Wizard Bill

This is all bogus; a little investigation will reveal that the names of the archeologists do not refer to real people that could be at the places mentioned at the right times. There is no scientific literature backing up such excavations. It is all fantasy. If you read the account on abovetopsecret you will see that the entire story above stems from a single entry in 1992; to wit, <!--[if gte mso 10]> .......> /* Style Definitions */ table.MsoNormalTable {mso-style-name:"Table Normal"; mso-tstyle-rowband-size:0; mso-tstyle-colband-size:0; mso-style-noshow:yes; mso-style-parent:""; mso-padding-alt:0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; mso-para-margin:0in; mso-para-margin-bottom:.0001pt; mso-pagination:widow-orphan; font-size:10.0pt; font-family:"Times New Roman";} ........> <![endif]--> Radioactive Ash in <st1:place><st1:city>Rajasthan</st1:city>, <st1:country-region>India</st1:country-region></st1:place> Many web sites which also reference the Mahabharata have picked up an interesting story. They claim that according to World Island Review, January 1992 (some say 1997), there is a heavy layer of radioactive ash in Rajasthan, India, covering a three-square mile area, ten miles west of Jodhpur. Further, there are claims that scientists have unearthed an ancient city and evidence of an atomic blast dating back thousands of years, from 8,000 to 12,000 years. A blast is said to have destroyed most of the buildings and probably a half-million people, the bomb used being about the size of the ones dropped on <st1:country-region><st1:place>Japan</st1:place></st1:country-region> in 1945. Radiation is still so intense that the area is highly dangerous. The single source of this story seems to be a post on <st1:date year="1992" day="8" month="3">March 8, 1992</st1:date> to KeelyNet. Rajasthan and <st1:city><st1:place>Jodhpur</st1:place></st1:city> are real cities. The problem is, "World Island Review" does not seem to exist. Sri Kisari Mohan Ganguli was probably a real person as he is referenced in many places as a translator of the Mahabharata. According to one person on Amazon, "The third translation, and the only complete one I have, is that by Kisari Mohan Ganguli, published between 1883-1896." If that is correct, 96 years would have passed since Ganguli translated the Mahabharata and the story was written. The story claims that "Historian Kisari Mohan Ganguli says that Indian sacred writings are full of such descriptions, which sound like an atomic blast as experienced in <st1:city><st1:place>Hiroshima</st1:place></st1:city> and <st1:city><st1:place>Nagasaki</st1:place></st1:city>." The word "says"-- present tense--makes it seem like Ganguli was recently consulted. Instead, it is most likely that he was a long dead in 1992. "Archeologist Francis Taylor" does not connect with any real person in my brief search. Reasonable doubt: This story could be a hoax that spread simply because it supports people's preexisting beliefs.<o:p></o:p> <o:p> </o:p> <o:p></o:p> (the above quote from xenophilia ) Oppenheimer believed no such thing about ancient nuclear warfare, this is a complete fabrication. Sorry. I do physics all day and have met people who worked on the Manhatten project on several occasions, have visited Los Alamos etc etc and there is zero possibility that anyone there believes in ancient nuclear weapons. A little investigation will show that what I say is correct; the only way to keep believing this hoax is to speak to, and read from the writings of, people who believe in it, and ignore all others. If that's what you want, then no appeal to reality will do any good.

Hello-- I'm a physicist at NCSU and can tell you without doubt that this discussion is based on a hoax. India tested nuclear weapons in the area described, which along with accidents etc. can explain an area of high radioactivity. A weapons blast thousands of years ago would be extremely difficult if not impossible to detect above background. The infrastructure required for nuclear weapons construction could not be missed (mines, for example, which are permanent). I have familiarity with nuclear weapon design and it is a very sophisticated area requiring precision machining, materials processing, and many areas of development that were just barely possible in the 1940's. It couldn't be done in the 1930's, much less 3000 BC! The translated texts would not be quoted in those forms before WWII. Prabhupad was hopelessly misinformed about scientific subjects; in the above quote, for example, he says "The atomic energy works wholly on total combustibility," which I'm afraid is meaningless; combustion is a chemical reaction, not nuclear, and the nuclear reaction is far from "total" in any sense of the word. He said many things that are beyond his training or exposure. Best to realize his limitations and find out for yourself from people and sources that are expert and accurate about scientific matters.