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Apollo 14 Moonwalker Claims Aliens Exist

An anonymous reader writes "Former NASA astronaut and moon-walker Dr Edgar Mitchell — a veteran of the Apollo 14 mission — has stunningly claimed aliens exist. And he says extra-terrestrials have visited Earth on several occasions — but the alien contact has been repeatedly covered up by governments for six decades. Dr Mitchell, 77, said during a radio interview that sources at the space agency who had had contact with aliens described the beings as 'little people who look strange to us.'"

1,268 comments

  1. Space Madness! by FatSean · · Score: 5, Funny

    I think he just had a case of the space madness.

    --
    Blar.
    1. Re:Space Madness! by MillionthMonkey · · Score: 5, Funny

      And how many times have YOU been in space? This guy has BEEN there. He knows the facts on the ground.

    2. Re:Space Madness! by FlyingSquidStudios · · Score: 5, Insightful

      That's ridiculous. That's like saying an airline pilot knows about the latest top secret fighter plane designs. Personally, I find it a bit hard to believe that a civilization is smart enough to travel interstellar distances but too stupid to use basic camouflage.

    3. Re:Space Madness! by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 2, Funny

      And how many times have YOU been in space? This guy has BEEN there. He knows the facts on the ground.

      Or, indeed, in the air.

    4. Re:Space Madness! by MrMacman2u · · Score: 4, Funny

      I think you meant "He has Space Dementia!"

      --
      This signature is lame.
    5. Re:Space Madness! by Opportunist · · Score: 4, Interesting

      Says who? Hey, we're already arguing on conspiracy grounds, why not argue for fake moon landings while we're at it?

      I'm a programmer, but that doesn't make me more credible than someone who has no clue about programming when I claim that Cthuluh is controlling the internet.

      --
      We used to have a Bill of Rights. Now, with the rights gone, all we have left is the bill.
    6. Re:Space Madness! by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 3, Funny

      Every time something good happens to me you say it's some kind of madness. Or I'm drunk. Or I ate too much candy. Well I saw a real alien. And I wish for once my friends would have decency and kindness to believe me.

    7. Re:Space Madness! by Opportunist · · Score: 4, Insightful

      Or land their crates safely after traveling for billions of miles, or at least crash somewhere else but in the middle of nowhere, midwest USA.

      One could imagine that they're either more subtle when they try to remain under cover than leaving mutilated cattle and anally probed people lying around after their departure, or that they'd be more choosy when trying to reveal themselves than to show themselves only to some moonshine-swigging hicks. Why not land in the middle of the Superbowl finals, now THAT's revealing!

      Seriously, for such an advanced species, they make very little sense.

      --
      We used to have a Bill of Rights. Now, with the rights gone, all we have left is the bill.
    8. Re:Space Madness! by unlametheweak · · Score: 4, Funny

      Nope,

      He said supposedly real-life ET's were similar to the traditional image of a small frame, large eyes and head.

      Sounds more than likely he bumped into Ross Perot on a dark night.

      Ref:
      http://uncyclopedia.org/wiki/Ross_Perot

    9. Re:Space Madness! by neoform · · Score: 1, Redundant

      You just want my ice cream bar.. DON'T YOU!!1

      --
      MABASPLOOM!
    10. Re:Space Madness! by tritonman · · Score: 5, Funny

      Unfortunately, all the UFO buffs who would be delighted to hear this information are also the same people who believe that the moonwalks were a sham, so they won't believe a word he says.

    11. Re:Space Madness! by Mikkeles · · Score: 1

      You obviously haven't watch much Star Trek ;^)

      --
      Great minds think alike; fools seldom differ.
    12. Re:Space Madness! by SpleenVenter · · Score: 5, Informative

      > when I claim that Cthuluh is controlling the internet.

      That was not supposed to be revealed. A nasty tentacle is on its way to claim your mortal husk.

    13. Re:Space Madness! by Annymouse+Cowherd · · Score: 2, Insightful

      I think he just had a case of the senility.

    14. Re:Space Madness! by bhsurfer · · Score: 1

      Perhaps they aren't ruled by fear like some people are...or perhaps they know enough about us that they rightfully aren't afraid to show themselves. A race with space travel figured out might have more tricks up it's sleeve.

      Another possibility, of course, is that he's wrong.

      --
      Those are my principles, and if you don't like them... well, I have others.
      Groucho Marx
    15. Re:Space Madness! by 0racle · · Score: 1

      That doesn't excuse space rudeness.

      --
      "I use a Mac because I'm just better than you are."
    16. Re:Space Madness! by MidVicious · · Score: 0, Flamebait

      I love how so many fools, in all of their make-believe worship and haughty arrogance, actually believe that Earth, in this constantly expanding universe, is the only planet capable of sustaining intelligent and mobile lifeforms.

      But forget it, okay, keep blowing yourselves to hell. You know, hell, that place with the fire and the red guy with the pointy tail?

    17. Re:Space Madness! by drinkypoo · · Score: 3, Interesting

      And how many times have YOU been in space? This guy has BEEN there. He knows the facts on the ground.

      response.funny == "I thought the point was that he knew the facts in space."

      response.obligatory == "You mean, he had the script handed to him on the sound stage?"

      Seriously though, extraordinary claims require extraordinary proof. This guy is either a wingnut or expects proof to be forthcoming. I hope for the latter but expect the former :)

      --
      "You're right," Fisheye says. "I should have set it on 'whip' or 'chop.'"
    18. Re:Space Madness! by j00r0m4nc3r · · Score: 5, Funny

      or Space Herpes

    19. Re:Space Madness! by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1, Funny

      Personally, I find it a bit hard to believe that a civilization is smart enough to travel interstellar distances but too stupid to use basic camouflage.

      Maybe camouflage wasn't in their budget. Do you see our efforts being camouflaged on Mars?

    20. Re:Space Madness! by blahplusplus · · Score: 4, Interesting

      "Says who? Hey, we're already arguing on conspiracy grounds, why not argue for fake moon landings while we're at it?

      I'm a programmer, but that doesn't make me more credible than someone who has no clue about programming when I claim that Cthuluh is controlling the internet."

      While I agree with you somewhat, I've it's a hobby of mine to scour the "crazy's", because frequently because of their over-active paranoia they'll pick up things that most people normally wouldn't that are in fact TRUE, the problem with these people is that - they mix truth with imagined relationships or patterns that aren't there, thereby most people disqualify all of what they say by association, instead of just 'ignoring' what is false, and finding what is true.

      The truth of a statement is not determined by:

      -The status of the person
      -Their education
      -Whether or not that society considers them crazy/kooky, etc
      -and on and on.

      A statement is true whether or not someone is crazy, educated or not, has a job or not, or is rich or not. This 'false by association' stuff is programmed into us from birth, and while it can be a nice heuristic. I'd really like a study done on the amount of true statements vs false statements, done scientifically and with an eye towards taking what is said statement by statement to analyze the truth value's. I imagine the kind of patterns that you'd find would be interesting to say the least.

      I imagine paranoid/crazy people would pick up a lot of true stuff that we deem false because we've been programmed by education/the media/entertainment, etc, and vice versa.

    21. Re:Space Madness! by Danathar · · Score: 1

      In the absence of evidence that there are aliens you can make up any explanation to account for the lack of evidence and be completely credible.

    22. Re:Space Madness! by Bender0x7D1 · · Score: 1

      Why should I listen to your opinion? You can't even spell Cthulhu correctly.

      --
      Reading code is like reading the dictionary - you have to read half of it before you can go back and understand it.
    23. Re:Space Madness! by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      These claims about Cthuluh controlling the internet have been debunked many times!

      No one denies that he *tried* to gain control, but there is little evidence that he succeeded.

      Check snopes for details.

    24. Re:Space Madness! by Beardo+the+Bearded · · Score: 5, Insightful

      I hope that we're not alone. The idea that this is the only planet with sentient life anywhere in the Universe isn't just a waste of space. It chills me to the core to think that there's no Others out there. I hope they're waiting for us. "Hey, humans, you made it! We thought you'd never get out of that singularity."

      Let's also assume that they have different physics and that FTL travel is possible and routine.

      If there were aliens that were aware of our existence, it's likely that they would watch us to see what we would want them to do.

      "Hmm. There's genocide here and here, 40 000 of their offspring starve to death each day. They do not interfere. We should not interfere with their development.

      "They are afraid of things which are different. We are different. We should not show ourselves."

      --

      ---
      ECHELON is a government program to find words like bomb, jihad, plutonium, assassinate, and anarchy.
    25. Re:Space Madness! by aaandre · · Score: 1

      Like your sig. If the goverment can control cigarettes, because they are harmful to its people, then I think the government ought to protect the same people from being robbed of the value of their life/time/money.

    26. Re:Space Madness! by KillerBob · · Score: 5, Funny

      Maybe they're just fetishists... we have some pretty messed up fetishes among the human population, so why is it so hard to believe that aliens might get off by sticking things in your bum?

      --
      If you believe everything you read, you'd better not read. - Japanese proverb
    27. Re:Space Madness! by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      The Internet != The Moon.

      There's a lot more internet users than astronauts. That's got to account for some of the assumed respect that he should know something about space.

    28. Re:Space Madness! by ndansmith · · Score: 2, Insightful

      Seriously, for such an advanced species, they make very little sense.

      What makes you think an alien species shares your notion of "sense?"

      Wow, I cannot believe I am playing Devil' advocate for little green men . . .

    29. Re:Space Madness! by BobMcD · · Score: 4, Insightful

      That's ridiculous.

      Really? Picture this scenario: Aliens are real. You know it, and you're about to send an Astronaut to the moon, where you feel it is likely they may encounter aliens. Would you NOT brief said Astronauts beforehand? No procedures, no protocol, not even a heads-up? Really?

      I think that THIS would be the ridiculous position.

      Personally, I find it a bit hard to believe that a civilization is smart enough to travel interstellar distances but too stupid to use basic camouflage.

      What stupidity would be required? Again, imagine you're an alien. You know these inferior beings represent no threat to you at all. Likewise, you know their civilization will deny your existence. Why, then, would you waste any spare cycles on camo?

      Your assumptions seem to be based on excluding the possibility that aliens do, in fact, exist. There's nothing wrong with that, as an opinion, except that it limits the opposite conclusion unnecessarily.

    30. Re:Space Madness! by MarkGriz · · Score: 4, Funny

      or Space Herpes

      ...which he got from Aliens. QED

      --
      Beauty is in the eye of the beerholder.
    31. Re:Space Madness! by megaditto · · Score: 2, Insightful

      To paraphrase Murphy's law, shit happens. Small things like a drop of condensation bringing down a B2 stealth bomber even though the thing costs 2 Billion, with many more in R&D costs.

      If our basic understanding of logic is correct, one can actually prove that one cannot think of everything that can go wrong and thus prevent shit from happening to you.

      --
      Obama likes poor people so much, he wants to make more of them.
    32. Re:Space Madness! by antek9 · · Score: 1

      That's because he was on board the original lunatic lander. Or was that lunar?

      --
      A World in a Grain of Sand / Heaven in a Wild Flower,
      Infinity in the Palm of your Hand / And Eternity in an Hour.
    33. Re:Space Madness! by Forcepath · · Score: 5, Insightful

      Just because they're advanced doesn't mean the have the same notions of importance as we as human being do. Add in language, cultural, and technological barriers, and it isn't so strange at all that aliens could do some really dumb things by human logic. Perhaps aliens use biotechnology we haven't dreamed of, or have never heard of radio waves, etc etc.

      --
      this .sig for sale
    34. Re:Space Madness! by morgan_greywolf · · Score: 5, Interesting

      Or land their crates safely after traveling for billions of miles, or at least crash somewhere else but in the middle of nowhere, midwest USA.

      If you were an alien, where would you land your craft? In the middle of nowhere, where there is no one around to mess with you or your stuff, or in the right in the middle of Central Park, where the Bloods or the Crips might gank you and jack your ride?

      One could imagine that they're either more subtle when they try to remain under cover than leaving mutilated cattle and anally probed people lying around after their departure

      Mutilated cattle may be an entirely different phenomenon than aliens (see el chupacabra, for instance, for a weirder, but alternate explanation), but as far as anally-probed people -- well, again, if you were going to anally probe people, would you anally probe the President or some celebrity or would you pick some poor schmuck whom no one is ever going to believe?

      Why not land in the middle of the Superbowl finals

      I assume they also wouldn't want to get involved in local conflicts.

      C'mon, try to see it from the alien's perspective.

    35. Re:Space Madness! by eonlabs · · Score: 4, Insightful

      I'd love to play with this a bit:

      1. There's a lot less to crash into during space travel than when you're at or near a planet. We did a lot more crashing of probes into Mars than in the space between here and Mars.

      2. The mutilated cattle and anal probes are probably being done by people and being blamed on aliens. That never had to be UFOs, and it can still be someone covering up for their sick relatives.

      3. Why not land in the middle of the superbowl? What if they deemed our civilization was not secure enough for open contact. What are the odds that enough scared people with the means of launching a missle would be interested in doing so out of fear. Pre-emptive strike ring any bells? From that perspective, landing in desolate areas makes logical sense. Although it would probably make more sense for a water landing if possible. Easier to hide.

      4. We need more gratuitous references to our typical /. memes

      I for one welcome our alien brethren/overlords

      1. mutilate cows
      2. anal probe astronauts
      3. flashy thing people
      4. ???
      5. profit!

      --
      I wouldn't consider the mad hatter mad. Just reality impaired. He sure can make a mean cup of tea.
    36. Re:Space Madness! by Reapy · · Score: 5, Interesting

      I think people think too much with their 5 senses when thinking about alien life forms. What's to say there isn't a whole world existing in the same space as us, and we just cant perceive it.

      But step back from that philosophical stuff, and imagine that why would there be another species similar humans? I think people think aliens, they think human with different features with similar concepts of life, death, morals, social "revealing" ( would they even understand what that is? ) rather then something so foreign, we couldn't even begin to understand it, nor its motivations, if it has those?

      Sci fi is fun because we graft human behavior on something different, and its fun for us to say ooh look they are just like us. But in the end it is just the human ego projection our emotions on something else.

      I watched wall-e the other day. I was amazed at how well pixar could make a box with eyes utterly human. Our minds see patterns, shapes, and behavior in the right spot, and we fill in the blanks with the emotions. This is the same thing people do with the idea of "aliens". I think it is limiting, egotistical, and utterly human. We just need to remember to keep open minds about what we see, or "alien" life, because in reality it just seems like we are looking for life "similar" enough to what we know, to call it life.

      For any geeks out there, orson-scott card's ender books (the later ones) deal with this a bit, as they try to discover whether a virus is actually a species, and wiping out a really smart virus is in fact genocide.

      Just interesting stuff, but we have to remember to stop grafting our humanism on top of alien things we do not understand.

    37. Re:Space Madness! by Tesen · · Score: 1

      Apparently we fooled him! Because the aliens are in your Uranus!

    38. Re:Space Madness! by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      no it's closer to saying a top secret test pilot knows about the latest secret plane designs...

    39. Re:Space Madness! by colmore · · Score: 1

      parent was joking.

      --
      In Capitalist America, bank robs you!
    40. Re:Space Madness! by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 5, Insightful

      Attempts to expand Godel's incompleteness theorems to anything beyond their original scope are foolish. From the Wikipedia article you cited: Authors such as J. R. Lucas have argued that the theorems have implications in wider areas of philosophy and even cognitive science as well as preventing any complete theory of everything from being found in physics, but these claims are not generally accepted. Don't make poor Godel into a sociologist!

    41. Re:Space Madness! by Jay+Clay · · Score: 5, Funny

      Score: 5, >> INFORMATIVE It's the little quirks in Slashdot that entertain me so.

    42. Re:Space Madness! by nsayer · · Score: 1

      On the Internet, nobody knows you're Cthulhu.

    43. Re:Space Madness! by colmore · · Score: 4, Insightful

      Yeah, the seemingly logical human brain makes all kinds of silly blunders.

      Such as inserting a naive interpretation of Godel's theorem into a debate that isn't about the derivable elements of a formal system.

      --
      In Capitalist America, bank robs you!
    44. Re:Space Madness! by muellerr1 · · Score: 5, Interesting

      I'm not sure what's funnier: your response, or the fact that your telling somebody that a tentacle is on its way to claim their mortal husk was modded +5 Informative!

    45. Re:Space Madness! by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      I am very happy that this is informative.

    46. Re:Space Madness! by hellfish006 · · Score: 0

      That is no excuse for space rudeness!

    47. Re:Space Madness! by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Ah, yes, but intelligent life is stupid - take humans, for example. And, since you are a human, I will let you off for the foolishness of your comment, as I hope you will do the same for mine.

    48. Re:Space Madness! by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Dude, I can't stay to debate you - Star Trek's on!

    49. Re:Space Madness! by FlyingSquidStudios · · Score: 4, Funny

      What's to say there isn't a whole world existing in the same space as us, and we just cant perceive it.

      On a wild guess, I'd say physics.

    50. Re:Space Madness! by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      I can corroborate that! The Internets is a horrible place. Always making such good boys do such horrible things...

    51. Re:Space Madness! by asylumx · · Score: 1

      I for one welcome our alien brethren/overlords

      1. mutilate cows
      2. anal probe astronauts
      3. flashy thing people
      4. ???
      5. profit!

      The aliens must be Pherengi!!

    52. Re:Space Madness! by abstract+daddy · · Score: 0

      I think he just had a case of the space madness.

      You mean like this?

    53. Re:Space Madness! by Gat0r30y · · Score: 1

      You assume too much about these interstellar travelers motives. What if they make sport of fucking with drunken hicks? I imagine it could be quite entertaining.

      --
      Prediction: The real iPhone killer is going to be sex robots from Japan. Think about it.
    54. Re:Space Madness! by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Informative ?

    55. Re:Space Madness! by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      And who says they'd care that much about camouflage?

    56. Re:Space Madness! by pla · · Score: 4, Funny

      Or land their crates safely after traveling for billions of miles, or at least crash somewhere else but in the middle of nowhere, midwest USA.

      I know, right? Why, just imagine, if you can, a civilization that has the ability to launch things out into space, sending a craft all the way to another planet, only to have it crash due to some absurd oversight such as, oh, say, a Metric-to-Imperial measurement conversion or the like!

      Sheer absurdity, I tell you!


      Seriously - Aliens, if they do exist, do not count as infallible techno-gods come to save us from ourselves. They most likely have similar flaws to our own, and have simply made it a few centuries further along than we have.

    57. Re:Space Madness! by clone53421 · · Score: 3, Funny

      futility: playing devil's advocate for little green men.
      irony: playing devil's advocate for little red men.

      --
      Alexander Peter Kristopeit bought his basement from his mommy for one dollar.
    58. Re:Space Madness! by NJRoadfan · · Score: 1

      Why not land in the middle of the Superbowl finals, now THAT's revealing!

      They'd just cover the shock and awe with a wardrobe malfunction.

    59. Re:Space Madness! by CopaceticOpus · · Score: 1

      Their methods seem to have succeeded in convincing people like yourself that they're not here. So maybe it makes perfect sense. Deceit is much easier to implement than perfect cloaking technology.

      </conspiracy theory>

    60. Re:Space Madness! by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Believing in aliens is obvious... I see dozens of them on a day to day basis. I think a couple mowed my lawn the other day...

    61. Re:Space Madness! by Risen888 · · Score: 1

      What a ridiculous conspiracy theory! Everyone knows it's really Shub-Internet!

      --
      Hey, I finally got my first freak! Took you long enough!
    62. Re:Space Madness! by RazzleDazzle · · Score: 1

      You mistake "nasty tentacle" with "noodly appendage" and "Cthuluh" with "FSM".

      Do not fear the noodly appendage for it is good... especially with a bit of garlic tomato sauce... mmmm...

      --
      ZERO ZERO ONE ZERO ONE ZERO ONE ONE! Just brushing up for my next big invention: Ethernet over Voice (EoV)
    63. Re:Space Madness! by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      There's no excuse for space rudeness!

    64. Re:Space Madness! by Surt · · Score: 1

      I would argue that that does make you more credible. Just not credible enough for that claim.

      --
      "Who is the Journal of Quantum Physics going to believe?" --Stephen Hawking
    65. Re:Space Madness! by CrimsonAvenger · · Score: 1

      Why not land in the middle of the Superbowl finals, now THAT's revealing!

      If aliens were to land in the middle of the Superbowl, either:

      a) everyone would assume it was part of the Halftime Show,

      b) they'd be escorted off the field and arrested for disrupting the game,

      c) they'd be linched by a mob of fans for ruining whatever game-winning play they interrupted.

      What they would NOT be is more than a footnote in the news the next day - "Dan, is it true that aliens landed in the middle of the Superbowl?","Just a rumour, Bob, started to explain the inexcusable play called by the Pats just before Halftime. Can you believe that play? If they'd just knelt on the ball, they'd not have gone into the Half down by three..."

      --

      "I do not agree with what you say, but I will defend to the death your right to say it"
    66. Re:Space Madness! by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      But that's no excuse for space rudeness!

    67. Re:Space Madness! by tmosley · · Score: 2, Insightful

      I would say it is more like an air force test pilot knowing about the latest top secret airplane designs. He might no know how to build one from parts, but he knows its there and he probably knows SOMETHING about its capabilities.

      This doesn't seem to be that far from the truth. It might even be straight up fact.

    68. Re:Space Madness! by Paracelcus · · Score: 1

      Just remember, they're not illegal just undocumented!

      --
      I killed da wabbit -Elmer Fudd
    69. Re:Space Madness! by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Personally, I find it a bit hard to believe that a civilization is smart enough to travel interstellar distances but too stupid to use basic camouflage.

      Yes, that is a bit hard to believe. Which means that they don't use camouflage on purpose (why bother? who cares if we see them? what are we going to do, attack them with something they can't defend against?). It's also just as likely that we are being observed by people who *are* using camouflage. If there's one other race observing us, there might as well be 100. Maybe some of them bother to cloak themselves and others don't care if we see their ships. If you think we have all the answers then you're the one that's stupid.

    70. Re:Space Madness! by Lurker2288 · · Score: 1

      Except when you get alien space herpes, an 'outbreak' usually means a xenomorph exploding out of your chest cavity. Try hiding THAT one from your girlfriend.

    71. Re:Space Madness! by Tejin · · Score: 1
      There may be others out there, but who's to say we're not the most advanced of them? What if we are destined to be the ones who show up in spaceships bringing the secrets of space travel?

      We could be the first, or we could be the last existing planet with sentient life. Maybe there are others out there in the universe that we'll never see because they are outside our light cone.

      --
      The seekers do no need truth, the seekers do find truth and the finding do be painful
    72. Re:Space Madness! by alexborges · · Score: 1

      IF there was any up there in space, which there isnt. So no.

      --
      NO SIG
    73. Re:Space Madness! by flydude18 · · Score: 1

      Seriously, for such an advanced species, they make very little sense.

      Maybe they only have women?

    74. Re:Space Madness! by JWSmythe · · Score: 1

      Physics, as we understand it.

          That's not to say there isn't a whole world of physics that we haven't even begun to theorize about, much less understand.

      --
      Serious? Seriousness is well above my pay grade.
    75. Re:Space Madness! by JWSmythe · · Score: 1

      So, when you pissed your pants, that would have actually just been a coolant leak?

      --
      Serious? Seriousness is well above my pay grade.
    76. Re:Space Madness! by NuclearError · · Score: 1

      Well, Edgar Mitchell does hold the record for the longest moonwalk. That couldn't possibly have anything to do with it, could it?

      --
      Nuclear engineers build weapons. Civil engineers build targets.
    77. Re:Space Madness! by GameboyRMH · · Score: 2, Insightful

      Also playing devil's advocate for little green men:

      If they knew our culture they'd know nobody would believe they exist without overwhelming physical evidence, so there would be no point in going through a great deal of effort to hide themselves, and it would be safe to conduct activities that would leave them vulnerable to being observed.

      --
      "When information is power, privacy is freedom" - Jah-Wren Ryel
    78. Re:Space Madness! by ArsonSmith · · Score: 3, Interesting

      I thought Scifi was just a way that people could project racist stereo types and project hate in a non-specific manor. "They're not really people so we can slaughter them. Who cares if they bare a striking resemblance to chinese people."

      --
      Paying taxes to buy civilization is like paying a hooker to buy love.
    79. Re:Space Madness! by blind+biker · · Score: 1

      That post is not nearly as funny as the "Informative" moderation of it. Hats off to the mods, for once.

      --
      "The agriculture ministry is not in charge of Gundam" - Japanese ministry official.
    80. Re:Space Madness! by isomeme · · Score: 4, Insightful

      Seriously, for such an advanced species, they make very little sense.

      Yep. It's almost like they're, you know, alien or something.

      --
      When all you have is a hammer, everything looks like a skull.
    81. Re:Space Madness! by herriojr · · Score: 5, Interesting

      Why would they feel the need to "reveal" themselves to us? When biologists study wildlife, they try to stay as hidden as possible. Who's to say that we're not wildlife to them? And seriously, just like rogue biologists, there could be rogue aliens that try to get closer than they are supposed to.

    82. Re:Space Madness! by GameboyRMH · · Score: 1

      Do not fear the noodly appendage for it is good

      That's what she said!

      --
      "When information is power, privacy is freedom" - Jah-Wren Ryel
    83. Re:Space Madness! by naoursla · · Score: 1

      Oh, great. Now when he disappears his little "bout of madness" will be confirmed as reality. Now we can't touch him. Tentacle recalled.

    84. Re:Space Madness! by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Except when you get alien space herpes, an 'outbreak' usually means a xenomorph exploding out of your chest cavity. Try hiding THAT one from your girlfriend.

      No baby, it's just a rash... I swear!

    85. Re:Space Madness! by thermian · · Score: 1

      Or land their crates safely after traveling for billions of miles, or at least crash somewhere else but in the middle of nowhere, midwest USA.

      And to do so at the same time that the Airforce are trying out high altitude detection gear in the same place.

      Perhaps its because I'm from a different culture, but the very idea that it was anything but chinese whispers caused by some hicks not understanding military kit seems absurd to me.

      But then, people in the area happily proclaim that registered flights in and out of the base are UFOs, so really, I guess there's no point in arguing against that level of self delusion.

      Personally I believe 100% that extra terrestrial life exists, I just don't think they have ever come here.

      --
      A learning experience is one of those things that say, 'You know that thing you just did? Don't do that.' - D. Adams
    86. Re:Space Madness! by Doc+Ruby · · Score: 2, Insightful

      If the airline pilot were a fighter jet pilot who spent their career being briefed on top-secret fighter designs, because their job was to test them, then of course his saying that he'd been briefed on some alien aerospace tech would be credible, though of course still subject to debate. Not mere dismissal with an analogy that supports him.

      Especially since this particular pilot was indeed an astronaut, who not only tested America's most advanced aerospace research, but was actually out in space, where the aliens come from.

      And why do you think that the aliens he's saying are known to exist are too "stupid" to use camouflage? Maybe they don't mind being seen when they're seen. Maybe they use camouflage the rest of the time. Maybe they want to be seen. How can you pretend to know, and to be smarter than them when you know less than nothing about them?

      --

      --
      make install -not war

    87. Re:Space Madness! by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      LOLOL!

    88. Re:Space Madness! by sumdumass · · Score: 2, Informative

      It could, but this isn't the first time he has made these claims. He isn't the only person from that era either. Buzz Aldrin from the appolo 11 missions has made similar claims.

      I have heard others too. They attempt to hide their identities to not be retaliated on but they sound just like other astronauts who where in positions to know.

      This is the first time I have hear an astronaut claim Roswell was real though. The rest of what he said seems to be the same.

    89. Re:Space Madness! by Enki+X · · Score: 1

      For an incarnation of pure Chaos, spelling is not only irrelevant, but is contradictory!

      --
      On second thought, let's not go to the internet. 'Tis a silly place.
    90. Re:Space Madness! by unlametheweak · · Score: 1

      Let's also assume that they have different physics and that FTL travel is possible and routine.

      If "they" have different physics than us then they aren't from our universe. You'd not only be talking about intergalactic travel but inter-universe travel (assuming that there are things like parallel universes). And assuming these two things would be possible then one would also have to assume that their physics (that would control their being, like the strong force controls the atoms in our bodies) would be compatible with our physics. For example if these creatures lived in a one or two dimensional universe then how could they exist in a 3 dimensional universe?

    91. Re:Space Madness! by thermian · · Score: 1

      To any other race our planetary system would be a star, some gas giants, and a few tiny rocks that may or may not hold life.

      You do realise that the outer edge of our solar system is almost a light year away don't you? Anyone capable of even getting from the edge of the solar system to us in reasonable time (weeks/months) would be hundreds if not thousands of years ahead of us.
      As for crossing space from their system to ours, well, anyone able to do that would be well versed in not crashing in the american mid-west by the time they got here.

      --
      A learning experience is one of those things that say, 'You know that thing you just did? Don't do that.' - D. Adams
    92. Re:Space Madness! by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Seriously, for such an advanced species, they make very little sense.

      ... from our point of view. Why should they care about the Superbowl? Maybe they are far more interested in how to make proper Tinfoil hats.

    93. Re:Space Madness! by metlin · · Score: 1, Interesting

      Fantastic response.

      I can't wait for an idiot to come along and say something along the lines of, "Physics as we know it today" or some such rubbish.

    94. Re:Space Madness! by Chris+Burke · · Score: 1

      Personally, I find it a bit hard to believe that a civilization is smart enough to travel interstellar distances but too stupid to use basic camouflage.

      Uh, things that use "basic camouflage" can still be seen, it is just more difficult in some circumstances. UFOs are only seen occasionally, so if they exist and are aliens, perhaps they very much do use camouflage. I mean, FTL travel would require some pretty amazing advances in physics, but that's no reason to assume that if you can travel faster than light, you can also be invisible when flying around a planet at sub light speeds.

      --

      The enemies of Democracy are
    95. Re:Space Madness! by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Why would they need camouflage?

      If an alien showed up on TV right now...who'd believe him?

    96. Re:Space Madness! by MagdJTK · · Score: 1

      Put simply, Godel's Incompleteness Theorem states that whatever axioms (assumptions) you make, there will always be statements that are unprovable from those axioms. i.e. It is impossible to choose a set of axioms for which it is possible to prove every mathematical statement true or false.

      Essentially, given a set of assumptions, you can always find a theorem which does not contradict any axioms no matter whether it is true or false.

    97. Re:Space Madness! by LWATCDR · · Score: 1

      I have to disagree with you.
      He was a military combat pilot, a military test pilot, an Astronaut, and an Aerospace engineer.
      Not the same as an Airline pilot. If there where UFOs he is pretty high on the list of people that would probably know about it.

      As to camouflage. I would venture that an interstellar craft might be kind of hard to hide.

      That being said. I am sorry to say but I think he is very educated and intelligent person that is deluded.

      --
      See my blog http://ilovecookes.blogspot.com/ for light hearted technical information.
    98. Re:Space Madness! by megaditto · · Score: 1

      I am inserting best case interpretation of Goedel's, namely that alien brains are Turing-complete and don't make mistakes. And I claim that even for such "best case" scenario we will still miss some things.

      However, if such assumptions are incorrect, then it's even more cerain that intelligent beings cannot think of everything. Therefore, whether Goedel's theorems are applicable may be up for debate, but the fact that intelligent beings will miss SOME things is certain.

      --
      Obama likes poor people so much, he wants to make more of them.
    99. Re:Space Madness! by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      > (Score:5, Informative)
      Only on Slashdot.

    100. Re:Space Madness! by rozz · · Score: 2, Insightful

      Seriously, for such an advanced species, they make very little sense.

      oh really !?
      an advanced, smart species will act EXACTLY the way you describe above ... and landing over superbowl is actually the kind of thing that a complete retard with big boots will do.

      if you find a new civilization, you just cannot go in head-first like some sort of bush-junior-junior
      you would take your time and study the place thoroughly and do all possible experiments, as stealthy as possible ... if you wanna do some hands-on testing on a few specimens, you have to choose precisely the ones that noone will believe in case they remember something.
      and after you done your homework, you may wanna start to give them clues, like crop-circles or whatever stuff may seem strange for them and see how they react.
      and only after that you may try to approach them more directly, in a manner that you figured out would be the least disruptive for their civilization.

      have you ever thought that there may be many alien species which are studying as for centuries already but figured we are not ready for contact .. or that it's just not a good thing for them to do it?
      why would you think that alien species are so dying to see you asap?

      anyway, it is quite disturbing to see you got moderated +5 for the above commentary.

      --
      "There is nothing more frightful than ignorance in action." Johann Wolfgang von Goethe
    101. Re:Space Madness! by tftp · · Score: 1

      Or land their crates safely after traveling for billions of miles

      You answer your own question. After "traveling for billions of miles" aliens' piloting skills can become rusty. There is a huge difference between space navigation and trying visually estimate altitude, speed, and wind on the ground. Or maybe the landing equipment was malfunctioning... the fact is that you can't crash in space, and if you spend a lot of time in space that can make pilots lazy and over-confident.

    102. Re:Space Madness! by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      I bet I could theorize about 100 worlds of physics.

    103. Re:Space Madness! by Bohnanza · · Score: 1
      But step back from that philosophical stuff, and imagine that why would there be another species similar humans? I think people think aliens, they think human with different features with similar concepts of life, death, morals, social "revealing" ( would they even understand what that is? ) rather then something so foreign, we couldn't even begin to understand it, nor its motivations, if it has those?

      They seem human because the "aliens" are really humans from the far future who have traveled back in time.

      --

      -----

      Sorry, I'm only a 1336 h4x0r.

    104. Re:Space Madness! by neomunk · · Score: 4, Interesting

      Because we know every detail about every iota of matter and every detail about every energy transfer, right?

      I think you overestimate your fellow humans there, being that we've oh-so-barely scratched the surface of understanding the world around us. How long have we known about radio waves? Microwaves, particularly? How about Bose-Einstein condensates? Mmmhmmm. Seems to me that there is a WHOLE LOT goin on right under (and inside!) our noses that we BARELY are able to detect, let alone understand in any significant way. Don't get me started on complex systems, the nature of many-variabled interactions or even something so esoteric as 'consciousness'. We know next to nothing (and in some cases, I'd bet we know EXACTLY nothing) about a great many of the universe's more detailed workings. Even those bits we THINK we know oftentimes cannot be verified by lack of proper experimental apparatus.

      No offense, but your post kind of comes of as a QBASIC programmer scoffing at the guy writing in C because YOU see no reason anyone would need to use malloc(), as the 'physics' already has a solution for that, and anything beyond your comprehension is, of course, irrelevant.

      I'm not making any fiat declarations about aliens, programming languages or physics, just that you DON'T KNOW what you DON'T KNOW. Neither do I, but I (for one) am accepting of that. I am however very unaccepting of the resemblance to Donald Rumsfeld in my first sentence of this paragraph, that's just wrong.

    105. Re:Space Madness! by ericrost · · Score: 2, Informative

      If you've ever seen a roadkill deer sitting next to the road, and pictures of the supposedly mutilated cattle, its just how a dead thing looks after a few days of lying around given natural bacterial, insect, and scavenger activity. Discovery did a great job of debunking this one. I can't remember the show, but now that gas prices are high enough that roadkill doesn't get picked up regularly, just look at a deer the next time its been lying beside the road for 3 days. Exactly the same patterns.

    106. Re:Space Madness! by shutdown+-p+now · · Score: 0, Redundant

      Enjoy your entertainment while it lasts, for it will be brief now, mortal... the tentacle comes.

    107. Re:Space Madness! by el_coyotexdk · · Score: 1

      if they landed in the superbow, people still wouldnt believe it. with all the gimmics, stunts and adverts people would prolly thing that it was a giant coke advert or something ;)

    108. Re:Space Madness! by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      An airline pilot from the 1970s, no less.

    109. Re:Space Madness! by huckamania · · Score: 4, Interesting

      To paraphrase Einstein, the most incomprehensible thing about the universe is that we can comprehend it.

      Of course, he could be wrong about that. I think it is easy to prove that the universe has become more complex since the big bang (if you believe in it, that is). I also think that the universe is not finished becoming more complex. It may turn out that physics is trying to hit a moving target and that we may never have a Complete Theory of Everything, because Everything isn't finished yet.

      Something to think about...

    110. Re:Space Madness! by networkconsultant · · Score: 1

      But it actually is a mobius! Look I can see it eating itself :D Now if i could just find that Tortoise?

      -- In later news I'll be stuck in this rabbit hole a while.

    111. Re:Space Madness! by neomunk · · Score: 1

      I know, right! EVERYBODY knows Newton 'WON' physics back a few hundred years ago, why all the hoopla? I mean, WTF do these 'scientists' think they're doing with all their math and the rest of their lies? Someone should put a stop to this, as it's a pointless effort, being that "Physics as we know it today" is correct, so say metlin, so shall it be for all time.

    112. Re:Space Madness! by nasor · · Score: 1

      Perhaps more to the point, it's absurd to think that we could evaluate how likely an alien spaceship is to crash when we don't really have any idea what sort of technology it's based on. We don't have any idea how to build a ship that can go from orbit to the earth's surface and back without being very very obvious about its presence. If some alien technology exists that allows them to do that sort of thing, why do we assume that it's reliable or safe? Don't get me wrong, I doubt very much that we have been visited by aliens, but the specific argument that alien spaceships should never crash seems very silly to me.

    113. Re:Space Madness! by e03179 · · Score: 1

      Why would you waste any spare cycles on camo?

      Cause we've got nukes, bro.

      --
      -516
    114. Re:Space Madness! by blair1q · · Score: 1

      "They taste like pork when roasted. We should wait a few hundred years until there are enough of them that they won't mind our taking some home with us every year."

    115. Re:Space Madness! by LaskoVortex · · Score: 3, Insightful

      I think he just had a case of the senility.

      Probably. But the lack of evidence of aliens doesn't mean they don't exist. Notice that I said there is a lack of evidence of aliens. Read that again. Now again. Okay now you understand that I am not claiming any evidence of aliens nor that I have any experience with them. Think about that, hard. That's what I said. Now that I've said that, consider that if you were a highly sophisticated life form and could travel interstellar space, you might have a heightened sense of the maxim: don't fuck with the wildlife.

      --
      Just callin' it like I see it.
    116. Re:Space Madness! by neomunk · · Score: 1

      In the FACE of evidence that there are aliens you can make up any explanation to disregard the evidence and be completely credible.

    117. Re:Space Madness! by h.ross.perot · · Score: 1

      .. Or Gary Coleman.. ( pPPPPHHHHHTTTTTT!!!)

      --
      ... I'll have a Pan Galactic Gargle Blaster with a side of Plutonium Nyborg ...
    118. Re:Space Madness! by Beardo+the+Bearded · · Score: 1

      Let's also assume that they have different physics and that FTL travel is possible and routine.

      If "they" have different physics than us then they aren't from our universe.

      It was a Ringworld reference.

      "Our physics say that's impossible."

      "We have different physics."

      By the way, I don't think anyone has ever claimed ours is a 3-dimensional universe.

      --

      ---
      ECHELON is a government program to find words like bomb, jihad, plutonium, assassinate, and anarchy.
    119. Re:Space Madness! by default+luser · · Score: 1

      Personally, I find it a bit hard to believe that a civilization is smart enough to travel interstellar distances but too stupid to use basic camouflage.

      Camouflage from what?

      Aliens visiting us could see in completely different wavelengths. Honestly, the only reasion we see in the visible range is because it's the most intense light that passes through our atmosphere. If we had a different atmosphere or a different sun, you bet we'd see in a different range. It wouldn't be the first time that a major assumption was made about alien species.

      And speaking of major assumptions, what if the aliens can't see? Would they even conceive of the need for visual camouflage?

      --

      Man is the animal that laughs.
      And occasionally whores for Karma.

    120. Re:Space Madness! by rpj1288 · · Score: 1

      If you have the technology to handle the incredibly, stupidly huge energies needed to travel between the stars, all the missiles on Earth don't mean a thing to you.

      --
      Marvin knew: "Think of a number, any number..."
    121. Re:Space Madness! by jbeach · · Score: 1

      Well, the poor mortal husk dweller should be informed, no?

      --
      The Invisible Hand of the Free Market is what punches workers in the nuts.
    122. Re:Space Madness! by UCSCTek · · Score: 2, Interesting

      We do know practically all of the basic physics--the available particles and how they interact--up to a relatively high energy level. If there's "another world" "in the same space" as us, then it would have as building blocks either weakly-interactive particles or high-energy, likely unstable particles. Neither seems reasonable for supporting any kind of life, certainly nothing remotely similar to us.

      Within the Braneworld theories, I think you could have "parallel" universes in the sense that neighboring universes are lined up in space(the large-dimensional bulk, here). These could be separated by small distances (though what is small for the extra dimensions?). That's about the closest I can get to "world in the same space".

    123. Re:Space Madness! by Tablizer · · Score: 1

      Personally, I find it a bit hard to believe that a civilization is smart enough to travel interstellar distances but too stupid to use basic camouflage.

      Most of them perhaps do. However, like any large bureaucracy, there could be occasional slip-ups.
               

    124. Re:Space Madness! by Forge · · Score: 1

      Maybe they subscribe to something like the "Prime Directive". I.e. The real idea is to observe Earth life secretly and learn what they can.

      Then they had an accident and in order to avoid discovery by intelligent life, they crash landed in America.

      With that in mind which part of America would be the best choice for such avoidance? Why a Military base in the mid western desert areas.

      --
      --= Isn't it surprising how badly I spell ?
    125. Re:Space Madness! by ZackZero · · Score: 1

      Indeed. A lack of experimental evidence that points towards the idea of a "second Earth" existing in the same space as our own but "shunted" a bit off in a dimension beyond normal 3+1-space does an excellent job at precluding such a world's existence.

      Or, it could be that physics hasn't evolved enough yet to take such ideas into account. In that scenario... "Time will tell. Sooner or later, time will tell."

    126. Re:Space Madness! by neomunk · · Score: 1

      Yes, but see, on slashdot CUBICLE > SPACEVEHICLE (I'd have said mom's basement, but I like being right) so these scoffers are really an AUTHORITY on spacetravel, not like some pansy 'astronaut' who doesn't have a glorious 'Project Manager' or 'Senior Developer' to tell them how life works.

    127. Re:Space Madness! by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      But thats no excuse for space rudeness!

    128. Re:Space Madness! by everynerd · · Score: 1

      Madness? This is spaaaaaaaaaaaace-aahhhhhhhh!

    129. Re:Space Madness! by Ralph+Spoilsport · · Score: 2, Funny
      Actually I think it's just their odd little way of saying "Hello"...

      RS

      --
      Shoes for Industry. Shoes for the Dead.
    130. Re:Space Madness! by apt142 · · Score: 1

      We've had the automobile around for over a hundred years. It doesn't seem to stop every idiot and their cousin from colliding with stationary objects. I think there is a difference between technical malfunction and biological coordination/reasoning failures.

      That is to say, you can have all the high tech sophistication and innovation you want, but if a nimrod or klutz gets a hold of it, you can throw it out the window. Anybody who has ever had to deal with tech support can attest to that.

    131. Re:Space Madness! by Haeleth · · Score: 3, Insightful

      I hope that we're not alone. The idea that this is the only planet with sentient life anywhere in the Universe isn't just a waste of space. It chills me to the core to think that there's no Others out there.

      Right, but this is just religion, with aliens standing in for gods.

      Currently, the number of planets we know have ever sustained life is one. We can disprove the theory that Earth is unique by finding evidence of life on e.g. Mars, but that would just shift the goalposts -- we still wouldn't have any evidence from which to argue that life has ever existed outside our solar system, and we still wouldn't have any evidence from which to argue that sentient life has ever existed other than on Earth.

      Face it: we have no meaningful data at all on how widespread life is in the universe, and there is no realistic prospect that we will get it any time in the foreseeable future. What this means is that speculation on the existence of intelligent alien life can only be just that: speculation. You can make personal arguments about how unlikely you think it is that life is unique to Earth, and you can make emotive arguments about how silly you think it is to assume that humans are "special" or "unique", but the fact remains that we have no evidence either for or against this position.

    132. Re:Space Madness! by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      What they would NOT be is more than a footnote in the news the next day

      Dude... a boobie was front page news for like a month. All thanks to the Super Bowl.

    133. Re:Space Madness! by Tablizer · · Score: 2, Insightful

      [Roswell crash] Or land their crates safely after traveling for billions of miles

      The thing is that aliens may be subject to the same "laws" of economics that we are. Fancy technology does not mean one has a fancy budget. It may have been a cheap, worn-out saucer that nobody wanted to spend resources to replace. And maybe there were many successful flights that we never hear about. Just because one crashed does not necessarily mean they only visited once.
             

    134. Re:Space Madness! by neomunk · · Score: 1

      Something to think about...

      It sure is. I already think about things like that (but not EXACTLY that, so it's being added to the thought-mill), but only as an intellectual exercise. I fully expect (intend?) to be dead by the time we came up with even the most basic 'metatheory of everything' that had the ability to compensate for changes in the laws of physics themselves.

      Great crazy-maker though, Cthulhu would be proud! :-D

    135. Re:Space Madness! by jeebusroxors · · Score: 1

      AC, do you like movies about gladiators?

    136. Re:Space Madness! by Wooky_linuxer · · Score: 5, Funny

      You mean you would believe Bush if he went on TV to say he was anally probed by aliens, which during the process told him there were WMD in Iraq?

      --
      Where is that guy who'd die defending what I had to say when I need him?
    137. Re:Space Madness! by Toby_Tyke · · Score: 2, Insightful

      Just to establish, up front, that I do NOT believe aliens have visited earth. But, supposing they do:

      If you were an alien, where would you land your craft? In the middle of nowhere, where there is no one around to mess with you or your stuff, or in the right in the middle of Central Park, where the Bloods or the Crips might gank you and jack your ride?

      Why, exactly, would they care whether we knew about them or not? Suppose that proof is found that aliens exist. They have the technology to cross interstellar distances, so it's a fair bet that they are massively more advanced than us. What are we gonna do about it? I'm pretty sure whales are aware that humans exist, but there's fuck all they can do to stop the Japanese whaling fleet.

      --
      "I realise this is not a very popular opinion but it's the truth, and there for needs to be said" -Bill Hicks
    138. Re:Space Madness! by Tablizer · · Score: 1

      Why not land in the middle of the superbowl? What if they deemed our civilization was not secure enough for open contact. What are the odds that enough scared people with the means of launching a missle would be interested in doing so out of fear.

      Zlerg: "We come in peace and mean you no harm."

      M.E. Farmer: "Yeah, that's what Boosh said also!"

      *Bonk* *Bonk* *Clank* *BONK!*
         

    139. Re:Space Madness! by sir+fer · · Score: 1

      That's ridiculous. That's like saying an airline pilot knows about the latest top secret fighter plane designs.

      What a ridiculous comparison. What the astronaut said and what you said bear no relation. Plenty of pilots have seen UFOs too and this includes one I have spoken to. He didn't report it as it is well known in the piloting trade that a UFO report will get you grounded with little chance of returning to the air.

      --
      Debian FTW ;o)
    140. Re:Space Madness! by Kenshin · · Score: 1

      ...or in the right in the middle of Central Park, where the Bloods or the Crips might gank you and jack your ride?

      Gangstaz in Space! Make that into a movie, and you'll make millions!

      --

      Does it make you happy you're so strange?

    141. Re:Space Madness! by strawberryutopia · · Score: 3, Insightful

      It's only the teasers that we get to see on Earth. These are usually rich kids with nothing to do. They cruise around looking for level 5 planets and buzz them, meaning that they find some isolated spot with very few people around, then land right by some poor unsuspecting soul whom no one's going to believe and then strut up and down in front of him wearing silly antennas on their head and making beep beep noises.

      Advanced species know that Earth is mostly harmless, so they tend not to bother with it.

      --
      I'm a leaf on the wind, watch how I soar...
      -Lucy-
    142. Re:Space Madness! by vux984 · · Score: 5, Insightful

      If you have the technology to handle the incredibly, stupidly huge energies needed to travel between the stars, all the missiles on Earth don't mean a thing to you.

      I disagree. A modern supersonic F-22 Raptor Fighter Jet armed with missiles, bombs, 20mm rotary canon, etc is orders of magnitude beyond say, a 1000 year old trebuchet. The jet utterly dominates and controls every aspect of the engagement... its just absurd to contemplate such a 'battle'.

      Yet even so, if the pilot were to land the jet within range of the trebuchet to say hi to the locals, a barrage of 300lb rocks crashing into it is still going to break it.

      Point is: just because something is fantastically advanced technology doesn't automatically mean it can't be smashed by a big rock.

    143. Re:Space Madness! by Al+Al+Cool+J · · Score: 4, Insightful

      1. There's also the possibility that they are messing with us. I can see benefits to a first contact scenario in which you fake a crash and come off looking all helpless, and a lot less scary. If I can see the benefits, then so too might alien-thinking aliens. It amazes me how many intelligent rational people will implicitly assert that aliens don't exist unless they behave like humans would expect them too. ("aliens can't be real because if they were then they would surely be doing _____")

      2. There was a documentary done a while back that made a very good case for cattle mutiliation being a government black op to monitor radiation absorption levels in areas near where secret nuclear testing and uranium mining has been done. Apparently the tissue (lips, anus) which are most frequently removed from mutilated cattle are the ones that also provide good indication of radiation absorption.

      3. See my rant in point 1. Aliens look alien. Aliens think alien. You can't assess their likelihood of existing based on a priori assumptions about what you expect their behavior should be.

      4. That's a given

    144. Re:Space Madness! by Joebert · · Score: 1

      Just out of curiosity, did her adams apple bounce when she said it ?

      --
      Wanna fight ? Bend over, stick your head up your ass, and fight for air.
    145. Re:Space Madness! by Joebert · · Score: 1

      I find it a bit hard to believe that a civilization is smart enough to travel interstellar distances but too stupid to use basic camouflage.

      It's a good thing nobody thought of that when the Brittish were comming.

      --
      Wanna fight ? Bend over, stick your head up your ass, and fight for air.
    146. Re:Space Madness! by AmigaMMC · · Score: 1

      >too stupid to use basic camouflage. You are assuming that: 1) They care about not being seen 2) They did not actually plan to contact someone "in charge" Not sure what stupidity has to do with this but I guess you're thinking like a human ;-) Even dismissing 99.9% of the conspiracy theory, I'm a lot more likely to believe an extra astronaut than the US government, on any issue. As for the airline pilot example, it doesn't hold water. Mitchell was an astronaut who worked for NASA and had insight into certain classified activities (and pretty much every astronaut back then was an ex or an active military pilot. Mitchell was a US Navy pilot, also a fighter trainer, with a degree in astronautical engineering. Definitely not an idiot), airline pilots are most definitely not allowed any insight into government classified activities.

    147. Re:Space Madness! by tftp · · Score: 1

      For example if these creatures lived in a one or two dimensional universe then how could they exist in a 3 dimensional universe?

      True, but we don't need to discuss this specific case. It's far more interesting to see how a 3D creature can move from his 3D universe into a neighboring 3D universe. We can, of course, always say that there is no such thing as multiple universes, but our opinion is just as valid as a 2D flatlander's opinion that his sheet of paper is the only one in existence - even when we can see that his sheet is #42 in the ream.

    148. Re:Space Madness! by apt142 · · Score: 1

      What stupidity would be required? Again, imagine you're an alien. You know these inferior beings represent no threat to you at all. Likewise, you know their civilization will deny your existence. Why, then, would you waste any spare cycles on camo?

      You sir, just described an SEP Field.

    149. Re:Space Madness! by MadnessASAP · · Score: 1

      Your wrong man, I know this smart guy he got like a Phd and shit and he syas that that it could be possible if it's spinnig the other way or sumthing like that its all quantnum n shit man dont argue with me cause im smart and hes smart and wed pwn u luser.

      But yes I was about to say the same thing but you beat me, physics does have a lot of things to say about our fanciful notions.

      --
      I may agree with what you say, but I will defend to the death your right to face the consequences of saying it.
    150. Re:Space Madness! by myowntrueself · · Score: 1

      If aliens were to land in the middle of the Superbowl, either:

      My limited understanding of American Football is that if aliens were to land in the middle of Superbowl,
      chances are very high that it would be during one of the many 'time-outs' and that the home audience would see nothing as they would be viewing adverts while the in-stadium audience would be very glad to see something *actually* happening.

      Or am I way off the mark with respect to how American Football actually operates at this level?

      --
      In the free world the media isn't government run; the government is media run.
    151. Re:Space Madness! by edalytical · · Score: 1

      ight in the middle of Central Park, where the Bloods or the Crips might gank you and jack your ride?

      Nonsense the Bloods and Crips are West Coast gangs. Thus nowhere near Central Park. On the other hand, landing in the middle of nowhere is risky. You wouldn't want some redneck with a shotgun confusing the situation for an Intergalactic Skeet Shoot.

      --
      Win a signed Stephen Carpenter ESP Guitar from the Deftones: http://def-tag.com/?r=0008781
    152. Re:Space Madness! by Opportunist · · Score: 4, Funny

      Hmm... possible.

      Imagine we found some extrasolar planet where the females all look like little girls in school uniforms and the males like tentacle monsters... I bet Japan would be developing the FTL drive within a decade.

      Maybe it's similar for aliens.

      --
      We used to have a Bill of Rights. Now, with the rights gone, all we have left is the bill.
    153. Re:Space Madness! by myth_of_sisyphus · · Score: 2, Informative

      Didn't you hear?

        "We've reached the limits of what recto-probing can teach us."

      -Kang from the Simpsons. Or Kodos. I'm not sure.

    154. Re:Space Madness! by Beardo+the+Bearded · · Score: 1

      Right, but this is just religion, with aliens standing in for gods.

      Currently, the number of planets we know have ever sustained life is one. We can disprove the theory that Earth is unique by finding evidence of life on e.g. Mars, but that would just shift the goalposts -- we still wouldn't have any evidence from which to argue that life has ever existed outside our solar system, and we still wouldn't have any evidence from which to argue that sentient life has ever existed other than on Earth.

      Face it: we have no meaningful data at all on how widespread life is in the universe, and there is no realistic prospect that we will get it any time in the foreseeable future. What this means is that speculation on the existence of intelligent alien life can only be just that: speculation. You can make personal arguments about how unlikely you think it is that life is unique to Earth, and you can make emotive arguments about how silly you think it is to assume that humans are "special" or "unique", but the fact remains that we have no evidence either for or against this position.

      I've never considered that in quite that way, and you're right.

      There's someone, or something, out there. It's watching us and judging us. We've never seen whatever it is, and there's no proof. There are a few anecdotes from random people. That's it.

      There's no evidence either for or against, and taking a position on either side makes the argument appear valid, when in fact there isn't a trace of validity to the claims made.

      --

      ---
      ECHELON is a government program to find words like bomb, jihad, plutonium, assassinate, and anarchy.
    155. Re:Space Madness! by Opportunist · · Score: 1

      Well, something bounced... but I never heard them being called "adam's apples". Even though, well, it would make sense, considering Adam certainly loved playing with them and also considering how those bazongas are treated today on TV like they're sin itself...

      --
      We used to have a Bill of Rights. Now, with the rights gone, all we have left is the bill.
    156. Re:Space Madness! by sir+fer · · Score: 1, Insightful

      We know next to nothing (and in some cases, I'd bet we know EXACTLY nothing) about a great many of the universe's more detailed workings.

      Thanks Captain Obvious but I think you're projecting there. All YOU can be sure of is that YOU know nothing and that the knowledge of others is beyond your knowledge. Humans understand a lot more than you realise and I can tell how little you realise by the tone of your post and it's inappropriate and overly simplistic analogies.

      --
      Debian FTW ;o)
    157. Re:Space Madness! by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      >On a wild guess, I'd say physics.

      bullshit, physicists knows nothing about mostly everything. They just give names to things and then pretent they have the answers. i.e Gravity...they have no fucking idea what it is.

    158. Re:Space Madness! by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      You had me convinced until I saw "Superbowl finals" the Superbowl IS the final! ALIEN! ALIEN ALIEN ALIEN!

    159. Re:Space Madness! by Opportunist · · Score: 1

      Well, I would probe Bush. Hell, I'd pay to rip him a new one, given half a chance.

      But then again, I'm not an alien (or rather, only in the definition of the INS) and his crackpot politics affect me, so my view is biased.

      --
      We used to have a Bill of Rights. Now, with the rights gone, all we have left is the bill.
    160. Re:Space Madness! by uglydog · · Score: 1

      Personally, I find it a bit hard to believe that a civilization is smart enough to travel interstellar distances but too stupid to use basic camouflage.

      hey, everyone screws up once in a while. maybe they forgot to hit the cloaking button

    161. Re:Space Madness! by roman_mir · · Score: 1

      Read Solaris by Lem (don't watch the terrible Hollywood adaptation, even the USSR version is better.)

      Lem is imagining a contact between humans and something intelligent but so inhumane, that its motivations are completely beyond our reach (the intelligent 'alive' ocean, which can even control the motion of its planet.) The story is about humans trying to understand the 'ocean' and the 'ocean' trying to understand the humans and what comes out of it (and it is NOT about George Clooney's buttocks.)

    162. Re:Space Madness! by sjf · · Score: 1

      he is pretty high on the list of people that would probably know about it

      Especially if contact had been established before the mission. Presumably if that were the case, he would need to be forewarned about prior claims to the moon's cheese.

      My personal opinion is that in all likelihood, earth is by no means unusual, life is probably rampant throughout the universe, but that's not to say anyone has, or will, visit us on earth: I agree, he's gone off the rails.

    163. Re:Space Madness! by roman_mir · · Score: 1

      I would be extremely surprised if we ever, I mean ever were able to contact any other intelligent civilization out there. I fully expect that humans will never come into contact with anything more intelligent than a cat out there.

    164. Re:Space Madness! by AmigaMMC · · Score: 3, Funny
      >doesn't mean the have the same notions of importance as we as human being do

      Yeah we do!

      >Perhaps aliens [...] have never heard of radio waves

      Yeah we have.

      Oops! I said too much!

    165. Re:Space Madness! by Guppy06 · · Score: 1

      "Why not land in the middle of the superbowl? What if they deemed our civilization was not secure enough for open contact."

      Why would they care?

      "What are the odds that enough scared people with the means of launching a missle would be interested in doing so out of fear. Pre-emptive strike ring any bells?"

      "Oh no, the natives are coming at us with their spears."

      "Better man the Browning, then."

      We're talking about beings that are capable of interstellar travel, at the very least. We have an incredibly difficult time getting out of our own gravity well, while they can apparently pull it off after getting here in the first place (round trips would not have happened if the moon had surface gravity similar to our own). Even if they evolved in such a way that they didn't develop whiz-bang weaponry, they're always capable of getting out of the way. Once they get back to LEO, there's nothing we can do beyond flip them off and insult their mothers.

      What weapons do we have that don't involve slinging chunks of stuff at our target, or at least in a non-ballistic manner? How many more orders of magnitude slower would these weapons systems be compared to what they'd have to deal with one way or the other on the way here?

    166. Re:Space Madness! by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Unless you consider the most likely explanation:

      Those that crashed their spaceships here are the alien equivalent of drunken moonshine-swigging hicks. Just the kind of aliens that would steal their friends spaceship and make donuts on some backwards ass planet and think its funny to stick thing up the butts of the poor innocent inhabitants.

    167. Re:Space Madness! by snowgirl · · Score: 1

      Seriously, for such an advanced species, they make very little sense.

      Not if you watch Star Trek. Don't you know the prime directive? They're forbidden from actually interacting with us, because we're not ready for their technology yet.

      WE need to get back to interstellar travel before Xenu the XXXXXIVI will let us back into the Federation. Oh and get rid of all our thetons...

      --
      WARNING! This girl exceeds the MAXIMUM SAFE standards established by the FDA for BRATTINESS
    168. Re:Space Madness! by zoips · · Score: 1

      The Screaming Vacuum?

    169. Re:Space Madness! by iplayfast · · Score: 1

      That's what he said!

    170. Re:Space Madness! by hidannik · · Score: 1

      I think they're teasers. Alien college kids out for a lark, illegally landing on planets that haven't made interstellar contact yet, finding some idiot no one's ever going to believe, and then performing "fun experiments" on them.

      Thanks to Douglas Adams for this one.

      Hans

    171. Re:Space Madness! by Opportunist · · Score: 1

      Self defense. Like spelling Hatsur wrong...

      --
      We used to have a Bill of Rights. Now, with the rights gone, all we have left is the bill.
    172. Re:Space Madness! by snowgirl · · Score: 1

      Mutilated cattle may be an entirely different phenomenon than aliens (see el chupacabra, for instance, for a weirder, but alternate explanation), but as far as anally-probed people -- well, again, if you were going to anally probe people, would you anally probe the President or some celebrity or would you pick some poor schmuck whom no one is ever going to believe?

      Just a question, but wouldn't it be "la chupacabra"... I looked that the Spanish Wikipedia article but it looks like they keep using "el Chupacabras", and at least once use "los Chupacabras"... I figure, there's no real way to tell. >_

      --
      WARNING! This girl exceeds the MAXIMUM SAFE standards established by the FDA for BRATTINESS
    173. Re:Space Madness! by RealGrouchy · · Score: 1

      social "revealing" ( would they even understand what that is? )

      I dunno. Do they get "Extreme Makeover: Social Edition" on their planet?

      - RG>

      --
      Hey pal, this isn't a pleasantforest, so don't waste my time with pleasantries!
    174. Re:Space Madness! by Svartalf · · Score: 1

      Heh... "Physics"...

      Explain the physics of quantum mechanics, something we use as a model to define the technology of today with, to someone from the 10th century. What we do now is effectively sorcery or "godlike" in nature compared to the "physics" of the day.

      In the end, Physics is a convenient model that partially describes how the world REALLY works.

      --
      I am not merely a "consumer" or a "taxpayer". I am a Citizen of the State of Texas
    175. Re:Space Madness! by snowgirl · · Score: 1

      Physics, as we understand it.

          That's not to say there isn't a whole world of physics that we haven't even begun to theorize about, much less understand.

      Matter by definition is composed of "fermions" which means something where two of them cannot have the same quantum state at the same time. Thus, any two fermions cannot co-exist together in the same space at the same time. This includes neutrinos... which are just so small and low-reactive that they pass through our bodies strategically missing everything in our body.

      In fact, there are a billion of things that occupy the same space as we do, much of which we cannot sense, these are called "bosons". Light, presumably gravity, and the strong force.

      So, if we were to find some miraculous new universe parallel to ours... that world would not be "matter".

      --
      WARNING! This girl exceeds the MAXIMUM SAFE standards established by the FDA for BRATTINESS
    176. Re:Space Madness! by thermian · · Score: 1

      you can have all the high tech sophistication and innovation you want, but if a nimrod or klutz gets a hold of it, you can throw it out the window. Anybody who has ever had to deal with tech support can attest to that.

      I did six months before I lost it down the phone over a fuckwit who refused to accept he had caps lock on after 20 minutes and three password resets. Never before had I actually walked out of a job in the middle of a shift.

      While I see your point, I doubt individuals with such a low level of savvy would be allowed to steer an interstellar ship.

      --
      A learning experience is one of those things that say, 'You know that thing you just did? Don't do that.' - D. Adams
    177. Re:Space Madness! by Grishnakh · · Score: 3, Insightful

      Currently, the number of planets we know have ever sustained life is one.

      So what? We're so primitive that I can count on two hands the total number of planets that we can actually see, and they're all orbiting the same star, one of billions in this galaxy (which is one of thousands of galaxies that we can currently see). Only in the past decade have we even been able to detect exosolar planets, and even then we can only detect them by their effects on their host stars, not by direct observation (so we can only detect the massive gas giants, not the small rocky planets more likely to have life like ours). Making any assumptions based on our observations of the universe is outright idiocy in my opinion, since we know so little.

      Face it: we have no meaningful data at all on how widespread life is in the universe, and there is no realistic prospect that we will get it any time in the foreseeable future. What this means is that speculation on the existence of intelligent alien life can only be just that: speculation.

      True, but the vastness of the universe indicates that it's extremely likely that other life exists out there. The idea that, out of probably quadrillions of planets out there, there is no other life but that on Earth, seems rather silly to me. Yes, it's just speculation, but given the choice between saying 1) it's likely we're the only planet with life, or 2) it's likely that we're NOT the only planet with life, choice #2 is the only one that makes any sense. It's possible #1 is true, but it's far less likely than #2.

      and you can make emotive arguments about how silly you think it is to assume that humans are "special" or "unique"

      There's no emotion involved here. It's pure numbers and probability. If there's 1E12 stars out there that we know of alone based on our primitive astronomy, and an unknown number of planets in the "habitable zone" around those stars, what are the chances that life never evolved on other worlds? Given that we've already shown experimentally how cell-like structures can spontaneously evolve given the right mixture of materials, pressure, and temperature (normally seen on planets in this habitable zone), it seems pretty obvious that the chances are extremely low that we're the only world to have any life. And that's just assuming that our hydrocarbon-based life is the only viable kind, instead of considering totally alien lifeforms which may evolve in totally different environments.

    178. Re:Space Madness! by ChaoticLimbs · · Score: 2, Insightful

      Agreed. Nuclear weapons can produce million degree plasma. No material fails to vaporize. Aliens will still be vulnerable to weapons like nukes because they will be constrained by the limitations of physical matter. Oh, you say, aliens will make their ships out of pure energy! Well, to that I would say "that's stupid" and move on, because energy fields don't DO certain things that materials do. Materials have limits. I think there's an upper boundary to technology, called the Laws of Physics, which may be refined, clarified, but won't be broken outright.

    179. Re:Space Madness! by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Sounds looney to me

    180. Re:Space Madness! by CrimsonAvenger · · Score: 2, Funny

      Or am I way off the mark with respect to how American Football actually operates at this level?

      You're way off the mark. Timeouts are when you get more beer and snacks - you're not looking for anything to happen then.

      And if it DID happen during a timeout, then as soon as the timeout were over the refs would no doubt rule against the team whose colours most resembled the alien skintones, for too many players on the field.

      --

      "I do not agree with what you say, but I will defend to the death your right to say it"
    181. Re:Space Madness! by jollyreaper · · Score: 3, Interesting

      But step back from that philosophical stuff, and imagine that why would there be another species similar humans? I think people think aliens, they think human with different features with similar concepts of life, death, morals, social "revealing" ( would they even understand what that is? ) rather then something so foreign, we couldn't even begin to understand it, nor its motivations, if it has those?

      Sci fi is fun because we graft human behavior on something different, and its fun for us to say ooh look they are just like us. But in the end it is just the human ego projection our emotions on something else.

      The other reason for this is because it is astonishingly hard to tell a good story with alien characters who have no common ground with humans. We tell human-centric stories with human aliens because we can connect on an emotional level, so that's where we get Spock caught between the human and Vulcan cultures, all that angst. It's still not even remotely plausible that alien humanoids would evolve to look like us and be like us right down to interbreeding but there ya go. The only real story you can tell with true aliens is just how frickin' alien they are. The Borg are fairly alien. We can't relate to them on a cultural or personal level, we can only relate to them as competing lifeforms, the only common points are a desire for food, shelter, and procreation, and we'd still disagree about the relative definitions of those things. And true aliens would be even more alien than the Borg.

      Supposing that we're talking about aliens coming to Earth, that excludes all the potential aliens who have no desire to go mucking about in the universe, we're talking aliens with some sort of curiosity, be it scientific, religious, or philosophical (or something else we cannot fathom) who want to go out and explore. Since they're paying attention to us, we're of interest on some level, but were we the point of the mission or just an interesting footnote? How do they perceive the world, how do they interpret it? One hypothetical alien I came up with was essentially a plant-like organism. It consisted of a mass of tendrils, like a mass of tentacles with no central body. These aliens constructed walking scaffolds so that they could move across the landscape. Their natural thought process is complex but moves at a far slower rate than ours so to them the world is a blur. Not normally a problem because they like taking their time to think things through. But in times of emergency, they need to react quickly, instinctively, so they grow an emergency brain that can react to danger. To their own perception, the world is spinning by and then suddenly they are somewhere else. They then review the memories of the emergency brain to see what has happened, the threat encountered and how their body reacted. These plants have the ability to finely control their own physiology and can actually adapt their genetic code on the fly. So while in terran species evolution takes place between generations, with these aliens there is no difference between generations. Genetic material is traded between individuals, new individuals can bud off at any time, and the only death comes from accident. Memories are encoded just like genetic material and can be traded so there is not quite a group mind but a universally shared experience. An individual could go off and have an adventure far away, come back with the unique experiences to share and everyone can now have the same memory of experiences as that individual.

      So right there is an example of an alien we can imagine that humans cannot talk with, only correspond through a written medium. And even at that, the alien grasp of reality is so different from ours, common points of experience and metaphor become troublesome. And even allowing for that level of communication is a huge reach when thinking about truly alien aliens.

      --
      Kwisatz Haderach
      Sell the spice to CHOAM
      This Mahdi took Shaddam's Throne
    182. Re:Space Madness! by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Actually the Bloods are pretty big on the east coast these days :(

      Not in Central Park though. I'm guessing the OP hasn't set foot in Manhattan in a long time.

    183. Re:Space Madness! by laddiebuck · · Score: 2, Informative

      The mods know more than we think!

    184. Re:Space Madness! by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1, Insightful

      If you were an alien, where would you land your craft? In the middle of nowhere, where there is no one around to mess with you or your stuff, or in the right in the middle of Central Park, where the Bloods or the Crips might gank you and jack your ride?

      I think the point the OP is trying to make is that the aliens always, mysteriously land in the US. You're continuing the assumption made by most in your country that it is the centre of the world and an alien couldn't possibly want to land anywhere else.

      If you really want to think like an alien, you'd realise they don't give a fuck about nations and their boundaries. The US is too populated a country to land in, I'd go for north Canada, Russia, the Australian outback, African desert or somewhere like that.

      [...] as far as anally-probed people -- well, again, if you were going to anally probe people, would you anally probe the President or some celebrity or would you pick some poor schmuck whom no one is ever going to believe?

      They're probably just Teasers. :)

    185. Re:Space Madness! by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      It is not I who am CRAZY, it is I who am MAD!

    186. Re:Space Madness! by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      What if they want to be seen?

    187. Re:Space Madness! by lewp · · Score: 1

      Every time something good happens to me, you say it's some kind of madness, or I'm drunk, or I ate too much candy.

      --
      Game... blouses.
    188. Re:Space Madness! by donkeyoverlord · · Score: 1, Flamebait

      Like how rape is the same as saying "hello" in Japan.

    189. Re:Space Madness! by unlametheweak · · Score: 1

      Sorry mate, I had no idea you had a Slashdot account.

    190. Re:Space Madness! by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Try reading past the second sentence of a wikipedia article for once. And while you are at it, look up what sociology actually means before using it.

    191. Re:Space Madness! by WindBourne · · Score: 1

      Who says that they are not using camouflage? For all we know, we constantly surrounded by ships all time. In addition, they may have CHOSEN to reveal selves to see our reactions, or just to pick up test subjects. In light of supposed different treatments, I would guess that there are different species, iff aliens are real.

      --
      I prefer the "u" in honour as it seems to be missing these days.
    192. Re:Space Madness! by scaryjohn · · Score: 1

      I hope that we're not alone. The idea that this is the only planet with sentient life anywhere in the Universe isn't just a waste of space.

      Dad! Is that you? Call me on the shortwave.

      Love,
      Ellie

      --
      One might ask the same about birds. What ARE birds? We just don't know.
    193. Re:Space Madness! by DarkOx · · Score: 1

      well yea, that's what they'd want you to think!

      --
      Repeal the 17th Amendment TODAY! Also Please Read http://www.gnu.org/philosophy/right-to-read.html
    194. Re:Space Madness! by tyrione · · Score: 1

      That's ridiculous. That's like saying an airline pilot knows about the latest top secret fighter plane designs. Personally, I find it a bit hard to believe that a civilization is smart enough to travel interstellar distances but too stupid to use basic camouflage.

      Raise your hand all you airline pilots with B.S. Aeronautical Engineering (M.E) and the a PhD in it. Come out now. Don't be shy. We're all waiting on the millions of you.

      Not to piss in your wheaties too harshly, but TOP SECRET space craft design isn't exactly going to go over this PhD's head and I'm sure he's kept abreast on Aerodynamics and the material composition going into such areas. It's something you do once you've invested an entire career in it.

    195. Re:Space Madness! by SirLoadALot · · Score: 1

      But our materials and systems will be a lot more vulnerable than theirs. We have to get the nuke close enough to even have a chance to try it. Our current missile tech will probably be quite a joke to anyone capable of FTL. And ICBM launches are easily detected by satellite with current technology.

    196. Re:Space Madness! by ari_j · · Score: 1

      That's no excuse for space rudeness!

    197. Re:Space Madness! by PalmHair · · Score: 1

      Oh, please don't tell me there's another disease that's spread through anal probes!

    198. Re:Space Madness! by Plutonite · · Score: 2, Interesting

      Because logic is objective, and for presumably sentient beings, universal.

    199. Re:Space Madness! by supernova_hq · · Score: 1

      How in gods name did this get modded informative?!?!?

    200. Re:Space Madness! by aliquis · · Score: 1

      So what's you're saying is that just because we can't see them doesn't mean they aren't here!?! Then he must be correct and Jesus was probably one with broken camouflage.

    201. Re:Space Madness! by AmigaMMC · · Score: 1

      True, but you're assuming that the next step is not inventing unbreakable material.

    202. Re:Space Madness! by aliquis · · Score: 1

      Maybe all the secret plane prototypes confused them so they crashed!?!

    203. Re:Space Madness! by Mark+J+Tilford · · Score: 1

      No; every set of axioms strong enough to prove all primitive recursive truths will either prove some false statement or fail to prove some true statement.

      There are complete systems; the integers with addition, and (IIRC) the real numbers under addition and multiplication.

      --
      -----------
      100% pure freak
    204. Re:Space Madness! by HTH+NE1 · · Score: 1

      Personally, I find it a bit hard to believe that a civilization is smart enough to travel interstellar distances but too stupid to use basic camouflage.

      That would surely depend on their home world's peculiarities, horticulturally speaking. For example, consider the Shaltanacs of the planet Broop Kidron Thirteen and the mauve-y shade of pinky russet of their joopleberry shrubs, starships, and first-contact uniforms.

      --
      Oh, say does that Star-Spangled Banner entwine / The myrtle of Venus with Bacchus's vine?
    205. Re:Space Madness! by Steauengeglase · · Score: 1

      "Would you NOT brief said Astronauts beforehand? No procedures, no protocol, not even a heads-up? Really?"

      I seem to recall that NASA has a history of not briefing astronauts concerning equipment malfunctions for fear that they may freak out and jeopardize their life/mission.

    206. Re:Space Madness! by Zaiff+Urgulbunger · · Score: 1

      Why not land in the middle of the Superbowl finals, now THAT's revealing!

      It's important to note that pretty much the entire planted does not watch your Super Bowl... what it is! :D

    207. Re:Space Madness! by Laserwulf · · Score: 1

      Homer: What are you spraying me with?
      Kodos: Rum! So no one will believe your story.

      --
      "Make cyberlove, not cyberwar!" -Khaed(544779)
    208. Re:Space Madness! by Zaiff+Urgulbunger · · Score: 1

      obviously, if I had written "planet" rather than "planted", then that would've made more sense! Honestly, /. should get a preview button or something!! ;)

    209. Re:Space Madness! by lgw · · Score: 2, Interesting

      And of course Poul Anderson's High Crudase, or the silly movie of the same name, take this to an entertaining extreme. Given circumstances that are only midly far-fetched, a bunch of guys with swords could end up carjacking your space ship, flying back to your cities, and attacking them with trebuchets! It pays not to be too cocky.

      --
      Socialism: a lie told by totalitarians and believed by fools.
    210. Re:Space Madness! by RockWolf · · Score: 1

      What, from not cleaning the probe properly? Can't be THAT advanced...

      --
      February 9th, 2009 8:55pm: Slashdot becomes self-aware.
    211. Re:Space Madness! by Rob+Kaper · · Score: 1

      Just interesting stuff, but we have to remember to stop grafting our humanism on top of alien things we do not understand.

      It's pointless to look for patterns we don't understand the least bit or don't even recognise. It makes sense to only look at whatever it is we do claim to understand at least a bit, from biology to chemistry to physics to sociology. Of course we are looking for life similar to our own (not just human, all of earth's lifeforms), how can we know if we found something?

    212. Re:Space Madness! by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      "Time will tell. Sooner or later, time will tell."

      Thank you, Professor Einstein.

    213. Re:Space Madness! by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      "Claim your mortal husk"? Now THAT's a hentai one-liner if I ever read one.

    214. Re:Space Madness! by mysticgoat · · Score: 1

      Good point. Having probably come a long way to get here, they would probably want to protect their ride back home.

    215. Re:Space Madness! by w0mprat · · Score: 1

      Are you implying they'll vanish in a puff of cognitive dissonance?

      Nope your wrong...

      1. moonwalker say alien are real 2. but moonwalker is stooge who never went to teh moon

      No problem:

      http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Doublethink

      "Doublethink is the act of simultaneously accepting two mutually contradictory beliefs. ..."

      --
      After logging in slashdot still does not take you back to the page you were on. It's been that way for 20 years.
    216. Re:Space Madness! by tbischel · · Score: 1

      "Personally, I find it a bit hard to believe that a civilization is smart enough to travel interstellar distances but too stupid to use basic camouflage"

      Oh believe me, they are quite good.

    217. Re:Space Madness! by Agripa · · Score: 1

      Harry Turtledove's "The Road not Taken" comes to mind:

      http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Road_Not_Taken_(short_story)

    218. Re:Space Madness! by vux984 · · Score: 1

      But our materials and systems will be a lot more vulnerable than theirs. We have to get the nuke close enough to even have a chance to try it. Our current missile tech will probably be quite a joke to anyone capable of FTL. And ICBM launches are easily detected by satellite with current technology.

      1) A primitive martian with a rock would have little trouble dispatching our state of the art mars rovers. Yet -we- are the ones capable of launching interplanetary probes, while my hypothetical martian is one step up from cave-martian.

      And his friend would have just finished telling him that "our rock tech would be quite a joke to anyone capabe of interplanetary flight..." And he'd be right... but the mars rover simply wasn't built to withstand it.

      2) A 1000 year old trebuchet is quite a joke to a modern military too, but a jet on a landing strip will still be effectively disabled by a few falling 300lb chunks of rock. And once its on the ground, there is sweet-f***-all they are going to be able to do about it between detecting the rock being launched and it smashing into the plane.

      3) Even today we could easily develop defense systems to deal with trebuchet attacks while on the ground, but we don't have any in place on any of our aircraft. It wouldn't be worth the cost, and it would affect the weight (which would affect the range, etc, etc, etc)

      So just because aliens might have the technology to detect, and intercept a nuclear attack launched at their ship after it landed at the superbowl doesn't mean such a system will be installed or active, perhaps it wouldn't even make sense for them to have installed one even if they had considered the possibility. Perhaps the extra energy to transport a nuclear attack defense system accross intersteller distances vs the liklihood of actually needing it when they arrived was deemed sufficiently small. Or perhaps when they launched the craft, humans were still mucking around with steam engines and they weren't expecting mirv-nukes when they arrived.

      In short, it would be daft to assume we could hurt an alien craft... but it would be equally daft to assume we couldn't.

    219. Re:Space Madness! by SpacePunk · · Score: 1

      "If you were an alien, where would you land your craft? In the middle of nowhere, where there is no one around to mess with you or your stuff, or in the right in the middle of Central Park, where the Bloods or the Crips might gank you and jack your ride?"

      Hey, what's the name of the book based on that premise?

    220. Re:Space Madness! by SpacePunk · · Score: 1

      Nevermind. It's "Illegal Aliens", noticed it on the shelf behind me. Not to be confused with the movie. Now, that's a horror.

    221. Re:Space Madness! by scribblej · · Score: 2, Informative

      Buzz Aldrin never made any such claims.

      You know what, nevermind that. I suggest you go ask Buzz himself. I know how it'll end; he'll clock you one just like the Moon Hoax idiot.

    222. Re:Space Madness! by JWSmythe · · Score: 1

      Again, as we understand it.

          Just because, as you say, we've assigned what we know as matter to the name "fermion", and the non-physical "bosons", doesn't mean that they are only two of hundreds or thousands of other "things" that we have not been able to identify or experience.

          We observe through the senses that we have, and things beyond our senses with instruments designed to observe what we've detected through interactions of things that we can observe.

          It's been just over 100 years that we've known about radiation, and that was due to the observation of it's interaction with physical matter in a way that we could observe.

          For the most part, we observe through the radio spectrum. Very long waves in heat. Then light. We've known about waves higher than light for about 200 years. We've only been able to harness microwaves for about 70 years.

          This is all one field of study, and followed a path that we are able to observe. If we had evolved in a different place, we may have had different senses. What if we were able to feel gravitational forces better? There are noted differences in the gravitational pull of the earth by location. NASA has been mapping these for years. Might we now be able to harness these gravitational variations for communication and travel? I don't want to wander off into sci-fi land, but I'm sure someone will want to relate the Star Trek fantasy warp drive here. In their pseudo-universe, they warp space, presumably through strong gravitational forces, to shorten the distance between two places, creating travel much like an inch worm does.

          All we know is what we know right now. To say we can learn nothing else is idiocy.

          I had an argument with someone years ago, when the 100Mhz computers were first released. He was insistent that it was the fastest computers would ever go. Due to ... blah, he was wrong, but he insisted there would be nonionizing radiation leaks, and all kinds of bad things that would happen should a person be unshielded within feet of a processor over 100Mhz. I say that as my 2.4Ghz machine is running about a foot from me.

          Don't try to underestimate what can happen. We may hit a lull in our technological advancement, but it will continue to grow.

      --
      Serious? Seriousness is well above my pay grade.
    223. Re:Space Madness! by iminplaya · · Score: 1

      Why not land in the middle of the Superbowl finals, now THAT's revealing!

      They did, in 2004, during halftime. But nobody was looking.

      --
      What?
    224. Re:Space Madness! by jcuervo · · Score: 1

      the Bloods or the Crips might jack you and gank your ride

      Fixed.

      --
      Assume I was drunk when I posted this.
    225. Re:Space Madness! by crossmr · · Score: 1

      And the alien ship could be equipped with some kind of energy weapon that could track the f22 for miles and vaporize it from a distance far outside its weapon range, instantly and with 100% accuracy.
      If we're going to speculate about alien technology, why hold back?
      A rock may also be no danger to them, perhaps they have shields or a hull strong enough that a rock would do nothing to them.
      Point is, random speculation isn't terribly insightful.

    226. Re:Space Madness! by eonlabs · · Score: 1

      I'll play with this one too:

      Gravity wells. The main ones that they have to deal with are stellar, not planetary, and that can theoretically be handled by solar sails. The ship can be built in orbit, so half the challenge of leaving a planet is gone. Solar sails are also nice in the sense that they provide 'free' propulsion. They suck at 'getting out of the way.' They also wouldn't necessarily have to or want to land an interstellar craft planet-side. Why waste that kind of energy?

      Second, if we're having such a hard time finding aliens as a species, then they're not too densely packed among the stars and planets. Who's to say that a craft approaching our world is coming with the expectation of running into any life forms nearly as complex (socially, technologically, etc).

      Speed really depends on what we're using and what they're using for propulsion. A weapon system has one solid advantage over a craft carrying life forms. We can harden a circuit so it takes a significantly higher stress from thrust than human beings are capable of handling. Lifeforms have their limits, and it's not impossible to build weapons with higher limits. If we can accelerate faster, it may be enough. If we can maintain a minimum thrust sooner and longer, that may be enough.

      It also might not matter. Since my first post everyone's been asking how we can shoot down something that we don't know about yet. It's a valid train of thought, but it's a powerful proof of point.

      --
      I wouldn't consider the mad hatter mad. Just reality impaired. He sure can make a mean cup of tea.
    227. Re:Space Madness! by jcuervo · · Score: 1

      Once they get back to LEO, there's nothing we can do beyond flip them off and insult their mothers.

      Best. Comment. Ever.

      --
      Assume I was drunk when I posted this.
    228. Re:Space Madness! by jcuervo · · Score: 1

      I think it is easy to prove that the universe has become more complex since the big bang (if you believe in it, that is).

      I stopped believing in the universe a while ago.

      --
      Assume I was drunk when I posted this.
    229. Re:Space Madness! by mjwx · · Score: 1

      That's why we are pouring billions of dollars into the research and development of the Advanced Rock Siege Engine (ARSE) to bring our rock throwing technology up to date.

      --
      Calling someone a "hater" only means you can not rationally rebut their argument.
    230. Re:Space Madness! by mjwx · · Score: 1

      They most likely have similar flaws to our own,

      They have flaws, just not like our own.

      --
      Calling someone a "hater" only means you can not rationally rebut their argument.
    231. Re:Space Madness! by EvilIdler · · Score: 1

      Many astronauts are also not mere farmers picked up due to their good health. They have a little scientific understanding.

    232. Re:Space Madness! by EvilIdler · · Score: 1

      God? No. Cthulhu? Yes.

    233. Re:Space Madness! by blueforce · · Score: 1

      See, _that's_ the problem. Their little green and brown space ships stick out like a sore thumb against the blackness of space. They were in the process of switching to desert camo, but the req's got mired down in red tape, hence the 50/50 mix.

      --
      If you do what you always did, you get what you always got.
    234. Re:Space Madness! by arminw · · Score: 1

      ..Seriously, for such an advanced species, they make very little sense....

      Seriously, do you think that a REALLY advanced being would not need to be VERY careful in approaching us humans, the most dangerous life-form by far, in the whole galaxy?

      Beings advanced enough to travel through the vast reaches of space, even only in our own galaxy, not even the unfathomable reaches of intergalactic space, could have conquered death and the limitations of time and space. Would they really want to share their secrets with a warlike bunch like us, who have never been able to get along with one another for as long as we have existed?

      Would they really want us to be able to spread the contagion of evil and selfishness that pervades humanity all over the universe? It seems to me, that an intelligent being, advanced enough to be able to come here from the distant places among the stars, would be very foolish indeed to allow that to happen. We humans need to quarantined by the vastness of space and the death limitation until we can learn to NOT be selfish and until ALL of us indeed want to obey the golden rule of love that Jesus Christ spoke about.

      These advanced celestial beings see the mess we made of this world, which we had no hand in building. Would they really permit or even help us to travel to other, yet pristine planets and screw them up also? I don't think so.

      One advanced being DID come here about 2000 years ago. His earth name was Jesus. He came to inhabit a human body. He claimed to be God become human, from another realm, far beyond our own, a place we have named "heaven". The records we have of His visit tell us He had access to technology and powers so far beyond our own we call them miracles. He showed us technology from God that proved that it is possible to transcend death and that this is a basic prerequisite to be able to travel to the distant places of the Universe. Living in His resurrected, transformed body, He demonstrated the ability to travel in and out of our time-space environment as easily as you and I walk from the kitchen to our living room and back again.

      Instead of believing Him and accepting what He related of the realms far beyond our own and how to live our life, the people of that time murdered Him. However, because He came from a civilization that had conquered death long ago, if death indeed even exists there at all, He did not stay dead. The collection of energy fields we call atoms, constituting His body were reconstituted in a configuration and by a power we do not and cannot understand at this, but He came back to life. We read that those who do believe Him will be likewise transformed and housed in a transcendent body no longer subject to death, decay or the constraints of time and place as we now know and experience them.

      The records we have of His visit also tell us that he will one day once again traverse the immense reaches of space-time. He will at that time force, rather than ask, humans to do His bidding. We read that this return will be sudden, without warning.

      There will be and are today, only two groups of people. One of them believes and therefore will be glad when it finally happens. The other group, we are told, will seek shelter in caves and cry for the mountains to fall on them, to hide them from that One, coming once again, this time to take total dominion over this planet we all live on. He will return from beyond the distant reaches of time and space. Which group are you a member of?

      --
      All theory is gray
    235. Re:Space Madness! by Opportunist · · Score: 1

      We can make it the soccer world championship final if you prefer. Hell, anything that more than 3 people watch would already create undenyable proof.

      --
      We used to have a Bill of Rights. Now, with the rights gone, all we have left is the bill.
    236. Re:Space Madness! by Opportunist · · Score: 3, Insightful

      Provided you're right, I guess the "Jesus experiment" was considered a failure, considering what we made out of the experience. Seriously, the atrocities you mention, a lot of them have been justified in the name of some religion. Forced conversions, religious prosecutions, crusades, I guess that's not what he had in mind.

      If anything, religion is one of the leading causes of war. I think if Jesus could see what we made out of his religion, he'd have stayed a carpenter and shut up. Well, I would have, put in his boots.

      --
      We used to have a Bill of Rights. Now, with the rights gone, all we have left is the bill.
    237. Re:Space Madness! by Ins0mau · · Score: 1

      Seriously, for such an advanced species, they make very little sense.

      Hmmm. They may be more similar to us than we might think...

    238. Re:Space Madness! by Baron+von+Pilsner · · Score: 0

      Well... that's no reason for space rudeness.

      --
      -- I'll be back before you can say antidisestablishmentarianism...
    239. Re:Space Madness! by $0.02 · · Score: 1

      He's a lunatic.

      --
      If enithin kan gow rong it whil. (Murfey)
    240. Re:Space Madness! by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      And how many times have YOU been in space?

      I'm no physics expert but I'm pretty sure one cannot exist out of space.

    241. Re:Space Madness! by festering · · Score: 1

      And how many times have YOU been in space? This guy has BEEN there. He knows the facts on the ground.

      ha ha ha....he should have bought back a photo or a head or something so he had some proof. As it is he just sounds like a total NUT BAG!!!! Which I am sure is the case.... ;-)

    242. Re:Space Madness! by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Maybe they just have to flash someone now and then. Maybe "little" isn't a reference to their stature.

    243. Re:Space Madness! by Guppy06 · · Score: 1

      "They suck at 'getting out of the way.' They also wouldn't necessarily have to or want to land an interstellar craft planet-side. Why waste that kind of energy?"

      Except we're talking about things that Boudreaux has seen zooming around the sky with his naked eye; even in general, if they don't come around to dance around in the atmosphere, nobody would have seen them and there'd be no conspiracy theories to begin with.

      While what you're talking about wouldn't be able to get out of the way, they wouldn't be able to get in the way to begin with.

      "Who's to say that a craft approaching our world is coming with the expectation of running into any life forms nearly as complex (socially, technologically, etc)."

      Even if they didn't have a radio handy, a spectrometer looking at the artificial light on the night side of the planet should let the aliens discount natural sources for what they're seeing long before NORAD could spot them.

      "If we can accelerate faster, it may be enough. If we can maintain a minimum thrust sooner and longer, that may be enough."

      I was implying that any alien that got here via interstellar space had to deal with countless micro- and not-so-micrometeorites that would collide with the craft with relative velocities far greater than anything terrestrial rocket engines can manage. Either they'd have to be able to spot something coming at them with hella kinetic and be able to get out of the way, or they can take the hit and not care.

    244. Re:Space Madness! by ps2os2 · · Score: 1

      Why not land in the middle of the Superbowl finals?

      Well they would be sued by the anti display of alien breast people for having malfunctioning @#$%^

      That is why.

    245. Re:Space Madness! by pikine · · Score: 1

      You forgot that it was God's plan to send Jesus to us as a sacrifice for our sins. He did not send Jesus to teach us about advanced technology or how to perform miracles. He sent Jesus so we can relate to him.

      At one point it was easier to convince people that Jesus is someone special by performing miracles, so he did it, but it was clear he did not want the miracles to distract people from his teachings and his ultimate role as a human sacrifice. I think it's quite clear that the technology or the power to perform miracles means nothing to God if we as his children don't turn back to Him.

      --
      I once had a signature.
    246. Re:Space Madness! by pikine · · Score: 1

      Just so you know, Christians are no less human than anyone else in the world. I think most Christians are better at recognizing our own flaws than others, but it's clear we can't do anything about it. That's the whole premise why God sent Jesus. That's His way of saying to us, "Nice try, but I'll strike a deal with you to make it easier." For those who did walk with Jesus, you can see the change in him. For those of us who don't, well, we're just like everyone else, probably worse off because we flushed his grace down the toilet.

      --
      I once had a signature.
    247. Re:Space Madness! by vux984 · · Score: 1

      And the alien ship could be equipped with some kind of energy weapon that could track the f22 for miles and vaporize it from a distance far outside its weapon range, instantly and with 100% accuracy.

      It could also be this aliens first attempt at contacting another sentient form of life, and its ships might well be as fragile and as frugal as our own space shuttles.

      If we're going to speculate about alien technology, why hold back?

      I'm just pointing out that its stupid to conclude that just because they are 'alien' and have 'advanced technology' that they are all that likely to be invulnerable. Our F-22 Raptors and Space shuttles are vulnerable to a barrage of rocks thrown by technology a 1000 years inferior. We even have the tech... our tanks aren't terribly vulnerable to a trebuchet... but wouldn't you know it... only a fraction of our military vehicles are built like tanks.

      Similiarly, even if the aliens had advanced shields, there'd be no automatic guarantee they'd be on every craft.

      A rock may also be no danger to them, perhaps they have shields or a hull strong enough that a rock would do nothing to them.

      Perhaps. Perhaps not. But there is no reason to believe one case is going to be more likely than the other.

      Point is, random speculation isn't terribly insightful.

      The 'insightful' part is realizing that. And that was my point. They may be invulnerable to our weapons... but its just as plausible that they aren't.

    248. Re:Space Madness! by arminw · · Score: 1

      .... I think if Jesus could see what we made out of his religion....

      The assumption here is that Jesus came to start a religion. He did far more than that. He came from beyond time and space into our material world to bring the wayward human race back into a proper relationship with the transcendent Creator God. He came to return to humanity the eternal love relationship that was operative between mankind and this God who exists eternally outside of and independent of this Universe we are now in. When man decided to disbelieve what this loving God first said, the relationship of trust and love was broken. Now, through Jesus Christ, the offer of reconciliation is open to any member of the human race who once again chooses to believe what God has communicated through and in His emissary and redeemer. The issue was, in the beginning, belief and trust in God and that is STILL the only avenue open to every person on this planet.

      We are told in the record that there in no way has any man ever imagined or conceived in his mind, the things this God has planned for those who love Him and show this love by believing and trusting Him, just as a little child trusts their Daddy. We are told that man is made in the image and likeness of God. There are two Hebrew words here, translated image and likeness. The first has the idea of a coin, a hard to obliterate stamp of certain characteristics of God. Man, as the object of God's love has never lost this. The second part, "likeness" is used in functional contexts. Man became mortal and lost the ability to function and operate as God intended an eternal being to live. Selfishness, greed, envy and all the other negative traits and actions of us humans came in and are still with us today.

      For example, from the record left for us concerning how Jesus left those He loved, it is obvious that the technology He has is far beyond our own. He did not rise into the sky on a roaring rocket flame, but, we are told, a "cloud" lifted Him silently from their view. We are further told that other celestial beings then informed Jesus' followers standing there, staring into the sky, that this same Jesus shall like like manner return to that same spot on Earth.

      Anyone now willing to trust themselves without reservations to the goodness and mercy God extends in and through Jesus Christ will be empowered to begin, right here in this life, a process of being increasingly enabled to once again receive the desire and ability to operate and live as God intends. The culmination will be when such a person leaves this material world and is given the same sort of immortal, time-space transcending body to live in, as Jesus demonstrated to those people who then recorded their experiences with Jesus for us. Then those so transformed will be enabled to posses the technology to fulfill the ancient dream of traveling to the distant stars and galaxies and beyond the boundaries of our space-time universe to the very presence of God.

      --
      All theory is gray
    249. Re:Space Madness! by gypsyman27 · · Score: 1

      That's ridiculous. That's like saying an airline pilot knows about the latest top secret fighter plane designs. Personally, I find it a bit hard to believe that a civilization is smart enough to travel interstellar distances but too stupid to use basic camouflage.

      Listen if this is your argument, then you are not paying attention. NASA actually chimed in with they weren't involved in tracking aliens, (no one said they were) or covering it up. Why? No one asked. I think the guy is in the winter of his life and wants to confess to a government cover up to which he was given priviledged information. I only will say that no one told you that the alleged aliens were not using camouflage (i.e. cloaking device?!)or anything else for that matter. The man simply informed the public that he was aware of visits to our galaxy by extraterrestrial beings.

    250. Re:Space Madness! by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      "Why not land in the middle of the Superbowl finals"

      I am guessing you are not from around these parts 'OPPORTUNIST' Why don't you and your alien buddies try landing on the first game of the Superbowl instead of the middle of the series of games and REALLY surprise us?

    251. Re:Space Madness! by shimmyshimpson · · Score: 0

      Yeah, except that have containment fields or a teleport that just sucks the damn thing away, or beams it back into your lap.

      Trust me....any aliens that are here are most probably a million years ahead of us technology wise. We wouldn't be like cavemen to them, we'd be like lemurs.

    252. Re:Space Madness! by yashtulsyan · · Score: 1

      No, aliens do exist. There is way too much evidence. And who said they had to have contact with us already? They probably already did meet us!

    253. Re:Space Madness! by yashtulsyan · · Score: 1

      Correct!

    254. Re:Space Madness! by rhyder128k · · Score: 1

      In fact, forget the mutilation, flashy thing and the profit!

      --
      Michael Reed, freelance tech writer.
    255. Re:Space Madness! by meringuoid · · Score: 1
      Seriously - Aliens, if they do exist, do not count as infallible techno-gods come to save us from ourselves. They most likely have similar flaws to our own, and have simply made it a few centuries further along than we have.

      A few centuries? Think carefully about how amazingly unlikely that is. The Universe is some 13.7 billion years old. The formation of planetary systems takes place on a timescale of billions of years. Evolution takes place on a timescale of tens to hundreds of millions of years. Technological progress takes place on a timescale of centuries. So if an alien race from another planetary system, from a completely separate evolutionary history, just happens to be within a few centuries of us, that's the most spectacular coincidence I've ever heard of.

      More likely they evolved a billion years or more before us, when the Earth was the domain of the prokaryotes only, and have been enhancing themselves genetically and cybernetically ever since, or have maybe just become nanotech bush robots or something, and are now incalculably far beyond animals like us. Don't expect to be visited by Klingons and Romulans when aliens arrive; expect Xeelee. Expect gods.

      --
      Real Daleks don't climb stairs - they level the building.
    256. Re:Space Madness! by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Oh no! They just Killed WALL-E !!!

    257. Re:Space Madness! by CAIMLAS · · Score: 1

      Eyup. It's just as likely that they don't understand the concepts of war, deceit, theft, lying, or are incredibly nieve, as it is that they're here to explore and "seek out new worlds" and all that stuff, too. They might have no inclination to explore, and are so incredibly introspective (like an idle/absent minded professor) that they don't realize what they've stumbled upon - which would also be one reason why their technology is so fantastic.

      --
      ~/ssh slashdot.org ssh: connect to host slashdot.org port 22: too many beers
    258. Re:Space Madness! by CAIMLAS · · Score: 1

      Eyup. If something in scifi isn't directly relating the the human condition, chances are its a fantastical representation of something we can only imagine, and that's about where it ends. It's little different than the Greek tragedies of the gods.

      --
      ~/ssh slashdot.org ssh: connect to host slashdot.org port 22: too many beers
    259. Re:Space Madness! by CAIMLAS · · Score: 1

      Why would they reveal themselves to us?

      Working off the assumption that they're anything like us - ie, intelligent, sentient beings with similar motivations - it's pretty simple.

      Gods need followers just like followers need gods.

      --
      ~/ssh slashdot.org ssh: connect to host slashdot.org port 22: too many beers
    260. Re:Space Madness! by meringuoid · · Score: 1

      ABORIGINE 1: 'Look, if you had a huge boat that could cross the whole sea from the other side of the world, and you know these inferior beings pose no threat to you at all, why would you try to hide?'
      ABORIGINE 2: 'Cause we've got stone axes, bro.'

      No, wait, that's not quite right; it's being grossly unfair to the Australian natives, who though primitive were intellectual peers of the invaders. We're not going to be the Australian aborigines to their British; we're the spiders.

      --
      Real Daleks don't climb stairs - they level the building.
    261. Re:Space Madness! by KingBenny · · Score: 1

      if you do not renounce these devilish physics i shall have you burned at the stake !! still ... we do have aeroplanes by now if i'm not mistaken ...? no ?

      --
      Free speech was meant to be free for all... how can anyone grow up in a nanny state ?
    262. Re:Space Madness! by master_p · · Score: 1

      Why do you consider it necessary that a species that can cover interstellar distances needs camouflage?

      The European explorers/conquerors of 14th and 15th Century did not camouflage themselves when they set foot in America, for example.

      We should not make hasty conclusions on things we do not fully comprehend.

      Even without camouflage, you still don't believe aliens could exist; perhaps that's part of the aliens strategy.

    263. Re:Space Madness! by Cr0vv · · Score: 1

      Currently, we have many thousands of races of aliens here doing all kinds of work related to a major warning for us. This includes "circle makers" known to us as crop circles. Others are involved in protection, working with individuals and groups of Humans regarding the warnings I've mentioned. The reason they don't directly contact us is that they are not allowed to! The spiritual heirachy in charge of Earth, "The Council of Worlds", had placed a order back in about the late 1940'ies preventing this as to not upset the Human population and somehow divert or subvert the Human reasons of existence here on Earth (much bigger story, no room here). Just prior to that we had Roswell, when at first we had the not-so-nice technological aliens (grays) contact the American military directly in talks, etc. At the same time or just after the beneficent aliens (also grays) took up a short contact, but took on a role of seeming weakness for a very good reason. This is what you may know as the crashed alien crafts that the American military have possesion of in Area 51. But I digress.....

    264. Re:Space Madness! by zoney_ie · · Score: 1

      It's human nature, not religions that are responsible for so many atrocities. Plenty of atrocities have gone on without any religious basis - atheists are just as capable of carrying out evil.

      Most of the so-called religious-driven problems were in fact down to the usual mundane things like politics, and religion was skilfully misused by people who cared not one iota for it. The same people are just as capable of misusing people's fears, poor education and understanding of logic, etc.

      --
      -- *~()____) This message will self-destruct in 5 seconds...
    265. Re:Space Madness! by master_p · · Score: 1

      Perhaps flying in an atmosphere of a planet full of oxygen is a factor that the (hypothetical) aliens did not take into account. Perhaps they come from a world that it's entirely different. Perhaps a physical phenomenon contributed in the crash. Perhaps the crash never happened, and the alien story was a cover up for Soviet spy satellites.

      But none of the above forbid the case of aliens from another world.

      As for revealing themselves, the Superbowl is important to the US, but from an alien viewpoint, perhaps China or India are more important, due to their immense population size. Perhaps the aliens will reveal themselves to them.

      Perhaps Mitchell is lying for other reasons.

      People, be open to possibilities, don't be so narrow-minded about this.

    266. Re:Space Madness! by jambox · · Score: 1

      Just something that entertains me - what is a straight line? People at some point in the past, I guess, used to think a straight line was just walking in a straight line. Because you would think like that. Now we know that isn't really straight at all because if you keep going, you come back to where we started. The plane we live on is actually a very large curve and if you really want to go in a straight line, you'd have to go away from the world entirely. We all know that now so it doesn't seem very interesting, but it must have been a giant shift for us. We may have similar revelations yet to come! Look up the definition of "time" in any dictionary or encyclopaedia. Maybe one day we'll understand that.

      --
      You thought you could break the laws of physics without paying the PRICE?
    267. Re:Space Madness! by jambox · · Score: 1

      ...infallible techno-gods come to save us from ourselves. They most likely have similar flaws to our own, and have simply made it a few centuries further along than we have.

      Ah yes but that means they probably averted crushing thermal runaway on their home planet, caused by pollution resulting from energy-generation. Maybe they came to help us over that, too.

      GAAAAAHH! Al Gore!

      --
      You thought you could break the laws of physics without paying the PRICE?
    268. Re:Space Madness! by peetm · · Score: 1

      Maybe they just think 'thinking meat' should be left alone? http://www.terrybisson.com/meat.html

      And I'm being serious too - maybe they don't have faster than light flight; maybe their lifespan is such that they don't need it - they've plenty of time, indeed, if you were immortal, wouldn't you?

      --
      @peetm
    269. Re:Space Madness! by Monkey-some · · Score: 1

      maybe they LIKE to anal probe people and get dirty with cows. They could be too a bunch of weirdos. space weirdos.

    270. Re:Space Madness! by Cr0vv · · Score: 1

      If you are in N. A. get high and far from the ocean, Arizona will be good; prepare for 2 months minimum before going back. so food, camping gear,etc. There won't be much to go back to and you won't have much good road either, so think hard about it. If Texas, Florida... get the hell out, it's gonna flood over big time, nothing left. (think Katrina X 1,000) California? Floods, big tsunami. no Los Angeles, this is one time Las Vegas is good for something. East coast? ...tearing, sink holes variable earth movement so possible be get high, and prepare for others of variable intent paddling up for help, etc. I'm in West coast Canada so that's similar to L.A. except the Island I'm on is gonna "float" on the continental adjustment and be bumped up, still, I'm warning others here to also get up high for at least 2 weeks of mondo flooding. You will need fishing, camping equip. lots of extra food, medical aids, and breathing masks if you are near an "inactive" volcano (it'll probably wake up) so don't park SOUTH of it, because after the Earth tilt, it'll be active and west of you. NOT GOOD. Be west or north of it.

    271. Re:Space Madness! by ScreamingCactus · · Score: 1

      If aliens are able to break the laws of physics to come here, then I'm sure they can break the laws of physics to produce some kind of material (like the "magic metal" from Roswell) that doesn't vaporize in a nuclear detonation. Of course, in this case they wouldn't be breaking the laws of physics, it would just mean that our interpretation of the laws is wrong. One thing that always did bother me, though, is how their fragile little alien bodies can withstand the G-forces involved in the cool aerial stunts people always claim to see them do.

      And Vux, I don't think comparing an F-22 to a trebuchet would be anything like comparing the weapons of an interstellar-travelling species to those of an F-22. Then again, maybe they don't even have weapons. Maybe their civ has been peaceful for so many thousands of years that weapons aren't even a part of their thinking anymore? But doubtful, if they're a sexually-reproducing organic species on a planet with various other organic lifeforms that may want to eat them.

      --
      The path to enlightenment is truly through homemade drugs!
    272. Re:Space Madness! by navsan · · Score: 1

      A statement is true whether or not someone is crazy, educated or not, has a job or not, or is rich or not.

      You are trying to classify all statements as being either true or false. But for statements in which the claim has not been verified, we can only attach a "belief" in the statement. This belief is largely derived, not from the content of the statement, but from our belief in the author/speaker of the statement. Of course, belief in this form is also the basis of Science and Religion. I think it's unfair to blame the "education/the media/entertainment" for a perfectly normal and reasonable thing that the humans have been doing for millennia.

    273. Re:Space Madness! by jambox · · Score: 1
      --
      You thought you could break the laws of physics without paying the PRICE?
    274. Re:Space Madness! by somersault · · Score: 1

      They may not have heard of 'radio waves', but any species advanced enough to create efficient methods for interstellar travel would have to be quite aware of radiation and the electromagnetic spectrum. What does using amazing technology or not listening to the radio have to do with being dumb?

      --
      which is totally what she said
    275. Re:Space Madness! by tehcyder · · Score: 1

      The mods know more than we think!

      The revelation that all mods are in fact servants to the insane elder gods would certainly help explain some of their irrational behaviour.

      --
      To have a right to do a thing is not at all the same as to be right in doing it
    276. Re:Space Madness! by somersault · · Score: 1

      Maybe they can't stop a whole fleet, but a large group of whales in a co-ordinated attack could probbaly take on one whaling vessel. Likewise a million guys with bows and arrows could overcome an SAS squad pretty easily. Parking in an area without a lot of traffic is pretty sensible.. you don't just park a million dollar sports car on the street in a poor area of town - at the very least it will get vandalised, if not stolen.

      Of course aliens could have forcefields or I suppose they could simply massively irradiate the area surrounding the ship, so it would be pretty difficult for anyone to mess with them in that case.

      --
      which is totally what she said
    277. Re:Space Madness! by devolutionist · · Score: 1

      Honestly, there's just no better place to be heckled for having an alien sighting than /.

    278. Re:Space Madness! by digitalgiblet · · Score: 1

      ... show themselves only to some moonshine-swigging hicks. ....

      If you assume that "they" are unimaginably advanced, then interstellar travel may be trivial for them. If you continue to build your big assumption tree, at some point such travel becomes available to the masses. Has it ever occurred to you that "they" may in fact BE the moonshine-swigging hicks of their species? Perhaps their livestock-mutilating, crop-circle-making, anal-probing ways don't seem so odd if they are in fact intoxicated attempts to relieve boredom.

      Perhaps instead of moonshine-swigging hicks, they are the interstellar equivalent of frat-boys (who can only be distinguished from moonshine-swigging hicks by economic indicators such as clothing and poison of preference).

      Further, what if the non-hick/non-frat-boy members of their species ARE very careful about not revealing themselves? Perhaps the ones we do see have simply forgotten to flip the cloaking switch in their inebriated state?

      In that light, the incident in Roswell becomes less of a "prelude to an invasion" and more of a "DUI caused accident".

    279. Re:Space Madness! by CmdrGravy · · Score: 1

      Whilst it's conceivable they might just turn up near Earth with no conception of our military capabilities I think it's hardly plausible they actually would do. The reason that all our military vehicles aren't built like tanks is because the military relies on good intelligence to let it know when it has to deploy tanks against an enemy and when it can get away with using an unarmoured land rover.

    280. Re:Space Madness! by somersault · · Score: 1

      nobody would have seen them and there'd be no conspiracy theories to begin with.

      So you're saying that all conspiracy theories have to be based on truth? If something goes missing from the fridge at work, it must be aliens? Not just someone at work taking stealing your food? Likewise any strange craft seen in the sky could just be the Skunkworks' latest experiment.. generally conspiracy theories are just illogical paranoia.

      --
      which is totally what she said
    281. Re:Space Madness! by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      I'm a programmer, but that doesn't make me more credible than someone who has no clue about programming when I claim that Cthuluh is controlling the internet.

      If you're a programmer you should know where misspelling your controllers gets you.

    282. Re:Space Madness! by somersault · · Score: 1

      Wow. Talk about *whoosh*!

      You, 'sir', are incredibly arrogant and closed minded! Sure, as a species we know a lot more than we did even 100 years ago - but it is extremely foolish to assume that means we know the majority of things there are to know about physics.

      Sometimes the more you learn about something, the more you realise that there is so much more that you don't understand about it yet. I can tell how little you understand this by the tone of your post, as well as its inappropriate use of apostrophes.

      --
      which is totally what she said
    283. Re:Space Madness! by vacuum_tuber · · Score: 1

      Native Spanish speakers know. Educated native Spanish speakers know even better. It's a myth that all Spanish words ending in 'a' are feminine. 'Programa' is masculine. 'Telegrama' is masculine. I've been told in an advanced Spanish class that all words ending in 'ma' are masculine, but I have some doubts. What you've found strongly suggests that 'chupacabra' is masculine, hence 'el chupacabra' and 'los chupacabras.' Spanish, although highly regular, has its exceptions, too.

      --
      Look at the bright side: there's always seppuku.
    284. Re:Space Madness! by somersault · · Score: 1

      You'd still be walking in a 'straight line' in one dimension at least, even if the overall vector is constanting changing. Sure the world itself is curved, but that doesn't mean we can't build a flat platform (such as a roof) and walk in an almost perfectly straight line over it. People have probably known for longer than you think that if you keep walking you will travel around the world btw. The idea that until very recently people thought of the world as 'flat' is a myth - the greeks have known about the world being round for at least 1600 years. Apparently Columbus thought the world was pear shaped. Anyway, your point is still valid, but I think people too often like to assume that our ancestors were all idiots. If you look out to sea at the horizon and compare it to a flat surface (like a fence alongside a boulevard) then you can see the curvature quite clearly.

      --
      which is totally what she said
    285. Re:Space Madness! by dodecalogue · · Score: 1

      That's part of the problem with understanding these things, the feeling that they will follow some kind of simple plotting. Who's to say that they didn't find the technology and have no clue how it works? Or that they were developed and shaped by some super-species and that we also were shaped by, in an effort to create an offspring of the two of us, after we had become sufficiently unique from eachother towards some research/hilarity end. Or maybe the travel is somehow intuitive to their bodies/forms, or or or....

      My point is just in pointing out how questionable phrases like "would have to be" and "surely" and "obviously" and others are, in these sorts of topics.

    286. Re:Space Madness! by vikstar · · Score: 1

      anally probed people lying around

      Sounds like guys who were a little curious about their sexuality trying to justify the marks on their anuses to their wives. "I swear, it was the aliens."

      --
      The question of whether a computer can think is no more interesting than the question of whether a submarine can swim.
    287. Re:Space Madness! by AgentSmith · · Score: 1

      Gangstaz in Space! Make that into a movie, and you'll make millions!

      Naw, we go down that route we eventually end up with Snakes on a Space Plane!

      Peace out, copper tops!

    288. Re:Space Madness! by secondhand_Buddah · · Score: 1

      There is a video interview with Buzz Aldrin on YouTube describing their encounters with what can only be described as alien craft on the way to the moon.
      (YouTube is proxied out at work, so I cant send you the URL - but you can search for it)

      --
      Participatory Governance : The only feasible option for a real democracy, where everyone really does have a say.
    289. Re:Space Madness! by somersault · · Score: 1

      If they just found the tech then they didn't create it. Likewise if they evolved the ability to live in both space and on our planet then they didn't specifically create it either. Do you honestly think there is any way to develop faster than light transportation without having advanced scientific knowledge? I know we don't know the way to do it ourselves so perhaps the answer is simpler than we expect.. but that is highly unlikely.. to go faster than light without even having a concept of what light, heat etc are just seems too far fetched. People take the whole devil's advocate thing too far sometimes..

      --
      which is totally what she said
    290. Re:Space Madness! by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Yup, definitely space madness.

    291. Re:Space Madness! by terjeber · · Score: 1

      The problem with alien abductions is that it has cultural bias. The "aliens" treat their kidnap victims very differently depending on where they come from and what cultural background they have.

      The only alien abductees that are probed anally, lifted out of their bedrooms through the window etc, are American abductees. Mexican abductees are treated completely differently. In Europe and Africa there are almost no abductions at all etc.

      Alien abductions take place in one place, and in one place only. Inside the abductees head.

      This is a lot of postings for a story that should have had the title: Even old astronauts can get Alzheimer's.

    292. Re:Space Madness! by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      "but too stupid to use basic camouflage" ... and exactly how many aliens have you seen in the last few years?

      In fact, now I think about it, who said they travel interstellar? We could have been living next door to these dudes for the last 100 million years.

    293. Re:Space Madness! by terjeber · · Score: 1

      It chills me to the core to think that there's no Others out there.

      I would not go as far as to say that there is nobody out there, but there are probably extremely few "body" out there. The universe is extremely hostile to life, and the fact that life has reach the level of sophistication it has on earth seems like a huge miracle.

      A vast number of galaxies out there are not conducive to life at all, and if at all, only for very short periods of time each time. There are massive events that will sterilize entire galaxies occurring all the time in our universe, and the amazing thing is not that they occur, but that none of them have been occurring in our neighborhood for long enough for us to develop space travel.

      The Fermi paradox is an interesting puzzle. Given our current rate of expansion humans will make our mark in this entire galaxy in a relatively short space of time (Universe wise). In fact, in such a short space of time that when Galileo first peered through his Telescope what he should have seen was a big Neon sign saying: Welcome humans. Today we have a two-for-one sale on intergalactic space ships. One big one with all the training you need to run it and understand the Universe as such, and the only thing we want in return is the right to mine your moon. Assuming of course there is some sort of law governing that gives humans the right to mine the moon, and them the need to purchase it from us, even if we are barely sentient.

      The fact that Galileo didn't see big neon signs is a good indication that there are severe impediments to significant space travel. It is either prohibitively cost wise, it is impossible, or there are events happening in the galaxy with regular intervals that resets the clock so that no civilization ever has been able to develop far enough to start interstellar travel (not talking about intergalactic here).

      It isn't difficult for us to imagine interstellar travel, and even make some (extremely tentative) cost estimates. It isn't cost prohibitive. Also, it seems it should be technically possible, even at relatively low speeds, say 10% of the speed of light. Speeds we should be able to achieve in the not too distant future (again, relative). That leaves us with a big nasty universe killing us. Since we know this happens all the time, it is reasonable to assume that it will happen to us too, and that it already has happened to a number of space faring civilizations in this galaxy.

      Get ready for the next big sterilization event. It is guaranteed to be nasty.

    294. Re:Space Madness! by Dracophile · · Score: 1

      What's to say there isn't a whole world existing in the same space as us, and we just cant perceive it.

      On a wild guess, I'd say physics.

      Because we know every detail about every iota of matter and every detail about every energy transfer, right?

      No, because we don't allow argumentum ad ignorantiam. What's to say there isn't a god? What's to say there isn't a magical teapot? What's to say there isn't an invisible pink unicorn? What's to say there isn't an invisible fire-breathing dragon in my garage? These are all the same question as the original that I quoted. The answer to that, "I'd say physics", is perfectly rational, and could quite sensibly be paraphrased as "what's to say there is?" or even "that's not even wrong!"

      Your objection shoots itself in the foot.

      --
      Athy, athier, athiest.
    295. Re:Space Madness! by gosand · · Score: 1

      Or land their crates safely after traveling for billions of miles, or at least crash somewhere else but in the middle of nowhere, midwest USA.

      If you were an alien, where would you land your craft? In the middle of nowhere, where there is no one around to mess with you or your stuff, or in the right in the middle of Central Park, where the Bloods or the Crips might gank you and jack your ride?

      One could imagine that they're either more subtle when they try to remain under cover than leaving mutilated cattle and anally probed people lying around after their departure

      Mutilated cattle may be an entirely different phenomenon than aliens (see el chupacabra, for instance, for a weirder, but alternate explanation), but as far as anally-probed people -- well, again, if you were going to anally probe people, would you anally probe the President or some celebrity or would you pick some poor schmuck whom no one is ever going to believe?

      Why not land in the middle of the Superbowl finals

      I assume they also wouldn't want to get involved in local conflicts.

      C'mon, try to see it from the alien's perspective.

      I think your post and the gp are both ridiculous. We can't even understand other cultures on our own planet, sometimes in our own COUNTRY - and you are talking about looking at things from an alien's perspective? That is utterly impossible. It's a bunch of worthless speculation because you are putting your brain into theirs. Even to say "if you were an alien, what would you do?" is a worthless statement... you wouldn't be you anymore - you'd be an alien with all of that alien's experiences and thoughts, with no knowledge of what you know now about Earth... not to mention that your post is very US-centric.

      Maybe I've read too much Hofstadter. But this argument is just pointless. And I wouldn't have even responded if your post hadn't been modded interesting.

      --

      My beliefs do not require that you agree with them.

    296. Re:Space Madness! by Dracophile · · Score: 1

      Seriously - Aliens, if they do exist, do not count as infallible techno-gods come to save us from ourselves. They most likely have similar flaws to our own, and have simply made it a few centuries further along than we have.

      Probably came here wondering how the fuck they managed to make it as far as coming here. Sort of like traversing squillions of kilometres of space just to see a not-quote-so-instant replay of yourself dodging a bullet. If it were me, I probably wouldn't risk failing an explanation of how to do that. I'd probably bug out at the first sign that I was being watched.

      --
      Athy, athier, athiest.
    297. Re:Space Madness! by terjeber · · Score: 1

      Currently, the number of planets we know have ever sustained life is one.

      Think of it this way, so far life has evolved on every single planet we have observed, and it has evolved in almost every single nook and cranny on that planet. From the poles to the insides of active volcanoes there is life. Our observational data so far would indicate that life evolves everywhere where a few basic minimum parameters are within range.

      Face it: we have no meaningful data at all on how widespread life is in the universe, and there is no realistic prospect that we will get it any time in the foreseeable future. What this means is that speculation on the existence of intelligent alien life can only be just that: speculation

      Not quite. We observe intelligent life in the universe. We have also observed a vast variety of life in a huge variety of systems such as below-freezing and at or near boiling temperatures. This tells us that life, in our observation area, is incredibly common, absurdly resilient to intra-planetary environment variations and tends to crop up all the time.

      Unless you can find a compelling argument for the fact that the rest of the Universe is vastly different from our observed Universe, it is more reasonable to assume life exists everywhere than that it is incredibly rare.

    298. Re:Space Madness! by theMatrix777 · · Score: 1

      Can we all say the word "Alzheimer's"........

    299. Re:Space Madness! by happyfeet2000 · · Score: 1

      Great points! Also, maybe the human brain cannot by nature understand more that a limited set of universal laws. It's like a dog for example, it can be in the middle of our civilization and not even begin to understand what is there around him. I can imagine we're not the end of evolution.

      And when a scientific or researcher is studying groups of gorillas or chimpanzees in the wild, do they go to their leaders, and ask to be properly introduced to their hierarchy? No, they go to the apes in the fringes of the group. Sounds a bit like aliens contacting out-of-the-mainstream people, isn't it?

    300. Re:Space Madness! by Hubbell · · Score: 1

      Bloods have been here in CT (specifically new haven) for a long time, but it was fractured into multiple smaller groups. Just recently they all banded together and shit is hitting the fan.

    301. Re:Space Madness! by neomunk · · Score: 1

      Hell, the page YOU LINKED TO shows what was really going on, but you were too cocky to read it weren't you? I wasn't making an "argumentum ad ignorantiam", as I wasn't claiming anything was true, I was shooting down an "argument from personal incredulity" by pointing out the OPs COMPLETE lack of supporting data. Personally, I sit on the fence in this argument, and will happily point out that fiat declarations on either side (barring "I met them!", and then it's time for a sanity assessment) are full of both hubris and bullshit.

      Invisible unicorns? Garage-dragons?

      While you're quoting wiki pages on logical fallacies, take a gander at 'strawman', would you?

      After that, take a moment out and realize that the laws of physics don't give the slightest bit of a shit what you think of invisible unicorns, dragons, or anything else for that matter. They deal with processes and interactions, and they deal with these things in a UNIVERSAL, UNBIASED way. An idea that offends you intellectually is completely unaffected by your emotions, and will exist (or not exist) regardless of any fiat declarations of impossibility that you make.

    302. Re:Space Madness! by cthulhu11 · · Score: 0

      Indeed -- the first few seasons of Stargate SG1 demonstrate this clearly.

    303. Re:Space Madness! by Dracophile · · Score: 1

      Fail. Epic. Original post appealed to ignorance ("how do you know there isn't...?". Reply called it. You objected. Sorry about the foot. Hope it gets better. To make it clearer: I never said that you were appealing to ignorance. I merely pointed out that the original question appealed to ignorance and you objected to someone calling that out. I lost interest in your post after that. Sorry. Do have a nice diurnal anomaly, however.

      --
      Athy, athier, athiest.
    304. Re:Space Madness! by neomunk · · Score: 1

      You're trying to be too cool and missing the whole point.

      The original reply called the poster on nothing, using nothing but the word 'Physics' to make no point whatsoever. Physics (at least our understanding of it) doesn't disprove anything the parent said. Probability might make it very unlikely to manifest, but that's not what the replier said. Replace the word "Physics" with the word "Bible" and see how foolish the fiat declaration really is.

      I'll leave it that, so it doesn't trip over any 'coolness' filters on it's way through your thought process.

    305. Re:Space Madness! by snowgirl · · Score: 1

      Native Spanish speakers know. Educated native Spanish speakers know even better.

      It's a myth that all Spanish words ending in 'a' are feminine. 'Programa' is masculine. 'Telegrama' is masculine. I've been told in an advanced Spanish class that all words ending in 'ma' are masculine, but I have some doubts.

      What you've found strongly suggests that 'chupacabra' is masculine, hence 'el chupacabra' and 'los chupacabras.' Spanish, although highly regular, has its exceptions, too.

      Right, I already knew that. Surprisingly not all feminine nouns use "la", since it's "el agua" but "las aquas" :) So, yes, I know a fair amount about Spanish already.

      The odd thing is that their article didn't just have "el chupacabra", but "el chupacabras". As if they were even treating the plural as a singular. That just seems odd to me.

      --
      WARNING! This girl exceeds the MAXIMUM SAFE standards established by the FDA for BRATTINESS
    306. Re:Space Madness! by vux984 · · Score: 1

      Whilst it's conceivable they might just turn up near Earth with no conception of our military capabilities I think it's hardly plausible they actually would do.

      Human explorers often went exploring with no conception of the others military capabilities. Did Columbus have any prior knowledge of the American indians military strength?

      Why not? Europe had the technology to cross the ocean... yet that didn't confer on them any special foreknowledge of the other side... and as another example, when they got their the natives while far less advanced technologically had ample weaponry capable of harming the Europeans.

      So why do you find it so implausible that an alien race able to cross the intersteller ocean would not have detailed information about our military capability. That simply because they can cross that ocean they must also be able to do it effortlessly.

      Even today, where crossing our ocean has more or less been mastered, its not effortless. We must plan for food and fuel... we must choose between getting there quickly in unarmoured planes, at far greater expense in more heavily armoured planes, or very slowly in massive ships with 3-foot thick hulls. And our supply of each type of vehicle is relatively limited... particularly the massive ships -- the US navy, according to wikipedia has fewer than 300 ships.

      Similiarly an alien race might choose to send a small fast lightly armed craft with a couple crew over their slow moving death star.

      The reason that all our military vehicles aren't built like tanks is because the military relies on good intelligence to let it know when it has to deploy tanks against an enemy and when it can get away with using an unarmoured land rover.

      That's part of it, but the other part of it is: you fight with the army you have, not the one you would like to have.

      Even if they -had- shielding capable of holding back nuclear weapons, that doesn't automatically imply that its practical, feasible, economical, or otherwise worth having it along for an intersteller first contact mission.

      If -we- were sending a first contact mission to say Mars, even knowing there was a medieval culture there, would we send a heavily armed and armoured space craft? We have the technology. But would it be worth the extra cost? If we deemed the risk acceptably small? Or if the martian culture advanced to nuclear weapons since our last probe? (not likely on mars, but for an insterstellar journey possibly measured in decades or centuries... quite possible.

      If they sent out an expedition while we were firing cannons from wooden ships, and arrived to find out we had nuclear weapons and icbms, what then? Curse their intel, and leave. Or make do with what they have?

    307. Re:Space Madness! by snowgirl · · Score: 1

      You've misunderstood me in the first place. Both "fermions" and "bosons" are physical. Just "fermions" obey the exclusion principle, and "bosons" don't.

      I don't want to wander off into sci-fi land, but I'm sure someone will want to relate the Star Trek fantasy warp drive here. In their pseudo-universe, they warp space, presumably through strong gravitational forces, to shorten the distance between two places, creating travel much like an inch worm does.

      You don't understand the Star Trek universe. They don't "warp" space in order to shorten the distance between two places. In fact, the distance that the vehicle travels physically is never altered at all in the ST universe. Rather, they place the ship in a subspace bubble, and in this subspace the limit on speed is not the speed of light. Why use the word "warp"? Historical reasons. However, it remains that there is a "warp bubble" that moves the ship into subspace where the time-dilation effects of FTL travel don't come into effect.

      Don't try to underestimate what can happen. We may hit a lull in our technological advancement, but it will continue to grow.

      I'm not underestimating what can happen. I'm saying that if we found something else it wouldn't be "matter", it would be some other word, or qualifier, like "dark matter".

      --
      WARNING! This girl exceeds the MAXIMUM SAFE standards established by the FDA for BRATTINESS
    308. Re:Space Madness! by arminw · · Score: 1

      ....He did not send Jesus to teach us about advanced technology or how to perform miracles....

      You are right, that was not God's primary purpose. There is someone here on /. who has a sig. to the effect that says: "Any sufficiently advanced technology is indistinguishable from miracles" There is an element of truth in that.

      To God there is no such thing as a miracle. After all, someone who can create a whole Universe from absolutely nothing should be and I firmly believe, is capable of communicating truth to us in a manner that we can accept. Christians are not required to check their brain and its reasoning power at the door of the church. In Isaiah God challenges us with: "Come, let us reason together..."

      Like I pointed out, God had a loving relationship with man at the beginning. When man broke off this intimate fellowship, God went to the extreme of leaving His deity behind, like a cloak, and clothed Himself in a frail, mortal human body. In that mortal body He ultimately suffered the penalty of experiencing that final separation from all that is good, that every human will needlessly experience, if the offer of God's reconciliation and forgiveness in Jesus Christ is rejected. Jesus, because He is both eternal and fully human, tasted in a moment of time, what it is like to be cut off from God forever. He did this in order that NO human might experience that horror. That is why he cried out on the cross, in agony, that He had been forsaken by God.

      Right now, we live in a broken world, where good and evil are inextricably intertwined. This was not always so and will not always be. There will be a time and place with God, where there is only goodness and light. There will also be a place where there will only be evil and darkness, away from the goodness and perfection of God.

      Right now, every human is given the opportunity to respond to the love call of God. It is my hope and prayer that many will.

      --
      All theory is gray
    309. Re:Space Madness! by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      No

    310. Re:Space Madness! by Some_Llama · · Score: 1

      "One could imagine that they're either more subtle when they try to remain under cover than leaving mutilated cattle and anally probed people lying around after their departure, or that they'd be more choosy when trying to reveal themselves than to show themselves only to some moonshine-swigging hicks. Why not land in the middle of the Superbowl finals, now THAT's revealing!"

      Or maybe they could care less what we know now that they have assessed our threat level.. if anything it would be our government hiding the facts not aliens.. they could care less?

      I also doubt they would want to establish "trade" or relations with us.. any civilization advanced enough to travel the stars exploring new life forms wouldn't need anything from those forms they encountered.

      I find it interesting that a couple of old people who are now about to die have decided it is ok to "come clean" since they will be dead soon and don't want to let it go with them, plus there is nothing that can be done to them punishment wise...

    311. Re:Space Madness! by rcamans · · Score: 1

      Actually, although I do believe (I do, I do, I do), I find it impossible to believe that advanced civilizations are talking to governments, because, if they were, we would see some level of enlightenment form our gov, and others. But what I see is en-darkenment, not enlightenment. Our govs are getting more and more uncivilized, crazy, and creepy, as well as more violent and abusive. This just does not sound like what would happen if enlightened info was coming in.

      --
      wake up and hold your nose
    312. Re:Space Madness! by scribblej · · Score: 1

      Funny, /he/ never describes them that way.

    313. Re:Space Madness! by Seraphim_72 · · Score: 1

      Think of it this way, so far life has evolved on every single planet we have observed, and it has evolved in almost every single nook and cranny on that planet.

      A sample size of one.... You would be laughed out of any real science conference.

      --
      Slashdot, where armchair scientists get shouted down and armchair theologians get modded up.
    314. Re:Space Madness! by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Or land their crates safely after traveling for billions of miles, or at least crash somewhere else but in the middle of nowhere, midwest USA.

      One could imagine that they're either more subtle when they try to remain under cover than leaving mutilated cattle and anally probed people lying around after their departure, or that they'd be more choosy when trying to reveal themselves than to show themselves only to some moonshine-swigging hicks. Why not land in the middle of the Superbowl finals, now THAT's revealing!

      Seriously, for such an advanced species, they make very little sense.

      Look in the mirror at the so called most advanced species on this planet.

      What we do to animals on Earth - and how we do it - from intelligent whales and dolphins, to sharks (shark fin soup and how brutally the fins are cut off and the sharks often dumped back in the ocean), to all kinds of jungle, field and lab creatures we don't think about, but just cut, slice, dice, suffocate, probe, slaughter and kill, anally, brain-wise, stomach-wise, anywise you name it - and then toss the remains (for food, knowledge, entertainment, exercise etc.) - makes ALL the reports we've ever heard about alien abduction and experimentation rather banal and uncreative in comparison.

      Except their tech is reported as better and more powerful than ours. And in a heads-up comparison, their lab practice values appear more "humanitarian" than ours. But, of course, our "objective" view (we appear to be the lab rats this time), is causing us discomfort, and to sometimes holler, howl, and scream like a few critters we ourselves routinely 'investigate' (including other humans).

      By your own standards we ourselves, in our own 'fowl the nest,' 'kill the family' behaviours, make very little sense for a so-called "intelligent" or "advanced species," as we conceive such things, and we certainly fail the kinds of "they can't be because an advanced species wouldn't act like that" blather and standards folks throw at most thinking, evidence or claims on the subject.

      In contrast, the known and widely known public peccadilloes of Earth governments and many of their institutions are well in line with and often mightily exceeded by what many seem only too willing to grant - in the face of all contrary evidence - as, rather, being the barbaric, unintelligent, and mysterious behaviour of aliens. To wit (please laugh whenever you think I'm joking or you think it's a joke):

      1. They (governments on Earth) are intelligent. They certainly act intelligently.
      2. They don't torture intelligent creatures, whether themselves, distant cousins, or lowly creatures. They only scientifically investigate them.
      3. They're subtle.
      4. They care about revealing themselves to those they view as moonshine-swigging hicks.
      5. They make a lot of sense.
      6. Being as they're really smart (the governments), they're going to hand over their advanced technologies to the first or next primitive alien species they encounter. SO they can improve their lot and solve their problems.
      7. When they (the government) discover a new species nobody asks or says: Don't tell the people, Don't tell the newspapers, Don't tell other governments, Is it edible? What's it worth? How does it work? Can we 'test' it? What about its value in parts (a Merc costs four times as much broken down to its parts)? Can we take it? Shouldn't we extend basic human (a kind of life) rights to it?
      8. They (governments) think that both the 'laws' and the living examples of economics, ecologies, and evolution are the same thing, are the same everywhere in the universe, and that they know them and include that in their thinking and actions.
      9. They work to keep their citizens enlightened and informed, especially about potentially civilization-changing news.
      10. They think their best work is being done when citizens listen to, think about, investigate, and/or accept anything other than the official government line.

      As a whole, Earth governments exhi

    315. Re:Space Madness! by vertinox · · Score: 1

      Point is: just because something is fantastically advanced technology doesn't automatically mean it can't be smashed by a big rock.

      Including earth and a 500km wide asteroid the aliens nudged our way.

      But barring that if your space ship can handle a nuclear explosion then you really don't have to worry about what the humans think or do.

      --
      "I am the king of the Romans, and am superior to rules of grammar!"
      -Sigismund, Holy Roman Emperor (1368-1437)
    316. Re:Space Madness! by Sigg3.net · · Score: 0

      2. There's also been a documentary about cow-mutilation showing that the areas affected (namely lips, anus, snout) are the first (and sensible) choice of various insects partaking in the decomposition.

      The team in casu (can't remember whether it was on Discovery or National Geographic Channel hence which program) filmed a dead cow during decomposition and found that flies made perfect "mutilated cows". That's Occam's razor in the works.

    317. Re:Space Madness! by sir+fer · · Score: 1

      Wow. Talk about *whoosh*!

      You, 'sir', are incredibly arrogant and closed minded!

      ***WHHOOOOOOOOSH***

      Say my tag quickly and you might understand what it means, but then I'm guessing you live nowhere near the sea

      I am a physicist so I know how physics is done. Since the time of Newton, discoveries have been coming at a decreasing rate and are more about effects that are subtle at our level of existence. More discoveries about finer and finer details of reality leads me to conclude that we probably DO know the majority of what there is to know about 'physics', yet this does not imply that we know all or even the majority of the consequences and effects that follow on from the discovery of various aspects of reality. The parent I was responding to was saying , in effect that humans are a more ignorant than they realise, yet this assumption is inherently contradictory. Socrates was proclaimed the wisest man in Greece because he knew that he didn't know everything. Just because we don't know everything and probably never will, does not necessarily mean we know next-to-nothing.

      And oh noes!! I misused an apostrophe! That must be the reason you misunderstood my entire post...

      --
      Debian FTW ;o)
    318. Re:Space Madness! by kayditty · · Score: 0

      What's with the popularity of the whole "aliens who're capable of interstellar travel must be super smart" line of reasoning? Aliens are aliens because they're alien. Perhaps they have a particular propensity for understanding physics in a way that we can not, maybe it's just something that they discovered earlier than us (yeah, I understand the 'shoulders of giants'-esque argumentation), or perhaps their nature is to interact with those physics differently (no, I'm not claiming physical subjectivity; you're reading into what I said too much), or maybe they're just Tralfamadorians.

    319. Re:Space Madness! by secondhand_Buddah · · Score: 1

      Uh, no. He describes a craft that flew up close to them, stayed close to them for a while and then disappeared. He made it quite clear in the interview that they were on a publicly accessible frequency, so their communications could be heard by all, so they were restricted to how they could describe what they were witnessing.
      I'm as sceptical as the next bloke, but Buzz Aldrin is not some bloke you meet in the pub. He's been to the moon. These astronauts are exceptional individuals, they are the cream of the cream of the crop. His admissions are difficult to discount as incredible. The same goes for the new admissions by this astronaut.

      --
      Participatory Governance : The only feasible option for a real democracy, where everyone really does have a say.
    320. Re:Space Madness! by somersault · · Score: 1

      I just said 'sir' because I was going to say sir anyway, and then I noticed it was in your name. No I didn't notice it was meant to be 'surfer', so that can count as a whoosh *shrug*

      I actually live about half a mile from the sea, good guess there! You probably think I'm American too.

      Sure we know a lot of stuff at 'our level of existence', but there is a lot more to the universe than that. Certain types of discoveries may have been coming at a reducing rate since Newton, since he was involved in developing a lot of the maths and physical formulae that we still use today, but when it comes to things on a subatomic level we are still learning, and could still be learning in a few hundred years. I still think it's closed minded to assume you know the majority of what there is to know about physics in the universe. Yes we know a lot, but when it comes to things like string theory, dark energy, antimatter, room temp superconductors and other useful materials, supercapacitors or other more efficient battery tech, they're all still very experimental, and could have a massive implication for 'our level of existence'. The atomic bomb was developed using principals on an entirely different 'level' to our own, but it certainly had a big effect.

      I didn't misunderstand your post, I just think you are being too cocky. Assuming you know almost everything is never the best policy, and especially when you're a scientist. As a whole, humanity is developing at an exponential rate as we collaborate on larger and larger scales, sharing more and more ideas. The basic "hit this with a club and it acclerates at a = f/m" physics are out of the way, but we by no means know everything. Perhaps not "next to nothing", we are capable of some impressive stuff - but it's laughable to assume that we know the "majority" of what there is to know about physics - what if we discover how to manipulate space-time to create useful faster than light travel? There are many areas of physics that can be explored. Just because they aren't as simple as f=ma doesn't mean they are not a large part of physics, in fact things like string theory are so all encompassing that they will probably dwarf everything that we currently know about physics if we were able to create accurate models of how the universe works at that level, especially if we were able to then manipulate matter at that level to create interesting new physical 'laws', or at least bend the current ones.

      --
      which is totally what she said
    321. Re:Space Madness! by Katalyst23 · · Score: 1

      Mmm, mortal husks, THE snack preferred by the Great Old Ones. Once you pop, you just can't stop!

      --
      It's turtles all the way down!
    322. Re:Space Madness! by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Consciousness? Is that part of physics now? Do try to follow the thread: it might aid your understanding.

      Some people seem to think so...

      Still, other people think it's new age hokum.

    323. Re:Space Madness! by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0
      source, for anyone who cares: Bash.org

      The Fishchaser: we should tell the japaneese we found a planet full of giant tentacle monsters and their females are somehow little school girls The Fishchaser: we'll be going faster than the speed of light in a week

    324. Re:Space Madness! by l0cust · · Score: 1

      Someone mod parent informative. That story fits the current minor discussion perfectly.

      --
      Politicians and Pedophiles: Two groups of exploitive bastards who are most dangerous when they're thinking of children.
    325. Re:Space Madness! by jambox · · Score: 1

      Yes. I wasn't saying the ancient greeks didn't know the Earth was round, they clearly did and even measured it's diameter by using shadows.

      --
      You thought you could break the laws of physics without paying the PRICE?
    326. Re:Space Madness! by l0cust · · Score: 1

      You totally missed the point. Something is true irrespective of whether its "truthness" has been verified or not. Its a good idea to go with only the set which has been verified using whatever sources/procedures we deem necessary but that doesn't mean that everything out of that set is not true.

      Ofcourse, it gets murky very fast when you bring crackpots and/or religion into it but then that is the reason why we go with only the set of the verified truths. Just that it pays to think of the possibility that something unverified could also be true, whether we know it or not.

      --
      Politicians and Pedophiles: Two groups of exploitive bastards who are most dangerous when they're thinking of children.
    327. Re:Space Madness! by scribblej · · Score: 1

      Protip: He never describes a 'craft' or uses that word.

      You need to start listening and stop just hearing whatever you want to hear. You UFO nutters are all alike.


      Buzz Aldrin is not some bloke you meet in the pub. He's been to the moon. These astronauts are exceptional individuals, they are the cream of the cream of the crop. His admissions are difficult to discount as incredible. The same goes for the new admissions by this astronaut.

      "This Astronaut" has been a total nutcase since day 1. Nothing about being an astronaut means you can't also be a nutter. Remember that chick with the diapers and the revenge case? Yeah, she was also an astronaut.

      Buzz is a different case; a smart guy I've /never/ heard say a single stupid or unmeasured word. You take his tact as an indication that there is something more for him to say. You are wrong; his tact is intended to keep idiots like you from jumping all over everything he says. Fat lot of good it did him.

      I hope you get a chance to meet him in person. I suggest you ask him to swear on the Bible that he saw alien craft. Or didn't, either way, the outcome will be fun for me.

      By the way, you're not as skeptical as the next guy, obviously, when I'm the next guy and you think the astronauts have encountered little green men.

    328. Re:Space Madness! by secondhand_Buddah · · Score: 1

      Well they encountered something not natural i.e. constructed halfway to the moon. He describes the object in fair detail.
      there are stringent psychological tests that are performed with on astronauts to ensure that they are level headed individuals who can cope successfully in extreme conditions.
      You obviously haven't listened to the interview. It was a UFO. So either the Russians were halfway to the moon already with a highly sophisticated craft or it was not of earthly origin.
      I am sceptical. I also understand that logically that the odds of there being other inhabited planets are high. We as humans attempt to transpose our limited knowledge onto a model of reality and assume that all possible intelligent lifeforms conform to our primitive model. We are still really a very primitive species. We are only at the beginning of our scientific discoveries. Most have been made in the last 100 years which in the universal time-frame is nothing. It is a distinct possibility that there are highly advanced civilisations in the universe with technology far beyond our limited and self-deluded comprehension. As a sceptic, I accept these considerations. You on the other hand have obviously made up your mind based on the information that you have at your disposal that this could not possibly be true, and have voiced this.
      But honestly it is pointless to continue this dialogue. All I can add is that there are many people of good social standing that have added to the growing voice that we have and are being visited by extra terrestrials. These people have more to lose than gain by voicing this kind of information publicly. That fact I cannot discount. Whether or not their voices are true will only be verified if/when we actually get to see/meet aliens. To that degree I remain sceptical, but curious.

      --
      Participatory Governance : The only feasible option for a real democracy, where everyone really does have a say.
    329. Re:Space Madness! by lapagecp · · Score: 1

      You mean a tree? I mean that's basically what a tree is. Its a mass of hollow tendrils filled with wood that is created from the dead cells of itself. The tendrils reach up into the sky and down into the dirt. Never heard of one changing its genetic code on the fly and not sure about the whole growing a brain or genetic memory but then again we haven't necessarily cataloged all plant life either.

    330. Re:Space Madness! by Walter+Carver · · Score: 1

      If they didn't want us to know that they analy probed someone, they would take him/her with them or kill him/her. Or erase his/her memory.

    331. Re:Space Madness! by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      You obviously haven't listened to the interview. It was a UFO. So either the Russians were halfway to the moon already with a highly sophisticated craft or it was not of earthly origin.
      ...I am sceptical...
      But honestly it is pointless to continue this dialogue. All I can add is that there are many people of good social standing that have added to the growing voice that we have and are being visited by extra terrestrials.

      I don't think I'd consider you a true skeptic, since you are perfectly willing to accept anecdotal accounts as evidence.

      These are extraordinary claims; as such, they require extraordinary evidence. Much more than just hearsay!

  2. Huh. by AltGrendel · · Score: 5, Funny

    "little people who look strange to us."

    Well, maybe we look strange to them, too. Ever think of that?

    --
    The simple truth is that interstellar distances will not fit into the human imagination

    - Douglas Adams

    1. Re:Huh. by ByOhTek · · Score: 5, Funny

      Look strange?

      Alien 1: They reproduce HOW?
      Alien 2: *repeats explanation*
      Alien 1: That's... Revolting!

      --
      Self proclaimed typo king, and inventor of the bear destroying coffee table (patent not pending).
    2. Re:Huh. by Ngarrang · · Score: 5, Funny

      "little people who look strange to us."

      Well, maybe we look strange to them, too. Ever think of that?

      Hush, you ugly bag of mostly water.

      --
      Bearded Dragon
    3. Re:Huh. by gnick · · Score: 1

      FTA:

      Dr Mitchell, who has a Bachelor of Science degree in aeronautical engineering and a Doctor of Science degree in Aeronautics and Astronautics claimed Roswell was real and similar alien visits continue to be investigated.

      I'm going to get Mitchell's back on at least part of this.

      Roswell is real. I had lunch there just a few weeks ago on my way to Carlsbad. Don't visit - Nothing to do, nothing to see, just a dirty little town in the New Mexico desert. Don't bother.

      As for the rest of his claims, well it just makes me a little sad. When it's kids making these claims 'cuz they've sucked down too much reefer, this kind of thing is amusing. Not here - Just sad.

      --
      He's getting rather old, but he's a good mouse.
    4. Re:Huh. by robertjw · · Score: 2, Informative

      I'm going to get Mitchell's back on at least part of this.

      Roswell is real. I had lunch there just a few weeks ago on my way to Carlsbad. Don't visit - Nothing to do, nothing to see, just a dirty little town in the New Mexico desert. Don't bother.

      What? Did they close the UFO museum? And the Robert Goddard Museum? Those are two things to see.

      Been a few years since I was down there, but I didn't really think it was a dirty town at all. Seemed kind of nice. Even had big aliens printed on the Walmart.

    5. Re:Huh. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1, Funny

      obviously. . . they have a fricken television show already.

      http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Little_People_Big_World

    6. Re:Huh. by Svippy · · Score: 5, Insightful

      You know what is confusing me about these aliens? Why do they always contact governments when they come to Earth so they can cover it up?

      I can only applaud our governments, they are doing an excellent job. If they are capable of covering up moon hoaxes, 9/11 plans and aliens crash landing, I'd just wish they were able to do their job just as fine with, say, the war in Iraq?

      This is what always gets me about these people, they talk as if the government is a body of competent people. Last time I checked, they aren't! Private corporations could run most countries better.

      A government is a body of people, usually notably ungoverned.

      --
      Clicked pie.
    7. Re:Huh. by Foofoobar · · Score: 1

      "little people who look strange to us."

      Well, maybe we look strange to them, too. Ever think of that?

      You be the judge... http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k_CAs3q7G48

      --
      This is my sig. There are many like it but this one is mine.
    8. Re:Huh. by FlyingSquidStudios · · Score: 5, Interesting

      I think you would greatly enjoy "They're Made out of Meat" by Terry Bisson.

      http://www.setileague.org/articles/meat.htm

    9. Re:Huh. by Lord+Apathy · · Score: 0, Redundant

      Read Harry Turtledove's Worldwar books to get a idea what aliens might think of the human reproductive process.

      "Superior sir, that was one of the most revolting processes I have ever had the misfortune to observe."

      Damn Fine Books.

      --

      Supporting World Peace Through Nuclear Pacification

    10. Re:Huh. by Abreu · · Score: 4, Funny

      With apologies to Terry Bisson:

      -"They are made out of meat??"

      -"That's what I've been trying to tell you!"

      -"Yuck... Thats just disgusting"

      -"I am glad you finally believe me"

      -"So, what do you advise?"

      -"Officially, or unofficially?"

      -"Both"

      -"Officially, we are required to contact, welcome and log in any and all sentient races or multibeings in this quadrant of the Universe, without prejudice, fear or favor. Unofficially, I advise that we erase the records and forget the whole thing"

      -"I was hoping you would say that"

      -"It seems harsh, but there is a limit. Do we really want to make contact with meat?"

      -

      --
      No sig for the moment.
    11. Re:Huh. by sm62704 · · Score: 5, Interesting

      I don't buy the "space alien" story for the simple reason that the "Area 51" aliens look too much like us. Bipedal, five fingers, five toes, two eyes, one two holed nose, one mouth. Look at the diversity of life on earth, with hooved animals, pipedaal animals with feathers, squids, six legged insects and eight legged spiders, no legged snakes. And all of these creatures presumably evolved from the first earthly protolife, as we've never seen life sponaneously appear since, nor have we been able to cause it to spontaneously appear.

      Plus, how would they have found us? Our radio waves are incredibly weak. Even nuclear blasts are weak on a cosmic scale, and nobody farther than fifty light years away could have detected them yet.

      If in fact they are aliens, they must be time aliens, not space aliens; a species that evolved from humans and travelled through time to do a bit of archaeology. Considering that humans have only been here a hundred thousand years (and look at how we have progressed since), imagine what our descendants ten million years in the future will be like? We will be less than chimpanses by comparison.

      I can believe time travel before I believe faster than light travel.

      --
      mcgrew's razor: Never attribute to stupidity that which can be explained by greedy self-interest
    12. Re:Huh. by gnick · · Score: 2, Informative

      What? Did they close the UFO museum? And the Robert Goddard Museum? Those are two things to see.

      Been a few years since I was down there, but I didn't really think it was a dirty town at all. Seemed kind of nice. Even had big aliens printed on the Walmart.

      I was including the UFO museum under "nothing to see". YMMV. Never been to the Goddard museum.

      And yes, they've got aliens painted everywhere. Even the McDonald's was built with a alien theme. If that's interesting to you, I guess it's at least unique. Personally, I find it a little gaudy and obnoxious - Basically just reminding everyone that the "UFO crash" is the only reason that anyone would be willing to visit. Again, YMMV.

      To be fair, the town was a lot nicer last time I was there than I remember it as a kid. They unfortunately have gang issues (strange for a city that small - also this could have been fixed since last I heard), but they're working hard to clean up their image. I may have been unduly harsh on them while attempting to be funny, but I'm still not a big fan. Unless you've got a kid at NMMI, Roswell's a good place to drive through, not to, IMO.

      --
      He's getting rather old, but he's a good mouse.
    13. Re:Huh. by Intron · · Score: 4, Informative

      They were doing that, too.

      --
      Intron: the portion of DNA which expresses nothing useful.
    14. Re:Huh. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Yea, but which part? The making or the birthing?

    15. Re:Huh. by Admiral+Ag · · Score: 5, Funny

      Of course they do. Aliens have a sense of humour. That is why they only ever contact/abduct drug abusers, lunatics or drunks staggering home at night from the pub.

      The common thread here is that they will only reveal themselves to people who the general population will never believe. That's why they have no problem revealing themselves to our governments.

      --
      "by that I mean people who don't sit on slashdot all day wondering why everyone else isn't building robots" DECS
    16. Re:Huh. by CastrTroy · · Score: 2, Insightful

      Wrong. I think you'll find that one of the biggest problems with the US government is that there's way too much control by private corporations. There's too many laws to help out corporations, and too many laws restricting the rights of the individual. The countries that seem to work the best, are the ones that put the rights and living conditions of people above the well being of corporations.

      --

      Anthropic principle: We see the universe the way it is because if it were different we would not be here to see it.
    17. Re:Huh. by Penguin+Follower · · Score: 1

      Nice Star Trek NG reference. :)

    18. Re:Huh. by neokushan · · Score: 1

      Not that I'm disagreeing with your overall argument, but I'd like to point out one thing -
      The Area 51 aliens look "too" much like us?
      True, there's a huge variety of species on our planet that look completely different to humans, but how many of them have ever built anything beyond a simple structure to live in? It's entirely plausible that for one species to become the dominant species of an entire planet and go on to self-evolve through feats of engineering (I'm sure there's a better term for it, but just run with me here), certain criteria NEEDS to be met. We obviously met them, so we're the precedent, what's to say that on an entirely different planet that's similar to earth, the same thing couldn't happen to a species that resembles our own?

      --
      +1 IDisagreeSoHeMustBeATrollOrAnAstroturferOrAShill
    19. Re:Huh. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      He is 77! My granpa used to see "little green men that looked strange to people" as well...

    20. Re:Huh. by SpaceLifeForm · · Score: 2, Insightful

      The aliens don't have to find you if they put you on your planet.

      --
      You are being MICROattacked, from various angles, in a SOFT manner.
    21. Re:Huh. by TihSon · · Score: 1

      Finally, someone who figured it out.

      --
      In B.C., our fascism is green.
    22. Re:Huh. by LandDolphin · · Score: 1

      Not to say I don't disagree that there is too much power with corporations, but I have to ask you:

      Is there really a long list of countries with such a better standard of living then the USA? Where they have suck a large group of people living in Middle Class at the same level as our Middle Class?

      For as much as we may all dislike parts of the USA, the system here seems to be one of the systems that "seem to work the best"

      --
      Spelling and Grammar errors have been added to this post for your enjoyment
    23. Re:Huh. by saintsfan · · Score: 1

      i did greatly enjoy. thank you

    24. Re:Huh. by frieko · · Score: 1

      Hey, man. Don't knock it 'till you've tried it.

    25. Re:Huh. by baka_toroi · · Score: 1

      Or maybe it's about deformed dwarfs who got hooked off the earth's orbit. And no alien ever visited this planet.

    26. Re:Huh. by robertjw · · Score: 1

      Thought the UFO Museum was amusing - once. Did like their gift shop, still have a flying saucer keychain I bought there.

      It's been about 6 years since I was there, thought it was a nice farming town. Had a friend that lived there, you are definitely right, not much of a destination. Wouldn't recommend making the jaunt just to see the crazy alien theme. From my house there is no reason to drive "through" Roswell, there is no destination I can think of that would take me through that part of the world.

      Stopped in Santa Fe on the same trip, and I thought it was a dirtier town than Roswell. Didn't notice the gang issues then, but we were just tourists.

    27. Re:Huh. by sentientbeing · · Score: 5, Interesting

      Did you know it had been turned into a short film?
      http://www.atom.com/funny_videos/made_meat/

      (The guys own site : )
      http://www.terrybisson.com/meat.html

      --

      ------
      beware he who would deny you access to information, for in his mind he dreams himself your master
    28. Re:Huh. by ShieldW0lf · · Score: 3, Interesting

      We've found life in the freezing cold depths of the ocean where light doesn't penetrate. We've found life on the edges of volcanos. We've mixed together chemical soups and watched life erupt out of it.

      Obviously, life isn't a unique and special thing, but something that naturally erupts into existence all over the place. Therefore, there must be life all over the universe, and not just here on Earth.

      Which is, of course, consistent with major religions. 'God', aka 'The Universe', creates life 'in his image', aka 'of the universe'.

      The universe doesn't tend towards entropy. It tends towards life. We are walking, talking evidence of this fact.

      --
      -1 Uncomfortable Truth
    29. Re:Huh. by sm62704 · · Score: 1

      True, there's a huge variety of species on our planet that look completely different to humans, but how many of them have ever built anything beyond a simple structure to live in?

      That's an additional argument against space aliens. Life is rare; it only appeared once in our solar system that we know of. Intelligent life is even more rare. Like you say, there is only one intelligent species we know of.

      Why would five, rather than four or six, fingers be required for intelligence? Or feet like ours, rather than feet like birds?

      Of the four earth species that farm, only one is a mammal. The other three are insects.

      --
      mcgrew's razor: Never attribute to stupidity that which can be explained by greedy self-interest
    30. Re:Huh. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      That reminds me of the one when an alien met a terrestrial couple and asked them about reproduction, so they agreed to make a demonstration for the alien. When they finished, the alien asked -- "OK, so now where is the child?" -- "It will take nine months to be born" was the answer. -- "Nine months? Then why all that hurry in the end?"

    31. Re:Huh. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Try also "What is This Thing Called Love?" by Asimov.

      http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/What_is_This_Thing_Called_Love%3F

    32. Re:Huh. by KillerBob · · Score: 1

      Remember the Babylon 5 episode where Ivanova was expected to seal a treaty with a new alien race by having sex with their negotiator?

      --
      If you believe everything you read, you'd better not read. - Japanese proverb
    33. Re:Huh. by arkarumba · · Score: 4, Funny

      > Plus, how would they have found us? Our radio waves are incredibly weak. Even nuclear blasts are weak on a cosmic scale

      You are only considering this with respect to your technology. You'd be suprised at how far atomic entanglements travel in the sub-ether. Though it did take us a couple of years to get there after you began playing with such toys.

      > I don't buy the "space alien" story for the simple reason that the "Area 51" aliens look too much like us.

      You are almost right. Most of the galatic community would scare the bejeezus out of you. We were chosen as the closest match, to be the most palettable when contact was made with your authorities.

      However the hysteria at Roswell made it clear your general populous were not sophisticated enough to handle such a large and sudden paradigm shift. Don't worry, thats quite common. Its also common for populations to implode upon such revelations - so we tread carefully. It normally takes quite a while to lay the groundwork for a whole world to gracefully embrace such a significant revelation. We've been observing how you respond to an accelerating rate of technological and cultural change. We are judging the time is close when most of you will be acccepting of our revellation. This is part of the final stage of that process.

      Take care now.

    34. Re:Huh. by rthille · · Score: 2, Interesting

      Interestingly, just this morning I was reading QED by Feynman, and photons & electrons do travel faster than 'c', but the probability is low, and rapidly gets lower as the distance increases. And the distances he was talking about where 'c' starts to dominate are those greater than from the nucleus to the electron shells, so "really really small" compared to interstellar distances. However, could it be that with a big enough lens (on the order of a galaxy), that you could "focus" any photons that may have jumped from Earth to there. Of course I haven't done the math, and the probabilities may be such that every bit of energy ever given off by our solar system would still only give a 1 in 10^Googol odds of a single photon getting there before a photon traveling at 'c', but if you believe quantum physics (or at least Feynman), then it's possible for at least single particles to travel short distances faster than 'c'.

      --
      Awesome furniture, accessories and cabinetry in Santa Rosa, CA: http://humanity-home.com/
    35. Re:Huh. by shock1970 · · Score: 1

      Are you mad?

      "Private corporations could run most countries better."

      Assuming you are talking about the US, the last time I checked, private corporations are running our country

      ...right into the ground.

    36. Re:Huh. by geekoid · · Score: 5, Insightful

      No, they can't.
      If you actually research it, you would find that Government agencies are almost always on target.

      There are three things to remember.
      1)I corporation can fail at 99 project, and succeed at one. No one will talk about the failures, and they will hype the success. Where as with a government agency they can do 99 projects right, and miss one and that one gets hyped all through the media.

      2) Go to the library and look at the fiscal records, almost all projects are done on time and within budget.

      3) Government agencies have for more accountability then corporation.

      --
      The Kruger Dunning explains most post on /. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dunning%E2%80%93Kruger_effect
    37. Re:Huh. by neokushan · · Score: 1

      Maybe in the grand scheme of things, 5 fingers is the absolute optimum number to have? (Well ok, 4 fingers and a thumb, you know what I mean).
      I mean, I'm not saying one way or the other, we all know the huge differences one subtle change in our physiological appearance could make, if we only had 4 fingers on each hand, we might not have been able to climb trees as well, if we had 6, we might not have been able to handle smaller objects as well, it could be that we're "just right" for spreading intelligently like we have (I'm not saying that we're perfect - far from it, I just mean that maybe enough things have to be "right" for a species to take off like we have).

      Until we actually DO meet other intelligent life out there, I don't think we'll know for sure just how different (or similar) they'll be to us.

      Personally, I'm hoping that they're entirely different, I mean COMPLETELY different, not just different looking. That sounds a lot more exciting to me.

      --
      +1 IDisagreeSoHeMustBeATrollOrAnAstroturferOrAShill
    38. Re:Huh. by drinkypoo · · Score: 1

      Plus, how would they have found us?

      Anyone who can get here can probably find here.

      --
      "You're right," Fisheye says. "I should have set it on 'whip' or 'chop.'"
    39. Re:Huh. by clone53421 · · Score: 2, Funny

      We've mixed together chemical soups and watched life erupt out of it.[citation needed]

      --
      Alexander Peter Kristopeit bought his basement from his mommy for one dollar.
    40. Re:Huh. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      I don't buy the "space alien" story for the simple reason that the "Area 51" aliens look too much like us. Bipedal, five fingers, five toes, two eyes, one two holed nose, one mouth. Look at the diversity of life on earth, with hooved animals, pipedaal animals with feathers, squids, six legged insects and eight legged spiders, no legged snakes. And all of these creatures presumably evolved from the first earthly protolife, as we've never seen life sponaneously appear since, nor have we been able to cause it to spontaneously appear.

      Plus, how would they have found us? Our radio waves are incredibly weak. Even nuclear blasts are weak on a cosmic scale, and nobody farther than fifty light years away could have detected them yet.

      If in fact they are aliens, they must be time aliens, not space aliens; a species that evolved from humans and travelled through time to do a bit of archaeology. Considering that humans have only been here a hundred thousand years (and look at how we have progressed since), imagine what our descendants ten million years in the future will be like? We will be less than chimpanses by comparison.

      I can believe time travel before I believe faster than light travel.

      Time travel is the same as FTL travel. The limit according to special relativity is the light cone - ie, anything within the region of space in which light could travel to you at the present time is observable, and hence the past. Anything it could not travel from is the present, or the future. Exceeding the speed of light allows you to break causality through this mechanism.

    41. Re:Huh. by Skye16 · · Score: 1

      It all really depends on the private corporations. It seems to me that most corporations are just as incompetent as our government, and just like our government, they just keep truckin' along in mediocrity.

      It's not that they're bad, per se, but they're just so underwhelmingly good that you're kind of baffled that they made it as far as they have.

      Not all companies are like that, of course, but I'd tend to think the percentage of inept companies is relatively similar to the percentage of inept governments - it's just that there's a hell of a lot more companies around to make it seem as if they are more competent than they are.

    42. Re:Huh. by Skye16 · · Score: 2, Interesting

      I'd rather be "more poor" and less dicked over than have as much money as I do and still feel like I'm getting shafted by corporation after corporation on a daily basis.

      Maybe if you gauge successful systems by how much phat loots they have, we're doing pretty damn good, but I'd give up a hell of a lot if I didn't have to deal with the bullshit that government granted monopolies have bought me (cable, telephone, cell, etc).

      But maybe that's just me.

    43. Re:Huh. by Tripster · · Score: 3, Interesting

      I can believe time travel before I believe faster than light travel.

      Time travel would basically require it anyway. Think of it this way, if you want to travel back in time on Earth you would need to travel to the location of Earth at the time you intend to visit, which isn't the same location Earth inhabits today since we're moving through the cosmos with the Sun which is moving along with the galaxy which is also moving. So to time travel you basically still have to overcome the whole "travel long distances through space" issue we currently have.

    44. Re:Huh. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      [pure bullshit]

    45. Re:Huh. by muellerr1 · · Score: 1

      The Goddard Museum is an absolute must for any scientists or fans of Steampunk. It's his entire laboratory as if he just stepped out for lunch, filled with workbenches and tools and gadgets right out of some crazy 50s futurist comic book. I only wish I had photos.

    46. Re:Huh. by speedtux · · Score: 1

      Office of Special Plans? This is Information Adjustment. The Office of Special Plans is in Information Retrieval.

    47. Re:Huh. by fishbowl · · Score: 1

      That's the exact age when President McCain will be starting his second term.

      --
      -fb Everything not expressly forbidden is now mandatory.
    48. Re:Huh. by euxneks · · Score: 1

      Good point, but you're missing the fact that we are the only species on earth to create technology. Perhaps a tenet of intelligence requires a similar bodily structure? We don't know because we only have ourselves as a model on which to base assumptions, which is admittedly not broad enough.

      --
      in girum imus nocte et consumimur igni
    49. Re:Huh. by pixelpusher220 · · Score: 1

      Just for fun compare with other developed countries:

      Percent of population in prison? US leads
      Percent of population without healthcare? US leads
      Percent of handgun related deaths? US leads
      Percent of population obese? US leads

      lets just say the *best* is pretty subjective

      and yes I live in the US too ;-)

      --
      People in cars cause accidents....accidents in cars cause people :-D
    50. Re:Huh. by Cheeko · · Score: 1

      nothing like hurling hot gooey DNA at each other.

    51. Re:Huh. by joeytmann · · Score: 1

      Perhaps they were scouting for an inter-galactic bypass?

      --
      Insert funny smart-ass comment here.
    52. Re:Huh. by sm62704 · · Score: 5, Informative

      We've found life in the freezing cold depths of the ocean where light doesn't penetrate. We've found life on the edges of volcanos.

      And all of it is related, and all evolved from the same source. When life began there was no oxygen on the planet.

      We've mixed together chemical soups and watched life erupt out of it.

      If we have, this is the first I've heard of it. Have you any reputable links?

      Obviously, life isn't a unique and special thing, but something that naturally erupts into existence all over the place.

      Again, as far as we know it only started once on this planet, and although there may be or have been life on Mars or Europa we have never found proof of it. The only place we've ever found hints of life are right here.

      Therefore, there must be life all over the universe, and not just here on Earth.

      Your conclusion is based on a false premise, but despite that I think it highly unlikely that in the vast reaches of our galaxy, let alone the unimaginably huge number of planets in the universe, that we are alone. If life arose independantly here from non-life, it must have risen independantly elsewhere. But if it did, it is absurdly improbable that it would look anything like us.

      The universe doesn't tend towards entropy. It tends towards life. We are walking, talking evidence of this fact.

      Life is part of entropy.

      --
      mcgrew's razor: Never attribute to stupidity that which can be explained by greedy self-interest
    53. Re:Huh. by Ihmhi · · Score: 1

      Homer: What are you spraying me with?
      Kodos: Rum! So no one will believe your story.

    54. Re:Huh. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      This is what always gets me about these people, they talk as if the government is a body of competent people. Last time I checked, they aren't!

      Uhhh.... I think that it is pretty clear that they failed to keep the lid on alien encounters.

      There are all sorts of disclosure events from military personnel that have well publicized on TV and a huge amount of photographic evidence and video evidence, not all of which has been faked. (Some of it has definitely been faked.)

    55. Re:Huh. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      I'd like to point out that the war in Iraq was designed by elected officials, and all of the terrible decisions were made and enforced by those officials. A cover-up, however, would be done by life-long government employees. All an elected official has to do is pretend he didn't hear the briefing right and say nothing. Thus, the cover-up would succeed. There are many instances of things occurring, perhaps every day sorts of things, that are protected by the US government as classified, that none of us ever hear of. Which is good, because it would cause wide-spread panic. And, no private corporations *cannot* do a better job than government, it's pretty much in their overall design.

    56. Re:Huh. by DavidHumus · · Score: 1
      Either you have never worked for a private corporation or you weren't paying attention when you did.

      Private corporations could run most countries better.

    57. Re:Huh. by sm62704 · · Score: 1

      Anyone who can get here can probably find here.

      I got here and I can't!

      --
      mcgrew's razor: Never attribute to stupidity that which can be explained by greedy self-interest
    58. Re:Huh. by Shaitan+Apistos · · Score: 1

      Life is rare; it only appeared once in our solar system that we know of. Intelligent life is even more rare. Like you say, there is only one intelligent species we know of.

      On the other hand, of the planets we know of that have life, 100% of them have intelligent life. So maybe it's not that rare.

    59. Re:Huh. by gtall · · Score: 1

      Don't forget Kennedy, they covered up that too.

      Gerry

    60. Re:Huh. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      as far as what you say about the aliens looking too much like us, naturally evolution on just about any planet is going to eventually take a similar course. everything in the universe came from the very same material (the singularity before the big bang), so naturally it will all work similarly. the dinosaurs died out because that evolutionary ladder that focused primarily on size and force wasn't efficient.

      as far as being bipedal, you only need two legs to hold you up and keep balance, so of course there'd only be two legs. you must be kidding about the two eyes thing, right? you only need two eyes to see everything in 3d, no more, no less. evolution heads in a practical direction of evolving what's necessary. those aliens may have many different kinds of life forms on their planet, but the life forms that we would meet would be heading in a similar direction that we are, which is a primary focus on the evolution of our minds. that process would be a fairly familiar evolutionary ladder and would create an end result with something similar to us.

      now about how they would've found us... hubble telescope is getting to the point now where it's able to see planets (indirectly) in distant galaxies. now imagine a race far more advanced than ours and how much of their surrounding universe they'd be able to see and how well. they very well might have stumbled on us by visiting planets they saw from a distance could potentially be able to support life.

      "time aliens"? are you joking me? you apparently have no idea how space-time works. if someone can bend time, they can bend space. the two are directly interconnected with each other. by poking a hole in time and traveling through it, you are in what's called "ether". at that point, you can come back out into space at not only any given time, but also any given point in space as well. consider the concept of a "gravity drive" if you can and look at space as a flat piece of paper. normally to get from one point to another on the piece of paper in the shortest distance, a person would draw a straight line. however, the shortest distance would be nothing, in which you fold the paper so that each point is touching, travel through the fold, then let space flatten out again. write it off as science-fiction if you want, but ask any quantum physicist and they'll tell you very well it is indeed possible.

    61. Re:Huh. by clone53421 · · Score: 1

      Maybe in the grand scheme of things, 5 fingers is the absolute optimum number to have? (Well ok, 4 fingers and a thumb, you know what I mean).

      Hmm, I've thought about it, and I think you're right. Obviously, opposable thumbs are a must-have for any intelligent species. There must also be at least three fingers to have a middle finger, and the pinky is necessary for rich snobs to gesture with... 4 fingers and a thumb, just like you speculated!

      --
      Alexander Peter Kristopeit bought his basement from his mommy for one dollar.
    62. Re:Huh. by gtall · · Score: 1

      You forget that government have to put up with the most obnoxious, demanding, self-absorbed people around...us.

      Gerry

    63. Re:Huh. by Naturalis+Philosopho · · Score: 1

      Life's diversity and extremophiles show that life is adaptable, not that it arises everywhere.

      Also, the universe as a whole does tend toward entropy. Even the most chaotic systems have knots and eddies that look highly organized; see hurricanes as part of the overall weather pattern. They are beautifully organized, seem to arise out of chaos, and then dissipate.

      To be realistic, we have to assume that life, while not necessarily unique, is still just a random occurrence on the way to the ultimate heat-death of the universe.

    64. Re:Huh. by CrimsonAvenger · · Score: 1

      but I'd give up a hell of a lot if I didn't have to deal with the bullshit that government granted monopolies have bought me (cable, telephone, cell, etc)

      Simple solution then - don't do Cable, Telephone, Cell, etc. Not like the law requires it or anything.

      Or did you really mean that you wanted the benefits without having to pay for it?

      --

      "I do not agree with what you say, but I will defend to the death your right to say it"
    65. Re:Huh. by TrekkieGod · · Score: 1

      I don't buy the "space alien" story for the simple reason that the "Area 51" aliens look too much like us.

      I don't buy it either, and that's the second best argument to be made. The only counter-argument I can think of is that in order for there to be intelligent life above a certain level, evolutionary pressures may require certain similarities. For example, dolphins are pretty intelligent beings, but they're unlikely to grow to an intelligence capable of civilization before evolving a way to leave the water (so they may create fire) and manipulate tool. It's possible that anything that is as intelligent as us (or more) would have to be remarkably similar in appearance.

      Plus, how would they have found us?

      Depends on how common life is. For all you know, we're in the closest system to their own, and we're the first other system they've explored. Which would explain why only one alien species showed up thus far.

      I can believe time travel before I believe faster than light travel.

      I'm not a physicist but my limited pop-culture understanding of relativity implies that if you solve one problem, you solve the other. If we can figure out how to travel to the past, we should have all the tools we need to figure out how to travel ftl, and vice-versa.

      I said earlier that their similarity to us is the second best argument for their non-existence, so you might be wondering what the best argument is. The best argument is that our government can't even hide their wire-tapping activities, do we really expect them to be able to hide something like space aliens?

      --

      Warning: Opinions known to be heavily biased.

    66. Re:Huh. by sm62704 · · Score: 1

      Ok, so if in fact photons can travel at twice c (and I doubt Feynman was saying speeds go that fast) then a hundred light years, or two. How many habitable planets are there in a two hundred light year radius? And if by chance in that two hundred light year radius life erupted and evolved to the point of intelligence, how would they get here? The nearest star is four light years away! If your particles could go at twice lightspeed, two hundred light years away they would just now be getting the signals and it would take at least twice as long to travel here, as I doubt you're going to have matter travelling faster than light. here is a slashdot item I submitted last year, you probably saw it, about matter discovered travelling at near lightspeed.

      --
      mcgrew's razor: Never attribute to stupidity that which can be explained by greedy self-interest
    67. Re:Huh. by Oktober+Sunset · · Score: 1

      Erupts into existence everywhere? so where's the life on Mars and Venus?

    68. Re:Huh. by Beezlebub33 · · Score: 1

      I can believe time travel before I believe faster than light travel.

      We are, actually, much closer to FTL travel than we are to time travel. You can't travel faster than light through the fabric of spacetime, but, as we all know, that fabric isn't flat. If you can change the shape (as large objects do), then you can effectively get from point A to point B faster than light could by taking the normal route. See:

      http://arxivblog.com/?p=523 or
      http://blog.wired.com/wiredscience/2007/12/physicists-do-t.html

      It's completely theoretical, and requires extra dimensions, and we have no chance of doing anything with it any time soon. But, that's farther than we are with time travel.

      --
      The more people I meet, the better I like my dog.
    69. Re:Huh. by alexborges · · Score: 1

      Now that itches. Private corporations could run most countries "better", and take democracy with them. We will turn into fucking corpodrones with this frame of mind in a minute.

      Whatever... i mean, i do realize it is happening and it is the future. What i do not understand is where are our balls: we should not be FOR destroying democracy, we should be AGAINST that.

      --
      NO SIG
    70. Re:Huh. by rhiorg · · Score: 1

      Whew! I'm sure glad we already know everything about physics, etc. I was beginning to think this science crap was going to have to go on and on and on.

      Your post makes the assumption that advanced civilizations would be limited to the detection methods and forms of travel that we have devised.

      As for faster-than-light travel, remember that for a long time people believed that faster-than-sound travel was impossible...flight was impossible...Earth not being the center of the universe was impossible. Every time a scientist makes a "law" of physics, at some point it breaks down. Our current theories are no different.

    71. Re:Huh. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      This is what always gets me about these people, they talk as if the government is a body of competent people. Last time I checked, they aren't! Private corporations could run most countries better.

      Haliburton is doing a fine job. Why do you have a beef with the way they are running our country?

    72. Re:Huh. by i.of.the.storm · · Score: 1

      Haha I like your sig.

      --
      All your base are belong to Wii.
    73. Re:Huh. by houghi · · Score: 1

      I don't buy the "space alien" story for the simple reason that the "Area 51" aliens look too much like us.

      That is the sole reason I DO know it is true. They must clearly also be created to gods image.
      Fact: $DEITY created the universe
      Fact: We are created in the image of $DEITY
      Fact: Aliens and us look alike
      Ergo: $DEITY created the aliens

      This is again proof that Darwin was wrong.

      Well, either that or I will make up something else.

      --
      Don't fight for your country, if your country does not fight for you.
    74. Re:Huh. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Tell that to the Bolivian people:

      http://www.globalpolicy.org/socecon/gpg/2005/0128bolivia.htm

      I know that corporations can be more efficient, but their bottom line is that they need to make a profit, an ever increasing profit. This is what they are obliged to do by law for their shareholders...Now, things like water, electricity, gas and public transport should either be a) in public hands or b) in a fiercely competitive market. If you have a few companies you open yourself up to collusion and price-fixing, have one and its a monopoly...You need public owners or many companies offering the same service. And if one company drives all others out the market then they should win the prize of being nationalized!

    75. Re:Huh. by CodeBuster · · Score: 1

      I have never seen one, have you? How can you be certain that it has five fingers and toes? As for the other features, suppose for the sake of argument that intelligent alien life forms had evolved elsewhere in the universe under circumstances substantially similar to our own including a homeworld where water is or was plentiful orbiting within the habitable region of its star. It is very likely that certain basic features such as walking upright, large brain, stereoscopic forward facing eyes, etc would evolve elsewhere under similar evolutionary pressures as occurred here on Earth. Perhaps the humanoid bipedal form is merely the most likely for intelligent life everywhere, the most probable result of similar evolutionary processes where specific details (i.e. number of digits) might be different but overall form is substantially similar.

    76. Re:Huh. by sm62704 · · Score: 1

      Let me ask some mice and dolphins and I'll get back to you on that.

      --
      mcgrew's razor: Never attribute to stupidity that which can be explained by greedy self-interest
    77. Re:Huh. by ByOhTek · · Score: 1

      I like how she smiled and continued on when she was questioned about the process later...

      --
      Self proclaimed typo king, and inventor of the bear destroying coffee table (patent not pending).
    78. Re:Huh. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Well, if the "government" were run by "corporations", would you then consider them competent enough to cover up a conspiracy?

    79. Re:Huh. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1, Funny

      Except that private corporations are run by and filled with the sort of people that the comic strip Dilbert portrays....

      I think the problem is all those hairless monkeys who missed the monolith meetings.

    80. Re:Huh. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Or try "Agent to the Stars" by John Scalzi:
      http://scalzi.com/agent/

    81. Re:Huh. by ShieldW0lf · · Score: 1

      I could cite my brother, who is studying medicine and genetic engineering, but this being the web, I'll just grab a few headlines from Google, post them, and get back to work.

      http://www.wired.com/science/discoveries/news/2008/01/synthetic_genome

      http://www.nytimes.com/2008/02/05/science/05angi.html

      http://www.iht.com/articles/2007/06/29/news/genome.php

      http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/science/nature/6733797.stm

      --
      -1 Uncomfortable Truth
    82. Re:Huh. by amRadioHed · · Score: 1

      It's also entirely plausible that nothing can be inferred from looking at the development of life on one planet.

      All life on our planet is closely related, especially the higher forms of life. It may just be a happy accident that mammals have 4 limbs and two eyes.

      --
      We hope your rules and wisdom choke you / Now we are one in everlasting peace
    83. Re:Huh. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Private corporations could run most countries better.

      Just who do you think is "run[ning] most countries", these days?

    84. Re:Huh. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Private corporations could run most countries better.

      And they do.

    85. Re:Huh. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Private corporations could run most countries better.

      Private corporations are run using a fascist model.

      I prefer them NOT ruling any country. USA included.

    86. Re:Huh. by corbettw · · Score: 1

      We are judging the time is close when most of you will be acccepting [sic] of our revellation [sic].

      You can travel the cosmos, but can't use a spell checker?

      --
      God invented whiskey so the Irish would not rule the world.
    87. Re:Huh. by nawcom · · Score: 1

      Is there really a long list of countries with such a better standard of living then the USA?

      Only 11 countries. If 11 countries is a long list to you, I suppose.
      http://hdr.undp.org/en/statistics/

    88. Re:Huh. by Plutonite · · Score: 1

      The common thread here is that they will only reveal themselves to people who the general population will never believe.

      If that is true, my friend, then we need to introduce them to one very dark part of our society:

      http://uncyclopedia.org/wiki/Lawyer

    89. Re:Huh. by Oktober+Sunset · · Score: 1

      five finger is a requirement to being an intelligent technology building species? having arms and legs and eyes and ears, and being within a certain range of size yes, that's logical, but little greys guys have exactly the same basic shape, but with a change of proportions, thier joints, limbs, everything is portrayed as being in exactly the same place. aliens being a similar shape yea, that's not too far fetched, the exact same shape just slightly different proportions? No way.

      Before the 'greys' stereotype came about was the 'aryan' alien, the 10 foot tall perfectly formed beautiful aliens. The concept of aliens has for a long time been basicly what people think a future form of humans would be like, people don't have much imagination when it comes to a lot of things, and the utopian ideal of humans evolving into super humans was what people imagined untill they became more informed about evolution and the idea of the great big brain and a little underused, underdeveloped body overtook it as the idea for where a species would go next.

      Even people who imagine aliens from the planet jizzwankle will subconsciously form thier idea that these are 'men' from space, just like humans, but more advanced. Most people just don't have the imagination to make up really weird aliens with 3 legs, 6 arms, no head and eyes in thier knees.

    90. Re:Huh. by MagdJTK · · Score: 1

      What always amazes me is how they always look like little men. I mean, seriously?

    91. Re:Huh. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0
    92. Re:Huh. by Chris+Burke · · Score: 1

      "Jonas Venture": I took the form of your dad because I figured it would be easier to accept. I didn't want to stress you out--end of the world, life on other planets, blah blah blah.
              Dr. Venture: Why...you SON-OF-A-BITCH! Do you know what you just put me through?! What the fuck were you thinking?! What kind of fucked-up planet are you from, where you think showing up as my dead fucking father is supposed to make me feel any better?!
              "Jonas Venture": Okay, take it easy...
              Dr. Venture: You prick!
              "Jonas Venture": Look, I just saved your entire planet...
              Dr. Venture: Prick!
              "Jonas Venture": Alright, fine, you wanna see? Here! (Peels off his face, revealing his true self, which is shown offscreen, but horrifies everyone else) There! Are you happy now? Would that be better? That I came out looking like that out of nowhere? Look at you! You practically crapped your pants! Except for him, he crapped his pants! (points to Ned)
              Ned: Boom boom.

      --

      The enemies of Democracy are
    93. Re:Huh. by phozz+bare · · Score: 1

      You know what is confusing me about these aliens? Why do they always contact governments when they come to Earth so they can cover it up?

      Nah, you're missing the bigger picture. Why is it that whenever aliens come to Earth, they always land in a remote location in the United States, and never in any other region in the world - particularly countries where the local government wouldn't be quite as capable of covering it up?

    94. Re:Huh. by sm62704 · · Score: 1

      Building a synthetic genome is NOT "mixed together chemical soups and watched life erupt out of it". It is painstakingly making polymers and weaving them together. And as your links themselves all say, what has come from it is most definitely NOT alive.

      --
      mcgrew's razor: Never attribute to stupidity that which can be explained by greedy self-interest
    95. Re:Huh. by Skye16 · · Score: 1

      Agreed, but we *also* work at those corporations, so they have to deal with it too :)

    96. Re:Huh. by spitzak · · Score: 1

      The government is only *pretending* to be incompetent! It's all part of the plan, to try to discredit the conspiracy theories, can't you see?

    97. Re:Huh. by sanosuke001 · · Score: 1

      Maybe they ARE doing well in Iraq and they just keep up the facade to leech more money from us... PUT THAT IN YOUR PIPE AND SMOKE IT (But do not inhale. Conspiracies are dangerous to your health)

      --
      -SaNo
    98. Re:Huh. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Let's examine this theory a little more carefully, shall we? The classic aliens have been depicted as tall, pale, and lanky, with large and glossy eyes.

      Good news, everybody! In 10 millions years, the only humans left will be geeks! That means there is a chance of us reproducing! Take that, Idiocracy!

    99. Re:Huh. by mrdoogee · · Score: 1

      I had no idea that extra-terrestrial life had read "Childhood's End" by Clarke. I hope the Overlords really do look like the devil, that would be awesome.

    100. Re:Huh. by neokushan · · Score: 1

      I'm not saying that aliens WILL be that kind of shape or have those proportion, I'm just trying to say that we have absolutely no friggin' idea what life might be like on other planets - intelligent or not - the only thing we have to go on is our own planet and for SOME reason, we became vastly dominant over every other species here and by a huge degree. Whatever it is that caused that, be it a bigger brain, thumbs, a combination of both or whatever, is probably something we WILL share in common with aliens.

      --
      +1 IDisagreeSoHeMustBeATrollOrAnAstroturferOrAShill
    101. Re:Huh. by sm62704 · · Score: 1

      Whoda' thunk? Aliens get drunk!

      --
      mcgrew's razor: Never attribute to stupidity that which can be explained by greedy self-interest
    102. Re:Huh. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Maybe the governments are much, *much* smarter than we think - and have fooled us all by efficiently pretending to be incompetent.

    103. Re:Huh. by kvezach · · Score: 1

      Perhaps the humanoid bipedal form is merely the most likely for intelligent life everywhere, the most probable result of similar evolutionary processes where specific details (i.e. number of digits) might be different but overall form is substantially similar.

      Each non-humanoid intelligent animal on Earth lower the probability of that being the case. Dolphins, for instance. You may say that the dolphins aren't tool users and thus couldn't make space ships, so let's take crows. Quite clever tool users.. but not humanoid. They haven't built civilizations either, but perhaps we just got there first.

    104. Re:Huh. by Arthur+Grumbine · · Score: 1

      I can believe time travel before I believe faster than light travel.

      What?! But for the rest of us, FTL and Time-Travel occur "simultaneously", for a given frame of reference! That can only mean one thing! Your sense of belief obviously moves faster than the speed of light.

      --
      Now that I think about it, I'm pretty sure everything I just said is completely wrong.
    105. Re:Huh. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Time travel *is* faster than light travel.

      Unless I'm misunderstanding my relativity physics in this, which is entirely possible, but if I remember (and understand) correctly, in order to travel back in time, we would need to be able to travel faster than light. Forward in time is less difficult, and only involves travelling at different relative speeds than the thing you're trying to age faster than... I think...

    106. Re:Huh. by VoidCrow · · Score: 1

      Just a thought:

      Why must they be alien?

      What about a smarter hominid offshoot which never employed mass production techniques, and *left*?

      We know this planet is a risky proposition, longer term, so why stay, if you can leave?

    107. Re:Huh. by brianerst · · Score: 1

      Were you describing aliens or Slashdot readers?

    108. Re:Huh. by atamido · · Score: 1

      I believe that's a Star Control 2 reference.

    109. Re:Huh. by chill · · Score: 1

      Good point, but you're missing the fact that we are the only species on earth to create technology. Perhaps a tenet of intelligence requires a similar bodily structure? We don't know because we only have ourselves as a model on which to base assumptions, which is admittedly not broad enough.

      You, sir, are forgetting about Cow Tools.

      --
      Learning HOW to think is more important than learning WHAT to think.
    110. Re:Huh. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Or watch the short film:

      http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gaFZTAOb7IE

    111. Re:Huh. by Taibhsear · · Score: 1

      Some you got right, some you got wrong.

      We've mixed together chemical soups and watched biochemical precursors to life erupt out of it.

      Fixed.

      The universe doesn't tend towards entropy. It tends towards life. We are walking, talking evidence of this fact.

      The universe does tend towards entropy. Entropy is not the same as the way popular media uses it. Entropy is not decay. Entropy is the tendency towards lower energy states. Water clathrin cages, self assembling biochemical structures (like micelles and phospholipid bilayers), movement through hydrogen bonding, and pressure and osmotic differentials are all examples of this. The universe tends towards entropy. Entropy tends towards life. Life tends towards progress through evolution. Creation of life is driven by the inherent laws of the universe. It is not some magical occurrence. It is a matter of time and place.

    112. Re:Huh. by BigJClark · · Score: 1


      I'm just going to come out and say it, I need off this rock. Please, I'll do just about anything, polish spacecraft, serve coffee (I won't bore you with my educational credentials, they are probably so incredibly inferior).

      I owe the "tax man" too much money, I can handle the "paradigm-shift". Please please please, I'm begging you.

      --

      Hi, I Boris. Hear fix bear, yes?
    113. Re:Huh. by Penguin+Follower · · Score: 2, Funny

      Episode 18, "Home Soil" See this page:

      Also, the life form calls Picard an "ugly bag of mostly water," which has to be the best line ever on TNG.

    114. Re:Huh. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      something most people forget - time travel is space travel.. think of where the earth is right now. now remember the earth orbts the sun. throw in the fact the solar system moves within the milkyway, which itself moves means that to travel even as far back as a year would require traveling large distances as well... Just because your travel in time doesn't mean you're gonna end up anywhere romtely near where you started.

    115. Re:Huh. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      I don't buy the "space alien" story for the simple reason that the "Area 51" aliens look too much like us.

      The aliens don't have to find you if they put you on your planet.

      Or intelligently designed you ;-) Hey, I've heard wilder theories.

    116. Re:Huh. by Eli+Gottlieb · · Score: 1

      I take the opposite position. Until I see the blue box, I'm not believing a damn thing about time-traveling humanoids. FTL travel with proper aliens disguising themselves as humanoids is far more likely.

    117. Re:Huh. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      No, what's stupid is Anonymous Coward trolling people based on their sigs...

    118. Re:Huh. by clone53421 · · Score: 1

      I couldn't have said it better.

      --
      Alexander Peter Kristopeit bought his basement from his mommy for one dollar.
    119. Re:Huh. by clone53421 · · Score: 1

      ...probably oxygen does it. That would explain why they keep crashing all over the dang place.

      --
      Alexander Peter Kristopeit bought his basement from his mommy for one dollar.
    120. Re:Huh. by srussell · · Score: 1

      Private corporations could run most countries better.

      Psh. America is proof that that isn't true.

      --- SER

    121. Re:Huh. by srussell · · Score: 1

      The universe doesn't tend towards entropy. It tends towards life. We are walking, talking evidence of this fact.

      Life is just another way of increasing entropy. Pound for pound, you (directly or indirectly) produce far more waste heat than almost anything other than a good fusion reaction.

      --- SER

    122. Re:Huh. by xouumalperxe · · Score: 1

      Well, maybe we look strange to them, too. Ever think of that?

      That's probably why he said they're "little people who look strange to us."

    123. Re:Huh. by Coraon · · Score: 1

      I don't buy the "space alien" story for the simple reason that the "Area 51" aliens look too much like us. Bipedal, five fingers, five toes, two eyes, one two holed nose, one mouth. Look at the diversity of life on earth, with hooved animals, pipedaal animals with feathers, squids, six legged insects and eight legged spiders, no legged snakes. And all of these creatures presumably evolved from the first earthly protolife, as we've never seen life sponaneously appear since, nor have we been able to cause it to spontaneously appear.

      How many of the creatures you listed there evolved into curious tool builders? because seriously those are the only ones that will ever build spaceships. It could be that there is just something about a humanoid form that lends itself to being space fairing.

      --
      -Ours is the wisdom of Solomon, the magic of Merlyn, the fall of Icaris.
    124. Re:Huh. by naasking · · Score: 1

      Don't worry, thats quite common. Its also common for populations to implode upon such revelations - so we tread carefully.

      By making ET a big joke or otherwise popularizing it, so the populace would be completely desensitized to the news or laugh at it when it finally does come out!

    125. Re:Huh. by snowgirl · · Score: 1

      Whoda' thunk? Aliens get drunk!

      Duh! it's the spoiled milk!

      --
      WARNING! This girl exceeds the MAXIMUM SAFE standards established by the FDA for BRATTINESS
    126. Re:Huh. by Grishnakh · · Score: 1

      The power of inertia is amazing. Just look at companies like Ford, GM, even Microsoft. For a small company, a disaster like Vista would have killed it. For MS, it's a roadbump; it's not like their customers have much choice anyway. Ford just suffered an $8+ billion loss. There's still no signs of impending bankruptcy.

      Huge companies like that can hang around forever because of inertia. Small companies have far more risk: if they make a bad decision, they could be history.

    127. Re:Huh. by Spikeles · · Score: 1

      It does sound like something the Vux would say..

      "You humans are SO ugly, that I get my kids to behave by holding a picture of you behind my back and I tell the kids that if they aren't good, I'll show it to them! I am such a bad father (sob!) I must destroy you... for the children!"

      --
      I don't need to test my programs.. I have an error correcting modem.
    128. Re:Huh. by AslanTheMentat · · Score: 1

      ...and a t-shirt! I'm Made of Meat!

    129. Re:Huh. by cyber-vandal · · Score: 1

      A lot of the United Kingdom is now run by private corporations. Utopia it ain't.

    130. Re:Huh. by jollyreaper · · Score: 1

      I don't buy the "space alien" story for the simple reason that the "Area 51" aliens look too much like us. Bipedal, five fingers, five toes, two eyes, one two holed nose, one mouth. Look at the diversity of life on earth, with hooved animals, pipedaal animals with feathers, squids, six legged insects and eight legged spiders, no legged snakes. And all of these creatures presumably evolved from the first earthly protolife, as we've never seen life sponaneously appear since, nor have we been able to cause it to spontaneously appear.

      They're humans from the future, what we evolved into, coming back to the past in order to reshape it. That's always been my favorite explanation, it means Skynet didn't win.

      --
      Kwisatz Haderach
      Sell the spice to CHOAM
      This Mahdi took Shaddam's Throne
    131. Re:Huh. by rthille · · Score: 1

      I got the feeling that speeds could be _very_ high. He showed his graphs where still was a line moving vertically, and moving at 'c' was 'only' 45 degrees off vertical (time on the vertical axis and 1-dimensional space on the horizontal). If I had to guess, that's how electrons 'pop' between energy levels when hit by a photon.

      --
      Awesome furniture, accessories and cabinetry in Santa Rosa, CA: http://humanity-home.com/
    132. Re:Huh. by AnyoneEB · · Score: 1

      We've mixed together chemical soups and watched life erupt out of it.

      If we have, this is the first I've heard of it. Have you any reputable links?

      Your skepticism is quite reasonable. The closest I know of is The Miller-Urey experiment which produced a few proteins.

      --
      Centralization breaks the internet.
    133. Re:Huh. by tchdab1 · · Score: 1

      >>Private corporations could run most countries better.

      That myth of the improved efficiency and capability of private enterprise is equally laughable.
      How many private projects have you worked on that were sufficiently funded, brought in on time, within budget, and met requirements?
      Please.
      &EndRant

    134. Re:Huh. by BlameItOnTheRain · · Score: 1

      I don't buy the "space alien" story for the simple reason that the "Area 51" aliens look too much like us. Bipedal, five fingers, five toes, two eyes, one two holed nose, one mouth. Look at the diversity of life on earth, with hooved animals, pipedaal animals with feathers, squids, six legged insects and eight legged spiders, no legged snakes.

      Sir Arthur C. Clarke might tell you: "Similar solutions to a similar problem."

    135. Re:Huh. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Its also common for populations to implode upon such revelations - so we tread carefully.

      Heh, you can travel all the light years to get here, but still haven't created a grammar checker that understands the difference between it's and its.

      I think the problem is that you aren't ready, not the other way round.

    136. Re:Huh. by mikael · · Score: 1

      From Dr Who (the latest series where the Doctor and the team meat the leader of the Sontarans):

      Jack: "He looks like an small angry potato"

      Dr Who: "Hoy, hoy. No name calling, you look like a tall pink weasel to him."

      --
      Vintage computer adverts: http://www.vintageadbrowser.com/computers-and-software-ads
    137. Re:Huh. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Of course they do. Aliens have a sense of humour. That is why they only ever contact/abduct drug abusers, lunatics or drunks staggering home at night from the pub.

      The common thread here is that they will only reveal themselves to people who the general population will never believe. That's why they have no problem revealing themselves to our governments.

      It's funny because it is so true... and sharp. For a moment I had a feeling like if Mark Twain was among us.

    138. Re:Huh. by PDX · · Score: 1

      Another look at our space program might be required. Most of our exports turn into space garbage in just a few years.
      What would happen if we invented something that would appreciate in value over time? Like a Corvette or a Lamborghini launched into space? Each is a true work of art and engineering.
        If we pursue the goal only the lucky and skillful will survive. Obviously only the short and bald ones made it out of Zeta Reticuli alive! We will never see the Wookies of Zeta Reticuli because their excess hair clogged the air circulators.

    139. Re:Huh. by aeoo · · Score: 1

      "Life is part of entropy."

      Is it? Are you sure?

      Entropy is part of life, by definition of both. Entropy as a loss of order needs order. Perfect disorder cannot experience further entropy according to our current definitions of the concept of entropy. So you need order first. In other words, entropy is not an all-encompassing concept, because there are things like order that entropy does not contain. But life, by definition, contains all that. It contains expressions of entropy and of order and of anything else too.

      Life is the ground of everything. Entropy is just one of the players on the stage that is life.

      Why so? It's simply defined that way. If you don't agree then you don't agree with our language and the way we use words. Entropy is just not an over-arching concept. It's very specific. But life is not a specific concept. It's very abstract and general. In fact you might even make a case that life doesn't refer to anything, since it has no opposite (death is not life's opposite, for example, for opposite of death would be birth and life is the background for both of those).

    140. Re:Huh. by HTH+NE1 · · Score: 2, Funny

      "God is dead" - Nietzsche, 1882

      "Nietzsche is dead" - God, 1900

      "Neitzsche is God" - Dead, 1980

      "Nietzsche God dead" - Is, 2004

      --
      Oh, say does that Star-Spangled Banner entwine / The myrtle of Venus with Bacchus's vine?
    141. Re:Huh. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Ever heard of the Phoenix lights? Thousands of people have seen UFO's. Chances are there is only 3 degrees of separation between you and someone who believes they have seen a UFO. This is a Nasa Astronaut, one of the brightest men our nation has ever seen, a man who has gone into outer space. What background history makes you an authority to judge a man with such a wealth of knowledge.

    142. Re:Huh. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      I can believe time travel before I believe faster than light travel.

      Really according to quantum physics you have to have faster then light travel in order to achieve time travel.

    143. Re:Huh. by martin-boundary · · Score: 1

      FYI: the word you were looking for is populace. "Populous" is an adjective, which means full (of people).

    144. Re:Huh. by diefne · · Score: 1

      If they are capable of covering up moon hoaxes, 9/11 plans and aliens crash landing, I'd just wish they were able to do their job just as fine with, say, the war in Iraq?

      The war in Iraq IS the cover up for moon hoaxes, 9/11 plans and aliens crash landing.

      Never leave the house without your tinfoil hat!

    145. Re:Huh. by superyooser · · Score: 1

      In other words:
      "We've found life on Earth. We've found life on Earth."
      (And we have not observed it "erupting" on its own. See rebuttals in other replies.)

      Because life was spoken into existence all over the Earth. It does not hold logically that there must be life all over the universe.

      Which is, of course, consistent with major religions. 'God', aka 'The Universe', creates life 'in his image', aka 'of the universe'.

      Here is what that verse really means.

    146. Re:Huh. by mjwx · · Score: 1

      Hush, you ugly bag of mostly water.

      I prefer to be called a fluid sac.

      --
      Calling someone a "hater" only means you can not rationally rebut their argument.
    147. Re:Huh. by mjwx · · Score: 1
      I believe the Fermi Paradoxy should be called into play here as to weather life exists elsewhere in the universe.

      But if it did, it is absurdly improbable that it would look anything like us.

      Not that improbable, given similar conditions it is entirely probably that another species may follow the same evolutionary model with only minor differences. if an extra-terrestrial species evolved on a rocky water world with similar geological features to earth (assuming that, if there is one earth there must be another, this is why I called the Fermi paradox into this) it is entirely possible that another species will develop along similar lines to accommodate similar needs, IE, walking upright (bipedal) to see predators, opposable thumbs (five fingured hands, tool use ETC...). It's just as foolhardy to think that an ETI (Extra-Terrestrial Intelligence) needs to look radically different to ourselves as it is to think that an ETI will look similar to ourselves.

      In a controlled environment Human Evolution is a model that can be recreated exactly if you have enough a few thousand millennia.

      This belief should be laid entirely at the feet of Hollywood though, its easier to put a big head on a short actor than it is to create an original alien creature.

      --
      Calling someone a "hater" only means you can not rationally rebut their argument.
    148. Re:Huh. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      I can believe time travel before I believe faster than light travel.

      wouldn't that be technically the same thing...?

    149. Re:Huh. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Actually since there is no "reference location" in the universe, and everything is relative, you might not have to worry about the movement of the earth through space when you travel through time. In other words, who's to say the whole universe doesn't revolve around you? Or rather, perhaps you could design a time travel machine which keeps its location relatively the same compared to nearby objects even though they are traveling through time at a different rate.

      I don't believe in time travel but I don't let a little thing like Newtonian physics get in the way of my imagination :)

    150. Re:Huh. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Trust me, governments can't run countries for s**t, but if Dilbert proves anything, private corporations would be even less competent. Once you get more than 100 monkeys working for a common purpose that common purpose gets forgotten and it's every monkey for himself. I don't believe in conspiracies, I believe in 100 monkeys.

    151. Re:Huh. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      You might find Erich von Däniken interesting. He's quite a nutjob though.

    152. Re:Huh. by yashtulsyan · · Score: 1

      If you watch "Star Trek" you'd agree that the War in Iraq would be looked down upon in history (as would be the rest of the late 20th and early 21st centuries) as it would violate an important law, Prime Directive Hee hee...

    153. Re:Huh. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      But actually you are wrong here. If you look at life on Earth most species do share common characterstics, when did you last see a 12 toed mammel? or a two headed one for that matter. The Process of natural selection always ends in the most efficient layout, two eyes work better than 3 and are no less efficent than four, whereas one isn't very useful.

      So natural selection would most probablyresult in similar body layouts for most species throughtout the universe. That is four limbs, 2 eyes, one head I'm not saying there wouldn't be others just that this, as the most efficient format, is going to be the most common. Finally if you have four limbs it doesn't matter how big your brain is if you dont' use one set of limbs to manipulate your environment then you can't develope technology, ergo any any four limbed sentient species capable of technology is going to be bipedal.

      Again not saying this is the only possiblity but its likely to be the most common

    154. Re:Huh. by CAIMLAS · · Score: 1

      Wait, what comes next?

      "Obama for Change in 2008" I'm guessing.

      --
      ~/ssh slashdot.org ssh: connect to host slashdot.org port 22: too many beers
    155. Re:Huh. by meringuoid · · Score: 1
      Time travel would basically require it anyway.

      Time travel IS faster-than-light travel. Mathematically the two are equivalent.

      Look up special relativity and the relativity of simultaneity for how FTL implies time travel. For how time travel implies FTL, well... if you're on Earth in 2200, and you want to be at Alpha Centauri four lightyears away in 2202, first travel back in time a decade or so. Then you can take your time getting there and still arrive earlier than a light signal would have done it.

      --
      Real Daleks don't climb stairs - they level the building.
    156. Re:Huh. by meringuoid · · Score: 1
      there are things like order that entropy does not contain

      What does that even mean? Entropy isn't some abstract concept of absolute chaos. Entropy is a physical quantity which increases with time in a closed system. Life is a process which decreases entropy locally by increasing entropy globally.

      --
      Real Daleks don't climb stairs - they level the building.
    157. Re:Huh. by CAIMLAS · · Score: 1

      Not really. You're making the assumption that time is linear and dependent on events, places, etc.
      What if time is an independent, exterior force, a controlling force which might be harnessed? Or maybe there's another element to our existence we have yet to discover - another dimensoin, maybe - which could be utilized to jump through time, a specific place having an intrinsic pointer in time, allowing for a jump to that specific place?

      Maybe atoms themselves have a timing mechanism, and it could be changed on an atomic level to allow for teleportation through time of specific atoms, to avoid the whole "same matter in different time" paradigm? Likewise, if time travel of matter were possible, it would likewise have to be the case that energy is transferable through time. As matter is just energy, and there is a natural forward progression of time, and we have figured out how to slow down energy, it seems plausible that sending matter back through time would be possible.

      Technically, if you're traveling back in time, you'd be standing still and time would be moving around you, yes?

      And what is "space"?

      --
      ~/ssh slashdot.org ssh: connect to host slashdot.org port 22: too many beers
    158. Re:Huh. by meringuoid · · Score: 1
      as far as what you say about the aliens looking too much like us, naturally evolution on just about any planet is going to eventually take a similar course.

      Why? Evolution is a process of adaptation to environmental conditions. Are you going to claim that environmental conditions are identical on every life-bearing planet? I would expect different conditions to produce different outcomes.

      the dinosaurs died out because that evolutionary ladder that focused primarily on size and force wasn't efficient.

      The dinosaurs survived for hundreds of millions of years and would quite likely still be here today if that meteor had missed. And... 'evolutionary ladder'? That's not a concept with which I'm familiar; what do you mean by it?

      as far as being bipedal, you only need two legs to hold you up and keep balance, so of course there'd only be two legs.

      Three would be substantially more stable. Most other large animals go for four, but the vast majority of animals currently alive have six, with a substantial minority going for eight.

      you must be kidding about the two eyes thing, right?

      Ask the spiders.

      those aliens may have many different kinds of life forms on their planet, but the life forms that we would meet would be heading in a similar direction that we are, which is a primary focus on the evolution of our minds.

      I'd agree with that, in that it takes a powerful brain to design and build a starship. But why that brain has to sit in a body that looks anything like humanoid, you have not explained.

      by poking a hole in time and traveling through it, you are in what's called "ether".

      Who calls it that? The terms 'wormhole' and 'Einstein-Rosen bridge' I've heard, but 'ether'?

      --
      Real Daleks don't climb stairs - they level the building.
    159. Re:Huh. by meringuoid · · Score: 1
      As for faster-than-light travel, remember that for a long time people believed that faster-than-sound travel was impossible...flight was impossible...

      In the early days of powered flight it was known that bullets and the tip of a cracking whip travelled faster than sound. In the days before human flight, it was known that birds flew. Neither was ever considered a theoretical impossibility, only a major engineering difficulty. FTL travel is different: our best working theory of space and time says it requires either infinite energy, negative energy, or an imaginary mass, or possibly all three, and that if you CAN achieve it then you also achieve time travel. And in the observed Universe we see nothing that travels faster than light. That's a pretty damn strong objection, way beyond a mere question of engineering.

      --
      Real Daleks don't climb stairs - they level the building.
    160. Re:Huh. by meringuoid · · Score: 1
      If you look at life on Earth most species do share common characterstics, when did you last see a 12 toed mammel?

      When did you last see a four-limbed insect?

      Mammals - and in fact all tetrapods, which means most of the vertebrates other than fish - descended from ancestors that had four limbs each with five digits. We inherit that ancient body plan; some have modified it by merging digits to make flippers or hooves or paws, but on the whole it's been maintained. We don't have it because it's better for an intelligent species than any other; we have it because it worked for an amphibian eons ago.

      If a different lineage back in the Devonian 400 million years ago had got lucky, an intelligent species today might have ended up with a very different overall body plan.

      And if I was given the design brief to remodel humans to be effective spacefarers, I'd begin by adding an extra pair of arms, perhaps replacing the legs with another pair of arms (think zero-g), and installing a prehensile tail; then I'd add more eyes to give all-round vision. I'd expect any advanced spacefaring civilisation to redesign themselves to their own needs, and I'd be absolutely amazed if they decided that looking like a glorified chimpanzee suited them best.

      --
      Real Daleks don't climb stairs - they level the building.
    161. Re:Huh. by master_p · · Score: 1

      And then there is the question 'how do I locate where Earth was 8 million years ago' with enough accuracy as to land somewhere near the planet?

    162. Re:Huh. by ScreamingCactus · · Score: 1

      See Heisenberg. The wavelength of the particle in question is probably as large or larger than the distances it is supposed to jump. Although electrons are said to be point particles, they are also waves and the exact location of this "point" cannot be resolved, only the probability that it is at a certain point. Electrons exhibit strange behavior but eventually after we begin to understand them better I believe we will find that they do conform to the same physical laws as macroscopic objects.

      --
      The path to enlightenment is truly through homemade drugs!
    163. Re:Huh. by tehcyder · · Score: 1

      The universe doesn't tend towards entropy.

      Er, yes it does.

      --
      To have a right to do a thing is not at all the same as to be right in doing it
    164. Re:Huh. by shaka · · Score: 1

      I can believe time travel before I believe faster than light travel.

      Faster than light travel is time travel.

      --
      :wq!
    165. Re:Huh. by Dracophile · · Score: 1
      --
      Athy, athier, athiest.
    166. Re:Huh. by gosand · · Score: 1

      However the hysteria at Roswell made it clear your general populous were not sophisticated enough to handle such a large and sudden paradigm shift. Don't worry, thats quite common. Its also common for populations to implode upon such revelations - so we tread carefully. It normally takes quite a while to lay the groundwork for a whole world to gracefully embrace such a significant revelation. We've been observing how you respond to an accelerating rate of technological and cultural change. We are judging the time is close when most of you will be acccepting of our revellation. This is part of the final stage of that process.

      Take care now.

      We as the human race can't even handle that some of our own species are a different color, act differently, or believe different things than ourselves. You have zero chance of being accepted.

      Got any technology to help us out? For some reason, we can't seem to handle something as simple as this ourselves.

      --

      My beliefs do not require that you agree with them.

    167. Re:Huh. by sm62704 · · Score: 1

      You have to forgive them, I don't think they speak English natively.

      --
      mcgrew's razor: Never attribute to stupidity that which can be explained by greedy self-interest
    168. Re:Huh. by sm62704 · · Score: 1

      Vary interesting article, thanks for the link. It was undoubtedly ShieldW0lf meant. However, "Nucleic acids (DNA, RNA) themselves were not formed."

      --
      mcgrew's razor: Never attribute to stupidity that which can be explained by greedy self-interest
    169. Re:Huh. by Dracophile · · Score: 1
      Dear Mr. Alien,

      "Palatable" and "populace", for starters.

      Hope this helps.

      A. Earthling.

      PS: That's "that's", not "thats".

      PPS: And the same goes for "it's", too.

      PPPS: GG "English Grammar For Green Bug-Eyed Monsters For The Rest Of Us" FTW.

      --
      Athy, athier, athiest.
    170. Re:Huh. by sm62704 · · Score: 1

      I don't believe in time travel

      "the future has its price and today is only yesterday's tomorrow." Uriah Heep, Circle of Hands

      I travel through time constantly. So do you. It's just that afaik you can only travel in one direction, although the speeds can vary.

      "If you put your hand on a hot stove, a second is a long time. If you're with a pretty girl, an hour is too short. That's relativity". -Albert Einstein

      --
      mcgrew's razor: Never attribute to stupidity that which can be explained by greedy self-interest
    171. Re:Huh. by sm62704 · · Score: 1

      What with the mutilated cows, perhaps they would disguise themselves as cows, thinking that cows were the dominant life form, who gets this other dumb species to build stuff for them and feed them and so forth?

      --
      mcgrew's razor: Never attribute to stupidity that which can be explained by greedy self-interest
    172. Re:Huh. by sm62704 · · Score: 1

      I read his books decades ago. Interesting, yes, but totally ignorant. His "landing strips in Mexico (or was it Peru? I'ts been a while since I read them) shows complete and utter ignorance of man's need to create art.

      --
      mcgrew's razor: Never attribute to stupidity that which can be explained by greedy self-interest
    173. Re:Huh. by rthille · · Score: 1

      Of course they conform to the same physical laws as macroscopic objects, but opposite the way you are thinking. Macroscopic objects appear to behave as conforming to "classical physics mechanics" due to the interaction of huge numbers of tiny particles that behave according to quantum mechanics. We already know that electrons do not follow classical mechanics. We're never going to 'understand them better' and discover that, "no, we were wrong, the model of the atom as a dense ball with light little balls orbiting it is correct."

      --
      Awesome furniture, accessories and cabinetry in Santa Rosa, CA: http://humanity-home.com/
    174. Re:Huh. by happyfeet2000 · · Score: 1

      Plausible deniability.

    175. Re:Huh. by KendyForTheState · · Score: 1

      Hey, man. Don't knock it 'till you've tried it.

      Man, I wish I had some mod points left... definitely funny

      --
      ...I just came for the free beer.
    176. Re:Huh. by ScreamingCactus · · Score: 1

      Of course we will understand them better. I don't know why you would think we couldn't. And I seriously doubt we would ever come to the conclusion that our model of the atom is sufficient or complete. I know that quantum mechanics have their own set of rules, but there are some rules that they both seem to follow, such as E=MC^2. Look at the levels of energy the LHC will pump into a few thousand protons, and they will still only accelerate to the sub-light speeds predicted by classical physics. Nor have electrons been observed to travel FTL, aside from "curious" effects such as entanglement and tunnelling, which I believe appear due to the particles' wave-like nature (meaning they CAN exist in more than one place at the same time). Of course IANAQP but I am pretty damn sure electrons have never been observed to actually travel faster than C. If I am wrong, please provide source as I would really like to read about that.

      --
      The path to enlightenment is truly through homemade drugs!
    177. Re:Huh. by slashdotwannabe · · Score: 1

      Why do they always contact governments when they come to Earth so they can cover it up?

      It's simple. Our governments exist to create and maintain social stability. In that context, it's easy for any person, especially a politician, to rationalize keeping a discovery like this secret.

      If I were an alien ambassador, I would propose a 75-100 year transition and acclimation period so that the revealing, when it comes, does not bring untold strife and madness from everyone who would have an agenda to put forward.

      Start with sightings. Nobody believed them at first; now many people do, and many more are willing to accept that it's possible; very few people outright believe that extrasolar life just plain doesn't exist.

      Next, as technology matures, we begin to detect extrasolar planets, and the notion becomes even more plausible.

      So here we are in about year 50 of the plan... what sorts of things remain for us to "discover" before the big reveal?

      • Discovery of earth-like extrasolar planets.
      • A theory for faster-than-light travel. It doesn't have to be provable, just plausible.
      • Intercepts from radio telescopes that cannot be proven to be alien in origin (you want doubters at this point).

      IMO, mathematically speaking it is impossible for there NOT to be life of other planets. In our universe and planet, we have never observed there to be a single instance of ANYTHING. Ergo, in an infinite universe, where there is one instance of life, there must be more than one.

      --
      This comment is my opinion and does not represent an official position of Donald Trump or others I do not work for
    178. Re:Huh. by rthille · · Score: 1

      Oh Yeah, we'll understand them better, but you've got to read that last sentence's two clauses together. That better understanding isn't going to return us to the belief that electrons obey classical mechanics. That's what I got from the last sentence of your comment I was replying to.

      This article talks about electrons (any wave-particle) moving faster than light.

      --
      Awesome furniture, accessories and cabinetry in Santa Rosa, CA: http://humanity-home.com/
    179. Re:Huh. by ScreamingCactus · · Score: 1

      Thanks, that was an interesting read. But it still states that causality is not violated. The virtual photons may have wave functions that extend outside of the light cone, but that doesn't mean a virtual particle or any kind of information at all travels FTL. When the effects of many interactions are aggregated, we see that no superliminal interactions actually occured, despite the apparent probability that they could have. The particle actually states that "Quantum field theory is supposed to properly apply special relativity to quantum mechanics." My mention of classical mechanics was referring specifically to relativity.

      QP is a strange world. Cheers.

      --
      The path to enlightenment is truly through homemade drugs!
    180. Re:Huh. by dodecalogue · · Score: 1

      and you have the added bonus, with time travel, of looking back at when widespread awareness of the future-people erupted, and go back to snub it. But then there's faction X who are interested in "enlightening" us, because they don't appreciate faction Y's intention of preparing part of humanity for enslavement (maintaining the status quo, from their perspective) and hence little bits of information gets leaked to us from friendly faction X, but then you have ridiculous amounts of un- or nearly-credible eyewitness accounts who get told to put their tinfoil hats back on, or worse they ar

    181. Re:Huh. by aeoo · · Score: 1

      "Entropy isn't some abstract concept of absolute chaos."

      Indeed it is. It's a concept that we use because we believe it helps us understand reality. But never forget that it's not in and of itself reality -- it is only a concept. The map is not the territory and the menu is not the dinner.

      "Entropy is a physical quantity which increases with time in a closed system."

      Great, except nothing in reality is a closed system. Hence, entropy right then and there become irrelevant, no thanks to me, but all thanks to how you have defined it. Entropy is a stillborn baby. Alas you can pretend-play with it and it can serve as a sort of a piss-poor doll. It's not my cup of tea.

      "Life is a process which decreases entropy locally by increasing entropy globally."

      Wow! What a piss-poor way to define life! We can't even begin to talk until you drop that definition. I mean, I could define "truth is anything I say" and then we can't even begin to discuss until you agree with me, but that's a very tricky-dicky way to converse, isn't it? Life is not a notion you own. As such, you have to be open to alternative definitions. If not, you are worthless as a member of society where being social means being philosophically accepting of other philosophically possible alternatives.

    182. Re:Huh. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      I don't buy the "space alien" story for the simple reason that the "Area 51" aliens look too much like us. Bipedal, five fingers, five toes, two eyes, one two holed nose, one mouth. Look at the diversity of life on earth, with hooved animals, pipedaal animals with feathers, squids, six legged insects and eight legged spiders, no legged snakes. And all of these creatures presumably evolved from the first earthly protolife, as we've never seen life sponaneously appear since, nor have we been able to cause it to spontaneously appear.

      Plus, how would they have found us? Our radio waves are incredibly weak. Even nuclear blasts are weak on a cosmic scale, and nobody farther than fifty light years away could have detected them yet.

      If in fact they are aliens, they must be time aliens, not space aliens; a species that evolved from humans and travelled through time to do a bit of archaeology. Considering that humans have only been here a hundred thousand years (and look at how we have progressed since), imagine what our descendants ten million years in the future will be like? We will be less than chimpanses by comparison.

      I can believe time travel before I believe faster than light travel.

      Adding to your excellent logic, lets look at the chinese. Isn't it amazing that they look so much like us? With all the animals and plants in the planet I really wonder why... What are the odds ey? Thinking a bit more about it, I can see they must have come from the future, where the air was so polluted they could hadly see, hence the shape of their eyes... But I hear if you mate with one of them, you actually get impregnated... WOW! Talk about gradfather paradox...
      Hope your logic makes you sleep better at night... We are humans afterall...

    183. Re:Huh. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      >> "Life is a process which decreases entropy locally by increasing entropy globally."

      > Wow! What a piss-poor way to define life! We can't even begin to talk until you drop that definition.

      Actually, we can't begin to talk until you can demonstrate that you actually know something about entropy. No sign of that so far!

    184. Re:Huh. by aeoo · · Score: 1

      "Actually, we can't begin to talk until you can demonstrate that you actually know something about entropy. No sign of that so far!"

      You first. I have doubts about your understanding of entropy myself.

    185. Re:Huh. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      You assume that 1. you have a working model for evolution that requires life to evolve in a different way in different planets. 2. That our widespread evidence for diverse life represents proof for the diversity of life capable of space travel 3. that the gravitational pulse that results from a nuclear explosion travels at the speed of light. Those statements have no basis on empirical fact.

      We do know that the effect of gravity propagates way faster than light. If you can write a gravity simulator and impose a propagation speed on gravity, orbits can't be stable. A simulator agrees with observation when gravity propagates either instantly or tremendously faster than light. We also know from the only example easily available that life evolves into us once it reaches "space traveling" capability. That does not allow us to extrapolate what life would be life elsewhere, but it surely does not rule out humanoid life forms, as we seem to have widespread evidence of humanoids here on earth. Although evolution is a randomized process, it very well may be like a chaotic strange attractor and always converge to pretty much the same types of creatures. And Finally, any species capable of space travel would have to have extremities capable of building stuff, something "hand like" cause presumably their vehicles would not be a natural occurring thing, but "crafted" (please let me know of a body part that can use a tool, with the *minimum* number of degrees of freedom that does not look like an arm... ever go into a car factory?) they would live in an atmosphere conductive to controlled chemical reactions so they can invent "fire" or some other way to modifying matter (which is why dolphins haven't yet created any machines) and have at least some of their extremities free for building things rather than transporting them (one foot and one arm? more likely at least two feet!). Now, sure, they could have 7 arms and 10 feet, but they have to have something arm like and something hand like, something capable of registering a three dimensional perception of the universe. wouldn't we reproduce that using to video cameras? So they would most likely have two eyes. And the tendency in evolution is that the minimum body parts necessary to accomplish something is as many as we get, because sustaining an excess of body parts consumes food and therefore energy, putting a species at a disadvantage compared to other evolved creatures.

      The "all things being equal, aliens could be amorphous blobs" argument misses the very obvious fact that all things are not equal. Life in the form we recognize (space traveling in physical form) is very limited in the ways it could evolve, and the physical means it could harness for energy production (say inventing fire?), hunting, and agriculture (use of tools), to eventually become capable of space travel.

    186. Re:Huh. by sm62704 · · Score: 1

      You assume that 1. you have a working model for evolution that requires life to evolve in a different way in different planets

      Occam's razor. Lacking evidence to the contrary I assume that evolution will work the same, but having evidence of the diversity of life on a single planet, I would assume that extraterrestrial life of multiple solar systems would be even more diverse. Earth's life is far more diverse than an single continent's life. Even within a single species, say, human or elephant, there are marked (albeit trivial) differences between that species in Asia and the very same species in Africa.

      2. That our widespread evidence for diverse life represents proof for the diversity of life capable of space travel

      Not proof; there is no proof, only deduction.

      3. that the gravitational pulse that results from a nuclear explosion travels at the speed of light.

      Why would anyone assume that it would travel at faster than light, models aside? I wouldn't trust a model of something we don't understand; afaik we haven't discovered the gravitron and we don't know how gravity actually works. I tried to look up "gravitational pulse" in wikipedia and came up empty. Googling "gravitational pulse" in quotes and "speed" not in quotes came up with a few links, but with assurance that gravitational pulses do not, in fact, travel faster than light. Do you have a link to a reputable source, preferably in an .edu domain?

      please let me know of a body part that can use a tool, with the *minimum* number of degrees of freedom that does not look like an arm... ever go into a car factory?

      Ever seen a backhoe, a front-end loader, a cherry picker? Note that the automotive robots' arms have no hands or fingers! Crows have no hands or arms but use and have even been observed making tools.

      more likely at least two feet

      Almost certainly at least two feet, more than two feet and more than two arms would seem more conducive to the ability to build. That said, birds manage to build their nests without any arms or hands at all!

      So they would most likely have two eyes

      Or more. Eyes in the back of a species head, or multiple eyes like insects have would seem more evolutionarily likely.

      And the tendency in evolution is that the minimum body parts necessary to accomplish something is as many as we get

      Then explain why birds have two legs, dogs have four legs, insects have six legs, and spiders have eight legs? Your statement is falsified by reality.

      Life in the form we recognize (space traveling in physical form) is very limited in the ways it could evolve,

      Unproven and illogical assumption.

      and the physical means it could harness for energy production (say inventing fire?), hunting, and agriculture (use of tools), to eventually become capable of space travel.

      Fire was never invented. It was harnessed. We do not know that we are the only earthly species ever to have harnesses fire, although there is no evidence that there ever was such a species except ourselves. But there is no evidence that a different species couldn't have. Many earthly species hunt, and of five earthly species that farm, only one is a mammal; all the other farmers are insects.

      --
      mcgrew's razor: Never attribute to stupidity that which can be explained by greedy self-interest
  3. Art Bell Guest Spot? by Homer's+Donuts · · Score: 5, Funny

    Will he be on Coast to Coast AM soon?

    1. Re:Art Bell Guest Spot? by mark-t · · Score: 1

      I thought Bell had quit hosting Coast to Coast some time ago... am I wrong?

    2. Re:Art Bell Guest Spot? by HadouKen24 · · Score: 1

      He still hosts the Sunday evening show.

    3. Re:Art Bell Guest Spot? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Art hosts *very* occasionally; he does NOT host the Sunday evening show. He fills in once in a while, and does special shows like "Ghost to Ghost" (ghost stories) and the end of year predictions show. He is sorely missed.

      Edgar Mitchell has been on c2c many times, including with George Noory. I bet they try to get him on tonight (probably in the first hour, if they can do it at all).

    4. Re:Art Bell Guest Spot? by Dmala · · Score: 1

      George Noory is the regular host these days. Sadly, I think the show has declined a lot since Art has gone into semi-retirement. While the guests have always skewed toward nutty, Art's guests tended to be more interesting and less obviously schizophrenic. George also has a habit of occasionally asking weird, non-sequitur questions. There are times when it really sounds like he's only half paying attention.

      To get somewhat back on-topic, I think this guy would make for an excellent Coast-to-Coast guest. He's got a little more credibility than the standard-issue conspiracy theory nutjob.

    5. Re:Art Bell Guest Spot? by urcreepyneighbor · · Score: 1

      Will he be on Coast to Coast AM soon?

      http://www.coasttocoastam.com/guests/764.html

      He's been on three times (96, 04, 07) before, so I'm sure it wouldn't be problem for him to make another appeance.

      From the 04 recap:

      While not seeing any UFOs himself, he said that the best evidence indicates that we have been visited by other intelligences, and that a governmental cover-up has taken place.

      From the 07 recap:

      While Mitchell said he found no signs of bases or artificial structures on the moon, he does believe there is an overwhelming amount of evidence that ETs have visited the Earth. He doesn't have first hand knowledge, but has heard accounts from multiple high-level sources, such as Wernher von Braun, regarding ET contacts and UFOs. Quite a few of the astronauts saw or chased UFOs in their careers as military pilots before they joined NASA, he added.

      --
      "The fight for freedom has only just begun." - Geert Wilders
    6. Re:Art Bell Guest Spot? by mikek2 · · Score: 0

      Ah... CTC-AM: my FAVORITE radio fiction, after the original Twilight Zone, that is.

      (albeit radio vs TV, but whatever)

    7. Re:Art Bell Guest Spot? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Probably already planned for tomorrow's show... Right between the bigfoot expert and the guy selling time machines.

    8. Re:Art Bell Guest Spot? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      they've been elevated to sixty minutes of late! didn't everyone else watch that fascinating segment of "Aliens mess with our atom bombs!" where everyone involved had written a book about it? any each book was shown? ...

      captcha: marketed!

  4. old news by sohp · · Score: 5, Informative

    Dr. Mitchell has been saying this about aliens for many years now. He's always had a bit of a pseudo-scientific bent. During his Apollo 14 flight to the moon, he secretly conducted ESP experiments with friends back on Earth.

    1. Re:old news by spiffmastercow · · Score: 1

      During his Apollo 14 flight to the moon, he secretly conducted ESP experiments with friends back on Earth.

      And how did that go?

    2. Re:old news by Sen.NullProcPntr · · Score: 5, Funny

      During his Apollo 14 flight to the moon, he secretly conducted ESP experiments with friends back on Earth.

      And how did that go?

      Most likely no better than when the same experiments were conducted in the next room.

    3. Re:old news by fm6 · · Score: 1

      As I recall, there was nothing secret about those Apollo ESP experiments. They were widely reported at the time. I don't suppose NASA approved, but since he did the experiment on his personal time, there wasn't a lot they could do about it.

      But yeah, Mitchell's weird beliefs are not exactly "shocking".

    4. Re:old news by eln · · Score: 5, Funny

      How can you not know that? He transmitted the results all over the world via ESP! Didn't you get them?

    5. Re:old news by thrillseeker · · Score: 1

      My psychic told me the Dr was a fake ...

    6. Re:old news by spiffmastercow · · Score: 1

      I'm pretty sure I wasn't born yet.. That's why I'm asking old people like you! No, but seriously.. Conducting ESP experiments doesn't necessarily mean you're insane. It was done a lot back then. And the general scientific consensus became "No, that's a load of crap." But until the science is done, it neither is or is not a load of crap.

    7. Re:old news by BitHive · · Score: 5, Interesting
      It gets better--

      In The New York Times of June 22, 1971, he verified that rumor, and reported that his experiment had produced results "far exceeding anything expected" but in almost the same breath, he described those results as only "moderately significant."

      Mitchell told the Times that he had made arrangements that four persons stationed in different cities would attempt to determine through ESP the order of a home-made deck of standard Zener cards. These are the familiar symbol-cards (circle, plus mark, wavy lines, square, five-pointed star) that are used by parapsychologists. Astronaut Mitchell said that 51 out of 200 of the guesses made by the four subjects, were successful. Chance would call for 40 correct.

      In among all the enthusiastic statements made by Mitchell to the reporters, we discover that the experimental conditions through no fault of his had turned out to be less than ideal. He had intended to perform these experiments every day during the Apollo mission, but changes in the schedules meant that he could only work on four of those days, two on the way to the Moon, and two on the way back. But and this is very significant the psychics back on Earth, it turned out, since they were not aware of the schedule change, had written down their impressions of what Edgar Mitchell was thinking about, the40 minutes before he had begun! So, any apparent success in the experiments must be attributed to precognition, not to telepathy.

      From: http://www.randi.org/jr/05-31-2000.html

    8. Re:old news by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      He transmitted the results all over the world via ESP! Didn't you get them?

      I watch Sports Center every day. I hadn't seen these results ever.

      Oooooh, via ESP. I thought you said via ESPN.

    9. Re:old news by Crash+McBang · · Score: 1

      Shame on you!

      Don't you know it's superstitous to believe in psychics?

      My astrologer told me so!

      --
      To put a witty saying into 120 characters, jst rmv ll th vwls.
    10. Re:old news by Roger_Wilco · · Score: 1

      The 95% confidence interval for 51/200 is between 19.5% and 31.5%, so he wasn't even very unlikely to do that well.

    11. Re:old news by Joe+the+Lesser · · Score: 1

      When I check my ESP it's full of messages from Nigerian Princes :(

      --
      "I only speak the truth"
      Karma: null(Mostly affected by an unassigned variable)
    12. Re:old news by gad_zuki! · · Score: 1

      He also runs a new age religion call the neotic institute:

      http://www.noetic.org/about/founder.cfm

    13. Re:old news by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      He must not have gotten the memo...ry.

    14. Re:old news by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      See? Proof that ESP doesn't degrade over long distances!

    15. Re:old news by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      I knew you were going to say that!

    16. Re:old news by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      I would say to him the same thing I'd say to anybody making an extraordinary claim (aliens, gods, intelligent neo-conservatives): The burden of proof is with you.

    17. Re:old news by Tablizer · · Score: 1

      When I check my ESP it's full of messages from Nigerian Princes

      That's what you get for using Microsoft Head, Vista Edition (tm).
               

    18. Re:old news by Eli+Gottlieb · · Score: 1

      Well that certainly explains why my Electronic Thumb hasn't been able to signal any Type 40 Time And Relative Dimensions In Space ships for PAST 15 GODDAMN YEARS!

    19. Re:old news by olclops · · Score: 1

      No, that was Gordon Howe, the first astronaut to make these claims. Dr. Mitchell's claims are new.

    20. Re:old news by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Your point being? The military carried extensive ESP tests back then.

    21. Re:old news by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0
      Astronaut Mitchell said that 51 out of 200 of the guesses made by the four subjects, were successful. Chance would call for 40 correct.

      That's only true if the people in the experiment don't have a memory. In reality they will recall a lot of stars went by but not very many wavy lines did so they'll guess wavy lines.

      work on four of those days, two on the way to the Moon, and two on the way back

      It doesn't take four days to run through 200 cards. He must have run many trials with those 200 cards. Certainly some of those trials must have had some outliers that varied from chance.

    22. Re:old news by olclops · · Score: 1

      oops. Meant Gordon Cooper.

  5. Where's the proof? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Okay, he's a respected individual, but where's his proof? I listened to the interview and he just says that yes it's true, but how are we to believe it without proof? How do we know he's not making it all up?

  6. Call Homeland Security! by PPH · · Score: 1

    Build a fence!

    --
    Have gnu, will travel.
    1. Re:Call Homeland Security! by SupplyMission · · Score: 1

      You mean an anti-terrorist fence, such as the ones being built around quiet port communities on some lakes in Ontario, Canada?

  7. Moonwalker by hansamurai · · Score: 4, Funny

    I've seen Moonwalker and I would definitely agree with this notion.

    1. Re:Moonwalker by Missing_dc · · Score: 1

      OMG, I followed that link and sat in shock and horror, thinking that for all these years, I thought the memories of that movie were a weird childhood nightmare.

      --
      How amazed would you be to suddenly find that you just forgot what I wrote and you needed to reread my post.... again.
    2. Re:Moonwalker by superdan2k · · Score: 1

      And yet, that movie wasn't nearly as traumatizing as Firewalker.

      --
      blog |
    3. Re:Moonwalker by Arthur+Grumbine · · Score: 1

      You agree with the "Building a Fence" notion?! But isn't he already living in the Middle East?!

      --
      Now that I think about it, I'm pretty sure everything I just said is completely wrong.
    4. Re:Moonwalker by Zwicky · · Score: 1

      I can possibly beat that. This was probably not a wise thing to watch at 12 years old. Ah, but the memories though; you can't buy those.

      --
      "Three eyes are better than one" -- Lieutenant Columbo
  8. He's got to be right by k_187 · · Score: 5, Insightful

    If its as well covered up as he says it is, why did they let him talk? They're obviously allowing him to go public so he'll appear as a crackpot and give credibility to the opposing view.

    --
    11 was a racehorse
    12 was 12
    1111 Race
    12112
    1. Re:He's got to be right by rocketman768 · · Score: 4, Funny

      Yeah, it's sad to see a hero go senile...But, I'm sure he has proof like a fuzzy picture of a distant light in the air or something.

    2. Re:He's got to be right by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 4, Funny

      "...like a fuzzy picture of a distant light in the air or something."

      Nope, that would him having a stroke.

    3. Re:He's got to be right by ByOhTek · · Score: 1

      I don't stand one way or the other on the subject (Although, my suspicion is, if there are extraterrestrials, they are not anywhere near earth, or we'd know).

      But if we assumed there were, and the government(s) were covering it up, they still wouldn't stop him.
        He has no solid proof. If they don't do anything, he just looks like a nutjob - who's going to belive one guy who probably had a lot of stress? If thay stop him, they lend his argument credibility.

      --
      Self proclaimed typo king, and inventor of the bear destroying coffee table (patent not pending).
    4. Re:He's got to be right by TehDuffman · · Score: 0

      The same reason they made all those pictures that prove the moon landing was a hoax... They want to get caught.

      Pretty obvious if you ask me.

    5. Re:He's got to be right by Anonymous+Monkey · · Score: 5, Funny

      Well oblivious they KNEW he would look like a crackpot so we would obviously not believe him. On the other hand they KNEW that we would think that we know they think he wants to look like a crackpot so we would obviously not believe NASA. However, we know that he has been on the moon, so he might have gone mad, so obviously we can not believe him. However knowing he has been on the moon means he was privy to a lot of highly classified information so we obviously can not believe NASA. However only a great fool believe in what has no proof so we can obviously not believe him. On the other hand NASA knows the slashdoters of the world are not great fools, and they were counting us not foolishly believing him, so we can obviously not believe them. INCONCEIVABLE!

      --
      We are the Borg...
    6. Re:He's got to be right by Poohsticks · · Score: 5, Funny

      Truly your intellect is dizzying.

      --
      "The story so far: In the beginning the Universe was created. This has made a lot of people very angry and has been wide
    7. Re:He's got to be right by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Yeah, it's sad to see a actor go senile... There, fixed that for ya.

    8. Re:He's got to be right by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1, Funny

      You keep using that word. I do not think it means what you think it means.

    9. Re:He's got to be right by megaditto · · Score: 1

      If its as well covered up as he says it is, why did they let him talk?

      If there really were a conspiracy, it'd be crazy NOT to let him talk (since that's all he is doing). If they shut him up, he goes down as a martyr and gains credibility. If they let him speak, he becomes "just another nutcase" and a "proof" there really is no conspiracy.

      Remember the "nutjobs" talking about the warrantless wiretapping/spying on Americans? Tens of thousands people had the facts on that "conspiracy," and all they would risk was just their job, yet it still took about 5 years for one of them to come out with proof. Imagine what the alien coverup people would risk (in theory), and the effort that would be put into keeping evidence contained (which isn't that hard to begin with: a full-body NMR/CAT scan as you exit the lab would do it).

      I can give you another recent "coverup" example: consider that any nutjob is free to berate Putin in Russia. It's only the people who got the evidence that are in danger (Politkovskaya, Browder, Khodorkovsky, etc.)

      --
      Obama likes poor people so much, he wants to make more of them.
    10. Re:He's got to be right by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      your intellect is dizzying.

    11. Re:He's got to be right by Zordak · · Score: 1

      You've given everything away. I know where the aliens are!

      --

      Today's Sesame Street was brought to you by the number e.
    12. Re:He's got to be right by arkarumba · · Score: 1

      No. Its because its common for sudden dramatic revelations to cause erratic and detrimental behaviour in your populations. The human psych is very good at shutting out things that don't fit existing world views. We have determine the most favourable approach best suited to humans is to generate questions and for those that think they know the answer to come looking for us - so their discovery of us merely confirms what they already knew. This is the start of that process.

    13. Re:He's got to be right by karbyn-aceous · · Score: 0

      I love the PB ... have since the day it was released. But you take it to a new level! Totally awesome!!

    14. Re:He's got to be right by geminidomino · · Score: 2, Informative

      Gods, how did two people get the same quote wrong...

      "Truly, you have a dizzying intellect..."

      (-1 Redundant)

    15. Re:He's got to be right by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Wait till he gets going!

      BTW, I think the quote is "Truly you have a dizzying intellect."

    16. Re:He's got to be right by oldhack · · Score: 1

      ...On the other hand NASA knows the slashdoters of the world are not great fools, and they were counting us not foolishly believing him...

      Ooooh, diabolical!!

      --
      Fuck systemd. Fuck Redhat. Fuck Soylent, too. Wait, scratch the last one.
    17. Re:He's got to be right by flaming+error · · Score: 1

      So the proof goes like this?

      Given that:
        1) those who claim fantastic events but provide no physical evidence are often met with skepticism;
        2) fantastic alleged events have been announced to the public by a well-positioned insider;
        3) no physical evidence of these events has been provided;
      Therefore:
        1) the alleged events actually occured;
        2) this information is being withheld from the public;
        3) this guy is not a crackpot.
      QED

    18. Re:He's got to be right by corbettw · · Score: 1

      Yeah, it's sad to see a hero go senile.

      Don't worry, I'm sure he'll win the Republican nomination for President in 2012, if recent events are anything to go by.

      --
      God invented whiskey so the Irish would not rule the world.
    19. Re:He's got to be right by k_187 · · Score: 1

      Exactly, if they took him out, he wouldn't be a crackpot anymore, he'd be a martyr.

      --
      11 was a racehorse
      12 was 12
      1111 Race
      12112
    20. Re:He's got to be right by Oktober+Sunset · · Score: 1

      and the conclusion is they are both lying, there are alien, but different aliens to the one's he thinks there are. They are like blue and have a dick on thier chin or something.

    21. Re:He's got to be right by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      I bet you're good at regular expressions too.

    22. Re:He's got to be right by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Assuming there's truth to his statements, it may be that factions in the intelligence community want disclosure.

    23. Re:He's got to be right by networkconsultant · · Score: 1

      Now where did i put that poison again?

    24. Re:He's got to be right by rocketman768 · · Score: 1

      Don't worry, I'm sure he'll win the Republican nomination for President in 2012, if recent events are anything to go by.

      ROFL!

    25. Re:He's got to be right by kiddailey · · Score: 1

      Hmm... I'm not sure how to feel about the fact that I realized where that was heading before I was even done reading the first sentence.

    26. Re:He's got to be right by rrohbeck · · Score: 1

      Don't worry, I'm sure he'll win the Republican nomination for President in 2012, if recent events are anything to go by.

      Yay, with Bobby Jindal as VP!

    27. Re:He's got to be right by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Or that factions within the intelligence community want disclosure.

    28. Re:He's got to be right by StarfishOne · · Score: 1

      Off-topic, but it's McCain who is going senile apparently!

      Check this amazing video. Flip-flop is an understatement..

      http://digg.com/2008_us_elections/Devastating_New_YouTube_Video_John_McCain_s_Neverending_War_2

    29. Re:He's got to be right by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Lol, that's funny! It's from the Princess Bride.

    30. Re:He's got to be right by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      If its as well covered up as he says it is, why did they let him talk?

      Because maybe it's actually not as covered up as he says it is? Oh, but I'm sure that's what they want us to believe!

    31. Re:He's got to be right by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      He's only just begun.

    32. Re:He's got to be right by bloodninja · · Score: 1

      INCONCEIVABLE!

      You keep using that word. I do not think that it means what you think it means.

      --
      Lock the wife and the dog in the boot of the car.
      Return one hour later.
      Who's happy to see you?
    33. Re:He's got to be right by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      You're stalling.

    34. Re:He's got to be right by martin-boundary · · Score: 1

      It's like the Prophet of Doom said: "There are things we know. There are things we don't know, and there are things we know we don't know. And there are things we don't know we don't know, but know that we don't know yet don't know we don't know that we know we don't..."

    35. Re:He's got to be right by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      If its as well covered up as he says it is, why did they let him talk? They're obviously allowing him to go public so he'll appear as a crackpot and give credibility to the opposing view.

      Because if we dont, it'll look like we covered something up, but in reality, its a distraction from something else.

    36. Re:He's got to be right by Rogerborg · · Score: 1

      Wait - you're saying aliens are from Belgium?

      --
      If you were blocking sigs, you wouldn't have to read this.
    37. Re:He's got to be right by Mutant321 · · Score: 1

      Conspiracy theories are a great distraction from real issues. e.g. the 9/11 rubbish churned out by some people distracts from the real "conspiracy", i.e. that the US govt was completely incompetant and unable to handle the situation. I'm sure the authorities don't mind it at all.

    38. Re:He's got to be right by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      If McCain is so senile, I don't see why Obama doesn't want to go to his Town Hall debates.

    39. Re:He's got to be right by tehcyder · · Score: 1

      Gods, how did two people get the same quote wrong...

      "Truly, you have a dizzying intellect..."

      (-1 Redundant)

      I know, it's inconceivable.

      --
      To have a right to do a thing is not at all the same as to be right in doing it
    40. Re:He's got to be right by clone53421 · · Score: 1

      Oh, regular expressions are nothing... just wait until he gets going into infinite improbability theory...

      --
      Alexander Peter Kristopeit bought his basement from his mommy for one dollar.
  9. Governement by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    If they have such big technology, how can our earthly governement cover them up? Unless they WANT our governement to do that!

    1. Re:Governement by Metasquares · · Score: 1

      Not just one government, mind you, but all of them - I doubt aliens care about our political boundaries.

    2. Re:Governement by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Aliens don't care about boundaries, they just want to probe, probe, probe.

      Maybe they're more like us than we thought...

  10. Dementia by dedazo · · Score: 1

    Alzheimer's. No disrespect to someone who actually went to the Moon and all, but at 77, I better be seeing some solid proof of this. Otherwise... again, my respects and all but off to the old silly person's home with you. Sir.

    --
    Web2.0: I love when people Flickr my cuil and digg my boingboing until my google is reddit and I start to yahoo
    1. Re:Dementia by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      To be fair, he's maintained this position for decades.

    2. Re:Dementia by robertjw · · Score: 3, Insightful

      Not to mention, I've met many people that believe weird things without being able to blame dementia/alzheimers/any diagnosed mental illness.

    3. Re:Dementia by dedazo · · Score: 1

      No, but it's a distinct possibility. My parents are in their early 70s as well, and they don't suffer from it. Actually from an intellectual perspective they're both pretty much as sharp as they were in their 40s.

      But without tangible proof of his claims, what's the alternative? I'd rather not think he's lying. Or bored.

      --
      Web2.0: I love when people Flickr my cuil and digg my boingboing until my google is reddit and I start to yahoo
    4. Re:Dementia by sm62704 · · Score: 1

      I don't know, I've seen alzheimers patients and that's not how I would want to go out. He doesn't have to have alsheimers or schitzophrenia to be a crackpot.

      --
      mcgrew's razor: Never attribute to stupidity that which can be explained by greedy self-interest
  11. What Geek Wouldn't Love This To Be True? by TheLazySci-FiAuthor · · Score: 1

    But it goes without saying that all the same old 'god paradoxes' come to play here.

    1. Re:What Geek Wouldn't Love This To Be True? by localman · · Score: 1

      Why would any god paradox apply to aliens? Nobody said the aliens are all powerful, so the standard paradox doesn't apply. I'd agree it's unlikely that aliens are visiting earth, but I don't see any reason to think it's impossible.

      Cheers.

    2. Re:What Geek Wouldn't Love This To Be True? by Tripster · · Score: 1

      I think it depends on how prevalent life is in the universe. We're beginning to find life almost everywhere we look on Earth including in many places we considered impossible for it to survive, it shows how versatile life is, it can survive at great depths, under enormous pressures which really makes us question a lot of things.

      If it turns out life is the norm rather than the exception then there is likely a lot of life mingling around elsewhere. We're a young species in comparison to what could be out there, we shouldn't kid ourselves into thinking we know all about how to traverse great distances through space. If life is the norm then the chances of intelligence rising up increases and with that the chance that some species somewhere figured out a method of travel that allows them to explore distant planets. It only takes one such species but if one can do it then others can increasing the odds they'll visit Earth at some point.

      Now I'm not convinced they've been here either, but I do feel there are a lot of strange things people have seen over time that seem to point to "something" in at least a small percentage of reports. It deserves some serious study but for some reason there does indeed seem to be a policy of ridicule in our societies right now. Of course now with the prevalence of cameras we should be seeing more but then I'm sure it isn't like any visitors would always be here, it is more likely an explorer ship would pass by every few decades or so and spend a few weeks/months in the system. I would think that most would be able to observe from afar though without the need to enter the atmosphere except for sample gathering, even then they could do that in remote places without informing the native inhabitants.

      As a geek, yup, would love if it were true :)

    3. Re:What Geek Wouldn't Love This To Be True? by TheLazySci-FiAuthor · · Score: 1

      You are right, god paradoxes really don't apply here.

      Cookies are good half-baked, but comments: not so much :P

      Ah, the perils of rushed posting whilst the boss is nearby ;)

  12. Just wanting attention by InvisblePinkUnicorn · · Score: 4, Funny

    He's just mad that only Buzz gets any attention these days.

    1. Re:Just wanting attention by praedor · · Score: 2, Informative

      Apropos of nothing, I went to high school with Aldrin's daughter. Damn was she hot.

      --
      In Bushworld, they struggle to keep church and state separate in Iraq as they increasingly merge the two in America.
    2. Re:Just wanting attention by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Oh yes, she would be. The "Right Stuff" is in one's genes.

  13. Eddie Izzard called it by xpuppykickerx · · Score: 1

    âoeHi, people on the moon. As you can see, the Sea of Tranquility here, thereâ(TM)s the mountains in the distance, thereâ(TM)s the earth! There, youâ(TM)re looking back up at yourselves there. Over to my right, I can see a fucking monster! Thereâ(TM)s a monster behind me! Ohhhh! Ohhh no, help! Ahhh! Get off my leg! Ohhhahhhhh!⦠Neeeahhhh!â Buzz Aldrin in a monster outfit: âoeOhhhhahhhh! Ohhhhahhhh!â Neil doing close-up with â" âoeHeâ(TM)s got me, Houston. The monsterâ(TM)s got me! He wants cash! Heâ(TM)s got my hand up behind my back. I think he knows jujitsu! He wants cash for the release of my life. Send a million to â" two million dollars, leave it in a bag by the Sea of Tranquility. I donâ(TM)t know, the North Shore! What the fuckinellâ¦â Oh, it would have worked, wouldnâ(TM)t it?

    1. Re:Eddie Izzard called it by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Eddie Izzard has too many bits in his characters. Yes, I mean that literally. Care to try it again in ASCII?

    2. Re:Eddie Izzard called it by PotatoFarmer · · Score: 1

      Tangentially, I wonder what will happen first: we'll be contacted by our alien overlords, or Slashdot will start correctly supporting unicode.

      The world may never know.

    3. Re:Eddie Izzard called it by xpuppykickerx · · Score: 1

      Yeah i failed at that!

    4. Re:Eddie Izzard called it by jeffmeden · · Score: 4, Funny
      I think you meant:

      But he had a sense of humor so he should have used it, 'cause there was that lunar module there - a fixed camera, just fixed, not panning left or right, just stationary. So he could've been there saying, "Hi, people on the Moon. As you can see, the Sea of Tranquility here, there's the mountains in the distance, there's the Earth! There, you're looking back up at yourselves there. Over to my right, I can see a fucking monster! There's a monster behind me! ( screaming ) Oh no, help! Get off my leg!" Buzz Aldrin in a monster outfit ( growling ) Neil doing a close-up with... "He's got me, Houston. The monster's got me! He wants cash! He's got my hand up behind my back. I think he knows jiu-jitsu! He wants cash for the release of my life. Send a million... - two million dollars, leave it in a bag by the Sea of Tranquility. I don't know, the North Shore! What the fucking 'ell...?" Oh, it would have worked, wouldn't it?

      Thank god for the preview button!

    5. Re:Eddie Izzard called it by TheRaven64 · · Score: 1

      I think Slashdot's unicode support has actually got worse recently. I've seen a lot of pound symbols getting mangled (like this: £), while they always used to work.

      --
      I am TheRaven on Soylent News
    6. Re:Eddie Izzard called it by xpuppykickerx · · Score: 1

      yeah that too!

    7. Re:Eddie Izzard called it by rk · · Score: 1

      I got 10 bucks on the alien overlords.

    8. Re:Eddie Izzard called it by arth1 · · Score: 1

      Perhaps one day, web browsers will warn you if you try to paste Unicode into a form when the web form clearly is marked with Content-type: iso-8859-1.

      Or, even translate it for you when pasted, if possible. Like some browsers do.

    9. Re:Eddie Izzard called it by Fred_A · · Score: 1

      Especially since the pound currency sign is part of the Latin 1 aka ISO-8859-1 character set that /. claims to use (in position 163 or 0xA3). No Unicode required.

      --

      May contain traces of nut.
      Made from the freshest electrons.
  14. Pics or it didn't happen by BPPG · · Score: 4, Interesting

    What was his source? He doesn't claim to have seen them himself, or anything according to TFA.

    --
    What's the value of information that you don't know?
    1. Re:Pics or it didn't happen by Loadmaster · · Score: 1

      From TFA:

      "It's been well covered up by all our governments for the last 60 years or so, but slowly it's leaked out and some of us have been privileged to have been briefed on some of it."

      So I assume he's "proof" is that he was briefed on their existence and visitation. FWIW.

    2. Re:Pics or it didn't happen by CFBMoo1 · · Score: 1

      I'm not sure Pic's would be good proof with things like Photoshop and Gimp these days.

      Still I kind of agree with him that if Aliens did visit us already they are most likely way ahead of us and if they were really hostile we would have been dead long ago or noticed a large number of our population disappearing as "food". Although there is no "Here's Joe Alien from Bleenar."

      You can't say he's totally wrong with proof either. For all we know they could be here and just watching pretending to be one of us till we come to our senses and progress as a society or just letting us ripen and fatten up enough.

      --
      ~~ Behold the flying cow with a rail gun! ~~
    3. Re:Pics or it didn't happen by BPPG · · Score: 1

      I'm not sure Pic's would be good proof with things like Photoshop and Gimp these days.

      Hey! Shutup! My online romance life depends on this!

      --
      What's the value of information that you don't know?
    4. Re:Pics or it didn't happen by Talderas · · Score: 1

      So that explains the sudden increase in the overweight population of America.

      --
      "Lack of speed can be overcome. In the worst case by patience." --Znork
    5. Re:Pics or it didn't happen by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      What's whose source? Edgar Mitchel's sources are not known an are third parties. Clark McClelland's claim is that he actually SAW with his own eyes an ET. However he saw this from mission control thru a TV screen, he was not an astronaout, he worked on mission control.

      Last I checked this thread was about Clark McClelland's claim that he saw an alien, not Edgar Mitchel's ESP experiments.

    6. Re:Pics or it didn't happen by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      > Last I checked this thread was about Clark McClelland's claim that he saw an alien, not Edgar Mitchel's ESP experiments.

      WTF? When did anyone else (or the article for that matter) mention anything about McClelland?

  15. Strange to us.... by TypoNAM · · Score: 5, Funny

    'little people who look strange to us.'
    Tom Cruise and the scientologists?

    --
    This space is not for rent.
    1. Re:Strange to us.... by Floritard · · Score: 5, Funny

      Clearwater, Fl here. Tom Cruise is an anomoly. The scariest part about regular scientologists is that they look just like us!

    2. Re:Strange to us.... by F34nor · · Score: 1

      Oh my god! You're crawlling with thetans! Somme body get an e-meter quick!!!

    3. Re:Strange to us.... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      then how come when you drive through downtown they're so easy to pick out?

    4. Re:Strange to us.... by Blice · · Score: 1

      Clearwater here too.

      They don't look just like us- They're all wearing uniforms. You see them walking in stampedes downtown...

    5. Re:Strange to us.... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Little people, big world.

    6. Re:Strange to us.... by cli_rules! · · Score: 2, Funny

      That's why he wears those special sunglasses - so he can recognize the other Scientologists.

    7. Re:Strange to us.... by xpuppykickerx · · Score: 1

      Clearwater here 3! When I'm riding my bike downtown they refuse to move and it normally ends messy.

    8. Re:Strange to us.... by Floritard · · Score: 1

      That's only because the Mormons ride bicycles.

    9. Re:Strange to us.... by baKanale · · Score: 1

      They're Cylons? That certainly explains a few things!

    10. Re:Strange to us.... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Just remain where you are, sir. We're sending a car for you, now.

      Sincerely,

      Scientology

    11. Re:Strange to us.... by ksheff · · Score: 1

      That's what the kucinich tag is about.

      --
      the good ground has been paved over by suicidal maniacs
    12. Re:Strange to us.... by nategoose · · Score: 1

      No, it's Micheal Jackson. Moonwalker has more than one meaning here.

    13. Re:Strange to us.... by geekoid · · Score: 1

      Not their eyes.

      --
      The Kruger Dunning explains most post on /. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dunning%E2%80%93Kruger_effect
    14. Re:Strange to us.... by statemachine · · Score: 1

      Huh. Eisenhower saw UFOs as well. Why label Kucinich?

    15. Re:Strange to us.... by networkconsultant · · Score: 1

      We should publish a new bible for them :D only in this one as punishment for not participating in the galactic war you become a republican. :D

    16. Re:Strange to us.... by brianerst · · Score: 1

      Tom Cruise and the scientologists?

      Great band. They play Thursdays at Closet 51. No cover.

    17. Re:Strange to us.... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      this is not +5 funny, but +5 true

    18. Re:Strange to us.... by anomaly256 · · Score: 1

      You mean 'anomaly', right? And I resent that.

    19. Re:Strange to us.... by StuckInSyrup · · Score: 1

      Oh no! They live!

      --
      Ni.
    20. Re:Strange to us.... by ksheff · · Score: 1

      Forget about UFOs. I was thinking about the 'little people who look strange to us' phrase since Kucinich is a short goofy looking guy.

      --
      the good ground has been paved over by suicidal maniacs
  16. "During the three-day journey... by cosmocain · · Score: 5, Informative

    back to Earth aboard Apollo 14, Mitchell had an epiphany while looking down on the earth from space. "The presence of divinity became almost palpable, and I knew that life in the universe was not just an accident based on random processes ... The knowledge came to me directly," here

    Who would have thought that he'd go totally nuts one day.

    1. Re:"During the three-day journey... by Eighty7 · · Score: 2, Funny

      Who would have thought that he'd go totally nuts one day.

      Well what do you expect? From TFA, he holds the record for moonwalking - nine hours and 17 minutes. You can see what it did to Michael Jackson...

    2. Re:"During the three-day journey... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 2, Interesting

      It's probably the "overview effect". Some people get a mild version of it looking out of an airplane window, or even just looking up at the stars. From what I gather, it's like meditating. Dozens of astronauts have been similarly affected, though Mitchell seems to be the most vocal.

    3. Re:"During the three-day journey... by sm62704 · · Score: 3, Insightful

      I would imagine it would be pretty hard to walk on the moon and NOT have a religious experience.

      --
      mcgrew's razor: Never attribute to stupidity that which can be explained by greedy self-interest
    4. Re:"During the three-day journey... by fyoder · · Score: 1

      Who would have thought that he'd go totally nuts one day.

      I'm not sure that's entirely fair. Context also matters a lot with a statement like his. If he's expressing his personal beliefs, fine. It would be a different matter if he's asking us to believe the same because he's an authority, a founder of an institute, no less.

      Knowledge coming to one "directly" is fine for the individual receiving it, but is not so good for sharing with others unless it can be backed up by other means. That doesn't mean that intuitive insight is the same as being totally nuts, just that it can't stand on its own in any kind of scientific context.

      --
      Loose lips lose spit.
    5. Re:"During the three-day journey... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Buzz Aldrin reported seeing flashes of light when he closed his eyes on the way back from the Moon:

      As Apollo 11 sped back to earth last July, Astronaut Buzz Aldrin kept seeing strange flashes of light in the darkened spacecraft, even though his eyes were closed. "I think I'm going out of my mind," Aldrin told Neil Armstrong. While Armstrong and other astronauts confirmed the mysterious flashes, NASA scientists were at first inclined to attribute them to an optical quirk. Now they have proposed a more plausible explanation: cosmic rays. Though only some of these high-speed particles--mostly protons--manage to break through the shield of the earth's magnetic field, they can easily penetrate the eyelids of a space traveler, pass through the eye fluid and strike the retina. At times, they may even hit the brain's optic nerve. Such bombardment causes no serious damage during a short lunar mission. But since the effect of cosmic rays on the body is cumulativeâ"like that of X raysâ"they could present a greater peril on prolonged space voyages.

      Who knows what else those cosmic rays were breaking? I mean, we're talking about iron nuclei at relativistic speeds...

    6. Re:"During the three-day journey... by aled · · Score: 1

      Dangers of breathing too much recycled air...

      --

      "I think this line is mostly filler"
    7. Re:"During the three-day journey... by Wavebreak · · Score: 1

      How so? It's entirely possible to appreciate the vastness and beauty of the universe without bringing religion into it.

      --
      Nobody expects the British Columbia Human Rights Tribunal.
    8. Re:"During the three-day journey... by juan2074 · · Score: 1

      He smuggled LSD aboard Apollo 14?

    9. Re:"During the three-day journey... by sm62704 · · Score: 1

      Wow, you know, doing acid in outer space would be REALLY dangerous, but I'd love to smoke a joint on the ISS.

      --
      mcgrew's razor: Never attribute to stupidity that which can be explained by greedy self-interest
  17. Yet more proof... by Rui+del-Negro · · Score: 1

    Yet more proof that NASA skimped on the radiation shielding on those helmets.

    It's statistically quite likely that alien life exists (especially for a broad enough definition of "life"). But the chances that it will be close enough to Earth to "visit us" or that it will look like "little men" is approximately zero.

    Does anyone know if Dr. Edgar Mitchell has signed a book deal recently?

    1. Re:Yet more proof... by oodaloop · · Score: 1

      Sure, life exists elsewhere. Probably microbes of various sorts. Intelligent life on the other hand is probably unique to Earth, at least in this galaxy. Perhaps in other galaxies there is intelligent life, but that means very little to me considering we'll never meet.

      --
      Tic-Tac-Toe, Global Thermonuclear War, and relationships all have the same winning move.
    2. Re:Yet more proof... by HaeMaker · · Score: 1
      It's statistically quite likely that alien life exists (especially for a broad enough definition of "life"). But the chances that it will be close enough to Earth to "visit us" or that it will look like "little men" is approximately zero.

      ...based on our current level of technology and scientific understanding.

    3. Re:Yet more proof... by ag3ntugly · · Score: 0

      A hundred years ago if you told someone it was possible to speak into a little plastic box and for someone else with a little plasic box halfway across the planet to hear it, they'd call you a nutter too. Speaking of which, I need to check my voicemail...

      --
      i have a roll of electrical tape.
    4. Re:Yet more proof... by Ngarrang · · Score: 1

      Evolutionists would have us believe that we are the result of a long process that started with single celled things in mud. If it can happen once, why not a second time on another planet? That is, if you believe the Evolutionists.

      --
      Bearded Dragon
    5. Re:Yet more proof... by timster · · Score: 1

      I don't necessarily dispute the reasoning behind your claim, but it's mighty unscientific of you to make a blanket assertion with no evidence. How do you know what the odds are that intelligent life would form? We don't have any experimental evidence beyond the absence of radio transmissions.

      --
      I have seen the future, and it is inconvenient.
    6. Re:Yet more proof... by Rui+del-Negro · · Score: 1

      No... based on the fact that there is zero evidence of it, despite much active searching.

      It's kind of like saying that "there are no pink elephants on top of the Eiffel tower... based on the current level of technology and scientific understanding". No, it's based on the fact that lots of people look at the top of the Eiffel tower and none have seen a pink elephant there (except for my uncle, once, but he was on LSD).

    7. Re:Yet more proof... by blueg3 · · Score: 2, Informative

      100 years ago was 1908. Marconi had successfully demonstrated transatlantic wireless communication seven years previous.

    8. Re:Yet more proof... by thrillseeker · · Score: 1

      It's statistically quite likely that alien life exists

      so now it's considered good science to declare a trend from a single data point?

    9. Re:Yet more proof... by Rui+del-Negro · · Score: 1

      Considering that no one seems to agree on a definition of "life", it's even less meaningful to talk about "intelligent life". Even on Earth, what counts as "intelligent life"? Are bacteria intelligent? Are insects? Are virii intelligent? Are they even alive? Are computers intelligent non-life?

      I'm with Stanislaw Lem: chances are, if we came across intelligent alien life, we would have a hard time even identifying it, let alone communicating with it (and they with us).

      Then again, the longer I live and the more people I get to know, the more I agree with Eric Idle, too: let's hope there's intelligent life somewhere out in space, 'cause there's bugger all down here on Earth. ;-)

    10. Re:Yet more proof... by Rui+del-Negro · · Score: 1

      Chaos theory. Unless it started out exactly the same (same mud, same crystals, same acid rain), the end result would be very different. Alien life? Almost a certainty. Alien humanoid life? Not bloody likely.

      Oh, and natural selection (which I take it is what you mean by "evolutionists" - "evolution" simply means "change over time", the name of the theory is "natural selection") has nothing to say about how life started, just about how it changes over time: by mutation and natural selection.

    11. Re:Yet more proof... by Dragonslicer · · Score: 1

      No... based on the fact that there is zero evidence of it, despite much active searching.

      It's kind of like saying that "there are no pink elephants on top of the Eiffel tower... based on the current level of technology and scientific understanding". No, it's based on the fact that lots of people look at the top of the Eiffel tower and none have seen a pink elephant there (except for my uncle, once, but he was on LSD).

      Except that we can observe the entire top of the Eiffel Tower. Try your claim again when you've observed every body in the galaxy. Absence of evidence does not equal evidence of absence.

    12. Re:Yet more proof... by maxume · · Score: 1

      The implications of Chaos theory aren't nearly that clear cut. Ya see, A butterfly sneezes and nothing happens.

      --
      Nerd rage is the funniest rage.
    13. Re:Yet more proof... by Rui+del-Negro · · Score: 1

      You left out the rest of the sentence (for a broad enough definition of "life"), but in any case, it's not a single data point. Fossils of primitive "life forms" (or self-organising compounds) have been found in meteorites. And even on Earth there are extremophiles adapted to environments similar to those of known planets, so we know that life could survive there, even if only in primitive forms. Put two and two together (meteorites don't hit just the Earth), and the probability is quite high that there will be some bacteria or "complicated crystals" (which is really what life is) living elsewhere.

      Obviously we can't study the bacteria in Uranus without actually going there, and while I have no intention of doing so, I'm sure someone will be brave enough to do it. ;-)

    14. Re:Yet more proof... by HappySmileMan · · Score: 1

      A hundred and eight years ago if you told someone it was possible to speak into a little plastic box and for someone else with a little plasic box halfway across the planet to hear it, they'd call you a nutter too. Speaking of which, I need to check my voicemail...

    15. Re:Yet more proof... by oodaloop · · Score: 1

      There are several reasons, but the primary ones are:

      1. Intelligent life evolved on earth mostly due to accidents rather than selective pressure. The vast majority of living things get along just fine being "dumb". The book Big Brain also goes into detail how the evolution of said title evolved due to accidents, such as walking upright leading to more room in the room, leading to bigger babies, which always leads to bigger brains. Fascinating book.

      2. The earth was lucky to get 3 billion or so years with a stable environment. Most planets get much much less and are thus far less likely to develop complex life, let alone intelligent complex life. The book Rare Earth covers this, and other arguments, really well.

      3. The Fermi Paradox. If aliens existed, why haven't they colonized Earth yet? (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fermi_paradox)

      --
      Tic-Tac-Toe, Global Thermonuclear War, and relationships all have the same winning move.
    16. Re:Yet more proof... by SpaceLifeForm · · Score: 1

      Which just goes to show, the media didn't cover real news back then either.

      --
      You are being MICROattacked, from various angles, in a SOFT manner.
    17. Re:Yet more proof... by drinkypoo · · Score: 1

      Sure, life exists elsewhere. Probably microbes of various sorts. Intelligent life on the other hand is probably unique to Earth, at least in this galaxy. Perhaps in other galaxies there is intelligent life, but that means very little to me considering we'll never meet.

      We have exhaustively examined a total of one (1) planet that we have good reason to believe is capable of supporting life, and we have found intelligent life there. We have found intelligent life on 100% of the reasonably-life-bearing planets we have examined. Therefore there must be intelligent life all over the universe, right?

      The simple truth is that our sample size is not useful, the only radio beacons SETI would be likely to find would be those actually pointed directly at us and intended for the purpose of getting our attention which would be fairly useless when using radio waves unless you were precognitive on a very long time scale, and neither you nor I really has any idea how prevalent life is throughout the galaxy, let alone intelligent life.

      --
      "You're right," Fisheye says. "I should have set it on 'whip' or 'chop.'"
    18. Re:Yet more proof... by bencoder · · Score: 1

      I would disagree. Life, or at least life that we could recognise as life, would have to start on planets with the right conditions, i.e. Earth-like.
      Given this, it is therefore likely that evolutionary pressures will be similar, and that similar successful designs will result. Look at the crocodile vs alligator for example. I propose that in fact, humanoid life is probably more likely than people would expect.

    19. Re:Yet more proof... by Rui+del-Negro · · Score: 2, Insightful

      Actually, it does. That' how it works, see? There might be a pink elephant on top of the Eiffel tower (a small one, that hides whenever someone looks directly at it - or maybe even an invisible pink elephant!). But if it does exist, its existence is so flimsy, so irrelevant, and has such a small impact on the rest of reality, that it's not worth taking into account.

      When something that is as actively sought as "little gray men in flying saucers" is supported by exactly zero evidence, it's pretty safe to say that it doesn't exist.

      If you read my post, I wrote that there is a high probability of alien life. Just not alien humanoid life, visiting the Earth. We would have noticed it (where by "we" I mean sane people, with cameras and radars and telescopes).

      Over 10 people filmed the airplanes hitting the towers on 9/11, and they weren't actively looking for airplanes hitting skyscrapers. There are thousands of people looking through telescopes, analysing data from radars and just recording video of the sky. Many of them are actually actively looking for alien spaceships and little gray men visiting the Earth. Grand total of evidence? Zero.

      When something is the subject of so much observation, absence of evidence is evidence of absence. It's not proof, of course, but you can't really prove anything, outside the domain of pure maths. Everything else can, at best, be "undisproved".

    20. Re:Yet more proof... by drinkypoo · · Score: 1

      Chaos theory. Unless it started out exactly the same (same mud, same crystals, same acid rain), the end result would be very different. Alien life? Almost a certainty. Alien humanoid life? Not bloody likely.

      You mean ignorance theory.

      Here's an alternate theory actually backed up by scientific discovery: it is theoretically possible for the building blocks of DNA to self-assemble from "primordial soup" (it's the daily special.) Which is to say, stuff that you could allegedly find in a puddle on this planet, and so you might be able to find it on others as well. But one thing about DNA is that it is not capable of making any shape - it does not, for example, specify the position of every molecule or even every cell in the body. DNA can only successfully and viably (in terms of becoming a functioning, reproducing organism) unfold into a certain limited number of outcomes based on its complexity and informed by the environment in which the organism develops (for example, your organs are all the shape and size they are because of their relationship to every other organ, which is in turn informed by the womb in which you develop.)

      In addition, there is another reason for life forms to tend to converge on a general plan which involves hearing organs above the eyes above the olfactory sense organ above the eating orifice: biological convenience. It's easy to see that rearranging these elements' relationship on the head in basically any other plan (you can move them about, but they should generally be organized in the above strata) is less than optimal. Thus, even where these changes are possible they will likely not occur because they are not likely to be desirable.

      So the big question then becomes whether life based on something other than DNA or RNA is possible, up to, including, and possibly beyond silicon-based life forms (and I don't mean self-reproducing artifacts, either, but naturally-occurring life.) Because if there is life on other planets which is carbon-based it very possibly could have the same basis as life on this planet.

      Finally, let's not forget the possibility of physical diaspora of genetic material between planets. While it would occur over exceptionally long time scales, it's still a potentially viable method. If many similar systems were colonized by external influences at around the same time, it's possible that some of them would develop intelligent life during overlapping time periods - which would put them in the same neighborhood, galactically speaking.

      --
      "You're right," Fisheye says. "I should have set it on 'whip' or 'chop.'"
    21. Re:Yet more proof... by Rui+del-Negro · · Score: 1

      I would disagree. Life, or at least life that we could recognise as life, would have to start on planets with the right conditions, i.e. Earth-like.

      So this isn't life? The conditions in which many of these organisms live are extremely rare on Earth and extremely common on other planets, or even meteorites.

      I propose that in fact, humanoid life is probably more likely than people would expect.

      Nice scientific statement there "probably more likely than people would expect". How much is that in Volkswagens?

      By your own previous statement (which I disagree with, but you obviosuly don't), life requires an Earth-like planet. Since the number of known Earth-like planets is one, life (humanoid or otherwise) is, by your reasoning, extremely unlikely.

    22. Re:Yet more proof... by geekoid · · Score: 1

      "Yet more proof that NASA skimped on the radiation shielding on those helmets."

      His brain is crazy, not cancerous.

      --
      The Kruger Dunning explains most post on /. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dunning%E2%80%93Kruger_effect
    23. Re:Yet more proof... by geekoid · · Score: 1

      We know the condition it need on earth, so we know how to determine the odds.

      I would say throughout the entire life of the universe, it would be surprising if intelligent life didn't appear somewhere else.

      We are not the only intelligent life to appear on this planet, so it doesn't seem life appearing is a fluke.

      If we had evidence, that the odds would be 100%

      --
      The Kruger Dunning explains most post on /. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dunning%E2%80%93Kruger_effect
    24. Re:Yet more proof... by Rui+del-Negro · · Score: 1

      No idea what you are replying to, but it's clearly not to what I wrote (and which you quoted). None of what you say supports the notion that humanoid life forms are somehow more likely than non-humanoid life forms, given a different environment.

      Even on Earth, and restricting "life" to [D|R]NA-based organisms, there are billions of non-humanoid life forms, versus only a few hundred humanoid ones. And we're not even the majority, whether in terms of number of individuals or total mass. Plus we've only been around for a couple of cosmic minutes.

    25. Re:Yet more proof... by timster · · Score: 1

      The problem I have with looking at a series of accidents and claiming the result of those accidents to be unlikely is that you're not evaluating the possibility that any number of alternate series of accidents could lead to the same result. By (simplistic) analogy this is like looking at a series of 6-sided die rolls like 2,2,5,3,1, noticing that they sum to 13, and claiming that the odds of this result were 7776 to 1 against -- that's only the odds of that particular ordering, not the odds that the rolls would sum to 13.

      For #2, we need a better roster of Earth-like planets, which is only starting to come in.

      For #3, there are too many possible reasons.

      --
      I have seen the future, and it is inconvenient.
    26. Re:Yet more proof... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Butterflies don't sneeze. There. If that doesn't prove we've been visited by aliens, I don't know what does.

    27. Re:Yet more proof... by Rui+del-Negro · · Score: 1

      If aliens existed, why haven't they colonized Earth yet?

      Maybe they have. How do you know you're not evolved from some bacteria that reached Earth on a meteorite?

      In any case, given the rate of expansion of the universe and the maximum speed at which mass can travel (given the current laws of physics), it would be more or less impossible for one civilisation to colonise the entire universe, even if they managed to expand their empire at light speed. And that's assuming we'd even understand that "civilisation" if we came across it (maybe we've seen it, and just don't understand what it is). The Fermi paradox is really more of a "clever question" than a true paradox. In fact, the article you mention lists several explanations for it.

    28. Re:Yet more proof... by oodaloop · · Score: 1

      I did mention in the first post I think intelligent life is possible in other gallaxies, and the rate of expansion and maximum speed are the reasons I think we'll never meet. In this gallaxy, I think other intelligent life is unlikely.

      --
      Tic-Tac-Toe, Global Thermonuclear War, and relationships all have the same winning move.
    29. Re:Yet more proof... by ag3ntugly · · Score: 0

      Allow me to re-state my comment. A hundred years ago if you told someone it was possible to speak into a little plastic box that displayed moving images in color, could give you directions to your grandmother's house, and could tell you with a reasonable degree of accuracy your exact location on the planet, and for someone else with a little plasic box just like it halfway across the planet to hear you, , and check thier stocks, and make dinner arrangements, and get get an email from thier bank notifiying them of a possible theft of thier identity, they'd call you a nutter too. Speaking of which, I need to check my voicemail...

      --
      i have a roll of electrical tape.
    30. Re:Yet more proof... by maynard · · Score: 1

      Oh no. Aliens could have easily found us with nothing more than a very large optical telescope and some spectral analysis. And if they're in space, an interferometer might even give them a pretty photograph of our planet.

      I'm not too worried about television broadcasts any longer. Any intelligent aliens close enough to receive our radio waves will have long since learned of our existence via astronomical instruments.

    31. Re:Yet more proof... by Rui+del-Negro · · Score: 1

      Well, the Milky Way is 100 thousand light years across. Since mankind has only been able to send out / receive signals for about 100 years, there could technically be thousands of civilisations of our level in the Milky Way (not to mention non-technological civilisations); their signals simply haven't reached us yet (or they reached us before we were able to detect them).

      Even if there are other "intelligences", operating at a level that we can understand (i.e., not too fast or too slow, using transmission methods that we can detect, etc.), though, I doubt they'll be close enough to make any sort of communication viable or relevant. At best we'll be able to detect each others' presence.

    32. Re:Yet more proof... by lgw · · Score: 1

      Well, alien life could easily have visited Earth 100,000 years ago (or even every 100,000 years like clockwork) and there'd be no evidence. Alien anthropologists could be among us now, and there'd be no evidence, if they had the motivation and the technology.

      What we can say is that it's quite unlikely that aliens are abducting farmers, mutilating cattle, or buzzing jet fighters (or any other pop-culture alien behavior). We can also say that it's quite unlikely that the aliens have a secret treaty with the government, because the current administration can't keep *anything* interesting secret, and it's not the first with that problem.

      Most of the planets/moons/plutoids in the solar system have not been mapped well - an abandoned alien base sitting in plain sight on a random rock would have a quite low probability of having been found yet.

      In short, we can rule out the pop-culture alien visit scenarios, but have no real evidence one way or the other about many other reasonable alien visit scenarios.

      --
      Socialism: a lie told by totalitarians and believed by fools.
    33. Re:Yet more proof... by Rui+del-Negro · · Score: 1

      Alien anthropologists could be among us now, and there'd be no evidence, if they had the motivation and the technology.

      And there could be a pink elephant living on top of the Eiffel tower.

      [we] have no real evidence one way or the other about many other reasonable alien visit scenarios.

      No, you see, the thing is... we do. We have evidence "one way". Just not "the other". The absence of something (not just its presence) carries information. If no one had been looking, then we'd have no evidence "one way or the other". But people have been looking.

      Little gray men on flying saucers may one day visit us (what happened to the green ones, BTW, weren't aliens green before the 80s?), but all evidence points to the conclusion that, until now, they have not.

    34. Re:Yet more proof... by drinkypoo · · Score: 1

      I'm not worried about anything that moves at the speed of light unless you are expecting aliens that move backwards in time so that they can get here before the signal gets to them. Unless you expect them to be very close of course, in which case, why don't we know about them already? (The conspiracy must be working!)

      --
      "You're right," Fisheye says. "I should have set it on 'whip' or 'chop.'"
    35. Re:Yet more proof... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Hm... 100 years ago hadn't Jules Verne covered pretty much all that in his books?

    36. Re:Yet more proof... by lgw · · Score: 1

      And there could be a pink elephant living on top of the Eiffel tower.

      There's nothing in our experience that would explain a pink elephant living at the top of the Eiffel tower. One can't disprove it, but it's not consistant with our understanding of how the universe works. It is not a reasonable proposition.

      Zoologists studying dangerous species by using technology to ensure that the creatures being studied remain unaware of the researcher is common in our experience. There are TV channels that show exactly that many hours each week. There are many techlogies to allow one to approach an alert observer while remaining unseen in use by modern militaries, and "how close" seems to be just a matter of the difference of the technological sophistication of those involved.

      No, you see, the thing is... we do. We have evidence "one way". Just not "the other".

      Searching 0.01% of a new land and not finding the fabled city of gold *is* evidence, of course, but not compelling evidence. We have not yet bothered to observe the vast majority of the "surface area" of our solar system, beyond the nearest two planets and a couple of Jupiter's moons, and we've only had the technology to notice an interstellar ship flying by for a couple centuries at best.

      Clearly alien visits/cities/whatever aren't common - induction works fine for that statement. But it's not like we've searched 99% of the solar system and people are arguing that maybe the aliens are hiding in that 1% we can't see.

      --
      Socialism: a lie told by totalitarians and believed by fools.
    37. Re:Yet more proof... by Rui+del-Negro · · Score: 1

      Your "zoologist" analogy would only make sense if the species we study had any concept of technology. And in any case, I doubt you can say they are "unaware" of the cameras (or of the zoologists themselves). They can certainly see them and smell them. They just decide that those things are not worth running away from or trying to eat. Most primates (who are still not really "technological") will actually tinker with "alien" artifacts (cameras, microphones, tape recorders) if they feel they are not in danger - as anyone who has tried to film chimps in the wild knows very well.

      But anyway, the question isn't the solar system. The question is the Earth. The (ex) astronaut quoted in the the article says that Earth has been / is being visited by little gray men from outer space. And yet, despite all the people constantly looking through telescopes and radars, and all the people walking around the countryside with video cameras looking for them, no one has managed to get any evidence of those little gray men's (or their flying saucers') existence. That is pretty "compelling" evidence of absence.

      Could there be life on other planets in the solar system? Absolutely. In fact, I think the probability of that is higher than 50%. But we're talking "extremophile" bacteria or, at best, non-technological life forms. Any civilisation with even a basic control over electricity would shine out like a beacon.

  18. Or an insider with knowledge you lack by maynard · · Score: 1

    How the hell do you know which is the truth?

    1. Re:Or an insider with knowledge you lack by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 2, Insightful

      We don't. Just like we don't know if there was ever really a flying spaghetti monster.

      Besides. Since when do Conspiracy Theorist care if somebody who is telling them something is an insider or not?

      People who refuse to believe we landed on the moon refuse to listen to insiders. It doesn't matter how many facts or how much proof you heap upon them. They still don't believe.

      Only when it works to their advantage do they "believe" what an insider has to say.

      People who believe aliens have been to earth don't believe insiders when they say it didn't happen and they claim that the insiders are covering everything up but when one insider says it happened all the believers point to it as ultimate proof because it's from "an insider".

      Give me a break.

      They choose when to believe and when not to believe depending on what best supports their Theory.

      It's like arguing with a Religious person.

    2. Re:Or an insider with knowledge you lack by maynard · · Score: 1

      He landed on the moon. He has actually been in space, unlike you or me. Further, he has been making these claims for decades. Now, he could be wrong - but your analysis is made of pure bias and no facts whatsoever. I'll take his direct claims - right or wrong - over your nonfactual bias any day. -M

    3. Re:Or an insider with knowledge you lack by dedazo · · Score: 2, Insightful

      Discard the most unlikely alternative and you'll always find yourself statistically closer to the most likely one.

      --
      Web2.0: I love when people Flickr my cuil and digg my boingboing until my google is reddit and I start to yahoo
    4. Re:Or an insider with knowledge you lack by maynard · · Score: 1

      So said Occam. However, which of these alternatives is the least likely? And why?

    5. Re:Or an insider with knowledge you lack by thrillseeker · · Score: 1, Insightful

      yet none of the several dozen other space travelers have backed him on this ...

    6. Re:Or an insider with knowledge you lack by BobGregg · · Score: 1

      >>I'll take his direct claims - right or wrong -
      >>over your nonfactual bias any day.

      Personally, I'll reject both, until I see the extraordinary proof required for extraordinary claims - which should frankly be the only criteria people consider (neither ad hominem nor wild unsubstantiated claims being allowed).

    7. Re:Or an insider with knowledge you lack by dedazo · · Score: 4, Informative

      OK, so you believe him? You believe there are aliens. Right?

      I'd be happy to join you if you provide proof of that. Incontrovertible proof. In the era of pervasive digital imaging, someone must have that, somewhere. Surely? Maybe it's just a coincidence that the number of "quality" UFO sightings dropped dramatically after the 70s. Yeah. So let's see it. Because otherwise you're asking me to have faith. And quite frankly, at that point the "ufologist" starts to sound suspiciously like a Jehova's Witness.

      I'm ready to believe the truth is out there. Just show me proof.

      --
      Web2.0: I love when people Flickr my cuil and digg my boingboing until my google is reddit and I start to yahoo
    8. Re:Or an insider with knowledge you lack by rk · · Score: 2, Insightful

      Being in space or not does NOT lend any extra credibility to any claim. If you think he's credible on this, then fine, but "ZOMG he's been to the MOON!!11" doesn't make him an expert on extraterrestrial life and government cover-ups. Even if it did, it's still only a statement. Without any evidence to back it up, it has no real value.

      Mitchell has been into fringe (or pseudo, take your pick) science for a long time now, and believes in things like remote healing, ESP, as well. Should we start to believe in that as well?

      I get paid by NASA too, and frankly, I'd be more worried someone there would fake evidence that there IS life in space in order to get a bigger slice of the declining NASA science budget (which is getting cut 20% this year if GWB gets his way).

    9. Re:Or an insider with knowledge you lack by maynard · · Score: 3, Interesting

      That's not true. Many astronauts claim to have witnessed UFOs either in space or while flying military aircraft. Some examples: Gordon Cooper; Donald Slayton; Robert White; Joseph Walker; and both Gemini astronauts James Lovell and Frank Borman witnessed an object while in orbit together.

      Perhaps they're all wrong. Or conspiracy theorists. Or just plain nuts. But if they're all nuts, then they shouldn't be called "flight-ready" now should they?

    10. Re:Or an insider with knowledge you lack by ScentCone · · Score: 1

      He landed on the moon. He has actually been in space, unlike you or me.

      I haven't been aboard ship at the north pole, either, though some people have. Does that make such a person's claim that there is a giant underwater city full of sapient leech-people controlling our planet's magnetic field any more credible? Physically going somewhere that fewer people have seen personally doesn't - in the least - make completely unsubstantiated, evidence-less, silly-on-the-face-of-them claims any more credible. To the contrary, actually. He's being entirely un-scientific about this, which is very unbecoming to a former scientist.

      --
      Don't disappoint your bird dog. Go to the range.
    11. Re:Or an insider with knowledge you lack by thrillseeker · · Score: 1

      with emphasis on the U ...

    12. Re:Or an insider with knowledge you lack by maynard · · Score: 1

      Are you going to make a factual argument, or just play little games of sophistry?

    13. Re:Or an insider with knowledge you lack by thrillseeker · · Score: 1

      The other astronauts have not said there are secret aliens. Is that blunt enough?

    14. Re:Or an insider with knowledge you lack by maynard · · Score: 2, Informative

      I said nothing of the sort. He claims to have witnessed a briefing on the subject. I do know that he has said this. I wasn't present at that briefing and do not know what happened there or what was said.

      And to the slashdot editors: the time limits on posting make it *impossible* to hold a debate on /. now. Most sucky.

    15. Re:Or an insider with knowledge you lack by dedazo · · Score: 0, Flamebait

      Sod off twitter. Go hump up your conspiracy theories. Maybe you can blame "M$" for the little green men that kidnapped you to perform deviant sexual experiments in Uranus.

      --
      Web2.0: I love when people Flickr my cuil and digg my boingboing until my google is reddit and I start to yahoo
    16. Re:Or an insider with knowledge you lack by JasterBobaMereel · · Score: 1

      So they saw something they could not identify ... ...and so it MUST be aliens obviously not just an ordinary object that they could not identify ....?

      --
      Puteulanus fenestra mortis
    17. Re:Or an insider with knowledge you lack by hesiod · · Score: 1

      Some saying they have seen unidentified objects is a far cry from them "backing him up," which is to say that they have been told secret information, that aliens have contacted Humans, but that it's been covered up.

    18. Re:Or an insider with knowledge you lack by maynard · · Score: 1

      That's absolutely true. He could well be wrong, or even be lying. I don't know. But I do know that:

      A) he is not the only astronaut to make these claims.

      B) he has been making these claims for some time.

    19. Re:Or an insider with knowledge you lack by dedazo · · Score: 1

      OK, so what's your position then? Surely you're arguing for a reason here. Just that you want people to stop thinking he's nuts, or what?

      --
      Web2.0: I love when people Flickr my cuil and digg my boingboing until my google is reddit and I start to yahoo
    20. Re:Or an insider with knowledge you lack by maynard · · Score: 1

      My position is that many highly credible people with military backgrounds keep saying similar stuff as has Mr. Cooper. For this reason, I don't discount it. But I have never seen an alien, nor has anyone credible ever given me private information to confirm Mr. Cooper's statement.

      This is what it means to not know. Perhaps aliens are buzzing Earth; perhaps not. But I do not insult nor demean astronaut Cooper because of what he claims. I listen to him. I find it particularly relevant that he has continued making these statements for decades, and further, these statements have increased as he nears death. That's a most interesting fact.

      Finally, here is an account of the only UFO I've witnessed:

      http://books.slashdot.org/comments.pl?sid=48139&cid=4930168

      But that experience completely changed my view on the subject. I saw one, personally. And I am convinced that what I saw was a physical object under intelligent control. That's all I know.

    21. Re:Or an insider with knowledge you lack by Kelbear · · Score: 1

      I saw a UFO too.

      A bright green shooting star shot through the sky. Which isn't unusual, except it then stopped there, then went back retracing the same vector, then slowly down along a new angle, then dissapeared.

      I was walking with my roommate at the time and after seeing this I turned to him. "Did you..." "...Uh yeah, I saw it too."

      It was fun to imagine something more, but really, it was just a UFO, I don't believe in aliens.

    22. Re:Or an insider with knowledge you lack by Beezlebub33 · · Score: 2, Insightful

      Ah....and me with no mod points.

      This is the whole point isn't it. The old 'extraordinary claims require extraordinary evidence' (Sagan, boy, I miss him).

      At the least, he needs to give details that could be either verified or corroborated in some way. Just saying 'we have them' and 'Roswell is real' does not do anybody any good. If he claims that he has knowledge of something like their anatomy, he should tell us exactly how he knows that their anatomy is like that.

      Specific events could be something along the lines of "Col. Green from Special Command gave us a brief on this day prior to liftoff. The brief covered X. Also present were astronauts Y and Z." Being briefed on aliens, or viewing aliens, or some similar event would leave such an indelible mark in his memory that he should be able to tell you everything about the event. I remember where I was when I saw the Challenger explode. I remember where I was on 9/11. If I was briefed on aliens, I'd remember it so well I could reproduce it almost verbatim. Absent this sort of information, I call bullshit.

      --
      The more people I meet, the better I like my dog.
    23. Re:Or an insider with knowledge you lack by maynard · · Score: 1

      I didn't see a "light in the dark", I saw a silver disc shaped object in broad daylight. I'm not much interested in those unidentified objects that can easily be explained, or that lack enough context or data to be explainable. I'm much more interested in events with clear sightings, multiple witnesses, and instrument recordings of the event.

      Many such incidents like that have occurred and are in the public record.

    24. Re:Or an insider with knowledge you lack by rpj1288 · · Score: 1

      In addition to what the others have said, in most cases, those unidentified objects turn out to be ice, gases from the thruster fluorescing, or debris from staging or EVAs. Without a point of reference in space, it becomes rather hard to judge distance and size of an object.

      --
      Marvin knew: "Think of a number, any number..."
    25. Re:Or an insider with knowledge you lack by StarfishOne · · Score: 2, Interesting

      Let me post that list again of people who would really like to TESTIFY UNDER OATH before Congress:
      (and risk 15 years in jail if lying!). Mitchell is in good company with people who have very solid track records!

      The world is more than ready to hear the truth once and for all so that we come put an end to these perpetuating dichotomies between 'believers' and 'skeptics'.

      We don't need all the military, sensitive details and stuff: just a YES or NO, what they look like and their intentions.

      Source: http://www.disclosureproject.org/aboutexecsumm.htm

      -----------------

      Testimony that Explains the Secrecy

      Merle Shane McDow: US Navy Atlantic Command; Lt. Col. Charles Brown: US Air Force (Ret.); "Dr. B"; Lance Corporal Jonathan Weygandt: US Marine Corps; Maj. George A. Filer, III: US Air Force (Ret.); Nick Pope: British Ministry of Defense Official; Larry Warren: US Air Force, Security Officer; Sgt. Clifford Stone: US Army; Master Sgt. Dan Morris: US Air Force, NRO Operative; A.H.: Boeing Aerospace Employee; Officer Alan Godfrey: British Police; Sgt. Karl Wolf: US Air Force; Ms. Donna Hare: NASA Employee; Mr. John Maynard: DIA Official; Dr. Robert Wood: McDonnell Douglas Aerospace Engineer; Glen Dennis: NM UFO Crash Witness; Sgt. Leonard Pretko: US Air Force; Dr. Roberto Pinotti: Italian UFO expert; Dr. Paul Czysz: McDonnell Douglas Career Engineer; Astronaut Edgar Mitchell; John Callahan: FAA Head of Accidents and Investigations; Michael Smith: US Air Force Radar Controller; Franklin Carter: US Navy Radar Technician; Neil Daniels: United Airlines Pilot; Lt. Frederick Fox: US Navy Pilot; Captain Robert Salas: US Air Force, SAC Launch Controller; Prof. Robert Jacobs: US Air Force; Harry Allen Jordan: US Navy; James Kopf: US Navy Crypto Communications

      Witness Testimony Overview

      Astronaut Edgar Mitchell: May 1998; Monsignor Corrado Balducci: September 2000

      Radar and Pilot Cases

      FAA Division Chief John Callahan; Sgt. Chuck Sorrells: US Air Force (ret.); Mr. Michael W. Smith: US Air Force; Commander Graham Bethune: US Navy (ret.); Mr. Enrique Kolbeck: Senior Air Traffic Controller; Dr. Richard Haines; Mr. Franklin Carter: US Navy; Neil Daniels: Airline Pilot; Sgt. Robert Blazina (ret.); Lieutenant Frederick Marshall Fox: US Navy (ret.); Captain Massimo Poggi; Lt. Bob Walker: US Army; Mr. Don Bockelman: US Army

      SAC/Nuke

      Captain Robert Salas; Professor Robert Jacobs: Lt. US Air Force; Lt. Colonel Dwynne Arneson: US Air Force (ret.); Colonel Ross Dedrickson: US Air Force/AEC (ret.); Harry Allen Jordan: US Navy; Mr. James Kopf: US Navy/ National Security Agency; Lieutenant Colonel Joe Wojtecki, US Air Force; Staff Sergeant Stoney Campbell: US Air Force

      Government Insiders/ NASA/ Deep Insiders

      Astronaut Gordon Cooper; Merle Shane McDow: US Navy Atlantic Command; Lieutenant Colonel Charles Brown: US Air Force (ret.); Dr. Carol Rosin; âoeDr. B.â; Lance Corporal John Weygandt: U.S. Marine Corps; Major A. Filer III: U.S. Air Force; Mr. Nick Pope: British Ministry Of Defense; Admiral Lord Hill-Norton: Five-Star Admiral, Former Head of the British Ministry of Defense; Security Officer Larry Warren: United States Air Force; Captain Lori Rehfeldt; Sergeant Clifford Stone: United States Army; Major-General Vasily Alexeyev: Russian Air Force; Master Sergeant Dan Morris: US Air Force/NRO Operative (ret.); Mr. Don Phillips: Lockheed Skunkworks, USAF, and CIA Contractor; Captain Bill Uhouse: US Marine Corps (ret.); Lieutenant Colonel John Williams: US Air Force
      (ret.); Mr. Don Johnson; A.H.: Boeing Aerospace, December 2000; British Police Officer Alan Godfrey; Mr. Gordon Creighton: Former British Foreign Service Official; Sergeant Karl Wolfe: US Air Force; Donna Hare: Former NASA Employee; Mr. John Maynard: Defense Intelligence Agency (ret.); Mr. Harland Bentley: US Army; Dr. Robert Wood: McDonnell Douglas Aerospace Engineer, ; Dr. Alfred Webre: Senior Policy Analyst Stanford Research

    26. Re:Or an insider with knowledge you lack by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Many astronauts claim to have witnessed UFOs either in space or while flying military aircraft

      Yes, and I have no doubt that some or all of them did indeed witness UFOs.

      But a UFO is just a flying object that has not been identified. There is no evidence whatsoever to suggest that any UFO ever witnessed has been of alien origin.

    27. Re:Or an insider with knowledge you lack by StarfishOne · · Score: 1

      Other astronauts who don't have any experiences with this phenomenon?

      Ahem, you better read some of the following stuff then:

      Astronaut Sightings http://www.ufoevidence.org/topics/Astronauts.htm

    28. Re:Or an insider with knowledge you lack by StarfishOne · · Score: 1

      ESP is at least partially real.

      See the references on the bottom of this page of a project at Princeton University:

      http://noosphere.princeton.edu/story.html

      The result of that project itself are also interesting:

      The jagged red line shows the accumulating excess of the empirically normalized Z-scores relative to expectation for the complete dataset of rigorously defined events. The overall result is highly significant. The odds against chance are about a million to one.

      Also various organizations with three letters have been doing research on this for decades now.

      Do you really think they're just doing that because they are bored? If nothing has been found that is statistically significant, they would have quit after 1,2,5 years or so.

    29. Re:Or an insider with knowledge you lack by Guppy06 · · Score: 1

      "In the era of pervasive digital imaging, someone must have that, somewhere."

      Gimme a few minutes with PhotoShop and you'll have plenty of proof!

    30. Re:Or an insider with knowledge you lack by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Intentions are obvious:

      There is this thing called the survival instinct.
      Its often related to the sex drive, but even more fundamental, its the most basic instinct of all living creatures.
      From the smallest microbe to what some call god, but the sum conscious essence of what all exist in existence.

      Religion falls under the category Philosophy.
      Philosophy is more a human creation or fabrication than it is a learned approach to successful survival.
      Philosophy is intended as a tool to assist successful survival and in living in good terms.
      Most all philosophies fail in this objective as being human created, there are flaws and distortions often used to abuse or take value from others, rather than working to contribute to the whole from which you and everyone will benefit from as you benefit from their works.

      Q: If you are all that exist, then how do you know you exist? How do you know you are not dying but living?

      A: expansion, growth, newness and change is how you you would know you are surviving.

      Q: how do you insure you will continue?

      A: set things in motion that cause expansion, growth, etc. This includes the creation of other life forms that can and will evolve to contruibute to the growth of what all exist in existance.

      Ok so we are not the only species capable of contributing to what all exist in existance.

      And thats a good thing, don't you agree? As we certainly need some help in evolving.

      Now do you really think this post was made by a human?

    31. Re:Or an insider with knowledge you lack by maynard · · Score: 1

      In most of these cases, a flying object with physical form - generally a silver/metallic disc shaped object - that moves seemingly without concern for the laws of inertia. Further, numerous examples exist where the military planes and ground radar have painted these objects, they were witnessed by multiple people at once, and on approach they appeared to have taken evasive maneuvers to avoid contact.

      This is in the US public record from FOIA requests, though there are plenty of non-US examples where the foreign government has been more open to answering questions. For example: the governments of Brussels, France, and Brazil have all published reports on military sightings with multiple witnesses and air/ground RADAR returns. I recommend reading the French government's COMETA Report, if you don't believe this.

      I'm not here to argue that aliens are driving UFOs in Earth airspace. I'm here to argue that at least some so-called UFOs - metallic disc shaped objects - show all the hallmarks of being physical objects: they return RADAR signals, and have been recorded returning from multiple angles with multiple RADAR transmitters simultaneously (thus ruling out atmospheric effects as a cause); multiple people have sighted them; daylight nose-camera footage exists from US fighter planes exists; multiple highly competent witnesses have viewed the same event from multiple angles.

      I don't know what this phenomena is, but one thing I believe for sure is that it is not an illusion, a misunderstanding, or a fraud. Something real is happening. And I don't know what that something is.
       

    32. Re:Or an insider with knowledge you lack by dedazo · · Score: 1

      OK, so your point is that he should be considered a looney because of what he's saying. Fair enough, there's no need for ad hominems, and I started the thread theorizing he was demented =)

      Still, like others have said, extraordinary claims require extraordinary proof. So far I've seen none of that, not from this guy or any of the others who have claimed sightings and contacts in the past 50 years or so.

      As for what your experience, I have no doubt that you think you saw a UFO, but the reality is that it's impossible to effectively prove or disprove what that was. So we're back at square one, as usual. Interesting how this phenomena always comes down to that.

      --
      Web2.0: I love when people Flickr my cuil and digg my boingboing until my google is reddit and I start to yahoo
    33. Re:Or an insider with knowledge you lack by dedazo · · Score: 1

      Man, that last line on my previous reply "Interesting how this phenomena always comes down to that." sounds like I'm doubting what you said... I'm not.

      --
      Web2.0: I love when people Flickr my cuil and digg my boingboing until my google is reddit and I start to yahoo
    34. Re:Or an insider with knowledge you lack by maynard · · Score: 1

      I don't consider him a loony because of his words, period. I also don't expect you to "believe" my account, in the sense that it is worth considering as a relevant document on the subject. My experience was personal. IMO, without multiple witnesses and/or instrument recordings of the event, it is not worth pursuing.

      But there are many such examples of events with multiple credible witnesses - often military pilots, multiple simultaneous RADAR returns from multiple vectors, infrared and optical film / video, and detection of ionizing radiation around so-called 'physical traces.' In my book, that's evidence.

      I have absolutely no idea what this phenomena is. But I believe it to be real, physical, and so thoroughly outside the norms of human culture that general society - even government officials - have no context with which to knowledgeably speculate. I think the real secret of a government UFO conspiracy is that seventy years after having noticed them during WWII, world governments - the US included - have absolutely no idea what's causing these sightings. But if you believe government records published by FOIA requests, then without a doubt UFO phenomena in and around nuclear military installations has deeply concerned governments around the world. And they can't stop it.

      IMO: our airspace is not under our control. And we have no idea who - if anyone - is doing it, what the consequences of this phenomena might be, or even why this is the case - as there is no factual evidence to back-up any hypothesis of origin. IOW: I recognize the ETH (extra-terrestrial hypothesis) has no backing evidence as yet. But I also don't discount it.

    35. Re:Or an insider with knowledge you lack by fm6 · · Score: 1

      That was a joke. A bad one, but still a joke. Even Twitter is allow to make a joke.

    36. Re:Or an insider with knowledge you lack by dedazo · · Score: 1

      Not with the name troll he created for me, and certainly not at me.

      He's just trying to bait me, and unfortunately this time it worked. I have karma for one negative downmod though. He doesn't.

      --
      Web2.0: I love when people Flickr my cuil and digg my boingboing until my google is reddit and I start to yahoo
  19. thetruthisoutthere by joe_n_bloe · · Score: 1

    Or else when you're 77 it's time to give up the disco biscuits.

  20. It's a conspiracy! by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Cool. A senile 77 year old fueling the imagination of a bunch of lunatics is just what we need.

    1. Re:It's a conspiracy! by Admiral+Ag · · Score: 1

      I bet you voted for Reagan.

      --
      "by that I mean people who don't sit on slashdot all day wondering why everyone else isn't building robots" DECS
  21. Like he would know by Shadow+Wrought · · Score: 0, Troll

    He's only ever "moonwalked" through a Nevada sound stage. Ain't not no aliens there.

    --
    If brevity is the soul of wit, then how does one explain Twitter?
    1. Re:Like he would know by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Somebody mod parent offtopic or troll, please!

    2. Re:Like he would know by Shadow+Wrought · · Score: 1

      Absolutely. Of course, if you're going to fall into the NASA conspiracy you want to be true, shouldn't you at least acknowledge the NASA consipracy you don't want to be true? Maybe?

      --
      If brevity is the soul of wit, then how does one explain Twitter?
  22. cover-up by Lord+Ender · · Score: 3, Funny

    To cover-up this conspiracy, the government will soon inject him with a secret drug to give him dementia. Those diabolical bastards... who stole my teeth??

    --
    A slashdotter who didn't build his own computer is like a Jedi who didn't build his own lightsaber.
  23. The requisit... by Deathdonut · · Score: 5, Funny

    little people who look strange to us.

    I for one welcome our new Danny DeVito overlords.

  24. fwup, fwup, fwup by SerfsUp · · Score: 1

    ...black helicopter lands on Dr. Mitchell's lawn...

  25. I want to believe. by rfernand79 · · Score: 4, Funny

    Seriously, I do.

    1. Re:I want to believe. by trongey · · Score: 1

      Me, too. But I know how this stuff works. There could be 800,000,000,000 of them on Earth, and none of them would ever pop over to visit either one of us.

      --
      You never really know how close to the edge you can go until you fall off.
    2. Re:I want to believe. by xstonedogx · · Score: 4, Funny

      Just to be clear, we're talking about space aliens, and not girls, right?

    3. Re:I want to believe. by thrillseeker · · Score: 4, Funny

      there's a difference ... ?

    4. Re:I want to believe. by drinkypoo · · Score: 1

      The difference is that you could theoretically procreate with a human woman, given sufficient access. No offspring will result from congress with a space alien unless you believe that star trek galaxy seeding shit.

      --
      "You're right," Fisheye says. "I should have set it on 'whip' or 'chop.'"
    5. Re:I want to believe. by TerranFury · · Score: 1

      No offspring will result from congress with a space alien

      I think that goes in the "Plus" column...

    6. Re:I want to believe. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      There's a difference?

    7. Re:I want to believe. by OriginalArlen · · Score: 1

      There's a difference?

      --

      Everything I needed to know about life, I learnt from Blake's Seven
    8. Re:I want to believe. by trongey · · Score: 1

      Just to be clear, we're talking about space aliens, and not girls, right?

      As long as you keep the units consistent the math works out either way.

      --
      You never really know how close to the edge you can go until you fall off.
  26. I KNEW IT! by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    'little people who look strange to us.'

    I knew E.T. was an alien!

  27. Documentary by wile_e_wonka · · Score: 5, Funny

    In that case, I'll tell my wife that the new X-Files movie is a documentary.

    1. Re:Documentary by Capt+James+McCarthy · · Score: 1, Insightful

      Exactly. I say it's promotional material for the movie and this guy was flipped a few bucks for it. I seriously doubt that all of these so-called governments would keep their mouth shut for this long.

      --
      There are no loopholes. It's either legal or it's not.
  28. Listen to the original by Bananatree3 · · Score: 4, Informative
    1. Re:Listen to the original by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Here is a previous interview of Dr Edgar Mitchell on Coast to Coast AM (interview begins at 10:45 of the first mp3)
      http://thepiratebay.org/tor/4313330

    2. Re:Listen to the original by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Playing the audio crashes IE for me (win2k+sp4)

      But strangely, I was able to save the audio to listen to later with the help of the FABULOUS IE add-in Fidddler

      I have NO idea why running IE/Fiddler on the parent reference URL with the audio interviews works while IE by itself crashes there.

      Download, save, and re-distribute Fiddler while you still can before the media cartels outlaw it to prevent copyright infringement of their streamed, 'unsaveable' content (which will just be saved and reposted elsewhere on the Internet if it is worth saving and reposting like all the illegally available content already online.

  29. I for one welcome our alien overlords by solidex · · Score: 2, Funny

    I for one welcome our new overlords and wish to extend a heart-felt greeting to Lord Xenu!

    BTW, anyone who tries to prove me wrong that aliens haven't visited us is *CLEARLY* part of a government cover up. You may have fooled the world into thinking that Australia exists but you can't fool the world into thinking that aliens haven't visited us!

    --
    Clever and witty sig.
    1. Re:I for one welcome our alien overlords by titla1k · · Score: 1

      What?! Australia doesn't exist?!

      Of course! It makes perfect sense now. To think I was stupid enough to believe there were animals that had tails and hopped about on 2 legs, or a half-duck, half-beaver, half-otter that was venomous.

      Thank you sir for opening my eyes to this conspiracy. We must let the world know of this terrible lie!

  30. You coveteth my ice cream bar! by spun · · Score: 4, Funny

    You can't take it from me now! I've had this ice-cream bar since I was a CHILD! People...always trying to take it from me! Why won't they LEAVE ME ALOOOOOONNNNE?

    --
    - None can love freedom heartily, but good men; the rest love not freedom, but license. -- John Milton
    1. Re:You coveteth my ice cream bar! by nachosupreme · · Score: 2, Funny

      STIMPY....You IDDDDIOOOT!!

    2. Re:You coveteth my ice cream bar! by eaeolian · · Score: 5, Funny

      BACK OFF, Man! Don't force me to use this!

    3. Re:You coveteth my ice cream bar! by QRDeNameland · · Score: 5, Funny

      If the guy brought back a few missing left socks from the mission, he'd be more credible.

      --
      Momentarily, the need for the construction of new light will no longer exist.
    4. Re:You coveteth my ice cream bar! by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1, Funny

      How I love to lick its creamy center!

    5. Re:You coveteth my ice cream bar! by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Does that mean he is the keeper of the History Eraser button

    6. Re:You coveteth my ice cream bar! by norminator · · Score: 1

      sorry to be pedantic, but how could he bring back something that's missing?

    7. Re:You coveteth my ice cream bar! by clone53421 · · Score: 1

      They're missing because the aliens took them. Duh. If he really met those aliens, he could have got the socks back.

      --
      Alexander Peter Kristopeit bought his basement from his mommy for one dollar.
    8. Re:You coveteth my ice cream bar! by elrous0 · · Score: 4, Funny

      The aliens use them for fuel.

      --
      SJW: Someone who has run out of real oppression, and has to fake it.
    9. Re:You coveteth my ice cream bar! by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      You bloated sac of PROTOPLASM!!!

    10. Re:You coveteth my ice cream bar! by Myrddin+Wyllt · · Score: 5, Funny

      Odd socks don't go 'missing', they crawl into dark wardrobes and, after a short larval stage, emerge as fully-formed wire coat-hangers.

      --
      [ ]Half Empty [ ]Half Full [x]Twice as big as it needs to be
    11. Re:You coveteth my ice cream bar! by dontmakemethink · · Score: 1

      NASA is so going to use the history-eraser button on this troublemaker.

      --

      War as we knew it was obsolete
      Nothing could beat complete denial
      - Emily Haines
    12. Re:You coveteth my ice cream bar! by alxkit · · Score: 0

      is it the really, REALLY big red one? you know... the one you're not supposed to push?

    13. Re:You coveteth my ice cream bar! by Doctor+Morbius · · Score: 1

      Oh my beloved ice cream bar. How I love your creamy center.

      --
      If I disagree with you it's because you are wrong.
    14. Re:You coveteth my ice cream bar! by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      The giant, red, candy-like button?

    15. Re:You coveteth my ice cream bar! by DinDaddy · · Score: 1

      "left" socks?

    16. Re:You coveteth my ice cream bar! by lars_boegild_thomsen · · Score: 1

      Hmmmm, I agree with the first part, but in my case they seem to emerge after a long time as - odd socks (after I've thrown out the first odd socks).

    17. Re:You coveteth my ice cream bar! by aetherworld · · Score: 1

      You must be new here.

    18. Re:You coveteth my ice cream bar! by somersault · · Score: 2, Funny

      You don't label all your socks? What if you transfer cotton-dwelling disease from one foot to the other?

      --
      which is totally what she said
    19. Re:You coveteth my ice cream bar! by kgwilliam · · Score: 1

      You should stop wearing odd socks. The plain old white ones work just fine for me. And the occasional dark pair for a nice evening out.

  31. More information by Phat_Tony · · Score: 1

    And has he said whether or not he's one of them?

    --
    Can anyone tell me how to set my sig on Slashdot?
  32. 77? by GofG · · Score: 2, Funny

    He's 77. Obviously, he's senile.

    --
    GFA/M/S d-- s: a--- C++++ UBL++$ P+ L+++ !E- W++ N+ !o K- w--- !O !M !V PS++ PE Y+ PGP+ t+++ 5- X+ R tv@ b++ DI++++ D+ G
  33. Yes, There are aliens... by Bullfish · · Score: 5, Funny

    And they are out there right now...

    Mowing my lawn and trimming my hedge

    1. Re:Yes, There are aliens... by ettlz · · Score: 1

      And they are out there right now...

      Mowing my lawn and trimming my hedge

      Do they look strange to you?

    2. Re:Yes, There are aliens... by Bullfish · · Score: 2, Funny

      Just the fat guy who's belly makes his t-shirt inadvertantly look like a crop-top

    3. Re:Yes, There are aliens... by ezzthetic · · Score: 1

      He also claimed Roswell is real.

      I know for a fact it is. A friend of mine went there.

      --
      You know what they say about opinions. They're all fabulous!
  34. Hello !! by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Hello !! I'm one of the "little strange looking people" as you giants call them, and by sending this message to you, the first to ever officially post on a little "website" of yours !! Do carry on !!

    1. Re:Hello !! by styrotech · · Score: 1

      I always knew there was something fishy about you based on your other posts.

  35. Crackpottery abounds by snarfies · · Score: 5, Insightful

    Tom Cruise worships L. Ron Hubbard.
    Jim Carey think vaccinations give you autism.

    Just because you're famous doesn't mean you can't be a total crackpot. Its too bad this time its somebody more science-related.

    1. Re:Crackpottery abounds by Floritard · · Score: 4, Funny

      Somehow I think the psych evaluations for astronauts are somewhat more stringent than those for Hollywood actors. At least that's what movies about astronauts have taught me.

    2. Re:Crackpottery abounds by robertjw · · Score: 1

      At least this guy is a doctor and been in space. Tom Cruise and Jim Carey are just actors. I have great respect for their talents, and would consider them an authority on things entertainment related, but I'm constantly amazed that anyone lends much credence to a person just because they are a famous actor or athlete.

    3. Re:Crackpottery abounds by jejones · · Score: 1

      Doesn't matter--even Nobel laureates, people who have done amazing things in their fields, succumb to crackpot beliefs, e.g. that taking lots of Vitamin C is good for you, or parapsychology.

    4. Re:Crackpottery abounds by GooberToo · · Score: 1, Insightful

      Jim Carey think vaccinations give you autism.

      Last I read there was some supporting evidence for this position. In fact, IIRC, the official position is that while vaccinations may cause other health risks, any associated side effects effect a much small population than an unvaccinated population. Simple fact is, there isn't enough information to disprove such positions. And, like cell phones, some studies do indicate their use may have negative side effects.

      Now then, I'm not saying he's right. What I am saying, your statement seems to imply he's crazy for taking such a position while in reality, you taking such a position seems to imply the same about you. It's probably best to simply accept, while unlikely, it's still possible. The jury is still out.

      Just some food for thought.

    5. Re:Crackpottery abounds by jmpeax · · Score: 1

      He's not just been to space, but he spent 9 hours on the surface of the moon.

      Unfortunately, neither his education nor his experience preclude him from succumbing to the paralysing fear that life may end with death. At 77, I'm sure the notion of higher beings is a comforting one.

    6. Re:Crackpottery abounds by Jah-Wren+Ryel · · Score: 1

      Successful actors have a lot more time and opportunity to study a topic if they so wish. I'm not saying that either of those to have done so, but compared to the rest of us working plebeians they certainly have more opportunity. For example, I'd listen to what Angelina Jolie has to say about Cambodia - she's spent considerable amount of time there working with local aid groups and the government and even has Cambodian citizenship. Simply being a doctor and being in outer space really doesn't lend this guy all that much credibility. He doesn't claim to have seen these aliens, and being a doctor and astronaut working for nasa is more than a full time job.

      --
      When information is power, privacy is freedom.
    7. Re:Crackpottery abounds by hesiod · · Score: 1

      Touche, good sir.

    8. Re:Crackpottery abounds by dwpro · · Score: 1

      I don't know if it's a fair comparison to put worshiping a sci-fi author to a controversial view on medicine in the same crackpottery. I'm sure just about all of us are crackpots in some respect given that point of reference.

      --
      Millions long for immortality who do not know what to do with themselves on a rainy Sunday afternoon. -- Susan Ertz
    9. Re:Crackpottery abounds by robertjw · · Score: 1

      You have a point, and I don't think you can ever make a blanket statement, but you don't have to be exactly brilliant to be an actor. Some are, but many aren't. Jolie may be intelligent, and she has spent time in Cambodia, but taking people like Pamela Anderson and her PETA work seriously is tough.

      OTOH, you pretty much have to be smart to have a PHD and be an astronaut.

    10. Re:Crackpottery abounds by DogAlmity · · Score: 1
    11. Re:Crackpottery abounds by DavidHumus · · Score: 1
      Well, at least they ought to be stringent - you wouldn't want a crazy person to willingly sit on hundreds of tons of highly explosive chemicals you were going to set off, would you?

      Somehow I think the psych evaluations for astronauts are somewhat more stringent than those for Hollywood actors. At least that's what movies about astronauts have taught me.

    12. Re:Crackpottery abounds by drinkypoo · · Score: 1

      Jim Carey think vaccinations give you autism.

      Are you paid to discredit this belief?

      Vaccinations in the US are preserved with Mercury by default, and you typically have to look to find a health care facility that uses vaccinations not preserved this way (the only drawback being that they have a shorter shelf life. and perhaps that they don't bring you back for a chelation therapy visit. repeat business, you know...)

      Mercury is implicated in Autism, in case you were wondering what this had to do with anything.

      So to sum up, Tom Cruise and Isaac Hayes are still dumbasses, but vaccinations may very well be causing Autism.

      --
      "You're right," Fisheye says. "I should have set it on 'whip' or 'chop.'"
    13. Re:Crackpottery abounds by geekoid · · Score: 1

      It is well established that being smart or sound has little to do with falling into these mental traps.
      In fact, a study released last year showed indicators that smart people were more likely to believe these things and harder to convince otherwise, regardless of their lack of evidence.

      One study, grain of salt, yadda yadda.

      --
      The Kruger Dunning explains most post on /. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dunning%E2%80%93Kruger_effect
    14. Re:Crackpottery abounds by AeroIllini · · Score: 2, Informative

      Last I read there was some supporting evidence for this position. In fact, IIRC, the official position is that while vaccinations may cause other health risks, any associated side effects effect a much small population than an unvaccinated population. Simple fact is, there isn't enough information to disprove such positions. And, like cell phones, some studies do indicate their use may have negative side effects.

      Now then, I'm not saying he's right. What I am saying, your statement seems to imply he's crazy for taking such a position while in reality, you taking such a position seems to imply the same about you. It's probably best to simply accept, while unlikely, it's still possible. The jury is still out.

      Just some food for thought.

      The jury is not still out, and you must have last read about it in 1998, before that study was retracted and corrected. Larger studies since have found zero link between MMR vaccinations and autism. Here's what the CDC has to say on the matter.

      Also, study after study has found no statistical link between cell phone use and cancer. Additionally, the output of a typical cell phone is about 100 milliwatts; this is so small as to be insignificant.

      So yes, continuing to espouse such theories when they have been consistently shown to be false and relying on irrational fear instead of a discussion of facts can be considered crazy. By all means keep an open mind, but not so open that your brain falls out.

      --
      For security, the MD5 hash of this message and sig is 09f911029d74e35bd84156c5635688c0.
    15. Re:Crackpottery abounds by grundy · · Score: 1

      Very stringent. That's why we've never seen an astronaut strap on a diaper and drive non-stop to attempt murder? Oh, wait...

    16. Re:Crackpottery abounds by rpj1288 · · Score: 1

      I believe there have been something like 14 separate studies showing that vaccines have zero link to autism. Not vaccinating your kids nowadays is incompetent parenting, and puts everyone at risk.

      --
      Marvin knew: "Think of a number, any number..."
    17. Re:Crackpottery abounds by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Clearly you havn't seen "Space Cowboys", where they send up a couple of nuts, and a guy with terminal cancer.

    18. Re:Crackpottery abounds by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Are you paid to discredit this belief?

      LOL.

      Vaccinations in the US are preserved with Mercury by default, and you typically have to look to find a health care facility that uses vaccinations not preserved this way

      False. In response to the non-evidence-based panic over mercury in vaccines, vaccine manufacturers voluntarily ceased using mercury preservatives many years ago.

      (the only drawback being that they have a shorter shelf life. and perhaps that they don't bring you back for a chelation therapy visit. repeat business, you know...)

      (facepalm)

      Look, idiot, the conventional medical establishment never used chelation therapy as a followup after administering vaccines. The practice of using mercury preservatives never would've begun in the first place if the dose of mercury required to preserve the vaccine was enough to require chelation therapy afterwards, since chelation is a dangerous process you do not want to go through unless you really have to (chelating agents have this nasty habit of depriving your body of many more chemicals than just the one you want to get rid of, you see; there is no magic chelating agent which binds only to mercury).

      Mercury is a toxin, but toxicity is always a function of the dose. In this case the dose was so small that even a baby-size human could not conceivably be harmed by it.

      So then somebody comes along and claims that these microdoses of mercury led to autism in children. You want to know one of the reasons we now know that to be BS? When thimerosal (the mercury preservative in question) was withdrawn from vaccines, the diagnosis of autism among children kept trending upwards as it had been before, even among children who were never administered a vaccine containing mercury.

      Mercury is implicated in Autism, in case you were wondering what this had to do with anything.

      Mercury is only still mentioned as a cause of autism by fools, liars, and the ignorant.

      So to sum up, Tom Cruise and Isaac Hayes are still dumbasses, but vaccinations may very well be causing Autism.

      They are not. The entire vaccine theory was a crackpot idea from the beginning, the invention of people hoping to make money from suing vaccine manufacturers, but it got enough traction among crazy and desperate people (*) to take off and get media attention, and from there it has fed upon itself.

      (*) The desperate are unfortunate parents with autistic children who were looking for a reason why their child has the disease, could not accept that it is not fully understood by legitimate science, and latched on to the pseudoscience explanation because it gave them someone to be angry at.

    19. Re:Crackpottery abounds by HellYeahAutomaton · · Score: 1

      Vaccinations being cofactors in bringing out any latent condition in the nervous system isn't as far fetched as you make it out to be.

      Jim Carey may not be wrong.

      Drugs are drugs, and having a healthy distrust of them when you are typically presented a one-problem panacea with a laundry list of 20 side effects would not be in err.

    20. Re:Crackpottery abounds by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Last I read there was some supporting evidence for this position

      There has been one scientific study that has claimed to show such a link. Numerous follow-ups have failed to duplicate the results, and 10 of the 12 authors of the original study now agree that the original conclusion was mistaken. If that's "supporting evidence", then I'm a Martian.

      The jury is still out.

      No, the jury has come back in and unanimously declared that they do not believe there is a shred of evidence to support the claim.

    21. Re:Crackpottery abounds by Locke2005 · · Score: 1

      Somehow I think the psych evaluations for astronauts are not stringent enough!

      --
      I've abandoned my search for truth; now I'm just looking for some useful delusions.
    22. Re:Crackpottery abounds by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      "Somehow I think the psych evaluations for astronauts are somewhat more stringent than those for Hollywood actors"

      Since it appears our astronauts are also running around in diapers and assaulting each other in love triangles I am not so sure about this.

    23. Re:Crackpottery abounds by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Somehow I think the psych evaluations for astronauts are somewhat more stringent than those for Hollywood actors.

      Yeah? More job-specific perhaps, but this is a country that still discharges homosexuals from the military. You probably shouldn't put a lot of faith in what comprises a psych evaluation for astronauts is necessarily relevant or complete.

      And what's the big beef here? A former astronaut is a bit of crank about UFOs. Did it ever interfere with a mission? Is the problem instead the ludicrous idealized pedestal that astronauts have been placed on? Ditch the hero-culture. People are varied and complicated and should be publicly recognized as such.

    24. Re:Crackpottery abounds by Grishnakh · · Score: 1

      but I'm constantly amazed that anyone lends much credence to a person just because they are a famous actor or athlete.

      Welcome to America.

    25. Re:Crackpottery abounds by Grishnakh · · Score: 1

      False. In response to the non-evidence-based panic over mercury in vaccines, vaccine manufacturers voluntarily ceased using mercury preservatives many years ago.

      False. While many vaccines indeed no longer use mercury, many still do, most notably flu shots. Thimerosal is cheaper than non-mercury alternatives, so companies looking to save a buck happily choose it.

      As for "non-evidence-based panic over mercury", would you like to try having some uranium injected in you? Don't worry, it's a very small dose, and there's no available evidence that it's harmful. Personally, I already know from ample evidence that things like lead and mercury are poisonous to humans, so given a choice, I'll avoid having any injected into me, however small the dosage. And since small children are far more vulnerable to toxins during their development than we adults are, I'd be even more cautious about heavy metals around any small children under my control.

    26. Re:Crackpottery abounds by sohp · · Score: 1

      Uh, what about the one who drove across country to threaten the other lover of her illicit lover who's married to yet a third woman? Supposedly she was wearing (or had purchased) adult diaper garments like the ones used in spacesuits.

      SHE passed the psych evaluation.

    27. Re:Crackpottery abounds by SpinyNorman · · Score: 1

      Jim Carey is also dating (and has been for a long time) Jenny McCarthy (of ex. MTV fame), who's son is autistic, and who praises Carey's bond with her son. I'd be very surprised if his opinion isn't well informed.

    28. Re:Crackpottery abounds by GooberToo · · Score: 1

      And there are at least two studies that show a link does exist. Even the CDC will tell you what I'm telling you because THEY ARE ON RECORD SAYING IT.

      Shesh...dolts!

    29. Re:Crackpottery abounds by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      False. While many vaccines indeed no longer use mercury, many still do, most notably flu shots. Thimerosal is cheaper than non-mercury alternatives, so companies looking to save a buck happily choose it.

      Is it your contention that flu shots cause autism? Because if so, you are alone with that theory. All the commonly applied vaccines were reformulated without mercury--it had no impact on autism rates.

      More importantly--and destroying the argument of people who argue that vaccines cause autism--autism rates among children who never receive any vaccine are the same as among children who are vaccinated. Why don't the crackpots ever quote that statistic do you think?

    30. Re:Crackpottery abounds by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Yeah thats why that chick astronaut strapped on a diaper and drove 1200 miles to jump her lover's other lady in a parking lot.

    31. Re:Crackpottery abounds by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Jim Carey think vaccinations give you autism.

      Mercury was used as a preservative in baby vaccines. Mercury over safe amounts is toxic to the body and can affect brain function. Safe amount is questionable, especially for youngsters. Look it up.

  36. Doctorate of space aliens by rumblin'rabbit · · Score: 1
    I was puzzled by this passage from the article:

    Dr Mitchell, who has a Bachelor of Science degree in aeronautical engineering and a Doctor of Science degree in Aeronautics and Astronautics ...

    How is Mitchell's education to the story? Do he take courses on the detection of space aliens?

    Perhaps the point is that being smart doesn't stop you from being crazy.

    1. Re:Doctorate of space aliens by geekoid · · Score: 1

      Clearly they are using the "Argument from Authority" logical fallacy.

      --
      The Kruger Dunning explains most post on /. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dunning%E2%80%93Kruger_effect
  37. Uh-hun by Jedi+Holocron · · Score: 1

    And Microsoft is going to a free open source OS.

    1. Re:Uh-hun by Lord+Lode · · Score: 1

      Yeah, it's called Singularity!

  38. It's a plot... by Horar · · Score: 0, Offtopic

    by the democrats to remind us all that even once great people can become senile in their 70's.

    1. Re:It's a plot... by Killjoy_NL · · Score: 1

      I resent the implication that Mccain was once a great man :P

      --
      This is the sig that says NI (again)
  39. Their technology is more sophisticated! by mlwmohawk · · Score: 1

    So while our web developers use mySQl, theirs use PostgreSQL!

    1. Re:Their technology is more sophisticated! by Thrazzle · · Score: 1

      OH NO!

      They found out some people run MS-WINDOWS!

  40. I want... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    to believe...

    that those aliens are masters in Beowulf Clusters.

  41. It was only a matter of time by darrenkopp · · Score: 1

    What do you think would happen to all the monkeys we shot up into space? Should have known they would find their way home eventually.

  42. Life is out there by caseih · · Score: 1

    Well of course there's life out there, and there's a high probability of intelligent life out there too. Whether or not green little men regularly visit us is another story. Yes, this guy does come across sounding like a nut.

    Reminds me of Douglas Adams' HHGTG where Ford Prefect hitched a ride to earth with a teaser. What is a teaser, you ask? Well it's basically a rich kid with too much time on his hands so he visits under-developed planets and finds unsuspecting folks and dresses up in a green suit and makes beep beep noises at them. Then flies off, knowing no one will ever believe this poor person.

  43. Just suppose it is true... by east+coast · · Score: 1

    It's a pretty scary thought, to me, that aliens would have the maturity to travel light years and light years and decide to work only with governments. Consider, if they really did come for the benefit of all, the governments of the planet would be helpless to stop them from doing their bidding. So that means that they're using the existing "upper management" to their own will. What would be the possible use of that considering how badly everything is managed?

    It simply doesn't make any real sense.

    --
    Dedicated Cthulhu Cultist since 4523 BC.
    1. Re:Just suppose it is true... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      If the aliens were manipulating the politicians into doing their bidding, I think that that would make a lot of stuff make a lot more sense.

    2. Re:Just suppose it is true... by TheRaven64 · · Score: 1

      Or that they don't think that humanity as a whole is ready for the certain knowledge of extraterrestrial life and so are happy to go along with any cover-up attempts. Or that they have a communal consciousness and don't understand the idea that telling something to one human is not the same as telling it to all humans. Or...

      --
      I am TheRaven on Soylent News
    3. Re:Just suppose it is true... by Dexx · · Score: 1
      --
      Feel the fear and do it anyway.
    4. Re:Just suppose it is true... by geekoid · · Score: 1

      If you have developed the science to move through the stars, then you have developed the ability to study and learn from behaviors.

      No, if they were real and hostile, we would all be dead. killing a species in trivial compared to moving from star to star.

      If the were real and friendly, they would only need to give us stuff.

      Of course, I've never bought into the 'people couldn't handle it' BS spouted off by Hollywood, and people who use it as an excuse instead of presenting real evidence.

      --
      The Kruger Dunning explains most post on /. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dunning%E2%80%93Kruger_effect
  44. Why senile? by Narpak · · Score: 4, Insightful

    Why does it seem so many assume that this is something he have started believing now at this late age; and that is it connected to dementia?

    Edgar Mitchell have been involved with fringe science for a long time, and have made statements proclamation his belief in UFOs for a long time. It is his belief; if he seen something to make him believe this I do not know. But to say that this is simply old age and senility is unkind and inaccurate.

    1. Re:Why senile? by hesiod · · Score: 1

      Because we'd prefer to avoid the truth that NASA would send a nutcase on a dangerous and stressful missions in space, when there are hundreds of qualified "normals" waiting for the opportunity to do the same, yet never will.

    2. Re:Why senile? by ScentCone · · Score: 1

      But to say that this is simply old age and senility is unkind and inaccurate.

      Actually, to the contrary. It's kind to offer him a physiological excuse for embracing irrational, foolish notions that don't hold up to critical thinking or any sort of scrutiny. That he's been a fool in this regard most of life is unkind (given his position) to everyone else. Allowing the world to write this off as a symptom of his age is a face-saving kindness. What's UNKIND is trying ever so hard to let him off the hook for a lifetime of such nonsense... that doesn't do anyone any favors.

      --
      Don't disappoint your bird dog. Go to the range.
    3. Re:Why senile? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Fine. He's not senile, he is a perfectly rational fucking loon. Happy now?

    4. Re:Why senile? by Narpak · · Score: 1

      Oh I don't intent to "let him of the hook". But any critical consideration and review of his opinions should be objective. Instead of taking a short quote, or even just the short description of an interview as the sum of his views on this matter. Now I don't really know what exactly it is he believes, and to be honest I don't rightly care. But if I should go through the process of judging his views it would be systematic, objective and avoiding personal attacks.

      A second point here is that if he is crazy for believing that Aliens have visited us, and that it somehow makes him unfit to have served as an astronaut; then I really don't agree with all these people believing in invisible fairies occupying the highest political offices of the western world. Everyone should be judged equally. There is a perceived "outrage" over him uttering this views; but calling upon God is the basis for most political campaigns.

    5. Re:Why senile? by ScentCone · · Score: 1

      There is a perceived "outrage" over him uttering this views; but calling upon God is the basis for most political campaigns

      No question. The current Democrat contender (Obama) seems to be a lot more focused on earning his campaign Magical Thinking Street Cred than is his Republican oppoonent. It's an odd twist, that way. However: in those cases, all of the religious talk is essentially a short-hand way of describing one's basic idealogy, or cultural frame of reference when it comes to notions about right and wrong, justice, etc. That someone uses a silly superstition as a stand-in for a well reasoned personal code of ethics that, ultimately, manifests itself in pretty much the same way on most matters anyway... that makes it less of an issue for a politician.

      On the other hand: someone who actually has "scientist" in their job description, but who makes lots of wildly science-free claims about the nature of the universe and visiting aliens... that's another matter. And yes, I include religious-minded scientists in that group, not just UFO-loony former astronauts who also claim that ESP cured their cancer.

      --
      Don't disappoint your bird dog. Go to the range.
  45. Conspiracy Theories by aaronfaby · · Score: 5, Insightful

    I find it impossible to believe that the government is capable of keeping conspiracies secret. They couldn't keep 5 guys breaking into the DNC office a secret (Watergate), but somehow they can orchestrate an elaborate conspiracy involving thousands of people over the course of 6 decades and not a single shred of credible evidence has been leaked. I'm sorry but deathbed confessions don't count.

    1. Re:Conspiracy Theories by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      also... why would they only visit the U.S and so why would this only be something that the U.S government needs to cover up? ... there are other countries besides the U.S. you know.

    2. Re:Conspiracy Theories by negated · · Score: 0

      I think it's because IF this is true, it is under military jurisdiction rather than strictly governmental. The government is bad at keeping secrets, yes...but how many civilians do you know who've crossed the border at Area 51 (and didn't work there) and come back with pictures/physical evidence/anything?

      -S

    3. Re:Conspiracy Theories by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Also, they are have their mighty aliens friends' techonology available to wipe peoples memories. Just you wait...in a few days this entire news item will have DISAPPEARED!!!!! *dum dum dum*

    4. Re:Conspiracy Theories by RabidMoose · · Score: 1

      Obviously they were too busy covering up the aliens to worry about Watergate. Duh.

    5. Re:Conspiracy Theories by BalmyBrute · · Score: 1

      Well, Watergate was much easier for people to believe. In addition there were people to accuse.

    6. Re:Conspiracy Theories by Floritard · · Score: 1

      Maybe all the intelligent members of government are working on the UFO situation. Would explain why things seem to have really gone down hill in the last 60 years.

    7. Re:Conspiracy Theories by debrain · · Score: 4, Insightful

      I find it impossible to believe that the government is capable of keeping conspiracies secret. They couldn't keep 5 guys breaking into the DNC office a secret (Watergate), but somehow they can orchestrate an elaborate conspiracy involving thousands of people over the course of 6 decades and not a single shred of credible evidence has been leaked. I'm sorry but deathbed confessions don't count.

      The voice of evil itself speaks of its means to such ends:

      "The size of the lie is a definite factor in causing it to be believed, for the vast masses of a nation are in the depths of their hearts more easily deceived than they are consciously and intentionally bad. The primitive simplicity of their minds renders them a more easy prey to a big lie than a small one, for they themselves often tell little lies, but would be ashamed to tell big lies."
          - Hitler

      To wit, your argument - the lack of evidence - mirrors what was said about the Nazi death camps prior to the end of World War 2. People denied it, vehemently and utterly, until not just evidence but overwhelming evidence contradicted them. Even today, people deny that millions were killed in the holocaust.

      People believe what they want to believe, and people don't want to believe things that threaten their assumptions about the world.

      I recognize your argument, and it's a valid one, but I, for one, believe alien visitors could be concealed by governments.

    8. Re:Conspiracy Theories by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      They couldn't keep 5 guys breaking into the DNC office a secret (Watergate)...

      Yeah, that one slipped out.

    9. Re:Conspiracy Theories by gobbo · · Score: 1

      You are using non-secret institutions to represent the entire government. Government is not a monolith, is it a heterogeneous collection of different institutions of varying degrees of competence, from the postal service to black ops and everything in between. The vast and incomprehensibly wealthy US gov is probably the most complex set of institutions on the planet.

      By definition, you don't know anything about black ops, other than the gaping hole left by tens or even hundreds of billions of dollars in camouflaged funding. Senators on the right committees only have the right to know that they exist, nothing more. There's a measure of competence for you: they are knowable only by their absence in the public record.

      Is it any surprise that the levels of security and embedded operations have been complexifying steadily since projects like Manhattan or Operation Paperclip? Given the sound evidence of secrecy, vast wealth and power and mandate, the warnings of Ike, and the traditions established in WWII, just what do you expect?

      Also, consider this: given the choice between survival of certain loved ones and keeping a secret, which would you choose? Secrets aren't hard to manage if you operate by a different code.

    10. Re:Conspiracy Theories by prelelat · · Score: 1

      Your assuming that the people who covered up the aliens were part of the whitehouse government and not part of the military or a different branch that doesn't have turn over. You're also assuming that the Watergate scandle it's self wasn't a conspiracy to remove a president out of the whitehouse, and who would have orcastrated that. Also I think Elvis is involved in some way. I mean no one has seen him in years.

    11. Re:Conspiracy Theories by Digital+Vomit · · Score: 1, Insightful

      They couldn't keep 5 guys breaking into the DNC office a secret (Watergate), but somehow they can orchestrate an elaborate conspiracy involving thousands of people over the course of 6 decades and not a single shred of credible evidence has been leaked.

      It's interesting how this bit of false logic keeps popping up whenever topics like aliens or 9/11 or global conspiracies or whatever come up. "The government failed to keep one thing a secret, therefore it must be unable to keep anything a secret." Come on. That's shite logic even for Slashdot!

      And thousands of people are involved? How would you know that? (unless you're in on it!)

      And every single piece of evidence to date is not "credible"? Why? Because you don't believe it? Plus, let's just dismiss some evidence out of hand for no reason -- it just doesn't "count". Yeah, that's solid reasoning.

      This kind of argument is like a triple waltz between "If the gov't was trying to keep a secret, surely someone would leak the info" and "Someone says he is leaking secret gov't info, but he's not credible" and "This info is not credible because I think it's unlikely the gov't would try to do this in secret". The fact is that the government *is* capable of keeping secrets from its citizens. Just try to find out what all the money for black ops is spent on. (Heck, try finding out what all the tax money for *regular* government work is spent on.)

      (No, I don't think the gov't is hiding evidence of aliens, but it's not because I don't think they can)

      --
      Modern copyright is theft of culture from everyone and it retards the progress of the useful arts and sciences.
    12. Re:Conspiracy Theories by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      well obviously because they had the help of aliens..

    13. Re:Conspiracy Theories by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      I get it- just because a conspiracy fell apart, you illogically conclude that all conspiracies fall apart. Very insightful indeed. Please do score his Insightful higher because we all need to make more fallacious conclusions based on singular examples.

      How exactly is this insightful?

      Here is the flipside- people have been 'leaking' information about government involvement in UFO's for years. So if, as you say, they can't keep a secret, guess what? They haven't. But you refused to believe the literally hundreds of government employees who have gone on record, so you assume its still a secret.

      This is actually more like the Iraq war. There WAS a conspiracy there to go to war with no evidence. And it HAS been exposed, but yet there have been no impeachments, no war crimes tribunals, and general disregard for the truth.

      So lets be clear: When is a conspiracy no longer a conspiracy? Is it when the information is leaked, or is it when people start to believe the information that was leaked? Obviously Truth itself does not validate a conspiracy, instead it is belief.

      I think perhaps what you said is insightful- information on government involvement with UFO's has been leaked...they can't keep it a secret can they? You're right. But we're still in disbelief and that protects the secret.

      I suggest digging a little deeper into your empty statements. Conspiracy is a label that has been stigmatized. Its merely the description of an agreement between a group of people to do something, secret or not. In this case, the conspiracy hasn't been a secret since 1947- you just refuse to accept it and you're waiting for public admission from the ruling government...which isn't going to happen because its public knowledge and no one takes it seriously. What motive would they have to come forward? Their secret is safe.

    14. Re:Conspiracy Theories by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      That's what they want you to believe!

    15. Re:Conspiracy Theories by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Yeah, just like they couldn't keep the Manhattan Project secret, huh?

    16. Re:Conspiracy Theories by rpj1288 · · Score: 2, Funny

      Godwinned!

      --
      Marvin knew: "Think of a number, any number..."
    17. Re:Conspiracy Theories by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      I hear this argument a lot. The thing is that there really isn't a way to to infer a probable total number of conspiracies having only access to the list of those that have either leaked or blown up and become public. Maybe only a small fraction of them are successful, or maybe lots of them are. You'd think if the failure rate was very high then the CIA might have changed its tact by now.

    18. Re:Conspiracy Theories by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      To wit, your argument - the lack of evidence - mirrors what was said about the Nazi death camps prior to the end of World War 2. People denied it, vehemently and utterly, until not just evidence but overwhelming evidence contradicted them.

      People were able to deny the death camps because they had access to another, more palatable explanation -- that the missing Jews had been resettled elsewhere.

      That isn't a good analogy, though, because in the WW2 case there was clear evidence that something unusual was going on: there was a case to answer. Nobody could deny that they could no longer locate millions of people. The German government did not even try to cover up the fact that they were shipping trainloads of Jews away to camps from which they would never return.

      Refusing to believe that aliens are visiting Earth is more like refusing to believe that the US government is murdering Latinos in death camps in Nevada. There is no credible evidence at all to support it -- not even circumstantial evidence, like the sudden disappearance of thousands of illegal immigrants.

    19. Re:Conspiracy Theories by aaaaaaargh! · · Score: 1

      For many practical purposes, it doesn't matter whether the conspiracy is kept secret or not. All you need to do is spread some disinformation and deny that there is a secret. As long as the people that aren't supposed to know A have as much or even more reasons (by evidence, testimony, etc.) to believe not A, you're fine.

      Complete secrecy is only needed for information whose validity can be tested independently once it has been obtained---for example passwords, research results, blueprints, etc.

    20. Re:Conspiracy Theories by Plutonite · · Score: 1

      Governments can't keep blowjobs secret. They can't keep a probably-going-to-be-embarrassing speech secret.

      Conspiracy theorists are people who are wrong 99.9999999% of the time, and when they are right, it usually doesn't matter.

    21. Re:Conspiracy Theories by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Ah yes, but where are those people now? Huh? NASA = Narcissistic And Sadistic of America...They also like hunting...

    22. Re:Conspiracy Theories by StarfishOne · · Score: 2, Informative

      Sgt. Clifford Stone (US Army)

      http://www.disclosureproject.org/witnesssamples.htm

      "During the discussion of UFOs, the question, ultimately, is going to come up, can any government keep secrets, let alone the U.S. Government? And the answer to that is unequivocally yes. But one of the greatest weapons the intelligence community has at their disposal is a predisposition by the American people, the American politicians and the debunkers â" people who wish to try to debunk UFO information. They immediately come out and say, oh, we canâ(TM)t keep secrets, we canâ(TM)t keep secrets. Well, the truth is, yes, we can.

              "The National Reconnaissance Office remained secret for many, many years. The mere existence of the NSA remained secret. The development of the atomic weapon remained secret until once you exploded one you eventually had to tell some people what was going on.

              "And we are conditioned by our own paradigms not to accept the possibility or probability of a highly advanced intelligent civilization coming here to visit us. You have evidence in the form of highly credible reports of objects being seen, of the entities inside these objects being seen. Yet, we look for a prosaic explanation and we throw out the bits and pieces of the evidence that doesn't meet our paradigm. So it is a self-keeping secret. You can conceal it in plain sight. It is political suicide to go and start hitting up intelligence agencies to get this information released. So, most of your members of Congress, and I know Iâ(TM)ve worked with a lot of them along that line, will balk and try not to do it. I can name you three members of Congress that were point blank asked to have a congressional inquiry on what happened here at Roswellâ¦

              "We have got to get the documentation as it exists in the Government files. We have got to get it released before it ultimately is destroyed. A good example is the Blue Fly and Moon Dust files. I had classified documents the Air Force acknowledged. When I got members of Congress to help me open up more files, they were immediately destroyed and I can prove this.

              "Somewhere along the line, they may see that material and realize there is some very highly sensitive information that would have a damning effect upon the national security of United States should it become compromised. It needs to be further protected, to insure that there is only a limited access to that information to a small number of people. So small you can put them on a list of paper, on a piece of paper, and list them by name. Thus, you have the special access programs. The controls that were supposed to be put on the special access programs are not there. When Congress did their review of the way we protect documents, and the way we go ahead and implement our secrecy programs, they found that you had special access programs within special access programs â" that is was essentially impossible to keep control of them all by Congress. And, Iâ(TM)m telling you right now; it is essentially impossible to keep control of them all.

              "When it comes to UFOs, the same criteria applies. Therefore, only a small nucleus within the intelligence community, numbering less than a hundred * no, Iâ(TM)d suggest less than 50 * control all that information. It is not subject to congressional review or oversight at all. So, Congress needs to go ahead and ask the hard questions and convene a hearing."

    23. Re:Conspiracy Theories by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      I would urge everybody to look at the disclosure project, lots of high ranking govt and commercial people have come forward to discuss their knowledge of the UFO phenomenon, if your curious check out:

      http://www.disclosureproject.org/

      Support full disclosure of UFO's :)

    24. Re:Conspiracy Theories by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Um, you are missing all of the evidence they have been able to discredit as the above-mentioned crackpottery. I've seen lots of things that I couldn't explain but that government agencies had simple (perhaps TOO simple) explanations for. Yes, they say everything has a simple explanation, but if they can't immediately debunk something they claim not to comment on "that sort of thing". Maybe they really are amazingly good at cover-ups most of the time? The natural skeptics take care of most of the UFO/paranormal cases for them. I'm a skeptic too, but I don't claim to really know anything for certain.

    25. Re:Conspiracy Theories by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      I see this said again and again. Each and every time the government fails to keep a conspiracy secret and it leaks out.

      The government DOESN'T succeed. Its just that for someone like you, nothing short an official statement from the president (maybe not even that given the current president) would constitute evidence.

      As for the physical evidence, it is easily covered up. Lets see, deathbed confessions don't count (why is that again, it does seem a likely time to tell the truth without fear of reprucussions).

      Scientists who work in the space program, hold doctorates, and have undergone extensive psychological evaluations over the years don't count. There are numerous sightings from pilots that don't count. There are confirmed air force radar hits with visual confirmation that don't count. Remind me again, what counts?

      We are in a universe that is extremely old. It is almost a statistical certainty that intelligent life exists elsewhere. We are discovering new aspects of physics which blow apart barriers we previously believed existed. Why is it so crazy to think there is a civilization that is more advanced than our own observing us?

      I think there are far too many people who let a few nuts with pyramids on their heads cloud their judgment.

    26. Re:Conspiracy Theories by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Seems to me that if there's a story about it on Slashdot, they're not doing a very good job of keeping it a secret. Truth is, they wouldn't HAVE to keep this a secret, since anyone who expresses belief in UFOs is treated like the good Dr in this thread.

    27. Re:Conspiracy Theories by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      There isn't any reason for them to keep it a secret. What exactly would you consider "evidence"? If you gave a capacitor to some guy in the old Roman empire, what possible tools could he have to prove that it was from the future? To him, its just a hard cylinder with some kind of pointy things on it.

      The fact is, you have already decided that he is wrong without looking at the evidence. And that, my friends, is the most powerful tool the government would have, assuming that there are "aliens".

      The fact is, there is considerable evidence of unexplained happenings. Whether these are "aliens", well, who knows. But there isn't any question that SOMETHING happened that we really can't explain.

    28. Re:Conspiracy Theories by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Obviously, they just wanted you to know about Watergate!

    29. Re:Conspiracy Theories by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      While I agree that this makes essentially all conspiracy theories go into the realm of fantastical, you still end up with the possibility of aliens who have met with the government and insisted on their own secrecy, presumably on pain of death or even extinction- no other threat could keep people silent.

      Of course, this is unlikely for other reasons- why would aliens visit and then insist on such a condition? If the few reports that got out are valid, why aren't we all in danger, or why aren't they silenced?

      So still no aliens, but there are conspiracies that *could* occur, in theory.

    30. Re:Conspiracy Theories by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      I find it impossible to believe that the government is capable of keeping conspiracies secret.

      They can't keep the secret. They did try to cover up, and everything came out. The deathbed confessions may not count, but dead links on YouTube can't count too, because if no one can see them anymore. I can't imagine why would anyone wanted to erase crappy, blurry, twitchy YouTube flash videos about nonexistent UFOs, aliens, and other paranormal phenomena. I just know that I have bookmark full of unworkable URLs. France opened their UFO files. They did it year or two ago. It is no big deal anymore, at least not to them it seems.

      Nothing can't be secret for very long time. It is in human nature to discover and to share the information. No racist, patriotic or corporate loyalty can't be stronger than human nature, at least for the ones that feel and act like humans. Cheers.

    31. Re:Conspiracy Theories by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Actually, his argument is invalid the second he starts using terms like "impossible".

      At that instant, it becomes an Argument from Personal Incredulity, which asserts that because someone PERSONALLY finds it unbelievable, it is impossible.

      Seriously, what kind of fucking argument is "the government can't keep secrets"? How would you know otherwise? All we hear about are secrets which ARE revealed... that doesn't mean that ALL secrets are revealed, just that our sample set has an extreme selection bias.

    32. Re:Conspiracy Theories by Sabriel · · Score: 1

      It's easy to keep secrets when nobody believes those who try to reveal them.

  46. Drugs by nurb432 · · Score: 1

    Kids, this is your brain on drugs.

    --
    ---- Booth was a patriot ----
  47. Pffffft by Born2bwire · · Score: 4, Funny

    How can anyone seriously believe this guy? First he claims that we've walked on the moon and now he's saying that aliens exist.

  48. [citation needed] by Bovius · · Score: 1

    During his Apollo 14 flight to the moon, he secretly conducted ESP experiments with friends back on Earth.

    I'm not saying I disagree, but it's this kind of discrediting statement that needs a source of information to go along with it. So here's a friendly [citation needed].

    1. Re:[citation needed] by clone53421 · · Score: 1
      --
      Alexander Peter Kristopeit bought his basement from his mommy for one dollar.
    2. Re:[citation needed] by CastrTroy · · Score: 1

      What's wrong with doing the experiments? I mean, as long as the experiments were done in a proper scientific manner, why not try it out. You can only learn the truth through experimentation. Assuming ESP doesn't exist because you haven't be able to do it before isn't very scientific.

      --

      Anthropic principle: We see the universe the way it is because if it were different we would not be here to see it.
    3. Re:[citation needed] by sohp · · Score: 1

      Good for Dr. Mitchell trying to conduct well-designed experiments. It's just that his beliefs about aliens are not "new", nor is his interest in things outside the scientific mainstream. I'm not even sure why they suddenly got into the news. Must not be any terrorism alerts about pointy or liquid things on airplanes coming out of the White House, so the media are bored.

    4. Re:[citation needed] by nweis · · Score: 1

      http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Edgar_Mitchell#Other_interests

      Citing Wikipedia as a source? Tsk tsk.

      The article lists the following interview as the reference for the claim that Mitchell performed ESP experiments: http://www.cabinetmagazine.org/issues/5/esp.php

    5. Re:[citation needed] by clone53421 · · Score: 1

      Anyone interested in a quick down-and-dirty would probably prefer the Wiki, and anyone interested in the nitty-gritty can always check the external source cited... which apparently you did. *clap* *clap*

      --
      Alexander Peter Kristopeit bought his basement from his mommy for one dollar.
  49. Back in the good old days by farbles · · Score: 5, Interesting

    Back in the good old days people who leaked a big conspiracy disappeared. Ever since the first Kennedy assassination, the Powers That Be have discovered that the best way to deal with leaks is to just have more and more leaks and bury the truth in a million similar sounding lies.

    Suppose Mitchell's right and there really is a big alien contact conspiracy that's being covered up? We've all seen so many photos of streetlights coming from crazy/misguided people that the best policy from the conspiracy's point of view would be to let him yammer on and throw out a lot of phony alien contact crap. They don't have to discredit him, we'd all do that for them.

    All they need to do is keep him from getting at any legit relics storage so he can't go public with an alien tricorder or something that people can verify as ET in origin and the world will just think he's a loon.

    That's the trouble with real earth-shaking truth, it sounds almost indistinguishable from lunacy. You gotta wonder if there is a percentage of our locked-away crazies who are telling us the truth and we're just too thick to see it.

    1. Re:Back in the good old days by numbski · · Score: 1

      Did you listen to the interview audio? He actually addresses his own safety, saying "oh, I don't think they do stuff like that. Not anymore anyway."

      --

      Karma: Chameleon (mostly due to the fact that you come and go).

    2. Re:Back in the good old days by RabidMoose · · Score: 4, Funny

      That's the trouble with real earth-shaking truth, it sounds almost indistinguishable from lunacy. You gotta wonder if there is a percentage of our locked-away crazies who are telling us the truth and we're just too thick to see it.

      Please listen to this man! I'm not crazy! The robots are going to take over and kill us all! Skynet! SKYNET!!!

    3. Re:Back in the good old days by GooberToo · · Score: 1

      Ever since the first Kennedy assassination, the Powers That Be have discovered that the best way to deal with leaks is to just have more and more leaks and bury the truth in a million similar sounding lies.

      I wonder if the guy that proposed that policy gets a royalty every time its used to discredit someone. Hmmm.... Probably not because what is he going to do? At best, he'll be discredited as a crackpot. ;)

    4. Re:Back in the good old days by Dragoness+Eclectic · · Score: 4, Insightful

      The crazies are the ones whose judgment is enough impaired that they make the mistake of talking about it.

      Sane people see a lot of weird stuff over a lifetime, but we keep our mouths shut because (a) we want to be able to keep a job and pay the bills, and (b) no one wants to hear you talk about the weird stuff except the crazies. See, other sane people either (a) never saw the weird stuff, so they think you are crazy, or (b) they have, and they know better than to talk about it in public, so they think you're one of the crazies for talking about it. Either way, they back away quickly and you find that no one sane wants to talk to you.

      The first rule about the Weird Stuff is we don't talk about the Weird Stuff.

      --
      ---dragoness
    5. Re:Back in the good old days by _bug_ · · Score: 1

      That's the trouble with real earth-shaking truth, it sounds almost indistinguishable from lunacy. You gotta wonder if there is a percentage of our locked-away crazies who are telling us the truth and we're just too thick to see it.

      A broken clock is right twice a day.

      You could be absolutely right. But I'm not going to change what I believe because of a "could be". I want proof. As soon as we start believing in "could be"s like this we become one of those crazy conspiracy theorists. Where secrets exist in every shadow and evil forces work against us. Sure, we don't see them, but we know they're there. We know.

      Human capacity for belief in the absence of evidence is one of the most important, influential and devastating traits we have. It's a blessing and a curse. I'm not talking just about religion, I'm talking about science too (dark matter, anyone).

      What a pain in the ass it is.

    6. Re:Back in the good old days by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Its quite obvious mitchell wanted a new firrari, and he now has one courtesy of the media. He probably spent all his astronaut money on fortune tellers and alternative medicine.

    7. Re:Back in the good old days by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Like that one woman, what was her name? Conner, something?

    8. Re:Back in the good old days by rasputin465 · · Score: 1

      All they need to do is keep him from getting at any legit relics storage so he can't go public with an alien tricorder or something that people can verify as ET in origin and the world will just think he's a loon.

      Oh c'mon, where do you think weather balloons come from!?

    9. Re:Back in the good old days by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      This is a good example of why it's impossible to argue with someone who believes in a conspiracy theory. All evidence that contradicts the conspiracy simply becomes part of the conspiracy....

    10. Re:Back in the good old days by Chris+Burke · · Score: 1

      The first rule about the Weird Stuff is we don't talk about the Weird Stuff.

      We do the weird stuff!

      --

      The enemies of Democracy are
    11. Re:Back in the good old days by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Well, most people believe in Jesus too. What's a couple aliens, compared to a guy who can walk on water, heal the sick and return from the dead? - Not much, I'd say.

    12. Re:Back in the good old days by jollyreaper · · Score: 1

      Back in the good old days people who leaked a big conspiracy disappeared. Ever since the first Kennedy assassination, the Powers That Be have discovered that the best way to deal with leaks is to just have more and more leaks and bury the truth in a million similar sounding lies.

      Suppose Mitchell's right and there really is a big alien contact conspiracy that's being covered up? We've all seen so many photos of streetlights coming from crazy/misguided people that the best policy from the conspiracy's point of view would be to let him yammer on and throw out a lot of phony alien contact crap. They don't have to discredit him, we'd all do that for them.

      It goes a lot further than that. Set aside any talk of tinfoil conspiracy stuff, let's just talk about stuff that's been widely confirmed in newspapers around the world. Do Americans care? Nope! The Soviet approach is to crush anything the State disagrees with, make it forbidden, tempting, the sort of thing dissident minds would seek out. The American approach allows all sorts of information to be published but keeps the the poor too overworked to think, the middle-class to entertained to care, and the ruling class is perfectly happy exactly the way things are.

      And this is the nexus of tinfoil hattery and apathy -- someone comes out speaking the truth and people are either dismiss the guy as a nut or are too apathetic to care.

      --
      Kwisatz Haderach
      Sell the spice to CHOAM
      This Mahdi took Shaddam's Throne
    13. Re:Back in the good old days by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      As much as I'd like to tickle the sci-fi nutjob in myself, I just don't buy the whole alien coverup theory.

      Even before the military admitted to it, I had long simply assumed that they were covering up cold-war military flight experiments. We tried all kinds of crazy flying vehicles.
      The people trying to cover-up these test flights couldn't hide it all, and when they finally just 'fessed up to it being a normal human-made test machine the wackjobs thought that was the coverup. I can only image the conversation:

      Scientist: "Sorry General, the experimental plane left the test area and took out some hick's pig farm, the Soviets are sure to get wind of our project"

      General: "Crap. How do we hide this?"

      Scientist: "We can't, let's just tell the truth with as little detail as possible, and hope people don't go around blabbing about it."

      later that month...

      Scientist: "General, you won't believe this. They think we're lying about the project, and that it was an Alien spaceship that crashed!"

      General: "You've got to be kidding. What have I told you about drinking at work?"

      Scientist: "No, really, check out the news!"

      General: "Holy crap. We just found the best coverup ever. All we have to do when those idiots in R&D expose our projects is tell people the truth, and they'll think we're covering up aliens. Awesome!!"

    14. Re:Back in the good old days by zobier · · Score: 1
      I talk about WS with other people who understand WS, so it's reasonably safe to do so.

      I definitely don't talk about WS on /.

      --
      Me lost me cookie at the disco.
  50. Why would E.T. visit our backwards little planet? by mmell · · Score: 4, Funny
    Unless they had the interstellar equivalent of a flat tire, why would they stop here? Certainly not to learn anything from us - about us, perhaps; but any race capable of overcoming the obstacle that is interstellar space would hardly be interested in our coal/oil/uranium fired technologies. Not to learn from our social development (unless it's from morbid curiosity, to see why we haven't wiped ourselves out yet). No, if E.T. ever shows up, it'll be like when the US fleet showed up at all those little islands in the Pacific - and we'll do little better than the Polynesians did in that encounter. I therefore consider it our patriotic duty if any extraterrestials are found here on earth to kill them and eat them. This will not only serve to discourage them from messing with us but could alleviate starvation in certain third-world countries, and might very well prove to be tasty!

    Count on something less like Star Drek, Nth Contact and more like ID4, except for the part at the end where we survived (I doubt they would be running Windows on the mothership). I just don't see their presence staying secret for long.

    As for Doctor Mitchell, I recommend adjusting the dosage on his meds.

  51. Why Do You All Doubt So Much? by andb52 · · Score: 1, Insightful

    Is it truly so remarkable a concept that there is alien life? And, would this man not be in a position to perhaps know the truth? Why do so many of you dismiss him so quickly? There have been so many "close encounters" and the like in the last several decades to certainly make me a believer.

    1. Re:Why Do You All Doubt So Much? by networkzombie · · Score: 3, Insightful

      Uh, no. It would be truly remarkable that alien life would have master traveling at the speed of light to get here. Otherwise it would take a journey of hundreds or thousands of years. What's next? Are you going to tell me that maybe these aliens have a life span of twenty thousand years and they just read a book on the way here? I don't think so. Alien life is more then plausible, it is all but assured. Space travel to far away solar systems is very, very unlikely.

    2. Re:Why Do You All Doubt So Much? by blueg3 · · Score: 1

      Why would he be in a position to know the truth? He hasn't claimed he's seen them himself, only that he's been briefed on them. If there is an enormous government conspiracy to hide it, then the briefing was highly classified and by so obviously leaking it, he's taking an enormous risk. Unless the government had reason to believe they'd encounter aliens on their trip, then he probably has no need-to-know, so it's unlikely he'd have even been briefed. If the need-to-know is so broad as to include astronauts, then an enormous number of people (in, apparently, many governments) have been briefed on it, which is not conducive to good information security, yet there have been no definitive government leaks.

    3. Re:Why Do You All Doubt So Much? by AdamTrace · · Score: 5, Insightful

      You sound so... sincere.

      The reason that logical, rational people dismiss alien contact is there simply isn't any evidence that is bulletproof.

      It's FAR, FAR more likely that people:

      1) play hoaxes on the public
      2) misremember or misinterpret natural events
      3) hallucinate due to drugs/alcohol or mental illness
      4) lie for attention

      You're right, though, to a certain degree. As we accumulate more and more anecdotal evidence, we SHOULD keep our eyes and ears open. But we must also remember that we're very fallible creatures, so we shouldn't accept any evidence unless it is truly convincing.

      So far, no truly convincing evidence has been found.

      Adman

    4. Re:Why Do You All Doubt So Much? by 4D6963 · · Score: 1

      Is it truly so remarkable a concept that there is alien life? And, would this man not be in a position to perhaps know the truth? Why do so many of you dismiss him so quickly? There have been so many "close encounters" and the like in the last several decades to certainly make me a believer.

      Because! That's obviously bullcrap! What he says sounds just like what I learnt by mimicry to promptly laugh off to maintain my status as a non-weirdo. Even considering that such claims may be founded would be a first step on the slippery slope towards folly and marginality.

      --
      You just got troll'd!
    5. Re:Why Do You All Doubt So Much? by level4 · · Score: 3, Insightful

      I couldn't agree more. These people stating with such certainty that there is no such thing as extraterrestrial life are nuts. My view is that people who seriously believe we are alone in the universe just don't understand the numbers.

      You "unbelievers" do know how many stars there are in the universe, don't you? It's around 10^21. Do you have any comprehension at all of what kind of a number that is?

      The chance of us, out of the countless trillions of star systems in the universe and over billions of years, somehow being the only place to develop any form of intelligent life is so remote I can't take it seriously. Of course other systems have intelligent life. It's as statistically certain as the sun coming up tomorrow. Probably a few orders of magnitude more so.

      People talk about fools who "believe" in aliens but they're believers in a much more unlikely scenario, IMO. I don't know why this insistence that we're "alone" is so common - some relic of Christian "we are god's favourites" or something, maybe.

      We haven't even made it to the nearest star, FFS. Who knows what is out there. We certainly don't and anyone who claims to - or claims to know what is NOT out there - is talking out their ass.

      Not that I give this astronaut much credence, of course. Why would an advanced alien species bother with earth? Believing that they do without any solid evidence to back it up is just another kind of "humans are important" wishful thinking, IMO.

      --
      Let my new 7-digit UID be a lesson to all - write down your passwords.
    6. Re:Why Do You All Doubt So Much? by level4 · · Score: 2, Insightful

      Oh come on. Do you really believe humanity, as of 2008, has discovered every secret of science there is? We have reached the universal pinnacle of transportation technology? Nothing we can't do right now, today, is possible, full stop end of story?

      Give me a break. Our current technology does not even scratch the surface. 99% of our transportation is still powered by burning oil, for christ's sake!

      Think how far humankind has come in the last 1000 years. Now imagine where we might be in another 1000. And another. And another. And another few million.

      Do you really think that 1 million AD humans don't know a thing or two about the structure of spacetime that we don't? You sound like a medieval knight telling me, with absolute certainty, that humans will never fly because we are heavier than air.

      --
      Let my new 7-digit UID be a lesson to all - write down your passwords.
    7. Re:Why Do You All Doubt So Much? by AeroIllini · · Score: 1

      He is in a position to know the truth about aliens because he's actually been to space.

      Just like I am in a position to know the truth about Bigfoot because I went to Canada that one time.

      --
      For security, the MD5 hash of this message and sig is 09f911029d74e35bd84156c5635688c0.
    8. Re:Why Do You All Doubt So Much? by gobbo · · Score: 1

      Uh, no. It would be truly remarkable that a person could fly. Wait... that a person could appear floating in space at a distance... wait... that a person could survive being immolated in fire... wait... that we could control the energies of the atom... wait. That we could observe the beginnings of the universe... That groups of people could come together simultaneously from all parts of the globe to meet and communicate their opinions, without travelling. We could call it a forum!

    9. Re:Why Do You All Doubt So Much? by TheRaven64 · · Score: 1

      Why does it need to travel faster than light? The galaxy is only 100,000 light years across. If you can get up to 1% of C (not something we can do yet, but not particularly difficult for a civilisation a little bit ahead of ours) then you can cross the entire galaxy in as little as ten million of our years - a tiny fraction of the time in which life has been walking around on Earth, let along the age of first-generation stars in the galaxy. A Von Neumann Probe launched twenty million years ago could have one copy of itself in every start system in our galaxy by now. Put a record of your culture's knowledge and whatever equivalent of genetic material they have, and the probes just need a source of matter when they get to a star (which is a source of energy) and they can create a small copy of your home civilisation.

      This seems like the most likely answer to the question of why aliens look like us (assuming, for the sake of argument, that they're not all hoaxes) - that they don't, but the probes that they sent here grew people that looked like us to make communication easier.

      You're also assuming that they perceive time at the same rate as us. If they perceive it at a slower rate then us then it might be that the ten thousand or so years of crossing interstellar space is just mildly tedious (if they even have a concept of boredom).

      --
      I am TheRaven on Soylent News
    10. Re:Why Do You All Doubt So Much? by Joe+the+Lesser · · Score: 1

      It's not a matter of belief, it's a matter of science and reasoning.

      None of our observations lead us to think that superfast space travel is feasible, and after applying Occam's razor, especially after understanding the creativity of the human mind and how it will believe anything it wants to, any rational thinker must deduce that the UFO conspiracies are false and simply fantasies.

      --
      "I only speak the truth"
      Karma: null(Mostly affected by an unassigned variable)
    11. Re:Why Do You All Doubt So Much? by my_left_nut · · Score: 1
      You forgot one:

      5) lie as a cover story for something completely different, and invariably human-caused.

      Some of the "UFO" sightings from the 70's and 80's look notoriously like the F114 stealth fighter when viewed edge-on. When confronted with the "evidence" the military would disingenuously play up the "of alien-origin" reason, which a "let's all play with ET"-mindset public was more than happy to believe.

      As a result, unlike my feckless, teenage self, now anytime I see things in the news about strange lights or craft flying around, my thoughts do not go off-world for the origin. Instead, I think "ah, new hardware finally being field tested, cool.".

      For me, I'll be convinced that this guy is telling the truth when I can get a ride to their home planet, and back again, and post the vacation videos on YouTube (or YouPorn - if the aliens let me pull on their jagons on the way there - or back).

    12. Re:Why Do You All Doubt So Much? by networkzombie · · Score: 1

      I'll give you one plausible technology. A transporting device. I predict that humans will be able to convert matter into energy and send that energy at light speed to another location. I also predict that we will need a transporter to re-assemble that energy back into matter. So anywhere we go, will would have had to already been there and have brought along a transporter device. Here's your spaceship, here's your transporter. See you in 5,000 years when you get to that habitable planet that's probably infested with Tyrannosaurs. Oh yeah, by the time you get there the company that made the device will get sued for patent infringement and switch to open source that is incompatible with your proprietary transporter. Enjoy!

    13. Re:Why Do You All Doubt So Much? by ag3ntugly · · Score: 0

      And you assume, that since some guy (I know Einstein wasn't just some guy, but he's not above being wrong either) said that nothing can accellerate past the speed of light, that everything in the whole of the universe must abide by that.

      A far as the intergalactic food chain goes, we may be nothing more than rodents to the grown up civilizations, and to assume that our feeble understanding of the workings of the universe is wholly accurate and will never change is foolish.

      --
      i have a roll of electrical tape.
    14. Re:Why Do You All Doubt So Much? by ag3ntugly · · Score: 0

      TheRaven is right, a being travelling in a ship at the speed of light, for say 1000 light years, wouldn't perceive the passage of 1000 years. If we use the twins thought experiment as a base, 1 day for the twin in the ship to 72 years for the twin on earth, then the passengers in the ship thats travelling 1000 light years would only perveive a couple of weeks. So if one were to travel from here to the nearest star (only 4.5 light years away or so) the time would pass in a few minutes. Of course it'd be several years to your wife before you ever got back. so she probably won't let you go anyway.

      --
      i have a roll of electrical tape.
    15. Re:Why Do You All Doubt So Much? by mok000 · · Score: 1

      Your statistics lack one factor, however: time.

      Let say for the sake of argument, that by "extraterrestrial life" we mean a civilization that has a more advanced technology than our own, so that they would be able to reach us here at earth.

      Then you also need to consider whether this civilization is concurrent with human life on earth. Since we have only existed in a civilization that knows about space travel for 50 years, and the age of the universe is 15 billion years, you have to include a factor of ~ 3 * 10 e-9 into the equation which brings down the probability quite a bit.

      The fact is, that the discussion of extraterrestrial civilizations is purely academic. Because we can't get there, we can never prove their existence. So for all practical purposes, such civilizations don't exist.

      Our time and effort is much better spent thinking about how we humans can survive on this planet. It's not obvious that human existence has thousands of years ahead of it.

    16. Re:Why Do You All Doubt So Much? by level4 · · Score: 1

      Science and reasoning?

      You talk like we've discovered everything there is to know. I like how you used the word "feasible", though, it's very telling. Superluminal travel is indeed unfeasible, for us, right now.

      But just think about what we don't know. We have no unified theory of the universe or even fricking gravity. We can predict it but we can't explain it. We don't know why qusntum entanglement works. We don't even know what comprises something like 90% of the estimated mass of the universe. To summarise, we don't know jack shit.

      Quantum state is superluminal. That's a chink in your Relativity armour wide enough to drive a bus through. If quantum state can do it, rest assured, something else can too.

      I pride myself on being a fairly rational person, and I am hardly an expert on quantum mechanics or indeed spacetime theory. But I do know enough to know that we just don't know anything. I am not trying to convince you that superluminal travel *is* possible. I am trying to convince you that our current knowledge is not even close to being able to rule it out, or make any comment really, one way or the other.

      You should read a bit before you act so dismissively. Some of this shit will blow your mind. You do know that mass curves spacetime, right? In other words, it is *possible* to curve spacetime? In other words you can probably do it deliberately, given enough energy?

      Our understanding of all this is at about the same level as a 17th century alchemists' understanding of the nature of matter. They were beginning to suspect that, given a ridiculous amount of energy and the right conditions, you might, just might, say, refine aluminium into a pure form. Well whaddya know, here we are, 300 years later, typing on our computers made of refined aluminium, and thinking that given a ludicrous amount of energy and the right conditions you might, just might, be able to curve spacetime enough to enable a specified object to make a superluminal jump.

      Give us 500 years.

      But I do agree that UFO theories are in all likelihood BS. Wishful thinking, like I said, from people with the need to believe humans are important in the universe.

      --
      Let my new 7-digit UID be a lesson to all - write down your passwords.
    17. Re:Why Do You All Doubt So Much? by level4 · · Score: 1

      So you're saying that advanced civilisations have abandoned software patents? Sheesh, tell me something I don't know : )

      --
      Let my new 7-digit UID be a lesson to all - write down your passwords.
    18. Re:Why Do You All Doubt So Much? by aminorex · · Score: 1

      It would be more accurate to say that no truly convincing evidence has been presented to you, personally.

      --
      -I like my women like I like my tea: green-
    19. Re:Why Do You All Doubt So Much? by CraktLife · · Score: 1

      there is plenty of unidentified flying object's flying around these day's whose to say they are from other planet's there is plenty a proof that nazi's developed flying saucer's. i highly doubt that every country in the world has worked to together to hide ufo's and aliens from outer space. think about it logically if there was super smart aliens from outer space coming and watching the human race for years, i think they would of gathered that our rulers are destructive idiot's all of them. hey american ruler guy i'm an alien from outer space i'll make you a deal i'll give you technology you couldn't even have a wet dreams about on one condition you make sure the world doesn't ever find out we exist also go mate with your mother it keep's your genetics pure "giggle giggle" it's totally awesome make's you run faster and stuff. if they were goody goody aliens i doubt they would even consider doing that but if there is super intelligent life forms and they were with the government they would probably be those sneaky snidely killer aliens from mars attacks basically my point is bush,cheney and tony blair are gay the end.

  52. Last vestige of American credibility... by gatkinso · · Score: 2, Interesting

    ...just went right down the toilet.

    Oh well.

    --
    I am very small, utmostly microscopic.
  53. what to do? by mattwarden · · Score: 5, Funny

    I am so conflicted. In order to believe this support for one of my favorite conspiracy theories, I have to accept that this guy is credible. In order to accept he is credible, I have to ignore one of my other favorite conspiracy theories about the moon landing. Maybe this situation is presented to me as a test to see whether my brain is harvestable.

    1. Re:what to do? by animusCollards · · Score: 1

      LOL Well done!

    2. Re:what to do? by nachosupreme · · Score: 1

      Now we know what they look like! I want to know what the smell like!

    3. Re:what to do? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Don't worry - you're a Democrat. Just choose whichever reality is most convenient for you at the moment time and go with it.

      And if anybody challenges you, just call them a Nazi.

    4. Re:what to do? by arkarumba · · Score: 1

      Don't be so crude. Its the process of resolving those tensions that opens you to other possiblities. Its more a statistical measurement your culture's bias and acceptance of such a revellation.

  54. A Day Before New X-Files? by PaulMorel · · Score: 1, Interesting

    Wow! What a coincidence! He reveals this a day before the new X-Files movie is released! What are the odds?!?!

    --
    burrocrisy
    and that would be what? Ruling by jackasses? Never has a slashdot misspelling been more apropos
    1. Re:A Day Before New X-Files? by bistromath007 · · Score: 1

      I got here two minutes too late. :/

  55. There has been something going on... by Daswolfen · · Score: 3, Interesting

    ... with NASA for years. There has been lots written about it. Some, like the secret Egyptian ritualistic cult is bunk. A lot, like the amount of images that NASA has edited or deliberately taken at lower resolutions than the equipment was designed for or at really poor angles.

    And if you read though the Apollo transcripts, there are some really bizarre comments that only make sense if you take them in the setting of discovering alien ruins or debris on the moon.

    And if you look at the history of the UFOs and alleged government cover-ups, you see that the few that have broken their silence on the matter have effectively been death bed confessions. Others that have done so have just disappeared (i.e. Bob Lazar).

    What I find strange, if there is no real cover-up of UFOs, then why has the government spent so much time and effort trying to sweep it under the rug, so to speak. There are documents out there, that have been released through the FOIA process that show how much time and effort has gone into it and how high it goes (I have seen documents from Eisenhower, Truman, and Kennedy on the subject). If there are truly no such thing as UFO's, then why address the issue at all?

    --
    Don't rush me, Sonny. You rush a miracle man, you get rotten miracles.
    1. Re:There has been something going on... by zippthorne · · Score: 1

      Why fake a cover-up? To make it look like the government is capable of action on such a grand scale as a massive cover-up. Many would prefer the notion that their government is supremely competent, even if mostly evil, rather than face the comforting reality that its extreme incompetence is the only thing holding back its unfathomable evil.

      --
      Can you be Even More Awesome?!
    2. Re:There has been something going on... by geekoid · · Score: 2, Insightful

      "NASA has edited or deliberately taken at lower resolutions"

      Cite

      "And if you read though the Apollo transcripts, there are some really bizarre comments that only make sense if you take them in the setting of discovering alien ruins or debris on the moon."

      Completely false.

      "And if you look at the history of the UFOs and alleged government cover-ups, you see that the few that have broken their silence on the matter have effectively been death bed confessions. Others that have done so have just disappeared (i.e. Bob Lazar)."

      Non sensible.

      "then why address the issue at all?"

      there are't sweeping anyting under the rug, they are responding to the public, like they're supposed to. The fact that there is nothing there doesn't mean their' hiding anything, it means you are wrong.

      I used to really be into this, I ahve looked at every piece of information available, read the transcripts, and there is no evidence, at all of aliens.
      Plus it doesn't even pass any rule of thumb.

      There is no gain in covering this up anyways.
      Imagine how much money NASA would get if they found something?
      For example, if they had evidence that the face on Mars was an artifact created by another race, we would have people there by now.

      --
      The Kruger Dunning explains most post on /. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dunning%E2%80%93Kruger_effect
    3. Re:There has been something going on... by AeroIllini · · Score: 1

      And if you read though the Apollo transcripts, there are some really bizarre comments that only make sense if you take them in the setting of discovering alien ruins or debris on the moon.

      How convenient that you can simply state that as fact without any sources to back it up.

      The transcripts are public domain material. Go ahead, give me page numbers.

      --
      For security, the MD5 hash of this message and sig is 09f911029d74e35bd84156c5635688c0.
    4. Re:There has been something going on... by Daswolfen · · Score: 1

      Read Dark Mission: The Secret History of NASA (search for it on Amazon), it has all the relevant details including cited sources in the footnotes. If you are to lazy to do this yourself, then do ask for souces.

      --
      Don't rush me, Sonny. You rush a miracle man, you get rotten miracles.
    5. Re:There has been something going on... by Eli+Gottlieb · · Score: 1

      Could you link to transcripts that "only make sense" in light of aliens?

      Also, do the aliens come in saucers? We're really fucking screwed if they come in saucers.

    6. Re:There has been something going on... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      I don't know you. Why should I buy a book just to try to figure out what your claims relate to? I'm not being "lazy" here; only a fool would rush out and buy a book on the say-so of some random guy on the internet.

      The transcripts are readily available online. The photos presumably will be as well, given that all media released by NASA is automatically free of copyright. All you have to do is tell us which bits you're talking about.

      If you are too lazy to do this, then don't expect anyone to take your assertions seriously.

  56. Astronaut != Scientist by areReady · · Score: 4, Insightful

    Keep in mind that Apollo astronauts weren't selected because they were good scientists. They were chosen because they were good pilots.

    1. Re:Astronaut != Scientist by gatkinso · · Score: 2, Informative

      Not precisely true. They were selected beause they were good pilots, as well as good scientists, as well as good athletes... quick thinkers... cool headed... great engineers.... competant mathematicians... conversant astronomers.... ad nauseum.

      --
      I am very small, utmostly microscopic.
    2. Re:Astronaut != Scientist by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1, Funny

      ...ad nauseum

      Actually, their ability to avoid nauseum was also a factor.

    3. Re:Astronaut != Scientist by ndansmith · · Score: 1

      Keep in mind that Apollo astronauts weren't selected because they were good scientists. They were chosen because they were good pilots.

      What does being a scientist have to do with his claims? He is making his claims based on insider knowledge, not on scientific discovery.

    4. Re:Astronaut != Scientist by gatkinso · · Score: 1

      Dats a gude vun!

      --
      I am very small, utmostly microscopic.
    5. Re:Astronaut != Scientist by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      ...and we all know that the best pilots are insane.

    6. Re:Astronaut != Scientist by Eli+Gottlieb · · Score: 1

      So basically, they were selected for being the very peak of what American humanity had to offer?

  57. Little people who look strange to us... by advocate_one · · Score: 3, Funny

    well, finally this explains G.W. Bush... and Tom Cruise

    --
    Donald 'Duck' Dunn: We had a band powerful enough to turn goat piss into gasoline.
    1. Re:Little people who look strange to us... by MadMidnightBomber · · Score: 1

      He said SMART people.

      --
      "It doesn't cost enough, and it makes too much sense."
    2. Re:Little people who look strange to us... by MadMidnightBomber · · Score: 1

      No he didn't. Just gnore me, it's been a long week.

      --
      "It doesn't cost enough, and it makes too much sense."
  58. Hmm by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Wasn't LSD Popular around Apollo 14?

    1. Re:Hmm by OzoneLad · · Score: 1
      Hate to respond to AC, but this was too good to pass up.

      Wasn't LSD Popular around Apollo 14?

      Looks like it was popular in it, too.

  59. Kerrang! Radio Interview by Recessive+Gene+Boy · · Score: 2, Informative

    You can listen to the actual interview here

  60. You can keep by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1, Funny

    You can keep the body thetans. All we want is our spacecraft, which look just like airplanes, returned back to us.

  61. he claimed our technology is "not nearly as sophis by Thrazzle · · Score: 2, Funny

    Chillingly, he claimed our technology is "not nearly as sophisticated" as theirs and "had they been hostile", he warned "we would be been gone by now".

    Oh dear god!

    They found out about MS-WINDOWS!

  62. Stunning announcement #2 by skidisk · · Score: 1

    And in other news, President George W. Bush stunningly claimed that weapons of mass destruction exist in Iraq. And he says WMDs have been found on several occasions -- but the discovery has been repeatedly covered up by the liberal-biased media for six years. President Bush, 62, said during a radio interview that sources at Homeland Security who had had seen the WMDs described them as 'big devices that look scary to us.'

  63. Haha, you Americans are funny by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0
    At the bottom of the article:

    Dr Mitchell is a great American, but we do not share his opinions on this issue.

    So he's not just a great man or person, the speaker feels the need to point out that he is an American, as if it would automatically put him in a better light. Always is there room for pushing for the USA, always room there is.

    (I don't necessarily disapprove of the practice (though I think it can have bad consequences if taken too far), but it makes me smile.)

  64. Secrecy is overrated by jdevivre · · Score: 3, Insightful

    How do all these aliens actually pull off the secrecy... amidst all these people that LUST for its exposure?

    Don't tell me that "Take me to your leader." actually works!!!

    1. Re:Secrecy is overrated by StarfishOne · · Score: 1

      Assuming they've made it here, you can assume that they're very advanced technologically wise.

      When I see your point made, I always have to think about Star Trek, I believe it was one of the movies from the last decade, where the some kind of federation research team had a observatory (overlooking a small town) in a cave I believe with some kind of cloaking before/around it.

      Perhaps they're even millions of years ahead of us, so if they are here, I bet they can accomplish pretty much anything that suits their agenda.

    2. Re:Secrecy is overrated by ozbird · · Score: 1

      How do all these aliens actually pull off the secrecy... amidst all these people that LUST for its exposure?

      This because those "people" are the aliens. By claiming aliens exist, they know humans will brand them nut-jobs; the occasional slip-up (tentacled wardrobe malfunction, oozing green slime etc.) will be brushed off as just an attention-seeking stunt. It's brilliant!

    3. Re:Secrecy is overrated by jdevivre · · Score: 1

      I hear you (former ST:NG fan). I guess the difference would be that several upper echelon townspeople know about the aliens and head a conspiracy that somehow keeps the cobbler and his neighbours who saw the landing, the team of peasants who cleaned up the landing site, the 47 hand-picked guards, and the trashman who collects the aliens garbage every week under wraps.

      Occasionally someone speaks out, but never with anything but tales of wooden pulleys that don't squeak and pallid skin tones on odd looking critters (Cmdr Data, I presume).

      After a million years of advancement you'd think they'd have more to offer than observation and anal probes...

  65. Relative Scope by bill_mcgonigle · · Score: 2, Insightful

    Absolutely. Of course, if you're going to fall into the NASA conspiracy you want to be true, shouldn't you at least acknowledge the NASA consipracy you don't want to be true? Maybe?

    Without lending credence to either conspiracy theory, one of the metrics you should use when judging the likelihood of a conspiracy being true is the number of individuals required to be complicit.

    --
    My God, it's Full of Source!
    OUTSIDE_IP=$(dig +short my.ip @outsideip.net)
    1. Re:Relative Scope by Shadow+Wrought · · Score: 1

      Indeed and, to be clear, I think they are both bunk. But I do find it interesting how "believeabilty" is so readily tied into whether or not someone wants it to be true. I think part of the reason why so many people think the guvernment is spying on them is because it's a way to feel important; that they are worth the government's attention. I'm not talking about the warrantless wiretaps thing so much as black helicopters spying on their home (had a co-worker once who truly believed the government was spying on him with helicopters).

      --
      If brevity is the soul of wit, then how does one explain Twitter?
    2. Re:Relative Scope by bill_mcgonigle · · Score: 1

      I think part of the reason why so many people think the guvernment is spying on them is because it's a way to feel important; that they are worth the government's attention

      And the inverse can also be true, for instance 9/11 conspiracies. Which is more comforting, that it requires a multi-national government conspiracy to take down two of our skyscrapers, or that any 19 whackjobs with $2 knives can do it?

      Supporting the conspiracy provides a sense of safety to the believers.

      --
      My God, it's Full of Source!
      OUTSIDE_IP=$(dig +short my.ip @outsideip.net)
  66. Perfect timing by bberens · · Score: 4, Funny

    This story comes up just as the new X-Files movie comes out. Coincidence? I think not.

    --
    Check out my lame java blog at www.javachopshop.com
    1. Re:Perfect timing by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      um, AFAIK, the Alien plot has deliberately and explicitly been left out of the new film?! how's this interesting, he's just guessing (badly)?

  67. Brent Spiner in Independence Day by Latent+Heat · · Score: 1

    Maybe they just don't get out much.

  68. Extraordinary claims... by jcr · · Score: 5, Insightful

    require extraordinary proof. Regrettably, there is none.

    -jcr

    --
    The only title of honor that a tyrant can grant is "Enemy of the State."
    1. Re:Extraordinary claims... by SpinyNorman · · Score: 1

      Just because none has been provided, doesn't mean that none exists.

      Proof may even exist without the guy making these claims being aware of it. It's not obvious that his knowledge is first hand.

    2. Re:Extraordinary claims... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Haven't you ever heard of Jeff Peckman?

    3. Re:Extraordinary claims... by Spy+Handler · · Score: 1

      No, I disagree. Just because Carl Sagan disagrees with something and finds it ridiculous does not mean it requires a much higher ("extraordinary") level of proof. It just requires the normal amount of proof like anything else.

      Carrying that logic further, does it mean that anything that fits well with Carl Sagan's view of the world requires less proof than other things? Or perhaps no proof at all?

    4. Re:Extraordinary claims... by pla · · Score: 1

      Extraordinary claims... require extraordinary proof. Regrettably, there is none.

      True - Except, in an infinite (or "pretty damned big", anyway) universe, I would call it a far more "extraordinary claim" to say that we alone rose up from our home planet's primordial ooze to eventually escape the local gravity-well.


      Of course, that doesn't mean this guy has all his screws properly tightened, but before writing someone off for claiming the improbably, ask yourself which case you consider more improbable.

    5. Re:Extraordinary claims... by olclops · · Score: 1

      I contend there is. In terms of eyewitness accounts of otherworldly craft, there are 70,000 claims each year. This is circumstantial evidence, true, but it's the single greatest mound of circumstantial evidence ever compiled. According to the head of Project Blue Book in the early 50's, 20 percent of the cases they investigated were genuinely inexplicable, and they threw everything they could at those cases to discredit them. Even considering only a small percentage of 70,000 sightings a year, you're left with a tidal wave of eyewitness accounts.

      On top of that, there are countless videos of craft people have taken over the years. Let's go ahead and discredit everything after 1970, when video manipulation technology became available. The remaining stuff, most of the best shot in the 50's (strong exception given for George whats-his-face's fake shots of a chicken incubator), is not impressive from a modern perspective, but when you consider the difficulty of faking film back them is strong evidence indeed. My 3 cents.

    6. Re:Extraordinary claims... by khallow · · Score: 1

      I disagree. Quantity here is not good enough. Religion, for example, clearly has more eyewitness accounts than that yet we still don't have good evidence of the existence of anything that could be termed a deity. As I see it, there are 0 legitimate sightings (which is the "small percentage" of these sitings I'd give weight to) per year of otherworldly spacecraft. It's not much to ask that someone come up with real evidence, like piece of spacecraft, a high quality photo, or even an actual alien.

      Let me make my point even clearer. What's the difference between a world with aliens visiting surreptiously in very sophisticated vehicles or a world where all the eye witnesses are either imagining or simply misinterpreting mundane phenomena? It's not "70,000" claims a year. Even you are claiming it'd be a "small percent". Here's the crux of the problem. How do you distinguish between the hypothesis of extra-terrestrials visiting Earth, and the null hypothesis, namely that it isn't happening? As I see it, even in the null hypothesis, you'd have 70,000 claims a year and a significant fraction of them won't be explainable because we aren't omniscient. Hence, the "greatest mound of circumstantial evidence" is equivalent to the null hypothesis as I see it. That's why extraordinary claims need extraordinary evidence.

    7. Re:Extraordinary claims... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      In my opinion, people far too often misuse Sagan's dictum as a blanket excuse to ignore or deny ALL evidence as "not being extraordinary enough", to dislodge a belief they have already pre-judged.

      Seriously, where in the scientific method does it state for the experimenter to weigh the evidence based on their subjective opinion of how likely the consequences are? How is that remotely scientific?

      Changing the threshold of acceptable proof based on how believable you consider the outcome is the very definition of bias. It's a license to ignore otherwise acceptable evidence based on fallacious "appeal to consequences", "argument from personal incredulity", "move the goalposts" type thinking.

      Here's an example. Dinosaurs. I'm declaring them an "extraordinary claim". I need extraordinary proof in order to believe they ever existed. Bones and fossils? Please. That's just not EXTRAORDINARY enough proof for me, there could potentially be other explanations for those, far more believable than giant lizards walking around. I need to see a living, breathing dinosaur walking down main street before I'll even CONSIDER taking such a ridiculous notion seriously.

      Now, I'm not saying there's little green saucer men flying around because Ed Mitchell says so, but I'm sick of that "extraordinary claim" line being treated like an actual scientific rule. Good soundbyte, shitty principle.

  69. Would there really be panic in the streats? by the_arrow · · Score: 4, Insightful

    One of the most common reasons for not revealing the existence of aliens, is because the top leaders of the world are afraid that the population of earth will panic. I don't think that is the case, I think most people would say something like "yes, I knew there really were aliens". The only ones I think would panic is the religious nut-jobs, although you would think that the would be used to have their view of the world shattered at least once every hundred year or so.

    --
    / The Arrow
    "How lovely you are. So lovely in my straightjacket..." - Nny
    1. Re:Would there really be panic in the streats? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 2, Insightful

      Actually, Wired just recently had a story about religion and aliens. Apparently it's no longer a question of whether aliens exist- it's how we separate the ones who're Christian from the ones who need to be evangelized.

      Which is both rather sad, and exceedingly appropriate for our race, I think.

    2. Re:Would there really be panic in the streats? by bledri · · Score: 1

      The only ones I think would panic is the religious nut-jobs...

      Except the Scientologist and a few others.

      --
      Some privacy policy Slashdot.
    3. Re:Would there really be panic in the streats? by gatkinso · · Score: 1

      If you really think the "top leaders of the world" really give a shit about people then you are sadly mistaken.

      They will bomb the living hell out of the population. Throw them in gulags, build extermination camps. They will ethnically cleanse the populace.

      But they won't tell them the truch about Martians out of concern that the people might get scared and hurt themselves.

      Uh huh.

      --
      I am very small, utmostly microscopic.
    4. Re:Would there really be panic in the streats? by magus_melchior · · Score: 1

      The only ones I think would panic is the religious nut-jobs, although you would think that the would be used to have their view of the world shattered at least once every hundred year or so.

      If anyone lives that long: the first time their diaper will need changing, the second time the diaper stinks but the person is dead from a stroke.

      --
      "We are Microsoft. You shall be assimilated. Competition is futile."
    5. Re:Would there really be panic in the streats? by Eli+Gottlieb · · Score: 1

      Hey, my religion has no problem with aliens. Aliens are just as "outsiders" to us as the rest of humanity. A Gentile is a Gentile, no matter his race, creed, or species.

    6. Re:Would there really be panic in the streats? by OzoneLad · · Score: 1

      Have you accepted SxFafsfs'aGVA!521VAn as your personal saviour?

    7. Re:Would there really be panic in the streats? by SoulRider · · Score: 1

      Maybe they are keeping it a secret out of respect for the aliens, or the aliens pay them to keep their existence quiet. You know, to keep paparazzi away.

  70. Misquote by sjonke · · Score: 1

    That's a misquote. What he said was "village people". He also noted that they were captured are on film in the documentary, "Pee Wee's Big Adventure".

    --
    --- What?
  71. I don't have a problem with aliens but by pembo13 · · Score: 4, Insightful

    It seems far more likely to me that the government is covering up things they themselves do than the actions of aliens. Furthermore, why would an intelligent species meet with what I consider to be generally the most violent portion of supposedly civilized society, find reason to return, but not take stuff from us.

    Unless all they want are our bees and ozone.

    --
    "Thanks for all the money you paid to us. We've used it to buy off ISO among other things" -Microsoft
    1. Re:I don't have a problem with aliens but by blueZ3 · · Score: 1

      Actually, they're using the earth as a heat sink, too. This explains global warming, the bee problem, and the ozone. Of course, their MegaMaid is invisible.

      --
      Interested in a Flash-based MAME front end? Visit mame.danzbb.com
    2. Re:I don't have a problem with aliens but by scorp1us · · Score: 1

      I'd argue the opposite - that the government is slowly opening us to the idea of life. It's been a snail's pace getting information out of NASA. 1) Was Mars wet? Yes, 2) Can it hold life, Yes. 3) Did it hold life...?

      Anyone could have proven 1&2 just by looking at the planet. It's been claimed that the canals were from water. True, we never had bird-in-the-hand proof, but we had a really freaking good idea, since we know the poles are a combination of water and dry ice.

      As of late, we're getting better and better evidence. Every cell phone is a camera, and HD cameras are not far off. We'll have independent proof eventually, if they are here.

      Now put on your tin foil hats:
      Bush (the old one) mentioned a "new world order" and was head of the CIA. The CIA has refused presidents to know the truth about UFOs (I believe it was Ford, maybe Truman that was told he was not authorized (as president)) to know the truth. Most people think the New World Order that he mentioned is the result of bankers... but what if it's part of some plan in cooperation with aliens. I cannot believe bankers are behind a conspiracy. They have all the money, all the security they want. There needs to be a bigger reason... Why is the Bush (W) administration massively increasing the surveillance power of the US? Surely all of the effort and expended and breadth claimed is not justified. I can only conclude, in my darkest thoughts, that the surveillance infrastructure will be established, then releveraged to quell rebellion. But rebellion from what? An oppressive government? Or some X-files-esque plan to cooperate in some way the people don't want with an alien race that could destroy us? Have the governments of the world secured our continued existence by choosing slavery for all man kind?

      It's waaaay out there, I know, but its the only way I can make all the pieces fit.

      --
      Slashdot's rate-of-post filter: Preventing you from posting too many great ideas at once.
    3. Re:I don't have a problem with aliens but by Eli+Gottlieb · · Score: 1

      It could be that aliens honestly don't have a conception of a government that doesn't act entirely on behalf of its people. Maybe they have a hive-mind or their psychology works itself out to enable direct democracy to work well where ours doesn't.

    4. Re:I don't have a problem with aliens but by khallow · · Score: 1

      What pieces? All I hear is hearsay. Some president was told he didn't have the authority to know the truth about aliens? Bull. And it's not helped by your paranoia on government. Government is simply taking as much power as it can grab. Doesn't take aliens or some global conspiracy to explain natural tendencies.

    5. Re:I don't have a problem with aliens but by scorp1us · · Score: 1
      --
      Slashdot's rate-of-post filter: Preventing you from posting too many great ideas at once.
    6. Re:I don't have a problem with aliens but by khallow · · Score: 1

      And? Bush told Carter to stop being an idiot. Meeting gets blown way out of proportion by this Daniel Sheehan guy.

  72. What about the Governments of other Countries? by buht · · Score: 1

    Interesting that "the" Government covered it up. Does this Imply the US Government? As if, aliens only land in the United States of America? Sounds doubtful if Aliens Exist, which I personally believe do myself. I don't think all countries and government's would cover it up. Funny how when people claim the government covers it up its always "the government", as in the US government and no others exist. Just wait until the little 2 foot green man with big eyeballs pulls out a 1 inch USB stick looking device and turns half of china to glass with it. Will "the" government cover that up too?

    --

    -- The box said Windows 2000 or better... so I installed Linux
    1. Re:What about the Governments of other Countries? by sanosuke001 · · Score: 1

      they'll cover up how it happened but will just say that we did it with a new high intensity graviton-neutronium decoupler satellite they just put into orbit and if you don't want to end up the same way you best do as they say.

      --
      -SaNo
  73. X-files by Duncan+Blackthorne · · Score: 1


    So, am I the only one that finds it odd that someone like this would bust out with these sorts of claims the day before the new X-Files movie comes out? ;-)
    </conspiracy_theorist></humor>

  74. UDMH by space_hippy · · Score: 1

    Don't mind him, it's just the unsymmetrical dimethylhydrazine talking.

  75. Anything to do with the new X-files movie? by atari2600 · · Score: 3, Funny

    Hmmm and the new movie is coming out soon - actually tomorrow. Coincidence? I think not. Trustno1.

    1. Re:Anything to do with the new X-files movie? by mdielmann · · Score: 1

      I checked the mod settings, but there's no +1 Paranoid. I suspect it's a conspiracy.

      --
      Sure I'm paranoid, but am I paranoid enough?
  76. i'm so confused by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    ok so the question really is,

    who whould i rather believe, the government, dr. mitchell, or the simpsons?....

    hmmmmmmmmm.... i'll go with the simpsons

  77. Re:Space Madness! Camouflage? by davidsyes · · Score: 1, Interesting

    Maybe they ARE camouflaged...

    If these people have anything to say about it:

    http://www.wiolawapress.com/

    http://www.thewatcherfiles.com/alien-agenda.html

    http://www.sherryshriner.com/sherry/faction-three.htm

    Also, a relative of mine told me that around 1969 or 70 or so at night she and a friend were on the porch talking. A light source came down, low/tree-top, over the street, quietly. It was NOT like any aircraft or hobby toys of the time. It seemed to be observing them, or just hanging around, then it abruptly left.

    I wish *III** could see firsthand these kinds of things. If I could communicate with (and trust them, and if they'd oblige) I'd instantly declare myself liberated of mad politicians and general human depravity and wealth misalignment. If I could travel away from Earth on MY terms, then why should i (or ANY citizen of Earth) remain subject to human codified laws any longer? It's NOT so much that governments' (wealthy and powerful manipulators) fear panic, hysteria and lawlessness. They fear sudden worthlessness of their "stellar" portfolios should people have an "out". Even if we could travel, and an alien dropped us off with a lifetime of supplies and defensive weapons, you could bet your ass that if Earth governments could find resettled humans, then at the very LEAST the major governments (particularly the US) would
    declare they are arriving for the protection of the resettled, then squat on them, then fortify the presence, and graft Earth's depravity on the new colonies.

    Star Trek kinda sorta touched on these topics, as did other Sci-Fi, but I'd be among the FIRST to don a uniform of a colonist defending against Earth government take-over. And, I'd DIE, too, for THAT kind of cause. But, here on Earth, I'd die to save an old lady or toddler from being run over, but i'd feel hard-pressed to do the same for a magnate or for well-known politicians or some low-level functionaries who thrive on wealth, power, and such.

    There's too much awe and wonder ahead to feel constrained by petty resource-manipulating elitists, not matter how much Earth they move and shake...

    --
    Previously: "Linux... Toward the Sunrise..." Now: "Linux... Toward the-- No, now, part of Every Sunrise"
  78. This is news???? by CaptainCaustic · · Score: 1

    This isn't anything new with him. Mitchell has been making this claim for years and I'm not sure why others are acting so surprised.

  79. Re:Why by maxume · · Score: 1

    Interstellar distance.

    --
    Nerd rage is the funniest rage.
  80. I'm pissed by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Our own government is witholding information that can be shared with Mattel to enable industrial scale mass production of real hoverboards.

    The proof? The dark side of the moon has no iron deposits at all while the side facing the earth has a crapload of iron. The aliens have a fancy little base on the dark side complete with hoverboards and fusion powered segways. They left the earth facing side alone so we wouldn't find out about their stash of goods.

  81. yes they do by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    And their names are Johnnie Walker, and Jack Daniel's

  82. Cover ups. by twitter · · Score: 0, Informative

    There is no real evidence here of anything but government misconduct. They are either covering up real contact or creating the whole story to cover up other secrets.

    Either case is reprehensible but the former is worse. Periodically, US government agents lend enough credibility to UFO stories for anyone who distrusts government to suspect a cover up. They also also strongly deny this kind of thing and monitor those who listen. In other words, they actively encourage beliefs which are helpful or harmless to themselves but damaging to those who would believe them. We can quote a letter from the first director of the CIA to Congress on this subject:

    "Behind the scenes, high-ranking Air Force officers are soberly concerned about UFOs. But through official secrecy and ridicule, many citizens are led to believe the unknown flying objects are nonsense."

    This is a waste of taxpayer money which creates a demand for further wasteful spending and gives credence to all manner of crackpot theories while stigmatizing people with reasonable beliefs. Note that this is exactly the opposite of what is publically claimed. Secrecy makes it impossible to determine anything.

    There can be no doubt that intelligent life exists on other planets. It is also clear that our government could do nothing but request assistance if confronted by a society that has intergalactic travel capability.

    --

    Friends don't help friends install M$ junk.

    1. Re:Cover ups. by unlametheweak · · Score: 1

      There can be no doubt that intelligent life exists on other planets.

      Without doubt there is only faith.

      It is also clear that our government could do nothing but request assistance if confronted by a society that has intergalactic travel capability.

      It appears that the aliens either refused to help your government or they have a bizarre and ironic sense of humour.

  83. This is just what my band needs! by Xtravar · · Score: 1

    Aliens... err... exposure... err... shameless plugging? I am prepared to be modded off-topic and a failure. :(

    http://apollo14.net/

    --
    Buckle your ROFL belt, we're in for some LOLs.
  84. Not the only one by 4D6963 · · Score: 4, Interesting

    Gordon Cooper (Mercury 9 & Gemini 5) has also made similar claims. I seem to recall hearing such claims also made by other astronauts, as well as engineers etc..

    --
    You just got troll'd!
    1. Re:Not the only one by BalmyBrute · · Score: 1

      Coincidence: Gordon Cooper lived to be 77, the same age that Edgar Mitchell is now.

    2. Re:Not the only one by magus_melchior · · Score: 1

      Yeah, and Larry King gathers them on his show so they can all gang up on Bill Nye. Doesn't he have better controversies to discuss on his CNN spot, like his government's abuse of power?

      --
      "We are Microsoft. You shall be assimilated. Competition is futile."
    3. Re:Not the only one by 4D6963 · · Score: 1

      Doesn't he have better controversies to discuss on his CNN spot, like his government's abuse of power?

      Yeah, he should devote all his time to that, because there may be people out there who ignore what a bunch of liars and incompetents makes up this administration. And let's not talk about anything else before Barack Obama gets elected. /sarcasm.

      --
      You just got troll'd!
  85. Dubya clears the air by julian67 · · Score: 2, Funny

    The President today: "I checked with Commissioner Xith and he's never even heard of the human Dr Mitchell. Or David Icke."

  86. smart people believe weird things too by xPsi · · Score: 4, Insightful

    As Michael Shermer has observed, "smart people believe weird things because they are skilled at defending beliefs they arrived at for non-smart reasons." A humble reminder that you can have a degree in aeronautical engineering, a doctorate in aeronautics and astronautics, and also walk on the fucking moon, and still have totally pseudoscientific, non-evidence-based views about the world just because you personally want them to be true.

    --
    i\hbar\dot{\psi}=\hat{H}\psi
    1. Re:smart people believe weird things too by Dragoness+Eclectic · · Score: 1

      A little reading of slashdot commentaries is proof of that...

      --
      ---dragoness
    2. Re:smart people believe weird things too by alan_dershowitz · · Score: 1

      The majority of anything anyone "knows" that does not come from direct experience is largely derived from nonscientific methods. I know a lot of people on Slashdot like to consider reading a science book equivalent with scientific method, but unless you are actually experienced in any particular field you are just hoping that what you are reading is correct. the arguments are about the same as the ones against conspiracy theories, but people don't like to apply them to conventional knowledge because it's too much work. Conspiracy theories are so slippery because it's nearly impossible to prove ANYTHING once you go down the path of total verification.

      I've learned repeatedly that things I've read at one time were just not true. It really doesn't matter how smart you are, the majority of your knowledge is unexamined, indeed nearly unexaminable, and very prone to being wrong.

    3. Re:smart people believe weird things too by matty619 · · Score: 1

      As Michael Shermer has observed, "smart people believe weird things because they are skilled at defending beliefs they arrived at for non-smart reasons."

      And a humble explanation for the liberal mindset as well!

    4. Re:smart people believe weird things too by wikinerd · · Score: 1

      you can have a degree in aeronautical engineering [...] and still have totally pseudoscientific, non-evidence-based views

      Or a brilliant business idea.

      This planet is full of stupid people willing to say goodbye to their hard-earned money for buying conspiracy books and DVDs about UFOs, thus filling their brain with more stupidity and making smarter people rich.

    5. Re:smart people believe weird things too by d474 · · Score: 1

      ...and still have totally pseudoscientific, non-evidence-based views about the world just because you personally want them to be true.

      IOW, smart people can also believe in God.

      --
      Authority questions you. Return the favor.
    6. Re:smart people believe weird things too by Vitriol+Angst · · Score: 1

      OK. sure, I can buy that.

      So are you saying that this is happening to you or Edgar Mitchell.

      If you are denying that you are smart, and are not engaged in some wild ass idea right now -- I can merely go back and look at your brilliant postings on slashdot.

      --
      >>"ad space available -- low rates!!!"
    7. Re:smart people believe weird things too by zobier · · Score: 1

      A little reading of slashdot commentaries is proof of that...

      Because hanging out around here is proof of intelligence, right?

      --
      Me lost me cookie at the disco.
    8. Re:smart people believe weird things too by aminorex · · Score: 1

      Michael Shermer is a dipstick, and character assassination isn't an argument.

      --
      -I like my women like I like my tea: green-
  87. I live in Texas by kaptain80 · · Score: 1

    I concur.

    --
    Kurt Vonnegut: "If you can do a half-assed job of anything, you're a one-eyed man in the kingdom of the blind."
  88. Re:Why would E.T. visit our backwards little plane by zippthorne · · Score: 1

    Why did Madonna go to Malawi?

    If ETs exist, the Star Trek scenario is far more likely than the ID4 scenario, since there are far easier to access resources in greater concentrations even just in the solar system than the earth. Maybe once all the asteroids, and mercury, and venus, and mars disappear, then we'll have to start worrying.

    The "Earth stood still" scenario probably ranks a bit higher than the "Star Trek" one, and "Mars Attacks" even higher still (except for the endings, of course.)

    --
    Can you be Even More Awesome?!
  89. Historical experience tends to disagree with you. by mmell · · Score: 1
    The most obvious being the settling of the "New World" by Europeans. Native Americans are a very small minority here nowadays, and their culture is all but extinct. Oh, well - at least we gave them blankets!

    For extra credit, check the etymology of the word bikini.

  90. Re:Why would E.T. visit our backwards little plane by rk · · Score: 2, Insightful

    Unless they had the interstellar equivalent of a flat tire, why would they stop here? Certainly not to learn anything from us - about us, perhaps; but any race capable of overcoming the obstacle that is interstellar space would hardly be interested in our coal/oil/uranium fired technologies.

    I don't know... ask an archaeologist if they would like to have a time machine to observe ancient civilizations directly. I would imagine that in a galaxy even fairly dense with sentient life, finding one right on the dawn of a industrial/atomic/information age would be a pretty rare thing and would be something hypothetical alien xenoarchaeologists would really want to observe.

  91. Meet The Sontarans... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Ross: It's like a potato. A baked potato. A talking baked potato.
    The Doctor: Now, Ross. Don't be rude. You look like a pink weasel to him.

  92. New X-Files not about Aliens! by Phairdon · · Score: 1

    Nerd Alert:

    You know that the new X-Files movie has nothing to do with aliens? The X-Files started with each episode as a stand-alone story about a new crazy monster of the week. The new movie is a mystery story about a monster just like most of the episodes.

  93. there would be evidence by Surt · · Score: 1

    If there were aliens visiting us, there would be hundreds of people seeing them, reporting UFO sightings, etc. No one would believe a government cover up.

    --
    "Who is the Journal of Quantum Physics going to believe?" --Stephen Hawking
    1. Re:there would be evidence by CAIMLAS · · Score: 1

      If the US government can successfully cover up its lack of action and possible collusion with regard to the attack of aliens on our country - brown-skinned, not green-skinned, and from our southern border, not space - as they most certainly do, then I think they can cover up the significantly smaller incursion from space without much problem.

      --
      ~/ssh slashdot.org ssh: connect to host slashdot.org port 22: too many beers
    2. Re:there would be evidence by Surt · · Score: 1

      I don't think anyone got the funny of my post, that being that there are in fact hundreds of people reporting seeing aliens and ufos etc.

      --
      "Who is the Journal of Quantum Physics going to believe?" --Stephen Hawking
  94. That's learning ABOUT us, not FROM us. by mmell · · Score: 1

    Slight difference.

  95. X-Files Movie by Hobart · · Score: 1

    In that case, I'll tell my wife that the new X-Files movie is a documentary.

    I think you hit the nail right on the head there - my guess is it's related. :-)

    --
    o/~ Join us now and share the software ...
  96. NSA and CIA posts on Slashdot by Danathar · · Score: 1

    It's amazing to see all the super secret agency debunkers posting messages on slashdot to make this guy look like a fool........

  97. Fellas, this visit's top secret. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    No one's to know about it, 'cept the senior officers, scientists, and the single conspiracy nut whom no one will believe.

  98. 'little people who look strange to us? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    That would explain soooo *much* about my neighbor.

  99. Disclosure by moxley · · Score: 1

    This is true, and the fact that some people have such a hard time believing it and how willing they are to ridicule others for even considering it just shows how skilled the tactics of those who wanted to discredit this in the eyes of the public were.

    There are astronauts, governors, generals, colonels, Joint Cheifs from the Eisenhower white house and over 400 other military and government witnesses who have prepared testimoney under oath for congress (which you can view and read the transcripts from) that attests to this via the Disclosure Project.

    These are people with nothing to gain and everything to lose who have come out because they are tired of the secrecy and of the fact that these technologies have been misppropriated.

    I suggest that if you are truly interested in this you check out the Disclosure Project at http://www.disclosureproject.org/

    Get the executive summary or the DVD or watch the download of the Natl Press Club event or download this material via your favorite file sharing method - it's not the usual UFO blurry video overproduced crap. I don't know anyone who has seen this who still doesn't believe.

  100. Why are aliens cooperating with governments by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    If there is a conspiracy to hide the truth about aliens, it would require the aliens cooperating with all the governments of the world.

    Why would they do that? Why, when they fly around where people can see them, make crop circles, and turn our cows inside out.

    It's all just crazy talk.

    Neila Black
    Director of FACD (Federal Alien Contact Department)

  101. Doubling back? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Cheap sunglasses?

    With apologies to ZZ Top.

  102. Extraordinary claims... by Rene+S.+Hollan · · Score: 1
    ... require extraordinary proof.

    Yes, this is an "important" person. But, he is 77. Dementia?

    Granted, there are a lot of unexplained events that suggest the possiblity of extraterrestrial visitation. And, that might warrent investigation of the phenomenom, and a government bent on covering it up, perhaps with the assistance of "aliens" with "advanced technology" night be able to do so easily. (A leak, with proof? No problem! Go back in time and "fix" it.)

    But, science does not work that way.

    It requires repeatable, peer-reviewed, observation of the purported effect, and strong correlation to the purported cause.

    We may have been visited by extraterrestrials. It's a secuctive thought for any geek, but one VIP's say so does not make it so, to anyone with a scientific mind.

    --
    In Liberty, Rene
  103. Re:Cthuluh by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    I thought that was common knowledge?

  104. and what is wrong with that? by bussdriver · · Score: 4, Interesting

    Creativity in science is RARE; furthermore, science is loaded with stories about great discoveries by people who were ridiculed for testing theories (often thoughtlessly) dismissed by others.

    It is unscientific to criticize a scientist for personally performing their own experiments and not simply trusting the prevailing opinion (especially in a weak area like ESP which has elements of psychology; therefore, it tests the boundaries of science itself which is best suited for rigid subjects.)

    A bad scientist is only one who can not properly do experiments or falsifies results. Possibly one could argue that it is bad practice to apply science to subjects where its effectiveness is minimal to non-existent (surely, you'd agree existing religions are one of the worse places for its application?)

    1. Re:and what is wrong with that? by StarfishOne · · Score: 1

      You sir are my hero today.

      Keep an open mind and accept to limits until you actually run into these limits with your experiments/statistics/etc.

    2. Re:and what is wrong with that? by sohp · · Score: 1

      Yes, plaudits to Dr. Mitchell for trying to conduct good experiments. I only want to point out that he has been interested in phenomena outside the scientific mainstream for decades, and his beliefs about aliens are not "new". I'm not even sure why they suddenly got into the news. Must not be any terrorism alerts about pointy or liquid things on airplanes coming out of the White House, so the media are bored.

  105. Re:your teeth by maxume · · Score: 1

    There is good reason to believe that it was Harrison Ford.

    --
    Nerd rage is the funniest rage.
  106. Re:Space Madness! Camouflage? by clone53421 · · Score: 4, Informative

    Also, a relative of mine told me that around 1969 or 70 or so at night she and a friend were on the porch talking. A light source came down, low/tree-top, over the street, quietly. It was NOT like any aircraft or hobby toys of the time. It seemed to be observing them, or just hanging around, then it abruptly left.

    http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ball_lightning perhaps?

    --
    Alexander Peter Kristopeit bought his basement from his mommy for one dollar.
  107. Teasers by Rene+S.+Hollan · · Score: 2, Funny
    ...or that they'd be more choosy when trying to reveal themselves than to show themselves only to some moonshine-swigging hicks.

    So, how did you get here?

    I hitched a lift with a teaser.

    A what?

    A teaser. Spoiled rich kid with nothing better to do than to land on a planet no one's made contact with, in front of someone no one is going to believe, and strut up and down, making "beep beep" noises.

    (With apologies to the late Douglas Adams, or rather thanks to him, and apologies to his rapacious publishing house.)

    --
    In Liberty, Rene
  108. News? by BigBadBus · · Score: 1

    Dr.Mitchell's beliefs have been known about for years! He even participated in an ESP experiment (with Zener cards I think?) on the way to the moon.

  109. Ok, so /. doesn't want to believe... by CitznFish · · Score: 0

    But what if he is telling the truth? Why would he want to make this up? What benefit is he getting? Publicity is certainly not his objective here. Once the Aliens are revealed you'll all look like jack asses. ;)

    --
    'mmmmmmmmm.... forbidden donut'
  110. You people need to wake up... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    look, any of you who really don't believe aliens exist have no place to leave any comments on this matter as you obviously have no clue what you're talking about. understand that our universe is so vast that if you take all we've seen to far, from solar systems to galaxies to clusters to super-clusters, all we've seen so far even to the furthest reaches with the hubble telescope, the amount of the universe we've seen so far is a blade of grass compared to the earth. now consider how many planets there are in the universe and the probability of a series of events happening on them that would create life, it's virtually impossible for there to NOT be other life in the universe. now with how much other alien life there must be out there just out of sheer probability alone, naturally some of them would have learned how to bend space-time and are able to travel planet to planet with ease.

    now for the other uneducated comment some of you may be thinking... "why would the government cover it up?". think about it... what is the governments primary purpose supposed to be? keep the general public safe and UNDER CONTROL. imagine the mass hysteria it would create to let people know alien life not only exists, but has visited earth? you'd have all kinds of people doing all kinds of crazy sh*t because of it, and the government could very well lose it's control. you'd be looking at riots, suicides due to being unable to cope, people trying to catch the aliens and/or stealing their technology for personal gain, among countless other issues.

    what it comes down to is people who are dumb or gullible will believe there is or isn't aliens out of external influential factors and what suits their belief system most comfortably. the average joe for the most part writes off the countless sightings of VERY similar experiences over the centuries from numerous civilizations out of ignorance and lack of research. those are the same people who find it amusing to write witnesses off as nut-jobs, when in all actuality they're merely showing the more intelligent of our species they're either ignorant, uneducated, or just plain dumb. then, there's the very few well educated, intelligent, or just plain open-minded individuals who know enough to know that aliens MUST exist.

    yes, i'm sure some people are just looking for attention, but to write off entire civilizations who have texts, pictures, carvings, etc. of aliens that are extremely similar from all over the world throughout the ages is just pure idiocy.

  111. two recent claims by mmphosis · · Score: 1

    A group of airline employees insist they are in earnest, and they are upset that neither their bosses nor the government will take them seriously.

    A flying saucerlike object hovered low over O'Hare International Airport for several minutes before bolting through thick clouds with such intense energy that it left an eerie hole in overcast skies, said some United Airlines employees who observed the phenomenon.

    A Paul Hellyer, former Canadian defence minister says be believes advanced technology from extraterrestrial civilizations offers the best hope to "save our planet" from the perils of climate change.

    1. Re:two recent claims by Dunbal · · Score: 0, Flamebait

      Yeah and people will claim that a jew walked on water and came back from the dead. People claim all sorts of shit, really.

      --
      Seven puppies were harmed during the making of this post.
    2. Re:two recent claims by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Hellyer was the most shockingly incompetent Minister of National Defence Canada ever had. He introduced the accursed unification of the armed forces at the height of the cold war as a social engineering project, and clearly knew nothing about what makes a modern military work. By the time he was finished trashing their organization, the generals wouldn't give him the time of day, let alone brief him in on alien conspiracies.

  112. Re: "camouflage" by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    They DO use camouflage. That's why YOU can't see them, dim bulb.

  113. This is most certainly *not* Crackpottery by Qbertino · · Score: 2, Interesting

    This isn't crackpottery. It's most probably an ongoing NASA hoax. Especially the smart techie and science people like to do that kind of stuff. And they *do* do that kind of stuff. It's also aparently a good way of venting some of the pressure when working on complex problems. My parents both worked for NASA, so did my grandpa. My dad worked on the Space Shuttle Radar systems as an electronics engineer and my grandpa as an electronics engineer with Grumman on the Lunar Lander. My mother protocolled some of the Apollo missions recorded radio transmission and she can remember NASA astronauts describing artificial structures on the back side of the moon during a mission. And no, she is not senile or a crackpot. She actually still one of the smartest, brightest and educated people I know. And she's closing in on 70.
    Now other than this artificial structure thing actually being true, it is more probable that the astronauts and engineers have this little meme going on for a few decades now. Appling Rackhams Razor this is most probably the case. It would be interesting to know if it was Apollo 14 she protocolled. The timeframe (early 70ies) would fit.

    I've got two options: "Truth" and "Traditional NASA Family Meme/Hoax". Most of my money and all my pocket cash is on option two. ... Allthough, you never know.

    The NASA and contracter teams involved are probably pissing their pants laughing every time this kind of stuff makes it into the broad media.

    --
    We suffer more in our imagination than in reality. - Seneca
  114. Mavis Beacon... by Shaitan+Apistos · · Score: 1

    ..teaches tentacle typing?

  115. Smug stupidity abounds too by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    This is considered insightful? Perhaps an insight to the posters ignorance and hubris.

    There is no question that adverse reactions from vaccines include things like neurodevelopmental disorders. You can find this basic fact on the package insert for most vaccines.

    Ever read one? Thought not.

    The proclaimed safety of vaccines is based upon five epidemiological studies conducted by those with the most vested of interests. Epidemiology is not science and cannot be used to establish causality in any event.

    Ever study epidemiology? Ever read these five studies? Thought not.

    All the actual *science* shows that indeed vaccines can be quite dangerous in a subset of the population with reactions including neurodevelopmental disorders (autism is a description of symptoms not a disease, btw).

    Ever study the toxicology of mercury, aluminum or fluoride? Ever take in course in immunology or microbiology? Thought not.

    So, in fact, like most you have no idea what you are even talking about, but the powers that be told you it is safe so you parrot away.

    Better perceived as a crackpot than an existence, in fact, as little more than a cargo cult positivist proudly proclaiming your programming.

    Good day.

  116. Conspiracy Theories by Randall311 · · Score: 1

    If you've ever worked with/for a government agency, it is absolutely absurd to think that a single government agency (let alone multiple government agencies) could pull of this kind of deception. People who buy into this shit are certifiable. IANAD, but it sounds like Dr Edgar Mitchell might be suffering from some form of dementia. Very sad indeed.

  117. so how many of you have seen a ufo by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    i have seen 1 and just one in my lifetime when i was 8 or 9 in iowa with my brother and i dont consider myself crazy nor have i ever been crazy

  118. Verne Troyer? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    "little people who look strange to us."

    So Verne Troyer is an alien!

  119. Ed Mitchell has been claiming this for many years by zullnero · · Score: 1

    I remember hearing a radio interview with him back in 1995 where he said pretty much the same thing. He's been saying it a lot longer than that, too. And now finally, after all these years, he makes /. The culmination of years of crackpot radio shows like Art Bell leads to this.

  120. Re: standard of living by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Is there really a long list of countries with such a better standard of living then the USA?

    Yes.

    http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/World%27s_Most_Livable_Cities

  121. Dumb Aliens? How dumb! by NicknamesAreStupid · · Score: 0

    It amazes me that people can assume incredible things then leave the context to make their vision so ridiculous. It is like Plato conceived of jet planes that can't land because he couldn't conceive of runways.
    If anything can manage to survive space and travel fast distances, why would they not be able to conceal themselves from us? They could be in our presence and, perhaps, even in our minds without our awareness of them. Is that such a stretch? Why would they be so advanced, so technically sophisticated, and yet be no more capable of spying than a predator drone or a button camera?
    We genetically engineer life forms, build robots the size of dragon flies, send machines to Pluto, and write about aliens that are far far far more advanced. Then, we assume they are going to reveal themselves either through error or naive intent. Something is wrong with that kind of myopic thinking.
    It may just be that people cannot live with the idea that we are being observed and have no way of detecting it. Perhaps, being that naked and ignorant is too disturbing to talk about.

  122. Time Bandits? by Helmholtz · · Score: 1

    I thought all the 'little people who look strange to us' were just Time Bandits. ;)

    --
    RFC2119
  123. Re:Why would E.T. visit our backwards little plane by arkarumba · · Score: 1

    Once a culture starts playing with atomics, a certain amount of oversight is required. So far this has only required a light touch, and you are mostly responding well to responsible use of your technology advances. Keep up the good work.

  124. Oh yeah... by DustoneGT · · Score: 1

    I'll see your fake lunar landing and raise you one 9/11 conspiracy theory. Maybe UBL was an alien agent.

  125. s/Cooper/Mitchell/g -nt by maynard · · Score: 1

    Ten minutes per comment? Fuck off /.

  126. Just like John McCain... by drc003 · · Score: 0, Flamebait

    ...he is simply old and confused. Just like John McCain we can appreciate what he has done in the past without giving any credence to his crazy ramblings of the present.

    1. Re:Just like John McCain... by drc003 · · Score: 1

      Aw, it looks like I hurt the sensitive senile crowd where it hurts. I'm sorry if I have offended those of you who are full of ignorance and hate. It looks like your 8 year run of fear mongering is coming to an end. My bad.

  127. You're mixing up by sconeu · · Score: 1

    Ender's Game and logic.

    You meant Ockham's Razor.

    --
    General Relativity: Space-time tells matter where to go; Matter tells space-time what shape to be.
  128. So is he senile or a liar? by Moralpanic · · Score: 1

    Because that's what it comes down to. He claims to have been briefed on it, and claims to know of people who have actually seen it. So is he just senile and his brain is such mushed these days that he can't distinguish his life and career from the media and movies, or he's straight out lying for some odd reason.

  129. The hole in every "I met aliens" story by RexDevious · · Score: 1

    Think about it. If you were a species intelligent enough to invent faster than light speed travel (or patient enough to put up with the alternative), would you want to meet:

    1. The government, farmers, and the occasional astronaut.
    2. Puppies and Super-models*.

    So when Jessica Alba or Knut the Polar bear cub says they met an alien, *then* I'll start paying attention.

    *Hot as she is, I imagine they'd try to duck Angelina Jolie - for fear of being adopted and paraded around Kenya in a diaper or something.

    1. Re:The hole in every "I met aliens" story by ColdWetDog · · Score: 1

      Knut the Polar bear cub says they met an alien, *then* I'll start paying attention.

      If 'Knut the Polar Bear' cub says anything then I'll pay attention. Until then, I'm going to roll back over, take a nap and let the rest of you wing nuts continue this discussion.

      Oh and where is Mr. Electric Fluid when we need him?

      --
      Faster! Faster! Faster would be better!
  130. Actually.... by crhylove · · Score: 0

    The government's fairly blatant cover-up of 9/11 is pretty horrific. Compared to their complicity and subsequent cover-up of JFK's assassination, they've done what can only be described as a piss-poor job.

    Besides the fact that the demolitions were completely obvious, and the presence of molten steel for weeks afterward completely indicates incendiaries, the put-options and stock market chicanery are well well documented, and the owner of the buildings was even quoted directly, "I was talking to the fire Marshall, and I said, 'We've had such a terrible loss of life, maybe the best idea is just to pull it.' So that's what we did, we made the decision to pull." Pull being a well known demolition term meaning "Bring the building down", and then watching video of the WTC7 coming down... combined with the fact that news sources including the BBC somehow knew it was going to collapse ahead of time..

    At the very least there is clearly complicity and fore-knowledge and a cover up regarding WTC7. It doesn't really stand to reason that the other rather incredible demolitions weren't also therefore connected, especially given that Marvin Bush, a well known and well connected criminal was in charge of security for the weeks up to September 11th.

    Did you really want to stick your foot in your mouth and talk about 9/11 in some kind of discrediting tone and look like a jack-ass? Or were you just being a shill for some corporate entity?

    --
    I hold very few opinions. I hold information based on observation and fact. If you wish to disagree, please use facts.
    1. Re:Actually.... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1, Insightful

      Besides the fact that the demolitions were completely obvious,

      Only to people who haven't bothered to seriously examine films of real demolitions and compare their features with film of the 9/11 events.

      and the presence of molten steel for weeks afterward completely indicates incendiaries,

      1. There was no molten steel for weeks afterwards. This is a lie spread by the 9/11 conspiracy theory movement. The fire was hot enough to melt aluminum, and also hot enough to severely weaken exposed structural steel, but it was not hot enough to actually melt steel.

      2. If there was molten metal of any type, how would that prove incendiaries? Incendiaries are small devices which ignite fires in other material. Even if we assume that fires on 9/11 were started by incendiaries, the incendiaries themselves would not be responsible for the heat required to melt any molten metal found in the ruins; rather, the burning of fuel ignited by incendiaries would be responsible for that, meaning that the metal would be molten regardless of the origin of the fire. But we do not need incendiaries to explain why fires started on 9/11 because GIANT AIRLINERS CRASHED INTO WTC 1 AND WTC 2, DUMBASS.

      the put-options and stock market chicanery are well well documented,

      And have been shown to be ordinary stock market transactions, not chicanery. Once more, you believe lies spread by the troothers. The entire 9/11 'truth' movement is a farce.

      and the owner of the buildings was even quoted directly, "I was talking to the fire Marshall, and I said, 'We've had such a terrible loss of life, maybe the best idea is just to pull it.' So that's what we did, we made the decision to pull."

      You are repeating a conspirawacko-edited version of the quote designed to make it sound more suspicious. Please see this link for an accurate transcription of the quote:

      http://wtc7lies.googlepages.com/larrysilverstein's%22pullit%22quote

      "I remember getting a call from the fire department commander, telling me that they were not sure they were gonna be able to contain the fire, and I said, 'We've had such terrible loss of life, maybe the smartest thing to do is pull it.' And they made that decision to pull and then we watched the building collapse."

      Note that 'THEY' (as in the fire department) made the decision. Not Larry Silverstein. And in this context 'pull' clearly means 'pull out', as in get firefighting personnel out, stop all efforts to fight the fire, and just let the building collapse, rather than kill more firemen in a lost cause.

      Pull being a well known demolition term meaning "Bring the building down",

      More conspiracy loon BS. See:

      http://wtc7lies.googlepages.com/is%22pullusedbydemolitionsprostomean%22demol

      and then watching video of the WTC7 coming down... combined with the fact that news sources including the BBC somehow knew it was going to collapse ahead of time..

      Yet another carbon copy conspiracy loon lie. Seriously, every last one of these supposedly damning points has been debunked years ago, yet you assholes keep repeating them again and again and again. I've seen them brought up and shot down dozens of times at the JREF message boards (www.randi.org, but the message boards seem to be down at the moment). If you want the answer to this one, search the JREF forums once they're up, or browse the wtc7lies site (I'm sure he's covered it somewhere in there, he demolishes all the standard WTC 7 talking points).

      At the very least there is clearly complicity and fore-knowledge and a cover up regarding WTC7.

      No, there isn't.

      It doesn't really stand to reason that the other rather incre

  131. Not big news. by katakomb · · Score: 3, Interesting

    As others have noted, plenty of astronauts have views that don't seem consistent with their backgrounds. For example, Jim Irwin's (Apollo 15, 8th human on the Moon) post-NASA life was focused in large part on trying to find Noah's Ark. The fact is: 1) smart people aren't immune to having views inconsistent with basic logic or common sense; and 2) many astronauts are not trained as scientists.

  132. Ed Mitchell is as credible IN THIS as... by VoxMagis · · Score: 1

    Ed Mitchell was conducting para-normal experiments on his own on the way to the moon.

    He has been an avid supporter of the supernatural and other concepts forever.

    Now - that doesn't mean I think he's some complete nutbag or something - I just say that I can't accept his statements without bias, just like I couldn't accept a Priest discussing heaven and hell without bias. It doesn't matter what I believe, or what he does - it's just a matter of perspective.

    http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Edgar_Mitchell

    --
    -- I really need to bleed off some of this /. karma.
  133. Re:Space Madness! Camouflage? by davidsyes · · Score: 1

    Mod up!

    That's interesting. We (i) learn something new every day!

    But, please don't weaken my hopes for ETs out there to arrive to Earth, hehehe.... I need something more powerful and respectable to look up to...

    --
    Previously: "Linux... Toward the Sunrise..." Now: "Linux... Toward the-- No, now, part of Every Sunrise"
  134. I have long maintainted that by Yungoe · · Score: 1

    These cover-up stories and conspiracy theories are actually released by the military as a distraction. The objective is to get people with wild imaginations and too much time on their hands to think "Stealth bomber my ass, It's aliens. ALIENS I TELLS YA."

  135. longest moon walker, no coincidence by monkeySauce · · Score: 1

    Dr Mitchell, along with with Apollo 14 commander Alan Shepard, holds the record for the longest ever moon walk, at nine hours and 17 minutes following their 1971 mission.

    Uh oh. I hope they've since improved the radiation shielding on those spacesuits.

  136. Demon haunted world by b0b0tiken · · Score: 4, Informative

    Someone on slashdot recommended a good book which debunks these myths and tries to explain why people believe them. It also argues why science is important in our society and the risks of having people making decisions without truly understanding the issues at hand. Unfortunately, there are people in politics for example believing in UFOs, satanism, intelligent design, etc etc. There is nothing more healthy for a society than a good dose of skepticism. The book is called "The Demon-haunted World: Science as a Candle in the Dark" by Carl Sagan.

    1. Re:Demon haunted world by StarfishOne · · Score: 1

      Mods, please forgive me for double posting the list of names.

      The reason that I do this that, if the following people are hallucinating, we do have a significant problem recruiting and selecting people who command nuclear installations, aircraft carriers and so on.

      Now if the following people are seeing things, often together with dozens of other people at their locations is one thing.

      If SAC people start seeing things visually, and on radar, and at the same time all 10 missile missile silo's shutdown, while each is equipped with a triple redundant power system, you can tell there's something really really odd going on.

      All the more if another base 50 miles further sees the same thing and experiences the same technological failures.

      People here working with high-availability and high-reliability can surely appreciate that I'd say..

      If both people and machines are hallucinating on that level and on this scale, I'm surprised that we are still alive at all!

      Source: http://www.disclosureproject.org/aboutexecsumm.htm [disclosureproject.org]

      -----------------

      Testimony that Explains the Secrecy

      Merle Shane McDow: US Navy Atlantic Command; Lt. Col. Charles Brown: US Air Force (Ret.); "Dr. B"; Lance Corporal Jonathan Weygandt: US Marine Corps; Maj. George A. Filer, III: US Air Force (Ret.); Nick Pope: British Ministry of Defense Official; Larry Warren: US Air Force, Security Officer; Sgt. Clifford Stone: US Army; Master Sgt. Dan Morris: US Air Force, NRO Operative; A.H.: Boeing Aerospace Employee; Officer Alan Godfrey: British Police; Sgt. Karl Wolf: US Air Force; Ms. Donna Hare: NASA Employee; Mr. John Maynard: DIA Official; Dr. Robert Wood: McDonnell Douglas Aerospace Engineer; Glen Dennis: NM UFO Crash Witness; Sgt. Leonard Pretko: US Air Force; Dr. Roberto Pinotti: Italian UFO expert; Dr. Paul Czysz: McDonnell Douglas Career Engineer; Astronaut Edgar Mitchell; John Callahan: FAA Head of Accidents and Investigations; Michael Smith: US Air Force Radar Controller; Franklin Carter: US Navy Radar Technician; Neil Daniels: United Airlines Pilot; Lt. Frederick Fox: US Navy Pilot; Captain Robert Salas: US Air Force, SAC Launch Controller; Prof. Robert Jacobs: US Air Force; Harry Allen Jordan: US Navy; James Kopf: US Navy Crypto Communications

      Witness Testimony Overview

      Astronaut Edgar Mitchell: May 1998; Monsignor Corrado Balducci: September 2000

      Radar and Pilot Cases

      FAA Division Chief John Callahan; Sgt. Chuck Sorrells: US Air Force (ret.); Mr. Michael W. Smith: US Air Force; Commander Graham Bethune: US Navy (ret.); Mr. Enrique Kolbeck: Senior Air Traffic Controller; Dr. Richard Haines; Mr. Franklin Carter: US Navy; Neil Daniels: Airline Pilot; Sgt. Robert Blazina (ret.); Lieutenant Frederick Marshall Fox: US Navy (ret.); Captain Massimo Poggi; Lt. Bob Walker: US Army; Mr. Don Bockelman: US Army

      SAC/Nuke

      Captain Robert Salas; Professor Robert Jacobs: Lt. US Air Force; Lt. Colonel Dwynne Arneson: US Air Force (ret.); Colonel Ross Dedrickson: US Air Force/AEC (ret.); Harry Allen Jordan: US Navy; Mr. James Kopf: US Navy/ National Security Agency; Lieutenant Colonel Joe Wojtecki, US Air Force; Staff Sergeant Stoney Campbell: US Air Force

      Government Insiders/ NASA/ Deep Insiders

      Astronaut Gordon Cooper; Merle Shane McDow: US Navy Atlantic Command; Lieutenant Colonel Charles Brown: US Air Force (ret.); Dr. Carol Rosin; ÃoeDr. B.Ã; Lance Corporal John Weygandt: U.S. Marine Corps; Major A. Filer III: U.S. Air Force; Mr. Nick Pope: British Ministry Of Defense; Admiral Lord Hill-Norton: Five-Star Admiral, Former Head of the British Ministry of Defense; Security Officer Larry Warren: United States Air Force; Captain Lori Rehfeldt; Sergeant Clifford Stone: United States Army; Major-General Vasily Alexeyev: Russian Air Force; Master Sergeant Dan Morris: US Air Force/NRO Operative (ret.); Mr. Don Phillips: Lockheed Skunkworks, USAF, and CIA Contractor; Captain

    2. Re:Demon haunted world by khallow · · Score: 1

      This is the kind of garbage that passes for proof of UFOs. Here's my take. A lot of funny stuff happened during the Cold War. A lot can't be explained because it's still secret or because little evidence was gathered. But any case where sufficient evidence was gathered turns out to be explainable by mundane phenomena. There's never been definitive proof of the existence of extra-terrestrials or the vehicles they'd need to move around. This is basically the same situation as say, intelligent design. The confusion is in thinking that absence of evidence is the same as evidence of UFOs.

    3. Re:Demon haunted world by StarfishOne · · Score: 1

      Oh this is not garbage, but not definite proof either.

      These highly trained people who often had high security clearances do tell very interesting stories about hundreds of people at an air force base seeing very unusual objects both visually and on radar. And they often have the material to proof it.

      And they all want to tell their stories under _oath_ before Congress. Lying before Congress equals 15 years in jail.. do you really think that these people are kidding? that they really haven't thought about this issue very long and hard? They're risking their reputation, careers, etc.

      I know a lot of 'funny' stuff happened in e.g. The Cold Ware, but do not forget that the UFO phenomenon displays performance levels that are not a tiny bit better than what he have, but _magnitudes_ better. It's like they have taken the US Air Force motto of "No one comes close" and are making fun of it at every encounter.

      I'm not saying these things are vehicles of green men, or grey or whatever.. I am saying that there's enough proof that UFOs are real.

      And the U does stand for 'unidentified', so I'm not saying 'flying saucer', 'vehicle', etc.. I'm saying _something_ is doing amazing things in the air, under water and in orbit and the people above are thinking the same thing.

    4. Re:Demon haunted world by khallow · · Score: 1

      Two things to note here. First, you claim you both have and don't have definite proof. I lean towards the latter since there's no actual physical evidence. Second, stories do not equal proof. Sure you'd expect to hear stories like this, if there were flying saucers out there. But you'd also expect to hear stories like this, if there weren't flying saucers. The testimony isn't in itself enough to distinguish between the two states.

    5. Re:Demon haunted world by CAIMLAS · · Score: 1

      It's kind of funny you mention a book by Carl Sagan while mentioning that skepticism is healthy for society. Carl Sagan, more so than any other public voice in science I think, is an avowed - even religious - atheist who is not likely to accept the existence of anyone or anything greater than himself.

      Having an atheist tell me "there is no god" or "there is no supernatural" is kind of like having trusting a restaurant owner to tell you where the best place to eat in town is.

      --
      ~/ssh slashdot.org ssh: connect to host slashdot.org port 22: too many beers
    6. Re:Demon haunted world by StarfishOne · · Score: 1

      But you'd also expect to hear stories like this, if there weren't flying saucers.

      The testimony isn't in itself enough to distinguish between the two states.

      Hmmm.. yes and no. I definitely understand your point but personally I would not expect stories like these from these kind of people. I know this still testimony, but they've got a lot to loose given their status, reputation, background, etc.

      Also, some of them do have material like RADAR logs, etc. which support their stories.

      Am I totally 100% convinced? Hmm, no.. but I am leaning towards it because, as I mentioned, these people are willing to testify under oath before Congress.. so I assume they have a pretty good case together.

      Let me also give it another perspective:

      If all these people testified against me in a court case for a serious crime, I am quite likely to get the death penalty. (assuming that's possible in the given state, etc. etc.)

      If it's good enough to rule over life and death, it's good enough for me to lean towards proof.

      Finally:

      I list names here, but there's some very intriguing physical evidence in the form of RADAR logs, but also e.g. radiation measurements made at locations where objects have supposedly landed.

      If one took the time to bring all the evidence together in a serious, scientific report, one can arrive at the point of having an extremely solid case.

      If I recall correctly from a few days ago, the following website had a nice collection of papers describing all kinds of evidence. I cannot get it to load at the moment, but here's the link:

      http://www.ufoevidence.org/

    7. Re:Demon haunted world by khallow · · Score: 1

      If one took the time to bring all the evidence together in a serious, scientific report, one can arrive at the point of having an extremely solid case.

      No. One would expect all of this even in the absence of interesting UFO phenomena. You need evidence that can distinguish between the "UFOs exist" hypothesis and the null hypothesis. For example, if there are aliens visiting Earth, you need to come up with the aliens.

    8. Re:Demon haunted world by StarfishOne · · Score: 1

      UFOs exist, by definition.

      I'm personally not saying that they are alien visitors, because UFO != alien spacecraft

      And there are some extremely solid cases of UFOs in our skies that are doing some extremely miraculous things. :)

  137. Aliens DO exist by phoenixwade · · Score: 1

    I see them all the time - In Orlando, they seem to try to blend in to the local community by hanging out at hotels, and dressing as housekeeping staff - one knocked on my door at a most inopportune time when I was there three weeks ago. Their English could be better, but their Spanish is flawless.

    --
    A positive attitude may not solve all your problems, but it will annoy enough people to make it worth the effort.
  138. Back to QED by jmichaelg · · Score: 1

    When Feynman talked about photons moving faster than c, I almost fell down the "how can that be?" hole he warned about at the beginning of the book.

    I missed the bit about electrons traveling faster than c when I read QED. I thought he was just talking about photons. Looks like it's time for a re-read.

    Completely offtopic. Did you ever get a sense as to how he explained attraction between electrons and protons? Reading his electron-electron diagrams, I got the sense that repulsion between electrons is momentum exchange as one electron coughs up a photon and the other absorbs it. That model doesn't explain why electrons are attracted to protons.

  139. Bipedal with two arms? by phorm · · Score: 1

    OK, but it seems to me that being "bipedal with two arms and skin" is a serious limitation.

    OK, to make tools, maybe they need something akin to a hand/arm. Maybe a complex trunk/tentacle will do too (or a hand with tentacles instead of fingers), but let's say for the sake of arguement that a hand is necessary. OK, so why only two? Why does the only other intelligent race we meet have the same basic physiology as us, instead of having something more useful such as more limbs, or armored skin, etc?

    1. Re:Bipedal with two arms? by Grishnakh · · Score: 1

      Why does the only other intelligent race we meet have the same basic physiology as us, instead of having something more useful such as more limbs, or armored skin, etc?

      Maybe it's more optimal. More than two arms would require more energy, and they could get in the way, while not providing that much extra benefit. Honestly, if you had four arms, how often would you actually use the extra two? Armored skin sounds handy, but it might have some disadvantages too, like poor thermal transfer, higher energy requirements, extra weight, etc. I'm just guessing.

    2. Re:Bipedal with two arms? by meringuoid · · Score: 1
      Honestly, if you had four arms, how often would you actually use the extra two?

      I'd probably use them all frequently. Remember, our civilisation and all our technology is designed for creatures with two arms. If we had four, we'd have different designs for keyboards and for the controls of our vehicles, and those designs would be a lot more efficient than our current ones; the four-armed society might make similar interfaces to ours, but they'd be specialised ones for the disabled.

      --
      Real Daleks don't climb stairs - they level the building.
    3. Re:Bipedal with two arms? by sm62704 · · Score: 1

      I can't tell how many times I've wished for an extra arm! Like right now, I have "mouse elbow" from moving my right hand from mouse to keyboard and back. If I had four arme I could type, mouse, and drink coffee at the same time.

      As it is it's hard to tie a ribbon to a box without having someone put their finger on the knot for you.

      --
      mcgrew's razor: Never attribute to stupidity that which can be explained by greedy self-interest
    4. Re:Bipedal with two arms? by phorm · · Score: 1

      Yup. There may be a particular reason that two arms are somewhat optimal. But then again, why not have arms/legs more interchangeable, with just four arms, and the feet replacements being usable both for mobility or appendages as needed (monkeys make quite a lot of use of feet sometimes).

      For that matter, while most humans tend not to have tails, vestigial tails aren't that uncommon, and they seem like they could be rather useful in many cases...

  140. Re:Why would E.T. visit our backwards little plane by geekoid · · Score: 2, Funny

    "I doubt they would be running Windows on the mothership). "

    All thr problems with ID4, and people keep talking about the one thing that was plausible as if it couldn't happen.

    I think after 60 years of studying their technology we might have learned a thing or two.

    --
    The Kruger Dunning explains most post on /. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dunning%E2%80%93Kruger_effect
  141. Some civ has to be the first... by parabyte · · Score: 4, Insightful

    Although improbable, there has to be a first civilization in our galaxy, and maybe we are the most advanced life form in our galaxy so far. Regarding the age of the universe, it is possible, because the matter of the solar system had to go through 2 or 3 supernovae before having enough high period elements, and it took the universe about 5 billion years alone to create us since our planet was created, which is more than a third of the age of the universe.

    This leaves us with a number of possibilities:

    - we are the first
    - intelligent life is very rare or very fragile and volatile in our universe
    - the guy is right and they are already here and among us (maybe they are criminals hiding on a primitive planet)
    - interstellar distances are simply to big to be overcome, or no one wants to pay for the energy
    - evil alien predators are already on their way to blow us out of the sky before we become serious competitors
    - we live in a zoo and are just being watched
    - everything is just a big illusion, and our reality is only virtual

    p.

    --
    Without order, nothing can exist. Without chaos, nothing can be created.
    1. Re:Some civ has to be the first... by Omestes · · Score: 1

      - the guy is right and they are already here and among us (maybe they are criminals hiding on a primitive planet)

      Oh god, we're Interstellar Australia...

      --
      A patriot must always be ready to defend his country against his government. -edward abbey
    2. Re:Some civ has to be the first... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      It is also possible that the aliens are time travellers from the past.
      Imagine, if life evolved in the 5 billion years since Earth formed, There could have been a civilization before, technologically more advanced than we are now.

      Perhaps they had detected some extinction class cosmic event like a large gamma burst or a large asteroid coming their way.
      Imagine that they lacked resources to save their civilization and move to another planet. So instead they sent a few spaceships out to speeds close to the speed of light. Using time dialation effects, the Earth would hopefully have recovered on their journey back, and they can repopulate the planet with the few being they have sent.

      But they found that it's already been repopulated after their arrival. Their claim to the planet ururped by 2 legged hairy creatures. There is no where else to go, they can only study us, who may become the new masters of the planet. Perhaps they decide to probe a few of us, to see if they can mix their genetic material into the new beings so that their legacy will not be lost forever.

    3. Re:Some civ has to be the first... by terjeber · · Score: 1

      - we are the first

      Improbable enough to dismiss out of hand.

      - intelligent life is very rare or very fragile and volatile in our universe

      Depends on what you mean by rare and fragile. It isn't that fragile compared to many other things, but to something like a gamma ray burst it is fragile. I would say that it is seems plausible that life and intelligent life is not only possible, it might be incredibly common. It is just that on regular intervals the universe hiccups and kills all life in huge areas, for example, like all life in a galaxy. This happens on such regular intervals that no species will ever exist long enough to conquer a galaxy. Our conquering of our near-planet space is probably also relatively rare. The Milky Way has been nice and quiet for an unusually long time.

      - the guy is right and they are already here and among us (maybe they are criminals hiding on a primitive planet)

      Improbable. In fact more so than the possibility of this guy having Alzheimer's.

      - interstellar distances are simply to big to be overcome, or no one wants to pay for the energy

      Doesn't seem likely. We can do some temporary cost analysis, and the cost isn't prohibitive in any way. Well, not for a civilization a little more advanced than ours any way. It seems reasonable that we will advance just a little more, and that if we are left alone we will probably conquer interstellar space. And then the black hole at the center of our galaxy wakes up. Does a minor Hiccup and goes back to bed. That hiccup sterilizes or galaxy though, tearing all organic molecules apart. Oooops. Sorry. Indigestion. Just swallowed a couple of neutron stars and didn't have any antacid close by. Sorry.

      - evil alien predators are already on their way to blow us out of the sky before we become serious competitors

      Improbable. All experience show that competitive cooperation is more profitable then warfare. It seems unreasonable to assume that a space faring civilization with interstellar capabilities has not discovered this.

      - we live in a zoo and are just being watched

      A definite possibility, but again, this seems a little less likely. The cost of such an operation (big "blanket" around our observation space) probably would be cost prohibitive. If we are in such a zoo, this would not be the only or the first, so the cost of doing this would be astronomical, even considering the size and the resources of the Universe with a reasonable assumption about resource utilization.

      - everything is just a big illusion, and our reality is only virtual

      Irrelevant. We have to deal with reality as we see and experience it.

    4. Re:Some civ has to be the first... by gboss · · Score: 1

      - the guy is right and they are already here and among us (maybe they are criminals hiding on a primitive planet)

      What if we are all the descendants of telephone sanitizers sent to Earth and that we are extra terrestrial beings ourselves?

    5. Re:Some civ has to be the first... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      You basically just outlined Fermi's Paradox, and a number of potential solutions to it.

      On the "evil alien predators are already on their way" one, what if that's true, and in fact entirely automated? What if the galaxy is full of automated, self-replicating drones that home in on signals and destroy the planets of origin?

      If we assume that for a sufficiently advanced civilization, destroying a planetary civilization is relatively easy, then the only defense is stealth. That could explain why we don't live in a galaxy bustling with interstellar comm traffic...

    6. Re:Some civ has to be the first... by parabyte · · Score: 1

      - we are the first

      Improbable enough to dismiss out of hand.

      According to http://arxiv.org/abs/astro-ph/0012399, the average earth in the universe is just 1.8 +/- 0.9 billion years older than our earth, which means that other earth-like planets have just a few billion years more to evolve, and while it took five billion years to create intelligent life on our earth, we can not tell whether this is a long or short time compared to other planets. There may be some special factors like our moon that could have accelerated this process, so it might be possible that planets without massive moons take 10 billion years to develop intelligent life.

      I am not saying that this is very probable, but I think it is not "improbable enough to dismiss out of hand". If we were first in our galaxy, it would be indeed surprising, but it would be also a funny explanation for our situation.

      You can also not take for granted that even if there is intelligent life, an industrial revolution will take place, and we do not know yet whether it is sustainable long enough to evolve sustainable space colonization.

      - interstellar distances are simply to big to be overcome, or no one wants to pay for the energy

      Doesn't seem likely. We can do some temporary cost analysis, and the cost isn't prohibitive in any way. Well, not for a civilization a little more advanced than ours any way. It seems reasonable that we will advance just a little more, and that if we are left alone we will probably conquer interstellar space. And then the black hole at the center of our galaxy wakes up. Does a minor Hiccup and goes back to bed. That hiccup sterilizes or galaxy though, tearing all organic molecules apart. Oooops. Sorry. Indigestion. Just swallowed a couple of neutron stars and didn't have any antacid close by. Sorry.

      According to my own calculations, to accelerate a 600.000 ton spaceship (including fuel) to near light speed and decelerate, you need to turn about 400.000 tons of its mass into kinetic energy. A small robotic probe of course might be much cheaper, and travelling in a small craft in a hibernated state also might be the better option, but I would not want to travel in a conscient state for years in a structure that is smaller than a large ocean cruiser.

      I agree that the cost is not prohibitive if we find a more efficient way to turn mass into energy than fusion or fission, like antimatter annihilation, but without the need of putting 400.000 tons of antimatter into our gas tank. (I think there would be a law against bringing substantial amounts of antimatter into a solar system.) However, I can envision a process where matter is heated to early big-bang temperatures and turned into a quark-gluon plasma, that will exhibit almost total matter-antimatter annihilation on cool-down. (Baryogenesis and Leptogenesis) We may however have some containment problems with our "reaction chamber" here, requiring some more "breakthrough technology".

      Although this might be possible in theory, we do not know if this ever will be possible in practice, here or in any other solar system.

      Btw, I do not believe that FTL-travel ever will be possible, all our knowledge speaks against it.

      - evil alien predators are already on their way to blow us out of the sky before we become serious competitors

      Improbable. All experience show that competitive cooperation is more profitable then warfare. It seems unreasonable to assume that a space faring civilization with interstellar capabilities has not discovered this.

      I wish this would be true, but my experience and knowledge of history indicates otherwise. The industrial revolution happened in Europe not because of competitive cooperation, it was driven by four hundred year

      --
      Without order, nothing can exist. Without chaos, nothing can be created.
  142. ET Life by hackus · · Score: 3, Insightful

    Oh really now.

    Does anyone here find this all that surprising?

    The odds are other life does exist, get over it.

    Not only that, I bet they are better than we are, absolutely laugh at our television broadcasts of our "top" scientists BY DECREE, telling us that the distances between blah blah blah and that is totally impossible to cross such distances....blah blah blah....

    Really lets put this in perspective.

    In less than 120 years, we went from Orville and Co, to the moon.

    Our basic understanding of the very structure of the universe and the forces and materials of things go together is infantile at best.

    I mean, we have no concept of what gravity is, although we know enough to describe it and how it acts on objects.

    We have no clue about the various types of materials the universe is made out of or their properties. I mean dark energy, matter etc have practically just been discovered for example.

    Now take a sentient being other than humans, and instead of 150 years to figure out how to travel in space, give them say an extra million years. Even, dare I say a BILLION years of time.

    Point is, you no longer have just ET's, you have gods with a small g walking around up there.

    If we can do this rate of advance in just 150 years, imagine what ET's could have done with a billion years.

    What is possible would be pretty much fantasy to us.

    If there are ET's and Earth is not a rare occurrence, they must be all over the place.

    I bet we are just the ants in their backyards. :-)

    -Hack

    PS: I hope there is something better than humans out there. We suck.

    --
    Got Geometrodynamics? Awe, too hard to figure out? Too bad.
    1. Re:ET Life by swordgeek · · Score: 1

      "In less than 120 years, we went from Orville and Co, to the moon."

      Actually, less than 70 years, which just strengthens your point.

      Now if we declare that advanced life needs earth-like conditions to form, and decide that earth-like planets are exceedingly rare in the universe, we still have an almost limitless number of planets which could potentially form sentient life, given enough time--and as you've pointed out, we've had enough time!

      The odds are pretty good that there is or has been life out there. However, the question of contact is another thing altogether. We've got theories on why they haven't contacted earth in a way which would circumvent the conspiracy-keeping governments, but it's at least possible (and even likely) that we don't have any contact with aliens. Is the distance too great, are we being quarantined, does life burn itself out at a certain point, are we the first, are we alone, or is it just bad luck?

      I'm pretty sure there is (or was) life out there, but I'm rather doubtful about claims of contact with them so far. Also, Mitchell is hardly a reliable source for such claims--take a look at his post-NASA background.

      --

      "People who do stupid things with hazardous materials often die." -- Jim Davidson on alt.folklore.urban
    2. Re:ET Life by StarfishOne · · Score: 1

      Indeed:

      Scientific and technological progress are NOT linear! :)

    3. Re:ET Life by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      WELL PUT

      (pardon the caps)

    4. Re:ET Life by CAIMLAS · · Score: 1

      I think the point is that, if we have to give them 150 billion years to have developed their shit, we have to likewise give ourselves that long to have gotten where we have. It took us a LONG time to get from eating raw meat we killed as a pack, to hunting and farming with steel/iron tools, to flight.

      And what's to say our early developmental stages were not extraordinarily short, from a universal perspective? Maybe most planets out there with life have two, three, maybe four dominant species, and we were just fortunate (and hostile enough) to become the sole dominant species. Multiple dominant species would certainly hamper development, and if we developed fast, what's to say that these other species are not still hunting giant borag frogs with sticks and stones?

      --
      ~/ssh slashdot.org ssh: connect to host slashdot.org port 22: too many beers
  143. His comments are beautiful though by snowwrestler · · Score: 1

    Just saw the movie "In the Shadow of the Moon," and his comments about this experience struck me as very poetic and beautiful. It brought home the power of the experience in a way that the engineering speak did not. And I'm not a religious or even really spiritual guy. But I do experience a sense of wonder sometimes, and he invoked it.

    There's a moving scene where they show the TLI burn from the perspective of the stage left behind in orbit (it had a camera mounted in it). It's just a single long shot with music and the radio traffic overlayed. Great movie.

    --
    Build a man a fire, he's warm for one night. Set him on fire, and he's warm for the rest of his life.
  144. Re:totally off topic, but - by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    At least he had the good sense to respond as an AC.

  145. Comment removed by account_deleted · · Score: 1

    Comment removed based on user account deletion

  146. Kucinich? by ClientNine · · Score: 1

    Whomever tagged this Kucinich is my hero forever. Genius, that. I'm still laughing....

  147. Um... X Files Viral... by barfy · · Score: 3, Interesting

    Odd story... Is there a movie coming out that is sort of based on the story...

    VIRAL!

  148. what a sad non news item by pretygrrl · · Score: 1

    this story is sad. poor guy has obviously lost his marbles. unfortunately, 77 yrs old will do that, even to the most accomplished human (clearly, as is the case here)
    there are about 1,000 ways from here to sunday that suggest there must be intelligent, communicating life out there somewhere. I'm talking about life just like us. why? Cause we dont care about intelligent viruses. we only care about life just. like. us.
    ufo's and alien visitations however are a completely different topic. if you are asking me to belive in ufos, you are in effect asking me to believe in the most wide-ranging, far reaching successful conspiracy of all time.
    its not just governments that are looking up at the sky.
    its not just evil NSA or NASA, for that matter, that have radar, telescopes, etc.
    asking me to believe in ufos is like asking me to believe in santa: no i can't prove that santa don't exist. i CAN however prove that not a single piece of scientific evidence exists that suggests a santa.
    so, UFOs are silly, visitations are silly, but Drake equation suggests many many intelligent communicating species in Milky Way. Thousands, even under the most conservative assumptions.
    http://www.activemind.com/Mysterious/Topics/SETI/drake_equation.html

    --
    Contemplate the marvel that is existence, and rejoice that you are able to do so.
  149. Consperency Logic. by jellomizer · · Score: 1

    I say something exists any evidence to show my hypothesis is wrong must be because of the government. When asked the government they say no, but because it is a cover up so they will be lying and any answer other then no proves there is a cover up, if they do say Yes then it is proof of the original hypothesis. However the more they did and not find proof of their hypothesis so the size of the cover up is greater the further they dig as more and more people must be part of the cover up to keep all the evidence hidden.

    However Bill Clinton couldn't keep it secret that he had sexual relations with Monica Luinski. Is there something missing....

    --
    If something is so important that you feel the need to post it on the internet... It probably isn't that important.
  150. In America by bussdriver · · Score: 1

    In America, the public censors you (often with slander and stereotypes.)

    The old people I've known who remained mentally active continued to have great minds. Sadly, many were not all that active before retirement and have degraded further in old age so I can see where the perception comes from-- if you watch lots of TV you can see what shape you'll be in later.

    My 70 year old uncle is better shape than /. readers and still does carpentry. /. isn't often so rigid and close minded except when its some perceived threat to pop-science.

    1. Re:In America by jmpeax · · Score: 1

      I don't think being fearful of death has anything to do with a decline in mental ability. I just think it's proportional with age.

      Perhaps it's Mitchell's intelligence and sharpness that has caused his fear to manifest itself in the way it has. Instead of buying in to the fantastical didacticism of organised religion, the more rational, philosophical potential of the significance of extra-terrestrial life is perhaps more comforting to him.

  151. finally a sane comment! by whopub · · Score: 5, Funny

    You're absolutely right. It works the other way around too. If I saw a really hot female alien I'd want to probe her every hole too. And sci-fi is full of really hot alien chicks! If we get something like Spielberg's ET though, that's a different story. There's no hole there worth probing. But hey, his flat head and small height would probably make him perfect to hold the TV remote. No probing required.

    1. Re:finally a sane comment! by hairyfeet · · Score: 5, Interesting

      Nah,I think if they are out there that in all likelihood they are tourists. Which would also explain the not bothering to hide bit,as you want the animals to get closer to the vehicle for your paying customers so they can get a good look. And I imagine some little green pitchman is sitting in the front going "LOOK,look at the crazy monkeys! Look as they fight and kill each other for fluids that come out of the ground! Look as they poison themselves with their primitive machines and factories! For those that pay an extra 40 flurb we will actually catch a male and female monkey and you can poke at them! Get a close look at the strange creatures! Tell all your friends you got to poke a monkey!"

      And why would they bother hiding anyway? Would WE hide from a race that was stone knives and bearskins while we have F18s and nuclear powered aircraft carriers? While I'm sure some of our scientists would scream about contaminating the environment of a primitive peoples,most would be "Look at them! They are so silly looking! Can we get a souvenir?" Because when compared to any race that could travel across the universe at FTL speeds we would be the stone knives and bearskins. But as always this is my 02c,YMMV

      --
      ACs don't waste your time replying, your posts are never seen by me.
    2. Re:finally a sane comment! by Rob+Kaper · · Score: 2, Insightful

      Actually, tourists are the least likely candidate, because they would be proceeded by a significant amount of explorers first and entrepreneurs later. Let's suppose our race discovers to warp through the universe and gets to visit other planets.. you'd see local infrastructure long before any serious tourism and surveys long before investments in local infrastructure.

      We're just monkeys so they don't feel the need to hide, wouldn't you expect them to have built a nice resort for their tourists?

      If they did decide to hide, tourists would be the last aliens you'd see. Our system would be off-limits except for maybe with their governing body. Perhaps we'll meet some refugees or renegades, though.

      Even if there were tourism but we're not that popular (or one of too many options), we can be sure that there has never been an incident (such as a crash) for surely they'd storm in to investigate - without caring much if the monkeys notice.

      And seriously, since when are tourists the modest kind? Surely there would be at least one of them to ignore the "do not feed the animals/do not knock on the glass" signs to see our reaction. Most of our planet is not North Korea so if just one of them was craving our mass attention I'm sure they could come up with a few ideas that we couldn't possibly cover up.

      After all, unless they all believe in intelligent design, they should be intelligent enough to recognise where we are in evolution.

      The first aliens we'll meet are going to be explorers, just like our explorers will be the first to visit other star systems.

    3. Re:finally a sane comment! by __aaqvdr516 · · Score: 3, Informative

      And why would they bother hiding anyway? Would WE hide from a race that was stone knives and bearskins while we have F18s and nuclear powered aircraft carriers?

      The result of contact with an alien race could be devastating to our economics and, depending on the information they might share, potential disaster for religion as well.

      Another possibility is that they could be studying the evolution of our culture.

      For every good reason I can think of for them to reveal their presence (if they're here) there's just as good of a reason for them to remain hidden.

    4. Re:finally a sane comment! by crossmr · · Score: 1

      You assume other races would be reliant on some form of currency.
      Who knows what kind of technology they may have that might make the concept of commercialism and money irrelevant.

    5. Re:finally a sane comment! by Lord+Dreamshaper · · Score: 2, Interesting

      personally, I think we're not alone in the universe, but I doubt we've been found, and if we have, we wouldn't know about it; as mentioned above they'd be too advanced to be detected.

      But for argument's sake, the tourist theory would be a possibility: the many advance scouts/scientists/explorers, etc. wouldn't be detectable unless they chose to be seen, presumably in a manner too large to cover up.

      But what if that first, cautious/responsible wave is finished/bored with us? Now we're at the mercy of their equivalent of hick tourists; the kind that go to Paris, Rome, etc. and bitch about not finding a McDonalds or 7-11. How good are their village-idiots-on-vacation going to be at staying hidden from us?

      --
      When all of your wishes have been granted, many of your dreams will be destroyed - Marilyn Manson
    6. Re:finally a sane comment! by packeteer · · Score: 1

      Because when compared to any race that could travel across the universe at FTL speeds we would be the stone knives and bearskins. But as always this is my 02c,YMMV

      You are probably right but consider this; what if we invent FTL travel within our the next few years. Wouldn't that make an entirely different scale of possibility be worth mentioning? I think its safe that if we assume there are aliens (something which we have no direct evidance of) then it is safe to assume FTL travel is possible (something we also have no direct evidence of). So this leads me to think that if we invented FTL travel very soon we WOULD use it to explore and we would find life thats out there if it exists. We could narrow down some candidate planets quickly and find some monkeys with stone axes. If we found them we would surely take a close look.

      --
      unzip; strip; touch; finger; mount; fsck; more; yes; unmount; sleep
    7. Re:finally a sane comment! by rve · · Score: 1

      Your superior intellect is no match for our puny weapons!

    8. Re:finally a sane comment! by marklar1 · · Score: 1

      you must not be familiar with the Prime Directive.

    9. Re:finally a sane comment! by yashtulsyan · · Score: 1

      I know! Besides, brains and incompetence don't cross paths like this. They may just be clumsy, or are deliberately faking the crashes to be noticed! Either that, or some of them are just incompetent. Besides, people only like to know about UFO crashes. Maybe they landed, but no one paid attention! We should think about that, shouldn't we?

    10. Re:finally a sane comment! by Unipuma · · Score: 1

      But as always this is my 02c,YMMV

      How much flurb is 02c worth these days?

    11. Re:finally a sane comment! by somersault · · Score: 2, Interesting

      To find monkeys with stone axes, you'd have to find a planet with land and water mass.. which requires very specialised conditions. Any other planets capable of sustaining life would likely be water planets (it's currently assumed that our planet had a lot of atmosphere and land mass ejected when hit by a massive object, and the stuff that was ejected came together and formed our moon), and therefore it would be pretty difficult for the inhabitants to evolve to be able to develop even writing technology, nevermind intergalactic travel..

      Our planet is also protected from most asteroids by Jupiter and its massive gravity well - if we didn't have Jupiter then there would be much less chance of life being able to evolve on earth because we'd be getting hit by more interstellar objects..

      So basically the chances of other races with FTL travel is probably even more remote than you think. I'm not saying it's impossible, but it's pretty difficult. Maybe more likely is that there would be beings from another dimension (a la Indiana Jones :P )

      --
      which is totally what she said
    12. Re:finally a sane comment! by ZeroExistenZ · · Score: 4, Interesting

      you'd see local infrastructure long before any serious tourism and surveys long before investments in local infrastructure... We're just monkeys so they don't feel the need to hide, wouldn't you expect them to have built a nice resort for their tourists?

      Well, you have the ancient towns "visited by gods" or even run by them if you can believe certain archeologists (like Inca and Aztec golden cities).

      Surely there would be at least one of them to ignore the "do not feed the animals/do not knock on the glass" signs

      Sounds like some might've crossed "that fine line", if you take Nephilim as partial fact.

      since when are tourists the modest kind?

      Yea, those damn kids with graffiti everywhere! Nazca lines. Some literally seem to display "monkeys live here, don't bother."

      All taken with a large grain of salt, ofcourse ;)

      --
      I think we can keep recursing like this until someone returns 1
    13. Re:finally a sane comment! by somersault · · Score: 1

      He's got a board, with a nail in it! :s

      --
      which is totally what she said
    14. Re:finally a sane comment! by dodecalogue · · Score: 1

      could also be that they're not really hiding so much as we're still too young to see that we're developing in an agar?

    15. Re:finally a sane comment! by PachmanP · · Score: 1

      Why do you assume the explorer phase hasn't come and gone? Maybe they have the alien resort built up on Jupiter and going to earth is just a day trip for people with kids? Maybe in the 100 or so years that we've been rigorus enough that we'd care about demonstrating that there were aliens earth has been out of style so only old fuddy duddy aliens have been here recently?

      --
      You're thinking small. Why miniaturize the laser, when we could instead enlarge the sharks? -John Searle
    16. Re:finally a sane comment! by Lodragandraoidh · · Score: 1

      For those that pay an extra 40 flurb...

      Ostensibly any species that manages to control the resources of their solar system (implied by the ability to traverse interstellar space) would have long ago abandoned the use of money. Why do you need money, when the autofusinator can create it for you using molecules in your environment?

      --

      Lodragan Draoidh
      The more you explain it, the more I don't understand it. - Mark Twain
    17. Re:finally a sane comment! by bonehead · · Score: 1

      I just can't really envision a situation where you can do away with currency and/or barter.

      There are many reasons, but one of the simplest is this: Without a currency and economy, how do you provide motivation for the lazy people in the population to get off their asses and do something?

    18. Re:finally a sane comment! by bonehead · · Score: 1

      Why do you need money, when the autofusinator can create it for you using molecules in your environment?

      Because you still need a way to motivate people to get off their lazy asses and do something productive when they would really rather lounge on the beach and sip margaritas every day.

      A currency and economic system is about the only way I can think of to ensure this without resorting to slavery.

    19. Re:finally a sane comment! by Some_Llama · · Score: 1

      "So basically the chances of other races with FTL travel is probably even more remote than you think."

      I'm thinking better than 2 \ 1 billion x 1 billion

    20. Re:finally a sane comment! by Some_Llama · · Score: 1

      "Because you still need a way to motivate people to get off their lazy asses and do something productive when they would really rather lounge on the beach and sip margaritas every day."

      BUT even in our culture there are people who do what they do because they want to.. not because they need to... how many people have you heard of that came back to work because they were bored during retirement.. how many billionaires do you know of that just sit around sipping margaritas?

      The main reason for work is sustenance yes, but the driving force behind our technology/science is a constant desire to "know" or learn more.

    21. Re:finally a sane comment! by sjames · · Score: 1

      Actually, tourists are the least likely candidate, because they would be proceeded by a significant amount of explorers first and entrepreneurs later.

      Perhaps the more careful explorers came and went un-noticed centuries ago. The Roswell thing was just some idiots joyriding around. They recovered telemetry and determined the id10ts didn't perform proper maintenance. Then they lost interest.

      And seriously, since when are tourists the modest kind? Surely there would be at least one of them to ignore the "do not feed the animals/do not knock on the glass" signs to see our reaction. Most of our planet is not North Korea so if just one of them was craving our mass attention I'm sure they could come up with a few ideas that we couldn't possibly cover up.

      The primitive species tour company would never allow it. The tours lose that whole exotic feel if the monkeys expect to see them.

      From time to time, a tourist does get out of line (hence the few crazy stories of close encounters) but are quickly arrested.

      After all, unless they all believe in intelligent design, they should be intelligent enough to recognise where we are in evolution.

      Sure, but that doesn't matter. Everything's in evolution.

      Hey, as long as we're wildly speculating based on nearly no facts, why not have some fun with it?

    22. Re:finally a sane comment! by crossmr · · Score: 1

      You're thinking about human culture and motivation. Who knows what kinds of cultures and motivations an alien species might develop. Just because you can't imagine it doesn't mean another group of people can't.

    23. Re:finally a sane comment! by UnknownSoldier · · Score: 1

      > The result of contact with an alien race could be devastating to our economics and, depending on the information they might share, potential disaster for religion as well.

      Bring it on I say!! Its time to end the ignorance of Science, Politics, Economics and Religion. It time for humans to start growing up spiritually.

    24. Re:finally a sane comment! by Walter+Carver · · Score: 1

      Good reason for who? Them or us? If you mean good reason for them then they must be sympathetic to us.

  152. Senility by His+Shadow · · Score: 1

    It's not just for lifelong politicians anymore.

    --

    Fiat Homos et Pereat Theos

  153. A Serious answer by scorp1us · · Score: 1

    I hate to attempt to argue the point, but let me make a reasonably serious proposal:

    The number of worlds predicted by the Draic equation is 10 (depending on the numbers used). Given the universe is huge, we could be the nearest neighbor on this side of the galaxy. It is not impossible that even a sufficiently advanced race lacks the ability (engergy?) for practical inter-galactic space travel.

    --
    Slashdot's rate-of-post filter: Preventing you from posting too many great ideas at once.
  154. Comment removed by account_deleted · · Score: 1

    Comment removed based on user account deletion

  155. interesting by DRAGONWEEZEL · · Score: 1

    Move to W. Virginia, and stop paying the bills. There is no law requiring you to pay any of that. You could get your news from the local paper (what? 55 cents?) People could (gasp...) write you a letter, and if you wanted to get intouch w/ someone around the world, you could walk to a pay phone.

    I don't pay tele bills, I only use a cell phone. Seeing as we both use /. it looks like we need internet access but guess what? You could pick any one of those 3 and basically have the services that the other two provide.

    Broadband

    Cable internet, VOIP, and VOIP through VPN access to get it anywhere there is a computer w/ net.(2 of the 3 true)

    Telephone, Broadband via dsl, and a 2.4 ghz phone w/ high mounted antenna (K so not a cell but you can get decent coverage, I got 1/2 mile w/o trying.)

    And lastly

    Cell phone, internet, camera, and EVDO broadband modem rolled into 1 device as small as a chocolate bar.
    (But No coverage in W. Virginia)

    --
    How much is your data worth? Back it up now.
  156. Humans look strange to me and I'm human! by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Title says it all far as I'm concerned.

    Get Moose and Squirrel!

  157. Comment removed by account_deleted · · Score: 2, Informative

    Comment removed based on user account deletion

  158. Moondust? by yoma666 · · Score: 1

    Give me a sniff of that moondust! It seems like a real kick!

  159. EXCEPT . . . by mmell · · Score: 1
    The cable guy didn't have access to that sixty-odd years of government research.

    (Jeff Goldblum played either Jim Carrey or Larry - either way, the cable guy)

  160. Moon Landing by bussdriver · · Score: 1

    As somebody who knows a leading moon landing critic:

    As a government AND scientific organization, NASA has an assumption of guilt proof threshold. Its their job to prove everything scientifically and politically!

    These academics get kicks on messing with established BELIEF.

    MANY people have exploited the issue and by far MOST people misunderstand the exercise. Its good to get people to question such strongly held beliefs while not going overboard and throwing out the legitimate data.

    The legitimate questions raised DO NOT SAY WE NEVER LANDED ON THE MOON.

    FYI: Fox News did an experiment in gullibility long ago by creating a 'news' documentary on the moon landings heavily suggesting none of them happened. The results were so good they continued doing it on real issues-- like Iraq...

  161. Re:Why would E.T. visit our backwards little plane by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Unless they had the interstellar equivalent of a flat tire, why would they stop here?

    Which could be possible. Something similar to Star Trek: Voyager - (Off the top of my head and because it was on yesterday) The episode "Demon" - they had searched for anything remotely close that would have additional energy sources for them.

    Its very plausible that the aliens could have made that equivalent stop on Earth as the Voyager crew did in that episode.

  162. Re: Competently incompetent! by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    If government were truly competent, we wouldn't have semi-legitimate source leaks to believe little green men exist. Perhaps covert governmental operators are competent enough to use this incompetence as subterfuge to hide alien encounters in plain sight with witnesses that aren't perceived to be 100% believable. On the other hand, perhaps the entire government is so incompetent they can't effectively refute seemingly off-kilter beliefs that aliens regularly visit our leaders.

  163. Precise wording. by Kaptain+Kruton · · Score: 2, Insightful

    In a statement, a spokesman said: "NASA does not track UFOs. NASA is not involved in any sort of cover up about alien life on this planet or anywhere in the universe.

    Of course NASA isn't involved in that. INS division 6 handles extra-terrestrial contact.

    Anyways, am I the only one that found it odd that in each sentence he specifically state that NASA wasn't involved? He didn't say that the US government doesn't track or cover up such things. This leaves it open to any other group or department. The spokesperson did not flat out say NASA has not encountered any evidence of extra-terrestrial life forms visiting Earth. The closest thing he said is "we do not share his opinions on the issue." If I was wearing my tin-foil hat, I would say it is odd that in every other sentence he was very precise in stating that 'NASA' does not handle a particular activity or procedure, but in the last statement he is not as precise and says, "...we do not share his opinions on this issue." The word "we" could refer to different groups or sub-departments. What opinions are they referring to? If they are referring to the belief that they have visited several times, I would have to say that several is not a quantitative term and what I see as several, others would view as "many" or "a few." That is a difference in opinion. Oh well... maybe I should just take off my tinfoil hat now.

  164. Worshiping Sci-Fi authors... Slashdotters by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Tom Cruise worships L. Ron Hubbard.

    The worship of science fiction authors is nothing new here... just look at the relationship between hordes of Slashdotters and George Lucas

    1. Re:Worshiping Sci-Fi authors... Slashdotters by gknoy · · Score: 1

      The worship of science fiction authors is nothing new here... just look at the relationship between hordes of Slashdotters and George Lucas

      I realize you were being funny, but there's a difference.
      Most geeks (even star wars geeks!) that I know are grateful that Lucas gave us that world ... and also believe that he has completely screwed it up many ways. We don't see him as infallible, and most don't see it as a way of guiding moral choices or of how to live our life.

      (Jedi religion as an exception. ;))

    2. Re:Worshiping Sci-Fi authors... Slashdotters by Grishnakh · · Score: 2, Informative

      Most geeks I know or have read on Slashdot agree that Lucas turned completely evil and greedy when he did the prequels, and think he basically ruined Star Wars.

      Many geeks also agree that The Empire Strikes Back was easily the best SW movie of all, and the main reason for that was because Lucas DIDN'T write it. Lucas is an imaginative guy, and great with special effects, alien worlds and beings, etc., but he completely sucks at writing a decent story or especially dialog.

  165. Huh? "Suppose Mitchell's Right??????" by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Well, there is zero physical evidence to support his position. So basing your argument on that supposition is not a good way to start.

    Suppose you won the biggest lottery jackpot ever... Anything that follows that statement is pure fantasy. With one slight difference, there is a mathimatical posibility that one day you could do that.

    The problem with aliens from other planets is that currently it isn't even theoretically possible.

    The skeptics await physical evidence.

    Common, they have been visiting and crashing on our planet for years? (Centuries? Millenia?) and we can even find one scrap of material from one of the mishaps? Common something, a scrap of material from the dashboard of their saucer, fleck of paint! anything! something!

    Oh wait, that's right crop circles!

  166. Nice timing by s2r · · Score: 0

    With tomorrows X-Files premiere.

  167. wake up people by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1, Insightful

    I am disappointed in the way people who know nothing about the subject can be so quick to dismiss the possibility we are not alone . Skeptics are smart asses who are afraid to be wrong. This is the biggest thing in history , it is happening right around us and our myopic view of the world is making us blind. How arrogant to think we are alone. People used to know the world was flat. People used to know we cant go to the moon. We really know nothing. The truth is we are not alone and we never have been.

  168. In the words of Morcheeba... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    ...brothers from another planet! Y'all know the truth!

  169. Re:Space Madness! Camouflage? by rpj1288 · · Score: 1

    Candle in a bag balloon?

    --
    Marvin knew: "Think of a number, any number..."
  170. Stock repute by frovingslosh · · Score: 2, Funny

    Oh come on, if aliens really existed, how could the government keep it secret? Surely someone would get the word out that they exist. Oh, wait .....

    --
    I'm an American. I love this country and the freedoms that we used to have.
    1. Re:Stock repute by StarfishOne · · Score: 2, Informative

      Keeping a secret can be done rather effectively via compartmentalizations.

      The Manhattan project was kept a secret, even though somewhere around 100,000 people worked on it. And some secrets from the Cold War are only starting to become public just in recent years.

      Just think what they would be able to keep secret with something that has an even higher security classification than the Manhattan project.

      There are various Disclosure Project witnesses who tell how the secrets are being kept. Check Google video / YouTube for this material.
      ]

  171. You miss the beauty of it! by Valdrax · · Score: 1

    Unfortunately, all the UFO buffs who would be delighted to hear this information are also the same people who believe that the moonwalks were a sham, so they won't believe a word he says.

    Clearly, that makes him more credible to conspiracy nuts. After all, he was in not one government conspiracy to hide the truth, but two! It clearly shows how interlinked the plans of the secret masters to hide the true face of the world from the greyfaces is.

    --
    If it's for-profit but free, you're not the customer -- you're the product (e.g., the Slashdot Beta's "audience").
  172. Least bizarre news of the day... by pterandon · · Score: 1

    ... and more believable than the Patent Office going against software patents.

  173. Keep the rotation going foo'! by normchow · · Score: 1

    Its puff...puff....give NOT puff...puff...puff...puff...puff...puff...puff...puff...puff...puff...puff...puff...puff...puff... If you managed the rotation correctly you wouldn't be comin' up with this shizzite!

  174. 14 a bad-luck number? by Tablizer · · Score: 1

    Apollo 14 was manned by some oddballs. One guy smuggled a personal golf-club head, hooked it to a digging tool, and hit the first golf ball on the moon; and the second guy claims alien cover-ups. The moon *does* make you luny, at least at 14's spot.

  175. Maybe... by sandmaninator · · Score: 1

    ...the astronaut is just astro-turfing - X-files movie is out tomorrow.

  176. Known liar by frovingslosh · · Score: 1
    Today the Space Agency disputed Dr Edgar Mitchell claims that aliens exist, pointing out that for years he has claimed that he walked on the moon, when in fact the moon landings were all staged. "The visual evidence that we staged these "moon landings" is overwhelming, or at least what little of it still remains (we "lost" a lot of it, and that hardly could happen with any real lunar records), and this clearly shows that Dr Mitchell is a fraudster who cannot be trusted", they said.

    Dr Mitchell must be lying, because I know my government would never lie to me.

    --
    I'm an American. I love this country and the freedoms that we used to have.
  177. Re:Space Madness! Camouflage? by chill · · Score: 1

    Also, a relative of mine told me that around 1969 or 70 or so at night she and a friend were on the porch talking. A light source came down, low/tree-top, over the street, quietly. It was NOT like any aircraft or hobby toys of the time. It seemed to be observing them, or just hanging around, then it abruptly left.

    http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ball_lightning perhaps?

    Nah. More like White Lightning

    --
    Learning HOW to think is more important than learning WHAT to think.
  178. little people who look strange? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    All little people look strange to me!

  179. step 2 by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    It's taken terrestrial spacecraft decades to reach the outer reaches of our solar system. To make regular trips from other solar systems to ours would be more convenient with faster than light travel.

    Proof by contrapositive is the best approach.
    If you want to prove aliens exist, first claim they don't exist and that faster than light travel is impossible. Then discover faster than light travel, proving aliens exist. The upside is with faster than light travel you could bring a few back with you and parade them on CNN.

  180. Edgar Mitchell has been a bit out there all along. by John+Sokol · · Score: 1

    I think his views have been a bit wacky all along. good news if he really must have walked on the moon or he'd surly be talking about that one.

    Excerpt from wikipdia on him:
    http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Edgar_Mitchell

    Mitchell's interests include consciousness and paranormal phenomena. During the Apollo 14 flight he conducted private ESP experiments with his friends on Earth.[3] In early 1973, he founded the nonprofit Institute of Noetic Sciences (IONS) to conduct and sponsor research into areas that mainstream science has ignored, including consciousness research and psychic events.

    Mitchell says that a teenage remote healer who lives in Vancouver and uses the pseudonym Adam Dreamhealer, helped heal him of kidney cancer at a distance. Mitchell said that while he never had a biopsy (the definitive test for cancer), "I had a sonogram and MRI that was consistent with renal carcinoma." Adam worked (distantly) on Mitchell from December of 2003 until June of 2004, when the "irregularity was gone and we haven't seen it since."[4]

    Mitchell has publicly expressed his opinions that he is "90 per cent sure that many of the thousands of unidentified flying objects, or UFOs, recorded since the 1940s, belong to visitors from other planets"[5] and that UFOs have been the "subject of disinformation in order to deflect attention and to create confusion so the truth doesn't come out."[6] In 2004 he told the St. Petersburg Times that a "cabal of insiders" inside the US Government were studying recovered alien bodies, and that this group had stopped briefing US Presidents after John F. Kennedy.[7] He has said, that "We all know that UFOs are real, now the question is, where they come from."[8]

    On July 23, 2008 Edgar Mitchell was interviewed on Kerrang Radio. Mitchell claimed the Roswell crash was real and that Aliens have contacted humans several times but that governments have hidden the truth for 60 years stating, "'I happen to have been privileged enough to be in on the fact that we've been visited on this planet and the UFO phenomena is real." In reply, a spokesman for NASA stated, "NASA does not track UFOs. NASA is not involved in any sort of cover up about alien life on this planet or anywhere in the universe. Dr Mitchell is a great American, but we do not share his opinions on this issue."[9] [10]

    Edgar Mitchell is one of the astronauts featured in the documentary In the Shadow of the Moon.

    As well as academic papers,[11] Mitchell has written two books: Psychic Exploration: A Challenge for Science (ISBN 0-399-11342-8) and The Way of the Explorer (ISBN 1-57270-019-X). In The Way of the Explorer, Mitchell proposed a dyadic model of reality.[12]

    --
    I am always doing that which I can not do, in order that I may learn how to do it. - Pablo Picasso
  181. Coverup impossible due to incompetence by wikinerd · · Score: 4, Insightful

    A coverup? A massive worldwide coverup? C'mon. Is there anyone really believing that governments are capable of it? Do you remember stories about Word documents with metadata that revealed more than intented? Governments aren't capable of covering much simpler things, let alone UFOs.

    1. Re:Coverup impossible due to incompetence by SoulRider · · Score: 1

      Dont underestimate the government.

  182. Meh. by Valdrax · · Score: 1

    You know what is confusing me about these aliens? Why do they always contact governments when they come to Earth so they can cover it up?

    Unless you're planning on overtly taking over with military force, then it would probably be irresponsible to reveal yourself openly. Just think of the social chaos that might cause. That part is at least consistent.

    I can only applaud our governments, they are doing an excellent job. If they are capable of covering up moon hoaxes, 9/11 plans and aliens crash landing, I'd just wish they were able to do their job just as fine with, say, the war in Iraq?

    Ah, you don't think properly like a conspiracy theorist.

    First, you must assume the conspiracy. Then, you must fit all the data into the model instead of refitting the model to fit the data.

    Thus, us not doing well in Iraq can only mean that either the conspiracy wants us to fail in Iraq for some larger reason, the conspiracy is uninterested in Iraq, there are competing conspiracies, the conspiracy's goals in Iraq are unrelated to political or military success (such as capturing a specific site), etc. Never should you think that data can actually contradict the existence of a conspiracy -- just your understanding of its shadowy goals.

    Remember, conspiracy is the plural form of confirmation bias.

    This is what always gets me about these people, they talk as if the government is a body of competent people. Last time I checked, they aren't! Private corporations could run most countries better.

    When is the last time you really paid attention to the news? (Or to how large companies are run, frankly? Bureaucracy is bureaucracy regardless of where the paychecks come from.)

    Just think of the US government's hybrid private-public model as all of the profit skimming of a private corporation with all of the competition of an oligopoly, all funded by a captive market that has to pay up or go to prison and whose votes are filtered through men and women beholden to the large partner corporations for the money to get themselves elected thanks to our campaign financing system.

    We need less of that. At least, less non-competitive private firms acting as growths off of the body public, performing the same functions government would except that they have built-in skimming off the top to go to executives and shareholders -- kind of a perverse, reverse income tax.

    --
    If it's for-profit but free, you're not the customer -- you're the product (e.g., the Slashdot Beta's "audience").
  183. Re:Why would E.T. visit our backwards little plane by bloobloo · · Score: 1

    Why did Madonna go to Malawi?

    To get to the other side?

  184. Irony by Valdrax · · Score: 1

    Don't worry - you're a Democrat. Just choose whichever reality is most convenient for you at the moment time and go with it.

    So, how goes that search for WMDs, or was that never the point, really?

    --
    If it's for-profit but free, you're not the customer -- you're the product (e.g., the Slashdot Beta's "audience").
  185. Call Agent K! Immediately! by coolingfan · · Score: 1

    We just spotted a man yet to be deneuralized.

    1. Re:Call Agent K! Immediately! by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Thank you for volunteering!

  186. Re:Why would E.T. visit our backwards little plane by wikinerd · · Score: 1

    why would they stop here?

    To study stupidity! Our societies offer undeniable evidence for the existence of stupidity in this universe. Evidence becomes even stronger when you discover that there exist people who vote for whoever politician looks charmer on a hypnotising TV screen.

    Now if somebody could explain me why university went through Big Bang, all these stars and galaxies, all these chemical elements, and all these planets and life forms, for eventually creating stupidity? Sounds like the universe, or at least the Earth, is trying to commit suicide by creating a stupid species of monkeys capable of massive nuclear war.

  187. Re:Space Madness! Camouflage? by roman_mir · · Score: 1

    Around 1989 back in Yakutia (Russian North, near the arctic circle) I was coming back from school in the winter, probably around 4PM, it was dark (polar night). I and 2 more friends saw a ball like that. It was impossible to say how high above the buildings it was hanging. It was gliding slowly as we walked. There was no moon that night and the Sun was below the horizon. There were few stars, visibility was low, but I remember very well that we observed the ball of light for half an hour before it disappeared. I don't have an explanation for it, maybe it was a ball of lightning, but there was no thunderstorm or any storm at all.

  188. Well timed - new x-files movie out today by slashmojo · · Score: 1, Insightful

    The new X Files movie was just released today in Australia.. TFA is on an aussie news site .. is the good doctor on the payroll or is it just a happy coincidence?? ;)

  189. All explained by FeatureBug · · Score: 1

    Attribute the vast majority of UFO "sightings" to known physical phenomena, some to secret experimental aircraft, some to psychological problems in witnesses, some to cosmic rays causing optical effects in peoples' brains and retinas, some to opthalmic "floaters" in peoples' eyes, some to psyops, some to people helping create "UFO excitement" prior to the release of new wannabe blockbuster scifi movies, and you've explained 99.99999% of all sightings.

  190. Re:Why would E.T. visit our backwards little plane by Guppy06 · · Score: 1

    "Once a culture starts playing with atomics, a certain amount of oversight is required."

    I'd be more concerned about the cultures with magnetic compasses and triangular sails than I would about the ones with gunpowder.

  191. Al Qaeda did by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Al Qaeda (people who supposedly live in mud huts in desert) kept 9/11 secret and hidden and got US by surprise, didn't they? At least some people know how to keep secrets secret. Why doesn't CIA?

  192. Re:Space Madness! Camouflage? by snowgirl · · Score: 1

    Also, a relative of mine told me that around 1969 or 70 or so at night she and a friend were on the porch talking. A light source came down, low/tree-top, over the street, quietly. It was NOT like any aircraft or hobby toys of the time. It seemed to be observing them, or just hanging around, then it abruptly left.

    http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ball_lightning perhaps?

    Nah. More like White Lightning

    No no no... more like Blue Lightning

    --
    WARNING! This girl exceeds the MAXIMUM SAFE standards established by the FDA for BRATTINESS
  193. huh? Version 2.0 by jmichaelg · · Score: 1

    We've mixed together chemical soups and watched life erupt out of it.

    If you're referring to Stanley Miller's amino acid experiment, life didn't erupt, amino acids did. Life is several steps removed from that step.

    The universe doesn't tend towards entropy. It tends towards life.We are walking, talking evidence of this fact.

    Don't know where you learned physics but you're wrong, at least about our neck of the universe. Everywhere, and I mean everywhere including life, you see entropic processes at work. Life only exists because some organism has discovered a way to expedite the movement of energy from a high state to a lower state. For example, Lenski's e coli evolved to metabolize citrate. Prior to that life form coming along, citrate was relatively stable. This particular bug figured out a way to extract energy from the citrate bonds thereby increasing the overall level of entropy in the universe. We're another example. We've figured out how to split the atom and burn oil which more than pays for the energy costs it takes for us to exist.

  194. Viral Alien Marketing by spoot · · Score: 1

    My guess is that Fox paid him a bunch of dough for this to come out as news just before the release of the X Files.

  195. EARTH will do just fine . . . by mmell · · Score: 1
    we just may not be around to see it. At worst, we can cost about 150,000 years of development if we nuke the joint. Compared to 4,300,000 years of evolution, we're not even talking about a signifigant fraction.

    We may not recognize what comes next; but then again, I doubt we'll ever meet it!

  196. What a horrible thing to say by maynard · · Score: 1

    The man acted bravely and with honor in his mission to the moon. None of his Apollo compatriots have claimed otherwise.

  197. ballon + Candle by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    When I was about 10, a friend & I made candle balloons (candle + plastic bag = flying glowing hovering thing). At night we would set them off. Stupid & Dangerous as they could catch fire, but it sure freaked out a lot of the gullible adults in our neighborhood.

  198. coverup is more ominious than the aliens! by anwyn · · Score: 1
    The coverup is much more alarming than the aliens. This coverup has been carried on both Democrats and Republicans. They hate each other! Each administration has turned down an opportunity to embarrass the other by revealing its secrets. And then there was the ex-soviet union. They used to hate us almost as much as the Democrats hate the Republicans!

    What possible stimulus could be so powerfull as to cause these diverse groups that hate each other to agree on a coverup? Whatever it is must be truly terrifying. That aliens exist can not be the whole story.

    Everyone seems to be focusing on the existance of UFO aliens and a coverup, but few seem to have thought about what it would mean if there were aliens associated with a secret so powerfull that could cause the world's governments to actually agree on something!

    Assume the existance of the aliens and coverup, and do some deductive reasoning like the great Sherlock. What results do you get?

    Is it possible that aliens are smart enough to build interstellar craft, but are unable to do simple Malthusian arithmetic?

    If human beings had interstellar craft and were unopposed, how long until human beings filled up the galaxy? Do you really think the space aliens are unable to do this calculation?

    Do the aliens view us as Redwood trees or as med-fly? Put yourself in the alien's place and how would you view us? The possibilities are truly alarming and no one seems to be thinking about them!

    On the otherhand, we are all dead if we do not figure a way out of this solar system. (Read a newspaper.) If the aliens did it, it is not impossible. All human resources should be devoted to working on this problem.

  199. Laws of Physics by Roger+W+Moore · · Score: 2, Insightful

    I think there's an upper boundary to technology, called the Laws of Physics, which may be refined, clarified, but won't be broken outright.

    True but we don't know all the Laws of Physics yet so how can we say categorically that something is impossible? If you look at String Theory then they have models which just about break every concept we hold dear: that it is not to say that any of these bizarre models are correct but if you can come up with a theory which allows you to break things like Lorentz and unitarity in a manner not yet contradicted by experiment I don't think that you can be too certain what may eventually be possible!

  200. The only thing the government is covering up.... by WarJolt · · Score: 1

    The only thing the government is covering up is the stress they put astronauts under. We all remember Lisa Nowak who put on diapers and pepper sprayed that astronauts girlfriend. I suggest all astronauts be evaluted for post tramatic stress disored after leaving NASA.

  201. FTL + Aliens Unlikely by Roger+W+Moore · · Score: 1

    Let's also assume that they have different physics and that FTL travel is possible and routine.

    First, by definition, they cannot have different physics from us without living in a different Universe. They may have a better understanding of physics though.

    Secondly there are unfrotunately very good arguments to point out that intelligent life and FTL travel are, together, extremely unlikely. If you think about how long it has taken us to get from caves to spaceships (say 10k years) this is tiny compared to the length of time that life has been around on Earth (4 billion) or even multi cellular life (~500 million IIRC). Now Earth is by no means an old planet - the Universe has been around for some 13.8 billion years compared to 4.5 billion of Earth. So any other intelligent life form out there is likely to be millions of years more evolved than we are (they cannot be millions of years less evolved because otherwise we would not regard them as intelligent being so relatively young!). So if, given a million year or so head start, they have not been able to visit us so far then either interstellar travel is incredibly hard or intelligent life is fantastically rare. The two more or less balance: the easier interstellar travel is the rarer intelligent life will probably be and vice versa.

  202. Extraordinary proof test by giorgist · · Score: 1

    "Extraordinary claims require extraordinary prof"

    All he has is his stature. Not bad, but gets you nowhere. Other than that we can may as well phylosophise intixicated ...

    G

  203. Do some RESEARCH!! by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    It amazes me how many people are STILL in the dark on this.

    People!! Do some research!!!

    Just throwing out ideas because they complicate/disturb your view of the world only holds yourself back.

  204. Little People by PalmHair · · Score: 2, Funny

    'little people who look strange to us.' Sure they are little, look peculiar, speak funny. But we must acknowledge that their technology and civilisation is many millenia ahead of ours. And - I love their cuisine, especially the sushi!

  205. I have official US papers certifying aliens exist! by zuperduperman · · Score: 1

    I really do.

    In fact, the documents state that I myself an am alien. Any non-US citizen can get these documents - just apply for a visa to visit the US.

  206. Pets by mfnickster · · Score: 1

    Maybe the aliens will do better than we've done.

    As for us, we'll make great pets!

    --
    "Slow down, Cowboy! It has been 3 years, 7 months and 26 days since you last successfully posted a comment."
  207. Such as... by Samah · · Score: 0, Flamebait

    ...described the beings as 'little people who look strange to us.'"

    George W. Bush?

    --
    Homonyms are fun!
    You're driving your car, but they're riding their bikes there.
  208. Little People, Eh? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    The "little people" have always been with us. They're called leprechauns.

  209. Astronaut psych evaluations by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    > Somehow I think the psych evaluations for astronauts are somewhat more stringent than those for Hollywood actors.

    So, how did that diaper lady become an astronaut, anyhow? Not that Hollywood is less crazy. I mean, the Scientologists believe that psychologists are actually a race of insectoid monsters or something...

    I guess LRH didn't like people who called him crazy.

  210. So what... by Abuzar · · Score: 0

    Many people believe aliens exist, many people don't.
    It's been like this for generations.
    One of them happens to be an astronaut.
    Big deal.

  211. Re:Ed Mitchell has been claiming this for many yea by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    So Ed Mitchell is rational and sober minded enough to be an Astronaut, yet as soon as he claims that ET Contact is real he becomes a crackpot?

    Such reasoning sounds absurd.

  212. Absolute bollocks by mphall21 · · Score: 1

    Until I actually see evidence for ET, I am not believing. If you actually believe Mitchell, than I place you among those who believe in god. Believing in either would require that you do so with no evidence supporting the claims.

    1. Re:Absolute bollocks by slider3618 · · Score: 1

      I agree. Extraordinay claims require extraordinary evidence. As for the moon landings being a hoax, , everyone does not believe that one. Many people born after the event seem to doubt it, but I saw the launches of the Mercury, Gemini, and Apollo programs. Why would they send Apollo 8 just to orbit the moon, Apollo 10 to test the lunar lander, but not land, while in lunar orbit, and wait until Apollo 11 to land? Why not say " Hell, we went to the moon in a XXX #1, landed IT on the moon, and returned - that complex rendezvous with all its complexity would be silly to make up for a hoax.

  213. Library by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Every hear of a library? They don't charge you for borrowing books.

  214. Everytime UFO pass by by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    The aliens don't know hostile life forms, that's why the Americans and the others shoot them down before they can even say : "Hi!"... not that they did not try to visit Earth.

  215. Yes, yes i know by molecularaz · · Score: 0

    This is old hat ... but: All yer base are belong to us????

  216. New Investment Opportunity by Steve+Franklin · · Score: 1

    Good point, but you are wasting your time arguing with the dolts on here who think that the personal computer is the ultimate intellectual advancement in the known universe, and that anything they didn't learn in engineering school can't be true.

    I do see a real investment opportunity here, though. Colonel Flanders Kentucky Crow Sauce, with 13 herbs and spices guaranteed to hide the taste of the crow these idiots are going to have to eat if Mitchell turns out to be even close to the truth. I can't wait. Too bad Sagan isn't still alive. I'd give a fortune to see the look on his face.

    --
    Hic iacet Arthurus, rex quondam rexque futurus.
  217. Why it can't be true... by paulxnuke · · Score: 1

    It's remotely possibly that the government has information about alien visits, possibly even artifacts / bodies (that would likely have suicided when they saw the savages closing in) but that's a far cry from Contact. Consider:

    - If aliens were hostile, we'd all know about it.

    - If they weren't (i.e., the "enlightened" sort) they wouldn't have anything to do with any current Earth government. Aside from the Prime Directive (or whatever you call it), most governments represent the absolute worst of humanity and as such wouldn't have much to say to a civilized race.

  218. David Duchovny spilled the beans on Leno by Mike+Van+Pelt · · Score: 1

    David Duchovny's theory (which he expounded on on "The Tonight Show" recently) makes more sense than any of the other UFOlogist theories I've heard --

    They put their undesirables -- sexual deviants and dentists -- onto a spaceship to wander aimlessly in the galaxy.

    They ended up here.

    The truth is out there ... Really out there.

    So, what do the alien undesirables do when they get their paws on any of the local wildlife?

    Drill their teeth and probe their .. er, orifices.

    The truth is out there ... Really out there.

  219. Yes they're all mad by woodycat · · Score: 1

    Until we are openly visited. Then they were the informed, gutsy, honest, open, brave people with integrity who wanted the truth to be known. This guy adds himself to many who are trying to get the truth out. I won't name any here because this will just start the same old crank debate. But we know who they are. As in faith - silence is best with this matter also.

  220. Re:Socks to Hangers by FurtiveGlancer · · Score: 2, Informative

    I might buy the sock to hanger conversion, with trivial alien intervention or a little black sock module in the dryer, but I just don't see how they can possibly get back up on the closet rod after the transformation. BTW, I'm an unwavering post-transformationalist, so don't even start the argument that they migrate to the closet rods as pre-hanger, sock pupae. The fossil evidence doesn't bear that out.

    --
    Invenio via vel creo
  221. it's a distraction by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1, Insightful

    project disclosure always says the same thing for years - that full disclosure is right around the corner...over and over again.

    that he believes in aliens is not news!

    that it is in the news is what makes it news...

    big things in the REAL world are unfolding, so it's best that you look at UFOs, JFK, .. and i'm waiting for a big elvis story to complete the trio of redirection...

    war anyone? economic shocks on the way? oh look! aliens!!!

  222. Re:4-Space gladness! by Garridan · · Score: 1

    Oh, it's quite simple, really. You compute the differential of the volume of the result of the theorem with respect to its assumptions, and integrate in the direction that maximizes the volume. Voila, an expanded theorem. It's hard to see why so many people just don't seem to get math.

  223. Truth is not out there by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Dementia is kicking in.

  224. Now here's a conspiracy theory for you ;-) by bandmassa · · Score: 1

    Don't you love the way governments create rumours of alien cover up conspiracies in order to divert attention from the real issues like Britain and the USA deliberately trying to run down the earth's resources so that they can divide it between them and crush democracy (and China) forever. Just kidding. (Or am I? ;-)

    --
    "I hope you like Guinness, Sir. I find it a refreshing substitute for, er... food." Col. Jack O'Neil, SG-1
  225. Re: standard of living by w42w42 · · Score: 1

    The OP was referring to Countries, not cities.

  226. They're all aliens I tell'ya by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    "little people who look strange to us"

    Munchkins, fairies, gnomes, elves, menenuhes, umpalumas, trolls, etc. ALL Aliens!

  227. threat of death penalty works by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Govt has 100000s of archives of secrets.

    There is the govt elect, and then there are the govt departments, two different things.

  228. They can't communicate with Us by Soiden · · Score: 1

    Maybe they can't talk to us, maybe they now that we would react agreesively, and try to kill them. Maybe they use a form of communication unknown to us, something that we can't understand and use. I only hope they don't want to kill us :P

    --
    Minti: What's that huge shuriken in your back?! Kin: It's the instrument of my victory.
  229. Pubblicity to get more NASA funding ? by ampsicora · · Score: 1

    I can't help thinking that a former austronat may be just trying to help NASA to get more funding.
    Speaking about aliens may just bring enough media attention and get people worried enough to get space missions back on the politician radar.

    Don't forget that NASA funding has been slashed dramatically and for a couple of years after the shuttle is retired we'll need russian rockets to reach the ISS, until the ARES rockets are ready.

  230. What do you mean, 'moonwalker'? by Ed+Avis · · Score: 1

    Everyone knows that the moon landings were faked. Clearly this announcement of so-called 'aliens' is just another part of the same government consipiracy. Come _on_ people!

    --
    -- Ed Avis ed@membled.com
  231. Government of lies calls someone a liar? by macinit · · Score: 1

    If he is lying, at least his lie isn't killing thousands of innocent people and bankrupting a whole nation. Let's remember also that, lately, the government has defaulted to lying on just about all matters anymore. I'll go this way and believe this guy since the government denies it. They have a hell of a long way to go to earning We The Peoples trust back.

  232. He is right ... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    ... I'm one of them !

  233. Star Trek should be used as an example for life by yashtulsyan · · Score: 1

    If you watch "Star Trek" you'd agree that the War in Iraq would be looked down upon in history (as would be the rest of the late 20th and early 21st centuries) as it would violate an important law, Prime Directive. Hee hee...

  234. There is only 1 problem with you hypothese by aepervius · · Score: 1

    Nazi death camp were not kept hidden for 60 years.

    --
    C. Sagan : A demon haunted world:
    http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0345409469/
    visit randi.org
  235. Well. . . by Fantastic+Lad · · Score: 1

    Agreed. --For the most part, anyway. Some secrets are quite, 'keepable'.

    I'm sure there are plenty of secret military technologies and operations which are worked on in compartmentalized form, with all kinds of stunningly paranoid security systems and locked doors in place. --Not the least effective system of which being the non-disclosure forms the government makes workers sign through which it is understood that to reveal secrets is considered treason and is severely punishable. Yes, it's entirely possible to keep the lid mostly down. But you're right, stuff still manages to leak out around the edges; that's the nature of information. --But then a curious thing happens; the leaks are dealt with by the most awesome security system of all. The public simply ignores it. Take this current example, for instance. An astronaut, a man who would have been in a position to know, claiming that aliens exist. That's a pretty big leak, but what will come of it? Nothing. Why? Because it could be a deliberate red herring, it could be insanity, it could be true, or it could be partly true. Confusion is the best medicine in such a case at this, and for the most part, people just keep their noses to the ground; they don't want to look silly by giving it too much thought. We've been very well trained. We fear ridicule to ridiculous levels. Tin-foil, anyone?

    Governments can keep and manage information just fine, and what they cannot keep, people obediently look away from.

    And so it goes.

    -FL

  236. little people who look strange to us by ezzthetic · · Score: 1

    Oh the big silly ...

    Those are Leprechauns.

    --
    You know what they say about opinions. They're all fabulous!
  237. Subject by Legion303 · · Score: 1

    "[...] described the beings as 'little people who look strange to us.'"

    Well I'm fucking sold.

  238. we came in peace by KingBenny · · Score: 1

    we are just waiting for you people to reach a level of intellectual integrity that so far only seems to be achieved on internet message boards ... a few more million years of evolution should get it right if you do not accidentaly blow yourself up cos the man at the button had a really fucked up day ... yes, you humans ARE funny ;-)

    --
    Free speech was meant to be free for all... how can anyone grow up in a nanny state ?
  239. Out there. . . by Fantastic+Lad · · Score: 1

    The thing is. . . Once one accepts the possibility of aliens, then all of those other subjects you mentioned gain validity. They're all connected. Essentially they all find their foundation on the notion that there are some states of being which do not revolve exclusively around the idea of material existence. This idea is easily dismissed, (it is certainly discouraged by academia), and the field has been laden with so many mountains of horrid nonsense that any sane person is easily put off.

    However, once one decides to actually study the field honestly and consistently, it is rather quickly learned that there IS something to the idea. Quite a lot, actually.

    But many never, never look, preferring to rest their belief structures upon ideas safe from the terrible danger of being laughed at. Awareness doesn't come cheap; it never has, but I prefer to base my beliefs not just on what I am told it is acceptable to think about. I'd rather look and think for myself. Basically, the moment I sense that I might be socially punished for exploring an idea, it revs me up. It certainly doesn't mean that everything I look into is valid. Indeed, much of it is twisted half-truth garbage created by egos and wishful thinking, but I wouldn't know that without looking. And I also wouldn't know that some of it, some very powerful bits of it, are entirely real. --And I'll be damned if I'm going to be bullied by intellectual cowards into believing only that which I am told is okay to believe; that which is officially sanctioned. I find that thought offensive in the extreme, and I cannot understand why more people don't bristle at the idea. Being socially manipulated by the fear of ridicule is for the birds.

    The fascinating thing I've found is that such knowledge comes with its own automatic safeguards. When it comes to the non-physical, you absolutely HAVE to decide for yourself not to be scared and not to be closed. In the arena of the mind, scientific reductionism doesn't work the same way it does in the material realm; proof is very difficult to force upon those who choose to close their perceptions to it, and further, one of the things one eventually learns is that forcing people to go against their choices is a fundamental violation which carries penalties. The full spectrum of reality is only for the courageous.

    -FL

  240. Personal Sightings of strange things by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Ok, in my 39 years I have seen exactly two incidents in the sky that were very strange and I couldn't account for them by applying what 'I know' about planes, satellites, physics etc. That isn't to say there aren't any explanations but I couldn't come up with good ones.
    First - I was about 7 ( yes yes I know, very young, but I have a very good memory going back to my early years) and my parents were driving into town at night along a sparsely populated road. My father happened to notice what appeared to be a satellite in the sky, a very slow moving light amongst the stars. As I watched the light travel across the sky I noticed another one coming in exactly the opposite direction. I watched the two lights come together and there was a large burst of light when they met and both went off in opposing right angles at a very much increased velocity. There were no gradual turns involved and velocities were an immediate and dramatic change.

    Second - right after the Sept. 11 attacks, I was in Mexico. Trip had been booked prior and we couldn't cancel without losing the money so we went anyways. Mexico was basically deserted as very few people were flying after Sept 11th Anyways, I was on the beach at the resort by myself ( yes, there really weren't many people at the resorts at that time ) sitting in a beach chair just enjoying the view of the sea and sky in early evening. I saw a light travelling in the sky from behind me. I initially just figured it was a plane. Then I noticed how quickly it was moving across the sky. I thought hmm, thats really moving, maybe its one of the Aurora test vehicles or something similar. It was only a visible point of light though, and I couldn't hear engines so that certainly appeared to rule out that it was just a low flying plane giving the illusion of travelling quickly. Then the really interesting part happened. It got about 3/4 across the sky and towards the horizon when it instantly made a right angle turn to the left and rapidly accellerated out of sight. Now the military undoubtably has some nifty stuff we don't know about, but I don't think we have anything that can make instant right angle turns. And I mean ruler sharp turns, no gradual arc at all.
    Anyways, those are the two odd things I have seen in the sky.
    Anyone have explanations for those ?

  241. Claims by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Extraordinary claims require extraordinary evidence.

  242. Re:Socks to Hangers by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    They don't migrate back up to the closet rod. This is why you find them jumbled on the closet floor trying to mate with your sneakers, er, running shoes. You think, "Gee, I don't recall knocking so many hangars off the rod..."

  243. Hey! by chord.wav · · Score: 1

    Hey! What's all this chatter about it being a distraction to real world problems??

    Is that how we welcome our alien overlords these days?

  244. 010011010110000101110010011101100110100101101110 by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    01000100 01110010 00101110 00100000 01001101 01101001 01110100 01100011 01101000 01100101 01101100 01101100 00100000 01101000 01100001 01110011 00100000 01100010 01100101 01100101 01101110 00100000 01110011 01100001 01111001 01101001 01101110 01100111 00100000 01110100 01101000 01101001 01110011 00100000 01100001 01100010 01101111 01110101 01110100 00100000 01100001 01101100 01101001 01100101 01101110 01110011 00100000 01100110 01101111 01110010 00100000 01101101 01100001 01101110 01111001 00100000 01111001 01100101 01100001 01110010 01110011 00100000 01101110 01101111 01110111 00101110 00100000 01001000 01100101 00100111 01110011 00100000 01100001 01101100 01110111 01100001 01111001 01110011 00100000 01101000 01100001 01100100 00100000 01100001 00100000 01100010 01101001 01110100 00100000 01101111 01100110 00100000 01100001 00100000 01110000 01110011 01100101 01110101 01100100 01101111 00101101 01110011 01100011 01101001 01100101 01101110 01110100 01101001 01100110 01101001 01100011 00100000 01100010 01100101 01101110 01110100 00101110 00100000 01000100 01110101 01110010 01101001 01101110 01100111 00100000 01101000 01101001 01110011 00100000 01000001 01110000 01101111 01101100 01101100 01101111

  245. Right or wrong, what's crazy about it? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Of course it's impossible to know if this is true or not, but what I don't get is why so many people think the idea of aliens visiting the earth is crazy and get all emotional about it.

    What's so crazy about it? That life emerges and evolves on other planets? produces intelligent life forms? life forms that study quantum physics, relativity and space travel?
    Than by those criteria you must also think the idea of us existing is crazy.

    No my fellow water-bags, aliens existing and visiting us is not a crazy idea at all. A lot of us just feel that it is crazy because of our self-centered nature.

  246. Aliens OK , Moon landing FALSE by electr0n · · Score: 1

    I dont disagree with the alien existence, but disagree with them actually landing on the moon. Speculator watch 2 documentaries called "A funny thing that happened on the way to the moon" and "Astronauts gone wild". For people looking for a mind teaser - how come nobody attempted another moon landing since 1972? Cheers fellows

  247. The disabled by phorm · · Score: 1

    but they'd be specialised ones for the disabled

    That's assuming they treat disabilities in the way we do. For all we know they might *eat* their disabled :-)

  248. what if? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    If 10 people claim to have seen something and 9 of them are crazy and made it up, but the one other person truly did see something, most people here would discredit the one correct guy based on the 9 other people.

    But there is no real logic in dismissing the one guy based on the 9 other guys. If something DID happen in the real world, then it DID happen. Correlation of the actual event with made-up/dreamed-up events does not impact the reality of what happened.

    My point being that if only 1 single UFO/extraterrestrial event was factual out of the million or so claimed events, then aliens DO exist. And unless you have somehow gone through the million or so events and validly dismissed them all on their own merits, then you really are just stating your opinion on aliens.

    The "world is flat" people would have thought they were the only people in the universe when in fact there were lots of people all over the world. I think it is rather pretentious to assume we are the only intelligent life in the universe.

    I like how Men In Black (part 1?) ended. Our whole universe was just a marble to some freaky alien thing. Everything we think we know could be right and yet outside our universe we could appear just as a grain of sand. Who knows...

  249. Queue witty smartass sarcastic comments by unity100 · · Score: 1

    effecting to the meaning of 'aliens dont exist/cant visit earth you moron, everyone knows it'.

    can you see the irony when all those sarcastic, smartass, know-it-all comments are put in a plain language such as that one ? it seems like a high school jerk trying to outsmart a classmate doesnt it ? well it does.

    sometimes i cant believe slashdot.

    we are discussing particle accelerators, zero energy fields, parallel universes, wormholes, dark matter/energy, boundaries of universe and what probably *may* exist beyond, schrodinger's cat, and so on at slashdot ....

    and yet, there are still a smartmouth opinion that can assuredly say 'aliens cant visit earth' (im even leaving aside the ones that say aliens cant exist). thats after discussing all those surreal looking scientific subjects too !

    105 year ago, there were still people who were saying 'if god wanted man to fly, he would have given him wings. its impossible to fly like birds'. 500 years ago people were crapping in the streets. we have made the stride from poking each other's butts with metal needles (swords) to particle accelerators in just 300 years, and yet some of you are STILL witless as to believe some other intelligence somewhere in the universe may not be able to have invented some technology to make viable interstellar travel possible ...

    "but then why dont they openly contact us" -- well, our civilization is a baby in diapers yet, and even we are isolating some amazon tribes from modern civilization to 'preserve their culture and lifestyle', and not letting any form of contact with them. is there any among you that is stupid enough to think, another intelligent species in the universe would not be able to have thought of the same thing ?

    well, if there are, that can probably due to either of those 2 reasons :

    - lack of vision
    - self centered, arrogant view of life, albeit in a global scale

    1. Re:Queue witty smartass sarcastic comments by Teancum · · Score: 1

      Since I don't have any mod points right now, I'm going to give you kudos by giving you a reply.

      This was a well thought out and articulate response about skeptics of this whole thing.

      I tend to take a pragmatic approach to the whole thing of UFO research. There may be something there, but I really can't do anything about it even if it were there. Of course I can't do anything personally about the North Korean nuclear program and supposed threats by that country to smuggle those weapons into terrorist "hot spots" in an attempt to destabilize America.

      All I can do is to assume my government knows what it is doing and has a good bead on the issue.... and hopefully we can put some honest men into positions of political, military, and diplomatic leadership to be able to confront these issues in a sane manner without getting either myself or my children killed. Mistakes do happen (Iraq, Vietnam) and sometimes these leaders are simply awful enough that they do indeed need to be replaced. Hopefully there are enough checks on these leaders to keep them from getting out of hand.

      Assuming for a moment that sentient beings from another world or planet have visited the Earth and are in communication with at least one or more governments on this planet, as a citizen I would like to know this information. I do believe that we as a people could handle this sort of information, and it wouldn't lead to widespread panic and desperation. Knowledge is power, and an informed public is much more likely to provide answers on how to confront and cope with these beings than by keeping them ignorant. We aren't the "babes" as some try to point out, even though perhaps we might be like some teen-agers in terms of our relationship to other spacefaring races.

      Mankind is "moving out there" and will soon occupy much of this Solar System. Private ventures are making it possible for mere mortals like you and I to get into space and see some of these things for ourselves. Yeah, that may take a couple of centuries or more, but that is just a short hic-up in even the history of our species. If there is a reason... a strong reason... for us to remain here on our little planet and pretend we are a "stone age" race, I'd like our government to let us know!

      I, for one, am extremely skeptical of UFO activity, and highly doubt that it is happening. I'll give the benefit of the doubt that perhaps it could be happening, but I also demand powerful and convincing proof of it in order for me to believe this stuff. I'll also say that most "UFOlogists" (those that "study" UFO activity) usually have their science knowledge well off the mark... often tainted by psuedosciences that have nothing at all to do with a pragmatic study of "aliens".

      **IF**, and this is a huge if, we actually encounter "alien" lifeforms... I think it is going to be mankind as the invading and anal-probing idiots who visit other planets and make crop-circles in primitive culture's grain fields.

  250. Re:Space Madness! Camouflage? by slashdotwannabe · · Score: 1

    You are betting on the assumption that these aliens have no interests of their own to defend. For all you know when they offer to drop you on your very own rock you are becoming the pawn of their interstellar politics -- "Hands off Planet Dune! We just claimed it for our interstellar zoo, as protected by Section A3.D3R.U342@@ of interstellar code. I DARE you to drop gravitron bombs! The Spice must flow!"

    --
    This comment is my opinion and does not represent an official position of Donald Trump or others I do not work for
  251. Gangstaz in Space by blueup · · Score: 1
    --
    -- The above may have once been believed by me, but any truth or application you find is your own problem.
  252. Comment removed by account_deleted · · Score: 1

    Comment removed based on user account deletion

  253. Oh God. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    "Little people who look strange to us".

    That's a very accurate description, isn't it? I don't even get where he is trying to get. It's the same damn thing unless someone comes up with actual proof. People who said aliens exist? There are millions around the world.

  254. Help by mydream114 · · Score: 1

    Here is a picture from nasaimages.org taken by Eddie on the moon. Pretty hi-res. Can anyone spot any alien footprints?

    1. Re:Help by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      > Here is a picture from nasaimages.org taken by Eddie on the moon.

      Eddies in the space/time continuum?

  255. hooray for aliens by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    i hope we do find aliens so i can have sex with them

  256. Re: by buht · · Score: 1

    haha! :)

    --

    -- The box said Windows 2000 or better... so I installed Linux
  257. History of Titanium Alloys suggest this is true... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    A friend of mine recently spent years working with Titanium alloys. He noted that about a year after Roswell, the first-ever Titanium alloys were discovered and patented, which is interesting; but what is more interesting is that *they hit the nail on the head*, creating one of the best Ti alloys we would ever come up with. He says the chances of that are extremely rare - it takes years and years to experiment with alloys, the rate that you cool them at, the microstructures that form, and so on. The fact that they came up with the best one we still have today, just a year after Roswell, is VERY suspicious.

    So, yeah, ever since he told me that, I've been a believer. It seems pretty plausible anyway, that aliens exist. The thing that perplexes me is that they are also pretty much of the Cambrian format: bipedal, two eyes, eyelids, head, lungs, two arms, two legs, fingers, and so on. What a HUGE coincidence that would be, unless this is the ideal shape for beings to evolve into. (?) Or, perhaps we have some DNA in common...

  258. Re:History of Titanium Alloys suggest this is true by mfnickster · · Score: 1

    It seems pretty plausible anyway, that aliens exist. The thing that perplexes me is that they are also pretty much of the Cambrian format: bipedal, two eyes, eyelids, head, lungs, two arms, two legs, fingers, and so on. What a HUGE coincidence that would be, unless this is the ideal shape for beings to evolve into. (?) Or, perhaps we have some DNA in common...

    So, let me get this straight - you find it ridiculously implausible that we could come up with a very good titanium alloy on our own, but it's completely believable that aliens evolved to look like us, or could even have DNA in common with us?

    Back into the Debunkulator with you!!

    --
    "Slow down, Cowboy! It has been 3 years, 7 months and 26 days since you last successfully posted a comment."