The Open Visor is an independent fortnightly newspaper by Jacobus van Merksteijn — inventor, materials scientist and entrepreneur. It is published digitally in Dutch, German and English.
What it aims for
To make visible the connections that do not appear in specialist media. Between physics and public administration, between education and economics, between ship coatings and democracy. In plain language, for those who want to think along without first having to study for ten years.
What it does not aim for
No party politics. No advertising. No tracking. No sale of readers' data. No clickbait, no outrage for outrage's sake. And above all: no blinkers.
How it works
Every fortnight an edition appears with a handful of articles around a single thread. Beneath each article there is a discussion box where readers can respond under their full name. AI assists with translation, spam filtering and weekly summaries — editorial decisions remain human.
Who writes
The pieces are by my hand, sometimes supported by AI in research and editing. Guest contributions are welcome, provided they are substantive and signed with a full name. Send proposals to editorial@openvizier.org.
How it is financed
The newspaper has neither an advertising model nor a subscription model. The costs (hosting, domain, AI APIs) I bear myself. Readers who wish to contribute may do so via a one-off or annual donation — more on that in a later edition. For now: reading and participating is free and will remain free.
Who am I?
Jacobus van Merksteijn, Dutch-speaking, based between Switzerland, Malta and Mallorca. I am founder and developer of GuardSkin Ltd (coatings), Carbon Alert / TerraClean (biomass and CO₂ sequestration), and SolarSkin (solar-reflective coatings). I am working on a conical vortex fusion reactor and on a seven-dimensional model in physics. And I am writing two books: Nova Democratia (a new system of government) and A Plea for Revolutionary Thinking, Learning and Innovation.
My languages are Dutch, English and German. My trade is seeing connections. This newspaper is my attempt to share that with others.