[MR] Fwd: [Bryn-gwlad] In Nature today - Did Vikings navigate by polarized light?

[Kristen Eisenberg]

What a fascinating article! Thanks for sharing! It sounds like a plausable theory. I like these Nature articles that show up here every now and then. I should probably get that magazine. 

I would be interested in knowing more about these studies they did. For instance, who were the test subjects? Saying "Vikings couldn't tell what direction the sun is by the way a piece of calcite reacts to light because our test subjects couldn't" is not a reasonable assumption. That's like saying "The Polynesians couldn't navigate by looking at the splash patterns of waves on their canoes because nobody else can, either." Nobody else could because nobody else could, if that makes sense. I don't think it's unreasonable to consider that the Vikings developed a talent to help them navigate, using what was available to them, just as the Polynesians did. 

Also, you can too use a polarizer in overcast conditions. You can use a polarizer in any condition where light's hitting it. I wear sunglasses all the time, overcast or no. I know from polarizers. Although even I don't know how to pinpoint light direction using one. 

Unfortunately, I don't think anyone is going to find a piece of calcite in a shipwreck or even a land burial. Calcite dissolves in water. Which is too bad, because it would be really cool to be able to prove this theory. 


Kristen Eisenberg
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