OK, there are currently a few photos on cropcircleconnector.

13 symbols, each with the potential for up to 3 'ribs' each side of a short 'spine'.

The symbols seem to suggest binary code again (like last year's Wilton Windmill formation), but this time the 'ribs' are sometimes in pairs either side of the 'spines', so it's not a case of coding 3 digits per symbol - maybe 6 digits (2 sets of 3) per symbol?

It's hard to know which way to read the symbols, although starting at the head and reading left to right might make sense, which gives, in binary and decimal:

000/101 = 0/5
110/001 = 6/1
111/101 = 7/5
100/001 = 4/1
001/101 = 1/5
110/001 = 6/1
010/100 = 2/4
010/100 = 2/4
010/100 = 2/4
101/101 = 5/5
100/001 = 4/1
110/011 = 6/3
100/100 = 4/4

Anyone make sense of that?

Seeing as I haven't deciphered it as quickly as last year's Wilton Windmill formation, and as it's got to be man-made, and possibly has errors, I'm not going to spend much time on this one!

Maybe this little animation I made will help explain the Wilton Windmill crop circle design.

See it here: http://www.cropcircleconnector.com/2010/...

Each radial line encodes one ASCII character in binary code. Start with the radial line at 11 o'clock and read each line out from the centre (they all start with a zero).

01100101
01011110
00101000
01101000
01101001
00101001
01110000
01101001
00101001
00110001
00111101
00110000

Converting to ASCII, you get:

e^(hi)pi)1=0

This is a suspiciously close approximation to Euler's identity, especially when you see how Google renders the equation in their entry for that last link:

e^{i \pi} + 1 = 0

What d'yall think?

Euler's identity is supposed to be the most beautiful theorem in mathematics. No surprise that it should turn up in a crop circle then!

As ever, the Megalithomania conference, proved to be a high-quality presentation of the latest research into alternative archaeology, archeoastronomy, sacred geography and magical mindscapes. Nothing less than a paradigm-shifting experience.

The weekend conference itself is sandwiched between associated events spanning a whole 6 days - local site tours, a concert and still more talks. No mean feat for organiser Hugh Newman, who had already spent months this year exploring Central America for evidence of pre-Mayan culture (presented in a slideshow on the Sunday).

With speakers ranging from internationally-known names like Paul Devereux, Robert Bauval and Andrew Collins, to lesser-known but no-less dedicated local researchers, the topics and perspectives were wide-ranging and always fascinating.

The highlight for me this year was the delightful story-telling of Robert Bauval, sharing new discoveries hinting at the origins of Egyptian civilization deep in the Egyptian Sahara, as detailed in his forthcoming book Black Genesis.

Michael Tellinger blew everyone's minds with his research into the extensive and ancient archaeological remains of Southern Africa - evidence, he says, of the oldest man-made structures on the planet and the origins of humankind, and Antoine Gigal astonished us with her team's discoveries of pyramids on Mauritius and Sicily.

A double helping of Paul Devereux (looking very professorial these days!), calling for a richer, more deeply-rooted approach to sacred geography and sharing diverse examples of archeoacoustics, was a special treat. I'll definitely be heading out to check the acoustic properties of some of my local sites in the near future.

For me, the opportunity to hear, question, hob-nob and get drunk with such inspirational individuals in the convivial environs of Glastonbury is not to be missed.

Regretfully I skipped the forum at the end of day 2. My brain couldn't take any more and I needed to head home. Perhaps it was a good thing that failed to notice this day-old crop circle on the other side of the road as I drove back past Stonehenge!

Now that the sick 'inventor' of the 'ADE651 Bomb Detector' has been arrested for fraud, and the export of the detectors (to Iraq and Afghanistan only) banned (not before the Iraqi Government spent $85 million/£52.7 million on them, and hundreds of people have been killed by undetected bombs) and his website taken down, the media are using the term 'dowsing rod' in this context with abandon, but is it justified?

Well, it seems the 'inventor' did use the term himself.

I suspect that sceptics will be keen to exploit the association between the claims made for this device, and dowsing in general.

What explanatory mechanism do dowsers use? Does the fact that the 'electronics' in the 'bomb detector cards' is a simple retail security tag mean this was 'fraudulent dowsing', genuine dowsing, plain and simple fraud, or a case of 'woo', as the sceptics would have it?

What do you think?

I'm very sad to report the death of world-renowned author and mystic John Michell, who was suffering from terminal cancer.

John, a huge inspiration to me, and I'm sure to many other Grailers, has been described as something of a national treasure. As the author of The View Over Atlantis, and many more books on traditional science, John was arguably the founder of the modern "earth mysteries" movement.

I last met him at the George and Pilgrim in Glastonbury, during the 2008 Megalithomania conference, when he listened patiently, spliff in hand, as I updated him on my research.

I remember him as an intelligent and kind-hearted gentleman.

The latest issue of Fortean Times (on sale Thursday 30 April) features a major tribute to him and his work.

Here he is in 1993 speaking on 'Fort's Cosmology':

While I'm in a blogging mood, here's something coming up in the next few hours:

Live broadcast from the Now That's Weird Conference in Glastonbury at 9pm-12pm British Standard Time (add an hour to GMT).

Guests include: NICK POPE, PAOLA HARRIS, JJ & DESIREE HURTAK, MALCOLM ROBINSON, ANNIE MACHON, BRIAN ALLAN

Listen here or here. You'll be able to catch the show later in the week on Glastonbury Radio (and probably find it on the 'listen again' page at some point).

Up late the other night in my garden office (engrossed in TDG, of course) I noticed a circular spot of light out of the corner of my eye, near the ceiling. It was just over an inch across. As I watched, it moved up for a second before disappearing.

Once it had gone, my first instinct was to look around for a potential light source, but none was to be found. Then I realised that it would have to have been a very focused beam of light to create such a small spot. I can replicate its size with my LED keyring, by holding it just a couple of inches away from the wall. I was not wearing anything reflective, and had been sitting quite still.

Can't explain it. Spooky. Especially as I was alone at night, down the garden, reading weird stuff!

For those curious about the new Daily Grail icon (designed by yours truly), here's a brief explanation of the design.

It's basically a shield knot (used for protection and warding), in a Celtic style, based on circular geometry.

It invokes the gods of the four corners of the earth and represents the four elements, interrelated and united in the fifth. There's also a Brigit's Cross and swastika visible within the circle.

On another level, it combines the shape of a chalice with a hint of the letters D and G.

Hope you like it - and thanks to the Daily Grail for the inspiration!