Tag Archives: literature

White Paper: Biblical “Giants” and Contemporary Genetics: Text, Physiology, Population Variation, and Myth

Executive summary Biblical texts refer to unusually large people and peoples—Nephilim, Rephaim, Anakim, and individual figures like Goliath and Og. Careful textual analysis suggests the Bible depicts exceptional but human-scale tallness, not fantasy-scale beings. Modern science explains unusual height through … Continue reading

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White Paper: The Need for Caution in Treating Helen Keller’s Writings as Gospel Truth

Executive Summary Helen Keller (1880–1968) remains an iconic figure in educational and inspirational circles. Her remarkable triumph over deafness and blindness is celebrated globally as a testament to human perseverance and intellectual courage. However, in popular culture, especially in motivational … Continue reading

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White Paper: Conditions for the Survival of Accounts of Life and History: Why Narratives Fail to Match Reality

Abstract This paper explores the systemic conditions that determine which accounts of life and history endure, how preservation biases shape collective memory, and why the resulting narratives—whether in biography, historiography, or myth—inevitably fail to conform to the shape of reality. … Continue reading

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White Paper: Intentions and Misunderstandings in the First Encounters Between Columbus and the Indigenous Peoples of the Americas

An Objective Analysis Without Ideological Bias Abstract This white paper examines the initial encounters between Christopher Columbus and the Indigenous peoples of the Caribbean from the perspective of intentionality—that is, what each side meant to accomplish and how those intentions … Continue reading

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White Paper: The Feast of Tabernacles (Sukkot) Through the Lens of Pardes

Abstract This white paper explores the Feast of Tabernacles (Sukkot) using the Pardes method of biblical interpretation—Peshat (literal), Remez (hint/allegory), Derash (homiletic/midrashic), and Sod (mystical/hidden). Each level unveils dimensions of meaning that connect agricultural joy, historical memory, prophetic hope, and … Continue reading

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White Paper: Information, Secrecy, and Social Power in Jane Austen’s Fiction

Abstract Jane Austen’s novels are not merely comedies of manners or romances; they are profound studies in epistemic politics — the social dynamics of information: who possesses it, how it is transferred, and to what end. In Austen’s world, information … Continue reading

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White Paper: The Japanese Warrior Ghost Plays, Buddhist Concepts of Wrongful Clinging, and Shinto Ideals of Harmony and Purification

Executive Summary This white paper explores the intersection of Japanese warrior ghost plays—especially those found in Noh theatre—with Buddhist and Shinto philosophical frameworks. These plays, known for their tragic depictions of restless spirits (yūrei) of fallen warriors, serve not only … Continue reading

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The Kingdom of the Picts: A White Paper on Political and Military History

Executive summary From late Roman times to the mid-9th century, the peoples later called “Picts” forged powerful polities north of the Forth, culminating in the over-kingdom of Fortriu and a period of regional hegemony. Their ascendancy was punctuated by decisive … Continue reading

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White Paper: The Historicity of Tristan and Isolde: People, Places, and Sources

Executive Summary The legend of Tristan and Isolde sits at the confluence of Insular Celtic memory, Breton transmission, and Continental literary craft. While the fully developed romance—love potion, clandestine affair, and chivalric fatalism—reflects 12th–13th-century court culture, multiple early Insular references, … Continue reading

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White Paper: The Relationship Between Linear A and the Cretan Isolate in the Greek Alphabet

Executive Summary The decipherment of Linear A remains one of the central unsolved challenges in Aegean linguistics. The language encoded in Linear A is widely regarded as pre-Greek, unrelated to Indo-European, and possibly a “Cretan isolate.” Centuries later, in the … Continue reading

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