robably the strangest place an explorer can go,” L. Ron Hubbard declared as of late 1949, “is inside.” He was, of course, alluding to the human mind or what he otherwise described as that terra incognita, “half an inch back of our foreheads.” What is not generally realized, however, and what inevitably leads us to Ron’s final expedition, is the fact that his first formal explanation of this terra incognita, and thus the advent of Dianetics, most appropriately appeared in The Explorers Club Journal.

His reasoning was simple enough: “The Earth’s frontiers are being rapidly gobbled up by the fleet flight of planes, the stars are not yet reached. But there still exists a dark unknown which, if a strange horizon for an adventurer, is nevertheless capable of producing some adventures scarcely rivaled by Livingstone.” Then, too, as he pointed out, the principles of Dianetics were just as applicable to the far-flung explorer as the man on the street and, in fact, many an expedition was known to have failed for want of clear thinking in moments of crises. Thus, and specifically in the name of grand exploration, members and associates of the Explorers Club were actually the first to examine L. Ron Hubbard’s official description of Dianetics.

All essential theory was provided: how human memory is retained and retrieved, how physical pain and unconsciousness suffered through the course of expeditionary work may affect behavior and health, and how the techniques of Dianetics may be used to alleviate such travail. Also included was Dianetics theory pertaining to the selection of expeditionary personnel, and a synopsis of Dianetics procedures for use in the field.

With the founding of Scientology three years later, and what may be described as the first scientific explanation of spiritual matters, Ron's point of comparison grew even sharper:

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