“Let's teach history in a different and better way”.

Does that mean actually teaching it at all; teaching facts (that would be different) or getting better at making it up as you go along. I wonder if this gentleman - “a theoretical chemist, not a professional historian, with a BOOK TO SELL - can tell us.

No. The author has just reviewed his own book (a task best left an independent 'other’), and he has also advertised another book of his at the end

//with a BOOK TO SELL//

"My recent book, The Information Explosion... is free to download and circulate."

//and he has also advertised another book of his at the end//

No, that's the same book again. And he's still giving it away free rather than selling it.

You can't build up the fame and authoritah of the Royals and the British Commonwealth on wussy social history!

Remember the most famous Royals:

- William the Conqueror

- Richard the Lionheart

- Henry V of Agincourt

- Elizabeth I beating the Spanish Armada

- even Queen Victoria who massively expanded her Empire by bribery and conquest.

See "Rule Britannia" starring Nelson of Trafalgar rulng the waves, Battles of Britain and of the Atlantic http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_FZchwE0R5E

and Trains and Toys for Big Boys!

A better way? From who's perspective? Yours, mine, his or hers?
From the dawn of history until now, folks have wandered wherever they wanted regardless of who was there and how much they objected.
The present is a mighty river flowing into the sea! And is gone in a moment, never ever to been seen recovered or recompensed.
Every modern nation has an embarrassing history, as land was or is being stolen or "resumed".
Like ancient China, built by and large on the spoils of war. Ditto the Ottoman empire. Or modern day America. Settled like here, by the scum of England who annexed land in Scotland Ireland and Wales.
Then go rid of the rebellious former landholding troublemakers by transporting them halfway around the world, with as the first consequence, a huge mortality rate
! My only concern for history is the lessons we never ever seem to learn from them or that empires created by annexing other folks land, usually resides in the ego and fantasies of one or a very few individuals!
Even so, the entire racial cohort is expected to share the blame or responsibility.
Teach history any damn way you like as long as you live in the present, the only time you have! As we plan and or evocate for a far better, much more harmonious, cohabitating future!
People already here can't disappear into the ground or get out of the way! And needs the same thing every other human needs, food shelter, security and a viable future.
History can be weaponized and used to fracture centuries of harmonious peaceful, cohabitation with mutual benefits!
Alan B.

History is not only about conquest and land annexation/occupation. It's also applicable to a more recent past, us and how we treat each other or the wider community.
I'm sure by now, most folks would have seen those footballers, running on to the field wearing beanies. And to highlight a shameful history of brain cancer and a death toll that hasn't been statistically reduced by very much during the last thirty years.
And remains doggedly above the annual road toll! And likely to remain that way until the P.M. or a highly placed minister, has to witness the death of a child or beloved spouse?
Because that's likely what it would take to get these alleged Christians off their universal arse? And removing the legislated rules an regulations (their's) that prevent the development of, for peaceful purpose only, nuclear reactors or a nuclear industry.
And as MSR thorium, because it makes more miracle cancer curing Bismuth 213 than traditional rectors! Because MSR is not a pressurized system, can be extracted without unnecessary and costly shutdowns!
Let's teach history a different way, particularly one that highlights the generational ineptitude and clinical callous indifference of successive parliaments from both sides of the aisle, to this tragic and entirely unnecessary tragic history.
The people killed by this demonstrable, historical political indifference, and for literal decades; just as tragically dead and innocent as those kids killed by madmen with guns!
PRIORITIES!
Alan B.

plantagenet,
Actually the development of the British Empire depended far more on the effects of compassion and greed than any monarch.

"Limitless growth of population or industry on a finite planet is a logical impossibility."

Perhaps the author could also do a little historic research on the dismal history of the doom-sayer from Malthus through to Ehrlich and Gore.

While limitless grow on population might be difficult to sustain, we are centuries from that prospect and in all likelihood population levels will be falling by the end of this century.

While economic growth might not be limitless that doesn't mean we are anywhere near the actual, unknowable, limit. But every generation beleives it is at or near the limit.

A study of the history of that would do the author and many others the world of good.

There are two reasons to study history: the sheer joy of it; the education as to how we got here from there and where to next. Do it for one or both.

Footnote: Bismuth 213 is an alpha particle isotope that in therapy, is attached to an anti-cancer antibody. That goes directly to the cancer cells, killing them alone! Without harming healthy tissue.
And because Bismuth 213 has a half-life of just 45 minutes time and distance is of the essence!
Bismuth has proved a successful and lasting therapy, And not just for death sentence brain cancer but, myeloid leukaemia Lung, Liver Prostate cancers as well?
Even when the patient is in stage four and beyond all hope, courtesy of indifferent parliaments, with the power to rectify this terrible repeat time and again, heartbreak situation for ar too many.
Dead folk don't vote, well, generally not as a rule in free and fair elections! But their fully informed grieving relatives will!
Incidentally, because it's an alpha particle isotope and able to be attached to an antibody, many otherwise terminal illnesses may be able to be successfully treated?
Alan B

Nuclear oncology is just soooooooooooooooooooooooo relevant to the topic ;-p

All official institutional HIS-stories are built upon two connected maxims:
The golden rule - those who have the most gold get to write the "official" HIS-stories.

The barrel of a gun rule, which is obviously closely related to the golden rule - those who have the most guns get to write the "official" HIS-story.

All "official" HIS-stories are thus used as a weapon to justify the "authority" of those who control any given society or culture, and now in the "21st century" the entire humanly created world-Mummery - as described on this this site: http://www.historyisaweapon.com , and this site too:
http://www.thirdworldtraveler.com

But that having been said all of our politics and HIS-stories are driven by dark irrational unconscious psychological (psychic) forces as described on these two websites:
http://www.psychohistory.com

http://www.violence.de/index.html

Or you could simply read Steven Pinker and save yourself a lot of time and effort working on history at all.

He does it all for you, and arrives at the fact that Democracy is the key. Keeping it honest and corruption free is the answer to most ills facing modern civilisations.

Keep cruising!

Pete,

Thorium didn't get a mention.

Daffy Duck.

I suspect this will not draw you into a debate, but I find your theories on all things, as you present them on this page, a bit bizarre.

I think you need to come out on this one, and declare your hand.

Do you believe history to be written as a form of propaganda? It seems obvious to me, an historical event must be flavoured by the side writing the account. Why is that wrong?

If you wish to enlarge your thinking on historical events, why wouldn't you simply read more varying accounts of a particular event from different sides.
That surly is the advantage of a literate society, it allows for open mindedness as a premium.

Don't smoke, don't drink, don't gamble, & didn't even mix with bad women all that much. What a goody goody two shoes I am.

I have had a few vices though. The fool tax payer paid & lot to teach me to fly, & let me go rushing all over the sky in a rather obsolete jet, but otherwise my vices have been rather expensive.

There were my Formula 2 Lotus & Brabham racing cars, one hell of an expensive hobby.

Then the yacht. I had to sell the Brabham & the business to pay for that, it's conversion from racer to cruiser & other such.

Then the horses. Show jumpers & eventers, none of this pretty stuff getting judged for me.

And now the old sports cars, not all that bad, if you can fix most of the oily bits yourself.

The point is I could never have afforded any of these, if I had been paying the huge tax burden imposed on those who's vices involve the common ones. I had to do things one at a time even then to afford them. I have tried to explain to my son, who would like to do the things I have, that he could if he just gave up all those things he enjoys so much.

As this old body gets more broken down each year, I know my vices have taken their toll. I can't help wondering if the wine women & song vices would have taken any greater toll, or been any more fun/satisfying. I will never know now, & really don't care too much. I have nothing to complain about.

However if smoking or grog gives anywhere as much pleasure as flying, racing, sailing or the like, my advice is do it. I'd hate to die rich, having led a safe & boring life. As a smoking mate says, "If smoking doesn't kill me, I'll live till I die.

Dear Dan,

I agree with Duffy:

«Do you believe history to be written as a form of propaganda?»

Yes. Most often to glorify the people, leaders and ideas mentioned, but here and then, to criticise them.

«It seems obvious to me, an historical event must be flavoured by the side writing the account. Why is that wrong?»

Our life is not without limit, so why waste it on studying someone else's prejudices?

The author also has his prejudice: he does not glorify leaders and wars, yet he glorifies science and cooperation.

Towards the end, the author declares:
"It would make no sense to proceed in this way if knowledge were not permanent, and if it were not shared by the entire world."

However, knowledge is not permanent. Not only were ancient technologies lost and the memories of the vast majority of ancestors too, but mankind itself, even the universe itself, are not permanent.

The author is deluded: the entire world will never know it all, nor does it need to.

The most common reason we become old and die, is that we carry that much rubbish in our minds, especially gossip. Ancient people used to live several 100's of years because they cleaned their mind regularly and discarded irrelevant nonsense, just like we now regularly brush our teeth. The information about the longevity of those people has now been consigned to mythology rather than history because historians hate the notion of forgetting useless details.

John Avery states
<Humans often exhibit kindness to those who are closest to themselves, to their families and friends, to their own social group or nation. By contrast, the terrible aggression seen in wars and genocides is directed towards outsiders. Human nature seems to exhibit what might be called ``tribalism": altruism towards one's own group; aggression towards outsiders. Humans often exhibit kindness to those who are closest to themselves, to their families and friends, to their own social group or nation. By contrast, the terrible aggression seen in wars and genocides is directed towards outsiders. Human nature seems to exhibit what might be called ``tribalism": altruism towards one's own group; aggression towards outsiders.>

And here’s why. What needs to be taught and comprehensively understood about
tribal, (ethnic,racial) war and agression in history in the history classes.

In the same article he says teach, biology
Well, you can't teach biology, without pointing out, that mankind like every species on
the planet is biologically driven to protect his closest biological, genetic offspring, from all comers, if needs be. To a human their closest biological bloodline, is their CHILDREN, parents, brothers sisters,Aunties,Uncles,cousins, and by generational tribal intermarriage, the tribe around them
They have no biological imperative, to expend time and energy, trying to protect people who aren't biologically, and genetically closest. (not close kin)
In fact they and their bloodlines are in direct competition for the territory and survival
resources needed for our children, to survive and prosper, through the generations.
We need to understand this reason for constant ethnic warfare and ethnic cleansing not gloss over it, because “if you do not learn that mankind is hardwired to be territorial, at the biological level( as in:- programmed by nature), you will indeed be doomed to repeat it. Failure to learn from history, that to have big, non-assimilating tribes, on the one territory, is a recipe for civil war, over territorial control.

What was the IRA’s purpose for waging, terrorist warfare. They wanted control of Ireland and they were handed 6 seats in the Irish parliament, in a peace deal.

what this article is saying is we should gloss over and leave out all the wars in history,
to reprogramme the people, let people believe lies by omission.

The left wing academics in unis have done that for the last 30years. Going on and on about the Nazis and the British Empire whilst barely mentioning, the millions killed by Japan when they invaded China in the late 1930s, The over 7million killed by the Ottomon Empire, The ethnic cleansing of other black African tribes by the Zulu, whose black descendant now claim the land belongs to them, Well the white farmers were there before the Zulus came and ethnically cleansed thousands of black people to grab the land.
Why havent these historical facts been talked about and focused on ad nauseum like the sins of the British and white people.
It is these failures to emphasise and teach these genocides, that have led to the inability in European countries of people to think for themselves and protect their cultures,
Because they are not taught a balanced few of the war like natures and atrocities committed by other cultures who they unsuspectingly have allowed to immigrate into their countries.
All because what this author espouses, as a great new idea, has already been happening in our unis and has led to the disastrous situations, we have in Western nations today.