Prehistory Decoded

Another paper that rejects Holliday et al.'s (2023; HEA) Gish gallop has been accepted for publication in Earth Science Reviews, the journal that published HEA. Because of the word limit imposed by ESR on our rebuttal, we could publish only a summary paper that points out only the major errors in each section of Holliday et al. (2023). We sought other journals but the editors refused our request to publish our response in their journals, stating that ESR is the appropriate vehicle. Given this limitation, we had little option but to publish a summary in ESR with the extended details in Airbursts and Cratering Impacts (see the previous blog post ). So the longer paper in ACI should be seen as an extension of the summary paper in ESR. Note that, originally, ESR limited our response to 3000 words, which is clearly inadequate when rebutting an article of over 96,000 words! After appeal, ESR relented by allowing a word length limit of 6000 words. Ultimately, we were allowed to publish a ...

Our rebuttal to Holliday et al. (2023) is finally published in Airbursts and Cratering Impacts. Rebuttal of Holliday et al.’s Comprehensive Gish Gallop of the Younger Dryas Impact Hypothesis Martin B. Sweatman, James L. Powell, Allen West In an article comprising some 96,000 words, Holliday et al. (2023)  (HEA) claim to have “comprehensively refuted” the Younger Dryas impact hypothesis (YDIH), even though it has been corroborated by scores of articles in dozens of peer-reviewed journals based on the discovery of some combination of synchronous nanodiamonds, exotic microspherules and platinum enrichment at more than 50 Younger Dryas boundary sites on five continents. No hypothesis or theory is immune from criticism, but to “comprehensively refute” one so well established should require dispositive falsifying evidence. However, HEA provide no new evidence of their own and many of their arguments are based on faulty reasoning. Their remaining differences of opinion do not lend themsel...

The following paper will be presented at the conference " Fourth International Symposium on Megalithic Monuments and Cult Practices", October 10-14, South West University "Neofit Rilski", Bulgaria. METEOR STRIKES RECORDED IN PREHISTORIC ART: FROM GÖBEKLI TEPE TO LASCAUX   Martin B. Sweatman   Abstract: Earth has endured an episode of coherent catastrophism over the last 20-30 thousand years or so. This means strikes by comet fragments were much more common and violent during this period than the long-term average. Over most of this time, humans were unable to record these comet strikes in writing. But, it seems they were still able to record what happened to them, and when, with a form of proto-writing that involved constellations and precession of the equinoxes. Here, I describe evidence for two cosmic impacts recorded on stone; Pillar 43 at Göbekli Tepe and the Lascaux Shaft Scene. Each is an artistic masterpiece designed to endure. The impact described at...