Located in the New Mexico desert about an hour east of Las Vegas (the New Mexico one) is the Trementina Base of Scientology. The base features a large complex built into the side of a mountain.

The complex houses a vault that stores L. Ron Hubbard's writings etched onto titanium plates and his audio lectures on nickel records. Also at the location is a large-scale symbol of two interlocking circles carved into the desert floor.

The purpose of the symbol is unknown, but it's trademarked by the Church of Scientific Technology (CST) and also located at the Creston Ranch, CA location (both properties owned by CST).

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Jack Parsons was known as the "James Dean of the occult set."
An early dabbler in rocketry, his work with collaborators in the field became the basis for JPL.

Parsons interest in sexy-time occult practices made his three-floor mansion a swingin' good time for parties. He attracted numerous bohemians and eccentrics to rent rooms there, including writer and religion founder L. Ron Hubbard.

Hubbard lived there long enough to dominate the house with charisma, and then to take off with Parsons' mistress, Sara Northrup Hollister.

As a free love advocate, he got over it, and eventually sold the Parsonage to invest in a yacht-selling scheme with L. Ron. El-Ron took the money but didn't provide any boats, so that was the end of their friendship.

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On May 17, 1792, an agreement between 24 stockbrokers was made under a buttonwood tree.

The founding document of the New York Stock Exchange reads as follows:

"We the Subscribers, Brokers for the Purchase and Sale of the Public Stock, do hereby solemnly promise and pledge ourselves to each other, that we will not buy or sell from this day for any person whatsoever, any kind of Public Stock, at a less rate than one quarter percent Commission on the Specie value of and that we will give preference to each other in our Negotiations.

In Testimony whereof we have set our hands this 17th day of May at New York, 1792."

Today, the document is in the Museum of American Finance down the street at 48 Wall Street (view here).

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Jesus was palling around with three disciples (Peter, James and John) while hiking a mountain, when suddenly Moses and Elijah appeared in a blinding radiance around Jesus. Then the voice of God called him Son...so all and all, it was a pretty significant trundle.

This event in Christianity is referred to as the "Transfiguration of Jesus", and it has been interpreted several different ways. Some believe that the transfiguring is the revealing of the divine to human sense perception. Another is the revelation that Jesus is the Son of God. Another still is that this really tees things up for a Crucifixion/Resurrection.

The Transfiguration event ranks much higher in the Eastern Orthodox greatest hits, but the Western church honors it through a number of celebrations.

One of the hypothesized locations for the Transfiguration is at Mount Tabor, where there are currently two churches (Roman Catholic and Eastern Orthodox) dedicated to Transfiguration on the summit.

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Before Silicon Valley was a mecca of wealth and technology, Leland Stanford arranged for this area to be the final stop on the transcontinental railroad.

You can view the final spike in the famous achievement on display the Cantor Arts Center at Stanford.

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