Customer Reviews

How to Build a Flying Saucer: And Other Proposals in Speculative Engineerings

5 star:		(12)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

This book should be brought, if for nothing else, then for the chapter entitled, "Beyond Velikovsky". In this treatise, the author clearly explains the theory of relativity and how it relates to gravity. Pawlicki's contention is that gravity is a standing wave structure, as is all matter in the universe. His theories combine relativity and harmonics into somewhat of a unified theory of matter. He builds his case thoroughly, through incremental logical steps that will leave the reader in utter amazement that the establishment just doesn't get these simple concepts! (Or maybe they do, and are suppressing them from the public). At any rate, this book will enhance your understanding of relativity, time travel and harmonics theories, and is a must-read for all budding theorists.

This book is certainly interesting. It is probably regarded as a classic in the perpetual motion machine circles and similar pseudoscience research areas. There is a little truth in everything, and there is some truth in this book, but the speculative element is nearly out of control. The book brings up several points that are interesting and definitely worthy of some checking into and research, but some claims are made that border on preposterous. Soviets developing a secret weapon to cause earthquakes in the US and change the weather? I give it 3 stars because it does mention some areas of physics that are interesting, and Nikola Tesla is definitely worthy of some research, but a few of those stars are for the entertainment value only. The problem with books like this is that people who haven't built a solid enough foundation get sucked in and start believing in impossibilities and wasting time and effort. Not that challenging the impossible is bad, but there are times when you have to face facts. If you have this book, or are thinking of buying it, I'm not going to say that's bad, because it is interesting and if it stimulates interest in legitimate physics, it's worth it. But just beware when you read it, avoid being too credulous.

I have had two copies of this book, and it seems to turn the most honest engineer into a bookkeeper. I have twice loaned out the copy I had, and both times, I lost what I have learned to consider a priceless document. Another friend has sworn he returned it, so I may be the miscreant in that case. Even so, it seems to be gone so I got on A-dot-C to find another. I think I will get 2 this time. It is a book that triggers thought paths never before uused in your mind. Warning! Get your own copy and NEVER LOAN IT OUT.

I have this book. The Title page shows a date I scribbled in at the top of October 28, 1982. Been working on it ever since. Buying another copy now for a friend.

The comments that appear relative to this title from skeptical reviewers are likely from the establishment types, the very types that Pawlicki embarrasses with each flip of the page. Thus, criticism of this title is to be expected. Whenever the establishment thinking is severely challenged, there is bound to be a wailing not unlike the sound of a band of scorched cats.

The prospective purchaser would do well to disregard such nonsense and give this title a spin around the block. Good grief, if you go for a 2nd hand copy, the book is cheaper than the shipping! The chapters. "Beyond Velikovsky" and "Time Travel" are worth their weight in gold. That is, assuming the reader values truth more than tradition.

This little book goes down as one of the most profound discussions I've ever encountered in my 59 years of life. Is Pawlicki right in his assessments; more right than the establishment scientists? Who am I to judge? I have learned, however, that if you try to use your voltmeter to measure current, and the instrument doesn't have an overload protection module, you soon have a burned out test instrument. That is to say-- proving the reality of anything is as much a matter of using the correct instrument as demonstrating your thesis is correct.

If one proceeds along such lines of thinking with this title, I can't imagine the customer not coming away with some benefit. And you'll find yourself going back to this little book many times, and what with the Internet (which didn't even exist when I bought my first copy), it opens up avenues for a great deal of further research.

The book starts with some basic engineering describing how to build such things as Stonehenge using ancient engineering, without pulleys or similar equipment. This is clearly explained and quite plausible. It then moves on to flying saucers. It starts with simple clear principles, and then introduces some clever fallacy to produce a method for building what it calls an inertialess drive. This can be assembled at home, and will behave as described, though the principle it claims to demonstrate is in fact false. It then continues to explain, with blatant falsity, how to produce a faster than light drive with possible time travelling capabilities in your back garden. It ties everything known about UFOs up quite neatly even including a reason for the circle of flashing lights commonly pictured around the edge of the saucer. I found this book delightfully silly, and was left uncertain whether it was meant to be taken seriously or not. In either case it is a beautiful example of using small, logical building blocks to build castles in the air.

Halfway through reading this, it occurred to me that the author (Pawlicki) might actually be writing satire in such technical language that any but the most informed reader would mistake it for real 'speculative physics', when he's really just drawing fun geometric diagrams and describing them authoritatively. The essays are all written in a sort of fun, caustic manner, and he occasionally throws in references to absurd ideas that I can't believe aren't jokes; however, the book IS billed only as his random ideas. Moreover, a lot of his 'stunning logic' is actually fairly broken if you strip it down, and only makes sense if you take a lot of random things for granted.

That said, I HIGHLY RECOMMEND THIS BOOK. I came away from it with a refreshed understanding of the dynamics of wave fields, particularly in relation to relativity and gravity, topics the author breaks down and illustrates clearly (although quite tersely, given what could be said about these subjects, but that's another book). His walk-through of Platonic solids and their relationship to field reality is essential; I was practically shouting "HOLOGRAMS!!! HOLOGRAMS!!!" before I even got to the last essay, where he talks about 'the holographic universe' (a highly valid concept that is still, two decades later, for some reason relegated to 'fringe' science). He references a number of worthy scientists who are also worth looking into (Tesla, Moray, Velikovsky).

In terms of the writing itself, the author should have completely reconstructed his essays into a more cohesive book. There are a lot of concepts simply introduced or used as points of logic with no explanation, or partially explained in a later essay. Pawlicki doesn't really strike me as a writer--many parts of the essays seem muddled, somewhat ambiguous, or just syntactically incorrect, however there are also many portions where a well-informed, critical voice comes through very nicely (mostly in his comments on society/science).

The sheer volume of concepts packed into 148 pages makes for a fun, quick read, something new on every page. (In this way I appreciate his succinct style, I'm sick of reading physics authors who use 3 pages on a metaphor describing the Earth's orbit.) I finished it in 1 night... why not read it? 5 stars because I enjoyed it that much, and I look forward to reading it again. Serious or not, 'How to Build a Flying Saucer' is an intellectual classic of regrettable obscurity.

I was one of the people that "borrowed" this book from a friend at college and never returned it. While people can debate the merits of the science contained in it (there are webpages devoted to proving and debunking this book) the outlook it professes - challenging the status quo of scientific authority - is a great lesson for young and old minds alike!

The section on Velikovsky got me to read not 1 but 3 books by the scientist including his biography. That's the one I'd start with ... so you can see just how the science establishment railroads people who don't stay on the "normal" path. Stargazers and Gravediggers Stargazers and Gravediggers: Memoirs to Worlds in Collision it's called.

The truth is...if someone could do what the author says just by reading the book (time travel, create a floating flying saucer) they'd have done it and revealed it to the world by now. But that doesn't ruin the book because the value of this book is inspiring people to get excited about science.

This book is of incomparable value in adding to your collection of works designed to stimulate imaginative ways of looking at the universe and of freeing one's point of view from conventional thinking. As a springboard to highly imaginative speculation about the nature of physical reality, Tom Pawlicki has journeyed alone to places that are valid and worthwhile, where conventional thinkers rarely go.

Forget about the "plans and ideas about earth-shattering concepts... free unlimited energy... powerless international telecommunications..... how to build a flying saucer and other rad stuff..."

Buy it because it does a great job of leading you to the concept of a three-dimensional standing wave pattern..... The true definition of GRAVITY.

This is an outstanding book. Not so much by the scientific true that it reports, but mostly by the fresh new insight into some matters that scientists have blacklisted from their views of science by sheer prejudice. It is not written with the illiterate reader in mind and it's not a book for everyone. However, if you have some interest in science, you should read this book. Not only it will make you think (which is the primary purpose of any book), but it may lead you to read further on the more controversial matters (namely Velikovsky and Tesla). If you do so, you will find yourself wondering why the whole scientific community made a spectacle of itself by rejecting any scientific approach to refute Velikovsky theories. Instead they all threw out their irracional gut feelings and fears - What is so appaling in Velikovsy's work that can make all "scientists" act this way? Decide for yourself - Read on and have an opinion! That's what's it's all about!