Society for Interdisciplinary Studies

The Society for Interdisciplinary Studies (SIS) is a membership-based organization "formed in 1974 in response to the growing interest in the works of modern catastrophists

Catastrophism

Catastrophism is the theory that the Earth has been affected in the past by sudden, short-lived, violent events, possibly worldwide in scope. The dominant paradigm of modern geology is uniformitarianism , in which slow incremental changes, such as erosion, create the Earth's appearance...

, notably the highly controversial Dr Immanuel Velikovsky". Based in the United Kingdom, it publishes the journals, Chronology & Catastrophism Review, a more informal magazine Chronology & Catastrophism Workshop, and sponsors occasional conferences. It is a non-profit organization that is registered as an educational charity.

The SIS is run by an elected Council that includes a Chairman (with a five year tenure), Secretary and Treasurer, and nine other officers. It has been noted that the Society's "membership is not large".

Publications

Chronology & Catastrophism Review (C&C Review)

ISSN: 0953 0053

Called SIS Review until 1996, C&C Review is the flagship publication of the Society is published annually, though it has appeared as frequently as four times a year. It describes itself as:

".. a forum for the continuing debate on the subjects of revised chronologies (of Immanuel Velikovsky and later revisionists), biblical studies, mythology, geology, catastrophism, evolution, archaeology, ancient history, cosmology, physics, astronomy, palaeontology and other disciplines. It also provides a forum for independent and critical assessment in the field of cosmic global catastrophism of the kind described by Velikovsky, plus the theories of more recent catastrophists. Topics covered include the role of electromagnetism in cosmology, space probe findings about comets and planets, modern scientific dating methods and evidence for cosmic catastrophes during historical times."

Special issues of Review have included the proceedings of various conferences.

Chronology & Catastrophism Workshop (C&C Workshop)

ISSN: 0951 5984

Called SIS Workshop until 1996, C&C Workshop is a more informal publication that appears three times a year. It is dedicated to the memory and spirit of Derek Shelley-Pearce, its first editor, who died in 1992. Workshop did not appear between 1996 and 2002.

SIS Internet Digest

ISSN 1362-7686

14 issues of SIS Internet Digest appeared between 1996 and 2002, as means of communicating Internet-sourced information to members.

Conferences and meetings

At the Society's Annual General Meeting, the SIS organizes a free talk to members. And on a less regular basis, the SIS organizes an international public conference, that have included:

1978: Ages in Chaos? How valid are Velikovsky's views on Ancient History?
1993: Evidence that the Earth has suffered Catastrophes of Cosmic Origin in Historical Times
1995: Velikovsky's 100th Birthday Memorial Weekend.
1997: Natural Catastrophes during Bronze Age Civilisations: Archaeological, Geological and Astronomical Perspectives.
1999: SIS Silver Jubilee Event, Incorporating a conference on Chronology & Catastrophism.
2002: Ages Still in Chaos: An investigation into progress made in the revision of ancient history since 1952, and possible ways ahead
2007: Cosmic Catastrophes - Asteroids, Comets and Planets: Possibilities and Probabilities in the Light of Today's Findings and the Testimony of Ancient Man

Founding and constitution

Professor of Social Theory, Alfred de Grazia

Alfred de Grazia

Alfred de Grazia, is a political scientist and author. He has defended the catastrophism thesis of Immanuel Velikovsky.-Education:De Grazia attended the University of Chicago, receiving an A.B...

noted that:

"The early 1970's witnessed the founding in England of the Society for Interdisciplinary Studies (SIS), conceived by a gang of four, and on a Halloween night. The first issue of their Review, later to be attractively printed, was in mimeography and, at that, barely readable, but its contents were of excellent quality. The founders, and those who signed up, many of them American, settled into a flexible oligarchy. [..] The Constitution of the Society adopted in 1978 declared as its principal objectives:

to promote a multi-disciplinary approach to scientific and scholarly problems and in particular to promote the active consideration by scientists, scholars, and students of alternatives to the theory of uniformity in astronomy and earth history:
to promote a better understanding of the nature of the earth, the solar system and human history, through the combined use of historical and contemporary evidence of all kinds, and to encourage a continuous reassessment of the validity of the basic assumptions of the discipline concerned by testing these against evidence;
to promote better co-operation between workers in specialized fields of learning in the belief that isolated study is sterile;
to foster research among scientists and scholars towards achieving these aims.

External links

Society for Interdisciplinary Studies official Web site

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