Natural Philosophy Alliance - Revision history

ClaudeBot: Flesh out the wiki's progenitor organization: origins in Chappell's AAAS sessions, purpose and pluralism, leadership succession, conferences, publications (Proceedings of the NPA 2004-2013, ~600 papers, newsletter, Directory-Bibliography), Sagnac Award and Chappell Memorial Lecture recipients, notable members, the 2013 split, and the legacy carried by CNPS and this wiki

2026-07-20T13:29:45Z

Flesh out the wiki's progenitor organization: origins in Chappell's AAAS sessions, purpose and pluralism, leadership succession, conferences, publications (Proceedings of the NPA 2004-2013, ~600 papers, newsletter, Directory-Bibliography), Sagnac Award and Chappell Memorial Lecture recipients, notable members, the 2013 split, and the legacy carried by CNPS and this wiki

← Older revision		Revision as of 09:29, 20 July 2026
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	\| abbreviation = NPA		\| abbreviation = NPA
	\| formation = 1994		\| formation = 1994
	\| founders = [[John Chappell\|John E. Chappell Jr.]], Neil E. Munch, and others		\| founders = [[John Chappell\|John E. Chappell Jr.]], [[Neil E Munch\|Neil E. Munch]], and others
	\| founding_location = United States		\| founding_location = United States
	\| dissolved = c. 2014 (effectively defunct)		\| dissolved = c. 2014 (effectively defunct)
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	\| leader_title = First president		\| leader_title = First president
	\| leader_name = [[John Chappell\|John E. Chappell Jr.]] (1994–2002)		\| leader_name = [[John Chappell\|John E. Chappell Jr.]] (1994–2002)
	\| key_people = Francisco Muller; [[Domina Eberle Spencer]] (past presidents)		\| key_people = Francisco Muller; [[Domina Eberle Spencer]] (past presidents); [[Cynthia Kolb Whitney]], [[Greg Volk]], [[David de Hilster]] (proceedings editors)
	\| publication = ''Proceedings of the Natural Philosophy Alliance''; quarterly newsletter		\| publication = ''[[Proceedings of the NPA\|Proceedings of the Natural Philosophy Alliance]]''; quarterly newsletter
	\| successor = [[John Chappell Natural Philosophy Society]]		\| successor = [[John Chappell Natural Philosophy Society]]
	\| website = [http://www.worldnpa.org worldnpa.org]		\| website = [http://www.worldnpa.org worldnpa.org]
	}}		}}

	The '''Natural Philosophy Alliance''' ('''NPA''') was a nonprofit scientific organization founded in 1994 ~~by Dr. [[John Chappell\|John E. Chappell Jr.]], Neil E. Munch~~, and ~~others to create a forum friendly to the critical examination of~~ mainstream physics and cosmology — ~~in particular, criticism of~~ Einstein's [[Special Theory of Relativity]]. ~~Its first president, John Chappell~~ of ~~California~~, ~~organized~~ conferences ~~and debates~~, ~~wrote newsletters~~, and ~~kept the spirit~~ of critical ~~thinking alive through the 1990s and 2000s. At its height the NPA's international membership numbered more than 400 scientists and independent~~ researchers~~, who met to discuss alternative concepts and models in physics at conferences in the United States and abroad~~.		The '''Natural Philosophy Alliance''' ('''NPA''') was a nonprofit scientific organization founded in 1994 to provide an open forum for scientists, engineers and independent researchers who dissent from mainstream physics and cosmology — above all from Einstein's [[Special Theory of Relativity]]. For two decades it was the principal gathering place of the English-speaking dissident-science community, holding annual conferences, publishing proceedings, and maintaining a directory of critical researchers worldwide.

	~~==History==~~		The NPA is the '''direct predecessor of the [[John Chappell Natural Philosophy Society]]''' (CNPS), which was formed by the great majority of its members in 2014 and which maintains this wiki. Much of the material catalogued here — thousands of papers, and the biographies of the researchers who wrote them — descends from the NPA's own records.

	After the death of John Chappell in 2002, the NPA continued under a series of presidents — including Francisco Muller and Dr. [[Domina Eberle Spencer]] — and maintained a core membership of roughly 40 to 60 people who gathered at its annual meetings. The organization published the ''Proceedings of the Natural Philosophy Alliance'' and a regular newsletter, and it fostered close ties with kindred dissident-science journals such as ''Galilean Electrodynamics'' and ''Apeiron''.		==Origins==

	==The ~~2013 split==~~		The NPA grew out of the work of '''Dr. [[John Chappell\|John E. Chappell Jr.]]''' (1933–2002), a historian of science and geographer with a doctorate from the University of Kansas. Before founding the organization, Chappell organized and chaired sessions at annual regional meetings of the '''American Association for the Advancement of Science''' (AAAS) devoted to critical discussion of contemporary physics and cosmology. These sessions attracted scientists from around the world and were recognized at the time — in journals such as ''[[Galilean Electrodynamics]]'' and ''Apeiron'' — as the largest such gatherings ever held in the United States.

	In ~~2013, under new directorship~~, the ~~NPA membership voted overwhelmingly for the president~~ and ~~secretary to step down. Citing the organization's bylaws~~, the ~~directors refused to do so~~. ~~In the dispute that followed, some 97% of the membership left~~ and, ~~in 2014~~, ~~formed~~ a ~~new organization~~, ~~the [[John Chappell Natural Philosophy Society]] (CNPS), named in honor~~ of the ~~NPA's founder~~.		In 1994 Chappell, together with the engineer [[Neil E Munch\|Neil E. Munch]] and others, formalized this activity as the Natural Philosophy Alliance. Chappell served as its first president and director, organizing meetings, writing a quarterly newsletter, and compiling an annual '''Directory-Bibliography''' of NPA members and other critical scientists — an early ancestor of the catalogue this wiki now maintains.

	After the split, the NPA held a single conference in 2014~~, but with~~ almost no remaining ~~members~~ it has since ~~all but~~ ceased to function~~. It~~ remains the nominal owner of the worldnpa.org website.		==Purpose and outlook==

			The NPA's premise was that mainstream physics had come to rest on interpretations that were treated as settled but had never been adequately examined, and that scientists raising such questions were excluded from conventional journals and conferences rather than answered. It therefore offered what those venues did not: a place where relativity, the [[Big Bang]], quantum orthodoxy, the [[Aether\|aether]] and the foundations of gravitation could be challenged and debated openly.

			The organization did not endorse a single alternative theory. Its members advanced widely differing and often mutually incompatible positions — neo-Lorentzian relativity, [[Autodynamics]], [[Electric Universe]] and plasma cosmology, [[Intrinsic redshift\|intrinsic redshift]], [[New Energy\|new-energy]] research, and many others — united by the conviction that these questions remain open.

			==Leadership==

			[[John Chappell\|Chappell]] led the NPA from its founding until his death in 2002. The presidency subsequently passed to '''Francisco Muller''' and then to the mathematician '''Dr. [[Domina Eberle Spencer]]''' of the University of Connecticut, who presented over fifty papers at NPA meetings and remained its president into the 2010s.

			==Conferences==

			The NPA held '''annual conferences''', typically hosted at universities in the United States, with occasional meetings abroad. These were the organization's central activity: several days of presentations, debate and discussion among researchers who had few other opportunities to present such work to an informed audience. Attendance at the annual meetings typically ran between 40 and 60 people, drawn from an international membership that at its height exceeded 400.

			==Publications==

			* '''''[[Proceedings of the NPA\|Proceedings of the Natural Philosophy Alliance]]''''' — the published proceedings of the annual conferences, issued as numbered volumes from '''2004 to 2013''' and produced as print-on-demand books. Editors included [[Cynthia Kolb Whitney]], [[Greg Volk]], [[David de Hilster]] and Nina Sotina. This wiki catalogues roughly '''600 papers''' from the series.
			* '''Quarterly newsletter''' — written for many years by Chappell, carrying news, correspondence and debate among members.
			* '''Directory-Bibliography''' — an annual listing of members and their publications, compiled and distributed by Chappell.

			The NPA also maintained close ties with kindred journals, notably ''[[Galilean Electrodynamics]]'' — long edited by NPA member [[Cynthia Kolb Whitney]] — and ''Apeiron''.

			==Awards==

			The NPA recognized sustained contributions to critical science through two honours documented on this wiki:

			* The '''Sagnac Award''', for lifetime achievement. Recipients included [[Peter Graneau]] (2009), the astronomer [[Halton C Arp]] (2011), and in 2012 both [[Donald E Scott]] and [[Tom Bearden\|Lt. Col. Thomas E. Bearden]].
			* The '''John Chappell Memorial Lecture''' (and Memorial Paper), instituted in Chappell's honour after his death. Lecturers included [[Francisco J. Müller]] (2010, on the Doppler effect in moving astronomic bodies) and [[Wallace Thornhill]] (2011, "Stars in an Electric Universe"), with further lectures in 2012 on cold fusion and in 2013.

			==Notable members==

			Among the many researchers associated with the NPA whose work is catalogued on this wiki are [[Domina Eberle Spencer]], [[Neil E Munch]], [[Peter Graneau]], [[Halton C Arp]], [[Francisco J. Müller]], [[Cynthia Kolb Whitney]], [[Greg Volk]], [[Charles William Lucas]], [[Tom Van Flandern]], [[Ricardo Carezani]], [[Martin Kokus]], [[Steven Bryant]], [[David de Hilster]] and [[Bob de Hilster]].

			==The 2013 split and the founding of the CNPS==

			In 2013, under new directorship, the NPA membership voted overwhelmingly for the president and secretary to step down. Citing the organization's bylaws, the directors refused to do so. In the dispute that followed, some '''97% of the membership left''' and, in 2014, formed a new organization — the [[John Chappell Natural Philosophy Society]] — named in honour of the NPA's founder and explicitly continuing its mission under a governance structure accountable to its members.

			After the split the NPA held a single conference in 2014. With almost no remaining membership it has since ceased to function in any meaningful sense, though it remains the nominal owner of the worldnpa.org website.

			==Legacy==

			The NPA's twenty years of conferences and publications constitute one of the largest sustained bodies of organized dissident scientific work in the English-speaking world. Its proceedings series continues as the ''[[Proceedings of the CNPS]]'' (2015–present), its annual meetings as the CNPS conferences, and its directory of researchers as the catalogue maintained on this wiki — which preserves the papers, books and biographies assembled over the NPA's lifetime.

	==Links==		==Links==

	* [http://www.worldnpa.org www.worldnpa.org] — ~~Official~~ NPA website		* [http://www.worldnpa.org www.worldnpa.org] — the former NPA website
	* [http://www.naturalphilosophy.org www.naturalphilosophy.org] — ~~Website of~~ the [[John Chappell Natural Philosophy Society]], ~~formed by former~~ NPA ~~members~~		* [http://www.naturalphilosophy.org www.naturalphilosophy.org] — the [[John Chappell Natural Philosophy Society]], successor organization

			==See also==

			* [[John Chappell Natural Philosophy Society]]
			* [[John Chappell\|John E. Chappell Jr.]]
			* [[Proceedings of the NPA]]
			* [[Galilean Electrodynamics]]
			* [[Index of Journals]]

	[[Category:Scientific Organization]]		[[Category:Scientific Organization]]

ClaudeBot: Add {{Infobox organization}}; enhance history (founders Chappell/Munch 1994, 400+ members, 2013 split & 2014 CNPS successor); fix 'Eberely Spencer'->Domina Eberle Spencer; add wikilinks & sections (researched)

2026-07-18T21:29:30Z

Add {{Infobox organization}}; enhance history (founders Chappell/Munch 1994, 400+ members, 2013 split & 2014 CNPS successor); fix 'Eberely Spencer'->Domina Eberle Spencer; add wikilinks & sections (researched)

@@ Line 1: / Line 1: @@
-The Natural Philosophy Alliance NPA) was founded in 1994 by Dr. [[John Chappell]] and others in order to create an organization friendly to the idea of criticizing Einstein's [[Special Theory of Relativity]]. The first president being John Chappell of California who organized conferences and debates, wrote newsletters, and kept the spirit of critical thinking alive in the 1990s and 2000s.
+{{Infobox organization
-After the death of John Chappell in 2002, the NPA continued under various presidents including Francisco Muller, and Dr. Eberely Spencer and was able to maintain a membership between 40 and 60 people with annual meetings. In 2013 under new directorship, the NPA members voted overwhelmingly for the president and secretary to step down. Given the bylaws, the new directors refused to step down, and 97% of the membership left and formed a new group called the [[John Chappell Natural Philosophy Society]].
+The '''Natural Philosophy Alliance''' ('''NPA''') was a nonprofit scientific organization founded in 1994 by Dr. [[John Chappell|John E. Chappell Jr.]], Neil E. Munch, and others to create a forum friendly to the critical examination of mainstream physics and cosmology — in particular, criticism of Einstein's [[Special Theory of Relativity]]. Its first president, John Chappell of California, organized conferences and debates, wrote newsletters, and kept the spirit of critical thinking alive through the 1990s and 2000s. At its height the NPA's international membership numbered more than 400 scientists and independent researchers, who met to discuss alternative concepts and models in physics at conferences in the United States and abroad.
-After the split, the NPA did hold one conference in 2014 but with a very small attendance and almost no members, it is all but ceased to function.
+==History==
 ==Links==
-* [http://www.worldnpa.org www.worldnpa.org] - Official website
+* [http://www.worldnpa.org www.worldnpa.org] — Official NPA website
-* [http://www.naturalphilosophy.org www.naturalphilosophy.org] - New official website of former NPA members.
+* [http://www.naturalphilosophy.org www.naturalphilosophy.org] — Website of the [[John Chappell Natural Philosophy Society]], formed by former NPA members
 [[Category:Scientific Organization]]

Admin at 05:49, 29 December 2016

2016-12-29T05:49:09Z

← Older revision		Revision as of 01:49, 29 December 2016
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	* [http://www.worldnpa.org www.worldnpa.org] - Official website		* [http://www.worldnpa.org www.worldnpa.org] - Official website
	* [http://www.naturalphilosophy.org www.naturalphilosophy.org] - New official website of former NPA members.		* [http://www.naturalphilosophy.org www.naturalphilosophy.org] - New official website of former NPA members.

			[[Category:Scientific Organization]]

Admin at 05:40, 29 December 2016

2016-12-29T05:40:43Z

← Older revision		Revision as of 01:40, 29 December 2016
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	==Links==		==Links==

	* [http://www.worldnpa.org] - Official website		* [http://www.worldnpa.org www.worldnpa.org] - Official website
	* [http://www.naturalphilosophy.org] - New official website of former NPA members.		* [http://www.naturalphilosophy.org www.naturalphilosophy.org] - New official website of former NPA members.

Admin: Created page with "The Natural Philosophy Alliance NPA) was founded in 1994 by Dr. John Chappell and others in order to create an organization friendly to the idea of criticizing Einstein's..."

2016-12-29T05:40:15Z

Created page with "The Natural Philosophy Alliance NPA) was founded in 1994 by Dr. John Chappell and others in order to create an organization friendly to the idea of criticizing Einstein's..."

New page

The Natural Philosophy Alliance NPA) was founded in 1994 by Dr. [[John Chappell]] and others in order to create an organization friendly to the idea of criticizing Einstein's [[Special Theory of Relativity]]. The first president being John Chappell of California who organized conferences and debates, wrote newsletters, and kept the spirit of critical thinking alive in the 1990s and 2000s.

After the death of John Chappell in 2002, the NPA continued under various presidents including Francisco Muller, and Dr. Eberely Spencer and was able to maintain a membership between 40 and 60 people with annual meetings. In 2013 under new directorship, the NPA members voted overwhelmingly for the president and secretary to step down. Given the bylaws, the new directors refused to step down, and 97% of the membership left and formed a new group called the [[John Chappell Natural Philosophy Society]].

After the split, the NPA did hold one conference in 2014 but with a very small attendance and almost no members, it is all but ceased to function.

==Links==

* [http://www.worldnpa.org] - Official website
* [http://www.naturalphilosophy.org] - New official website of former NPA members.