LOSTcasts 23: Lockdown

In a matter of seconds, the mythology of the island has erupted with the revelation of the blast door map. In this edition, we spend a good 50 minutes discussing that map and theorizing along the way (in as organized a fashion as we can muster). And from the looks of it, this map will be an enduring topic for some time to come.

We also talk about Locke's backstory, the poker game and Henry Gale.

Get ready, this podcast runs close to 2 hours long.

Download podcast #23 here
Update: The quality of this audio file has been increased since its original posting.

Lost links:
Map 01
Map 02
Map 03
Is this Henry Gale?
Hoax, or Dharma film?
Hatch connections (Hat tip to Danielle for this link)
Lostpedia

The outro music is Eddie Harris' "Compared to what?" (Locke's favorite hatch exercise music). Be sure to listen to the whole song and catch the lyrics. It's a nice sentiment given the nature of the show.

Comments

[rubycalaber]

Maybe they just cant afford extras and used Michael Emerson for the scene?

Also watch out for any April fools.

[Mirko]

I haven't listened to the podcast yet, but I just want to say thanks for putting it out so early. Great work!

[Cihan]

Just started listening to the podcast, the sound quality seems kinda bad, or is it just me?

Thanks for the early release though, and 2 hours!

*listens*

[Cihan]

1] Maybe Henry Gale let the timer go as far as it could so he could digest the hieroglyphics, because he can actually read them and needs the info they contain.

2] People have wondered what Locke will do with this information of the map, and my first reaction was "nothing" because as we know by now the characters rarely act on the crazy information they receive (but they do communicate with each other, contrary to popular opinion; the writer's are too good to bore us with expositional dialogue), for example Locke didnt really do anything after the hieroglyphics appeared. But I think seeing that big fat question mark sorrounded by the stations might prompt him to have a new purpose in life and try to find that location. But maybe not (especially with his busted leg).

3] How do you guys think Lost is going down with casual viewers? I'm talking about people who love the show just as much as we do, but they just watch it on TV and dont go obsessively deep like us on the Net? When Locke sees that map, what are casual viewers supposed to think? They dont see all the details that we see. What about casual viewers who watch this show on DVD many years from now? I just hope the show doesnt use the Net as a crutch to tell its story, which it honestly appears like is happening these days. I love the interactivity and the clues, but I dont like the thought of fans (now and in the future) having to visit a bunch of sites to understand wtf is going on in the show. I regularly compare Lost to the Matrix trilogy, and the trilogy walked the line pretty well, it also had a Net 'game' but it wasnt essential to understanding the show, but the Animatrix (containing integral side stories) was very important and was eventually bundled with the ultimate boxset, but how do you bundle all this Net stuff with future Lost boxsets? I guess you could have a CD-Rom or dual DVD... but anyway, just some thoughts of mine.

Great podcast guys, indepth, fanatically obsessive, serious and funny, keep it up!

[SnakeGriffin]

Thanks lads. Great podcast. Look forward to this as much as i do new episodes of Lost

[Scott]

Here I am ready to paint myself, thinking... "I wish I had a giant podcast to listen to all day... but surely this won't be up until sunday" - Thanks for the early release & the extra minutes - I stand corrected!!!

[Scott]

ummm, "Paint My House" is what I meant...

[Billy, CA]

Hey guys, enjoying the podcast. I just thought it was important to note that the dates below the Swan hatch were 4.08.00, 8.15.01, and 1.06.03, not 06. You can tell it's a three because the numbers are listed below the swan hatch as well, and the 3 in 23 looks identical to that number.

[Blinder]

Good catch Billy, thanks for the correction.

And as for the audio quality of this podcast I'm not sure what's different besides the fact that we recorded it in a very small room and we boosted the record audio so we could sit back off the mic.

[Kris]

On your podcast and on the forums, a lot of people are focusing on the fact that two people were writing on the map, and that one would leave while the other would stay. What if Desmond was doing this alone and this is all HE could find in the 108 minutes he had between...

Just a thought

[matt beale]

2hrs! I knew this wouldn't be a short cast - nice one! thanks for the early Saturday surprise.... Longest cast - quickest edition!

[crapjohnson]

I hope you guys don't seriously consider that the video is anything other than an April Fool's joke. At the end I was expecting her to say "Thank you, namaste, and April Fool's."

[Blinder]

Well I'll tell you Crap J, I never thought it was an real dharma video, but I do think it could very likely be an actual promotion for some upcoming developments on the Lost realted websites.

[A]

That guy is deffinetly "HENRY gAIL" good work if we find out it is :):):)

[David]

Nice podcast, you guys handled the seemingly impossible task of analysing the map very well!!

Oh, and just for everyone who isn't aware, the end of season 2 schedule goes like this (I've left off titles in case of spoilers):

e18: April 5
e19: April 12
e20: May 3
e21: May 10
e22: May 17
finale: May 24

[VIKKI]

Thanks for this weeks great podcast! you guys did a great job of explaining all the information on the wall map. It seems like alot of research went into doing that. Again thanks.

[Kai]

Hey guys. Been listening to the show for a couple weeks, love it. By far the most intelligent Lost Podcast. Regarding your Apollo theory, I posted an argument for it at the Lost-TV Forum some time ago. And after the 'Lockdown' episode and the whole Magnus Hanso thing, this Apollo theory is panning out to include a son, as the mythology mentions. The thing I find strange is that no one
(except me?) seems to be acknowledging:

The constellation Orion actually represents the Celestial Equator, whereas the mythology is... well, support for the scientific explanations. There are certainly water-related incidences of what I'm calling our 'Equator symbol' (shark and the water bottle). I think it's a nod from the writers towards Orion's origins being of or around water.

For those that haven't heard this theory:
Crater > Goblet
Sagittarius > Archer/Arrow
Cygnus > Swan
Ophiuchus > Serpent
Corvus > Crow
Orion > Equator

[Marc]

Excelent podcast guys. You guys are the most intellectual, and waste no time on stupid stuff. Straight to the point, no recaps. Excellent.

I love the music you put on the end, always related to the show.

One request I have is about audio quality, the podcast sounds like it was recorded over a telephone.

It would not hurt upping the bitrate a little, 16kb mp3 is horrible.

Another nice feature would be the use of AAC files, (iTunes, Garage Band), they allow you to put pictures, use Chapters (skip ahead on spoiler sections for example). Also AAC has better quality/bitrate than MP3.

An AAC file at 96kbps sounds excellent, as well as not consuming that much mb's.

On the show, remember 2x01, Desmond touches a few switches in the little console when he hears the explosion. Maybe there are switches there to bring down the doors, lights, etc.

[The Andrew]

Awesome cast this week dudes....you had alot of ground to cover and did it well. This maybe me been a total douche but i really thought those bad dudes who where looking for lockes dad where gonna break lockes legs or something along those lines.
Stay lost fools x

[blinder]

I'm upgrading the audio quality now and then I'll upload that file to the feed for those that have yet to listen. I guess this is what happens when you upload the podcast at 2am, you don't hit all the right checkboxes.

[miharu]

The audio quality sounds quite interesting on my Zen Micro - as if time has slowed down, heh.

[ruwhour]

pre-face - i felt i should note this is a somewhat long post and has no direct links to the mysteries of the show. it's more a statement about this "experience" that "we" (if you're reading this now, you are a part of "we") are all a part of.

SO... as inspired by Cihan's comment about the web & 'Lost':

when i first began to linger upon the digital world of lost, i began to think to myself, "how might one link television with the internet in such a way that the two mediums create a single entertainment experience?" well, i'm still working on that. yet, the thing is, i don't believe such a merger has occurred yet.

thus, i'd say that all this internet related information really does have nothing to do with the tv aired episodes. that is to say, you can very easily watch the show and enjoy it as a casual viewer without ever going on the internet (nor do you need to own a tivo, nor buy the episodes off itunes, nor is any other auxiliary sort of technology required.)

specifically, i can think of only 1 actual show event that even links to any 'official' information released on the web: the hanso quote by zeke. and, even then, it's not as if you have to know who said such in order to enjoy or experience the show.

yes, everything that surrounds this show adds to our own personal experience of it (and we can all rest assured that many a show, in years to come, is going to try and re-create this sort of experience). but, in the end, it's not as if it's "must know" information. even the proposed mythological building experience that the all new hanso web site is supposed to provide us is not going to be required reading.

like it or not, tv is about money and to alienate your viewers via the inclusion of a required internet experience would just be a recipe for disaster. the lost experience that we're all a part of is experienced by but a fraction of the show's audience. and, even a rabid and loyal fan base (like us) cannot keep a show on the air, e.g. farscape or firefly. yes, such fan support can produce a single movie or a few final episodes, but in the end, it's "game over, man." (of course, there's always the case of family guy.) also, i don't know the numbers, but while 'we' live with the internet day in and day out, there are plenty of tv viewers that still don't know what it is and think that al gore actually did invent it.

one day, (like i said, i wish i knew how, i'd be on my way to becoming a rich man) we'll get a true taste of an entertainment experience that intertwines various mediums in such a manner that it is all relevant and necessary, but that day is yet to come.

until then, stay lost and enjoy the ride.

p.s. i honestly think that what we are experiencing is a unique thing. if only in that those that aren't part of it now, won't be able to be part of it later via DVDs or re-runs or whatever. it'll be too late. just like with any time specific form of entertainment, it's now or never. and, actually, when the "medium merger" occurs, in whatever form it occurs in, the uniqueness of what we are experiencing now will be lost (pardon any pun) because all that is a part of this new sort of "show" will be pre-packaged (so to speak) and thus infinitely repeatable outside of any specific context.

[poisonpeacock]

Hi guys. Love the podcast.
Nice handling of the map. Just one quick comment though.
The computer vision thing seems a bit of a stretch. Perhaps, this may be a better hypothesis.
CV is a commonly used abbreviation when speaking about nuclear energy. Perhaps CV is containment vessel.
Also are there any theories about where the electrical power on the island comes from. Perhaps the incident has something to do with a nuclear accident or some other type of energy accident.
Keep up the great insights and stay lost.

[sam]

ok, so I was just watching this episode for the 100th time or so, and, for some reason, I REALLY don't like/trust Locke. I just get that feeling from him that he is not what he seems. I'm probably not right about any of this, but I really don't like/trust him.

[Cameron]

Excellent podcasting once again! Great to hear Matt Jones, but we sure missed John's input and his signature 'Welcome to LOSTcasts!' intro.

Re the latin - I can confirm that much of the latin is legal latin. One or two of the phrases are close approximations of common law latin maxims that I learned in law school in Australia. For obvious reasons, the one about the mouse is transposed to say 'rat'...(just kidding).

Final thought - what is Henry Gale looking up at in the last few seconds of the episode? He does a very deliberate shift of his eyes up and to his right toward something.

[Cameron]

Sorry that should refer to what is 'not-Henry-Gale' looking up at.

[Emissary]

Great job guys, thanks.

Just wanted to point out a possible mistake with your map analysis - on the right side about halfway down you said "Interference might also prevent location from use as lightning station." I believe it says "listening station," which would make more sense.

[Mirko]

I think the audio quality was decent enough for spoken word, the bad quality was only noticeable when music played.

I'll have to disagree with Marc about using AAC simply because not everybody owns an iPod (or uses iTunes), and most other portable players don't support AAC. MP3 is a good, open format that everybody is able to play.

I own an iPod, but I still encode all my music in MP3 because I might switch someday. The only tangible benefit of AAC for me is the ability to create bookmarkable files, for example for use in audiobooks.

And I agree with Emissary, it's definitely listening, not lightning.

[Carl]

One thing that was driving me nuts about the podcast, it sounded to be like you were saying "CEREBUS" was the name of the smoke monster. Isn't it spelled and said "CERBERUS"?

[Laura]

Wow! This is one podcast I am going to listen to over and over again. You guys have packed so much knowledge, insights and speculations into this podcast, that I am in total awe. There are so many small parts that I want to take apart and explore further.

You said that this map has shown us more information than anything else in LOST. I agree but carry it further ... This podcast is THE GUIDE to interpreting this information. I do hope you will have a "map episode" in the near future - perhaps during the April hiatus.

Thanks for all this brain food. My brain is getting the workout of its life .

[Carl]

Carl,
You're right on that Carl. It is "Cerberus" not "Cerebus". And I agree it is "listening" station (that was a bad note on the map I was reading). But I swear I'm mildly dislexic. Nevertheless, I am holding my ground (for now) on the CV standing for computer vision.

[matthew]

i was think about the CV from the map and how you guys said it was computer vision. i think the CV's are roman numerals. on the map there is CVI which is 106, CVII, which is 107, and others but most importantly there is CVIII which is 108.

[mikecoyote]

Just another take on the "Deteritorialization" of polar bears on the map-large predators like bears usually need lots of space (territory) for finding prey, so they could be working to fit more bears in a smaller space (the island) by changing their territorial behavoir. Kind of like a mini Noah's ark.

[Cihan]

I'm beginning to think there wasnt an air drop. Sometimes the simplest answer is the correct one. The parachutes are there to just mess with the lostie's minds, just like the 'theatrical' costumes 'Zeke's gang wear. We all know that if there was an airdrop someone would have seen or heard a plane, because it would have been flying low. Far as we can tell from this episode alone, nobody heard or saw a plane, and providing nobody mentions it in the next episode, I think there wasnt one. (until we find out there really was an airdrop by some super cool silent plane or something)

Whole lot of mindgames going on...

[hbbeez]

I dont know if anyone has brought this up yet, but I want everyone to credit me when it actually happens ... Sun's baby is charlie's ... when he hit her over the head, he was high on drugs and ended up raping her while she was asleep ... It's Charlie's BABY I'm telling you Jin is still steril ... and sorry I know this is pertaining the episode two weeks ago, but i have to get my credit

[Raz Minder]

As I posted in the other comment section, airdrops from high-altitudes are more than possible during this era of technology. I’m not sure if there are any stealth-capable cargo planes, but in the Lost world, you could grant them some poetic license if it were the case.

More likely, though, it was a high-altitude drop from up to 25,000 feet in the middle of the night. The parachute used is some type of GPS-guided cargo parachute - which exist and are employed by the military today.

That said, I like your thinking, but the food has to come from somewhere. Since I doubt there is a macaroni and cheese production hatch elsewhere on the island, the supplies must have came from the “outside” world. Via plane makes the most sense, unless they used a boat, but I think the simplest answer is an airlift.

[BLinder]

Sorry about the constant mispronounciation of cerberus in the cast. It's not (sir-a-bus) it's (sir-bir-us).

[cal]

Hi Guys,

Something is extremely fishy about this discovery of the 'real' Henry Gale.

If you were the 'imposter' Henry Gale and had found the wallet of the 'real' Henry Gale and assumed his identity, why put the wallet back in the body of the deceased. It only increases the chances of you getting sprung.

Y'know what I think- that he is being setup to divert attention away another insider who is gathering information. My bet is that it is Libby.

[Andrew]

Great work guys! And it was good to hear Matt again.

[Dwayne Wade]

Henry DIDN'T press the button!

For those of you still debating about whether Henry pushed the button, the debate is over. To answer this question, go back and listen carefully to how Henry explained the timeline of what he did to get from the Food Storage vent to the computer and back:

Locke: What did you do to make the doors go up?

Henry: I did what you told me to. I punched in the code and I pressed the execute button, but nothing happened other than the clock flipping back. I was just climbing back into the vent when the lights went out. 10 seconds later the doors went up.

.....Hmm, very interesting. Now go back and watch the video and listen to the sounds in the seconds before the lights actually go out in the hatch. Here is what you will find, IN THIS ORDER:

-Siren (indicating final seconds ticking off the clock)
-Sound of the hieroglyphic symbols flipping (not to be confused with the sound of the numbers flipping back to 108, because this sound was followed shortly by the generator sound we heard last time when the clock ran out)
-Locke yells out Henry's name one more time, then a second or two later the lights go out at 35:42 mins into the show (generator sound still going = code not entered yet = Henry is lying about his timeline).
-Then, a few more seconds pass, the sounds stop and the clock winds (possibly indicating that the hieroglyphics finished aligning and may have run back to 108 before the main power went out).
-Blacklight (backup power?) comes on revealing the map (time passes)
-Light come back on at 36:23 mins into the show (indicating "about" 40 seconds that the lights were out).
-Doors go up seconds later
-Then Locke calls for Henry as he drags himself into the other room (notice that the clock flips to 107, indicating that exactly 1 min has passed since the numbers flipped back and the clock began again. Now we can't be sure if the clock was moving while the lights were out, but it doesn't add a lot of credibility to Henry's story that he (1)pushed the button,(2)the numbers flipped back,(3)got back in the vent,(4)the lights went out,(5)crawled back through the vent,(6)and found Locke on the floor in just over 1min time.

Got to get back to practice. Shaq is a lazy bum. Peace

[evilgus]

I can't believe you guys had never heard of Cerberus before.

Also, could someone point out the link between Dutch colonialisation and Alvar Hanso? Unless Americans consider Holland and Denmark to be the same country I can't see it.

[blinder]

Sure we've heard of Cerberus, we just pronounced it wrong in the cast.

I can't speak for Americans in general, but I definetely don't see Holland and Denmark as being the same country. At least it wasn't when I studied in Kobenhavn a decade ago. I think maybe Matt forgot Alvar's from Denmark and not Holland.

But that gets me thinking: Just because there were slaves on the ship doesn't mean it was in the slave trade. The whole Magnus Hanso thing could mean just about anything. I do think Matt's idea that Magnus was brought to the island on the Black Rock is interesting and a worthwhile speculation for now. The idea that the Hanso name and this island goes back that far is very cool, still doesn't make it true, but anyway.

[penners14]

This podcast had a discussion about the two groups of others and how Goodwin's group seemed to be more like Rousseau as they are in harmony with nature etc. and how Zeke's group was more like John Locke with science.
You then continued on to say that the character Locke was more with Goodwin's group and Jack was more with John Locke's group.
However, if you look at each Jack's and Locke's actions, you can see that Jack actually seems to be more with a social contract and group harmony. He tries to stop Michael. In season 1, he wants everyone to move to the caves in one gorup, not to split up. Locke seems to favor indivdual rights and lets Michael go on his own and doesn't like anyone telling him what to do or not do.
Anyways, just a thought.

[Cameron]

I'm on board with a theory that the island has been a strange place for a long, long time - but the 'Black Rock' is a very British name for a ship. I don't think it could be a Danish (or even Dutch) ship? Wouldn't a ship carrying a latter day Hanso be called something else?

Evilgus - until you make your own podcast and run it for 20+ episodes and counting, come on and cut the guys a bit of slack already! Being from Australia, I could give you a list at least 10 serious factual errors the producers made for each Australian back story they have aired. And don't get me started on those damn accents! But hey, no one's perfect - not even with a multi million dollar production budget it seems.

Surely the fun of this is in people just getting stuff out there for others to enjoy, debate and think about between episodes, whether it is 100% perfect or not.

[Cameron]

There - even I can't get it right! I meant 'former day' Hanso.

Stay lost.

[Conrad from Pennsylvania]

My guess, from reading spoilers, is that in an upcoming episode Jack and Kate go to trade in "Henry Gale" for either Walt or Michael. Hopefully they will be traveling towards Mt. Vesuvius, remember what Sawyer said right before they ran into the "others" about "climbing Mt. Vesuvius". I wonder if they were walking up the "?" part of the map which is something like a crater or old volcano.
peace,
Conrad from Pennsylvania

[Nadia]

One thing that you guys said made me think - In order for the map to be seen in the black light, you mentioned that it could have been drawn with bleach or woolite. Maybe it wasn't drawn in that way - maybe it was erased with bleach, and due to the etching into the doors, renmants of the map were left behind in the grooves, that are ultimately visible under the black light.

This works slightly better than the idea that someone wrote the entire thing during the black light because the black light wasn't on for very long.

I'm imagining the scenario went something like this: perhaps, the button-pusher was unaware that his partner was plotting out the island, and when he discovered it, he attempted to stop him, and scrubbed away the map using some bleach.

I'd love to hear what people think of this theory!!

[Mark B]

Long (!!!) podcast with lots of good info. A summer podcast just on the map would be good.

Some things I thought of:
I wonder how much of the map Locke was able to actually see and digest and how will he get to see it again -- he looked somewhat awe struck and may not be able to remember that much. I think he won't tell he saw it(cause no one on the island ever tells) and he won't be able to remember that much, can't think how he'll get to see it again so it maybe that he has some vague idea that there are more hatches out there and that's about it.
Secondly for someone(s) to have written that much the doors must have been down for quite sometime (did they know how to get them down) or a large number of short times. Guess they explain this by the four (?) month food drops but the door was down for less than 10 mins at a go.
One thing I thought about the map was that near the bottom directly below the SWAN station --it says "Site of HG Delegation Inspection" Could HG stand for Henry Gale ? Is the real Henry Gale some inspector high up from Dharma/Hanso ? Is 'Henry Gale' just a pseudonym for all inspectors from Dharma so that the person in the hatch does not know their real name. Perhaps the 'real' Henry Gale is a fake as well. The delegation could siimply be Zeke et al tagging along to make it seem more real.

But then given my hiostory of Lost speculation failure -- as you said in the podcast HG could stand of Hanso Group.

Like the idea of trading Gale for Micheal/Walt or perhaps Cindy or the kids that were taken.

Though as someonme else said how dumb do the Others have to be to bury the real Henry Gales wallet with him.

[Will]

Hey guys. First off, just want to say I love the show. I think you guys may be over analyzing the whole Goodwin others vs. Zeke others situation. I believe we have been given enough clues to assume that these two groups are one in the same. Goodwin's group were clothed in rags and tatters and barefoot, however along with the beard and hat Kate finds in Maternity Leave, one of the lockers contain tatered clothes. The only true difference between these groups, I believe is that Zeke's others were cataloging the fuselage group while goodwin's others were cataloging the tail section group. Notice that each group mentions making a list of the survivors. Ethan and Goodwin both refer to thier respective groups as "good people." These clues point to them being in the same group. I really think this has to be the case, even though through out this season, one of my pet theories have been the clean vs dirty others. I would not totally abandon the Degroot others vs the Hanso others however. There could easily be a group on the Island that has not yet revealed itself.

[Cihan]

ruwhour: thanks for your thoughts.

Raz Minder: good point about high-altitude planes, I'd dismissed them but hadnt thought about GPS-guided drops.

[Winterwolf]

In the show you ask what RVS might be.
I found this link and it sounds like it might relevant.
http://www.rockware.com/catalog/pages/rvs.html

[Cihan]

A listener to Jay & Jay podcast mentioned that the lockdown reminded him of what they do on Big Brother, when bringing in new things to the house, they bring all the people into a specific area and lock them away from the rest of the house for the procedure, and I think this is a very shrewd observation considering this show was thought up to be a Survivor type reality show... We should never forget this and always remember that it could yet still be some type of reality show, as cheesy as that sounds. More David Fincher's 'The Game' than the UK's channel 4 Big Brother though, what with the completely freaky stuff and deaths happening along the way.

Also: New official podcast is up!

[Cameron]

Yeah, re the official podcast for this week. Well let's just say that that's 8Mb of bandwith I'll never get back.

[Mark B]

Official podcast was very poor this week and very short.

Interview with Matthew Fox included the excitement of his favourite bands including some new band from Austin -- Black Angels ??? (watch their sales sky rocket). One thing I learnt was that the Jack killed scene from the pilot episode was never filmed -- I thought it was and it was in the test showing that they decided based on feedback not kill him off.

Damon and Carlton acted like they knew nothing about Lockdown at all couldn't even name the five big things that happened claiming they didn't even know about the 'big five events' until the ad aired -- yet they wrote the episode !! The p*&s taking of the Latvian was in very bad taste or was just a very bad joke.

The more I listen to the official podcast the more I think it's something they have to do rather than want to. At least they had an excuse of writing the season finale.

[Matt Jones]

I know my Holland from my Denmark, I just brain farted and thought Alvar Hanso was Dutch. My bad. Ignore the slave trade and colonization part of my theory. However, I still think Magnus is the ancestor of Alvar who discovered the island.

[Caleb Farley]

Hm.. an idea I just had about why the blast doors shut, and why Desmond "shot up" when we first saw him. The inside of the hatch door said "QUARANTINE". Maybe the blast doors shut because a door is opened to the outside world when they go outside to get the supply drop. Without the blast doors, the illness could get inside to whoever is still in the hatch. They use the "medicine" against whatever illness is outside once they make it inside.

[Deckard26354]

I haven't seen anybody mention a connection between Bernard, who was looking for a pearl for his wife Rose in The Whole Truth episode, and the blast door map notation "The Pearl". Is this a coincidence? I think not.

[symbha]

Just a few random comments on recent activities... I'm sure someone has pointed this out before, but just in case:

* Could the 'event' be related to the illness? It may of course be nothing, but it's interesting to me that the latin at the swan site talks about wrath of god being slow, and also the quarantine markings.

* The map detail I read showed the last date as 2003, not 2006 as the podcast mentioned. Not sure, the original is hard to read, but the number looks different from the 6 on the map, and seems more likely. Just a thought.

*) I'm inclined to think that Sun's baby is in fact Jin's. Her character is as trustworthy as it comes (even considering her deception to her husband.) I tend to think Jin has been 'healed' by the island in the same way that Locke has.

*) Going all the way back to the plane crash. It is not possible to survive a plane crash from 30,000 feet without a parachute. Based on the fact that the we are told there is a logical explanation for everything on the island, it seems reasonable to approach that incident as, what on the island allows people to survive such a crash... or, as I've heard suggested, it was faked for the purposes of DIHG. I'm not sure there is apparatus on the island to bring down airlines. Maybe obsessive, but this question to me is HUGE... how do so many people survive such a ridiculous feat?

Love your work... (keep Matt.)

[Matt Jones]

Caleb,

Very plausible explanation.

Deckard,

Nice catch. I saw the pearl notation on the map. I knew I had heard a pearl reference on the show. I forgot about Bernard's pearl hunt. Don't know what the conection could be, but it's something.

symbha,

Thanks. I too think the baby is Jin's, but I also think Sun has a real reason to belive that it might not be.

[Conrad from Pennsylvania]

This past episode was the first time Kate has seen or even heard of Henry Gale. They didn't play upon that fact too much.

[cal]

I've just watched the episode again and something else strikes me as strange.
When Helen is reading the obituraries (in the flashback) she looks startled and asks Locke what the name of his father is. We know that Locke's father (Anthony Cooper) has a different surname to Locke, so if Helen had no idea what Locke's father's name is, how does she know that the person mentioned in the obiturary could be Locke's father.

Hopefully that hasn't come out too jumbled.

I'm wondering if Helen knows exactly who Locke's father is and is an integral part of Locke being conned by his father, yet again.

[Sigillum Dei Hemeth]

Alright Dr. Jones, what do you think about this theory.

First before I begin, read this that I got off the internet.

“Nanocomputers are small enough that several hundred of them could fit inside the space of a biological cell. Medical nanites could patrol your body, and armed with knowledge of your DNA, repel any foriegn invaders by forming an artificial immune system. The common cold would no longer exist, nor would threats of any biological or viral infection. Biological warfare would then cease to be a threat, also." (Like the Virus on the island?)

"These nanites, composed of smart materials, could take over from the plastic surgeons and people would be able to remake their bodies, even change their sex if that was what they wanted to do. There would be no pain, no bruises, and the results would be overnight. Additionally, imagine your body and bones woven with invisible diamond fabric. This body "reinforcement" could increase your tolerance to "G" forces, enable you to fall from a 10 story building and walk away, replace the oxygen in your blood in case of fire or chemical spill, and allow you to walk away from normally fatal accidents ." (like airplane crashes?)

Life consists of molecular machines controlled by a program (DNA). Aging is a disease and is the real number one killer of humans. With the new genetic therapies it is hoped that the aging process can be reversed within the next 12 to 20 years. With medical nanites, we can not only extend our lives but stop completely the aging process.”

If you ask me, looking over the map a few 100 times, I am inclined to think that “Possible catastrophic malfunction of Cerberus system,” near the medical hatch of course refers to the release of the “virus”. However I become less and less convinced that the “Virus” is a biological virus, and more and more convinced that it is mechanical one. I know people have talked about Smart dust (google or wikipedia) as the source of the Black smoke, but what if Cerberus was some kind of life extension program. I mean If you think Cerberus, the guardian to the underworld, is the perfect name for such a program. What If this technology, this Cerberus, went wrong and became a deadly virus. Think what Nanites could do to the human body; the out come would be disastrous.

Hence on the map “the medicine is worse then the disease”

So what if the button, placed in the swan hatch after the experiment, was some kind of protection agents the Nanites? Like if no one is there to push the button, a large magnetic force field sweeps across the island and kills all the Nano technology.
Things to think about:

What if Mr. Hanso was looking for a way to cheat death; so far we've heard about gene manipulation of the polar bear. Why stop there.

Also what if all the people on the island are infected by this Nano technology already? Maybe only some of the Nanites are defective and cause adverse outcomes. It certainly would have healed Locks legs, and Sun womb. Maybe it’s the source of all the weird dreams; Maybe this Nano technology can download information from individuals and pass that information along. (In the case of echo, when he saw those images in the Black smoke) Maybe the smoke, or the Smart dust, recognized the Nano technology in Echo and down loaded information from it, from his past.

I know this is all kind of out there; but Dr. Jones, what if our meteor is really a spaceship, or piece of alien technology. The idea would certainly be reinforced by Walt’s comic book; maybe that's where all this information has come from.

I don't know exactly how this would tie in with why the losties are there on the island, or all the weird occurrences in their pasts. But is just a theory; maybe some of the castaways were part of a experimental group, and have been on the island before as children. Then during the supposed feud between Dharma and the hippie scientists, the children escaped with their mothers or fathers, with the nano technology within them. Maybe that's why they're special, and so many of them have parent issues.

Like I said it's just a theory, what do you think?

Sigillum Dei Hemeth-

[Scott]

every survivor seems to have a profession - is every profession an important piece to why their there? what's important about a home inspector?

[Doug Nelson]

OH MAN:
A guy named Enrico Valenzetti just posted a comment to my blog:

http://www.dougnelsondisengage.com/blog/?p=222#comments

that links back to Valenzetti Foundation, which 1) contains very little information 2) contains a link to the mythology behind ALIAS. I'm not sure if it's a shout-out or not, but it sure is interesting. I hope hope hope this isn't just some guy messing with me/us.

[Carl, UK]

I think the offical podcast has been really good over the last few weeks, it does come across like Damon does not want to be there but Carlton always seems to have fun. Like they said there didnt really have time to do a good podcast this week as they are trying to get Season 2 all done, just think of the pressure they are under from ABC.
I do find that Damon makes me laugh, but he does says 'you know' alot
As i have said countless times before the offical podcast is no where near as good as our Lostcast boys, we are so lucky to have this podcast, just think how the hell would we know whats going in 'Lost' without it!!!

[Matt Jones]

Sigillum Dei Hemeth,

I like it. What if the life extension project involved the infusing Alvar Hanso with nanobots? The island’s unique magnetic properties made it an ideal location for research. But upon receiving the nano infusion the bots realize the only way to execute their command is to convert Hanso into smart dust. Hanso is now the smoke monster. Since the incident the Island's magnetism is now being used to keep Hanso Dust on the island and contained to certain areas as the Dharma team searches for a cure. Problem is that the Hanso Dust is looking for a host on it's own. But when it enters an adult their psyche can't handle it, thus the sickness. That is why the Dharma team needs a child. A blank slate that they can load the consciousness of Alvar into. The vaccine, quarantine and magnetic shield protect them as they conduct their research. That is why Zeke drew the line for the Losties. They have Hanso Dust contained on one side of the island, they don't wan the Losties bringing the dust to their side.

The other problem for Dharma is that not all the scientists are on board. Many of the DeGroots' researchers felt betrayed that they had been duped into extending the life of an arms dealer. They have split off and are attempting to continue the DeGroots' work, but they have been affected by the Hanso Dust so the work is twisted.

Doesn’t explain why the Losties have been brought to the Island. Seems like a lot of trouble to go through to get a psychic kid and a baby. Maybe not everyone was supposed to survive the crash. Or maybe a third party has an interest in disrupting the project. Valenzetti perhaps.

Or maybe this is a theory with holes so big you could fly a jumbo jet through them.

[Jayson]

Hey I just thought of something. The blast doors could be a decontamination chamber. Blacklights are lights that emit UV radiation and little visible light. I work in a biology lab and we use UV lights to sterilize large areas. I was thinking that if the sickness was a bacteria, the lights that come on could be a cheap and effective method to decontaminate the occupants of the hatch.

[Dwayne Wade]

Any comments on my earlier stated "Henry didn't push the button" theory?

Also, for those of you who think that Henry miraculously jimmy-rigged the computer in 10 seconds to send some message back to his people, ask yourself why he would blow precious seconds of his time to do that by falling off shelf and "pretending to be knocked out". If he knew that hatch so well that he could send an important message through the computer in a matter of seconds, I am sure he would have been real careful to get into that vent and preserve every second he had.

His story doesn't check out. Remember:

Lights go out (generator sound still going) = Numbers not entered yet = Henry is a lier = Numbers were never entered

[mike]

Did anyone ever suspect that the "Dharma" film was an April Fool's joke? Ha.

Nice Nick Burns reference!

[Cihan]

I'm really digging the Hatch/Big Brother (TV show) theory. It might not extend to the whole island, but the thought of the hatch being completely observed in the same manner as the TV show, complete with the 'lockdown' aspect really tickles my bones.

I never watched Survivor though, so I dont know how much they've homaged that show.

[korrinn]

fyi..a dipole is just a momentary attraction between the electrons of one molecule and the protons of another (strongest in polar molecules) its what makes water "stick together" and the equation is for the force of attraction between them

yeah i know that my college (carnegie mellon) uses kerberos to encode our passwords and stuff

random cerberus thing..its guarding the sorceror's stone in harry potter and they put it to sleep by playing music

the dates (I think) are in military notation

why would they write square root of 16, 64, and 225...why not just write 4, 8, and 15? which happen to be the first three of the numbers...and at the swan station, it says 3 of 6...and 4, 8, and 15 are the first 3 of the 6 numbers

the latin of the plan thing reminds me of the poem that the name of the book "of Mice and Men" is based on..."The best laid plans of Mice and Men most often go ary" or something like that...another literary reference perhaps?

love the office reference! (i dont think anyone got it though)

i think it would be a good idea to have someone on the show that knows a lot about science and stuff..

thats all...i think
korrinn

[Rohrer]

Could the H.G. on the bottom of the blast door map be Henry Gale? Perhaps he was part of the H.G. delegation of 12.07.81?

Just a thought.

[Matt Jones]

"fyi..a dipole is just a momentary attraction between the electrons of one molecule and the protons of another (strongest in polar molecules) its what makes water "stick together" and the equation is for the force of attraction between them."

Why do I suddenly feel like Jin listening to Sawyer and Bernard?

[Mark B]

And there I was thinking you (Matt) were the smart one on the team 8-)

[ChuckNorris]

I think they push the button not to give them sometin to do but to make sure they are still alive. Kinda like checking in I guess. also i have some boards all of you guys could use for lost and other stuff. They are free and less crowded than the other fourms.

[ChuckNorris]

Is that map written in french possibly by the french woman? and can I see the orignal image without all that computer type on it.

[ChuckNorris]

heres the website link. go to the board requests after you register and just request all kinds of lost boards and they will be made.
http://igbgaming.com/index.php

[Matt Jones]

Mark B,

I'm glad I gave you that impression, but the truth is I know a little bit about everything and a lot about nothing. I can put on a good front for a while, but hard Math and science are my intellectual Achilles Heels. Unfortunately they don't make Cliff's Notes for chem. class.

korrin,

as someone who obviously stayed awake in science class what do you think the whole dipole notation on the map could mean?

[Scott]

Henry gale thought:

he's in the hatch on purpose... He's got a reason for being there... he had all the time in the world to high tail it out of there on the other side of the blast doors...

[Mark B]

Smart Matt,

Well I won't brag about my qualifications but should you require a geoscientist .....

Anyhow my pet theory a LONG time ago was that the whole deal on the island was that there was an experiment to flip the earths poles or to prevent the flipping. I'm not sure exactly what would happen should the poles flip but I'm guessing bad stuff. The numbers are lat/longs which were in the wrong location as the magnetic source screwed up the positioning so anyone looking for the island could not actually find it -- they are looking in the wrong place. The poles flipping is a "common" thing in earths few billion year history and can be figured out as some rocks (lavas and alike) contain magnetic minerals which align parrellel to the then poles as the rocks cool. Clearly the poles flipping does not happen in a few seconds but takes a long time.

Anyhow if any of you aren't asleep you should be.

[Phi]

Could RVS stand for "Remote Viewing Station" ?

[Mark B]

Oooh look an article about the earths poles flipping and everyone burning up due to excess radition (or something like that anyway)...even mentions lava as an indicator of reversals (how smart am I 8-) Not that smart as I just posted this to the wrong comments section)...

http://observer.guardian.co.uk/international/story/0,6903,837058,00.html

and a second one from CNN (must be true then 8-))

http://www.cnn.com/2004/TECH/space/04/07/poles.reverse/index.html

and another from just last month ....

http://arstechnica.com/journals/science.ars/2006/3/21/3286

[The Andrew]

Channel 4 in the UK is repeating season 1. It started on monday at 6pm on E4.
People probably know this already but you never know someone might missed it.

[lithaborn]

Best podcast ever guys, made my head spin...

Here's an out-there idea - what if fake-henry is gay and the guy in the grave *is* his "wife"...cuse and lindeof have made a big thing in their podcast and in the notes I've seen on spoilerfix of saying "what if this guy *is* just what he says he is?"...OK they tease and giggle a lot, but I get the feeling that's what they're getting at...

- Also, I wonder if the CV 1, 2, 3 labels refer to some kind of projecting stations, or kennel or something for cerberus...each CV position has something written near it about heightened cerberus activity. Coincidence?

- "liberte te ex inferis" is precisely the same phrase that is used in the film "Event Horizon" which deals with an experimental form of propulsion which takes a spaceship into another hellish dimension - and the ship comes back sentient. Maybe it's a stretch to draw a link between Lost and Event Horizon, but there does seem to be an abundance of strange, sentient objects hanging around...and with the production staff being sci-fi fans...

- Desmond was in the hatch for three years, assuming that the events on the island takes place sometime around 2004/5 when the show started in real life, that would mean that he was in the hatch for the latest systemwide faliure mentioned on the map.

- Why are there only two sets of handwriting on the map? The way the writing's been done, it looks like it was done over a number of years - the '02 revision, for example - so do we assume, because the latest date is in '03, Desmond would have been in the hatch by then - and we know that only Kelvin was there with him, that kelvin wrote those notes? Where did the writer get his information if it wasn't someone who was there at the time?

- "final resting place of magnus hanso/blackrock". What if magnus hanso isn't a person, but another name for that boat?

My brain hurts now...Keep up the good work folks!

[raj]

dont know if anyone is mentioned this....about the food drop.

herley said there was enough food for 2 people for FOUR MONTHS!! so why is darma doing the food drop now? it's only been 3-4 weeks since hurley did the food check. This means that darma should know that the food is finshed. so maybe there were sensors to show the pantry was empty....or they know that there are more people in the hatch and they finshed the food.

anyways, take care stay lost!!

[Christine @ MIT]

Sorry the definition of the dipole is incorrect; it is a molecule that has an asymmetry of charge, or regions that are more positively than negatively charged.

[Chris James]

I'm telling you...there is something up with that effin' dog...

Spoilerfix.com reveals that the mut will be in S.O.S and in a later episode. That's when my eyes opened. "Oh yeah," I said, "haven't seen that yellow lab in a while."

That dog is a spy for the others. Period.

~Chris James

[Chris in Jackson MS]

love the podcast guys, this one especially was awesome...couple of random things...definitely think you guys are wasting time and space on the Goodwin vs Ethan deal. They were both tasked with making lists. I think Zeke's dialog with Ethan about the list was put there largely by the writers to tie the two together for us. They also both died on the same day, which is pretty awesome writing if you ask me.

Please keep Matt, really enjoy your thoughts bro. Don't always agree, but hey, that's what makes this experience great. I think there is a high possibility the baby is Mr. Lee's. One, it's only been 10 or so days since Jin returned and we saw him emerge from the tent "victorious". The best pregnancy tests can only detect pregnancy after the FIRST known MISSED day of a menstrual cycle. Just don't think enough time elapsed. Sun definitely wouldn't be feeling sick after just 10 days, unless that was just a plot device. Also, Damon and Carlton specifically said that that look we saw Sun give while hugging Jin was not just our imaginations. I think she slept with Dr Lee one time, and that was enough.

Damon and Carlton probably look at the podcast as just another of many Lost related-tasks that not enough time in the day exists for. Sometimes they seem to be having a pretty good time and give some pretty good clues and acknowledgements and winks, etc., other times, like the last one, they really don't seem to want to be there. Just like anyone, these guys have good days and bad.

I think RVS definitely equals Remote Viewing Station. And CV equaliing Cerberus V_____ is the best idea I've heard yet.

Keep up the great work guys.

[Caleb Farley]

I was just listening to the newest official LOST podcast, and they referred to several "vents" on the map. Think that might be the C .V.? Cerberus Vent, maybe? Cerberus might be the black smoke.. and the vents are the spots where they come out?

[Sandro in Walnut Creek, CA]

Good job, guys, the best Lost podcast out there.
I saw Jay & Jack monday podcast, and a caller mention something interesting: that if Sun knows that Jin is shooting blanks, how come her initial reaction for her symptons would be to ask for pregnancy test? If she's been faithful to Jin, she should discard the possibility, at least initially, while her belly is not showing, she is not late more than 10 or so days, etc. But if she knows she had slept with her english teacher, then it all makes more sense, her certitude is explained. That why she goes to Kate, and then Sawyer.

[Philippe M]

What if our bunch of people (the losties) were originally part of Dharma and were 'neutralized'/brainwashed by their superiors because they knew too much or because they weren't needed anymore. What if that is related to the accident ? Maybe that WAS the accident ? Maybe they forgot everything as a result of the accident? Lots of Qs....

Also, Maybe some of them were originally assigned to the swan hatch and they are the ones who drew the map...

This sounds far fetched but could very well be true (or be a variation of this). I a a firm believer that their was never a crash on this island and that it's all a setup. It would fit the picture too.

What Do you think ? Am I just crazy ? or is any of this kinda possible ?

[lithaborn]

Caleb! You star! I spent ages wracking my brain for a V-word to go with Cerberus and ended up with a serious mental block. Cerberus Vent fits perfectly, doesn't it?

*Note to self, listen to official podcast before spouting half-baked theories on an uneditable forum...*

[Matt Jones]

Mark B,

The pole flip theory, besides being a great name for a prog rock album, probably holds some water. What a tough job for the writers though. Trying to take a concept like that and make sense of it to the audience, even one as educated as Lost's, will be no small feat.

Chistine @ MIT,

"Sorry the definition of the dipole is incorrect; it is a molecule that has an asymmetry of charge, or regions that are more positively than negatively charged."

So what are the possible implications of that for the show in layman’s terms? I need help. I went to a directional state school.

Chris in Jackson MS,

Thanks for the vote of confidence. You probably sense our Mississippi connection. Most of my family is from Franklin County.

Just because both Ethan and Goodwin were working on lists doesn't mean they were compiling them for the same reason. If there is two groups that split from one they might have a similar M.O. but different agendas.

And for all the reasons you and Sandra listed I am dead sure that Mr. Clean put the bun in Sun's oven.

Caleb,

Cerberus Vent makes all the sense in the world. Each vent is within a Cerberus activity zone. Nice catch.

Philip M,

It's out there, but I like it. The map did kind of have a Memento vibe to it.

[Carl, UK]

From an online interview with Damon Lindelof:

"This season we've had a lot happen, Lockdown is an episode thats going to go places, then we're going to slow down. Dave & SOS will be the calm before the storm. Then we're gonna have 5 hours of action, twists turns & surprises. If we're going to do our job properly then we have to make the finale good enough to make people talk all summer long. Something that will make people so exciting for when we premier again. This seasons cliffhanger is going to be better than last. Some questions are going to be answered, but we're going to get an insight into something. Something big."

[Mark B]

I just watched the "Lost Moment" on abc.com and as a rough count the blast doors were down with the UV lights on for a maximum of 35 seconds (the entire vid clip lasts some 109 seconds). Of that 35 seconds Locke is only looking at the map for 30 (at first 5 he is looking around). A few things occur to me;
1. As I said before Locke can't have remembered much.
2. The map would have taken years to draw. If it is associated with the food drop then the door would come down every 3 or 4 months. So you'd have max. four drops a year means 2mins 20secs seconds a year to add to the map.
3. If Desmond drew the map he must have done the whole thing in 7 mins (he was on the island 3 years or said he was). No way he can have done the whole thing. He may have added some but nothing major -- perhaps the latin ??
4. Don't think the map is to scale or even close.

Of course it could be that the blast doors come done for longer if someone's not stuck under one or Henry did something to get them up sooner or the drawers knew how to get the doors up and down.

[Andre]

I know the map is a great topic but lets think about the food drop. Someone (Syaid, Charlie, or Anna Lucia) asked Jack and Kate, "What is with the parachute." Last time I checked, parachutes can't travel very far so the food drop must have been by an airplane. Well if an airplane made the food drop then that throws the whole theory that the island caused the Oceanic crash into whack. Unless: 1. The island didn't cause the crash instead a weapon was used. 2. The "lockdown" of the hatch was to allow shut-down of the system that causes whatever it was (electromagnetic field) to crash the plane (funny side note, what if entering the numbers actually keeps the system on instead of keeping it off as suggested by the video?).
You could argue that if you flew high enough or if there was a perscriptive route that a cargo plane could fly so that it didn't crash then the parachute could have been dropped from a plane. How high would you have to fly? How accurate can you be from that height? Can a cargo plane fly that high?
Were they right about the food drop being a parachute? Could it be a balloon? It looked awefully similar to what Syaid, Charlie, and Anna Lucia found at Henry Gale's grave. Perhaps Henry was an other and had a food container drop on him, thus killing him. That would be funny.
Thanks for the Lostcast, it keeps my bus ride home interesting.

[Nadia]

Mark B-

I mentioned earlier that perhaps the map didn't need to be drawn when the light was on. If bleach causes something to be visible under a black light, then maybe someone ERASED the map using bleach. Unbeknowest to them, when freaky black lights go on, the bleach on the blast door reveals the the remnants of the map due to the etching on the door.

I'd like to know if anyone else thinks this is plausible.

[Mark B]

Nadia -
The map could only be drawn when the door is down, (and as far as we know the lights always come on when the door is down), so my main point that this would take many years to draw still holds and so Desmond could only have drawn a small part of it or made some minor updates. The 'of course' comments I made before also still hold. But I agree someone could have drawn the map and someone else erased it and somehow the UV light shows it again. But this would require the map to be even older -- you couldn't totally erase the map in 30 seconds or so.

[Mark B]

Andre -
An idea I had/heard a while ago was that entering the numbers stopped something bad happening or kept the 'bubble' that keeps the island hidden from the rest of the world from being penetrated. Flight 815, Desmonds boat, Gales balloon, Danielles boat, and the Beechcraft all entered the islands 'space' when the numbers were not entered for some reason and the bubble came down.

As for the parachutte landing on the island well I read somewhere (here ??) that there are military planes that can drop supplies from a great height in a similar way to the laser guided missles that hit tanks from a gazzilion miles away. The food pallets must be equiped with GPS and little engines or something to keep them on course. The person posting was very positive it could be done but didn't really explain how it all worked other than it did.

However remember this is tv so dropping a pallet of supplies from 30,000 feet onto a tiny island and having no one notice the plane is easy.

Of course it could have been done at night with a glider painted with that non-reflective black paint the military use on spy planes.

Or what about using stealth technology ? What was that show with the helicopter that was invisible and silent ?

[heathen]

Thanks, as always, for the wonderful podcast this week. You guys keep me from feeling like such a Lost Nerd. Anyway, I just skimmed the 100 or so comments for this episode and may have missed it, but has anyone mentioned the fact that when Kate and Jack found the food that it appeared that it had already been broken into? The plastic was torn. It may be really minor or not at all signifigant, but I think it may be worth noting.