This book analyses, with archival evidence, the three major changes to astronomers' theories between 1900 and 1931.

Robert W. Smith may be known as a world's leading authority on Asian martial arts, but this book shows he is much more than that. His pioneering work in the field has inspired others to follow, but perhaps none have brought such drive, stamina, and scholarly skills to such a monumental task. Smith has practiced, taught, and written on the Asian martial arts for more than fifty years. From his late teens he trained under eminent Western boxing and wrestling coaches and later immersed himself in judo and finally the Chinese martial arts under celebrated masters. He taught many students in the latter arts in the Washington D.C. area where he worked as an intelligence officer for the Central Intelligence Agency.Martial Musings records insightful details associated with Smith's years of involvement with combatives in the U.S. and overseas. But, what makes this book such a joy to devour is the literary relish Smith stir-fries in with the book's basic ingredients. He astutely couples combatives with literary panache, and a ready wit.

Preface; Acknowledgements; Abbreviations of manuscript sources; 1. The revival of the island universe theory; 2. Shapley's model of the Galaxy and the 'Great Debate'; 3. The Debate ends; 4. The development of the island universe theory 1925 to 1931; 5. The velocity-distance relation: its origins and development to 1931; Bibliography; Index.