Winstanley college
GAIA
Autumn 2023 issue
History - Geography - Geology articles, games, quizzes and more!
Excellence
Support inspiration
Contents Page
Page 3: Note from the chief editor and assistants Page 4: Meet the magazine team Page 5: An introduction to the GAIA society
Pages 6-8: What is the ULEZ expansion and why do we care? Pages 9-12: Dunes and Devils Pages 13-16: An ancient history of drugs and their uses Pages 17-20: Martian Topography Page 21: Modern history quiz! Pages 22-23: Heinrich Kramer Pages 24-25: Plesiosaurus to meet you Pages 26-28: The geology of Star Wars
Pages 29-30: Exploring Europa Page 31: History, Geology and Geography quiz! Pages 32-33: Gustav Gilbert: the discredited psychologist Pages 34-36: Machiavellianism in history Pages 37-38: The Anthropocene Page 39: Quiz answers Page 40: What’s on next term? Page 41: How to get involved in GAIA/ chief editor’s note
Note from the chief editor and assistants Hello everyone and welcome to the autumn/winter issue of the GAIA magazine! This is our first issue of the academic year and me and the whole team are incredibly excited to finally show it to you all. It has been a privilege to be a part of our team at the magazine and the GAIA society as a whole, a society which brings students with a passion for history, geography and geology together and enriches their experience at Winstanley College. This magazine has been my pride and joy for the past few months and I’m unbelievably proud of the entire editorial team for their hard work this term as I could not have put it together without their help. I would like to take this opportunity to thank my assistant editor Eva for all her support in managing the team as well as the incredible Grace, my other assistant editor, who has gone above and beyond during the production of this issue. I would also like to thank Silvia Marques, the leader of the GAIA society, who has been an inspiration to me and the entire team. In this issue, we have a wide range of exceptional articles on ancient drugs, a historical psychologist, the Plesiosaurus and much more, written by the talented students of Winstanley college, as well as a range of games and quizzes! I sincerely hope you enjoy reading– thank you and Merry Christmas! Lily Barber, Chief editor
Meet the magazine team
(from left to right) Grace Kelly (assistant editor)
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Harrison Bailey
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Lizzie Clark
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Erika Fowles
(not pictured)
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Lily Barber (chief editor)
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Martha Griffiths
Eva Marsden-Barnes (assistant editor), Nainika Rao, Jane Clark
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The GAIA magazine combines education, entertainment, inspiration and a passion for learning to create a wonderful sense of community for all those involved. Our incredible team uses their love and shared knowledge of history, geology and geography to educate and inspire the students at Winstanley College. It is a great opportunity for young writers to get involved in enrichment and further learning– writing an article for the magazine doesn’t only enhance your own knowledge, it educates your peers and is a fantastic way to become a published writer. If you would like to join our magazine team, please email H005732@winstanley.ac.uk or post on the GAIA magazine channel. To gain access to the channel please contact Silvia Marques.
The GAIA society
The GAIA society is a fantastic community dedicated to a passion for history, geography and geology– full of events and publications created for the students by the students. (photography by the talented Erika Fowles)
This term in GAIA Everybody got involved in ‘Geology rock painting’ this term, engaging in artistic activities as a treat to all our geology lovers! We also held ‘Horrible Histories Karaoke’ which has been a joy for all those who love the classic children’s show. A charity event took place this term named ‘Manny’s got a brand new hat’, organised by our amazing society leader Silvia Marques, with the aim to donate warm clothing, food and other necessary items to local homeless charity ‘the Brick’. We are very pleased to have beyond exceeded our 100 item aim. Thank you to anyone who donated!
What is the ULEZ expansion and why do we care? What is the ULEZ expansion? In August 2023, the decision was made by London Mayor Sadiq Khan to expand London’s Ultra Low Emissions Zone (ULEZ) to cover the outer boroughs of London. The expansion will require drivers of the most polluting vehicles to pay a charge of £12.50 a day to enter the Greater London Authority boundary from 29th August 2023. Khan has said that the number of vehicles that would be affected is roughly 200,000 cars out of 2.3 million that are on the roads of the capital every day. The ULEZ expansion has been greatly controversial since it was first introduced in 2019, with Khan having faced lots of opposition from both the Conservative and Labour parties.
Why is the ULEZ expansion necessary? As I was entering London in October 2023, I could clearly smell the pollution from inside the car. The stark contrast in air quality between London and the Northwest was almost astonishing, and it was obvious to me that living in such a polluted environment long-term would be detrimental to people’s health. Air pollution is a negative externality, a cost caused by a producer which is not financially incurred or compensated, which has arisen due to poor regulation by the government, as firms have been able to release pollutants into the atmosphere without having to pay the economic costs of this. This means the incentive for firms to use renewable energy has not been strong enough, and as a result, each of London’s boroughs exceeds the World Health Organisation’s limits for air pollution. Studies have also shown that 4000 people annually suffer from premature deaths in London. Hence, one of the aims of the expansion is to significantly reduce this number and overall, improve people’s health. There are fixed sources of air pollution, such as factories, and mobile sources of air pollution, such as cars - therefore the purpose of the expansion is to reduce the number of mobile sources. In turn, this will also reduce traffic congestion and help London reach net-zero targets by 2030. Climate change is at the forefront of Governments’ and political leaders’ agendas and ULEZ would help to mitigate the impacts of climate change in the future. Khan has mentioned that a further 5 million Londoners will have cleaner air, which is again important for social welfare. Overall, the ULEZ expansion is pivotal in improving social wellbeing and providing a sustainable, greener society.
Ella Adoo-Kissi-Debrah was 9 years old when she died from an asthma attack in 2013. A coroner expressed that air pollution had ‘’made a material contribution’’ to her death, thus, she was the first person in the UK to have air pollution listed as a cause of death. A report in 2018, with data collected from a monitoring station one mile from her home, found that there were unlawful levels of pollution due to lots of traffic where she lived, which was near the A21. In this report, Sir Stephen Holgate, a former government adviser, described that there was "real prospect that without unlawful levels of air pollution, Ella would not have died". What is the response to the ULEZ expansion? Firms, such as taxi companies, have started to operate in more sustainable ways in response to the expansion. For example, TX, a Chinese taxi company, is the only taxi company operating in London which meets London’s new clean air regulations. Since 2018, TX have been using 2000 licensed taxis made in China which can drive for 30 miles without releasing any pollution. This has prevented over 200,000 tonnes of CO2 emissions from being absorbed into the atmosphere, which is the equivalent to the CO2 emissions of over 110,000 commercial flights from London to Sydney. Consequently, ULEZ has meant that over 5000 electric taxis are currently being utilised in the capital, significantly reducing carbon emissions. What are the challenges of the ULEZ expansion?
It could be argued that the costs of the expansion are paramount to the economy and therefore future prosperity of London. According to the BBC, ULEZ generated £224,633,003 in 2022, an average of £18.7 million a month. But what is this revenue used for? The revenue covers the initial set-up cost of the scheme, such as signage and ANPR cameras, and any additional surplus will then be reinvested into improving London’s public transport network, such as expanding bus routes. However, the Institute of Economic Affairs has suggested that the ULEZ charge system, which charges £12.50 per day to those driving
non-compliant vehicles, is very expensive in comparison to the number of vehicles which are directly impacted, and the likely revenue generated. Furthermore, the scheme is expected to disproportionately impact the poorest residents in London, as they are less likely to own a newer, compliant vehicle. This could in turn severely affect their employment and standard of living, as people are unable to afford the daily charge. Thus, with wealth inequality already having risen in London by 2.3% in the last 20 years, the ULEZ expansion could exacerbate the pre-existing wealth disparities, and deepen cycles of poverty and illness. How successful is the ULEZ expansion likely to be? Only time will tell of the success of the expansion, but as of November 2023, London is the largest low emission zone in the world. Data also shows that there was 45% fewer non-compliant cars and vans which were detected on average per day in September as compared with June 2023. September was the first month of operation of the expanded zone, suggesting ULEZ is already having a tangible impact in London. With the UK being a dominant global power, this could influence other countries to adopt similar strategies to reduce their emissions which is a step in the right direction for meeting climate targets globally. In conclusion, the ULEZ expansion, despite its challenges, is necessary in fighting climate change and keeping the average increase in global temperatures to 1.5 degrees Celsius. Not all countries have the economic foundation to implement such sustainable strategies, therefore it is imperative that global powers such as the G7 and G20 nations have environmental sustainability at the core of future decisionmaking. Article written and researched by Mayukhi Mittal, edited by Grace Kelly
Dunes and Devils Although Mars’ desert-like surface appears to be like its terrestrial counterpart, Earth, this is not true. On both Earth and Mars, sand grains, by the force of wind, are piled up into mounds of different shapes and sizes. These range from mile-long dunes, to ridges as high as your finger. In fluid systems, sand is the most easily transported and deposited sediment grain. Bed forms are sedimentary structures produced by the fluid movement on sand. These bedforms have unique and identifiable characteristics which can tell you about the environment they formed in. Flow Regime (part)
Bedform
Description
Lower (lowest)
Plane bed
Lower plane bed, flat laminations
Lower (lower)
Ripples
Small (with respect to flow) inclined layers dipping downflow
Lower (upper)
Dunes
Larger inclined cross beds, ±ripples, dipping downflow
Upper (lower)
Plane bed
Flat layers, can include lined-up grains (parting lineations)
Upper (upper)
Antidunes
Hard to preserve reverse dunes dipping shallowly upflow
Upper (uppermost)
Chutes/ pools (rare)
Erosional, not really a bedform; rarely found preserved
(Table of bedforms)
Plane beds are like bedding planes but on a smaller scale. Their flat, parallel layers form as sandy sediment piles on top of the layers below. They may also be produced in fast-flowing environments, but you can tell the difference, as the fast flow will cause parting lineation’s in the formation. Ripples are the ridges or undulations created as sediment grains pile up on top of the bed plane (usually measured in cm). There are three main types of ripples: Asymmetrical – form in a unidirectional flow; symmetrical – form by back-and-forth flow; and climbing ripples – created from high sedimentation rates. Dunes are just very large and prominent versions of ripples, and typical examples of crossbedding. Crossbedding happens when ripples/dunes pile on top of one another interrupting/cutting into underlying layers. Dunes are the most common sedimentary structure made by flows of air or water, where the biggest
difference between river dunes and air-formed dunes is the depth of the fluid system. Due to the atmosphere having immense depth compared to a river channel, air-formed dunes are much taller than ones in rivers. In an airflow system, sediment is moved along, and the grains accumulate on the dune’s windward surface and is typically shallower than the leeward side. The difference in slopes can be seen in bed crosssections and can tell us the direction of past flow. Dune beds have two typical styles: trough – curved windward surfaces, and planar – flat windward surfaces. In strong tidal systems, dunes can develop in opposite direction, producing a feature called herringbone crossbedding. Finally, in extremely strong winds, the seafloor can be agitated, creating beds called cross-stratification – with inclined and declined layering matching the dune shapes. Antidunes share similar characteristics with dunes but are formed by opposing processes. They are formed in upper fast flow regimes, the opposite of dunes. In rivers, these dunes are marked by rapids in the current, however they are rarely preserved in the rock record due to the high flow environment they are produced in. (Bed forms under increasing flow velocities)
The smaller ripples on Earth have crests only a few inches apart, which are common in deserts, beaches and in sandstones. These are called ‘impact ripples’ as they result from windblown grains splashing into sand mounds. In 2015, NASA’s Curiosity rover sent back images of the patterns of the Martian surface, and some were very similar to the size of impact ripples found on Earth, with similarly sized grains also. However, some were ten times bigger, yet smaller than dunes (shaped more by airflow than sand impacts). How Mars has two distinct ripple scales that coexist has confused scientists, so they have tried to come up with explanations for their presence.
(Martian dunes)
One explanation is that middle-sized strctures result from the continuous growth of impact ripples, which is enabled by Mars’ low air pressure. However, this is unlikely as scientists have observed an absence of ripples with crests spaced between 8 and 30 inches apart. Others have suggested that the shapes could result from a hydrodynamic instability already known to produce windblown dunes in deserts and similar mounds in riverbeds on Earth. A final speculation is that the larger Martain ripples and dunes are controlled by the same anomaly we observe in underwater formations. This anomaly would only arise after
mounds grow past a certain size and would result from global atmospheric properties and local factors. This anomaly is completely hypothetical and has not been observed in the natural dune environment. There are multiple dune formations on Mars where sand and the wind interact. They include barchans longitudinal dunes parallel to the wind; star dunes - arms radiating from a central peak and transverse dunes - form at right angles to the wind (common on Earth’s beaches). Martian barchans have been the focus of scientists as they can be detected in lower resolution photographs. This is due to the lack of highresolution imaging of Mars, however, with NASA’s Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter, they can now resolve this issue. The distinctive barchans can be over 305 metres across, and researchers have trained a machine-learning system to identify over 700,000 barchans from the imaging of the Martian surface. These observations have then been used to create a global map that shows the directions of the planet’s winds. Due to Mars’ thin atmosphere and weak winds, the barchans migrate very lowly compared to those of Earth. A result of this is that the barchans on Mars today were shaped by winds of the past. Martian wind patterns are most prevalent during southern summer, with northerly winds around the equator and a c cyclonic rotation around the Martian North pole. (NASA’s wind maps) By using these wind maps, scientists are hoping to gain the ability of predicting some of the Martian dust storms. The reason for doing this is to protect any further missions, for example, in 2018 a giant dust storm blanketed NASA’s Opportunity rover and led to the end of its mission. Similar storms are said to occur every few years, so being able to predict them would be a powerful tool. Convective atmospheric vortices on Mars are called Martian dust devils. Although they are comparable to our terrestrial dust devils in formation and appearance, they are usually much larger. The confirmed existence of Martian dust devils came from NASA’s Viking probes in the 1980s, they photographed the surface revealing tracks and used meteorological instruments to confirm convective vortices as the cause. The basic mechanism that forms dust devils is as follows: solar energy heats up the Martian surface, causing warm air to rise through the cooler air above, creating an updraft. Horizontal wind then causes rotation forming a vortex, which then lifts surface material forming a visible dust devil. Their terrestrial counterparts are around three times smaller, with Martian ones reaching up to heights of 8 kilometres and widths of 700 metres (lasting over 25 minutes). This greater height is possibly due to a planetary boundary layer which is thicker than Earth’s. Dust devils occur frequently on Mars and occur at warmer times of the year, just like on Earth.
These devils are thought to play an important role in the climate of Mars due to their ability of uplifting large amounts of surface material high above the ground. They may therefore be responsible for as much as 30% of the dust found in Mars’ atmosphere. This creates a warming effect and regulates the amount of water vapour in the atmosphere. As they expose lower layers of dark unconsolidated rocks, the change in surface albedo may contribute to the alteration of local climates. When looking at tracks left by Martian dust devils, they are distinguished by their dark, filament-like appearance. Their patterns reveal several trends regarding the behaviour and their paths tend to be straight or curvilinear and can be up to 75 kilometres in length.
(Martian dust devil) Article written and researched by Amber Wells, edited by Grace Kelly and Lizzie Clark
An Ancient history of drugs and their uses First uses of drugs? Drug usage can be documented back to the early neolithic eras, whilst written sources only date back to the 1-2 millenniums BCE, archaeological evidence suggests that drug usage dates to possibly 58,000 years ago (grave site in Shanidar dated to this period found with psychedelic plants pollen), this would suggest we had been consuming mind-altering substances for almost a third of our species existence on earth! But why? “Beer, wine, weed, opium? It seems that ancient inhabitants of the Near East had a rock and roll lifestyle! It was quite the contrary.’’ (Guerra-Doce PHD) this quote sums up the reason and usage of ancient drug usage, it was not for any purpose of pleasure but instead used primarily in religious context. However, in truth we will never know the prominence of drug use in ancient neolithic societies as only the wealthy/elite would be able to create tombs capable of withstanding the elements and therefore very few surviving evidence is available.
Documentation of Drugs Drugs in the Middle east The first documents that tell us of drugs within the ancient world were found in Egypt from
an ancient papyrus that described a brewery thought to produce beer. However, a more evidential example of drug usage was found in Mesopotamia (circa 3400 BCE), ‘A general history of drugs’, by Antonio Escohotado details the primary evidence of drugs in ancient Mesopotamia -cuneiform tablets that depict the ‘joy plant’, which was most likely Opium, its name gives us certainty that they were aware of its effects and therefore most likely used it for both recreational and medical purposes. Another case of Opium use comes from legends such as ‘The Odyssey’ in which Helen supposedly receives Opium from an Egyptian woman. Homer proceeds to state Egypt to be a land where they grow all sorts of herbs and poisons. Once again, this case of Opioid harvesting was likely used for pleasure, medical necessity or possibly to drug others without their knowledge for unknown means. However this poses the question- why would any blooming civilisation want to farm drugs on such a mass scale? Well the answer is very simple- money. Drugs like these were most likely sold for huge trade equivalents and had a good enough quality to the point that meant Egyptian Opium became a seal of quality. Another essential Middle-Eastern drug worth studying is Cannabis, which likely played a very similar role to Opium in the ancient Middle East, with evidence for its use as incense, a medical remedies and a possible use for pleasure. Though alcohol is mostly seen as a legal drug, it is a substance that historically appears to be the most admonished, something that brings negativity. This is supported by laws in Hammurabi’s code, and in Egypt, restricting its usage within the Bible (Old Testament) and others that appear to condemn alcohol.
Asia A few hundred years after the codification in Mesopotamia, the Duke of a Chinese region Zhou Gong did something very similar with moral condemnation of alcohol in ancient China. Other drugs in China however, are less evident due to lack of restrictions in both the realms of medicine and in religious context. There are also plenty of references to spirits in the context of religious festivals, and the famous announcement of drunkenness was also written at this time. The drug however, was not banned nor stated to be evil– only the people who abused it. Cannabis dates furthest back to China in 4000 BCE, where it held no religious significance and possibly, even some exceptions such as a burial tomb with 789 grams of cultivated and clean cannabis with a modern street value of over 10 grand! Cannabis was also a staple grain in ancient China and was also a significant medicinal plant. Opium however, was not an ancient drug in China with its history only dating back to the 2nd century AD.
India, on the other hand, had a religious relationship with Cannabis– in fact it was depicted as the favourite drink of Indra (the Warrior Goddess). The drug likely also had a recreational purpose, as Brahman tradition shows how it brings joy and bravery, and it was definitely used to some extent for medicinal purposes. It is still is used today in rural villages, as it is rumoured to alleviate the symptoms of many illnesses from fever to tuberculosis (though this is not proven). Although it is as ancient as cannabis in this region, the drug Opium- most likely sourced from Mesopotamian trade- never gained much interest until the rise of Islam , after which it appears to be far more widespread in the region. Across many religions from the 2nd millennium BC , there is reference to Soma, a drug that has been shrouded in complete mystery for a long time. A drug which was eventually declared to be extinct by scholars– a likely catalyst for many religious traditions in ancient India.
Pre-Colombian America Something worth mentioning is that in the Amazon, hallucinogenic plants are still so prevalent that bees have been shown to make a psychoactive type of honey which the native tribes often use. On to Central America, as evident in the above images, mushrooms were the main narcotic of Central American civilisations, displayed by the early evidence of their use in the 10th century BC. The plant was clearly religiously symbolic as shown by the carving’s trunks containing important Gods, animals and people who look ecstatic. This civilisation and the others around it appeared to lack any need for expansion and instead explored avenues such as drugs and the cultural life. There does also appear to be some dangerous type of drug that was found but seems too toxic for casual use anywhere. In the Andean civilisations mushrooms also played an important role, however most evidence appears around the early Middle Ages therefore it does not meet the requirements to be considered an ancient drug.
Mystery cults of Greece and Rome
The conditions of the rising empire of Rome and its dying republic created the perfect breeding ground for a new religion that needed some form of self-sacrifice and redemption, leading to a rise in mystery cults whose practices were synonymous with drug usage. These cults were often promoted by the emperors in bids to halt the rise of Christianity. A religion whose tenants endangered the failing empire.
Many of the practices within these cults involved prolonged fasts preceding the ingestion of wine and bread, a practice that would create massive opportunity for hallucinations. There was however, a second kind of cult that had remained from Greece, one of Dionysus or Bacchus. This cult would follow the myths of the god and his followers, and held weeks of revelry that included mass consumption of alcohol, psychedelic drugs and sexual activity practiced in large groups. This was a cult that- while open with activities - were prone to clashing with the authorities and, in the 2 nd century BC, were some of the first to experience religious persecution in Rome.
Information cited from Antonio Escohotado Article written and edited by Oliver Towler and edited by Lily Barber
Martian Topography A topographic view of Mars can show many distinguishable features of the surface, with characteristics related to certain processes. Mars has many significant topographic features, such as Olympus Mons, Valles Marineris and Hellas Planitia. The Mars Orbiter Laser Altimeter (MOLA) is an orbiter used to determine altitude and was attached to the Mars Global Surveyor spacecraft. The instruments on the Mars Global Surveyor were providing valuable information about Mars, until it broke down in 2006.
The Mars Global Surveyor became the first successful mission to the red planet in two decades, launched November 7th, 1996. The surveyor managed to trim its orbit from a looping eclipse to a circular track around the planet after a year and a half – by using aerobraking - to then start its mapping in March 1999. With various instruments, it is able to get many images of geologically significant areas, investigate Mars’ internal properties and observe long-term trends in the atmosphere. The Mars Orbiter Camera (MOC), the Thermal Emission Spectrometer (TES), and the Mars Orbiter Laser Altimeter (MOLA) are the instruments the surveyor uses to do this work. With the surveyors' observations, many discoveries were made – astronomers determined that Mars had a layered crust that was over 10 km thick, it found ancient craters that had been buried and later exposed via erosion, and it found evidence of ancient lava flows. One of the most striking contrasts topography has shown us about the Martian surface is the difference between the two hemispheres. The northern hemisphere is low-lying and sparsely cratered whereas the southern hemisphere is high-standing and heavily cratered. Scientists have been unable to agree on what caused these differences but one conclusion, made by geophysicist, Leone, and his colleagues, is that a large celestial object must have smashed into the Martian South Pole in the early history of the solar system. Their computer models show that this impact would have generated so much energy that magma oceans would have formed. This celestial body must have been at least one-tenth the mass of Mars to unleash this much energy. The molten rock would have eventually solidified into the mountainous highlands in the southern Martian hemisphere. In the simulation it was assumed: the body contained a large degree of iron; it had a radius of at least 1600 km and that it crashed into Mars at 5 km/s. It has been estimated that the event happened between 4 -15 million years after Mars’ formation. The planets crust must have been very thin at the time, with a possible liquid interior hiding underneath. When the celestial object hit, it added more mass to Mars, but the simulation also showed it triggered strong volcanic activity. Around the equator, numerous mantle plumes were generated as consequence, which migrated to the South Pole where they ended.
In the model, the researchers found activity on Mars died down around 3.5 billion years ago, after there was no volcanic activity or a magnetic field (this is consistent with research). Earlier theories suggested the opposite saying there must have been one big impact or a series of smaller impacts striking against the northern hemisphere – the most important theory was composed by two American researchers in 1984. Leone argues that their model depicts the actual distribution of volcanic activity as volcanoes are common in the southern hemisphere compared to the northern hemisphere. The biggest flaw to this model is that the impacting body must consist of 80% iron – if the composition is made of pure silicate rock, then the resulting image does not correlate with the reality of Mars’ dichotomy. It is suggested that the Southern highlands are older, and the Northern Territory is younger, and this is due to how it seems geological processes have been acting on it more recently, therefore erasing traces of impacts. This activity is due to the north being a basin, so it has a lower elevation than in the south. Basins are where the water cycle would deposit lakes and oceans, where sediments would be carried in the fluid and deposited in features like craters, filling them in. Basins are also where the thickest part of the atmosphere is expected to be, which would continue the weathering process longer than the over the rest of the planet, where it leaks faster into space. Hellas Planitia is a plain located within the huge impact basin Hellas, and is located in the Southern hemisphere. Hellas is one of the largest craters in the solar system – the basin floor is about 8 km deep and extends about 7000 km E-W. The basin is thought to have been created by collision with an asteroid in its early history (related to the volcanic activity previously mentioned). The morphology of many features in the Hellas Basin and its surroundings strongly suggest the presence of ice and glaciers, for example, in the foreground around the rim there are polygons of patterned ground, indicating the presence of water. This pattern occurs when fine grained and porous wet soil freezes. In the deepest parts of the basin, the atmospheric pressure is about 89% higher than at the surface, which offers suitable conditions for water. Radar images from NASA’s Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter suggest that some craters in Hellas might contain water-ice glaciers several hundred metres thick, buried under layers of dust.
Valles Marineris is a system of canyons that run along the surface east of the Tharsis region, along the equator. It is 4000 km long and reaches depths of up to 7 km. To put it into perspective, the Grand Canyon is about 800 km long and 1.6 km wide, meaning Valles Marineris is practically 5x the length and depth of the terrestrial feature. The system contains a number of features giving clues to its formation, with collapse pits created by rushing water, suggesting possible flooding on the surface. By using a telescope, the canyon can be seen as a dark scarring on the surface, with Chasma dominating the canyon. It begins in Noctis Labyrinthus, a region of material thought to have volcanic origins. There are a few chasmata that
are connected to the canyon, containing eroded material and volcanic ash on their floors. The Melas chasm contains the deepest point of the system. Over the years, scientists have proposed a number of theories about Valles Marineris formation. Most believe that the formation of the Tharsis region may have contributed to the canyon's formation. This region contains several large volcanoes, including Olympus Mons. Molten rock protruded through the monstrous volcanoes 3.5 billion years ago, heaving the crust upwards. The strain cracked the crust, causing large faults and fractures across the planet’s surface. These would have grown over time, resulting in the enormous canyon system.
Olympus Mons is the largest volcano in the solar system being 25 km above the surrounding plains and stretches 601 km across. The volume contained by Olympus Mons is about 100x than that of the tallest volcano on Earth, and 3x higher than Mount Everest. The volcano is a shield volcano, meaning it was created by lava slowly flowing down its sides, so its incline isn’t steep. When compared to the rest of the Martian terrain, there aren’t many on Olympus Mons’ surface indicating the uppermost layer of lava is relatively young, with the last eruption occurring 25 million years ago. This could mean the volcano is still active and may erupt in the future. Scientists think that the lower surface gravity of Mars combined with higher eruption rates allowed due lava to pile up higher. Hot spots under the crust remain in the same location, for both Mars and Earth; however, on Earth, the movement of crust prevents the steady buildup of lava. Due to Mars having very limited crust movement, when lava reaches the surface, it continues to pile up in a single spot, allowing Olympus Mons to reach its extensive height.
Written and researched by Amber Wells, edited by Grace Kelly
Modern History Quiz 1. Who was the Tsar in Russia from 1855 until his assassination in 1881?
2. How long were emancipated serfs expected to pay redemption payments for?
3. What port was the location of the first conflict in the 1904/5 Russo-Japanese war?
4. What prominent figure was the instigator of the 1917 Bolshevik Revolution?
5. Name three Russian finance ministers from 1881.
6. Who got the most votes in the 1951 General Election in the United Kingdom, but was a victim of the FPTP System?
7. What was the name given to the post-war economic consensus?
8. How many homes did the Conservative Party build by 1964 after their promise to create a ‘property owning democracy’?
9. What local figure united the Labour Party to marginally win the 1964 general election?
10. Whose death did it take for Britain’s application to the EEC finally be approved? (bonus point for the year of approval!)
Quiz written by Grace Kelly Find the answers at the back!
Heinrich Kramer- The Beginnings of Demonology Witchcraft was and still remains a key component within society and many cultures. Upon scratching the surface of the history of Witchcraft, you can pick up and ascertain striking similarities between medieval and modern society. For example, the way medieval churchmen sought to blame women for their own sexuality closely reflects the Incel culture that has grown within the digital age.
It must be noted that when using the term modern witchcraft, it doesn’t mean that it originated in modern history. The beliefs behind modern witchcraft, by which witches are evil and malevolent beings working in coalition with Satan, was developing by around the 1450s. The beliefs were influenced and further developed by a small radical group of religious thinkers. One of these radical religious thinkers was the Inquisitor, Heinrich Kramer. Inquisitors were top Catholic officials who investigated claims of heresy, which were beliefs that contradicted Catholic teachings. Heinrich was a new generation thinker, more commonly known as a Demonologist. In the 1480s, many church officials still upheld the traditional views that witches were no more than nonsensical dreamers who dabbled in charms. However, by this period, over the next fifty years a small minority within the Catholic Church (Heinrich amongst them) had come to the belief that witches were women who had given their souls to Satan in order to become devil-worshippers. What is important to remember is that Heinrich was in fact a celibate monk, who therefore knew little to nothing about the women he preached against. In his opinion he imagined witches as shallow and vain “creatures” who were sex obsessed and hell bent on attaining great amounts of power. This belief was partially a way to convey his own fascination with sex without contradicting his stance as a celibate monk. Heinrich had also concluded that if witches were in fact dealing with the devil, then Satan must be male, and witches must have sex with him to become one of his followers. With this newfound power the “witches” would deceive men similarly to. Whilst to a modern audience these beliefs appear unfounded and with little evidence, his new theory of Demonology caught on and began circulating in scholarly circles. Demonology led to many of the infamous witch hunts held throughout history, many of which in the early stages of demonology were led by Heinrich. His first witch hunt took place in Ravensburg, Austria. During his time there he focussed specifically on two women Anna of Mindelheim and Agnes Baderin. Shockingly but unsurprisingly, it was Heinrich’s right as an Austrian Inquisitor to subject any suspects of heresy to torture. In his first witch hunt, both women were found guilty having had ideas planted into their terrified minds. Both confessed to worshipping the devil and even castrating a local man. This accusation of castration must have come from Heinrich, since it was his belief that witches hated men. This ludicrous theory could have only originated in a patriarchal society. This event highlighted what was to follow in the coming years, as demonology pro-
gressed. Specifically, to Heinrich, this inquisition allowed him to perfect his “witch hunting” technique and demonological theory. Following his witch hunting success in Ravensburg, Heinrich continued to move across the county looking for other villages to begin a witch hunt. He arrived in Innsbruck, Austria in 1485. Following his first success, he showed his papal decrees authorising his demonological work to the landowner to continue his investigations. Upon his arrival to the next destination the landowner asked for a local bishop to keep his eye on Heinrich. Many were still sceptical of demonological work and landowners often became irritated by the church’s abundant power that meant people like Heinrich could come onto their lands and overrule their own power. The focus of Heinrich’s second witch hunt was local woman Helena Scheuberin. Helena was a local girl who had been brought up in Innsbruck who was married to the merchant, Sebastian Scheuber. She had a second admirer (the Archduke’s cook), who couldn’t win Helena over and upon Heinrich’s arrival years after, accused Helena of witchcraft. Demonology had made people more wary and suspicious of those they knew. This highlights that the increasing influence of demonology let people who felt embarrassed by their situation change the narrative of their story and create enemies out of those they felt had wronged them. The accusations of witchcraft seem to be less based on supposed evidence and rather a way of getting some kind of justice for men who had felt like they had been emasculated by a woman. Whilst in modern society this view seems wrong and unjust, misogyny in the medieval period was an integral part of society. Once Heinrich had begun his official investigation, he got backlash from Helena as she deemed the trial unjust and was prepared to stand by her beliefs. She was disgusted by Heinrich’s teachings and believed them heretical, so persuaded people to avoid his sermons, saying that his belief in the devil being real contradicted his faith in God. Whilst deeply inspiring Helena was taken to prison to await trial on Heinrich’s order. Upon attending the trail Heinrich questioned Helena on rumours completely unrelated to the trial, for example her virginity prior to her marriage. This angered people in court and the trial were postponed and found to not have enough evidence so was never reconvened. Whilst this second trial was technically a failure for Heinrich, it shows a clear increase in the belief of demonology. After this trial Heinrich released the book Malleus Maleficarum, a book on demonology. The failure of this trail only spurred Heinrich on to continue to expand his beliefs eventually to the detriment of many women. Overall, Heinrich Kramer was an influential figure in the progression and spread of demonology, to justify misogynistic acts and consequently condemn innocent women. Written and researched by Ella Currie, edited by Grace Kelly
Plesiosaurus to meet you. Plesiosaurus is a genus of extinct, large marine sauropterygian reptile that lived during the Jurassic and disappeared at the end of the Cretaceous. This reptile is usually distinguishable by its small head, long and thin neck (around 40 cervical vertebrae), short tail, two elongated and two small paddles with a broad body. It was an early plesiosaur at around 4.5 metres long that swam by flapping its fins in the water. The first complete skeleton of Plesiosaurus was discovered by early palaeontologist Mary Anny, in early Jurassic rocks, 1823. Mary Anning was born in 1977 in Dorset. She lived in Lyme Regis, which is now part of what is called the Jurassic Coast. Mary’s father, Richard, enjoyed collecting fossils, so by the time she was six, fossil hunting wasn’t anything new to her. Richard taught her how to look for and clean the fossils they found on the beach, then he would display and sell them from his cabinet shop. Like many girls in Lyme Regis, Mary had very little formal education, but she could read and so she decided to teach herself geology and anatomy. After her father died in 1810, Mary was encouraged to help pay off the family’s debts by selling her finds. When she was 12, she dug the outline of a 5.2-metre-long skeleton that attached to the strange skull her brother had found previously. Once she managed to dig it out, scientists thought it was a crocodile, and others thought it was a monster. This is due to George Cuvier ‘the father of palaeontology’ only just recently introducing the theory of extinction. After many years of studying, the specimen was names Ichthyosaurus and it lived 201 million years ago. In 1823, Mary discovered the first complete skeleton of Plesiosaurus. The fossil was so strange that many rejected the idea that it was even real, even Cuvier himself. After a special meeting at the geological society of London was held (Mary was not invited), Cuvier admitted to his mistake, after a lot of debating. Despite all of Mary’s findings and contributions to palaeontology, male scientists who bought her fossils, often didn’t credit her in their papers on the finds. This included the Geological Society of London, who refused to admit her – it took them until 1904 to admit a woman. Plesiosaurs are thought to have thrived in the oceans until the K-T extinction, at the end of the Cretaceous Period. Their four paddle- shaped flipper limbs was an unusual arrangement in aquatic animals and is thought that they were used to propel the reptile through the water. This was done by a combination of rowing movements and upand-down movements. They had no tail fin, suggesting it was primarily for aiding in directional control. As a group, Plesiosaurs were the largest aquatic animals of their time.
When looking at their behaviour, Plesiosaurs breathed air but lifted their head above water. Many have been discovered with fossils of belemnites and ammonites associated with their stomachs. The powerful, u-shaped jaws of the reptile also suggest that they could have bitten through the hard shells of prey and the bony fish that flourished in the Jurassic. Recent evidence also suggests that some were bottom feeders. Plesiosaurs are believed to have given birth to live young in the water, and this may have been done in estuaries before the young moved out into the ocean. A possible flaw of its structure is that its long neck, when speeding up, may bend and cause turbulences. This would mean that to achieve good acceleration, Plesiosaurs would need to keep their neck straight, making hunting more difficult. As a result, it could be possible that they would wait and lie for prey to come close instead of trying to peruse them. The distribution of Plesiosaurs is widely in European seas and around the Pacific Ocean. Plesiosaurus were in the oceans, but thrived in shallower waters, with fossils being primarily found in shallow sea beds and freshwater takes. This causes some to believe that they came ashore to nest on the sand and lay eggs, however many think they gave birth to live young. Written and researched by Amber Wells, edited by Grace Kelly
The Geology of Star Wars Star Wars contains some outstanding geology throughout it, from the volcanism at Mustafar to the frozen planet of Hoth. To create these amazing planets, many terrestrial geological features were made use of when filming, combined with computer graphics. Terrestrial landscapes
When filming the famous lightsaber battle on Mustafar in The Revenge of The Sith (2002), the crew were filming in Italy where Mount Etna (its name originates from the Greek Aitne, from aitho, ‘I burn’). is located. By chance, Etna erupted spectacularly so they decided to film it and use it in the movie. In addition, Etna is the highest Mediterranean island mountain and the most active stratovolcano in the world. The geological characteristics suggest that Etna has been active since the end of the Neogene period, with several subsidiary cones being formed on lateral fissures since. The Greeks created legends about this volcano, saying it was the workshop of Hephaestus and the Cyclops, or that the giant Typhon lay underneath, causing the Earth to tremble when he turned. One of Etna’s ancient eruptions was in 396 BCE, which kept the Carthaginian army from reaching Catania. The mountain has three ecological zones, with the lowest zone having very fertile and rich soil, which is used for vineyards, orchards, olive groves and citrus plantations. Mustafar displays a landscape covered entirely in dark, mafic igneous rocks from the active lava flows. Science suggests that Earth was once a burnt lava planet, with a thin crust of basalt covering its fiery depths. These oceans were most likely caused by a series of massive impacts during the period of Late Heavy Bombardment, one of which is thought to have formed the moon. The battle of Hoth took place in The Empire Strikes back, with Hoth being a world covered in ice and snow. To create the effect of a cold ecosystem, the scene was filmed on the Hardangerjøkulen glacier in Norway. Hardangerjøkulen is the sixth largest glacier in mainland Norway with its highest point being 1,863 m above sea level and its thickest measurement being 380 m thick. This glacier is the source of the longest river in Norway, the Hardangerjøkulen, and is also home to some of the oldest ice in the world. Scientists have been able to estimate that the ice is about 10,000 years old and has some of the most unique geological formations in the world e.g., the Fjordland. In The Last Jedi, on the planet of Crait, landscape from the Salar de Uyuni (a dry lake located in the Andes) was used. The plain bottom of the lake is covered by common salt or sylvite. Halite is the mineralogical name for salt and can become dark red-brown when exposed to gamma radiation. This is why when the ships flew over the surface, the top layer of white halite was removed exposing the bright red colour, which could be the result of Crait’s intense sun exposure. The Salar De Uyuni is the world’s largest salt flat, left behind by prehistoric lakes evaporated long ago, and have been called the flattest place on Earth.
Hometown of Anakin Skywalker, the desert city of Mos Espa on Tatooine, was built in the Tunisian desert in 1997. This was for the first Star Wars episode, The Phantom Menace, and was then abandoned once the crew had finished with it. The dry climate of the desert preserves the buildings well; however, they still face the threat of the sluggish barchan dunes – up to 6 m high with windblown accumulations of sand and gypsum grains. The set consists of 20 wood and plaster buildings on top of a clay-rich flat. It has been estimated that in 80 years the site will be buried by one of the largest known dunes, moving with values of 5 - 15 metres per year. In addition, the nerve-racking pod race with young Skywalker was filmed at the Sidi Bouhlel canyon in Tunisia. This canyon is carved out of middle Miocene sandstone and contains fossils of several vertebrates including crocodiles. These fossils help provide vital evidence for changing paleoclimate in the region.
Exoplanets
Kamino is the planet home to those long-necked cloners, which is a vast ocean world. This planet is very similar to Kepler-22b, that seems to be covered by a vast ocean. In Attack of the Clones, Kamino makes its appearance when Kenobi lands there to investigate. There is still speculation over Kepler-22b’s true nature, due to it being 2.4x Earth’s radius, which might mean it is gaseous. However, if it is an ocean world, then it can be imagined to be extremely like Kamino but tipped on its side. From computer modelling research it was found that it is comfortably habitable, and the average surface area is about 15.5 degrees Celsius. 22b’s ocean could be shallow, keeping the overall climate mild the whole year round- this would be ideal for the Kamino-style ocean platforms exhibited in the movie. As previously mentioned, the volcanic planet of Mustafar is an inhospitable lava world. At 41 lightyears away, 55 Cancri e is a volcanic world (possibly), with this having been assumed from its temperature signatures. The planet is so close to its star that the surface temperature is roughly 2,400 degrees Celsius. In addition, it is tidally locked with its star, so only one side of the planet always faces it. Presumably, that would be covered in lava but the major difference between Mustafar and 55 Cancri e is that if Anakin and Obi-Wan touched 55, they would disintegrate… There are many icy planets that scientists know about, but one that resembles Hoth the most is OGLE-2005-BLG-390, which has been nicknamed ‘Hoth’. This is a cold super-Earth that could be a failed Jupiter. Unable to grow large enough, it had to settle for a mass 5x Earth’s as well as having a surface temperature of -220 degrees Celsius. This planet was found in 2005 with a technique called microlensing. This is done by using back light from a
distant star to reveal planets around a star closer to us. This microlensing event was made possible as the planet lies towards the heart of the Milk Way, where a greater density of stars is located. Written and researched by Amber Wells, edited by Grace Kelly
Exploring Europa Europa is one of Jupiter’s largest moons, along with Io, Gany-
mede and Callisto, and is the sixth closest to the planet. The three largest moons were the first moons discovered beyond Earth and are called the Galilean moons, after Italian astronomer Galileo Galilei of January 1610. Europa is made primarily of silicate rock with a water-ice crust and is theorised to have an iron-nickel core. The name Europa comes from the Phoenician mother of King Minos of Crete and lover of Zeus. Europa orbits Jupiter in just over three and a half days, with an orbital radius of 670,900 km and eccentricity of 0.009. This causes the orbit to be almost circular, with it being tidally locked with Jupiter, meaning one side is constantly facing the planet. If you were stood on Europa’s surface, you’d see a sub-Jovian point where Jupiter would appear to hang directly overhead. However, if you were on Europa for 24 hours, you would become severely ill and may die, due to the ionising radiation levels. The moon is also considered to be the smoothest known object in the solar system with its lack of geological features. An interesting study has suggested that Europa’s equator may be covered in icy spikes called penitentes, and these may be up to 15 m high. This may be true, as the direct overhead sunlight on the equator would cause the ice to sublime, forming vertical cracks. Europa features many prominent markings that appear to be mainly albedo features – this would emphasise the low topography of the moon. The icy crust has one of the highest albedos of any moon, which suggests a young and active surface. The most striking features of Europa are its dark streaks called lineae. The most likely hypothetical fit to these striations is that they were produced by a series of eruptions of warm ice, as Europa’s crust slowly spreads open exposing warmer layers beneath. As a comparison, this effect would have been similar to Earth’s oceanic ridges. Unfortunately, the moon doesn’t have a breathable atmosphere, with it being solely composed of oxygen. Unlike our own atmosphere, this oxygen hasn’t been produced biologically and is maintained by charged particles that hit its cold surface, producing water vapour. Due to this, Europa’s atmosphere is extremely thin, with barely 100 billionth of Earth’s atmospheric pressure. Silicate minerals are silicon-oxygen compounds and are extremely common on Earth and throughout the solar system. On Earth, silicates make up around 95% of the crust and upper mantle and are the main components of most igneous rocks and have some quantities in sedimentary and metamorphic rocks. They are found in important lunar samples, meteorites and asteroids. The basic structural unit of all silicates is the silicate tetrahedron- one silicon atom bonded to four oxygen atoms. These units can share oxygen atoms in multiple different ways, resulting in different structures, with topology of these structures being the base for silicate classification. The reason why oxygen and silicates so readily combine is because silicon is a cation (+4) and oxygen is an anion (-2), meaning they are attracted to each other forming a polar covalent bond.
The reason the bond is considered polar is due to oxygen being more electronegative than silicon, creating partial positive and negative charges with the molecule. With Europa’s possible iron core, rocky mantle and salty ocean, Europa is very different from our own deserted moon. It is thought that Europa’s ocean is situated under a shell of ice 15-25 km thick and is estimated to be 60-150 km in depth (holding twice as much as our global oceans on Earth). The speculation about this ocean is supported two spacecrafts that flew by Jupiter in the 1970s – Voyager 1 and 2. These spacecrafts took images of Europas incredibly bright surface, with the best imaging being limited to 2 km per pixel. The bright surface is composed of numerous bands and ridges with a lack of large impact craters, tall cliffs and mountains. This makes Europas surface relative to other icy moons with their incredibly smooth surfaces. Due to the images collected, researchers were able to note that Europa had some dark bands that matched each other on opposite sides extremely well. These cracks had separated, and it seems that dark icy material had flowed into open gaps, suggesting the surface had been active in the past. It is expected for impact craters to build up over time as a body is bombarded by meteorites during its lifetime. However, the lack of these craters suggests that the surface is relatively young, and therefore something has erased them. This could be the result of icy, volcanic flows or isostatic rebound. They also found that the patterns of some of its longest features doesn’t fit the predicted fracture patterns that should be created by Europa’s tides as it orbits Jupiter. The actual patterns created must need a surface that can move independently to the moon’s interior, meaning it mayst be a layer if liquid or slightly warmer ice between the crust and deep interior. In addition, there is slight evidence that Europa had a warm interior in the past/currently – this is thought as studies of tidal heating and how it would affect Europa suggest that a global subsurface ocean may exist today. In support of this, research also shows that Europa may have non-synchronous rotation, meaning it spins faster than it orbits, suggesting an asymmetry in its internal mass distribution. Therefore, a layer of subsurface liquid separates the icy crust from its rocky interior. Galileo took many measurements of Jupiter and Euro-
pa, one showed how Jupiter’s magnetic field is disrupted in the space around Europa. This measurement implied that a special type of magnetic field is being induced beneath its surface by an electrically conductive fluid. Based on its icy composition, it is thought that the most likely material to create this magnetic signature is a global ocean of salty water. Europa Clipper will seek to confirm the presence of its ocean by looking for deformation by tides and the composition of the reddish material on the surface, to see if it contains the clues to Europa’s oceans.
Article written by Amber Wells, edited by Grace Kelly
History, Geology and Geography Quiz A mixed subject quiz for all to interact with! Answers can be found on page!
Q1. Stratigraphy refers to the study of what? A. Earthquakes B. Kangaroos C. Earth’s Rock Record
Q2. How old is the earth? A. 6,000 years B. 120 million years C. 4.5 billion years
Q3. Who discovered the first complete skeleton of Plesiosaurs? A. Chris Moss B. Mary Anny C. David Attenborough
Q4. How long ago did the Ichthyosaurs live? A. 200ma
B. 400ma C. 600ma
Q5. The use of drugs can be dated as far back as? A. 2200 years B. 5800 years ago C. 6400 years ago
Q6. What was the most common reason for free men becoming gladiators? A. Fame B. Fun C. Money
Q7. What is the name of the biggest crater on Mars? A. Aitken Basin B. Hellas Basin C. Sudbury Basin
Q8. Which desert was used to film scenes for the Planet “Tatooine” in Star Wars? A. Sahara B. Tunisian C. Antarctic
Q9. In what period did the dinosaurs go extinct? A. Triassic B. Jurassic C. Cretaceous
Q10. What is the name given to the supercontinent that broke apart 200 million years ago? A. Laurasia B. Pangea C. Gondwanaland
Gustav Gilbert: The Discredited Psychologist The Nuremburg trials are well known across history, for bringing those responsible for the atrocities and horrors of the Second World War to justice. The main proceedings occurred in 1945-46, however there were other trials later, for Nazi officials that had escaped justice and had been caught at a later date (such as Adolf Eichmann). There were 24 Nazis standing accused at this time, one of which was Robert Ley. Ley was most infamous for his involvement and leadership of the German Labour Front from 1933-45. Whilst in prison, Ley committed suicide. This was, as expected, a very large problem for the officials involved with the trial, as they had to make sure every defendant was present for the proceedings and they had to take accountability for the monstrosities that they created and surveyed. Their main worry after Ley’s death was the occurrence of more Nazi officials taking the same way out. The officials involved had no way of stopping them, if this is the course of action that they decided to take. In an attempt to prevent this, they brought in Gustav Gilbert. Gilbert was an American, Jewish psychologist with a PhD in psychology from Columbia University. He tasked with the role of prison psychologist; a title he created after originally being put in the position of ‘moral officer’. The role of ‘moral officer’ was a position dedicated to attempting to keep the prisoners in a more positive headspace, which they hoped would keep them alive throughout the course of the trial. However, Gilbert took this as an important opportunity to study the minds of the Nazis through the modern psychological tests of the time: Rorschach inkblot tests. However, his preferred method to study them was through simple conversation. He based a lot of his methods on a different American psychologist, Erich Fromm, who was known for his belief that character in humans evolved as a way for people to meet their needs, rather than it being fixed. Gilbert was fluent in German, which meant he served a vital role as translator as well as psychologist. Throughout the course of the trial, Gilbert performed these methods on 22 out of the 24 Nazis on trial, with the aim of publishing these findings in a book after the trial concluded. The most crucial of which was Hermann Gӧring, Hitler’s second in command and the man in charge of the creation of the Gestapo and later, in charge of the actions of the armed forces in Germany. Of all the prisoners, it was most crucial that Gӧring stayed alive, as he was the single person that new about the inside frameworks of many of the Nazi ideas. Gilbert discovered that, rather than the Nazi prisoners being insane as many would assume, it was quite the opposite. He discovered that instead of the insanity many concluded the group must have, the Nazis were quite intelligent, and sane. This obviously begs the crucial question: why would sane people, commit such monstrous, heinous acts? Gilbert, as he set out to do, published his book, entitled ‘The Nuremburg Diary’, in 1947. I
It contained the conversations he had with the prisoners and the findings of the psychological tests he conducted. To make it accessible to a wider audience, Gilbert held back on the amount of psychological vocabulary he used in the book, as to not overwhelm those who weren’t in the field. However, this undermined him professionally. A few years later, Gilbert published another book, entitled ‘The Psychology of Dictatorship’, drawing heavily on the work of Fromm. The book was more academically ambitious than his previous work, which he hoped would work in its favour. Again, the book was received with mixed reviews, with many people unconvinced by Gilbert’s combination of psychoanalysis and social psychology. In 1961, a younger psychologist, by the name of Stanley Milgram, had begun a similar kind of experiment. They were based around obedience and attempted to explain the Holocaust. Overall, Milgram’s experiments seemed to be preferred by the wider populations, than Gilbert’s, leading his findings to fade into relative obscurity. Meanwhile, Milgram enjoyed large amounts of success. Throughout this period, many questions were being asked about the people who dictated such horrendous acts. However, when part of the answer was presented to them, many didn’t bother to pick up on it. This led to perhaps one of the most influential psychologists of his time to get lost in the woodwork, his findings only mildly appreciated in the years to come. Many seemed to have overlooked the key role that Gilbert played in studying the minds of the sociopaths that created one of the very worst acts committed humans in our history. His findings seemingly lost to time. Article written and researched by Jasmine Lindsay, edited by Eva Marsden-Barnes and Jane Clark
Machiavellianism in history What is Machiavellianism? A political viewpoint was codified and thereby named Machiavellianism. The ethos was written down by an Italian statesman- Niccolò Machiavelli- in the book ‘The Prince’, where the ethos is derived, and contained statements such as, ‘it is much safer to be feared than loved, when, of the two, either must be dispensed with’- ‘The Prince’ (Chapter 17). Although it is important to be aware that Machiavelli did not invent this type of governance, as it had existed for a millennia before him, this does not mean his contributions to the practice of Machiavellianism are insignificant, as it’s his collection of principles which inspired leaders such as Stalin, Napolean and other ruthless dictators in their march for power. The best way to describe Machiavellianism is a doctrine of divorce from morals and politics, to extract the most value from the position one held.
Who was Machiavelli? Machiavelli was born to a humble father, who was amongst the poorest of his family, and at the age of 29 he became the head of Florentine Foreign Affairs – though it is not known how he received his post as he never served any apprenticeship and was not particularly well connected. He served under this post for 14 years before the government collapsed then he was captured and tortured by the Medici family, who later exiled him. During this exile, he wrote ‘The Prince’ (his most famous work for the ruling Medici of Florence, the same people who tortured him) and 6 years after his exile he was hired by the Medici family to write the history of Florence. He gained a decent salary of £100,000 in equivalent currency and then joined a war against the Holy Roman Emperor, which he lost, and then died a few months later after being denied a post in Florence due to his connection with the Medici Family. Why did someone who wrote a doctrine that inspired some of the most powerful leaders in history die rather unsuccessful and at the mercy of people who he had wronged? The Prince The Prince is a book that has people curse Machiavelli as one of the great propagators of political evil, and a book that secures his name in history, giving him an unrivalled legacy. But was the infamous political work ultimately a blessing or a curse? Arguably it is neither, as he never saw the fruit of his labour, as the books were published posthumouslybecoming historically influential. Mainly, its popularity was due to the fact that the book gave princes, and other powerful political figures, a realistic view of how they should be and how they ought to treat their subjects as to not be overthrown. However, it is often viewed also as a book which promotes an immoral view of politics that teaches leaders to connive and claw their way to power, to destroy their opponents completely, and stab people in the back.
Machiavellians in History Bonaparte: one thing many Machiavellian leaders do to secure power is a form of manipulation of the masses to gain popular support for their upcoming political empowerment. Something Napoleon was perfect at in his rise to power was his successful emphasis on his leadership and victory in Italy, whilst diminishing his failings in Egypt, and manipulation of the public to support his coup in 1799. In the early days of his dictatorship, he clamped down on all forms of criticism with restrictions on debate against government; a classic tactic to make it seem like support for the leader is high, while dissenters are very rare. Another way to reinforce this was his use of the press and propaganda as well as reformation of the education system to help his reign have legitimacy and support. However, he knew his power relied on two facts: military success and abundance of bread, so he needed war- something that the powers of Europe delivered to him. His reign was a landmark in how Machiavellianism could both succeed and fail, as he reached the utmost power in the world in 1805. Yet- due to his insistence on destroying all competition- he ended his life in defeat and residing on a small island in the middle of the Atlantic. Perhaps if he coexisted with Britain, he could have retained power. Stalin: Stalin was ruthless in his rise to power, and during his tenure his Machiavellianism is best seen through his purges which killed all political, physical and academic opponents of his regime. His purges killed 40,000 of his own party’s people, with ‘The Great Purge’, killing at least 700,000 people who would have been vital in fighting the rising Nazi power at the time. His first 5-year plan also led to the death of several million Ukrainian farmers who resisted Soviet policies. He was, however, a master of political manipulation, using the deification of Lenin to gain the support of the Soviet people and create his own cult of personality. This use of Machiavellianism was massively successful as although his country crumbled only a few decades after his death, he oversaw the zenith of power within the world with only one equal. Putin: A leader who uses force and propaganda to secure power within his country, he crushes dissenters through means which instilled his power and control on the people- but giving him the ability to feign ignorance, and the knowledge to manoeuvre through the media to gain a favourable public image. He is the most modern example of a Machiavellian and has achieved supreme power within his nation, though it is too early to say what will happen to him.
Should leaders be more Machiavellian? On a surface level, many will agree when I say no. However, upon contemplation of Machiavellian leaders and the principles they represent, I must conclude that the answer is far more nuanced and complex. In principle, I believe that Machiavellian leadership is vital to an extent - due to the fact that these teachings give politicians a route to navigate the complicated political climate and often serve as a way to navigate a pragmatic approach. However, if manipulated or radicalised, like any teaching, it can lead to the rule of dictators like Stalin and Putin. Therefore, I pose you the question - what is an acceptable level of Machiavellianism, if there is one at all? Article written and researched by Oliver Towler, edited by Lily Barber and Eva Marsden–Barnes
The following article on pages 37-38 was submitted via pdf– all design, research and writing by Daniel JB Jones, edited by Harrison Bailey
Modern History Quiz Answers
1.
Alexander the Second
2.
49 years, with 6% interest
3.
Port Arthur
4.
Vladimir Lenin
5.
Bunge, Witte, Vyshnegradsky, Reutern (any other valid answers)
6.
The Labour Party
7.
Butskellism
8.
1.7 million
9.
Harold Wilson
10.
Charles de Gaulle (1973)
History, Geology and Geography Quiz Answers
1.
C
2.
C
3.
B
4.
A
5.
B
6.
A
7.
B
8.
B
9.
C
10. B
What’s on next term
There’s always something new and exciting happening in GAIA– whether that be a talk, a documentary, a competition, a charity event or even karaoke. Keep a look out on the GAIA calendar to make sure you know about anything new coming soon!
There are many things we are continuing next term– our Horrible Histories karaoke, our weekly documentaries and our amazing teams within the society. With a range of activities such as podcasts, articles, talks and photography we really do have something for everyone! We always say the more the merrier, so why not pop down and try something out? Or possibly hold your own event– just like inspirational student Amber Wells (pictured above) who held a talk on an exciting Geology competition for students. We can’t wait to see you there!
Getting involved in GAIA Joining GAIA is a fantastic opportunity for enrichment, further learning and fun! It’s a great way to meet people who share your passion and interests and to explore Humanities beyond the classroom. You do not have to take any humanity subjects as a-levels to join us, as we want to welcome you all! If you would like to join GAIA, please request team access from Silvia Marques (History teacher and leader of GAIA) and/or attend our weekly meetings at 12:30 in M3. Note from the chief editor I would like to thank you all for reading and supporting the GAIA society– it has been an absolute honour to work as editor on this issue and I can’t wait to share the next! I would also like to extend my thanks to my entire team– with special thanks to Grace Kelly, one of my assistant editors who has been exceptional in her editing, in her organisation and in her help to me. Thank you to our inspirational society leader Silvia Marques, who we could not have written this without and thank you to all the amazing young writers who have contributed to this issue– particularly those who wrote multiple articles. If your submission didn’t quite make it into this issue– don’t worry, we plan to publish any articles we have left in our spring issue! I am very pleased to announce that these are the winners of the article writing competition we ran this term: 1st place: Mayukhi Mittal 2nd place: Jasmine Lindsay 3rd place: Amber Wells Please contact Silvia Marques to receive your prize. Thank you everyone, see you in the next issue!