrim finds himself stranded between levels, trying to
climb by means of a concept which, although it was very helpful at a lower
level, is entirely inadequate for the climb ahead.
In your long journey upward you will need many such
'ladders.' When you find one, use it. Give thanks to him who provided it and
leave it for the use of those who follow. Press on confidently in the knowledge
that there will be another ladder awaiting you at the next climb. Thus you will
travel faster, and you will not impede the progress of those behind you.
———— ♦ ————
By Winona H. Cromwell
The saucer mystery is entering its second phase, in which
a growing number of us agree, that our celestial visitors so far are apparently
peaceful, albeit somewhat curious judging from the many and various sightings
which still continue from all over our world. There are still a variety of
opinions regarding the disks, whether they are manned by "etheric"
entities, by non-human beings, or by more highly evolved human beings from
planets such as Venus and Mars. They appear to be exercising a watchful eye on
our extraordinary efforts to blow ourselves off the face of our globe, and they
avoid our clumsy, noisy aircraft with a speed and silent dexterity that is the
wonder of this age.
Has man used these air vehicles before, and to what use
did he put them? Unhappily, what remains in our literature is fragmentary,
often couched in
10
allegory or myth and capable of 'being read in several
ways, according to the spiritual understanding of the reader.
No doubt older records exist in Tibet, but India has the Maha
Bharata, 1000 B.C., and mention there is made of a "gift of a flying
machine by a king, to a brother monarch as a token of friendship." There
are several stories in this Hindu epic, but the most familiar to us is the
story of Rama and Sita.
It seems that the old king Dasaratha, feeling death near,
decides to announce Prince Rama as heir apparent. To this Queen Kaikeyi
objects, and plans Rama's disgrace. For healing him of his battle wounds, the
king has promised his wife two wishes. She now insists he honor his word and
being told to state her desires, she asks that Rama be banished for fourteen
years, and that Bharata, her son, be made heir apparent.
lama with Sita his wife, departs into the forest, but Bharata
follows them. A woman comes who falls in love with Rama. She is Supanaka,
sister to Ravan, King of Lanka (Ceylon). Finding her love spurned, she enlists
her brother's aid. Together they plot to take Sita to Lanka and to kill Rama,
according to the poem which was transcribed by Valmiki from temple records. Ravan
lures Sita from the forest and conducts her forcibly to where his air vehicle (Vimana)
waits.
"Then arose the car celestial, o'er the hill and
wooded vale
Golden its shape and radiant, and fleet as Indra's
heavenly steed."
So Ravan carries Sita to Lanka. But Rama has friends who,
hearing his lamentations, come to his aid. "And the king (Rama) got in the
excellent car which, at the command of Raghira, rose up into the higher
atmosphere."1
Thus Rama embarks in a car celestial and on to his war
with Ravan. Eventually Rama is captured and slain and his "flying
machine" falls into the hands of Ram Chandra who flew it all the way back
to Adjodhita (City of Victory) in northern India. This is from a later
manuscript, dated 500 B.C.
Lanka-Pura (Ceylon) was no city of the imagination. It was
the Yakkha capital and its site can still be pointed out in the district of Motale
in the Central Province.2 Also the Maha-Vamsa of Ceylon
describes with ecstatic rapture the advent of King Mahinda to the island. His
"aerial" flight, 243 B.C., and his descent to Ambatthla, the loftiest
mountain peak.
All records of these aircraft distinctly state that they
were self moving or were moved by the power of sound.
It is deplorable that in this century we are repeating the
ancient follies and are using our air vehicles for human destruction.
1 The Ramayana, by Romesh Dutt.
2 Pali Literature of Ceylon.
11
Chapter 3
MATTER AND MASS
A great deal of the confusion which exists in our
scientific concepts today is brought about by our failure to distinguish
carefully between matter and mass. Until a comparatively few years ago, it was
assumed that mass was a property which was exhibited only by matter. Upon
closer examination, however, it appeared that energy also possessed mass, since
when energy was added to a body of matter, the mass of the body was increased.
We should, perhaps, pause at this point to define the
terms which we are using lest we add to the confusion instead of resolving it.
Mass is defined as resistance to change in the existing state of motion. It is
measured by the amount of the energy which is required to produce a given
change in velocity. All matter has the property of mass, but not all mass has
the properties of matter. For the purpose of this discussion, we will postulate
that there are two types of mass, inertial mass, which is simply the property
of resistance to change in a state of motion, and the mass inherent in matter,
which we will call Newtonian mass, because it includes all mass which obeys the
original laws laid down by Sir Isaac Newton. Since the reader may be under the
impression that all mass obeys the Newtonian laws, let us pause here long
enough to examine the facts and to point out the differences in the properties
of inertial and Newtonian mass.
All physicists of today are agreed that the electron has
mass. Yet if it were possible for us to hold an electron between two of our
fingers and then suddenly release it, we would find that there was not the
slightest tendency for the electron to fall to the earth (unless the surface
happened to be positively charged at the moment). The electron is not in the
least affected by the gravitational field of the earth, so long as it is at
rest with respect to that field, (if the electron is moving through the field,
however, the direction of the motion will be affected).
The electron has mass only because it has an electric
charge. As we know, when an electric charge is accelerated in space, a magnetic
field is produced, and energy is required to produce this field. The energy
`spent' in producing this field, is said to be the `mass' of the electron,
since it is the entire cause of its resistance to acceleration. The greater the
degree of acceleration, of course, the more intense the field, and the greater
the amount of energy required to produce it. So we say that the electron gains
`mass' with every increase
12
in its velocity. If an electron could be accelerated to
the velocity C, (commonly called the velocity of light), it would have acquired
the maximum velocity with which energy can be propagated. It is obvious,
therefore, that no amount of energy could further accelerate this electron
(with respect to its original reference point), so it would be considered to
have acquired 'infinite' mass.
Let us take the time to examine this statement carefully,
since it is a point upon which there is much confusion. The electron would have
acquired infinite mass only in reference to its original energy level. If
observed from a reference point which had itself received the same degree of
acceleration, the mass of the electron would not have changed a particle. This
increase of inertial mass with increasing velocity, is simply the measure of
the kinetic energy differential between the observer and the point which he is
observing.
We will attempt a simple analogy, in the hope of making
this more readily understood. An observer is stationed in `free space' far from
any gravitational or other fields which might affect the results of the
experiment which he proposes to make. He has in one hand, a sphere of cork or
other light material which has a mass of 10 grams. In the other hand he has a
pistol which fires bullets also having a mass of 10 grams and a velocity of
1000 feet per second. The man holds the ball out at arms length, and fires a
bullet from the gun into it. The bullet is not absorbed 'by the cork, but
shares its kinetic energy with it, so that after the impact, the bullet and the
cork ball each have a velocity of 500 feet per second. The observer now fires a
second bullet at the cork. This bullet also has a velocity of 1000 feet per
second with respect to the observer, but now the target has a velocity of 500
feet per second in the same direction, so that there is a differential of only
500 feet per second which the bullet can share with its target. After this
impact, the bullet and the ball each have a velocity of 750 feet per second.
When the observer fires the third bullet, he finds that now there is a
differential of only 250 feet per second between it and the target, so that the
velocity of the target is raised by only 125 feet per second, and so on.
The observer notes that each succeeding bullet although it
has the same energy with respect to him, produces a smaller and smaller
acceleration in the target. He would observe that the 'mass of the target (its
resistance to acceleration) appears to increase with its velocity. If he made
mathematical calculations based upon his observations, they would show that the
greatest velocity which he could ever induce in the target would be 1000 feet
per second (the velocity of the bullets) , and that to produce this velocity it
would be necessary to fire an infinite number of bullets. His experiment
demonstrates conclusively
13
that as the velocity of the target approaches 1000 feet
per second, his ability to further accelerate it approaches zero. Persons with
lesser intelligence or insight than our observer might be convinced that this
figure of 1000 feet per second was an absolute and inescapable limit. The
observer, however, as we said, has greater understanding. After he has
accelerated his target to the `limiting' velocity of 1000 feet per second (by
firing an infinite number of bullets), he steps aboard a small space ship (with
which he has thoughtfully provided himself), and takes off in the direction of
the target. He accelerates his ship to a velocity of 1000 feet per second, with
respect to his starting point, and now finds that he is back upon exactly the
same energy level as his target, and he can begin his shooting all over again.
He observes that his first bullet accelerates the target to a velocity of 500
feet per second with respect to his new reference point, and he notes that the
`infinite mass' of the target returns to its original 10 grams, as soon as he
reaches the same energy level. He realizes then that the `increasing mass' of
the target is only the measure of the kinetic energy differential which exists
between them. The mass approaches infinity only as the energy level approaches
that of the accelerating force. (In this case it is 1000 feet per second.) In
the case of the quantity C, usually called the velocity of light, the
differential is equal to the total energy inherent in matter, (about 3 x 1010
centimeters per second or 9 x 1020 ergs per gram.) It is, therefore,
a maximum or limiting velocity, but only with respect to a given reference
point.
In our discussion of non-linearity of physical law, it was
pointed out that the energy inherent in a gram, or any other quantity of matter
is precisely the quantity of energy necessary to accelerate its mass to
a velocity equal to the quantity C by energy conversion. This statement may be
hotly disputed by some students who have not yet learned to distinguish between
matter and mass. Their argument is to the effect that no mass can ever
be accelerated to the velocity of light since the mass would then be 'infinite'
and consequently the energy required to produce the velocity would also be
`infinite.' The incorrectness of this assumption can be demonstrated simply by
pressing the button of a pocket flashlight. A beam of light will be produced
which any physicist will agree has mass and which, by its very definition, is
moving at the velocity of light. Yet all of the energy required is released by
a small amount of chemical change taking place within the cells of the battery.
———— ♦ ————
The historian is a prophet looking backwards.
- August Wilhelm Von Schlegel
14
THE ANGELIC WORD
Urgent with Love it comes, the angelic Word,
Singing against the heart. Open unto the song
And beat it forth again, urgent with Love,
We must encircle the whole world tonight.
On the soul's altar glows the transmitted fire;
Bend to the altar, breathe upon the glow
The stirring whisper of the soul's reply" –
According to thy Word," - but urgent with Love:
We must encircle the whole world tonight!
The ember breaks, mounting into a flame
Too great to be contained by littleness.
Let it cast down our walls, consume our bounds,
And spread from witting to unwitting soul,
Spilling its quickening fire among the dreams
Of all the haunted sleepers of the earth.
Urgent with Love, "according to thy Word."
We must encircle the whole world tonight!
Tomorrow's dawn shall tremble with new gold,
The shining Verb of our imperative Peace.
-William Stack
———— ♦ ————
Phillips Brooks
If you do not bring any strain to bear upon timber, one
kind is as good as another. A splinter of a broom is as good as the best ash or
hickory if you do not put any weight upon it-if you lay it down on the carpet
and do nothing with it. And when men are tried in life what they are is made to
appear.
—— ♦ ——
The nation's financial problem boils down to this. How to
keep on paying for a war we aren't using any more; while trying to lay by
enough money to fight another war we don't want.
—— ♦ ——
Understanding is a bridge from lunacy to equilibrium in a
confused, infuriated world going through cataclysmic change, which is affecting
all countries and all people. - Lawrence River
15
The idea of the Sanctuary of Thought was given to me by
Captain Aura Rhanes of the planet Clarion who appeared in person in Prescott, Arizona,
on or about Dec. 1, 1955, and gave the following instruction, stating that
Peace of the World was her people's main concern.
She stated that through the following measures Peace would
be available to the world.
Through cooperation and voluntary action of ten thousand
"Friends of Peace" throughout this world of ours, a plot of land will
be acquired near Prescott, Arizona, at between 5000 and 7000 feet altitude and
in tall pines. Suitable buildings will be erected with sufficient quarters so
that those cooperating, and their families, may come, relax, meditate and get
acquainted with other "Peace Lovers."
The laws of the land and the Bible will be the governing
factors. A committee of five will operate this really non-profit
"Sanctuary of Thought." Comfortable quarters for approximately fifty
persons will be the primary objective, together with a meeting hall where all
may hear and be heard. The "Golden Rule," the rights and privileges
of others, to be respected, will be the limit of rules for attendance.
All costs of attending, food, etc., are to be paid by
those attending, at actual cost. Visitors will be admitted on a first come,
first served basis, to be decided by the committee, whose decision and notice
will be final.
As funds accrue and necessity dictates, further expansion
will be made. A voluntary offering of $10.00 or more, with a further family
offering of $0.50 per month or $6.00 per year, will be accepted to help with
expense and maintenance of the Sanctuary.
Ownership will be vested in a Trust of Management. There
will be no shares or stock for sale. The Sanctuary will be non-denominational,
inter-racial, non-discriminatory, and non-profit.
If you believe in this thought, make yourself known. We
invite your correspondence and cooperation.
SANCTUARY OF THOUGHT
TRUMAN BETHURUM
P. O. Box 1028
Prescott, Arizona
16
BOOKS
RECOMMENDED
AS AN APPROACH TO UNDERSTANDING
ARMY oF LIGHT, by florence Donovan, R.N...........................................
$1.50
great saucer conspiracy, by maj. donal keyhoe...........................
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INTo this world and out again, by george van tassel ................. 1.50
flying saucers and common sense, by waveney girvan ............ 3.50
peace, by florence donovan, r.n. ............................................................. .50
report of unidentified flying objects, by capt. edw.
ruppelt 4.50
the search for bridey murphy, by morey bernstein ..................... 3.75
the case for the ufo, by m.k. jessup......................................................
3.50
to men of earth, by daniel fry ................................................................... 1.00
Unity in the spirit, by comptesse de pierrefeu ................................. 2.50
universe and dr. einstein, by lincoln barnet.....................................
2.75
white sands incident, by daniel fry.........................................................
1.50
wisdom in practise, by vera stanely alder........................................
2.75
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telonic research bulletin.............................................................................
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