John of Montecorvino

 I have received good news from Academia. After over two months' delay, I finally got access to Discussion. The confirmation coincided with presenting my last chapter, John of Montecorvino, to the public. https://www.academia.edu/96931204/John_of_Montecorvino

The paper has triggered replies and enjoyed more than 150 views. I am on the way to realizing my potential in Academia, which will stand around 10 K views. I still have two more chapters for Discussion. I noticed some readers come across my previous papers, from the second to the first book. It is very encouraging. I am beginning to form a community of readers, primarily academics. I wish I also had more readers from the general public since this is my target audience. 

My zoom lecture in the historical-philosophic club about Alexander against Gog-Magog: Part 2 was  successful. I received many compliments and questions. Some listeners wished they had been present at the previous lecture, and I invited them to participate in my next one. I still need to prepare it . All the lectures are recorded by the Institute of Integration and appear on their site. 

I started developing my third project with the working title "The Fright and Thrill of Navigation: Seafaring in the Medieval and the Renaissance Mediterranean." 

I assessed my introduction and changed the title to Prelude: A Tale of Two Watercraft Brands. I took out two items about technology and diet: they will appear in later chapters. There are three topics now: The Galley, The Round Ship, and Comparison and Contrast. I will also attach the Reappraisal. When I finish, I will offer this paper to maritime magazines. 

I began writing chapter 1: Early War Galleys. It will cover 16 items. I described the sections about dimensions, design, and seaworthiness. I am preparing a list of primary sources and want to check my writing against them. 

February 2023 Update

 I still need help with updating articles for Discussions on my Academia page. The support team says  this is a huge issue for their engineering gang to tackle. They have been doing it for almost two months. My exposure to a wider audience went down, though I already have over 9 K views. My last contribution is chapter 28, William of Rubruck, of my second book, "The Enchanting Encounter with the East." https://www.academia.edu/96081693/William_of_Rubruck

I will upload my last chapter in about two weeks and attach a content page. 

I agreed on a new zoom lecture based on Unit IV of my book. Part 2 of the cycle covers the legend of the Iron Gates, proverbially constructed by Alexander of Macedon to repel invaders from beyond the Caucasus. I will elaborate on steppe pastoralists and explain how medieval literati replaced unknown tribes with the familiar horrifying image of Gog-Magog. 

I continue collecting and developing extracts for the third chapter of my project about Late War Galleys. I drafted four main parts: 

a.    The Monster galley: Vettor Fausto’s quinquereme

b.  Rowing a scaloccio

c.     “Galley slaves”

d.    Gallea alla ponentina

    I want to add a few items: Dimensions,    Cost, Life span, Sailing season, Coastal piloting and speed, Water rations, Seaworthiness, Purpose-built galleys, and probably Arsenals. 

I intend to use part of this material for the current chapter and the rest to enrich other sections,

for example, Medieval War Galleys. 

I recently read a fascinating book: James Beresford, The Ancient Sailing Season. (Brill: LEIDEN & BOSTON, 2013). Its relevance to my research comes from climate studies showing remarkable resemblance in weather throughout the last three thousand years. The author's comments on currents, tides, and winds in different areas of the Mediterranean are also  critical. He debunks the myth of the "closed sea" and elaborates on weather patterns in various regions. 

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