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2.
UFO's as Alien Spaceships
For
decades the media have given enormous attention to sensational claims
that vague lights in the sky are actually extra-terrestrial spacecraft.
In recent years, the claims have grown to include crashes of such
alien spacecraft and even kidnappings of unsuspecting Earth inhabitants
by aliens. A sober examination of these claims reveals that there
is a lot LESS to them than first meets the eye: when there is enough
evidence, UFO claims can be explained by perfectly natural terrestrial
or celestial phenomena (and, all too frequently, as deliberate hoaxes),
while alien abductions seem to take place in the mind of the victim
or the therapist, rather than in the real world. This section begins
with readings on UFO claims in general, and then moves to information
about specific famous UFO cases (including the almost legendary
Roswell incident, which turns out to have been the crash of a top-secret
balloon-flown package designed to search for atmospheric evidence
of Russian nuclear tests.)
General
Books
Alschuler,
William UFO's and Aliens. 1991, Avon Books. Nice introduction
to UFO's and the scientific search for life elsewhere, for children.
Dick,
Steven The Biological Universe: The 20th Century
Extraterrestrial Life Debate. 1996, Cambridge U. Press. Chapter
6 is a historical analysis of the UFO controversy. Although it
is just a bit too even-handed for some tastes, it does chronicle
the involvement of scientists well.
Dick,
Steven Life on Other Worlds: The 20th Century Extraterrestrial
Life Debate. 1998, Cambridge U. Press. (An abridged, updated
edition of the above.) See Chapter 5.
Frazier,
Kenneth, et al., eds. The UFO Invasion. 1997, Prometheus
Books. A fine collection of skeptical articles, with especially
good sections on the Roswell crash and crop circles.
Klass,
Philip UFO's Explained. 1974, Vintage paperback. UFO's:
The Public Deceived. 1983, Prometheus Books. UFO Abductions:
A Dangerous Game. 1988, Prometheus Books. Klass is the leading
investigator of UFO reports in the U.S. and his wonderful exposes
of UFO hoaxes and misunderstandings are superb examples of how
such investigations should be done.
Korff,
Kal Spaceships of the Pleiades: the Billy Meier Story.
1995, Prometheus Books. A pain-staking investigation into one
of the best-known UFO hoaxes.
Menzel,
Donald & Taves, E. The UFO Enigma. 1977, Doubleday.
An astronomer and psychoanalyst examine many facets of the UFO
phenomenon.
Oberg,
James UFO's and Outer Space Mysteries. 1982, Donning. A
noted space science writer evaluates UFO claims and other forms
of pseudoscience.
Peebles,
Curtis Watch the Skies: A Chronicle of the Flying Saucer Myth.
1994, Smithsonian Institution Press. Excellent history and psychological
analysis of the UFO craze; has a good skeptical perspective. (A
nice timetable about the evolution of the UFO myth from this book
is at: http://www.geocities.com/Area51/Corridor/8148/myth.html)
Sagan,
Carl The Demon-Haunted World. 1995, Random House. Chapters
4-11 are a marvelous debunking of many well-known UFO cases and
an examination of the psychology behind them.
Sagan,
Carl & Page, Thornton UFO's: A Scientific Debate. 1972,
Norton paperback. From an early symposium held by the American
Association for the Advancement of Science, presenting a wide
range of views.
Shaeffer,
Robert The UFO Sightings: The Evidence. 1998, Prometheus
Books. Thorough, responsible review by a respected investigator;
a good source book for skeptics.
General
Articles
Blackmore,
S. "Abduction by Aliens or Sleep Paralysis" in Skeptical
Inquirer, May/June 1998, p. 23. Discusses studies relating
to UFO abductions and the role of the media. (On the web at http://www.csicop.org/si/9805/abduction.html)
Gleick,
J. "The Doctor's Plot" in The New Republic, 24
May 1994. A New York Times reporter examines the work of
John Mack on UFO abductions and critiques the whole phenomenon
(as well as the media's shameless role in exploiting it.) (Available
on the web at: http://www.around.com/abduct.html)
Goldsmith,
D. & Owen, T. "Visitors to Earth: A Skeptics's Guide
to UFO's" in Mercury, Jul/Aug. 1992, p. 135 and Sep/Oct.
1992, p. 155. A well-written overview.
Grierson,
B. "A Bad Trip Down Memory Lane" in The New York
Times Magazine, July 27, 2003, p. 36. A discussion of so-called
repressed memories, which take a skeptical look at claims of UFO
abductions and what they really might be.
Klass,
P. "A Field Guide to UFO's" in Astronomy, Sept.
1997, p. 39. Natural explanations for UFO sightings.
Klass,
P. "That's Entertainment: TV's UFO Coverup" in Skeptical
Inquirer, Nov/Dec. 1996, p. 29. How the media publicize unfounded
claims. (On the web at: http://www.csicop.org/si/9611/ufo.html
)
Kurtz,
P., et al.: "Special Report: Heaven's Gate" in Skeptical
Inquirer, Jul/Aug. 1997, p. 12. A variety of articles on the
39 suicides occasioned in part by the belief that Comet Hale-Bopp
was or hid a UFO.
Newman,
L., et al. "Toward an Explanation of the UFO Abduction Phenomenon:
Hypnotic Elaborations, Extraterrestrial Sadomasochism, and Spurious
Memories" in Psychological Inquiry, vol. 7, no. 3,
p. 101. Lengthy paper looking carefully at claims by psychologists
that their patients show memories of being abducted by UFO's.
Ridpath,
I. "Astronomical UFO's" in Astronomy, Dec. 1988,
p. 114. (Updated version on the web at http://www.ianridpath.com/ufo/astroufo1.htm)
Books
and Articles on Specific UFO Cases:
Garelik,
G., et al. "The Great Hudson Valley UFO Mystery" in
Discover, Nov. 1984, p. 22. Shows how a hoax can get started
and rumors can spread.
Gildenberg,
B. & Thomas, D. "Case Closed: Reflections on the 1997
Air Force Roswell Report" in Skeptical Inquirer, May/June
1998, p. 31. A time-line and the real story.
Jaroff,
L. "Did Aliens Really Land" in Time, June 23,
1997, p. 68. A skeptical analysis of the Roswell incident.
Klass,
Philip The Real Roswell Crashed-saucer Coverup. 1997, Prometheus.
An excellent unraveling of the full story behind the crash in
New Mexico.
Korff,
Kal The Roswell UFO Crash: What They Don't Want You to Know.
1997, Prometheus Books. A skeptical analysis of the whole
incident and its explanations.
Korff,
K. "What Really Happened at Roswell" in Skeptical
Inquirer, Jul/Aug. 1997, p. 24. (On the web at: http://www.csicop.org/si/9707/roswell.html)
Nickell,
J. "The Alien Autopsy Hoax" in Skeptical Inquirer,
Nov/Dec. 1995, p. __ (On the web at http://www.csicop.org/si/9511/autopsy.html)
About a purported film showing an autopsy of an "alien"
body recovered at Roswell, New Mexico. (See also: Emery, E. "Alien
Autopsy Show and Tell" in the same issue; on the web at:
http://www.csicop.org/si/9511/mediawatch.html
)
Nickell,
J. "The Flatwoods UFO Monster" in Skeptical Inquirer,
Nov/Dec. 2000, p. 15. Careful investigation reveals a 1952
'UFO' incident to be a meteor plus some owls.
Thomas.
D. "The Roswell Incident and Project Mogul" in Skeptical
Inquirer, Jul/Aug. 1995, p. 15. (On the web at http://www.csicop.org/si/9507/roswell.html)
Web
Sites:
Jimmy
Carter's UFO: http://www.debunker.com/texts/carter_ufo.html
UFO investigator Robert Sheaffer was the first to uncover that
Carter's 1969 observation was actually a sighting of the planet
Venus.
The
UFO Skeptic's Page: http://www.debunker.com/ufo.html
Kept by Robert Sheaffer, this site has information about and links
to a number of UFO claims and what skeptics have found about them.
Philip
Klass Interview: http://www.gpposner.com/Klass_inter.html
A profile of and interview with the world's leading skeptical
UFO investigator.
Philip
Klass' 10 Principles for Investigating UFO's: http://members.aol.com/Tprinty/Klass.html
An elaboration, with examples, on how Klass goes about examining
evidence about UFO's.
Ian
Ridpath UFO Skeptic Page: http://www.ianridpath.com/ufo/ufoindex.htm
A British science writer investigates and explains UFO reports,
and discusses astronomical causes of UFO sightings.
James
Oberg's Space Age Myths: http://www.jamesoberg.com/ufo.html
Veteran space journalist Oberg explains a number of UFO cases,
including those involving astronauts and cosmonauts.
The
Failure of the 'Science' of UFOlogy: http://www.debunker.com/texts/ObergCuttySark.html
An award winning essay about what is wrong with many of the UFO
claims.
Alien
Autopsy: Faked or Fiction: http://www.trudang.com/autopsy/autocont.html.
A skeptical examination of the film shown on TV claiming an alien
body had been dissected.
The
Air Force report on the Roswell Incident: http://www.af.mil/lib/roswell/
You can read the full text and see the images, explaining how
the 1947 MOGUL project balloon crash and two later accidents have
been joined together to make up the Roswell myth.
The
NOVA UFO Interviews: For a critical show on UFO Abductions,
the PBS staff interviewed Philip Klass and Carl Sagan. Here are
brief but cogent excerpts at: http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/nova/aliens/philipklass.html
and http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/nova/aliens/carlsagan.html
Mistakes
and Misidentifications in UFO Research: http://mypage.iu.edu/~lrobins/ufopage.htm
Larry Robinson keeps a rich site with techniques for serious UFO
identification and what such identification tell us.
Screen
Memories: UFO Mythology and Science Fiction Films: http://www.hedweb.com/markp/ufofilm.htm.
Critic Mark Pilkington traces the relationship between popular
science fiction films and the claims of UFO observers and abductees.
How
to Make Your Own UFO: http://soho.nascom.nasa.gov/hotshots/2003_01_17/
When an image taken by SOHO, a satellite observing the Sun, became
a hot topic in UFO circles, the SOHO staff posted a clear explanation
of how their image had been doctored.
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