Discovery Channel Magazine - September 2014 in

04
DISCOVERY CHANNEL MAGAZINE I NDI A

FOOD FOR THOUGHT,
BODY AND SOUL
Nobody loves food as much as
I do. What I eat doesnt only make
me the man I am, it also denes
the person I am at diferent
points of the day. Food governs
my mood, my productivity,
condence and motivation. Give
me a dark Kit Kit and Ill give
you a listen, give me a Ferrero
Rocher Black, and Ill give you my
undivided attention... for a while!
I suspect its the same for a lot of others.
Even Virginia Woolf agrees: One cannot
think well, love well, sleep well, if one has
not dined well.
Imagine my plight, then, when I rst
read this months cover feature. By 2030,
new research suggests that developing
countries will begin to run out of natural
grown food and future meals could be
developed in labs. They may be more
elaborate than tablets from sci- movies
and give us our nutrients, but the joy of
biting into a cheesy burger or mopping up
your favourite sauce with bread will all be
over. Ive always believed we eat for two
reasons: to refuel our bodies and satiate
our minds. Will eating without indulging
ever be eating at all?
My resident Argumentator, the astute
friend I call upon to argue subjects with
no denite answers, scofed. If thats the
design of the future, accept it, she said
with a practicality that I detest so lovingly.
When the telephone was invented,
old foggy-minded people like yourself
lamented the death of privacy,
and the joy of meeting an acquaintance
by chance.
I considered her response. (I know
better than to talk to her without thinking.)
And I realised that she was right. Instead of
maginfying the problem, lets celebrate the
solution. Turn to p58 for your dose
of unappetising truths that may be a bit
hard to digest.
Also this month, dont miss our
stunning photo feature on Arctic Travel,
and the intriguing story of ve mythical
creatures that can scare bravehearts, but
science is not sure they exist at all.
This issue will indulge your mind, if not
your tastebuds. Thats a promise.
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FRONTIERS
STING THING
12
When it comes to delivering
venom in brutal, sneaky ways, the
animal world has us beat
NEWS
ALIEN 101
14
Both NASA and sci- writer
Michael Crichton agree: our rst
date with aliens will be awkward
as heck
CHECKING IN WITH
THE COLOUR PRO
16
Jill Morton, colour
psychologist, lls us in on why
world peace might be just a colour
spectrum away
HISTORY
NON-CIVIL WAR
18
War does strange things to men
like the time a major US battle
stopped so two soldiers could
engage in sticufs
THE MATCHUP
INVENTION WARS
22
This month, we ask: what's the
best invention ever? DCM picks
apart the best concepts and ob-
jects known to man
CONTENTS
ISSUE 09/14
DEPARTMENTS
WOW 10 LOOK INTO THE EYES OF A
HUNTED JAY AS A SPARROWHAWK
REVELS IN ITS CATCH
THE GRID 13 STORMS: IS THERE
A CORRELATION BETWEEN
THE GENDER OF THE NAMES
OF HURRICANES AND THEIR
INTENSITIES? TURNS OUT, THERE IS
SIZE OVER MATTER 14 WHO WOULD
IMAGINE A SPIDER EATING A WHOLE
FISH. TURNS OUT THESE SPIDERS
ROAM ALL THE CONTINENTS
HOT DOG 18 IT WAS A DOG'S LIFE
WHEN TURNSPIT DOGS RAN IN A
WHEEL TO KEEP IT RUNNING SO THAT
THE MEAT WOULD COOK EVENLY
MASS PRODUCED 20 THE LOWLY
SOAP HAS ITS MOMENT WHEN THE
ILK OF RONALD REAGAN ARE SEEN
ENDORSING THESE
CAMERA DESIGN 21 A BLOCK OF
ALUMINIUM FOR A CAMERA? YES,
RECENTLY RELEASED LEICA T
CAMERA IS JUST THAT
TECHNOLOGY 22 WE NEED
CLEVER UMBRELLAS WITH
TRANSPARENT PATCHES TO SPOT
THE TRAFFIC
WHAT'S ON 102 YETI-HUNTING IN
RUSSIA, MEDICAL CURIOSITIES WITH
TWIN HOSTS, AND THE COOLEST
MACHINERY IN THE WORLD
ALSO IN THIS ISSUE
06
30 58 40
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09
SEPTEMBER 2014
FEATURES
ISSUE 09/14
PHOTO-ESSAY
SUB-ZERO HERO
30
It took one travel photographer almost an
eternity to get to Siberia but it was all
worth it, as he got to shoot a dwindling way
of life, and some sneaky reindeer
MYSTERIES
BEASTS IN THE
SHADOWS
40
Yetis, nocturnal beasts, mega-sharks, the
Loch Ness Monster and ferocious Asian
crocodiles. Why do they all boggle the
mind, and pop up in sightings time and
again?
RESEARCH
FOODS TO EXPECT
58
Brace up for a paradigm shift in the foods
you are accustomed to. There could be the
creepy crawlies sitting there soon. Already
a restaurant in Paris is serving such
delicacies, or are they?
SCI-TECH
BLAST OFF!
72
Behind the scientic wizardry of modern
rocketry lies an even more intricate web
of interwoven human tales. Discover the
stories of the men with stars in their eyes
SEEKERS
WILDLIFE HANDLING
90
Meet the Canadian adventurer and
conservationist, Dave Salmoni, who
describes himself as a 'tiger tickler, lion
lover and adventure addict'. The next time
you are faced with a dangerous animal in
the wilderness, you will be better prepared
10
"In the wild, things often
happen so fast that by the
time you react, the moment is
over," says photographer Pl
Hermansen, who received a
commendation in the Wildlife
Photographer of the Year
competition for this image.
"So I practised pressing the
shutter just before an attack
began." By doing this, he was
able to capture a rare event
indeed the moment a
sparrowhawk caught an
elusive jay.
Catching a jay isn't easy.
When feeding, they regularly
scan the sky for danger,
and at the slightest hint of
a threat will let out a loud
rasping alarm call. So when a
pair of sparrowhawks started
to frequent a feeding station
in front of Hermansen's hide
in Dalen, Norway, he didn't
imagine they would catch a
jay. What they did do, though,
was bring their young for
hunting practice. Time after
time their attempts failed, but
as the youngsters practised
striking, Hermansen was able
to practise his shooting skills.
On this occasion, he
spotted the adult male
sparrowhawk lurking nearby
and kept focused on the jay
until the anticipated strike.
Here, the precision and
fear expressed in a split
second, barely registered
by the human eye, manages
to capture the height of the
action the moment when
life truly hangs in the balance.
HUNTER AND
THE HUNTED
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SEPTEMBER 2014
WOW
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ISSUE 09/14
FRONTIERS
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The latest Angelina Jolie ick Malecent sees her character
slipping a poisoned apple to dear, sweet Aurora. But, as a new
exhibition at the American Museum of Natural History shows,
the animal world can be just as ingenious as cinematic queens
when it comes to delivering death. Think a pit viper and a
cobra kill in the same way? The video in conjunction with The
Power of Poison proves you wrong: a pit viper injects venom
through hollow teeth just like a hypodermic needle. Cobra
teeth, meanwhile, are very groovy literally as venom drips
down their grooves like the scariest waterslide ever. Or take
gila monsters, which force venom out of their jaws through
the force of their bite alone imagine chomping down on a
hamburger and splurting all the (deadly, deadly) mustard out.
Then there are bee stingers, stonesh spines, jellysh stinging
cells, scorpion tails and even the duck-billed platypus, which
earn them the title of the only venomous mammal. Whatever
the creative delivery system, venom often lets tiny animals
punch well above their weight.
POISON POWER: NATURES CREATIVE
DELIVERY SYSTEMS
13
SEPTEMBER 2014
NEWS
ASI A-PACI FI C AMERI CAS EUROPE MIDDLE EAST/AFRICA
PROOF IN THE
PUDDING We now
know more than ever what
Neanderthals ate, thanks
to recent examination of
caveman poop from Spain. The
50,000 year-old samples are
the oldest hominid faeces ever
found. Analysis of metabolites
revealed they ate meat, but
a lot of plants too. Previous
analyses of Neanderthal teeth
had been less detailed, say
experts. You might say the
latter method is number two
in terms of accuracy.
TOMATO, TOM-ART-O
Does your salad look like
an abstract painting? Then
youll probably pay more
for it, says the Crossmodal
Research Laboratory at the
University of Oxford. The
team crafted several salads,
including one presented to
look like Kandinskys Painting
Number 201, and found that
despite each having the same
ingredients, participants liked
the taste of 201 better, and
would pay twice the price. Time
to get artistic with the lettuce.
DONT CAVE IN David
Coulson has a mission
that takes him the length
and breadth of Africa:
documenting and preserving
its ancient rock art. The
British adventurer told The
Telegraph that millenia-old
art should feature more in
local education. People have
suggested that the colonials
told many African societies
they had no history. There is
a real and sad disengagement
with this past that should be a
point of celebration and pride.
OH, SNAP! You are
legitimately allowed to be
terried of the trapjaw ant.
True to its name, its fearsome
mandibles look like bear traps,
giving it the fastest self-powered
predatory strike in the animal
kingdom, moving at 2,300
times faster than the blink
of an eye. And, as residents
of the American South have
recently found out, theyve been
living there for years, virtually
undetected by science. Experts
say the creature is expanding to
Americas Gulf Coast.
AN IDEA WITH WHEELS
Its more of a utilitarian symbol
than a painting, sure, but the
global wheelchair sign for
disability is important. And
slightly derogatory, says New
York State, where lawmakers
want a more dynamic version of
the sign, featuring a wheelchair
in motion. The head of
Disability Rights UK agreed,
adding: the vast majority
of [disabled people] are not
wheelchair users. The chase
is still on for a sign that can
capture a range of disabilities.
RAIN, RAIN, COME AND
STAY When the June to
September annual monsoon
season kicked of with weak
rainfall and sweltering heat,
it revealed the power that
rain can have. Stock prices for
many agricultural rms fell
a severe blow, considering
half of the our population are
involved in agriculture and
local governments extended
summer vacations at 57,000
primary schools and 18,00
secondary schools.
FEMME FATALES
Hurricanes named after females
make for deadlier storms.
Analaysing data from every
hurricane that has hit the US from
1950 to 2012, researchers found
that a hurricane with a relatively
masculine name is estimated
to cause 15.15 deaths, whereas
one with a more feminine one is
estimated to cause 41.84 deaths.
Why? In judging the intensity
of a storm, people appear to be
applying their beliefs about how
men and women behave.
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PAINT BY NUMBERS
At 365 x 7.3 metres, its
over twice the size of an
NBA basketball court, and
thought to be the worlds
largest 3D painting. Chinese
artist Yong Yongchun drew
his eye-poppingly colourful
masterpiece on the grounds
of the Communication
University of China in
Nanjing, where it surpasses
the current record holder, a
work in London which is 106
metres long. It certainly puts
our doodles to shame.
ASIAS ANIMAL HAVEN
Myanmars decades of
military rule created many
hardships for the populace,
but proved a boon for local
ora and fauna. In the last
two years, a huge amount
of animals have been found
here, including new species of
dragon sh, frog and ginger.
These nds highlight the
need to invest in conservation
as well as business, says the
World Wildlife Fund. Some
environmentalists say there are
many more species to be found.
THE GRI D
SECOND TIMES THE
CHARM In archaeology,
sometimes its not about
discovery so much as
rediscovery. Recently, Spanish
excavators in the Egyptian
area of Luxor re-found an
ancient tomb. It had rst been
discovered in 1904 but was
later abandoned, forgotten
and buried by shifting sands.
Preliminary studies indicate the
tomb belongs to someone called
As-m-ra Ashemro who lived
around 700BC. It adds a new
name to the pharaohic history.
TRUE GRIT Movies like
Mission Impossible: Ghost
Protocol, which, feature powerful,
but harmless sandstorms, can
paint a beautiful and exciting
picture. As well as giving Tom
Cruise the chance to do his
trademark run at speed. But the
freak sandstorm which hit Irans
capital in June proves otherwise.
The 120kph gusts blotted out
the sun, cut power, caused cars
to crash, and toppled trees. As a
result, 40 people were injured
and ve killed.
A RECENT NEWS STORY FROM ALASKA CONFIRMS WHAT WE ALWAYS KNEW: BEARS ARE THE
NINJA CAT BURGLARS OF THE ANIMAL WORLD. BEAR FALLS THROUGH SKYLIGHT INTO PARTY,
EATS ALL THE CUPCAKES, READ ONE HEADLINE. THE BLACK BEAR LITERALLY CRASHED A
ONE-YEAR-OLDS BIRTHDAY PARTY, AMBLED TO THE FOOD TABLE AND SNARFED THE BIRTHDAY
TREATS. THE STUNNED PARENTS SHOOED THE BEAR AWAY, BUT IT QUICKLY SNUCK BACK TO
PEER MOURNFULLY THROUGH THEIR WINDOW, STARING AT THE BAKED GOODIES.
Bear
Burglar
STRANGE AND SERIOUS EVENTS FROM ACROSS THE WORLD
14
NEWS
CRAZY COSTS
NASA recently
released a free e-book
titled Archaeology,
Anthropology,
and Interstellar
Communication, a
text pondering how
mankind would
communicate with
aliens. Couched in
academic language so
dry it makes Yoda look
like Shakespeare, its
message boils down to
this communicating
with alien life forms will
probably be, like, really
hard. Because theyll
be, like, totally diferent
from us, yknow?
For a far more provoc-
ative and exciting read,
we recommend Sphere,
a thriller by Michael
Crichton. In the book,
a band of scientists nd
themselves literally
out of their depth
when what appears
to be an alien craft is
discovered 300 metres
beneath the surface of
the Pacic Ocean. Now
the mathematician,
biologist, and
psychologist must try to
predict how to interact
with aliens.
A tricky problem,
considering
most movies and
even scholarly
papers imagining
extraterrestrial life have
assumed very human-
centric values and
ways of approaching
the world. Something,
he writes, which is
obviously nonsense.
For one thing, theres
enough variation
behaviour to make
understanding just
within our own species
very troublesome.
How, for example,
would a Peruvian tribal
chief and a Russian
schoolboy even begin
to establish a dialogue?
Whats more, aliens
might assume a form so
diferent from ours we
could barely begin to
imagine it.
FANCY A CHAT
WITH ALIENS?
Try starting with Peruvian tribal
chief versus a Russian school boy
Quote Unquote
Spider
Eats Fish
The creepy news: some species of spider can eat
prey twice their size. The creepier news: a recent
study nds these sh-eating spiders are present
on every continent but Antarctica.
Imagining Aliens in Sphere
THE ESTIMATED VALUE OF
THE WORLDS ECOSYSTEMS,
ACCORDING TO A NEW
PAPER BY A TEAM OF
ECOLOGISTS, IN TERMS OF
FOOD, RAW MATERIALS,
CULTURAL USES AND MORE
US$142.7
TRILLION
THE AMOUNT IT WOULD COST TO BUY
ONE OF EVERY PRODUCT FEATURED
IN THE JUNE 2014 ISSUE OF THE US
EDITON OF FASHION MAGAZINE VOGUE
US$343,000
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COST PER PORTABLE TOILET AT THIS
YEARS GLASTONBURY MUSIC FESTIVAL.
ORGANISERS SAID THE SUPER LOOS
SMELLED FAR BETTER THAN OLDER MODELS
US$34,000
PLEASE, TURN THE VOLUME DOWN!
Well, Barnes said, if this sphere contains a creature that
interferes with our basic mechanisms what would that
creature be like? It might produce a sound vibration that would
resonate in our skeletal system and shatter our bones, Harry
said. I rather like that one.
PLANT KILLER
But, as usual, were only thinking of ourselves. The creature
might do nothing directly harmful to us at all. It might simply
exhale a toxin that kills chloroplasts, so that plants could no
longer convert sunlight. Then all the plants on Earth would die
and consequently all life on Earth would die.
THE ULTIMATE GAME OF HIDE AND SEEK
This creature may be multidimensional, so that it literally
does not exist in our usual three dimensions. To take the
simplest case, if it were a four-dimensional creature, we would
only see part of it at any time. That would obviously make it
difcult to kill.
HE GOT VERY OVER-
EXCITED. IT WAS
THE FIRST EVICTION
OF A CLASSICAL
CONCERT
AUDIENCE MEMBER
BY ANOTHER
MEMBER WEVE
FOUND SINCE THE
18TH CENTURY.
TOM MORRIS
ARTISTIC
DIRECTOR OF
THE BRISTOL
PROMS
Classical concerts are not
necessarily thought of as the coolest
of gigs. British artistic director
Tom Morris wanted to change that
when he recently launched The
Bristol Proms, an accessible and
informal set of concerts. Before a
performance of Handels Messiah,
Morris pointed to the standing
mosh pit and encouraged the
audience to clap or whoop when
you like, and no shushing other
people. But he wasnt anticipating
the response of audience member
Dr David R. Glowacki, a scientist
from Stanford University. Glowacki
began to lurch from side to side
and whoop before attempting a
rather ambitious crowd-surng
manoeuvre. Several miffed crowd
members then proceeded to forcibly
eject him from the crowd. Rock on.
If you take a lighter blue on a $3 million
dollar printer, people arent going to take
pastel blue seriously. I mean some of
Xerox's printers are as big as the freight
car of a train picture a sky blue printer of
that size, my God.
I decided to ask friends and students: If
you could change one thing in the world
what would it be? Im amazed at how many
people would change the colour of their
eyes. The gooest answer was leaves: Id
change them to blue.
I admit that I have to work hard to
transmute the negative in my daily life.
Every time I can nd some humour, I
win. Or as the old Quaker saying goes,
"It is better to light a candle than to
curse the darkness.
CHECKING
IN WITH
We catch up with the colour psychologist who gushes
about the shades that bring the world together
COLOUR EXPERT
JILL MORTON
HER 30 SECOND THOUGHTS ON
FIRST INTERVIEWED IN Fifty Shades of Awesome: Inside the
Science of Colour
INDUSTRIAL DESIGN HAPPY THOUGHTS WISHFUL THINKING
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Teacher and colour
consultant Jill Morton has
helped some of the biggest
companies in the world
connect more strongly with
customers. Sometimes, it just
takes a tweak in the shade
of a product. But there are
a lot of things to consider
when it comes to why we like
or dislike a colour, she told
us. Cultural complexities
can make it impossible for
a multinational company to
nd a single colour that suits
everyone.
As she revealed, she might
start a project by examining
the ags of a country,
because most countries
embrace those colours.
But in some countries, I
think Finland is one, the
ag colours are such a
respectable shade you never
put it on a product.
Recently, Morton has
been doing more pro bono
work, travelling to Pakistan
to conduct colour workshops
with students there. Is she
nding that the universal
language of colour can help
bring people together?
Absolutely yes! she says
happily. During the past
two decades shes realised
that colour is an experience
we all share regardless of
politics, religion, geography,
age. There are seven billion
people on the planet, and we
are all immersed in a colour
soaked world.
She adds that as an
American, she felt her
country had not made
sufcient eforts to reach out
to the Muslim world. Her
workshops use colour as the
basis for interaction and
hopefully help to build some
bridges in the region.
Creativity, it seems, can
go a long way to linking
cultures, whatever their
ag. Its worth noting
that any design class
regardless of geography
is an ideal environment
for students to express
personal experiences and
for a teacher to connect to
students on a personal level.
18
The American Civil War (1861-1865)
still ranks as the bloodiest conict
in the countrys history. Over 650,000
people lost their lives in bloody battles.
But some skirmishes were stranger
than others. For example, the Fistght
of Saunders Field, when North and
South stopped ghting for a few
confused moments to watch two men
beat the stufng out of each other.
John Worsham of the 21st Virginia
Infantry was there that day, and
describes how a Southern compatriot
dropped into a gully to escape re.
The problem was that the gully had
recently been vacated by retreating
Northern troops and one was still
in it. Having commenced to banter,
the enemies decided that "they would
go into the road and have a regular st
and skull ght, the best man to have
the other as his prisoner. Slugging
it out in full view of their armies, this
duel soon brought this major battle
to a standstill. When the two men
took off their coats and commenced
to ght with their sts, a yell went up
along each line, and men rushed to
the edge of the opening for a better
view! Worsham recalls. In the end,
the Southern ghter beat the Yankee,
and both sides resumed ring!
Boxing in
the Battleeld
USA USED 4.5
GIGATONS
CHINA USED 6.6
GIGATONS
1901-
2000
2011-
2013
CHINA USED MORE
CEMENT IN THE
LAST THREE YEARS
THAN USA USED IN
THE ENTIRE
20
TH
CENTURY
From the Middle Ages until the 19th Century, if you walked into
certain European kitchen inns youd see something surprising,
a vernepator cur, Latin for the dog that turns the wheel. This
was the turnspit dog, a small dog which ran in a wheel to turn a
spit over a re, ensuring that meat would cook evenly
HOT DOG!
This Victorian novelist came up with the most hackneyed
storytelling phrase ever, in his 1830 novel Paul Clifford. And
thats not even the full quote, which continues thusly in one long
bowel movement of a sentence: The rain fell in torrents
except at occasional intervals, when it was checked by a violent
gust of wind which swept up the streets (for it is in London
that our scene lies), rattling along the housetops, and ercely
agitating the scanty ame of the lamps that struggled against
the darkness. Still, Sir Edward did have another literary win:
The pen is mightier than the sword".
EDWARD GEORGE
EARLE BULWER-LYTTON
HISTORY
A CONCRETE ARGUMENT
Quote
Unquote
Shakespeare mentions them in
The Comedy of Errors, describing a character
as a curtailed dog t only to run in a wheel.
Dogs not belonging to the nobility were often
curtailed (their tails shortened)
The Society of Prevention of
Cruelty to Animals (SPCA) was created
after the founder witnessed the appalling
conditions of the animals in an American
hotel kitchen in the 1850s
To train dogs to run faster, hot coals were
sometimes thrown into the wheel
Turnspit dogs would have Sunday of, and
sometimes join families at church to serve
as foot warmers
It is thought the expressions, every dog has
his day and its a dogs life stem from these
overworked living microwaves, (pictured
above, between the ham hocks)
18
IT WAS A
DARK AND
STORMY
NIGHT
HOWEVER, CHINA IS ALSO HOME TO DOZENS OF GHOST CITIES THAT
HAVE BEEN NEWLY BUILT, BUT REMAIN LARGELY UNINHABITED.
ONE OF THE BIGGEST IS ORDOS, WHICH IS 98 PERCENT EMPTY. ONE
DISTRICT, MEANT TO HOUSE ONE MILLION PEOPLE, CURRENTLY HAS
ONLY 20,000 RESIDENTS
2 PERCENT POPULATION
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20
MASS
PRODUCED
What better way to make your kid
wash? Highlights include replicas of
Han Solo trapped in carbonite, cat
food scented soap, bars with ngers
(hand soap, gettit?), and for all you
Tyler Durden fans, pink bars with Fight
Club on them.
NOVELTY SOAP
You know, the kind of undersized
bar of soap you get in terrible hotels,
hermetically sealed in plastic that rips your
ngernails of. It takes all of eight seconds
before dissolving to the oor and collecting
nine kinds of body hair. Terrible.
TRAVEL SOAP
ACCORDING TO THE GUINNESS BOOK OF WORLD RECORDS, THE FINNISH
LANGUAGE IS HOME TO THE LONGEST KNOWN SINGLE PALINDROMIC WORD,
MEANING THAT IT CAN BE READ THE SAME WAY BOTH FORWARDS AND
BACKWARDS. SAIPPUAKIVIKAUPPIAS MEANS, RATHER PLEASINGLY, A TRAVELLING
SALESMAN WHO SELLS CAUSTIC SODA TO THE SOAP INDUSTRY. WE'RE GUESSING
THAT'S A FAIRLY RARE OCCUPATION. SOME GREEK AND TURKISH BAPTISMAL
FONTS BEAR ANOTHER PALINDROME: NIYON ANOMHAMATA MH MONAN OYIN,
WHICH MEANS WASH THE SINS, NOT ONLY THE FACE. GOOD ADVICE.
Not only does it clean your hands,
it is added to glasses of beer in commercials
to make it froth more appealingly.
Detergent is also the second-most stolen
product in the USA (crack addicts trade it
for drugs). Seriously!
LIQUID DETERGENT
1 2
4 5 6
MASS
PRODUCED
SLIPPERY SOAP
HOMEMADE
3
You just need lard, lye and water.
Some outdoorsmen have been known to
simply toss ne wood ashes into a
greasy frying pan after dinner. The lye in
the ash combines with the fat to make a
very crude soap.
First produced in 1789, this
opaque product is a clear soap with
a high level of glycerin, a compound
found in fats. Transparent soap is
also more gentle on the skin. Just
dont lose it in the bathtub or youll
be groping for hours.
TRANSPARENT
In his acting days, Ronald Reagan
did commercials for the powdered soap brand
Boraxo. On the campaign trail, Californian
protestors hefted signs that blared, Who
wants Boraxo in Sacramento? That may be
only soap to you, Reagan told protestors, but
it was bread and butter to me.
Six clean machines have some gritty back
stories to share
POWDERED
The A-Z Of
Cleanliness
21
SEPTEMBER 2014
ALTERNATIVE CAMERA
Germanys latest photo kid on the block is this Leica T camera system.
Its body crafted from a single block of aluminium, this mirrorless
camera is sleek and simple. Maike Harberts, product manager tells...
TECHNOLOGY
I liked the feel and weight
of the camera. How
important was that in
designing the Leica? What
we always try to achieve is a
seamless, exciting journey.
The rst thing you see when
you see a product is what it
looks like. We try to excite
people with the design of the
camera. Next thing is the rst
touch... that is excitement
again. And then you use
it exhilaration again.
When you see the results
overwhelming! Our aim is to
never disappoint at any stage.
One would like to have it in
your hands, because it is very
ergonomic.
Nowadays the camera is
becoming less of a physical
object, with smartphones
and Google Glass becoming
popular. Whats your take
on that? I see it as a very
positive thing. There have
never been more people
taking images than today, and
thats because of smartphones
and so on. When I was
growing up, only dads took
images with their cameras.
Maybe enthusiastic nerds too.
Nowadays everyone loves to
take pictures.
Does it get harder for a
photograph to shine with
billions taken every day?
The best image sometimes
is the one that just captures
the moment. But theres also
something about having a
beautiful shot. There was
a study a while back where
Why is it so easy to y into
paroxysms of rage when your
printer breaks? Well, error
messages like ERROR 67
DEFECTIVE FORMATTER PCA
certainly dont help. Their very
inhumanity make them easy to
blame. In Emotional Design: Why
We Love (or Hate) Everyday Things,
Donald A. Norman notes that many
high-tech systems, do not do a
very good job of gathering trust.
They crash for no apparent reason,
yet, they express no shame.
Worse, he adds, they appear
to blame us, the poor unwitting
users. Those cranky machines.
This goes double for road rage. A
study into the link between gun
murders and road rage by the
Harvard School of Public Health
noted that its easy for drivers to
get mad at another car because
we get territorial about our own
auto, yet cant communicate with
the jerk in the Volvo next door.
Usually, when another driver
makes a mistake, it is often
difcult for him to apologise, to
signal excuse me in a way that
can be readily understood.
The consequences, of course,
can mean a deadly accident or
sticuffs on the freeway. Why has
nobody invented an, Im terribly
sorry! Hugs and kisses! horn
sound yet?
UNEDITED RESPONSES
TO A 2005 COMPUTER
RAGE SURVEY BY THE
LABORATORY FOR AUTO-
MATION PSYCHOLOGY
AND DECISION PROCESSES
I once shot a computer with a .50
cal BMG sniper rie
I sometimes put my hands
around my monitors neck
Throwing stressball at my screen
(didnt help btw)
people had to pick just one
image out of hundreds. And
they always picked the one
with less depth of eld. Thats
something that appeals to
people and makes images very
beautiful.
It was interesting seeing
the original Ur-Leica, the
1914 model, next to the 2014
Leica T. Theyre diferent
yet totally the same. What
will cameras look like in 100
years? Thats crystal ball stuf,
to be honest. Technology has
been skyrocketing. In a way, its
been too fast. You had records
in the old days, then CDs, and
now, only bits and bytes. Yet
sales of records has never been
so high, because people love
going back to stuf...100 years
from now? I have no idea.
Maybe something where you
can take photos with your eyes.
What are the design details,
the holy grails that make
a Leica so recognisable?
The balance of a camera is
important. If you use a camera
and you like to hold it in your
hands, then you use it more,
and you get better. It shouldnt
be too light or too heavy, it
should be just right. Touch and
feel is always very important.
Like what? Like the
diameter of certain things.
The proportion of width,
length and height. These are
very special ratios that we
always try to keep. And with
materials, we try to be as
authentic as possible. If you
see something that looks
like plastic, it should be
plastic. If you see glass it
should be glass, and not some
fake imitation.
22
INVENTIONS
TECHNOLOGY
ZIPPO
A quick-thinking bystander
relit the sputtering Sochi Winter
Olympic ame with his Zippo
lighter. And at least six people
have had their lives saved by bul-
letproof Zippos.
GOGGLE UMBRELLAS
How clever are umbrellas with
small transparent patches so you
can spot when youre about to
walk into trafc? Almost as clever
as entirely see-through umbrel-
las. Almost.
SLICED BREAD
Pre-sliced bread was only
invented in 1928. Inventor Otto
Frederick Rohweder worked on
his bread-slicing machine for 15
years. Worryingly, his prototype
held slices with metal hat pins.
SPACES BETWEEN WORDS
Thisisamazing! Aerated script
writing with spaces between
words was only created by Irish
monks in the 7th century. Before
then scriptura continua was the
norm. As were migraines.
TEENAGERS
The word teenager was only
coined in 1921. The idea of teen-
agers as an accepted, prominent
social group really ourished after
WWII. Before then, you were
either a kid or an adult.
LYING
We ofer our awed, undying
respect to the rst cave-person
who could look at their lice-ridden,
toothless, sweat-stained signi-
cant other and say, Darling, of
course you look gorgeous!
BODY-BASED USB PORTS
Given that smartphone battery life
can now be measured in minutes,
it would be great if you could plug
an iPhone into your heart and
power it with your own bio-elec-
tricity. You know, like The Matrix.
A NEW SNACK
Preferably a combo that tastes
even better than chocolate and
peanut butter. Oh wait, it doesnt
exist because thats literally the
greatest thing that happened to
food since sliced bread.
SPACES BETWEEN WORDS
Aerated script also helped spread
the practice of reading silently,
which was not common before
then. Yet it took about ve cen-
turies before spaced sentences
were the norm in Europe.
UNIVERSAL TRANSLATORS
Never again would we be caught
saying, soy embarazada to a
Spaniard, before being told it
doesnt mean, Im embarrassed
but, Im pregnant. That would
never have happened on Star Trek.
Its a Bird,
Its a
Dolphin!
OBJECTS
FLYBOARD
US$5,850
What is it? A bolt-on
attachment that connects
to a jet ski and re-routes
the water jet through a long
hose that connects to a pair
of jet boots
Maximum height Can reach
12 metres in the air or dive
12 metres below water
Maximum speed 30kph
Suggested catchphrase
whilst using
I am Iron Man!
HOVERBOARD BY ZR
US$2,657
What is it?
A water-propelled
surfboard that allows
its user to y above the
water to realize multiple
freestyle tricks
Maximum height
6 metres
Maximum speed.
40kph
Suggested catchphrase
whilst using
Im hangin ten... feet up in
the air!
THE MATCHUP: I NVENTI ONS
SLICED BREAD
Its mind-boggling to think that
the phrase _____ is the greatest
thing since sliced bread was
rst used in 1952 and just 24
years before that, sliced bread
wasnt even a thing.
C
O
N
C
E
P
TS
FRENCH JET SKI CHAMPION
FRANKY ZAPATA HAS
DEVELOPED TWO NEW
SPORTSCRAFT. BUT WHICH
ONE SHOULD YOU BUY?
N
OT
IN
VEN
TED
YET
#SUPERTASTYLARGEANDINCHARGE
TEXASTOASTTWOHANDWICHMADE
WITHDELICIOUSONEHUNDRED
PERCENTWHITEMEATHANDBREADED
CHICKENTENDERSANDYOURCHOICE
OFCLASSICORSPICYPAPASAUCE
EITHERWAYYOUCANTGOWRONG
WOWTHATSOUNDSGOODYOUNEED
TOTRYONEITSONLYAVAILABLEFORA
LIMITEDTIMEIMGOINGTOHAVETOGO
GETONEMYSELFAREYOUSTILL
READINGTHISSEEYOUATAANDW
UNIVERSAL TRANSLATORS
Heck, even something that could
decode urgent mufed train station
announcements would be good.
Hnnenn shnorf f zzLZ! Translat-
ed: The train is delayed by ninjas
stealing conductors hats.
TOP THREE
WINNERS
28
FEATURES
40 72
29
SEPTEMBER 2014
30
90
58
PAGE 30 WALK THROUGH THE
ENDLESS ARCTIC WILDERNESS
PAGE 40 CONFRONT THE
WORLD'S MOST FEROCIOUS
PAGE 58 TASTE THE FOOD OF
THE FUTURE
PAGE 72 MEET THE MEN WHO
MAN ROCKETS
PAGE 90 HANDLE DANGEROUS
ANIMALS LIKE A PRO
30
ANOTHER
DAY IN
ETERNITY
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THE EVENK PEOPLE
OF SIBERIA
RUSSIA
SIBERIA
EVENKS
THE EVENK ARE THE MOST
NUMEROUS AND WIDELY
SCATTERED OF THE MANY
SMALL ETHNIC GROUPS OF
NORTHERN SIBERIA, WHOSE
MEMBERS CAN ALSO BE
FOUND IN NEIGHBOURING
CHINA AND MONGOLIA.
ALSO KNOWN AS THE
TUNGUS, THE EVENK SPLIT
INTO THREE DIFFERENT
GROUPS, FOOT, REINDEER
AND HORSE WITH EACH
DEVELOPING A DIFFERENT
DIALECT AND WAY OF LIFE
To gain an appreciation for the beauty and
weirdness of Mother Nature, try spending a
day and night with a reindeer herdsman. Kiwi
photographer Amos Chapple introduces
Daniel Seifert to a remote corner of Siberia,
carefully avoiding the yellow snow
THE REINDEER MAN,
VLADIMIR BAGADAEV IN
THE WILDERNESS OF
NORTHERN SIBERIA
OPPOSITE SLEEPING
OUTSIDE IN TEMPER-
ATURES OF MINUS 60
DEGREES CELSIUS IS
ROUTINE FOR VLADIMIR.
HERE HE DEMONSTRATES
HOW HE BEDS DOWN IN
HIS SLEEPING POUCH TO
BEAT THE CHILL
ARCTIC LIFE
32
HOOFING IT
10
KILOMETERS
THE APPROXIMATE
AVERAGE DISTANCE A
REINDEER WILL TRAVEL
BEFORE NEEDING TO
URINATE. THE FINNISH
LANGUAGE EVEN USES
THIS BLADDER-BASED
DISTANCE AS A UNIT OF
MEASUREMENT: ONE
PORONKUSEMA IS
10 KILOMETERS
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33
SEPTEMBER 2014
t is a place where
minus 60 degree
Celsius temperatures
frequently force
truckers to leave
their engines on all
night long, just to
stop the diesel from
freezing. And where,
inevitably, trucks
freeze anyway, so you have to
thaw out the frosted machine
parts with a blowtorch. An
area where the nights and
days blend into such wintery
oneness that reindeer actually
change their eye colour, in
order to see through the
darkness of gloom.
But for Vladimir Bagadaev,
this northern Russian
wilderness is his home and
ofce and these frigid
outdoor conditions are places
that, from time to time, he
sleeps in. The hardy member
of the Evenk tribe, a group of
indigenous people, spends
his life shepherding a herd of
about four dozen reindeer.
REINDEER BIOLOGY
DUE TO THE NEAR-TOTAL
LACK OF LIGHT DURING
SIBERIAN WINTERS,
REINDEER EYES ACTUALLY
CHANGE COLOUR AT
DIFFERENT TIMES OF THE
YEAR. IN THE SUMMER,
THEY ARE YELLOWISH-
GREEN. IN WINTER THEY
TURN A BLUE COLOUR,
WHICH SCATTERS
INCOMING LIGHT AND
RESULTS IN BETTER VISION
THEIR NOSES ARE
DESIGNED TO WARM FRIGID
AIR BEFORE IT GETS TO
THEIR LUNGS
REINDEER HOOVES EXPAND
IN SUMMER TO ADAPT TO
SOFTER GROUND, AND
CONTRACT IN WINTER
SOME SPECIES HAVE KNEES
WHICH MAKE A CLICKING
NOISE SO MEMBERS OF
A HERD CAN FIND EACH
OTHER IN A BLIZZARD
VLADIMIR LETS
OFF A ROUND
FROM HIS SOVIET
HUNTING RIFLE
A FULL MOON RISING
ABOVE A HERD OF
REINDEER A FEW
MINUTES AFTER THEY
RETURNED HOME
FROM A DAY FORAGING
IN THE FOREST
ARCTIC LIFE
34
BAGADAEV'S LOG
CABIN TAKEN BY
THE LIGHT OF THE
FULL MOON
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35
SEPTEMBER 2014
His is a way of life that
dates back centuries, and
the only life that this gutsy
outdoorsman, now in his late
forties, knows. And looking
at the scenery surrounding
his ofce, its no wonder
Amos Chapple, a travel
photographer from New
Zealand, wanted to capture
this unique slice of his life.
At rst, his idea came
from another photograph.
I had seen some images of a
reindeer herders' hut taken
by a Croatian photographer
some time ago, and had been
obsessed with nding the
place, Chapple tells Discovery
Channel Magazine. A friend
helped me to locate the place,
then the locals made sure I got
out to Vladimir safely.
Getting out there was
an adventure in itself. You
kick of with a seven hour
westward ight from Moscow
to Yakutsk, located about 450
kilometres south of the Arctic
Circle, followed by a seven
hour drive north-east to the
region of Khandyga. Chapple
then hitched a ride on a supply
vehicle (a nearby mine was
delivering a new doctor) to
the town of Topolina. You
know youre well into the
wilds when the village youre
in doesnt even show up on
Google Maps, he says. From
Topolina its just another
three-hour jaunt down a
frozen river, before you arrive
at Bagadaev's door.
With your boots nally
on the ground of the Russian
taiga, or forest, youre in a
diferent world. Here in
the north the wilderness is
clean and never changes, as
Bagadaev told Chapple. Thats
why we call it eternity.
Managing his farm in the
middle of eternity is no easy
task. His herd of reindeer,
which provide him with meat
ARCTIC LIFE
36
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THE SUBJECT
OF SIBERIA
77 PERCENT
SIBERIAS LANDMASS
MAKES UP 77 PERCENT OF
RUSSIA. IF IT BECAME AN
INDEPENDENT NATION IT
WOULD BE THE BIGGEST
IN THE WORLD
1.5
MILLION
THOUGH SPARSELY
POPULATED, RUSSIAS
THIRD-LARGEST CITY IS
ALSO IN THIS REGION.
NOVOSIBIRSK IS BUILT
ON THE TRANS-SIBERIAN
RAILWAY AND IS A KEY
INDUSTRIAL CENTRE
30
THERE ARE 30
INDIGENOUS TRIBES IN
SIBERIA, COMPRISING
SOME 200,000 PEOPLE
1900
THE EVENK ALPHABET
WAS ONLY CREATED IN
THE EARLY 1900S, AND
THE FIRST BOOK PRINTED
IN 1928
37
SEPTEMBER 2014
VLADIMIR BAGADAEV
LEADS A TEAM OF
REINDEER HAULING
HANDMADE SLEDS AS
THE SUN SKIMS THE
SIBERIAN HORIZON
ARCTIC LIFE
38
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EVENK HUNTING
LANGUAGE
TO COMMUNICATE OVER
THE VAST DISTANCES
OF THEIR HUNTING
TERRITORIES, EVENKS
USE A SPECIAL WRITING
SYSTEM

A BRANCH CAREFULLY
PLACED ACROSS A PATH
MEANS THAT ONE CANNOT
GO FURTHER
AN ARROW IN THE BARK
OF A TREE WHOSE
BRANCHES HAVE BEEN
CLIPPED CAN MEAN I
AM FURTHER AHEAD IF
IT POINTS UP, AND I AM
SETTING TRAPS NEARBY
IF POINTING DOWN
and fur to sell, have a lot of
space to roam in. Sometimes
Bagadaev cant make it back
to his cabin before the sun
swoops over the horizon,
forcing him to bed down
outside for the night. To see
him through the night alive, he
goes through a well-practiced
planned routine.
First, he will craft a re
with enough wood to last
until dawn. Then, hell
dig a snowbank near his
blaze, which will ofer some
protection from the biting
wind. Before snuggling into a
thick woollen sleeping pouch,
which used to belong to his
father, Bagadaev will rst
VLADIMIR'S BROTHER
ALEXEI WARMS THE
DRIVE SHAFT OF HIS
TRUCK AFTER IT HAS
FROZEN SOLID
A TRUCK DRIVES
ON THE FROZEN
INDIGIRKA RIVER
39
SEPTEMBER 2014
shuck out of his outer trousers.
For comfort, he notes.
As Chapple explains,
Bagadaevs ability to survive
is more about technique than
his powers of adaptation. The
people of the Yakutsk region
hate being cold, he laughs.
But they know what to wear
and how to live as best they
can, to avoid feeling the chill.
By looking after his herd,
Bagadaev is also looking after
himself. Theres nary a part
of the mammal that goes to
waste, providing Evenks with
thick, snowproof clothing,
milk, cheese and meat. In this
landscape, each of these are
vital to survival.
Despite the brutal
conditions, Chapple was
struck by the Evenks obvious
love for the landscape.
And its a bond driven by
ancestral love, not money.
The government will only
subsidise herdsman with
a herd of 800 or more.
Bagadaevs herd numbers just
46 reindeer. He would talk
about the landscape in a way
that was almost romantic,
Chapple recalls. Its a bond
that the photographer has
witnessed in communities
around the world. But I
wasnt expecting it in a place
so desolate.
Nor perhaps was he
expecting just how rough the
conditions would be on his
gear. Cameras get cold fast.
Wield an SLR in 55 degrees
below Celsius for half an
hour and it inevitably shivers
to a halt. It was a constant
struggle to keep my camera
as warm as possible. Thats
when he wasnt keeping it
away from the clouds of mist
that exploded from his mouth
with every single breath,
smothering many of his shots.
To compensate, he would
hold his breath a few seconds
before snapping the shutter.
But despite silencing
his panting, Chapple still
managed to be surprised by
some very sneaky customers,
the members of Vladimirs
herd. Reindeers, Chapple will
now tell you, are incredibly
quiet. His rst night out, he
was distracted by a dusk that
painted the air a thick blue
against the silver of a rising
moon. One by one, the deer
came walking into camp until
I was surrounded by them.
The only sound was the gentle
tinkling of their bells.
And perhaps a quiet slurp
or two. They love frozen
pee! he marvels. They dig
it out of the snow with their
hooves, then eat it like a
popsicle. Indeed, as other
journalists who visited the
region have noted, if you go
for a wee in the middle of
the night, you run the risk of
kicking up a storm of hooves
and antlers, as the thirsty
animals stampede happily
toward you.
Places like this are as
unpredictable as they are
beautiful, says Chapple.
Thats what makes them so
attractive. In a space this
isolated, with a culture this
distinct, you never know
whats going to happen. His
shots conrm that even in an
increasingly urban society,
people like Bagadaev still
spend their days wrestling
with Mother Nature rather
than the rat race. In fact, its
the exact opposite of going to
a shopping mall, he says.
The Evenks lifestyle
reminds us of some characters
from the Discovery Channel,
we muse to Chapple.
Denitely, he agrees, then
notes cheekily, He is the
bonade Bear Grylls of the
tundra just without the
showing of.
ARCTIC LIFE
VLADIMIR'S HERD
OF REINDEER IN
THEIR NATURAL
HABITAT
UNDOCUMENTED BY SCIENCE AND
AGONISED OVER BY ACADEMICS,
SCORES OF MYSTERIOUS
CREATURES ARE SAID TO ROAM
THE GLOBE. ARE THESE MERELY
FICTIONAL SUBJECTS OR
DANGEROUS, INTIMIDATING BEINGS
FROM ANOTHER WORLD?
DCM DELVES INTO THE HISTORY OF
THE TOP FIVE MONSTERS

ILLUSTRATION BY DARIUS CHEONG
MONSTER FABLES
MESSY NESSIE
IF CHARLIE SHEEN CANT
FIND NESSIE, NOBODY CAN.
LAST YEAR, THE ACTOR
FLEW TO THE HIGHLANDS,
AND SCOURED THE LAKE
WITH A LEG OF LAMB ON
A HUGE HOOK. HE LATER
CONFUSED THE MONSTERS
NAME WITH THE LAKE,
TELLING TV HOST JAY LENO,
THATS WHERE LOCH NESS
LIVES. IN LAKE NESSIE.
LETS NOT FORGET THIS IS
THE MAN WHO ONCE SAID,
I AM ON A DRUG.
ITS CALLED CHARLIE
SHEEN. ITS NOT AVAILABLE
BECAUSE IF YOU TRY IT,
YOU WILL DIE. YOUR FACE
WILL MELT OFF AND YOUR
CHILDREN WILL WEEP OVER
YOUR EXPLODED BODY.
43
SEPTEMBER 2014
P
H
O
T
O
:

G
E
T
T
Y

I
M
A
G
E
S

(
C
H
A
R
L
I
E

S
H
E
E
N
)
Of all the cryptids animals
with no scientic explanation
for their existence
Scotlands Loch Ness Monster
is the most documented, by
both amateurs and experts.
First reported to have been
sighted in AD565, the sea
serpent has enthralled and
enticed both crypto-zoologists
and scientists to prove its
existence. Every year, hordes
of tourists travel to the
Scottish highlands to chance
their arm at sighting this
giant sea snake or living
dinosaur as many believe it to
be. There have been over 3000
documented encounters.
For the last few months,
experts at the ofcial Loch
Ness Monster Fan Club have
been studying satellite images
using Apples satellite map app
which clearly shows a giant
30 metre beast swimming
just below the surface of the
water. So big that it could be
seen from space, the sighting
has put an end to a dearth of
encounters over the last 18
months, believed to be the
longest time the monster has
remained unseen since 1925.
Weeks later an unusual sonar
image, which appears to show
a being with several humps,
was picked up by a cruise
vessel on the lake, seeming to
also point to the fact that the
monster is indeed still very
much alive.
PREHISTORIC TALES
At 36 kilometres long and
248 metres deep, Loch Ness
is said to contain more water
than all the lakes of England,
Scotland and Wales combined.
A rainfall of just 0.635
centimetres can add a massive
11 million tons of water to its
shadowy depths. At this scale
it is clear to see why many who
believe in the monster Nessies
existence say that even the
water itself has an almost
inky viscosity.
The enormity of the loch
underlines why the mystery
of the Loch Ness Monster
has perpetuated throughout
the years. According to www.
nessie.co.uk, the ofcial site
of the serpent of the deep,
the many sightings all bear
the hallmark of a similar
description of a serpent type
creature with a head like a
girafe, skin like an elephant
and short forelegs with
ippers. Those who have
glimpsed the monster in the
water haver also reported
seeing ample evidence of ns
or dark humps.
Many believe that the
Loch Ness Monster shares
characteristics with the
Plesiosauras, a reptilian
dinosaur that shares many of
the features of the Scottish sea
serpent, although is believed
to have been extinct for 65
million years. While early
sightings of the lochs most
famous inhabitant were from
a distance, when a road was
built around its edge in the
early 1930s, the number of
reports increased, with the
rst photographic evidence
emerging in 1933.
More than an intrigue for
tourists, some of the worlds
top scientists have gone
to great lengths to prove
the monsters existence.
In 1960, students from
Oxford and Cambridge
Universities mounted a
scientic expedition to prove
that this strange creature
lived. Cameras and an echo
sounder were used to gather
evidence. It was reported
that a visual sighting and
unusual echoes were
recorded on the expedition.
This cryptid has had
more than its fair share of
high prole hunters over
the years, with thousands
of pounds invested in trying
to prove its reality. In 1987,
George Hunter, skipper of
the loch pleasure boat, The
Nessie Hunter, recorded the
greatest depth of the loch at
248 metres, veried in 2006
by sonar technology. Nessie
acionados were delighted
with this nd, many dubbing
it Nessies Cave.
The unchartered waters
of the loch further add to the
possibility of the monsters
existence. In the 1980s it was
also discovered that a shoal
of Arctic char inhabited the
lochs depths a species that
would have lived there since
the Ice Age, which began 2.4
million years ago.
Although there is a
mounting body of proof
that something exists in
these waters, the Loch Ness
Monster is adept at playing
a cat and mouse game
with those that are keen to
corroborate its existence.
In 1960, engineer and keen
Nessie hunter Tim Dinsdale
was delighted to have recorded
the rst footage of the beast
which was sent to Royal Air
Force photographic experts
to be examined, with the
only conclusion put forward
that his lm was indeed of an
animate object.
By the 1970s, American
scientists became interested
in following up Dinsdales
nds. A group from the
American Academy of
Applied Science, led by Dr
Robert Rines used cameras
and sonar to gather evidence
of its existence, with one
photograph showing the
image of a large ipper and
another showing the head
and body of the creature.
Worldwide excitement
ensued. In 1987 Operation
Deepscan, a massive search
using sonar equipment on 24
boats, failed to nd evidence
of the monster. As did an
extensive search by the BBC
in 2003, which was using 600
sonar beams and satellite
navigation technology.
Despite the evidence,
many believe that the monster
is merely a giant sturgeon,
which can grow up to 3.6
metres. But with so many
academics willing to spend the
time and money searching the
unchartered waters of the loch,
this is one myth that seems to
be too intriguing to dismiss.
LOCH
NESS
MONSTER
20 SIGHTINGS
ON AVERAGE THERE ARE
20 SIGHTINGS OF THE LOCH
NESS MONSTER EACH YEAR
85 PERCENT
OF THE ONE MILLION
TOURISTS WHO VISIT LOCH
NESS EACH YEAR ARE
DRAWN BY THE MONSTER
6.6 DEGREES
THE WATER UNDERNEATH
THE SURFACE OF LOCH
NESS NEVER ALTERS FROM
6.6 DEGREES CELSIUS
A MURKY MYSTERY
EXPERTS HAVE
BEEN STUDYING
SATELLITE
IMAGES WHICH
CLEARLY SHOW
A GIANT 30
METRE BEAST
SWIMMING JUST
BELOW THE
SURFACE OF
THE WATER
MONSTER FABLES
44
Many would rather not admit
to having a fear of the sea after
glimpsing the man eating
great white shark in the movie
Jaws. The fact that the hunter
can turn into the hunted with
terrifying consequences is
a chilling reminder of how
insignicant we humans are
as part of the ecosystem of the
planet Earth.
As frightening as the idea
of such a carnivorous monster
remains, Jaws, at just under
eight metres long, is small fry
compared to the C. megalodon.
This submarine-sized shark
surfaced in prehistoric times
and its outsized ofspring may
still be alive today.
Known as the giant tooth,
the megalodon, which is
thought to measure around 20
metres, has an impressive six
rows of 46 razor-sharp serrated
teeth each measuring just
under 18 centimetres long.
Over the years, scientists have
used the fossilised teeth to
work out and estimate the true
size of these huge ferocious
aquatic killing machines.
This monolithic monster
is said to be related to the
great white shark, but even
the world record holder
for that species caught in
Australia in 1959 and veried
by the International Game
Fishing Association at just
over 1,200 kilograms pales
into insignicance against its
45,000 kilogram prehistoric
cousin. The megalodon shares
the same size characteristics
as the gentle whale shark, but
its predatory behaviour of
consuming almost everything
and anything in its path makes
the ferocious great white shark,
which has been around for just
10 million years, look like a
mere pushover.
A mammoth killing
machine, the megalodon is
believed to have ruled the
seas for some 16 million years
megalodon teeth have been
found all over the world. Some
say it may still be lurking in the
deep even to this day.
GLOBAL TRAVELLER
Its massive jaws have given
it the reputation of having
the most powerful bite of any
animal that ever lived. Despite
its size it is said to have been
able to reach speeds of up to
40 to 56 kilometres an hour
which underlines why it was so
widely travelled. The monsters
teeth are not the only hard
evidence of its existence. Like
most sharks it is made up
mainly of cartilage, but along
with evidence of its massive
jaws, a small number of its
vertebrae, made up of heavily
calcied cartilage, have also
weathered the test of time.
While adults roamed the
globe, the discovery of the
teeth of baby sharks has added
credence to specic areas being
favoured for nurseries. It is
thought that the area between
the Pacic and Atlantic oceans
were favoured by expectant
mothers to give birth, a place
where newborn pups would be
safe from predators.
While many scientists
say that the megalodon
disappeared millions of years
ago, sightings of mammoth
sharks lend credibility to the
theory that they may still be
alive today. With 95 per cent
of the planets oceans still
undiscovered, megalodon
believers say that it may not
be the only behemoth that is
lurking in the depths.
Palaeontologists surmise
that the megalodon could not
survive today, having died out
due to the severe cold of the ice
age or the disappearance of
its main food source: the blue
whale. With a biting force of
some 10 tons, the megalodon
made light work of its prey,
often biting them in two. Its
ferocious bite is said to have
even exceeded the powerful
jaws of the prehistoric land
terror Tyrannosaurus rex,
which preceded the giant shark
by about 36 million years.
But truth can be stranger
than ction. Although
scientists discount the fact
that a prehistoric creature still
terrorizes the deep, recent
evidence may suggest that
a relative of this powerful
predator indeed remains. A
three metre great white shark,
tagged for scientic study, went
missing of Australias coast in
2004, its data tag resurfacing
months later. Bleached by
stomach acid and recording
a 580 metre deep fall and a
huge rise in temperature, this
indicated that the shark had
fallen prey to a much larger
animal. Based on the data tag,
the predator had a stomach
that was at least a metre wide.
While scientists believe
that the fate of the megalodon
is lost in the oceans of history,
the fact that a huge ocean,
three times the size of the
worlds entire water mass
was discovered, could explain
why so many oceanic myths
remain unexplained. The
giant reservoir, which lies
70 kilometres below the
earths crust in eastern Asia,
is believed to be the source of
the planets seas, and scientists
say this could clear up why the
Earths oceans have remained
at exactly the same level for
millions of years.
As New Scientist explains:
Jacobsens team used 2000
seismometers to study the
seismic waves generated by
more than 500 earthquakes.
These waves move throughout
Earths interior, including the
core, and can be detected at
the surface. By measuring the
speed of the waves at diferent
depths, the team could gure
out which types of rocks the
waves were passing through.
The water layer revealed itself
because the waves slowed
down, as it takes them longer
to get through soggy rock than
dry rock.
Returning though to the
megalodon, believers hope
that it may be the next myth
in line to become fact which
happened with the giant squid
or Kraken, a subject of myth
and conjecture since records
began. It was not until one was
caught on lm in 2004 that this
shermans tale jumped from
ction to fact. Time will tell.
MEGA
LODON
SHARK
DINOSAUR
OF THE DEEP
1,100 KG
THE AMOUNT OF
FOOD CONSUMED BY A
MEGALODON IN JUST ONE
DAY. AND BY FOOD, THINK
SEALS, SEA LIONS AND
WHALES
CARCHARODON MEGALODON
(MAXIMUM)
CARCHARODON MEGALODON
(CONSERVATIVE)
WHALE SHARK
GREAT WHITE SHARK
SIGHTINGS OF
MAMMOTH
SHARKS LEND
CREDIBILITY
TO A THEORY
THAT THEY
MAY STILL BE
ALIVE WITH 95
PERCENT
OF THE
PLANETS
OCEANS STILL
UNDISCOVERED
TERRIFYING THE
TOOTH FAIRY
AMONG FOSSIL HUNTERS,
MEGALODON TEETH ARE A
PRIZED COMMODITY. NOT
SURPRISING CONSIDERING
YOU CAN FIND SPECIMENS
17 CENTIMETRES IN
LENGTH. BIG ONES IN GOOD
CONDITION CAN FETCH
HUNDREDS, OR EVEN
THOUSANDS, OF DOLLARS.
PEOPLE PAINSTAKINGLY
SEARCH FOR THEM BY
SCUBA-DIVING RIVERS,
SCOURING BEACHES AND
PEERING AT CLIFF FACES.
MONSTER FABLES
BIG SMILES
IF YOU SEE A CROCODILE ON
A BANK WITH ITS MOUTH
OPEN, IT DOESNT MEAN
ITS ABOUT TO ATTACK.
JUST LIKE DOGS PANT
TO SIPHON OFF EXCESS
HEAT, CROCS COOL OFF
BY SWEATING THROUGH
THEIR IMPRESSIVELY
TOOTHED MOUTHS. THEIR
SHARP TEETH ARE MEANT
FOR GRASPING PREY.
INSTEAD OF CHEWING, THEY
SWALLOW STONES THAT
ACT AS BALLAST IN THE
WATER, AND GRIND THE
FOOD IN THEIR BELLIES.
47
SEPTEMBER 2014
A centuries-old albino
crocodile, its scaly body as
long as a bus and weighing
over a ton, is said to have been
patrolling the waters of the
Malaysian region of Sarawak,
terrorising locals for hundreds
of years. While many believe
the yellow-eyed beast to be a
myth, the disappearance of
villagers snatched from the
shallows or the waters edge by
an enormous crocodile lends
credence to this historical beast.
In the last ve years, 40
of Malaysias 42 recorded
crocodile attacks have taken
place in Sarawak, with 81
percent of attacks usually
recorded at the waters edge.
Half of the attacks have been
fatal, attributed to an
enormous reptilian beast
that has claimed the shallow
murky waters as its kingdom,
and the shores as its feeding
ground. Research shows grisly
footage of limbs being retrieved
from the bellies of the beasts;
ferocious monsters that seem to
have a place gruesomely carved
in the annals of history rather
than mythology.
The biggest crocodile to
be caught in these waters was
a 5.8 metre long saltwater
crocodile. Many believed this to
be a legendary crocodile named
Bujang Senang. It ruled the
rivers through fear for years,
killing 13 people and evading
capture until May 1992 just
after it snatched its nal victim
from a footbridge. Locally,
the beasts live a peaceful co-
existence with their human
neighbours but when the
reptiles go rogue, they are
hunted and killed. A rare albino
croc, he was the largest to be
killed or captured in the state in
two decades.
The legend of this monster
started through local mythology
from the Iban people of
Sarawak. The story goes
that a huge white crocodile
named Bujang Senang was the
reincarnation of the warrior
Simalungun, who died centuries
ago vowing to terrorise and
wreak revenge on his enemies
and their descendants.
Although its skull is displayed in
the Sarawak Museum, rumours
abound that he was never
caught and its descendants
still roam the rivers. So
ingrained is the legend in local
culture that if shermen catch a
baby crocodile they set it free, to
ensure that no bad omen befalls
the family.
When years of eforts to
catch the fearsome beast failed,
it seemed as though this was
a monster that was certainly
of another realm. Reports of
hiding a grenade in a dead duck
to astonishing tales of hooks
with bait being mauled out of
shape only added fuel to the
mythical re. When the mighty
beast was nally killed, the one
ton crocodile took a large group
of men a staggering four hours
to haul it from the river.
GRUESOME LEGEND
Legend has it that although
Bujang Senang which
incidentally means 'happy
bachelor' in the local language
was a fearsome killer, he may
not have been the only fearsome
predator that roamed the rivers.
All the victims were seized from
the shore or in shallow water,
which is a characteristic trait of
the saltwater crocodile. Earlier
in 1988, the legendary beasts
companion Bujang Sudin was
caught by a witch doctor, its
180 kilogram carcass sold to a
nearby crocodile farm.
With two of the distinctive
white crocodiles captured,
the local legend that Bujang
Sedangs descendants still
terrorised the depths became
more real. In 2000, so prevalent
were the crocodile attacks
that plans were made to train
Malaysian remen to help hunt
them down. The move came
after a 5.5 metre crocodile,
suspected of killing a 10-year-
old girl, surrendered itself to
her father on the spot where she
died, apparently following the
instructions of local bomohs
(shaman) who had been asked
to track down the beast after
forestry ofcials failed to locate
it. The same bomohs were said
to be responsible for catching
another of the area's toothy
killers. In 2006, a boy was
snatched from the river just
metres from his house, by a
crocodile that was described as
being as big as a boat.
Although accountable
for fewer attacks than its
Nile cousin, the potentially
enormous size of the saltwater
crocodile (crocodylus porosus)
gives it a fearsome reputation.
While most would prefer these
human-eating crocodiles to
be myth, there are several
examples through history of
enormous reptiles terrorising
villages, causing scores of
fatalities and remaining elusive
for years. Indeed, the immense
crocodiles caught in Sarawak
look more like huge dragons
than mere reptiles.
MASSIVE ATTACK
The number of crocodiles
in the areas is rising, with
attacks increasing tenfold in
the last decade. This has been
attributed to the increase of
logging. With nowhere to hide,
the crocodiles are being driven
out of their homes. Some people
feel that the evicted reptiles
are actively targeting humans
in retribution. While many
say that they will not attack
people, if they are hungry they
will eat just about anything.
Modern day advances may also
be attracting the crocodiles to
human prey. The increase of
boats with outboard motors
attracts them as the motor is
said to emulate the sound of
another croc.
In June 2012, the hot season
saw an increase of attacks, to
such an extent that the Forestry
Commission issued a permit to
cull. The target was to capture
60 crocodiles, all bigger than
2.5 metres long. The move came
after two fatal attacks occurred
in the Sungai Anak River. The
perpetrator was known locally
as Bujang Seblak, a monstrous
white creature that had been
on the prowl since 2007 and
had just claimed his fourth
victim. Despite the animal
taking bullets to its snout, it
took two weeks to catch him,
along with two other crocodiles
measuring 2.8 and 2.7 metres
feet long, scarily perceived
as his lieutenants. Whether
the reincarnation of a former
warrior is true or not, fact
remains that these crocodiles
are too deadly to ignore.
THE MAN-EATING
CROC
OF SARAWAK
90 EGGS
A FEMALE CROCODILE
CAN LAY UP TO 90 EGGS
INCUBATING THEM FOR
THREE MONTHS
70 YEARS
THESE ESTUARINE OR
SALTWATER CROCODILES
GROW UP TO SIX METRES
IN LENGTH, WEIGH 1,000
KILOGRAMS AND CAN LIVE
FOR UP TO 70 YEARS
A DEADLY MENACE
RUMOURS
ABOUND THAT
THE ALBINO
BUJANG
SENANG,
WHICH MEANS
HAPPY
BACHELOR
IN LOCAL
DIALECT, WAS
NEVER CAUGHT
AND ITS
DESCENDANTS
STILL ROAM
THE RIVERS
MONSTER FABLES
48
FEET FIRST
The search for the elusive
creature that walks upright
with a stooped gait is big
business, and snowballed in
the 1950s when a photograph
of a yeti footprint was
taken by British climber
Eric Shipton at the base of
Everest. The bear-like prints,
measuring as long as a US size
nine mens shoe and twice
as broad, were discovered
almost six kilometres up the
mountain in the snow. It
is testament to the worlds
fascination with the yeti that
the photograph sold at auction
in 2007 for US$5,900.
Last year, tests by Oxford
University genetics professor
Bryan Sykes on hair samples
concluded that there may be
a biological animal behind
the myth. One hair sample
was from the remains of a
mummied creature shot
decades earlier by a hunter
in Ladakh in India, the other
was a single hair found in a
bamboo forest by lmmakers
around a decade ago.
Interestingly, Professor Sykes
told the BBC that he had a 100
percent match with an ancient
polar bear jawbone which was
found in Norway and dated
back to between 40,000 and
120,000 years.
Speaking to thebroadcaster,
Professor Sykes said that while
he didnt think there was an
ancient polar bear roaming the
mountains, he concluded that
the yeti could be a subspecies
of brown bear, descended from
the ancient polar bear.
The fact that the hunter,
who had great experience of
bears, thought this one was
in some way unusual and was
frightened of it, makes me
wonder if this species of bear
might behave diferently,"
he told the BBC. Maybe it
is more aggressive, more
dangerous or is more bipedal
than other bears.
The cryptic creature was
most recently sighted in
2013 in Siberia by 11-year-old
Yevgeny Anisimov. Its said
to be the only time the yeti
has apparently been captured
on lm, although the jury is
still out on the validity of the
four-minute video. The giant
mammal with its stooping
gait was also said to have
had a close encounter some
miles away with government
ofcial Liliya Zenkova, when
it stroked her arm through
the open window of her car
as she lay sleeping while her
husband was shing. A creepy
experience.
A proliferation of huts made
of twigs in the Kemerovo area
of Russia further enhanced
the reality of the yeti fable.
Professor Valentin Sapunov,
of the Hydrometeorological
University in St Petersburg has
apparently infuriated fellow
academics by making claims
that as many as 200 yetis live in
the Siberian wilds, apparently
declaring that he is 95 percent
sure that the yeti is real.
MOUNTAIN EVIDENCE
While academics may ght
over the existence of the
yeti, it is interesting to hear
from those who know the
mountains well and have
been convinced the yeti
is a living creature only
to change their minds. Sir
Edmund Hillary and Tenzing
Norgay reported seeing large
footprints while scaling
Mount Everest in 1953. Hillary
even mounted an expedition
in search of the creature but
later became more sceptical as
to its existence.
Climber Reinhold Messner
encountered his rst yeti near
Tibet in the 1980s, standing
around two metres high and
covered with hair. Its two-
legged agility impressed him
and the strange hissing sound
it made was imprinted on his
memory. An accomplished
climber, renowned as one of
the best in the world, Messner
is said to have always believed
the yeti was merely a creation
of cryptozoology until he
saw it with his own eyes.
For 12 years he scoured the
Himalayas for more proof,
until he came to the conclusion
that his rst thought was
right: the yeti is a myth and
is merely an exaggerated tale
of the rare Tibetan blue bear.
This particular beast will often
rear its hind legs to scare of
predators and is said to possess
almost human capabilities.
Despite the lack of
evidence of the remains of
a yeti, or the physicality of a
living specimen, locals still
maintain that the yeti is a
real entity and is the guardian
of the mighty Himalayas
and its people. Whether this
creature is the earliest form of
a meme or a rare animal that
is very much alive, the history
of the yeti is a fascinating tale
woven with both mythology
and scientic fact. It's one
that looks to continue
enthralling monster hunters
for years to come.
THE
YETI
THE FIRST SCIENTIST TO
INVESTIGATE THE YETI WAS
EMPLOYED BY HEINRICH
HIMMLER, A COMMANDER
OF THE NAZI PARTY IN
GERMANY. PROFESSOR
ERNST SCHAEFER
SEARCHED FOR THE YETI
IN 1938 IN THE HOPE THAT
IT WOULD TURN OUT TO BE
THE PROGENITOR OF THE
ARYAN RACE
STRENGTHS
STRONG LIMBS, A
POWERFUL JAW AND A
THICK HIDE ALLOW THE
ANIMAL TO THRIVE IN COLD
TEMPERATURES
WEAKNESSES
SHYNESS
A MOUNTAIN MONSTER
GENETICS
PROFESSOR
BRYAN SYKES
CLAIMS THAT
THERE MAY
INDEED BE A
BIOLOGICAL
ANIMAL BEHIND
THE MYTH
BASED ON A
HAIR SAMPLE
DATING BACK
TO 120,000
YEARS AGO
The yeti, also known as "The
Abominable Snowman", has
been the stuf of numerous
legends. The Greek king and
conqueror Alexander the
Great is said to have demanded
to see one (without success) in
Indias Indus valley in 326 BC.
Another sighting was said to be
in the Himalayas by Buddhist
monks in the 19th century.
Trekker Brian Houghton
Hodgson rst documented
the yeti after a Himalayan trek
in 1832 when he witnessed
a tall dark beast standing on
two feet. Given its nickname
because of its snowy habitat,
the reclusive animal is said
to resemble a human gorilla
hybrid, possibly with the
characteristics of a bear.
Those who have witnessed it
at close hand say it stands two
to three metres tall and has a
threatening yowl and eyes
that glow.
HUNTING LICENSE
IN THE LATE 1950S, THE
NEPALESE GOVERNMENT
CAME UP WITH AN
INGENIOUS MONEY-MAKING
SCHEME: THEY ISSUED
YETI-HUNTING LICENSES
TO FOREIGN HUNTERS
WHO WERE STREAMING IN
TO HUNT THE BEAST. THE
LICENSES WERE HUGELY
EXPENSIVE, PRICED AT 400
PER YETI. EVEN WORSE,
NOBODY EVER ACTUALLY
CAUGHT A SPECIMEN.
MONSTER FABLES
THIN-SKINNED
MYTH
EXPERTS BELIEVE MANY
EL CHUPACABRA
SIGHTINGS ARE SIMPLY
WILD COYOTES WITH
MANGE. THIS COMMON
SKIN DISEASE, CAUSED
BY PARASITIC MITES, CAN
CAUSE LARGE PATCHES
OF FUR TO FALL OFF,
LEAVING SHRIVELED,
REDDENED SKIN WITH A
SCALE-LIKE APPEARANCE.
THIS CORRELATES WITH
MANY DESCRIPTIONS OF
"THE GOAT SUCKER" THAT
HAVE BEEN GIVEN BY
WITNESSES
OVER THE YEARS.
51
SEPTEMBER 2014
Others say they originated
from another planet entirely,
as UFO sightings have been
detailed in the same areas
where and when the attacks
have taken place.
Paranormal investigator
Benjamin Radford spent ve
years researching the beast
for his book, Tracking the
Chupacabra. His inquiries
included forensic analysis,
eyewitness reports and eld
research. One of the reasons
he believes that the reports of
attacks saw a spike in the mid
1990s was due to the release
of the sci- movie Species.
Showing the power of urban
myth, the descriptions of a
spiky backed monster at this
time mirrored a character
from the lm.
El Chupacabra is said to be
responsible for the deaths of
numerous animals, all of which
were found dead, killed by two
small puncture wounds made
by a pair of fangs and sucked
dry of all their blood. Wild dogs,
and mutated coyotes have been
framed as the perpetrators
of these violent crimes but
the scenes are almost devoid
of prints and those that
believe in the existence of
this vampirical beast say that
canines do not have the right
facial construction, or the
ability to suck blood. As the
attacks of the 1990s continued
and packs of dogs and herds of
cattle were found dead as far
aeld as Texas, California and
Florida, speculation grew as to
the logical explanation behind
the attacks and sightings of
this strange mythical beast.
Particularly as the victims
were devoid of blood and the
hallmark tiny puncture wounds.
NOCTURNAL SCAPEGOAT
For the next few years, any
strange nocturnal killing
was placed at the door of El
Chupacabra, who was now
being described by people
as looking more like a wild
eyed hairless dog or coyote,
El Chupacabra is said to not
only have attacked and killed
hundreds of livestock but
has also sucked every last
drop of their blood, through
two tiny puncture wounds
it makes with its fangs. Its
chilling killing style is why
it is known infamously as
The Goatsucker, from the
Spanish chupra for suck and
cabra for goat, giving us its
name, El Chupacabra.
Most prolic for its killing
sprees in the 1990s, the
description of El Chupacabra
by those who have managed
to steal a eeting glance is of
an animal resembling a grifn,
with an ability to stand on
its powerful hind legs. Some
describe it as running on
clawed feet and displaying
a row of sharp ns or long
quills along its bony, arched
back. Its pale, papery-thin
skin has been documented as
sprouting coarse, dark hairs.
Other sightings detail a beast
that wears its wings wrapped
around itself like a veined cloak.
ODOROUS DEMONS
The Puerto Rican region
of Canvanas is where El
Chupacabra has been the most
industrious locals have
lost some 150 animals to this
nocturnal predator. In one
attack, a witness reported a
fanged, kangaroo-like creature
with red eyes attacking the
family goat. Other witnesses
tell of a monster with vampire
like qualities, giving of
a sulphurous smell an
attribute linked to demons
in folklore. Others have
described seeing a reptile-like
creature unlike any other
animal on the planet with scaly
green-grey skin and a leathery
appearance. Rather than
being a vampire, many have
speculated that these beasts
are the product of experiments
by secret agents in the Puerto
Rico area, which escaped from
the laboratory when it was
damaged in a severe storm.
MANY HAVE
SPECULATED
THAT THESE
BEASTS
ARE THE
PRODUCT OF
EXPERIMENTS
BY SECRET
AGENTS IN THE
PUERTO RICO
AREA, WHICH
ESCAPED
FROM THE
LABORATORY
EL
CHUPA
CABRA
ALTHOUGH THERE HAVE
BEEN NUMEROUS SIGHTINGS
OF EL CHUPACABRA, A
FOOTPRINT HAS NEVER
BEEN IDENTIFIED
2,000 DEATHS
IT IS SAID TO BE
RESPONSIBLE FOR THE
DEATHS OF OVER 2,000
ANIMALS
THE MENACE OF
THE NIGHT
than having the vampire-
like qualities described in
earlier years. When a strange
nocturnal visitor claimed the
lives of all the livestock of the
mining town of Calamain in
Chile in 2000, hundreds of
soldiers from the national
guard were mobilised,
combing the area. But to no
avail. Calamains topography
includes an intricate maze
of caves. Believers are
convinced that this is El
Chupacabras hideout.
Tests on the animals that
were caught at this time are
said to be merely mutated
coyotes with mange. But even
seemingly hard evidence has
not quietened speculation.
In April of this year, a Texan
family captured what they
claimed was El Chupacabra.
TV crews lmed footage of the
creature, but experts werent
convinced. The animal in
the cage as best I can tell from
the view was some sort of a
small canine, Brent Ortego,
a wildlife diversity biologist
with Texas Parks and Wildlife
told the reporters there.
While sceptics pin the
slaughter of hundreds of
animals at the door of a
mutated coyote or feral wild
dog, until the killing stops, the
legend of El Chupacabra will
live on.
PUERTO
RICO
Our rst terrifying beast owns
the night and has left a trail
of death and devastation in
its wake. Since the 1970s, the
sinister blood sucking of the
fanged monster dubbed El
Chupacabra has caused many
sleepless nights for the people
of Puerto Rico and some of
the southern states of the US.
And it seems that folklore has
crossed the boundaries from
mythical legend to scary real
life incidents.
For adults and children
alike, the heavy thud on a
rooftop in the night, or panicky
cries of their livestock being
dragged from their slumber
have come to mean only one
thing: the arrival of an alien
beast that has been sighted by
many but whose existence is
still shrouded in mystery. Is
this the work of a mysterious
vampirical creature with its
very own take on nocturnal
phlebotomy or what?
With most sightings
taking place in Puerto Rico,
MONSTER FABLES
THE RETURN
TO DYATLOV
It was the stuf of horror movies, and may
well have haunted the dreams of a future
generation of lmmakers. Only this was
real. On February 2, 1959, deep in the
Ural Mountains of the then Soviet Union,
a mystery came to pass which, more than
55 years later, still confounds an entire
nation to such an extent, that it has
become known as 'Russias JFK'.
Nine university students were hiking
in the heights of the Ural Mountains,
a vast Siberian range in west-central
Russia that forms the traditional
boundary between Europe and Asia. In
a mountain pass, now known as Dyatlov,
all nine of the hikers were sleeping in the
wilderness, in temperatures way below
freezing, when they were viciously killed
by someone or something. Chillingly,
one of the murdered girls was found with
her eyes and tongue removed.
IN ONE OF THE MORE CHILLING DISCOVERY CHANNEL
SHOWS YOU'LL SEE THIS YEAR, TWO INVESTIGATORS
JOURNEY TO RUSSIA, TO AN ISOLATED MOUNTAIN RANGE
THAT WAS THE SCENE OF A MONSTROUS MURDER. AS
LUKE CLARK SUGGESTS, DONT START DIGGING INTO THE
DYATLOV MYSTERY, UNLESS YOURE GOING ALL THE WAY
Now, a two-hour Discovery Channel
documentary is due for release, which
appears to have new answers, and
some shocking new evidence, that
serve to reopen this confounding and
brutal murder mystery. In the show,
a production team is led by an
American explorer, Mike Libecki, and
Russian translator and journalist
Maria Klenokova.
Together with a lm crew, the two
investigators follow a trial of diary
accounts, forensic evidence and scientic
theory throughout the vast Eastern
European nation gaining access to
ofcial Soviet les that were formerly
of limits to foreigners, and conducting
rst-hand interviews with those who
last saw the young adventurers alive,
before the tragic 1959 incident which,
confoundingly to many, caused some
of them to cut their way out of their
tents with hunting knives, and then run
barefoot into the snow.
The pathologist in the investigation
of the students deaths said the damage
to the students could only be inicted by
something stronger than a human, while
investigators deduced that a compelling
natural force had caused their untimely
demise. When a search and rescue team
arrived to their campsite, they found the
expedition team's tents empty, yet still
containing most of their possessions. Then,
one by one, their bodies were recovered.
Some were semi-naked, while others had
injuries that ranged from broken ribs to a
fractured skull. All were dead.
But maybe more shocking even
than the brutal incident, is the fact that
the mystery remains unsolved for so
long and that the evidence, even the
ofcial autopsy, remained shrouded in
ofcial secrecy for decades. In a show
which blends crime investigation and
adventure travel, Libecki and Klenokova
uncover a range of tapes, photos and
testimonials, as well as many who have
remained haunted by the incident ever
since. Amongst the evidence is a photo
from one of the recovered cameras that
appears to point to the culprit.
Despite all the years of conjecture,
the makers of the show are clear on
what they feel killed the hikers 55 years
ago. The shows title, indeed, pulls no
punches: Russian Yeti: The Killer Lives.
Executive producer Sarah Davies is
not your typical conspiracy theorist. But
even for the typically logically minded TV
professional who cut her teeth working
on factual documentary icons like BBCs
IN A MOUNTAIN
PASS, NOW KNOWN
AS DYATLOV, ALL
NINE OF THE HIKERS
WERE SLEEPING,
IN TEMPERATURES
BELOW FREEZING,
WHEN THEY WERE
VICIOUSLY KILLED
BY SOMEONE
OR SOMETHING
Panorama series, Davies tells DCM that
she walked away from producing the
show still enmeshed in the uneasy
feeling that the yeti, like the truth, really
is still out there.
When we started making it, the only
reason it went down the yeti route was
because of that photo, she says. And
then we started digging into it, and we
realised there had been footprints, and
sightings in other parts of the Urals.
Further to that, there was years of belief
from the local indigenous tribe, Mansi,
that the creature they called Menk was
alive and well. It was this that caused
the Mansi people to label the area, The
Mountain of Death.
What really struck me as more
frightening was the idea that there could
still be a big creature out there, she says.
That there could be big mammals out
there that we just havent discovered yet.
And that really shocked me, as ridiculous
as it sounds that there might be a yeti . P
H
O
T
O
S
:

G
E
T
T
Y

I
M
A
G
E
S

(
M
A
I
N

I
M
A
G
E
)
;

D
I
S
C
O
V
E
R
Y

C
H
A
N
N
E
L

C
O
M
M
U
N
I
C
A
T
I
O
N
S
,
L
L
C
,
A
L
L

R
I
G
H
T
S

R
E
S
E
R
V
E
D
THE SECTION OF THE
URAL MOUNTAINS THAT
THE STUDENTS CHOSE
TO HIKE, ARE KNOWN
BY THE LOCAL PEOPLE,
THE MANSI, AS "THE
MOUNTAIN OF DEATH"
BELOW THE SEARCH AND
RESCUE MISSION FOR
THE MISSING HIKERS
UNEARTHED SOME
HAUNTING EVIDENCE
MONSTER FABLES
54
Indeed, on a personal level, Davies and
her fellow executive producer for the US
market started of thinking the idea
was ridiculous. And we kind of came
to the idea that there actually might be
something lurking out there.
They took a photo of something
lurking in the woods, and no ones ever
explained what it was, she says. It looks
like a very odd creature okay, maybe its
a person all wrapped up against the cold.
But who was it? Who was spying on them,
and why were they up there?
Davies is quick to clarify that belief in
mythical beasts is not her typical studied
position. I dont believe in mermaids
and dragons, and some of those other
ridiculous things. But we have found a lot
of big creatures in recent times, like the
dwarf humpback and the giant squid. I
know those are on water so you can sort
of understand why those havent been
discovered. But the Ural Mountains are
a bit like an ocean its so massive, and
the area of land it covers is so desolate of
FROM THE
SANCTUARY OF
THEIR TENT, THE
FILMMAKERS TRY
TO IMAGINE WHAT
HORROR MIGHT
HAVE GREETED
THE HIKERS. WHAT
WOULD CAUSE THEM
TO SLASH THEIR
WAY OUT WITH
KNIVES?
THE FILMMAKERS
CAMPED IN THE AREA
TO UNDERSTAND THE
HARSH CONDITIONS
P
H
O
T
O
S
:

D
I
S
C
O
V
E
R
Y

C
H
A
N
N
E
L

C
O
M
M
U
N
I
C
A
T
I
O
N
S
,
L
L
C
,
A
L
L

R
I
G
H
T
S

R
E
S
E
R
V
E
D
A CHAIN OF FOOTPRINTS,
EITHER BAREFOOT OR IN
SOCKS, WERE FOUND AT
THE SCENE
55
SEPTEMBER 2014
THE YETI HUNTERS
humans, if you were going to hide, thats
where you would be.
In the show, Libecki and Klenokova
view over 100 shots that were in the
cameras of the murdered climbers,
and now stored in Russias Dyatlov
Foundation headquarters. In Moscow,
they get to view Soviet documents
that had never been seen by foreigners
before. Then, out in the eld, they
experience the same extreme snow
conditions that the hikers themselves
had experienced.
In one scene late at night in the Urals,
from the sanctuary of their tent, the
lmmakers try to imagine what horror
might have greeted the hikers. They can
only imagine what would cause them to
slash their way out with knives then
run of without boots.
Davies says that getting the
storytelling balance right, being
respectful to the victims and their
families, while still retaining lots of
intrigue, made the show a hard one to
make. Yet the sense of an unraveling
mystery, which grows in its level of
uneasiness, is palpable. It lends itself to
being a story like that, because it had so
many beats and turns, that were
real, she says.
She says the crew spent 10 days in
Dyatlov, stuck in a hut in temperatures
hitting minus 40 degrees Celsius, as
they waited for the weather to turn
sufciently to let them lm. It was
really hard going. Russia is a complex
and complicated country, and there is
a lot of superstition so I think its a
credit to the team that they found people
who were willing to go on the record to
tell us about the men of the forest, these
yetis. Theyre traditionally very shy
people. Theres great journalism in this
story, she says proudly.
Klenokova, the local translator and
xer, was great, she says though
even her typical Russian stoicism
later became dented. She started of
really happy and jolly, and I think by
the end, she was really scared. For the
Discovery crew too, whether on location
or editing back at headquarters, the
mystery consumed them. It was really
frightening making this one actually,
says Davies. We were all slightly
unnerved by it.
Other evidence served to stoke the
fuel of the re for those smelling a
cover-up, including the fact that the
"AFTER DISCOVERING ALL THIS NEW
EVIDENCE AND GOING BACK TO THE
MOUNTAIN OF THE DEAD, I'M NOT SURE
WHAT TO THINK."
- Journalist and translator Maria Klenokova
"WE HAD NO CHOICE, WE HAD TO
LEAVE. WITHOUT THE HUNTER THERE
FOR PROTECTION, IT WAS WAY TOO
DANGEROUS. I DID HEAR SOMETHING
STRANGE. IT WAS SOMETHING I HADN'T
HEARD BEFORE. I BELIEVE THAT IT'S
POSSIBLE THAT A YETI EXISTS."
- Adventurer Mike Libecki
"IT WAS THE FIRST EXPERIMENTAL
TWO STAGE ROCKET, IT WAS DUE TO
EXPLODE IN THE AIR. THERE WASN'T
SUPPOSED TO BE ANYONE THERE. THE
MISSILE FELL IN THAT AREA. SO WHAT
HAPPENED TO THE DYATLOV GROUP
WAS A FATAL COINCIDENCE"
- Anonymous Russian man, who claims, on tape,
that his grandfather conducted secret Soviet
missile tests in the area in 1959
"THE YETI IS JUST ONE OF MANY NAMES
FOR THE LARGE HAIRY CREATURES SAID
TO LIVE IN REMOTE WILDERNESSES
AROUND THE WORLD. IN NORTH
AMERICA THEY'RE CALLED SASQUATCH,
IN SUMATRA THE ORANG PENDEK."
- Show host and narrator, Kevin Conroy
"GIGANTOPITHECUS WAS A SPECIES OF
GIANT APE THAT EXISTED DURING THE
ICE AGES, DURING THE PLEISTOCENE.
FOSSILS OF ITS JAWS AND TEETH
SUGGEST IT COULD HAVE GROWN UP TO
15 FEET TALL. IT'S VERY POSSIBLE THAT
GIGANTOPITHECUS, RATHER THAN GOING
EXTINCT, HAS CONTINUED, HAS SURVIVED
INTO THE PRESENT AND IS THE SOURCE
OF SIGHTINGS TODAY. "
- Biologist Jef Meldrum, Professor of Anatomy
and Anthropology, Idaho State University
"IF YOU GO TO THE FOREST, DON'T
WHISTLE, BECAUSE MAYBE THIS YETI
WILL COME AND PUNISH YOU. THEY CAN
KILL DEER WITH JUST BREAKING HIS
NECK. BUT THEY PREFER TO EAT SOFT
FLESH, SOFT LIKE LUNG, HEART, LIVER.
THEY ARE VERY POWERFUL. WE HAVE
TWO CASES WHERE THEY JUST TORE
APART BEAR WITH HANDS."
- Igor Burtsev, head of the International Centre
of Hominology, an academic institute devoted to
studying the Russian Yeti
MONSTER FABLES
56
murder case was ofcially opened in
Moscow 10 days before the searchers
found the hikers.
Furthermore, Libecki and Klenokova
viewed an April 2013 interview with Yuri
Yudin, before his death, aged 76 years
old. Yudin, then a 22-year-old Economics
student, had set of on the hike with the
other nine hikers, but turned back after
a day due to dysentery. This decision
saved his life. In 1959, asked to identify
the students belongings, Yurin found an
item that disturbed him. I found an item
that was odd, he reveals in the tape. A
military boot cover.
The cover could only have been used
by soldiers in the army, indicating that
the Soviet military reached the campsite
before the search party despite the
fact that there was no record of a military
presence.It was very clear somebody in
the Russian authorities, the military, got
to the bodies before the search party did,
says Davies. And thats why they found a
couple of items belonging to the military
that shouldnt have been there.
Libecki and Klenokova also uncover
ofcial Soviet les in the Russian Science
Academy Archive that shows the Soviets
launched an ofcial investigation, known
as The Snowman Commission, with
a mission to capture a yeti alive. An
expedition took place, but the results
were never released. And bizarrely,
the Snowman investigation was closed
in January 1959, just days before the
students left for their expedition.
Something very strange did happen
to those students, and it has never
been explained, says Davies. Its a
very creepy story. Ive no doubt that
something sinister happened to them,
and that somebody somewhere knows,
and doesnt want to tell us. She warns
that the show may not be an ideal one to
watch at home alone. Its one where you
just want to lock your door afterwards.
Indeed, in one of the most memorable
scenes in the documentary, we meet
60-year-old Albina Anymova, who was
just ve years old when the hikers that
went missing. Children were beginning
to disappear, as well as adults too. Many
deer were being found with their tongues
pulled out, she says via translation. She
describes hunting with her parents as
a child. We were laughing and fooling
around, then we heard the whistle, loud,
echoing in the forest. Asked if it was a
human whistle, she is clear. No. More
a horrible, whistle-like noise. We knew
straight away what it was Menk. Menk
is a forest giant, big and strong, two to
three metres high.
If her words dont ring true enough,
the investigators also view a piece of
paper, a diary entry that was written
by one of the hikers shortly before
the attack. The words, translated by
Klenokova, carry a message that many
who made the show now believe too.
Written from a dark tent in the Ural
mountains, the notion expressed seems
ice-crystal clear: Now we know the
Snowman exists.
THE DYATLOV
PASS MEMORIAL
MANSI HUNTER
ALBINA ANYMOVA
THE BODIES OF
THE HIKERS WERE
FOUND NEAR THEIR
CAMPSITE
MONSTER FABLES
58
FOOD
OF THE
FUTURE
COULD LAB-GROWN SOLUTIONS PROVIDE THE
ANSWER TO MEET THE NUTRITION DEMANDS OF
DEVELOPING COUNTRIES IN TIMES TO COME?
BY 2030, THE DEMAND FOR FOOD WILL OUTSTRIP
SUPPLY TO THE TUNE OF 5.9 TONNES A YEAR.
ALISON MARSHALL MEETS THE SCIENTISTS
EXPERIMENTING WITH OUR FOOD
ILLUSTRATIONS BY BEN MOUNSEY
59
SEPTEMBER 2014
FUTURISTIC
NUTRITION
60
It is 2020.
Of the 8.5 billion people
on our planet, many have
celebrated a century.
If you subscribe to celluloid
forecasts, the human race
could be queuing for hours for
the chance to be sustained by
coloured squares of nutrition,
necessiated by a scary lack of
provenance.
ci- lms of yesteryear loved
depicting a fast paced world
of tomorrow, where a pill full
of vitamins would be a quick
and efcient solution to our
daily dose of nutrition. By
2022, according to the 1973
sci- movie Soylent Green,
fresh food will be scarce, with
only the rich enjoying the
luxury of energy, as global
warming heat the planet to
unbearable temperatures. In
this scenario, a single stick of
fresh celery becomes a thing
of wonder.
Way back in the 70s, the
year 2022 must have seemed
an age away. But in 2014, it is
just eight years away. So, DCM
asks, will we soon be queuing
for a blister pack of pills, as the
sole component of our weekly
food shop? Or might we be
looking at a much happier
future, where man has made
peace with the planet for
future generations and food
sources will be as deliciously
varied as they are today?
BERRY DELICIOUS
Containing a protein that
binds to the taste buds, the
intriguing African miracle
berry (synsepalum dulcicum)
confuses us to believe that sour
and bitter foods taste sweet.
But its more than a party
gimmick; it is said to
be a useful medicine,
negating the metallic taste
in the mouth experienced
by cancer patients after
enduring chemotherapy.
Natural alternatives
and man-made creations
will all vie for attention on
tomorrows menu. Weeds,
basil-lemon avoured
tomatoes and blue bananas
could all be staples as soon
as 2042, according to Josh
Schonwald, author of The
Taste of Tomorrow.
Schonwald was one of
only two people to taste the
rst lab-grown meat product
(which also appears on his
IN MANY CULTURES,
GRASSHOPPERS
ARE MORE THAN AN
INCREDIBLE SOURCE OF
PROTEIN; IN UGANDA,THE
NSENENE. THE LUGANDA
NAME FOR A LONG-
HORNED GRASSHOPPER,
IS CONSIDERED A PRIZED
DELICACY P
H
O
T
O
:

C
O
R
B
I
S
Grasshoppers are a tasty
street food snack in Mexico,
where they are roasted with
chilli and lime and sold by
vendors in Oaxaca and eaten
by the handful. With a salty,
spicy taste the chapulines,
as they are called here,
are a nutritious (if leggy)
alternative to a potato crisp.
A 100 gram serving yields
20.6 grams of protein and
just 6.1 grams of fat about
the same nutritional values
as a similar serving of lean
chicken. If there s not a
suitable bug market nearby,
you might consider growing
your own at home. Designer
Mansour Ourasanah has
dreamed up the Lepsis,
a kitchen top gadget that
allows you to breed, grow,
harvest and dispatch
grasshoppers in readiness
for the pan.
GRASSHOPPER
FUTURISTIC
NUTRITION
62
list of predictions). He
forecasts that our fruit and
vegetable stars of the future
could include the weed
portulaca oleracea (commonly
known as purslane or
hogweed), said to be Mahatma
Gandhis favourite green.
Reputedly best eaten with sea
salt and olive oil or sauted
like spinach, this bane of many
farmers lives could become a
go-to helath choice. With six
times more vitamin A than
spinach, seven times more
beta-carotene than carrots
and a wealth of omega-3 fatty
acids, Schonwald predicts it
will be a key vegetable of the
coming future.
Fish fans could also be
eating cobia, according to
Schonwald, a white sh
that tastes like halibut and,
importantly for sustainability,
grows six times as fast as
salmon. Interestingly, a
number of items that are high
on Asian shopping lists are
also on Schonwalds list as
heroes of the future, including
seaweed. He predicts that
kelp will be an important
future staple. Growing nine to
12 feet in just three months,
this seaweed superstar needs
no fresh water, fertilizer or
deforestation to be able to
grow at such a rapid rate.
Schonwald writes that just
one percent of the Earths
surface would be needed
to grow a bumper crop of
seaweed a haul that would
be equal to all the plants
currently farmed on land.
BUGS BUFFET
From the sea to the lab, and
Schonwald also forecasts
that genetically modied
foods will create a whole
new avour prole for keen
gourmands, who will be able
to experiment with colour
and avour, including the
possibility of blue bananas
and green oranges all in a
biotech friendly way.
While strangely coloured
fruit and lab-grown meat
might sound creepily
scientic to some now, roll
back the years and todays
acceptable concepts for
preserving food would have
seemed as alien back then.
Imagine telling someone fty
years ago that a frozen meal
could be heated in a metal box,
by unseen waves in a matter
of minutes? Today, the ping of
the microwave in many of the
worlds kitchens, attests
to the everyday normality of
the notion.
Whatever the reality of
tomorrow proves to be, the
likelihood is that lunch for
many will still be a meaty
repast. Yet unlike the present
day, your protein x may come
from something that looks
like meat and tastes like meat,
yet has actually never walked
over the land.
The future of food may
lie in laboratory-grown
solutions, and may also
mean that we research and
adopt previously unexplored
mass-market options such
as insects. While some may
baulk at eating bugs, over
two billion people worldwide
already supplement their
diet with this protein rich
food source. Although they
are not common ingredients
in the West, chowing down
on a cricket or any one of the
planet's six million species
of insects, is almost standard
fare in some parts of the East.
At Noma, the Copenhagen
restaurant in the Danish
capital recently named the
best restaurant in the world,
chef Rene Redzepi is a rm
exponent of using insects as a
food source. And not just as a
novelty either but as
a viable and alternative
protein-rich source of food
for the future.
Over in Singapore
meanwhile, chef Ryan Clift,
who heads up the award-
winning restaurant Tippling
IMAGINE
TELLING
SOMEONE
FIFTY YEARS
AGO THAT A
FROZEN MEAL
COULD BE
HEATED IN A
METAL BOX
BY UNSEEN
WAVES IN A
MATTER
OF MINUTES
3000 BC
VENI, VIDI, YUMMY
THE CHINESE ARE CREDITED
WITH INVENTING ICE CREAM
ICE FLAVOURED WITH FRUIT AND
NUTS. OTHER HISTORIANS GIVE THE
ANCIENT ROMANS THAT HONOUR,
WHEN THEY SLURPED ON FLA-
VOURED SNOW
HAVE A MUNCH ON
AN INTERNATIONAL
SMORGASBORD
OF FOOD HISTORY,
INCLUDING
SPIT-FLAVOURED
MEALS
FOOD FOR
THOUGHT
1700
EAT AT THE TABLE
NOT WANTING TO LEAVE THE GAM-
ING TABLES TO EAT, THE EARL OF
SANDWICH ORDERED HIS FOOD TO
BE SERVED TO HIM AT THE TABLE
BETWEEN TWO PIECES OF BREAD
AND THE SANDWICH HAS BEEN
POPULAR EVER SINCE
Said to pack the same protein
punch as kidney beans,
the giant water beetle is a
predator not to be messed
with, as its nickname of toe
biter indicates. Averaging
around 3.8 centimetres in
length, they can grow up to 10
centimetres which makes
for a mighty meal in itself.
Eat it as you would a prawn
(apparently the meat from
the head and body can all be
eaten) for a mighty calcium
hit of 43 milligrams, and a
protein portion of 19.8 grams.
GIANT WATER BEETLE
63
OUR PERCEPTION
OF WHAT FOOD
TRADITIONALLY SHOULD
LOOK AND TASTE LIKE
IS BEING PERPETUALLY
CHALLENGED,
PARTICULARLY AS IN
VITRO FOODS ARE NOW
BEING DEVELOPED IN
LABORATORIES GLOBALLY
1810
PASTEUR WHO?
WAY BEFORE LOUIS PASTEUR
BECAME THE NAME ASSOCI-
ATED WITH STERILISATION, THE
FRENCH INVENTOR NICOLAS
APPERT WAS PERFECTING THE
ART OF BOTTLING FOOD
1813
CANS TO THE RESCUE
IN THE UK JOHN HALL AND BRYAN DORKIN
OPEN THE FIRST FOOD CANNING FACTORY.
HISTORIAN REAY TANNEHILL NOTES THAT
CANNED FOOD WAS USUALLY SOLD TO
CUSTOMERS ON THE AMERICAN PRAIRIES,
OR IN THE URBAN SLUMS OF MANCHESTER,
WHO HAD NO ACCESS TO OR PERHAPS HAD
NEVER SEEN THE FRESH PRODUCT
1924
ICE, ICE BABY
CLARENCE BIRDSEYE DEVEL-
OPS QUICK FREEZE TECH-
NOLOGY WELCOME HOME,
TV DINNERS! TODAY, THE
AVERAGE AMERICAN EATS
AN AVERAGE OF 72 FROZEN
MEALS A YEAR
FUTURISTIC
NUTRITION
64
Club, has also already been
trialling the use of insects on
his ne dining menu. We
created a dish with ants,
harvested in Sydney, it was
a whimsical idea although
they do contain a whopping
source of protein, he says.
They are very good for the
body and have a citrusy favour.
Id also like to do something
with wood cockroach, which
has an almond avour but
I dont think people would
want that. Its really all about
mind over matter. I cant see
it being fully adopted, but in
countries where it has been
heritage it could reinvigorate
the prevalent food industry.
Clift has also been looking
at ways of creating new
avour proles. For the
last four years, Ive worked
with companies developing
avours in labs at rst it
freaked me out, to have pear
juice not made from pear.
Its something that the lab
creates but because it stems
from something vegetal its
considered natural, and is
identical in taste. Its bizarre,
but kind of cool. The fact that
you can get something that
looks like a carrot to taste like
a tomato, got me bafed.
LAB-GROWN MEAT
While Clift is open to the idea
of insects on the menu and
changing avour proles of
fruit and vegetables, lab-grown
food is another thing entirely.
Lab-grown meat would have
to be up to scratch. Id want it to
be able to produce something
comparable to the best meat in
the world, before Id consider
putting it on the menu.
Where lab-grown products
can make a diference is
where countries are sufering
because theres no food. Who
GROWING
MEAT UNDER
SCIENTIFIC
CONDITIONS
MIGHT SOUND
FAR FETCHED,
BUT THE
POSSIBILITY
WAS TALKED
ABOUT BY
BRITISH PRIME
MINISTER
WINSTON
CHURCHILL
WAY BACK IN
THE 1930S
1940
MCHATTAN
DIRK AND MAC MCDONALD OPEN
MCDONALDS BBQ RESTAURANT
IN CALIFORNIA. THE COMPANY
NOW HAS 34,000 GOLDEN ARCHES
WORLDWIDE, WITH ABOUT 73
OUTLETS IN MANHATTAN ALONE
THE HIGHEST CONCENTRATION OF
MCDONALDS IN THE WORLD
1960
SPIT TAKES IN SPACE
EXPLORING ASTRONAUTS HAD TO
REHYDRATE SEMI-DRIED FOODS WITH
THEIR SALIVA. YUM. BY THE TIME THE
GEMINI MISSION WAS LAUNCHED
IN 1965, MORE PALATABLE OPTIONS
INCLUDING SHRIMP COCKTAIL AND
BUTTERSCOTCH PUDDING HAD
BEEN PERFECTED
1974
DO THE MARTIAN MASH
DEHYDRATED MASHED POTATO WAS A STA-
PLE OF MANY KITCHEN CUPBOARDS IN THE
SIXTIES AND SEVENTIES. BUT CADBURYS
SMASH BECAME UNIVERSALLY KNOWN
THANKS TO ITS ADVERTISING CAMPAIGN,
STARRING MARTIANS. THIS WAS VOTED TV
AD OF THE CENTURY BY THE ADVERTISING
INDUSTRY MAGAZINE CAMPAIGN
PROFESSOR MARK
POST'S IN VITRO BURGER
HAS ALREADY MADE THE
JOURNEY FROM PETRI
DISH TO PLATE. IT WAS
PRODUCED BY TAKING
STEM CELLS FROM A
COWS SHOULDER
AND GROWING THEM IN
CALF SERUM IN A LAB
Stir-fried ants eggs or khai
mot phat is a popular dish
in Thailand. The creamy
texture when cooked is
said to be similar to that of
traditional scrambled eggs.
A 100 grams serving yields
around 14 grams of protein
and 5.7 milligrams of iron
around three quarters of
the recommended daily dose
of iron for men. The ants
produce their eggs during
December to January, but
collecting them can be a
painful task as the ants have
a nasty bite.
RED ANTS
65
SEPTEMBER 2014
1983
BOW-TIED CHICKEN
MCDONALDS INTRODUCES THE
CHICKEN MCNUGGET. DID YOU
KNOW THAT THEY COME IN FOUR
STANDARDISED SHAPES THAT ARE
PRESSED OUT BY A ROLLING COOKIE
CUTTER? THERES THE BOOT, THE
BOW-TIE, THE BALL AND THE BELL
1994
TOMATO TECH
THE GENETICALLY MODIFIED
FLAVR SAVR TOMATO MAKES
IT TO SUPERMARKETS IN THE
USA IT HAS BEEN MODIFIED
TO ENJOY A LONGER SHELF
LIFE THAN A REGULAR
STANDARD TOMATO
2013
GO NUTS FOR CRONUTS
NEW YORK CHEF DOMINIQUE ANSEL
INVENTS THE CRONUT A HYBRID
OF CROISSANT AND DOUGHNUT.
THEN OTHERS FOLLOW WITH A DUF-
FIN (DOUGHNUT/MUFFIN). ARTERIES
ACROSS THE GLOBE QUIVERED, AS
TASTE BUDS SCREAMED WITH JOY
WHAT MAKES A
REGULAR QUARTER-
POUNDER PATTY?
3.0 KILOGRAMS
GRAINS AND FORAGE
199.8 LITRES
WATER
FOR DRINKING WATER
AND IRRIGATING CROPS
6.9 SQUARE METRES
LAND
FOR GRAZING AND
GROWING FEED CROPS
P
H
O
T
O
S
:

D
A
V
I
D

P
A
R
R
Y
/

P
A

W
I
R
E

(
M
A
I
N
)
;

G
E
T
T
Y

I
M
A
G
E
S

(
C
R
O
N
U
T
)
;

N
A
S
A

(
S
P
A
C
E

F
O
O
D
)
FUTURISTIC
NUTRITION
66
As well as complimentary after
dinner ossing treatment by
way of the antennae and legs
that can get stuck in your teeth,
the nutty tasting cricket is a
weight watching wonder with
just 121 calories per 100 grams.
If you fancy foraging for your
own, remember the adage: red,
orange yellow, forget this fellow;
black, green or brown, wolf it
down. If, on the other hand,
you prefer not to have to nd
your own, websites like www.
thailandunique.com ofer such
tasty delicacies as lightly salted
or chocolate-coated crickets.
protein portion of 19.8 grams.
CRICKET
67
SEPTEMBER 2014
A BUG
LOLLIPOP?
Ironically for those that
find the idea distasteful, insects
are part of our daily lives already.
Entomologist Professor Marcel Dicke
calculates that we are all eating up to
500 grams of some type of bug or insect
every year. When fruit and vegetables are
processed for canning, tiny bugs often go
straight into the mix. In the US, the Food
and Drug Administration allow for a little
extra to be permitted in processed food.
Up to 225 bug parts are allowable in a
225 gram bag of pasta for example,
and 100 grams of frozen broccoli
can contain the added extra
protein boost of 60 or
more aphids.
FUTURISTIC
NUTRITION
is to say that lab-grown
meat wont reverse poverty
or the problems of hunger?
Thats the only way I can see
benet. Clift maintains that
he would want to know about
any possible side efects
before trying a side of meat
that has been efectively
grown in a jar. Smoking used
to be considered cool. Whos
to say that after eating lab-
grown meat we wont start
developing strange growths?
We decided to look to the
source. Does this creepy
aspect of lab-grown meat
bother the creator of the
rst lab-grown hamburger,
Dutch scientist Professor
Mark Post, of Maastricht
University? I am not too
worried about it, he tells
DCM. But we certainly need
to analyse where the potential
fear is coming from. You
need to look at acceptance in
the framework of changing
perception of regular meat,
as it becomes scarce and
expensive. We may need
to be able to separate the
technology from how it is
being implemented, to give
people a sense of control over
production. For instance, DIY,
community-based scales of
production, he says.
Growing meat under
scientic conditions might
sound far fetched, but the
possibility was talked about
by British prime minister
Winston Churchill in the
1930s, when he predicted
that man would, escape the
absurdity of growing a whole
chicken in order to eat the
breast or wing. Instead, we'd
grow them separately under a
suitable medium.
Synthetic food will,
of course, also be used in
the future, he predicted.
The new foods will from
the outset be practically
indistinguishable from the
natural products, and any
changes will be so gradual as
to escape observation.
68
Now, some 80 years later,
thanks to Post's laboratory-
grown hamburger, the signs
are that commercially-
available shmeat may not be
far behind. Dubbed by some
the Frankenburger, it was
the rst lab-grown meat to
make the grade, unveiled for
a taste test in London last
year. At a cost of US$350,000,
this seemingly ordinary
hamburger is a signicant
step forward in the science of
cultured meat.
The meat for this most
expensive fast food was
grown by taking stem cells
from a cows shoulder and
growing them in calf serum
in a lab. Ten billion cells were
combined with breadcrumbs
and egg, and cooked in the
same way as an everyday
hamburger.
CHICKEN OR EGG
Finding future food
alternatives is important to
the future and survival of the
entire planet, humans and
animals alike. The animal
rights organisation, People
for the Ethical Treatment of
Animals (PETA) has ofered a
US$1 million reward to anyone
who can create commercially
viable invitro chicken that
looks and tastes like the
real thing. It may have been
Winston Churchills futuristic
dream, but the original
deadline of March 4 came and
went, without anyone being
able to develop lab-grown
chicken to claim the prize. The
deadline date was marked the
85th anniversary of a remark
made by Herbert Hoover
as part of his presidential
campaign. He promised that if
he became the 31st president
of the USA, his countrymen
would have a chicken in
every pot.
PETAs interest is in saving
animals. As a result, it has
been investing in cultured
meat research since 2007.
If a way can be found to
successfully cultivate in vitro
meat (meaning something
taking place outside a living
organism) it claims that
along with eliminating the
slaughter of millions of
animals, it could mark the end
of clearing precious forests for
livestock cultivation.
The organisation claims
this development would
conserve water and energy,
and reduce greenhouse gas
emissions for meat production
by between 78 and 96 percent.
PETA says that in the US
alone, more than seven billion
chickens are killed for their
esh each year or around
one million every passing
hour. Post hopes that the
development of lab-grown
meat means that we one day
get to enjoy the wonderful
product that meat is, without
the negative consequences for
environment, food-security
and animal welfare.
There are many solutions
to world hunger and most
need to factor distribution
issues in. Cultured beef can
certainly help relieve some
of the pressure on natural
resources. So while the
production of one hamburger
is noteworthy, can the
production of lab-grown meat
ever get to the point where it
can be scaled up to become
an available, afordable food
of the future? Scaling up
is a technical thing that can
be implemented, explains
Post. With sufcient scaling
we believe we can make this
afordable, if eventually not
cheaper than regular meat.
For now, beef is the
only meat that has been
successfully grown under
scientic conditions. Chicken
and sh are next.We have
not worked on other types of
meat yet. The environmental
issues are largest with beef.
In principle, it can be done
with any kind of meat, sh or
fowl. The inefciency of beef
farming made it a priority, he
says. If we can make it in a
more efcient way, we will also
reduce impact on resources
and environment. There is
a word of warning from Post,
though. Lab-grown meat
SAID TO BE A
PARTICULARLY
RICH SOURCE
OF FOOD
FOR UNDER-
NOURISHED
CHILDREN,
CRICKETS MAY
BECOME A
VIABLE NU-
TRITIONAL
OPTION FOR
THE FUTURE.
A CRICKET
REQUIRES 12
TIMES LESS
FEED THAN
CATTLE TO
PRODUCE THE
SAME AMOUNT
OF PROTEIN
P
H
O
T
O
:

C
O
R
B
I
S
,
D
I
D
I
E
R

B
A
V
E
R
E
L
/
G
E
T
T
Y

I
M
A
G
E
S
Beondegi is popular street food
in Korea. The name means
chrysalis or pupae in Korean.
Steamed or boiled, with sugar
and soy sauce added for taste,
this dish originated as an
important food source when
protein was scare in the Korean
War. Still a popular street food
staple today, silkworm pupae are
a particularly nutritious source
of calcium and can also be found
on the menu in Vietnam where
they are known as con nhong
SILKWORM PUPAE
69
SEPTEMBER 2014
HERE, YOUNG CRICKETS ARE
BEING FED A COMBINATION
OF BARLEY, WHEAT FLOUR
AND CARROT IN A FRENCH
LABORATORY NEAR
TOULOUSE THAT BREEDS
INSECTS EXCLUSIVELY FOR
HUMAN CONSUMPTION
is a future food source for
vegans and carnivores alike
although I consider vegans
starting to eat meat as an
unwanted side-efect.
Post became involved
with lab-grown meat by
coincidence. Previously
producing heart valves for
surgery, he was coerced
with other scientists to start
working on the possibility
of lab-grown meat. I felt
the potential for a large
societal impact from the
very beginning as soon as
I learned about the idea.
What might be unpalatable
to us now is likely to be the
norm in the future. Freezing
food for future consumption,
rehydrating dried foods and
sealing something in a can
which will stay fresh for years
are all part of todays normal
reality, but they would all have
sounded far-fetched fantasies
in the past.
INSECTS ON THE MENU
Todays diners who happily
tuck into chicken, meat and
sh may in the future be as
delighted to dine on insects
whether chunky mealworms
or leggy grasshoppers. Said
to be a particular rich source
of food for undernourished
children, crickets may become
a viable nutritional option for
the future. A cricket requires
twelve times less feed than
cattle to produce the same
amount of protein.
Entomologist Professor
Marcel Dicke is passionate
about the idea that insects
will be the most important
food solution of the future.
His team at The Netherlands
Wageningen University have
been promoting insects as food
since the 1990s. Dicke, also a
Rhodes Professor, at Cornell
University in the United States,
is convinced that entomophagy,
or the consumption of insects
as food, is one of the solutions
needed to save our planet.
This is not a new food
group, either. Mentions are
made in the Bible of eating
locusts, beetles and multi-
legged insects are eaten quite
regularly in parts of South East
Asia like Laos and Thailand
as well as being a staple dietary
ingredient in some parts of
South Africa.
Over the last few years,
companies in the Netherlands
that usually provide insects
to zoos have set up special
production lines, to provide
locusts and mealworms for
human consumption.
AT THE INNOVATIVE RESTAURANT, APHRODITE, IN NICE,
FRANCE YOU CAN TUCK IN TO A GOURMET DISH OF WORMS,
PEAS AND CARROTS (ABOVE). IN THE FUTURE, THERE ARE A
WHOLE HOST OF MULTI-LEGGED CREATURES THAT WE MIGHT
ALSO FIND TASTY
AGAVE WORM
The larvae of the hyopta agavis or aegiale hesperiaris
moth are often found in tequila bottles but are also
a nutritious menu item in Mexico, according to Daniella
Martin, cook and TV host of Girl Meets Bug.
JUMIL BUGS
Less than a centimetre long, these juicy bugs are a
delicious treat in Mexico and usually seen as a taco lling.
Reputed to have a bitter taste like cinnamon, they are rich
in vitamins B2 and B3.
LEAFCUTTER ANTS
Another favourite of Martins, known as hormigus colonus
(big bottomed ants in Spanish) are a favourite in South
America. Martin writes on her blog that they are said to
taste like a cross between bacon and pistachio, and are
usually toasted. In Colombian cinemas, you may see it as
a crunchier alternative to popcorn.
MOPANE WORM
When its mopane season in South Africa, this chunky
worm can command a higher price than beef. They are
also often dried when they taste, writes Martin, like an
earthy jerky.
WATER BUG
Popular in Thai cuisine, the water bug is usually eaten in its
entirety. This leggy ingredient is said to have an apple scent
when raw, and Martin writes that when steamed, their
esh, which is plentiful enough to llet, tastes like a briny
perfumy banana or melon with the consistency of sh.
WAXWORM
A parasite of beehives in the wild, in captivity they are fed
on a diet of bran and honey, writes Martin. A high source of
essential fatty acids, they are roasted or sauted and taste
like a cross between an enoki mushroom and a pine nut.
INSECT INGREDIENTS
FUTURISTIC
NUTRITION
70
Although it is not
recommended that you snack
on an indolent insect as it
happily goes about its daily life,
Dicke says that cooked bugs are
generally quite safe to eat.
Because insects are so
diferent from humans,
encouraging an insect-based
diet rather than an animal-
based diet would avoid risks of
ecological footprint of farming
insects is much, much lower
than that of farming livestock
and there is a much reduced
emission of greenhouse gases.
At the heart of nding viable
alternative food supplies for
the future, the Netherlands
ministry of agriculture funded
a US$1.3 million programme
in 2011 to develop insects as
a practical food alternative,
feeding them on food waste
such as brewers grain, soy bean
husks and apple pulp.
Dicke says he enjoys nothing
more than a plate of fried
locusts, which he calls land
prawns, incorporating them
in a curry or covering them in
chocolate. An insect expert for
30 years, he rst tasted bugs
when collecting tiny mite eggs
for his PhD on the subject
saying the quickest way to clean
the brush was to lick it.
For him, insect-rich menus
arent simply an idea he has
for the future, they are already
very much part of his daily
life. One of the authors of The
Insect Cookbook: Food For A
Sustainable Planet, Dicke writes
of his reasons for perpetuating
bugs as a food source, as well as
a host of recipes.
While some may feel
squeamish at the thought
of something with six legs
making it on to their plate,
Dicke cannot wait for the day.
Steamed rice with freshly
prepared deep-fried dragony
larvae is my absolute favourite
dish, he says. It makes me
salivate when I think back to
having eaten this several times
in Dali in China.
The idea of a lunch of
crispy crickets or lab-grown
meat might take some getting
used to, yet most of us would
rather that than the disturbing
consequences of living a life
sustained by the troubling diet
ofered by 70s sci- movies like
Soylent Green, with its pouches
of mush and blister packs of
food pills. That would really be
hard to swallow.
INSECTS HAVE
A PROVEN
TRACK
RECORD:
TWO BILLION
PEOPLE ARE
EATING THEM
ON A REGULAR
BASIS ALREADY
WHILE LAB-
GROWN
MEAT IS A
TECHNOLOGICAL
SOLUTION THAT
HAS NOT BEEN
PROVEN YET
co-infections between humans
and other animals, stopping
potentially fatal infections such
as swine fever and avian u.
Breeding insects takes
relatively little space, and while
no-one is promoting an insect
only diet, insect meat added
to dishes like meatballs, or
dry roasted as a replacement
for nuts in cookies, all add
a protein-rich nutritional
boost. In a taste test run by
Wageningen University, 80
percent of diners preferred
the sample of meatballs that
contained mealworms, to those
that were made without.
Dicke believes insects are
a better food future solution
than lab-grown alternatives.
Insects have a proven track
record: two billion people are
eating them on a regular basis
already. While lab-grown meat
is a technological solution
that has not been proven to be
alright yet, in terms of
food security.
While lab-grown meat
is a new concept to get to
grips with, many also view
genetically modied crops
with mistrust. Yet our fear of
the unknown is not helping to
nd a solution to future food
supplies, which is why many
see bugs as a naturally
superior alternative.
Ko Annan, the former
Secretary-General of the
United Nations, is also keen
to promote the important
role that insects can play in
future food supplies. In an
interview with Dicke, he said
that we have to acknowledge
that at least one in eight people
currently do not get enough
nutrition in terms of animal
proteins, even though they
have enough calories to eat.
If we can raise insects as an
animal protein source, we
should be able to bridge the
wide gap.

SCALING UP
If insects are to become a
dinner table staple, then
they will quickly need to be
produced in large quantities.
Eating insects will involve
the insects being farmed,
not harvested from nature,
explains Dicke. Farming
insects has ample advantages
over farming livestock: the P
H
O
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O
:

G
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I
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FUTURISTIC
NUTRITION
ONE AMERICAN BOY WHO FACED EXPULSION
FOR NEARLY BLOWING UP HIS SCHOOL.
ANOTHER RUSSIAN, WHO SPENT YEARS IN
STALINS GULAGS BEFORE SPEARHEADING
THE SOVIET SPACE EFFORT.
AND YET ANOTHER A NAZI, WHO MOVED
FROM RAINING BOMBS ON BRITISH CIVILIANS
TO PUTTING AMERICANS ON THE MOON.
THESE ARE THE ROCKET MEN WHOSE STORIES,
WHILE REMARKABLY DIFFERENT, ARE ALL
CURIOUSLY INTERTWINED. CHRIS WRIGHT REPORTS
P
H
O
T
O
S
:

N
A
S
A
ROCKET
PIONEERS
74
or any genius, there is a
spark that gets them going.
For Goddard, there were two.
The rst came, at age ve
years old, when his father
showed him how to generate
static electricity on the family
carpet. And the second came
in a daydream at age 17, when
he climbed a cherry tree to lop
its boughs and was captivated
by the blue sky above.
He wrote later: As I looked
towards the elds in the east,
I imagined how wonderful it
would be to make some device
which had even the possibility
of ascending to Mars, and how
it would look on a small scale,
if sent up from the meadow
right at my feet.
More than a pipedream,
he had a clear sense of
the principles of lift and
centrifugal force that would be
crucial to such a remarkable
invention. I was a diferent
boy when I descended the
tree than when I ascended.
Existence at last seemed very
purposive, he wrote. It was
a moment so signicant, he
commemorated October 19th
as its anniversary for the rest
of his life.
A common complaint of
people later seen as geniuses
is that they got no respect
in their early years. It was
perhaps not so surprising
for Goddard, a frail, thin,
constantly ill young man, who
by late childhood was two
years behind his classmates.
Plus he also had a habit of
blowing things up. First it
was within the family home,
and then at Worcester
Polytechnic Institute (WPI), a
technological university
in Massachusetts.
NASA recalls: Goddard
rst obtained public notice in
1907 in a cloud of smoke from
a powder rocket red in the
basement of the WPI physics
building. School ofcials took
an immediate interest in the
work of student Goddard. The
Schools administration, to
their credit, did not expel him.
He thus began his lifetime of
dedicated work.
It was constantly
interrupted. He had to leave
a position at Princeton after
contracting tuberculosis in
1913, and was not expected to
live. But he did, dreaming of
space ight the whole time.
Two patents, one for a rocket
Our story starts with the earliest
of the rocket makers Robert
Goddard, remembered today as the
father of modern rocket propulsion.
Earlier, Konstantin Tsiolkovsky was
proposing liquid-fuelled rockets even
before the Soviet Union existed but
Goddard was the rst to send such a
rocket aloft. NASA proclaims The
ight of Goddards rocket on March
16, 1926 at Auburn, Massachusetts,
was as signicant to history as that of
the Wright brothers at Kitty Hawk.
AS I LOOKED
TOWARDS
THE FIELDS,
I IMAGINED
HOW
WONDERFUL
IT WOULD BE
TO MAKE SOME
DEVICE WHICH
HAD THE
POSSIBILITY
OF ONE DAY
ASCENDING TO
MARS
Wernher von Braun
Sergei Pavlovich Korolev,
the 'Chief Designer'
Robert Goddard
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5
BER 4
DR ROBERT GODDARD'S
6.7 METRE ROCKET IN
ITS LAUNCHING TOWER
NEAR ROSWELL, NEW
MEXICO IN 1940
PREVIOUS PAGE THE
APOLLO 16 LAUNCHES
FROM THE KENNEDY
SPACE CENTRE ON
APRIL 16, 1972, USING
THE SATURN V ROCKET
ROCKET
PIONEERS
76
using liquid fuel, another
for a multi-stage rocket, were
granted the following year,
both instrumental towards
the USA putting a man on the
moon over half a century later.
It was time to blow more
things up. He did so care of a
new position at neighbouring
Clark University, test-
launching a powder rocket in
1915 with sufcient vigour to
alarm the campus janitor. But
amid the comedy blasts and
destruction, real scientic
discoveries were made too.
He realised that powder
rockets converted only about
two percent of their fuel into
thrust. He started applying
de Laval nozzles, hourglass-
shaped punched tubes
designed to shape the ow of
pressurised gasses, and got
much better results, moving
the engines efciency above
60 percent. The achievement
demonstrated that rockets
could theoretically be
powerful enough to escape the
Earth putting in place the
foundations of today's
modern rocketry.
Later in the decade, he
published research that
included the idea of putting
a rocket into space, and was
largely mocked for doing so.
The New York Times noted,
with innite contempt: He
seems to lack the knowledge
ladled out daily in high
schools. After the lunar
landing 49 years later, the
newspaper would retract
its acid editorial: It is now
denitely established that
a rocket can function in a
vacuum the Times regrets
the error.
For years, Goddard
would be associated with
the apparently crackpot
idea of sending a rocket to
the moon, when in fact his
area of interest was getting
into the upper atmosphere.
He couldnt win. When he
conducted an experiment in
1929, a local newspaper ran the
headline: Moon rocket misses
target by 238,799 and a half
miles. Disheartened, he began
working alone.
Goddards mark in history
rests not so much with his
powder rockets, but those
propelled by gasoline and
liquid oxygen. It was through
liquid fuels that man would
later reach the moon, and the
worlds vast nuclear missile
arsenals built upon these
rockets. In his historic ight
in 1926, at Aunt Efes farm
in Auburn, according to his
diary, he put a liquid-fuelled
rocket up 12.5 metres before
it crashed 56 metres away in a
cabbage eld.
These launches cemented
Goddard as a bona de
scientist and inventor, and
by now he was attracting the
attention of some interesting
names. One was the legendary
aviator Charles Lindbergh,
who became a trusted
condante and friend.
One of the joys of research
is that even almost a century
on, one nds connections to
great moments in the past.
Recently Discovery Channel
Magazine interviewed Bill
GODDARDS
MARK IN
HISTORY
RESTS NOT SO
MUCH WITH
HIS POWDER
ROCKETS,
BUT THOSE
PROPELLED
BY GASOLINE
AND LIQUID
OXYGEN. IT
WAS THROUGH
LIQUID FUELS
THAT MAN
WOULD LATER
REACH THE
MOON
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SEPTEMBER 2014
ABOVE DR ROBERT GODDARD
AND COLLEAGUES HOLDING
THE ROCKET USED IN THE
FLIGHT OF APRIL 19, 1932
FAR LEFT A BARGE CARRYING
SA-505'S SECOND STAGE
PASSES THROUGH A
DRAWBRIDGE IN 1968
LEFT THE COMMAND AND
SERVICE MODULES FOR
APOLLO 11 ARE INSTALLED IN
THE ALTITUDE CHAMBER OF
THE MANNED SPACECRAFT
OPERATIONS BUILDING AT
NASA'S SPACEPORT IN 1969
Anders, one of the crew of
Apollo 8, the rst craft to leave
the Earths atmosphere, and to
see the dark side of the moon.
The astronaut recalled that the
day before the Apollo 8 ight
on December 21, 1968, the
crew was visited by Lindbergh.
Anders still has a long hand-
written letter that Lindbergh
later sent him, and recalled
how Lindbergh had discussed
Goddard and his theory
that it was possibly to design a
multi-stage rocket capable of
reaching the moon. Goddard
had said: It might cost as
much as a million dollars.
At that same meeting,
Lindbergh asked how much
fuel would be consumed at
the launch of Apollo 8. The
astronauts replied that they
would be climbing into a
capsule on top of 531,000
gallons (2,010,053 litres) of
kerosene and liquid oxygen.
Lindbergh began scribbling
on a piece of paper. In the
rst second of your ight
tomorrow, he announced,
youll burn 10 times more fuel
than I did all the way to Paris,
referring to his solo non-stop
ight in 1927 from New York
to Paris, which took place as
Goddard was launching his
rst liquid rockets. Though
Goddard would not live to see
space ight dying four days
after the rst atomic bomb
was dropped on Japan in
1945 Lindbergh was a clear
link between Goddard and the
nest fruits of his research, the
Apollo space programme.
Many of the best inventions
end up being used by the
military, and so it proved for
Goddard but not in the ways
he expected. He pitched his
ideas to the military at the
start of World War II, only
to nd that nobody seemed
interested. He was too early.
Then in the spring of 1945,
the US army captured a V-2
German ballistic missile from
the Mittelwerk factory in
Germanys Harz mountains
ROCKET
PIONEERS
78
and shipped it to the naval
laboratory in Annapolis for
Goddard to examine. He
believed the Germans had
stolen his work. And here,
Goddards path crossed with
someone who had the most
ambivalent relationship
with humanity imaginable:
Wernher von Braun.
THE NAZI ENGINEER
He was one of the pioneers
of rocketry, said Walter
Cunningham, one of the
astronauts of Apollo 7,
and a man I had come to
enjoy, admire and respect.
Cunningham, one of the most
acerbic of the astronauts,
was fulsome in his praise of
Wernher von Braun, the man
behind the Saturn V booster
that made it possible to put
man on the moon. Von Braun
was one of these people who
ll a room, a large man, with
great self-condence, he said.
No matter how technical the
question, he seldom had to ask
a deputy for an answer.
Von Braun was one of the
greatest engineers ever to have
lived, a visionary who created
on a scale that has never been
seen since. As the author
Andrew Smith says in his book
Moondust, Apollo could not
have happened without him
and he is the only person of
whom this might be said.
But there was a dark side
to von Brauns past. Born into
privilege in Wirsitz, then part
of the German Empire, he
ELTON JOHNS ROCKET MAN
NOT ONLY DID THE HIT SONG INSPIRE SINGER
PHARRELL WILLIAMS TO NAME HIS SON ROCKET
MAN WILLIAMS, IT ALSO INSPIRED THIS DIALOGUE
IN THE 1996 ACTION FLICK THE ROCK, WHEN
NICOLAS CAGE IS CORNERED BY AN ARMED THUG.
STANLEY GODSPEED: UH LETS TALK MUSIC. DO
YOU LIKE THE ELTON JOHN SONG, ROCKET MAN?
[THUG REPLIES BRUSQUELY IN THE NEGATIVE]
GODSPEED: OH, OH. WELL, I ONLY BRING IT UP
BECAUSE, UH, ITS YOU. YOURE THE ROCKET MAN.
[GODSPEED FIRES A ROCKET AT HIM, PROPELLING
HIM OUT A WINDOW]
WHETHER IN POP CULTURE
OR HISTORY, ROCKETS
HAVE MADE THEIR MARK
FELT WITH THE FORCE OF,
WELL, A ROCKET. FIND OUT
HOW IN 3, 2, 1
PROPULSION
POWER
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SEPTEMBER 2014
loved astronomy and speed
even as a child. Like Goddard,
his earliest ventures into
rocketry were spectacular
and somewhat unpopular.
At the age of 12, he attached
reworks to a toy wagon,
detonated them and was taken
into custody by the
local police.
In the early 1930s, von
Braun worked with Hermann
Oberth, another pioneer of
rocketry, testing the same
sort of liquid-fuelled rockets
Goddard had pioneered.
He developed a fascination
with the idea of space ight,
namely how to get up there.
Realizing the group most
likely to support rockets and
perhaps, space ight was the
Nazis, he signed up as a party
member in 1937, becoming an
SS Ofcer in 1940.
Von Braun later argued
that he was already technical
director at the Army Rocket
Centre at Peenemnde on
the Baltic Sea, and in that
capacity he was told to join the
National Socialist Party (the
Nazis). And also that refusing
to do so would have meant
abandoning his lifes work for
an uncertain fate. Whatever
he thought of the politics, or
knew about the Nazi partys
other actions, he thrived under
its patronage.
Von Brauns principal
contribution during this
time was the development of
a missile, originally known
as the A-4 and later the V-2
(V for vergeltungswafe, or
vengeance weapon), a liquid-
propelled rocket that would
be aimed across the North
Sea towards Allied targets,
principally at London. It is
estimated to have resulted in
the deaths of around 9,000
people, mostly civilians.
Plus, 12,000 forced labourers
and concentration camp
prisoners who died producing
the weapons, under nothing
short of slavery. Von Braun
certainly knew what his work
was used for and the slave
labour involved. He later
acknowledged it, but said he
had felt unable to change it.
As the war came to an end,
the Soviets were advancing
on Peenemnde from the
east, the Americans from
the west. Deciding rather
prudently which side he
wanted to surrender to,
von Braun brought his staf
together and decided to head
en masse for Mittelwerk,
stashing blueprints for
his rocket research in an
abandoned mine shaft en
route as a safeguard against
destruction by the SS. In May
1945, nding Americans, he
surrendered to them. We
knew that we had created a
new means of warfare, and the
question as to what nation,
to what victorious nation we
were willing to entrust this
brainchild of ours, was a moral
decision more than anything
else, he said afterwards.
Debate continues to this
day how much morality
informed any decision von
Braun ever made. Either way,
the Americans were happy
to have him: there had been
a document called the Black
List, containing the names
of key German scientists
and engineers that the US
had been particularly keen
to capture and interrogate.
Von Brauns name was at the
very top of it. The grab of Nazi
scientists and engineers in
the aftermath of the war, with
Americans taking some and
the Soviets others, had a major
bearing on the Space Race and
the Cold War.
The knock-on efects of
von Brauns work were
enormous. It can be argued
the success in the worst
possible way of the V-2 led
to the Arms Race, which led
to the massive stockpiling
of weapons, particularly
nuclear ones, by the USA and
TOP WERNHER VON
BRAUN AT HIS DESK AT
MARSHALL SPACE FLIGHT
CENTRE IN MAY 1964,
WITH MODELS OF THE
SATURN ROCKET FAMILY
THAT HE DESIGNED
ABOVE THE LAUNCHING
SITE FOR V2 ROCKETS IN
GERMANY, 1939
LEFT THE SKYLAB
SPACE STATION IS
MATED TO A SATURN V
ROCKET IN THE VEHICLE
ASSEMBLY BUILDING ON
SEPTEMBER 29,1972
BOBA FETT
HIS NAME MIGHT MAKE HIM SOUND
LIKE AN OVERWEIGHT REGGAE ARTIST,
BUT BOUNTY HUNTER BOBA FETT IS
CLEARLY THE COOLEST CHARACTER
IN STAR WARS. AS IS HIS COLLECTIBLE
TOY FROM 1980. THE ORIGINAL VERSION
CAME WITH A TINY MISSILE THAT FIRED
FROM HIS BACK, BUT SAFETY FEARS
SOON SAW LATER VERSIONS WITH THE
ROCKET GLUED INTO THE FIGURINES
BACKPACK. ROCKET-FIRING VERSIONS
NOW SELL FOR HEFTY AMOUNTS
ASTRO BOY
FIRST A JAPANESE COMIC, IN 1963 THIS
BOY ROBOT SUPERHERO BECAME A
CARTOON, AND IS CONSIDERED ONE OF
THE FIRST SERIES TO EMBODY ANIME
STYLE. EMPIRE MAGAZINE NAMED THE
SPIKY-HAIRED KID ONE OF THE 50
GREATEST COMIC BOOK CHARACTERS.
AND CONSIDERING HE HAS POWERFUL
ROCKET BOOTS AND, FOR SOME
REASON, THE ABILITY TO SHOOT
BULLETS OUT OF HIS BUTT, WE CANT
BLAME THEM
VON BRAUN
WAS ONE OF
THE GREATEST
ENGINEERS
EVER TO
HAVE LIVED;
A VISIONARY
WHO CREATED
ON A SCALE
THAT HAS
NEVER BEEN
SEEN SINCE
ROCKET
PIONEERS
80
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USSR. This is the downside
of rocketry: for many years,
its principal function was not
to transport humans to the
stars, but to attach nuclear
weapons, as intercontinental
ballistic missiles. By 1982,
it is believed the US had
11,000 nuclear warheads
and the Soviet Union 10,000,
with over 2,000 launchers
apiece. The stockpiles were
easily sufcient to wipe
out humanity many times
over, before a period of
decommissioning commenced
in the 1980s. But rst, we must
meet somebody else.
THE CHIEF DESIGNER
If Von Brauns life had
involved a metamorphosis,
another key rocket mans
existence was a remarkable
story of survival. And secrecy.
American author Tom Wolfe
captured some of the mystery
about this shadowy man in
his 1979 book The Right Stuf:
The Soviet program gave of
an aura of sorcery, he wrote.
The Soviets released prac-
tically no gures, pictures,
or diagrams. And no names;
it was revealed only that the
Soviet program was guided by
a mysterious individual known
as the Chief Designer.
Wolfe continued, But his
powers were indisputable!
Every time the United
States announced a great
space experiment, the Chief
Designer accomplished it
rst, in the most startling
fashion. In 1955, the US
announced plans to put up
an Earth satellite by early
1958; the Soviet Union put
one up in October 1957. The
US announced plans to send
a satellite into orbit around
the Sun in March, 1959; the
Chief Designer managed it in
January 1959.
Even to the elite of the
Soviet space corps, the name
Sergei Pavlovich Korolev was
not widely known. He was
only ever referred to by the
initials of his rst two names,
SP, or by the mysterious title
of Chief Designer, or simply
Chief, said Alexei Leonov,
arguably the greatest of all
Soviet cosmonauts and one of
the very few early pioneers
THE KNOCK-ON
EFFECTS OF
VON BRAUNS
WORK WERE
ENORMOUS.
IT CAN BE
ARGUED THE
SUCCESS IN
THE WORST
POSSIBLE WAY
OF THE V-2
LED TO THE
ARMS RACE,
WHICH LED TO
THE MASSIVE
STOCKPILING
OF WEAPONS
TITAN IV
ON AUGUST 12, 1998, AN AMERICAN
TITAN IV UNMANNED ROCKET
EXPLODED SHORTLY AFTER LAUNCH.
THAT EXPLOSION COST OVER
US$1 BILLION, AS IT CARRIED A
CLASSIFIED MILITARY SPY SATELLITE
AT THE TIME. FOOTAGE OF THE BLAST
CAN BE SEEN ON YOUTUBE. A YEAR
LATER, ANOTHER TITAN IV ROCKET
FAILED TO PLACE A COMMUNICATION
SATELLITE INTO ORBIT, BURNING UP
US$800 MILLION
ROCKET-LAUNCHING CARS
IN THE EARLY 20TH CENTURY, CARS WERE
STARTING TO BECOME A COMMON SIGHT
IN THE US STATE OF PENNSYLVANIA. AND
NOT EVERYONE WAS HAPPY ABOUT THAT.
SPECIFICALLY, THE FARMERS ANTI-
AUTOMOBILE ASSOCIATION. THEY PROPOSED
A STRICT LIST OF RULES, INCLUDING: CARS
TRAVELLING AT NIGHT MUST SEND UP A
ROCKET EVERY MILE, THEN WAIT TEN MINUTES
FOR THE ROAD TO CLEAR. THE DRIVER MAY
THEN PROCEED, BLOWING HIS HORN AND
SHOOTING OFF ROMAN CANDLES, AS BEFORE.
A RUSSIAN
INTERCONTINENTAL
MISSILE CROSSES
MOSCOW'S RED SQUARE
DURING A MILITARY
PARADE IN 1965. THIS
MARKED THE 20
TH

ANNIVERSARY OF THE END
OF THE WAR IN EUROPE
81
SEPTEMBER 2014
In terms of raising
human civilization
to another level, the
F-1 rocket engines
of Apollo 11 are
perhaps one of the
most important
bits of kit in history.
There were ve of
them, each producing
680,000 kilograms of thrust and 32 million
horsepower, and blazing through 2,700
kilograms of kerosene and liquid oxygen
per second. These engines put men on the
moon in 1969.
Burning for just a few minutes, they
sloughed off the main Saturn V rocket and
plunged into the Atlantic, where they lay for
decades. Until 2013, when Amazon CEO Jeff
Bezos led an expedition to recover them.
Using underwater remote vehicles, the team
brought up rusting F-1 parts from a depth of
almost 4.3 kilometres (see picture above).
Bezos wrote that he was inspired to
create the project thanks to childhood
memories. I was ve years old when I
watched Apollo 11 unfold on television, and
without any doubt it was a big contributor to
my passions for science, engineering, and
exploration. The F-1 parts will likely soon
go on display in museums where, Bezos
hopes, maybe we can inspire a few more
youths to invent and explore.
N1 PROGRAMME
BLAME THIS SOVIET SERIES OF
ROCKETS FOR WHY RUSSIA NEVER
MADE IT TO THE MOON. FOUR OF THESE
MONSTERS, EACH WITH 30 ENGINES,
EXPLODED AT LAUNCH. THE LAUNCH
OF JULY 3, 1969 WAS THE WORST. JUST
ONE STRAY BOLT GOT SUCKED INTO
AN ENGINE IN MID-AIR, RESULTING IN
AN EXPLOSION WITH THE FORCE OF
SEVEN THOUSAND TONS OF TNT THE
LARGEST NON-NUCLEAR MAN-MADE
EXPLOSION IN HISTORY
ELON MUSK
WHEN THIS FOUNDER OF SPACEX AND TESLA
MOTORS TWEETED LAST YEAR THAT HE HAD
FIGURED OUT HOW TO DESIGN ROCKET PARTS
JUST WITH HAND MOVEMENTS THROUGH THE
AIR, WE KNOW HE WAS CHANNELING IRON
MAN. HOW? BECAUSE IRON MAN DIRECTOR JON
FAVREAU TWEETED HIM, ASKING, LIKE IN IRON
MAN? ONE MINUTE LATER MUSK REPLIED,
YUP. WE SAW IT IN THE MOVIE AND MADE IT
REAL. GOOD IDEA! PRETTY NIFTY, CONSIDERING
FAVREAU HAD EARLIER SAID MUSK INSPIRED HIS
PORTRAYAL OF TONY STARK
APOLLO RISES AGAIN
ROCKET
PIONEERS
82
who is still alive, in his book
Two Sides of the Moon. For
those on the space programme
there was no authority higher.
Leonov had been in the space
corp for six months before he
was allowed to meet Korolev.
He had the reputation of
being a man of the highest
integrity, but also of being
extremely demanding, Leonov
described. Everyone around
him was on tenterhooks, afraid
of making a wrong move and
invoking his wrath. He was
treated much like a god.
I remember the rst time
I caught sight of him. I was
looking out of the window
when he arrived, stepping out
of a black ZIS-110 limousine.
He was taller than average; he
wore the collar of his dark-blue
overcoat turned up and the
brim of his hat pulled down.
Sit down, my little eagles,
he said.
Korolev was the closest
thing the Soviet Union had to
a rock star. But people knew
little about him, and in the
West it is only in the last 20
years that we have learned
the truth.
His path to that period of
exalted celebrity was varied,
to say the least. He rose fast
in the period of military
activity after the Bolshevik
revolution; and was in charge
of the rst Rocket Research
and Development Centre
within the Group for the Study
of Reactive Motion (GIRD)
in 1932, the genesis of which
would eventually become
the Korolev design bureau
that guided Soviet space
exploration for more than 40
years, according to writers
Rex Hall and David Shayler in
their study of the Soviet space
programme, Rocket Men. He
was part of the group that ew
the rst Soviet liquid-fuelled
rocket in August 1933, which,
like its early peers in Germany
and America, ew a modest
distance before crashing, yet
was held to be a success. He
rose and rose.
Then he made enemies of
the wrong people. The Great
Purge, a terrible campaign
of repression by Joseph
Stalin through the late 1930s,
involved the detention of more
than one and a half million
people, of whom 681,892 were
shot. Some historians argue
that the gures could be even
double that. In the middle
of this, Korolev was arrested
in 1938, denounced by three
colleagues for deliberately
slowing the work of the
research institute. He was
bundled from his house into
a car, not given time to say
goodbye to his three-year-
old daughter or his wife and
tortured into confession, then
sentenced to 10 years in a
Gulag work camp.
Unable to believe this was
anything other than a mistake,
Korolev wrote appeals to
everyone he could think
of, Stalin included, but was
shipped to eastern Siberia to
undergo forced labour in a
goldmine, where thousands
died each month. He did get a
retrial, reducing his sentence
to eight years, and not in a
Gulag, which likely saved his
life. Still, by the time he was
sent back to Moscow for the
bulk of his sentence in 1939,
he had lost most of his teeth.
Naturally, work on rocketry
went backwards, and the
leaders worldwide became von
Braun and his Nazi colleagues.
Making the best of an
unspeakably bad situation,
Korolev managed to resume
work while in detention,
working on rocket-assisted
take of boosters for aircraft;
his work here eventually
getting him out of the camps
in 1944, and gaining him the
Badge of Honor the following
year (he was not formally
cleared of the charges until
1957). Upon release, he was
among the Soviets sent to
Germany in the dying days of
World War II to try to nd the
technology of the V-2 rocket
and, ideally, the man who had
built it. One has to wonder
how diferent the world
might be, had he located von
Braun and worked with him
in Moscow.
Back in the Soviet Union,
Korolev was tasked with
duplicating von Brauns V-2,
which he did with his R series
of rockets. Within two years of
the end of WWII, his R-2 had
doubled the range of the V-2
and became the rst missile
to have a separate warhead.
Shortly afterwards his R-3
had a long enough range to hit
England from Moscow, and
by 1957 the R-7 became the
rst truly intercontinental
ballistic missile, a two-stage
rocket which could carry a
ve-ton nuclear bomb 7,000
kilometres, sufcient to
hit America. The nastiest,
scariest part of the Cold War
was underway.
Mercifully, Korolevs
central interest in life was
not nuclear war, but space
ight. Gradually rehabilitated
back into the fold of the
Communist party, he became
able to pursue his true dreams.
As early as 1953, he was trying
MERCIFULLY,
KOROLEVS
CENTRAL
INTEREST IN
LIFE WAS NOT
NUCLEAR
WAR, BUT
SPACE FLIGHT.
GRADUALLY
REHABILITATED
BACK INTO THE
FOLD OF THE
COMMUNIST
PARTY, HE
WAS ABLE TO
PURSUE HIS
TRUE DREAM
25 METRES
100
50
75
to point out that his R-7
design could be adapted to put
satellites into orbit. Somewhat
mocked at rst, what changed
party opinion was the growing
sense of a competition with
the US, both in terms of
nuclear arms and control of
the heavens. The clincher in
the end was the appearance of
stories in the American press
in 1957, suggesting that the
US might launch a satellite
into orbit. Korolev saw these
reports, brought them to the
attention of the most powerful
people in the USSR, and by
presenting it as a race, got his
way. Sputnik, the rst articial
Earth satellite a little metal
ball that changed the world
was launched by the USSR by
October 1957.
Galvanised, Soviet premier
Nikita Khrushchev decided
there should be another
launch, to coincide with
the 40th anniversary of the
October Revolution. The idea
this time was to launch a much
bigger payload, including a
dog called Laika. Kolorev and
his team designed the entire
vehicle within four weeks
without testing, but the launch
was successful, though less so
for Laika, who died from heat
exhaustion six hours later.
From here, one Soviet success
followed another. Yuri Gagarin
was launched into orbit on a
modied version of Korolevs
R-7 in April 1961; while
the Vostok series of ights,
included
83
SEPTEMBER 2014
R-7A N1 V-2 SATURN V
V-2
CONFIGURATION
1
WARHEAD
2
AUTOMATIC GYRO CONTROL
3
GUIDEBEAM AND RADIO
COMMAND RECEIVERS
4
ALCOHOL-WATER MIXTURE
5
ROCKET BODY
6
LIQUID OXYGEN
7
HYDROGEN PEROXIDE TANK
8
COMPRESSED NITROGEN
PRESSURISING BOTTLES
9
HYDROGEN PEROXIDE
REACTION CHAMBER
q
PROPELLANT TURBOPUMP
w
THRUST FRAME
e
OXYGEN/ALCOHOL BURNER CA
r
ROCKET COMBUSTION
CHAML (OUTER SKIN)
t
WING
y
ALCOHOL INLETS
u
JET VANE
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
9
8
e
r
y
u
q
w
t
i
R-7A 1959-1968
SATURN V 1966-1973
N1 1944-1952
DESCRIPTION: FIRST
INTERCONTINENTAL BALLISTIC
MISSILE
DESIGNER: SERGEI KOROLEV
TRIVIA: IN MODIFIED FORM, IT
LAUNCHED SPUTNIK 1, THE FIRST
ARTIFICIAL SATELLITE, INTO ORBIT,
AND BECAME THE BASIS FOR THE
R-7 FAMILY WHICH INCLUDES
SPUTNIK, LUNA, MOLNIYA, VOSTOK,
AND VOSKHOD SPACE LAUNCHERS,
AND LATER SOYUZ/L/U/U2/FG/2
DESCRIPTION: FIRST LONG-RANGE
BALLISTIC MISSILE
DESIGNER: PEENEMNDE ARMY
RESEARCH CENTRE, DIRECTED BY
WERNHER VON BRAUN
TRIVIA: INITIALLY DESIGNED AS
A VENGEANCE WEAPON TO
ATTACK ALLIED CITIES IN WWII,
ITS GREATEST IMPACT WAS AFTER
THE WAR WHEN ITS GERMAN
DESIGNERS BEGAN WORKING
FOR NASA, DESIGNING BOOSTER
ROCKETS
DESCRIPTION: HUMAN-RATED
EXPENDABLE ROCKET AND LUNAR
LAUNCH VEHICLE
DESIGNER: MARSHALL SPACE
FLIGHT CENTRE, DIRECTED BY
WERNHER VON BRAUN
TRIVIA: THE ONLY LAUNCH
VEHICLE TO TRANSPORT HUMAN
BEINGS BEYOND LOW EARTH
ORBIT, IT REMAINS THE TALLEST,
HEAVIEST AND MOST POWERFUL
ROCKET EVER BROUGHT TO
OPERATION
DESCRIPTION: MANNED LUNAR
CARRIER ROCKET
DESIGNER: SERGEI KOROLEV
(DIED 1966)
TRIVIA: DESIGNED TO COMPETE
WITH THE SATURN V TO
LAND A MAN ON THE MOON,
DEVELOPMENT BEGAN IN 1959.
EACH OF ITS FOUR ATTEMPTS TO
LAUNCH FAILED. THE N1 WAS
KEPT SECRET UNTIL 1989
WEIGHT:
12,500
KILOGRAMS
WARHEAD:
1,000
KILOGRAMS
LENGTH:
14 METRES
DIAMETER:
1.65 METRES
WEIGHT:
280 METRIC
TONS
LENGTH:
34 METRES
DIAMETER:
3.02 METRES
HEIGHT:
105 METRES
WEIGHT:
2,735 METRIC
TONS
DIAMETER:
17 METRES
HEIGHT:
110.6 METRES
WEIGHT:
3,000 METRIC
TONS
DIAMETER:
10.1 METRES
V-2 1944-1952
A HISTORY OF ROCKETS
BEGINNING AS BALLISTIC MISSILES, ROCKETS
HAVE EVOLVED OVER TIME INTO LUNAR
LAUNCH CARRIERS
ROCKET
PIONEERS
84
THE FIRST STAGE OF THE
AMERICAN SATURN V ROCKET,
THE S-1C, IS HOISTED BY CRANE
IN THE TRANSFER AISLE OF THE
VEHICLE ASSEMBLY BUILDING
AT THE KENNEDY SPACE
CENTRE ON FEBRUARY 21, 1969.
RIGHT KOROLEV'S N1 ROCKET,
WITH ITS 30 ENGINES, WAS
DESIGNED AS A COMPETITOR
FOR THE SATURN V
85
SEPTEMBER 2014
P
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)
the rendezvous (though not
physical connection) between
two spacecraft in one mission.
Still, nobody in the US
knew who the man was
behind these ventures. The
Soviets persisted in ofering
no information as to the Chief
Designers identity, wrote
Wolfe. For that matter, they
identied no one involved in
Gagarins ight other than
Gagarin himself. Nor did they
ofer any pictures of the rocket
or even such elementary data
as its length and its rocket
thrust. Far from casting any
doubt as to the capabilities of
the Soviet program, this policy
seemed only to iname the
imagination. But no matter.
Having left America trailing in
his wake, Korolev now turned
his imagination to a new
ambition the moon.
EYES ON THE SKIES
Meanwhile, the American
space programme had not
been moving smoothly. The
recruitment of the Mercury
7 astronauts who would
become the rst Americans
in space, had been a subject
of enormous fanfare. Yet
the rockets that would send
them aloft werent doing what
they were supposed to do.
To almost anyone who had
followed NASAs eforts on
television, the odds against
the successful launch of an
American into space seemed
absolutely dreadful, wrote
Wolfe candidly.
The Eisenhower
Administrations public
attempts to catch up with
the Russians made life
worse at times too. People
were being treated to the
sight of the rockets at Cape
Canaveral either blowing
up on the launch pad in
the most ignominious, if
briey hilarious, fashion
or else heading of on crazy
trajectories, toward downtown
Orlando instead of outer
space, in which case they had
the Soviets, the Americans
still were; help was at hand
from an unlikely source
Wernher von Braun. Having
been transferred to the US
in October 1945, given a false
employment history and
bleached, so to speak, of his
Nazism, von Braun found
himself working for Uncle
Sam. In 1950 he moved to
Huntsville, Alabama, where
he remained for 20 years.
The Redstone rocket in
which Shepard went aloft
was the result of the rocket
development team he led.
And much like the Soviet
R-7, it was invented rst and
foremost to carry ballistic
missiles, not men.
Von Braun, whod never
lost sight of his dreams of
space ight, was working on
something altogether grander:
the Saturn V, the machine
that would deliver man to
the moon. You can still see a
Saturn V in Florida. You can
reel of gures and statistics
all you like, but until youve
stood underneath it, nothing
can prepare you for this
behemoth, writes Andrew
Smith in Moondust. You try
to t a meaningful portion of
it into a photo, but you cant,
so you give up, he writes. To
make something this big, and
intend it to y the audacity
of this conceit alone and
then to make it work, to
conceive of this impossible
twisty chaos of pipes and
cables and weird steel tubers
and nozzles as big as the bus
we just rode in on, bigger, and
make them do something
predictable and controllable
and reliable enough to bet a
life on, three lives, every time.
Bill Anders, among the rst
crew ever to y on a Saturn
V on Apollo 8, recalls: We
had simulated everything you
can imagine. Still, atop this
missile, he was unprepared
for the forces involved. Ive
always thought of an analogy
like an old whip antenna on
to be blown up by remote
control, continues the author.
Wolfe witnessed one
of these many ascos.
One example, the Navys
rst attempt to launch an
American satellite with
a Vanguard rocket, was
televised nationally. After
countdown, then ignition:
A mighty surge of noise
and ames, Wolfe recalled.
The rocket lifts some six
inches (15 centimetres). The
rst stage, bloated with fuel,
explodes and the rest of the
rocket sinks into the sand
beside the launch platform. It
appears to sink ever slower,
like a fat old man collapsing
into a Barcalounger. The
press called it Kaputnik
and it became, for a time,
the image of the American
space programme. The only
obvious American talent
was for blowing things up.
They had many names, these
rockets, Atlas, Navaho, Little
Joe, Jupiter, but they all blew
up.Yet on May 5, 1961, Alan
Shepard waited to become the
rst American in space. He
recalled later, the realisation
that every part of his craft and
rocket was made by the lowest
bidder. Across the nation,
people pulled to the side of
the highways to concentrate
on their radios, more in dread
than excitement.
This tiny lad, up on the
tip of that enormous white
bullet, appeared to have about
one chance in ten of living
through it, Wolfe recalled.
This was the greatest death-
defying hell-driver stunt ever
broadcast, a patriotic stunt, a
hash-mad stunt bound up with
the fate of the country. In the
end, sick of delays, Shepard
calmly told ground control:
Why dont you x your little
problem and light this candle.
They did, all went smoothly,
and the US space programme
was underway.
While there was no
disguising how far behind
an automobile. Youre just
some little beetle on the top. I
thought we were banging into
the launch tower. For the rst
(it seemed like an hour, but it
was probably 10 seconds), you
couldnt hear yourself think.
I felt like I was in the jaws of a
rat or a terrier. It was violent.
There is no shortage of
footage of Apollo missions
going up on Saturn Vs, and
they are truly extraordinary
to watch. The burst of ame,
the slow motion start to the
ascent, the rumble of a kind
never matched before or since.
Nothing this big has own
again. They say that it stood
sixty feet (18.2 metres) taller
than the Statue of Liberty and
weighed six million pounds
(3000 tons) at launch, writes
IF VON BRAUN
HAD BEEN
PICKED UP BY
THE SOVIETS IN
1945 INSTEAD
OF THE
AMERICANS,
THERES EVERY
CHANCE
HISTORY
WOULD
REMEMBER
A RUSSIAN
NAME INSTEAD
OF NEIL
ARMSTRONG
AS THE FIRST
ON THE MOON
ROCKET
PIONEERS
86
Smith. Among the welter
of facts and gures, only two
strike me as particularly
remarkable. The rst is that
this rocket was trusted to go
to the moon on only its third
ight. The second is that it
contained close to six million
parts, meaning that, even
with NASAs astounding 99.9
percent reliability target,
roughly 6,000 things could
be expected to go wrong on a
good ight. Yet the Saturn V
never failed, nor looked like
failing when it mattered
and it doesnt take a genius to
understand that very likely
a super genius was at work
here. That, for all his aws,
was Wernher von Braun.
This is why Smith says
von Braun is the only person
without whom a lunar landing
would denitely not have
taken place. There were other
astronauts, other people who
could have been in charge of
the astronaut ofce, others
to make the famous lunar
modules. But no von Braun?
If he had been picked up by
the Soviets in 1945 instead
of the Americans, theres
every chance history would
remember a Russian name
instead of Neil Armstrong as
the rst on the moon. Though
as things stood, the Soviets
werent going to give up the
moon without a chance.
Korolev had a plan.
Back in the USSR, the Chief
Designer realised getting men
into orbit was easy, compared
to getting them to the moon.
He designed a new spacecraft
called the Voskhod, an
improvement on the Vostoks
that Gagarin had used. Like
the Apollo modules, Voskhods
carried three people. The
rst rocket ew in 1964, and
in the second, Alexei Leonov
performed the rst-ever
space walk, yet another Soviet
rst. We now know he came
incredibly close to disaster in
doing so.
That was the capsule sorted
out. What would they use to
get them up there? A new
rocket would be required:
the N1. They had unromantic
names, these Soviet missiles,
but the N1 was potentially
grander than Americas Saturn
V, and its rst stage remains
the most powerful rocket
stage ever built. At 105 metres,
it was slightly smaller than the
Saturn V, but had more thrust,
because its bottom stage
was powered by 30 engines,
arranged in two rings. Yet the
N1 never successfully ew.
There were four attempts, and
all failed. The single biggest
reason? Korolev had died.
END OF AN ERA
As Alexei Leonov writes in his
autobiography, the warning
signs about Korolevs health
were ever present. When an
unmanned Voskhod mission
exploded in 1964, Leonov
recalls Korolev visiting.
He looked exhausted and
strained. He had not been
well, he writes. Later, Leonov
wrote, Not only was Sergei
Pavlovich a brilliant designer
and manager, but he had an
iron will and an incredible
determination born of
immense hardship. How great
that hardship had been, we
were about to learn.
At the end of 1965, Korolev
A LONG WAY
FROM THE
GULAGS,
KOROLEV'S
BODY WAS
PUT IN THE
GREAT HALL
OF COLUMNS
IN MOSCOW ON
A PEDESTAL.
RUSSIA HAD
LOST ITS MOST
OUTSTANDING
SON
P
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O
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:

R
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U
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E
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S

(
M
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T
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D

S
T
A
G
E

O
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T
H
E

A
P
O
L
L
O

8

S
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U
R
N

V

(
N
A
S
A
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THE
INTEGRAL!
Referring to US frustration
over Korolev, Tom Wolfe writes
of The Integral, a gure in Yevgeny
Zamyatins dystopian 1921 novel We,
set in an urban nation in which secret
police control the population, who
are given numbers rather than names.
The novels protagonist, D-503, is the
chief engineer of a spaceship called the
Integral. Zamyatin had ed Russia, and
his work was in some level based on
the post-revolutionary Communist
Soviet Union. Forty years on from
publication, the novel was
starting to look startlingly
accurate.
87
SEPTEMBER 2014
A CHILD PLAYS WITH A TOY
SPACE SHUTTLE IN THE
ROCKET GARDEN OF THE
KENNEDY SPACE CENTER
VISITOR COMPLEX NEAR CAPE
CANAVERAL, FLORIDA, AHEAD
OF ITS FINAL LAUNCH ON 8
JULY, 2011
was diagnosed as sufering
from a bleeding polyp in his
intestine, and was admitted
to hospital in 1966 to have it
removed. On January 10, he
invited Gagarin and Leonov to
his home, a modest two-storey
detached house in Moscow,
on a street now named after
him. At the party, Korolev told
Leonov that he viewed his
space walk as the last major
work of his life.
The three of them drank
Armenian cognac and ate
pirozhki. Korolev told the two
cosmonauts his life story until
4am. We had no inkling that
night that Korolev wanted
to talk because he felt he was
close to death, Leonov writes.
Two nights later, Korolev died
on the operating table. The
years of hardship in Stalins
Gulags had taken their toll on
his health. Korolevs heart
had stopped.
A long way from the Gulags,
Korolev's body was put in
the great Hall of Columns
in Moscow on a pedestal
covered with owers, while
symphonies by Tchaikovsky
and Beethoven played.
Finally, the name of the Chief
Designer was acknowledged,
premier Brezhnev saying
Russia had lost its most
outstanding son. It was
the end of an era. Gagarin,
who would soon die himself
in an accident, said: The
name of Sergei Pavlovich
is synonymous with one
entire chapter of the history
of mankind. According to
Leonov, What Korolev had
achieved was far greater than
anything so far achieved by
any single person in America.
Korolev was replaced by
his deputy, Vasily Mishin, a
very good engineer but a big
drinker and hesitant in big
decisions. I am convinced
now that had Sergei Pavlovich
lived just a little longer we
would have been the rst to
circumnavigate the moon,
writes Leonov. Instead, one
ROCKET
PIONEERS
88
setback followed another,
and Armstrong and Aldrin
won the race, launched there
by von Brauns Saturn V in
1969. To this day, 12 men have
set foot on the moon. All are
American, and they all got
there thanks to the famous
Saturn V rockets.
Von Braun wanted the
Saturn V development
continued after the Apollo
programme. Bill Anders says
von Braun was sufering
from cancer and dying, yet
wanting to do Saturn V above
everything else. He didnt
get much of a hearing. Turns
out the manned ight guys
didnt like Wernher, because
when he was a Nazi, most of
them were World War II vets,
and he was getting a lot more
attention than they thought
he needed. In retrospect, its
too bad, because thats what
we should have done, he
notes ruefully.
Von Braun retired from
NASA in 1972, working
at Fairchild Industries in
Maryland. His health forced
him to retire in 1976 and he
died the following year. His
gravestone refers to Psalm
19:1. The skies proclaim
the work of his hands.
With Goddard, Korolev and
von Braun dead, the great
pioneers were gone, and
in some senses it seems
that rocketry actually went
backwards in their absence.
The Space Shuttle for
instance, was supposed to
usher in a new era of reusable
spacecraft, an economical
system that would make
space ight routine. It
perhaps achieved that, but
the double rockets that sent
the Space Shuttles up were
not a function of pioneering
design, but a lack of money.
Mike Mullane ew the Shuttle
three times, and wrote one of
the nest ever books about
space travel, Riding Rockets.
He recalls the development
of the Shuttle, just as NASAs
budgets were being slashed.
NASA looked for cheaper
booster designs and settled
on twin reusable Solid-fuelled
Rocket Boosters (SRBs), he
writes. These were just steel
tubes lled with a propellant
of ammonium perchlorate
and aluminium powder.
These ingredients were
combined with a chemical
binder, mixed as a slurry
in a large Mixmaster, then
poured into the rocket tubes
like dough into a bread pan.
After curing in an oven, the
propellant would solidify
to the consistency of hard
rubber, thus the name solid
rocket booster.
Because they were simple,
SRBs were cheap, he writes.
After burnout, the empty
tubes could be parachuted
into salt water and reused.
There was a catch, however.
They were signicantly
more dangerous than liquid-
fuelled engines, that can be
controlled during operation:
valves can be closed to
stop the ow of propellant,
shutting down the engine,
like turning of the valve to a
gas barbecue.
Solid rocket boosters lack
such adaptability. Once
ignited, they cannot be turned
of and solid propellant
cannot ow, so it cannot be
diverted to another engine,
writes Mullane. These rocket
boosters are fundamentally
not too diferent from Chinese
rockets thousands of years
ago, he further writes.
After ignition they have
to work because nothing can
be done if they dont. And,
typically, when they do not
work, the failure mode is
catastrophic. Their sheer
size (45 metres high) meant
they had to be constructed
and transported in four
propellant-lled segments,
then bolted together to make
the completed booster, the
joints between them sealed by
rubber things called O-rings.
It was the failure of one of
these that caused the
Chall-enger disaster and
the death of seven astronauts
in 1986.
There is an immense
sophistication to
contemporary rocketry
to the extent that guided
missiles in the military
can supposedly even hit
a briefcase-sized target,
despite it being hundreds of
kilometres away. And modern
rockets now put commercial
and military satellites into
orbit with such a frequency,
that it almost renders the
process as good as routine.
But there is also far less of the
pioneering romance now
like the sheer preposterous
might of the Saturn V. The
result is that the golden age of
rocket-powered dreaming has
passed us, and with it, the eras
most brilliant and complex
protagonists.
WITH
GODDARD,
KOROLEV
AND VON
BRAUN DEAD,
THE GREAT
PIONEERS
WERE GONE
AND IN
SOME WAYS
ROCKETRY
ACTUALLY
WENT
BACKWARDS
THE S-IVB THIRD
STAGE OF THE
APOLLO 8 SATURN
V, SHORTLY AFTER
SEPARATION FROM
THE COMMAND /
SERVICE MODULE
IN 1969
ROCKET
PIONEERS
90
DANGEROUS
LIASONS
OFF THE COAST OF
PANAMA LIES COIBA, A
FORMER PENAL ISLAND
THAT HAS NEVER BEEN
PLUNDERED, SETTLED
OR POACHED AND
HAS AN ABUNDANT
WILDLIFE COMPARED TO
NEIGHBOURING ISLANDS.
DAVE SALMONI WANTS
TO KNOW WHY
P
H
O
T
O
:

D
I
S
C
O
V
E
R
Y

C
H
A
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.
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D
91
SEPTEMBER 2014
WHO DO YOU TURN TO WHEN FACED
WITH UNEXPLAINED ANIMAL BEHAVIOUR
IN A REMOTE, DANGEROUS LOCATION?
WILD MAN DAVE SALMONI, OF COURSE,
WITH HIS TIPS ON WILDLIFE SURVIVAL OF
THE EXTREME KIND
ADVENTURE
HANDBOOK
92
LEFT AND RIGHT IN
PANAMA, DAVE AND HIS
CREW VENTURE TO THE
UNSPOILED ISLAND OF
COIBA TO UNEARTH ITS
HAUNTING SECRETS
P
H
O
T
O
S
:

D
I
S
C
O
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Y

C
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A
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C
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,
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(
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93
SEPTEMBER 2014
elieve it or not, even in this day and age
there still are unanswered questions
about some of the planets most well-
known animals. Take the South Pacic
island of Rangiroa, also known as Shark
Island. Its home to one of the greatest
congregations of big-toothed swimmers
on the planet, from blacktip reef sharks to
tiger sharks, silvertips and hammerheads.
These hunters are usually solitary so
why are they congregating in an atoll
thats been described as a marine desert?
Who better to answer these kinds of
questions than big predator expert Dave
Salmoni. Heres a man whos done the
impossible, lived with African lions and
explored some of the most dangerous
towns in the world for Discovery Channel,
after all. In Mystery of the Lost Islands,
Salmoni is part detective, part survivalist,
journeying from active volcanoes on the
Galapagos to the wild coast of Alaska.
That means, apart from other derring-
do, our fearless host voluntarily submits
himself to having a vampire bat suck on
his feet. In case you were wondering,
thats not as romantic as it sounds.
In a recent roundtable discussion
with several publications, the Canadian
adventurer and conservationist who,
incidentally, describes himself as a tiger
tickler, lion lover and adventure addict
discussed the challenges of lming the
show, what he thinks of when he meets a
certain kind of woman, and why elephants
maybe arent so lovable after all.
VAMPIRES AND GHOSTS
An example of a great mystery was when
we went to Devils Island [in Panama], and
there was this long chain of jungle islands
that have been poached out. There wasnt
a single animal, the trees are getting
cut down, and yet this one island in the
middle of them all was completely left
alone. All of the poachers, the locals or the
people that were doing the logging or the
animal poaching they dont go there.
We couldnt gure out why. They would
all mention vampires and ghosts.
Ive been around way too long to
ADVENTURE
HANDBOOK
94
believe that anybody in an impoverished
country is not going to go to an island
because of a ghost and a vampire story.
Ive heard lots of stories around the
campre. Thats not usually a reason to
protect an entire island and all the species
on it, so we had to go out there, have a
look and gure out why were people so
scared to be there.
HOW TO GAIN ANIMAL TRUST
I mean typically, any time when working
with a dangerous animal; rather than
me trying to worry about whether I trust
them, I try to build their trust in me.
Ive learned over the years that diferent
species have diferent things that they
like to see in order for a human being
to become predictable. A lion is looking
for one type of an action, an elephant is
looking for another, and a shark might be
looking for something else.
So before I even begin an interaction,
its research, research, research. And then
during that research, youll always nd
out what is the worst case scenario; and
clearly with these types of animals the
worst case scenario is typically an attack
on myself or someone in my crew.
HIS MUSCLES ARENT JUST FOR SHOW
Typically to be ready for one of those
interactions I have to be mentally
prepared; I have to research and be
physically prepared, and thats usually by
sitting in the gym. Once we gure out how
a lion, an elephant or a tiger is going to
attack, I just need to know what to do with
my body. And then Ill just spend hours
and hours in the gym making sure my
body can do those things.
Then, once Im actually facing the
animal its all a matter of making it
calm. I can talk to most animals with
my body and my body posture. Animals
understand tone of voice and they also
understand body posture. If you ever
look at the footage of all my shows, youll
see that I rarely approach an animal
straight on. Im almost always slouching
or looking sideways. Im always moving
slowly. If I want to calm them down, Ill
drop my prole or raise my prole. And
these are all techniques that Ive learned
over the years in order to build this trust
and then Im rolling.
OFF THE BEATEN TRACK, INDEED
I would say the coolest thing about the
show was the remote locations. Each one
ABOVE SALMONI FILMING
IN THE FALKLANDS, AN
ISLAND WHICH QUICKLY
BECOMES A PRISON
FOR ITS POPULATION OF
MIGRATING SEALS, SEA
LIONS AND PENGUINS
WHEN KILLER WHALES
LAY SIEGE
BELOW IN PANAMA, DAVE
AND HIS CREW VENTURE
TO THE UNSPOILED
ISLAND OF COIBA TO
UNEARTH ITS HAUNTING
SECRETS P
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WHO
IS SALMONI?
Danger is a by-product
of Dave Salmoni's love for
animals. His interest is not in
putting himself in harm's way, it's
in forming a relationship with a wild
animal. "If mine was a job where I did
not have to consider my own mortality
every day, it would be far more fun," says
the avid outdoorsman. Growing up, his
bedroom wall was plastered with posters
of big cats. After studying zoology at
university in Canada, he worked as an
animal trainer, focusing on large cat
training, before travelling with two
captive-bred Bengal tigers to
Africa with TV cameras
in tow.
95
SEPTEMBER 2014
the larger mammals. Some of us have
a lot more intellect and that intellect
sometimes creates a malice. I dont
believe that sharks have that.
THE DANGER IS REAL
When we did the grizzly bear shoot for
Bear Island, youll see me surrounded
by bears; bears coming out of the woods
everywhere, and I imagine everyone
is going to think, Well, there must be
someone with a shotgun somewhere or
there must be a cage for them all to run
in somewhere. Thats not true. Were
doing what we say were doing, and I
believe thats probably one of the bigger
misconceptions [from viewers] only
because I feel like the audiences have
become very TV savvy these days. I think
theyve been duped a few times and now
they expect it. Well, I can tell you that in
Mystery of the Lost Island, we do not try to
dupe anybody. In fact, were so open with
what we do that we did a Making of at
the end just in case you missed it.
WERE ALL JUST ANIMALS
I feel like if I ever run into someone
at work who has a very dominating
personality, I start to think to myself, How
will I deal with a male lion? And if I ever
nd a big powerful female in my life, I
wonder, How would I handle that if I was
dealing with a matriarchal elephant in an
elephant herd? And things like that often
THE CANADIAN
ADVENTURER AND
CONSERVATIONIST
DESCRIBES HIMSELF
AS A TIGER TICKLER,
LION LOVER AND
ADVENTURE ADDICT
ADVENTURE
HANDBOOK
of these islands was chosen specically
because they were in the middle of
nowhere. These animals are doing these
behaviours, and its a mystery because
theres nobody out there to solve them. So
we spent the money, spent the time and
found a way to get out to these islands and
spend long periods of time there.
Its not just a matter of getting to these
places; its about having consistent fresh
water for entire lm crew; its about
having food and feeding these people
as well as having shelters in some of the
most inhospitable climates in the whole
world. And youve got to have people
not only living and surviving which
were sort of used to [watching] on TV
these people also have to wake up in the
morning like myself and smile and go on
camera and try to nd out the answers to
the mystery.
So, logistically, it was the biggest task
Ive ever been a part of. We took planes,
trains, tiny boats, inatable rafts; we were
dropping of things in helicopters. We had
people hiking days and days and days with
an amount of equipment that you dont
believe any human being would be able to
carry. It was one of those journeys where,
while we were doing it, it was so difcult,
we didnt think wed be able to survive it,
and after we did it we were so proud of
what wed accomplished.
ANIMAL REPUTATIONS
Lets picture something like an elephant.
Id say most people would say, An
elephant is the sweetest animal out
there; I love looking into his eyes. Thats
a true statement. However, theyre also
one of the most dangerous animals on
the planet. When theyre upset, they are
really very upset.
The contrast to that are animals like
sharks ; theyve been given a bad rap.
After Jaws, most people would tell you,
Oh, wow. Sharks are so dangerous. How
dare you go swim with sharks. And if
you watch Mystery of the Lost Island, we
do have a place called Shark Island and
I jump in the water. Its probably some
of the most difcult diving in the world,
and I bumped into one of the largest
sharks youd ever nd in the ocean. And
most people would say thats a recipe
for disaster, but I can tell you that if you
watch that sequence, youll just fall in
love with them. The sharks are such a
misunderstood animal because there is
so little aggression in them, unlike maybe
DAVE IN
ALASKA
96
VOLCANO ISLAND, FERNANDINA
Dave ventures to Fernandina island, a
completely protected, uninhabited and
actively volcanic island in the Galapagos
Archipelago (below). Dave tracks down
some of the weirdest and toughest
animals on the planet to nd out how they
survive in this hell on earth. His mission
takes him into freezing waters with rare
marine iguanas and ightless cormorants,
before witnessing lightning-fast snakes on
the hunt, which in turn are being hunted
by eagles. In this do-or-die island, life is
always on a knifes edge.
EPISODE GUIDE
DEVILS ISLAND, COIBA
Unspoiled and unexplored Coiba (below)
is a shining green jewel off the coast of
Panama rich in trees, rare animals and
ora but it is largely ignored by the
locals. But why? In perhaps his darkest
mission yet, Dave journeys into the heart
of Coiba in an attempt to uncover the
secret behind stories of ghosts, torture,
vampires and death that seem to haunt
the island.
MAKING OF DEADLIEST MOMENTS
In this episode, Dave reveals the extreme
lengths to which he and his wildlife teams
went to produce the series. They battled
through many hardships but somehow,
despite the trials of the year-long lming
schedule, Dave manages to retain his
unique sense of humour, and passion for
the animals and islands he is privileged to
witness rsthand. P
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"IT'S A FANTASTIC TIME TO BE A
WILDLIFE FILMAKER", SAYS SALMONI.
"EVERY TIME WERE WATCHING A
DOCUMENTARY, WE WANT TO SEE
ANIMALS IN A WAY THAT WE HAVENT
SEEN THEM BEFORE TRYING TO
FIND WAYS TO SEE ANIMALS FROM A
DIFFERENT ANGLE, IN A DIFFERENT
LIGHT AND IN HIGHER DEFINITION."
97
SEPTEMBER 2014
SHARK ISLAND, RANGIROA
The adventure begins on the South Pacic
island of Rangiroa (below), a secluded
site with a frightening reputation as the
shark capital of the world. Blacktip reef
sharks, tiger sharks, silvertips, grey reef
sharks and great hammerheads; these
top predators are normally found in
small numbers, but here congregate in
incredible numbers.
EPISODE GUIDE
JOIN DAVE SALMONI AS HE EXPLORES THE
UNIQUE ANIMAL ADVENTURES ON THESE
DEADLY ISLANDS
KILLER WHALE ISLAND, FALKLANDS
Dave travels to a remote speck of land in
the wild and stormy South Atlantic. Each
year, thousands of elephant seals, sea
lions and penguins ock to the Falklands
(below) to breed. But they are pursued by
the oceans greatest predator, the killer
whales, who lay siege to the island. But
lately, seals have been disappearing at
greater rates than normal. What else
could be out there preying on them? Dave
is determined to nd out.
GRIZZLY ISLAND, ADMIRALTY
Dave journeys to a harsh, mountainous
island off the coast of Alaska home
to the greatest concentration of grizzly
bears on the planet. The grizzlies could
easily escape the island for more fertile
pickings on the mainland, but choose not
to. Dave sets out to nd out why, and in the
process, is cornered by grizzlies, trapped
inside his tent and amazed by what he
sees on his camera traps.
help get down to the basics of behaviour:
Now, where is this behaviour coming
from? Okay, I understand that. You start to
understand where people are coming from
in their behaviour, and then it guides me in
a way in which I should learn to react.
TIP: DONT HIGH-FIVE SHARKS
Now, if you have no control of your body
and you start waving your hands around
in front of a great white shark, youre
going to lose it. So you have to really do
all kinds of really good core exercises
that will hold your body in a way that,
when bad things are starting to happen,
youre going to have your balance
underwater.
SMART ANIMAL CONSERVATION
I can point to tigers, I can point to
elephants, I can point to lions, I can
point to sharks, and we kind of know
what the problems are and why were
coming into conict. And we also know
some of the things we could be doing to
resolve those conicts, but we havent
as a group got together where the
politicians are sitting with the scientists
and the nancial people with the will
to do it and said, Please give me your
money, please change these laws and
scientists, please action this plan. And
I think thats the one thing that I would
like to see happen more.
TIPS FOR ANIMAL TRAINERS?
Well, my usual big tip is, dont get bitten
that hurts a lot. I would say the animal
training world and the things that you see
me do on television, thats the exciting
part of my job. The majority of my job is
dealing with picking up poop, feeding the
animal, making sure that its taken care of,
and making sure that its happy. Thats a
ITS ALL A MATTER
OF MAKING IT (THE
ANIMAL) CALM,
AND I CAN TALK
TO MOST WITH MY
BODY AND MY BODY
POSTURE. ANIMALS
UNDERSTAND TONE
OF VOICE AND THEY
ALSO UNDERSTAND
BODY POSTURE
ADVENTURE
HANDBOOK
98
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99
SEPTEMBER 2014
PICKING
FAVOURITES
After a year and a half of
filming, surely Salmoni's got a
favourite island. "If I had to choose
one over another, they would be heart-
broken. Theyre like little children, each of
these islands. " But when push comes to
shove, the Alaskan island of grizzly bears
has the edge. " I expected it to be old-hat,
because Im a bear scientist my first
degree was in bear biology and Ive
been to Alaska a zillion times. I expected
that to be me in my comfort zone, but
because they were doing things so
strangely, all of the things that I
expect them not to do, they
were doing."
"THE COOLEST THING
ABOUT THE SHOW WAS THE
REMOTE LOCATIONS. EACH
ONE OF THESE ISLANDS
WAS CHOSEN SPECIFICALLY
BECAUSE THEY WERE IN THE
MIDDLE OF NOWHERE," SAYS
SALMONI, ATOP A PEAK IN
THE GALAPAGOS
RIGHT RANGIROA ISLAND IN
THE SOUTH PACIFIC
lot of hard back-breaking work and not
a lot of hugs and kisses.
THE BEST PREDATOR?
I would say it has to be one of the big
cats. Its going to be a tiger or a lion. I
feel like they represent what I love about
wildlife. I think a lion and a tiger in its
natural essence just represents being free,
being out on its own and doing what it
wants, imposing its will and doing what
it was designed to do. And theres their
beauty and their grace. I just feel like all
the things that I value in a life, they sort
of embody that. So thats why I connect to
them the most, and thats why I feel like
when I see a lion, I think of all the animals
that they live with and vice versa; same
with the tiger. Theyre sort of keystone
agships for me to be the guards of the
natural world.
SHARKS, SHARKS EVERYWHERE
Now, we wont be giving out too much
of each of episode but Ill denitely give
you an example of a mystery. So we found
Shark Island its an example Ive been
using a lot. Shark Island was this oasis;
you know, in the middle of what we would
call an ocean desert where there was no
life anywhere, it was this one atoll that
had the highest concentration of sharks
we could nd anywhere in the world
and thats not normal.
Normally when youre nding high
concentrations of wildlife its because
there are groups and ecosystems all
interacting and supporting each other,
and that wasnt happening.
TRAINING FOR BEAR ATTACKS
For Bear Island wed watch the way in
which a bear is going to attack, and I then
would say, Okay, I need to get that weight
ADVENTURE
HANDBOOK
100
of me and to the side or I need to manage
the teeth because thats whats going to kill
you while I try to retain my balance.
So those are things that well look at;
instead of focusing on endurance, in that
case [my trainer and I are] focusing on ve
minutes of power. Five minutes of making
sure you dont get knocked of your feet,
because that will kill you. Making sure
that your upper body is strong enough
to deect teeth as they come in your
direction, and in other cases, hug yourself
deep enough into its body that you can
get yourself to a stalemate that hopefully
someone can get their pepper spray out,
and get that bear of of you.
WHEN WILL WE START PROTECTING
ANIMALS MORE?
Id like to believe that as time goes on
were going to continue to see shows like
Mystery of the Lost Island and were going
to get a connection back. Were going to
realise that we dont need to dominate
the planet in such a way, and some of
the more wealthy places are going to
reach out and help the less afuent, so
that were not asking a poor farmer to
give up his land and his food in order for
a tiger to survive. I believe that global
consciousness will come around to that.
Now, the pessimist will say that
humanity usually doesnt react until
theres a major problem. So until tigers are
extinct, we wont be able to have too many
long discussions with the government of
India as to how we could put them back.
I would hope that conversation happens
sooner than later. P
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THE FALKLANDS
IF I EVER FIND A
BIG POWERFUL
FEMALE IN MY LIFE,
I WONDER, HOW
WOULD I HANDLE
THAT IF I WAS
DEALING WITH
A MATRIARCHAL
ELEPHANT IN AN
ELEPHANT HERD?
AND THINGS LIKE
THAT OFTEN HELP
GET DOWN TO
THE BASICS OF
BEHAVIOUR
ADVENTURE
HANDBOOK
102
WHAT'S ON
THIS MONTH ON DISCOVERY CHANNEL
Game of Stones
Don Kogen, America's most extreme gem hunter, specialises in unearthing rare stones from the most dangerous and lawless
places on earth, racing the clock to be the rst to each new nd. Each episode of GAME OF STONES features Kogen and his team
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AIRS MONDAY TO THURSDAY AT 7 PM, STARTING SEPTEMBER 1
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and incredible processes of facilitating the elections. Discovery Channel in its exclusive one-hour special REVEALED:
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largest elections in the world the Indian General Election.
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We rarely consider many of the objects that make up the modern world elevators, carpets, helicopters, street lights, and more.
The ordinary and seemingly simple objects that we are surrounded by and perhaps take for granted actually have extraordinary
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group of men for protection and justice. Lebanon Levi is the Amish insider who holds the power and serves as protector of the
community for a price. His team engages in a life outside of Amish and non-Amish community codes as he quietly exerts inuence
and control. Levis brand of order is precise as he seeks to keep outside forces from inltrating. A sneak peek of Discoverys new
series AMISH MAFIA, provides a rst-ever look at the men who protect and maintain peace and order within the community
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AIRS EVERY SUNDAY AT 10 PM STARTING SEPTEMBER 7
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The Big Brain
Theory: Pure
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Channel's THE BIG BRAIN
THEORY: PURE GENIUS is looking
for the next great technological mind
that could change the future.
The Big Brain Theory: Pure Genius is
a competitive series that will feature
a seemingly impossible engineering
challenge to be solved by the
contestants each week. Competitors
will have just 30 minutes to come
up with a solution using their own
intellect to complete the challenge.
Based on logic and design, the expert
panel of judges will determine the
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execute the project.
AIRS EVERY FRIDAY AT 9 PM, STARTING
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WHAT'S ON

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