Russian mathematician claims all history is a conspiracy

[heiss93]

Fomenko applies the statistical method to history. His works were published in the Soviet Union era, although criticized as being non-Marxist. He claims that Biblical and Ancient Greek and Roman history were all inventions of the Renaissance based on the real history of the so-called Dark Ages.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/New_chronology_fomenko

Fomenko became interested in Morozov's theories in 1973. In 1980, together with a few colleagues from the mathematics department of Moscow State University, he published several articles on "new mathematical methods in history" in peer-reviewed journals. The articles stirred a lot of controversy, but ultimately Fomenko failed to win any respected historians to his side. By the early 1990s, Fomenko shifted his focus from trying to convince the scientific community via peer-reviewed publications to publishing books. Beam writes that Fomenko and his colleagues were discovered by the Soviet scientific press in the early 1980s, leading to "a brief period of renown"; a contemporary review from the journal Questions of History complained, "Their constructions have nothing in common with Marxist historical science."[10] His books range from popular to rather involved, yet accessible to educated readers.

[mikelepore]

Some old writings are still available to permit carbon-14 dating. The Dead Sea Scrolls, which include copies of the Old and New Testaments, were measured to be nearly 2000 years old.

[Bud Struggle]

This is why mathematicians shouldn't teach history and historians shouldn't teach mathematics.

[Dimentio]

Carbon-14 is not a conclusive method of dating historical material. It becomes more accurate the longer back in time you go.

As for Fomenko's theories, they are obviously made on the assumption that since many historical seems to be similar, that they are different accounts of the same events. A marxist would know that history tend to repeat itself because of the class interests, but a mathematician doesn't see history in that manner of course.

There are some "more" serious theories about the so-called "Greek dark age" (1000-750 BC), which is claimed to never have existed due to the fact that the dynastic chronology of Egypt is mixed up due to the fact that the 22nd and 23d dynasties for some time reigned simultaneously.

[Publius]

The Unabomber was a mathematician too.

He was also fucking crazy.

[Scary Monster]

It always seems conspiracy theories are born out of a lack of understanding about the world, politics and economics, etc. Like with the whole New World Order crap. Shit like that.

[Dimentio]

It always seems conspiracy theories are born out of a lack of understanding about the world, politics and economics, etc. Like with the whole New World Order crap. Shit like that.

At the same time, historians should be cautious in condemning revisionist theories about for example chronology. I am not so much talking about the Dark Ages or the Antiquity as I am talking about bronze age history. All we have are some ruins, stone monuments with inscriptions and a scarce historical material, written or carved.

The city of Troy was denounced as a myth until Heinrich Schliemann re-discovered it in the late 19th century. Until this century, King Arthur was thought of as a mythical figure. There were actually two celtic rulers named Arthur who ruled large parts of Wales and western England, but their existence was omitted due to the refusal of British historians to take Welsh-written documents seriously.

[mikelepore]

Carbon-14 is not a conclusive method of dating historical material. It becomes more accurate the longer back in time you go.

The method may not provide as many signigicant figures as some people believe, but it has enough accuracy for discarding the suggestion that "Biblical and Ancient Greek and Roman history were all inventions of the Renaissance...."

[Dimentio]

The method may not provide as many signigicant figures as some people believe, but it has enough accuracy for discarding the suggestion that "Biblical and Ancient Greek and Roman history were all inventions of the Renaissance...."

Actually, ruins, mutually conclusive scripture from various civilisations are better at disarming that bizarre Fomenko theory.