argentaurum, Vincent Gaddis, and electrical ghosts haunting ATD

[Joseph Tracy]

  Don't know if this is old news to p-listers but...Today I was  
listening to the part of ATD where Merle Rideout is explaining to  
Frank Traverse about Stephen Emmens "transmutation" of silver to  
gold. Emmens sounded real so I googled him and found along with  
period references from the late 1800's, an article by Vincent Gaddis   
http://journal.borderlands.com/1997/americas-amazing-alchemist/  
( made somewhat famous by writing about and inventing the term  
"bermuda triangle", hocum though it doubtless was.)  turns out Gaddis  
ended up living in Garberville Ca,  epicenter of the Humboldt green  
revolution.  I think his articles and books may well have been a  
major source for materials and ideas that appear in ATD. I would be  
surprised if Pynchon didn't find him while he was in Humboldt  before  
writing Vineland.

Here is another  Gaddis article that is equally loaded with ATD  
imagery http://journal.borderlands.com/2010/electrical-ghosts/

Okay, just for added spice, this is the 2nd time writing this email.  
Last time, just as I was about to send, the power went out. Fairly  
rare here, but  a lot of wet snow and rain since yesterday. Damned  
electrical ghosts  spinning their lights out jokes against the day.