Myth, Memory and Data Misuse: The Buried Spitfires of Burma

Myth, Memory and Data Misuse: The Buried Spitfires of Burma Compared to the great scientific debates of our age, archaeological investigations seem relatively benign. However, certain investigations speak to our deepest sense of cultural identity - the result being that fiction is pitched against fact, and the grit of the amateur is played off against the arrogance of the expert. A decade ago, rumours emerged of a lost squadron of Spitfire aircraft buried at a former airbase in Myanmar (Burma). The passionate account of an amateur conflict archaeologist triggered negotiations at the highest level of government, and permission was granted to excavate the aircraft. The account was supported by circumstantial reports, and the only 'hard evidence' was some rather over-embellished subsurface geophysical data. In this talk, Dr Adam Booth (Associate Professor of Applied Geophysics, University of Leeds School of Earth and Environment) dicusses the Burma Spitfires project - including the geophysical investigations he undertook, the symbolism of the Spitfire aircraft, and how conflict archaeology can very much live up to its name. This talk was recorded for Leeds Skeptics in the Pub (https://leedsskeptics.org/) on 7/12/2022, on the approach to the 10th anniversary of the well-reported 2013 Spitfire investigation in Myanmar. Incidentally, for the full story, you can buy the book of the project from all local bookstores! - "The Buried Spitfires of Burma: A ‘Fake’ History 👉 https://g.co/kgs/RJ63Yr"