Chapter 1119: Chapter 1056: The ry Court Barracks Clockwork Revolution (Part 2)
With the approval of the two bigwigs, Hilof and Horn, Leioton’s "Ether Duality Conjecture" finally got the green light all the way through.
However, since it cannot be directly confirmed at present, it still carries the label of a conjecture.
As for Leioton himself, besides having his honor restored, he was also recommended to the Natural Divine Academy.
But currently, there is continuous debate within the Holy Council for Natural Theology Technology about whether Leioton should be a preparatory academician or a full academician.
However, Hilof has been too busy to manage these disputes and instead focuses her main attention on a small task given by Horn.
Stopping the wheelchair in front of the carved oak table, Hilof runs her fingertips over the freshly printed cover of the publication.
This is a tabloid-sized academic journal and also the first academic journal of the Holy Council for Natural Theology Technology.
As the inaugural issue, the deep green cover is embossed with silver patterns of the Holy Tree.
The words "Journal of Natural Theology" are written in the simplest abbreviated letters, with sharp edges and corners.
Hilof flips through the sample: "If it’s not enough, allocate more gold pounds, and if that’s still insufficient, add more; manpower can be recruited from the windmill grounds."
The Attendant Monk records beside her, the nib scratching on the paper: "Is the publication scheduled monthly?"
"Bimonthly." Hilof shakes her head, "It needs to withstand polish, unlike the ’Scholar’s Paper’ from the windmill ground, which piles up all sorts of miscellaneous theories."
Hilof refers to the academic journal "Scholar’s Paper" established by Quivarin and Lupher in the windmill ground.
Because this journal stands out from the secular publication "Art Showcase", it’s more secular.
In addition to various natural laws and mathematical theories, it would also publish law, art, and commercial theories.
To Hilof, many theories published are not worthy of being featured, at best they are popular science publications.
And on the front page of the "Journal of Natural Theology", there is her handwritten objective: "Only by pursuing the principles of nature can one approach the Holy Father’s Path."
Hilof makes it clear: only pioneering and groundbreaking natural law papers are accepted.
It includes papers and communications on natural theology, ether studies, natural history, engineering, and more, distancing itself from the "down-to-earth" approach of the "Scholar’s Paper".
It typically contains two or three core long papers and a dozen or so short papers and communications, accepting submissions from the entire empire.
"If submissions are accepted from across the empire, how will the paper review work be handled? We can’t have them come to the Holy Alliance themselves, can we?"
Papers often require face-to-face interaction between reviewers and submitters, especially for those that need to be published.
If authenticity cannot be determined, if it can’t be known whether it can be replicated or not, or if it can’t be sure whether it’s plagiarized or forged, the publication would rather not publish it.
Relatively speaking, the Holy Alliance’s territory or more specifically the ry Court Barracks is most convenient.
Because the headquarters of the Holy Council for Theology Technology is located in the ry Court Barracks.
"It’s one way." Hilof does not deny it.
After all, scholars nowadays aren’t poor, and if the paper passes, at most the travel expenses can be reimbursed.
However, this method isn’t suitable for universal application because the empire is truly vast.
Poor home, rich road; going bankrupt just to submit a paper is out of the question.
Hilof thinks for a while: "Let’s do this, have the Saint Father’s Association in the windmill ground establish a branch for the Holy Council.
In addition to recruiting locally, we will also dispatch some rotating scholars there, who will be responsible for reviewing.
With Dawn Island as the boundary, the western part will be handled by the windmill ground Holy Council branch, and the eastern part by the headquarters."
Unlike the past, after the sixth Great Duke meeting, the religious world in the Leia has changed dramatically, though the Falan Kingdom fared well.
In these nine months, Leia has seen five industrial and commercial cities rapidly convert to the Holy Sect, expelling the church’s bishops and Armed Monks.
In the windmill ground, it’s even more pronounced with large numbers of mid to high-level monks and El Merchant Artisans converting, which was unimaginable six months ago.
The spread of the Holy Sect in the windmill ground, within nine months, broke out of the circle of lower-level workers.
Last week, the leader of the Silver Smith Guild in Branded City converted, and the master of the shipyard collectively rebaptized with his apprentices.
Even the grain merchants from Leia started writing "Labor is Prayer" on the opening page of their ledgers.
The number of Saint Father’s Association sub-branches has grown madly from seven nine months ago to more than thirty now.
Undoubtedly, the Saint Father’s Association in the windmill ground remains a rather loose organization.
Compared to the Holy Alliance’s former Salvation Army, the Saint Father’s Association in the windmill ground resembles more of an opposition grand coalition.
Without a truly unified ideology, it uses the Holy Sect merely as a guise to counter the nobility and Falan forces.
Horn once said to Hilof—
At least 30% of the Saint Father’s Association in the windmill ground are Falan factions, and another 20% are Falan spies.
Among the remaining, at least half are on the surrendering side, and another half of which 20% are neutral or opportunistic.
Only half of them can be considered one’s own.
No matter, as long as one realizes this, and doesn’t truly believe in the Alliance’s effectiveness, this massive organization instead is an excellent smokescreen for shielding one’s own actions.
Setting up the Holy Council in the windmill ground is not as risky as one might imagine.
Hilof opens the founding issue of the "Journal of Natural Theology" in her hands, the first paper is the Ether Duality Conjecture sanctioned by His Majesty Saint Sun.
Of course, Leioton will not enjoy this honor alone.
The first sentence of his paper is "Under the leadership of the great His Majesty Saint Sun..."
"This kid knows how to conduct himself," Hilof strokes the paper, "But he isn’t wrong either; this truly was under His Majesty’s leadership."
"Lady Hilof, have you made a selection for the remaining papers?"
"Let’s continue waiting." Hilof takes a sip of the coffee on the table, revealing a rare hint of a smile in front of outsiders, "They will be very enthusiastic about submitting."
As Hilof said, after the news of the launch of the "Journal of Natural Theology" spread, ry Court Barracks scholars began frantically submitting.
Within weeks, new papers flew into the Mechanical Palace like pieces of paper.
They even inadvertently invented the concept of a special issue.
Calik wrote a piece on "The Boundary Errors of the Ether Field in Shattered Dragon Bone," while Melara and Kerben submitted a study on "The Affinity of Shattered Dragon Bone and Fluorite."
The subsequent papers were mostly centered around the emerging ether studies.
After all, everyone knows what this publication means; it’s about turning scholars’ hidden conflicts into overt ones, isn’t it?
The "Journal of Natural Theology" is definitely going to become a battlefield for academic titans to compete for resources.
Whoever publishes more on it, with higher citation frequency and broader range, will receive a higher budget and resources next year, each vying on their own merits.
As for Leioton, as the youngest preparatory academician, the threshold has been almost trodden through.
Dragon Language Alchemy University regrets deeply, knowing that even if he spoke nonsense, they shouldn’t have expelled him.
Otherwise, the author of the "Ether Duality Conjecture," the youngest preparatory academician of the Natural Divine Academy, would have ended up at Dragon Language Alchemy University.
Leioton wasn’t troubled by these disturbances.
He moved his luggage and bed into the new laboratory assigned to him by the Natural Divine Academy.
On the nameplate reads "Preparatory Academician Leioton Wood," directly under Hilof’s jurisdiction.
This title is more prestigious than Leonardo’s "Pope’s Engineering Institute Academician," as the Natural Divine Academy oversees the theoretical research budget across the Holy Alliance.
He immerses himself daily in the laboratory, pondering the "Study on the Properties of the Ether Field," while assisting Leonardo in calibrating the Ethereal Clock.
Indeed, theory and application always evolve hand in hand.
After breakthroughs in fundamental theory, with the duality conjecture as a guide, Leonardo is rapidly perfecting the Ethereal Clock.
As a mechanical genius in the practical field, as long as there isn’t an issue with the principle, he builds things at an impressive speed.
Not to mention, with Hilof’s help, as well as Horn’s terrifying financial support, it’s indispensable.
Finally, in the summer of 1455, Horn received news from Leonardo.
"The prototype of the Ethereal Clock has been designed, and you are invited to provide guidance."
