Richard Neal Schowengerdt: In Memoriam

Richard Neal Schowengerdt, the scientist whose breakthrough ideas are spotlighted in my 2015 book, CHAMELEO, passed away on Christmas Eve morning in 2021 at the age of 91. I announced his death in my 12-28-21 blog post. There have been many times during the past year when I've thought to myself, "I should ask Richard about...." I could no doubt complete that sentence in any number of ways, as Richard had a broad range of interests. Alas, this idle thought is followed by sadness when I quickly realize that communication with him is now (almost) impossible.

This past November, Richard's daughter, Maria, created an ofrenda for her father in honor of Dia de los Muertos. You can see her beautiful and esoteric altar in the photographs below....

 

 

 

Just as Richard's indomitable spirit hovers over every inch of Maria's ofrenda, I find his influence still inhabiting my own work as well. Earlier this year, I published a follow-up to CHAMELEO in the January-February issue of NEXUS MAGAZINE (Vol. 29, No. 1). It's a rather long article entitled "Invisible Predators: Strange Creatures, Secret Weapons, and Shadow Biospheres," in which I examine the history of humanity's interaction with ostensibly invisible entities while acknowledging the technological, back-engineered aspect of such phenomena in recent decades. The article includes several quotes from Richard. You can read a downloadable copy of that article right HERE.

Those of you interested in knowing more about Richard and his unique work might also want to check out another piece entitled "Rosicrucianism, Freemasonry, and Esoteric Science," which I published in the July 2016 issue of NEXUS. Here's the editor's description of the piece: An interview by Robert Guffey. Retired military scientist and engineer Richard Schowengerdt, who was awarded a patent for an electro-optical camouflage system, shares his thoughts on the link between science and mysticism as well as on the cloaking abilities of UFOs. 

If you want to read Richard's obituary, it can be seen on the Dignity Memorial website right HERE.