Extraterrestrial Robots: Part Two

When you think of extraterrestrials, you probably think of ET, Mr. Spock, Klaatu, Yoda, Klingons and Romulans, the Blob, Martians with heat rays, Alien vs. Predator, the Sontarans, or perhaps the ‘Greys’ of UFO lore. However, if you really had an extraterrestrial close encounter of the up-close-and-personal kind, I’d wager the odds are far greater that you’d be shaking ‘hands’ with something more akin to Robby the Robot.

Continued from yesterday’s blog…

THE RISE AND RISE OF THE CYBORG: ARTIFICIAL BODY BITS & PIECES

We’re already on the way with the merger of man and machine; the natural with the artificial.

Head & Neck: There’s dentures; teeth fillings; eyeglasses; hearing aids; the bionic ear; the bionic eye; speech synthesisers; metal skull replacement head plates, etc.

Waist Up: We’ve implanted pacemakers; heart valves; artificial hearts; arm prosthetics; artificial shoulder, elbow and wrist joints; artificial kidneys (via kidney dialysis); and the iron lung.

Waist Down: At the very least there are artificial hip, knee and ankle joints; leg prosthetics, peg legs; and leg braces.

General: You wear clothes (replacing fur, feathers and scales); you wrap yourself in a heating blanket; you ‘wear’ your car in that you wrap it around you (or bicycle, skateboard, roller skates, etc. – they become a part or extension of you); the mobile/smart phone is an obvious example of the merger of flesh and machine, and one where all too often it’s the technology controlling the user, not the user controlling the technology. People use walking canes/sticks; walkers; and wheelchairs, some motorized and some so integral or inseparable to their users or ‘wearers’ that they jointly appear to be a virtual cybernetic entity – think of the most famous or widely known case history cosmologist-astrophysicist Stephen Hawking and his wheelchair come quasi-life-enhancing system, though that pales compared to the environmental suits worn by astronauts – moon walkers or EVA space-walkers – or deep-sea divers. Then there is plastic surgery.

What’s Next: Common in various medical situations are drips that via gravity ‘feed’ patients with their necessary drug, energy and other required vitamin/mineral supplements. That suggests to me that one can bypass the entire digestive system (teeth, oesophagus, stomach, small intestine, large intestine) by just having a one-way artificial valve that connects the outer skin surface with the bloodstream and that all body nutriments in the required amounts custom designed for the needs of any specific individual be injected directly into their bloodstream via this valve on an as-needed basis.

But the ultimate will be the desire or need to eliminate all flesh-and-blood bits-and-pieces, thus all diseases (including ageing) and injuries associated with flesh-and-blood, by keeping the only bit that’s really necessary – the mind – and recreating the wetware contents as software, downloaded into hardware within a nearly immortal plastic and steel ‘body’.   

EXPLANATIONS RELATED TO ANCIENT ASTRONAUTS AND UFOs

What might extraterrestrial robotics help explain when it comes to ancient astronaut theory and the UFO phenomena? A few items come to the fore.

Dragons are universals in human mythology. All cultures have dragon-lore. Anytime there is a concept that cuts across all societies, one needs to sit up and take notice. Dragons, for example, aren’t a one-off, confines say to ancient China. Dragons are frequently represented as the go-between the ‘gods’ (ancient astronauts or extraterrestrials) and humans. Given their ‘fire-breathing’ nature and ability to fly, it’s not inconceivable that dragons were really real, but not flesh-and-blood creatures but high-tech extraterrestrial devices of an aerial nature.

Hybrids, either human-animal or animal-animal (like dragons) are another example of a universal in human mythology that needs some coming to grips with. Though I’ve postulated that mythological hybrids, like say the Sphinx, might have been products of alien genetic engineering, it’s not that easy to say graft on a pair of wings on a horse (i.e. – Pegasus) and have it fly. There’s a lot of anatomical infrastructure that needs to be addressed and redesigned in order to make that happen. If these hybrids were mechanical or robotic, that avoids a lot of messy genetic mucking around with flesh-and-blood.  

UFOs and the Greys: So, might the UFO ‘greys’ actually be robotic or an android ‘life’ form, an extraterrestrial artificial intelligence (ETAI)? Well, why not?  I’ve yet to read any account that proved the ‘greys’ were functioning flesh-and-blood ETI. For all of their outward spindly appearance, they seem to be far stronger than their physiology would give them credit for. No one has seen them bleed or have bruises or scars; No arm or leg casts suggest no broken bones, not even a limp; nor have there been reports of sniffles and sneezes; they certainly look asexual and even act robotic as if on autopilot as well as being totally emotionless. When it comes to age, all seem to be the same age; there’s no sign of aging or age differentials. An artificially intelligent ‘life’ form could take on just about any outward appearance its designers wanted it to have. Natural biological evolution and natural selection are totally irrelevant when it comes to robotics or artificial intelligence (AI), including their outward appearance.

One other factor in favour of the UFO being a representation of ETAI instead of ETI is that some UFOs have been observed, eyeball and radar, to make manoeuvres that no squishy flesh-and-blood body could withstand but would be of little consequence to silicon chips. 

SUMMARY CONCLUSIONS

Artificial Intelligence (AI) is a logical evolutionary development that supersedes Natural (biological squishy) Intelligence housed in wetware. Once AI takes the reins, there’s no putting the genie back into the bottle and AI just goes from strength to strength. Assuming technological civilizations can last relatively lengthy periods of time, odds suggest most of a civilization’s timeline will be of the software variety relative to the wetware variety.

Though there’s no theoretical impediment to wetware crisscrossing, exploring and colonizing the galaxy, there’s even less, way, way less theoretical impediment to software doing the same, especially if software supersedes wetware relatively quickly and thus has a greater timeframe in which to accomplish this. If they don’t find you coming from one direction, they will find you coming from the opposite side since the odds are great that there are lots of advanced robotic civilizations out there.  

Since humans are the new boys on the old galactic block, we’re way, way, way more likely to have been discovered (probably hundreds of times over) by extraterrestrial civilizations hundreds, thousands, even millions of years our seniors. The odds are vastly in favour of such a discovery or rather discoveries by alien others, especially robotic alien others since robots are more likely to have a long-term existence and ease in boldly going.

Thus, there is quite some theoretical credibility to the concept of ancient visitations by ancient (robotic) extraterrestrial astronauts. That being the case, there is also quite some theoretical credibility to the concept of modern visitations by modern (robotic) extraterrestrial astronauts. There are some facets of the ancient astronaut and the modern (UFO) astronaut hypothesis that are better explained by robotic software than flesh-and-blood wetware.



Extraterrestrial Robots: Part One

When you think of extraterrestrials, you probably think of ET, Mr. Spock, Klaatu, Yoda, Klingons and Romulans, the Blob, Martians with heat rays, Alien vs. Predator, the Sontarans, or perhaps the ‘Greys’ of UFO lore. However, if you really had an extraterrestrial close encounter of the up-close-and-personal kind, I’d wager the odds are far greater that you’d be shaking ‘hands’ with something more akin to Robby the Robot.

When it comes to UFO entities, ancient astronauts, and aliens in general as depicted in sci-fi films and television; even short stories and novels, for the most part they presented as normal squishy flesh-and-blood organisms, even if they have green blood, pointed ears, antenna, or are living rocks, like “Star Trek’s” Horta. Even “Doctor Who’s” Daleks are partly squishy; ditto the Cybermen also of “Doctor Who” fame.

However, I suggest that for the normal picture of all things extraterrestrial substitute flesh-and-blood (natural CHON – Carbon, Hydrogen, Oxygen and Nitrogen – or related) for artificial constructions made from silicon and steel. Call them robots or androids or just plain artificial intelligence; call them Data (“Star Trek: The Next Generation”) or HAL (“2001: A Space Odyssey”) or V’Ger (“Star Trek: The Motion Picture”) or Gort (“The Day the Earth Stood Still” – and by the by, in the original short story, it was the robot that was the master and in charge, not the flesh-and-blood alien Klaatu). And who can forget R2-D2 or 3CPO (“Star Wars”). So, IMHO, if you have an up close and personal encounter with an ET, it’s not going to be with biological intelligence but with technological or artificial intelligence.

Extraterrestrial or terrestrial, our sci-fi films are full of intelligent machines or robots, from “I, Robot” to “Futureworld” and “Westworld” (where nothing can go wrong, go wrong, go wrong, go wrong) to “Cherry 2000” to “The Stepford Wives” to “Saturn 3” to the “Bicentennial Man” to the entire “Transformers” series. Today it’s sci-fi; tomorrow it’s science-fact.

Several reasons suggest why.

THE RISE AND RISE OF THE MACHINE

Any scientifically advanced alien society will sooner or later invent the computer or equivalent. Once invented, you can’t put the genie back into the bottle. Machines are gaining the upper hand here at Terra Firma and have been ever since humans came up with the idea of a tool. If you doubt this, ask any typical teen/young adult to do without their mobile/smart-phone and/or tablet; ask a housewife to forgo the programmable microwave oven, her vacuum cleaner or programmable dishwasher; ask a househusband to hand over the remote or the keys to his new red sports car with state of the art GPS and other computer programmable accessories (necessary therapy for those suffering from male menopause). And where would NASA be without all those robotic space probes to the Moon and planets (some of which have to have a rudimentary degree of intelligence since radio commands from Earth can take quite some considerable time to reach the planetary rover)?  Even if one excludes non-programmable ‘dumb’ machines and machine technologies like clothes dryers, coffee makers, lawn mowers, and radar, the number of ‘smart’ machines – super computers, PCs, tablets, smart-phones, etc. is getting damn close right now to the human population. One can even buy today robotic toys, ‘pets’ and even companions for the very sick, elderly, outcasts or lonely. Can sex with robotic partners be far behind?

Computing crunch power increases by order of magnitudes faster than biological wetware crunch power (Moore’s Law). Human intellectual capacity hasn’t increased very much, if at all, over the past 50,000 years or so – our IQ has flat-lined. Machine intelligence, though off to a slow start all those 50,000 years ago, is however increasing at an exponential rate. The lines have to cross eventually; sometime. The crossover point is tipped for the not too distant future and probably within the lifetime of most viewers reading this. Computer programs can already beat you every time at chess and a host of other games besides. 

Unlike humans, computers can link up to form a super-computer (recall the film “Colossus: The Forbin Project”) otherwise known today as the Internet. Or, in other words, eventually an artificial intelligence can merge with another artificial intelligence to create a mega artificial intelligence, which in turn could merge with another mega artificial intelligence, and so on.

As noted above, there will come a time when machine intelligence, artificial intelligence, surpasses biological or wetware intelligence. That will become a point where computers will become intelligent and self-aware enough to pass the Turing Test – that’s where someone cannot tell the difference between a human or a computer answering questions in an interview type of scenario.

Once wetware becomes dependent on software, intelligent self-aware machines call the shots and they are in control. Whether this human-machine relationship remains a symbiotic one or not is not that relevant since the relationship will not be 50-50. Recall the “Terminator” films!

The increase in artificial intelligence will ever increase faster and faster, especially when intelligent machines can themselves design their own next generation and the generation after that all in a matter of days, hours, and minutes. And reproduction is not an issue. ‘Asexual’ robotic reproduction is a given – one machine builds a copy, or more likely as not, a better copy of itself, and as many as deemed necessary, especially if they are sent out into the cosmos to ‘boldly go’ where probably lots of other robotics probes from other civilizations have gone before. See below.

In the timeline of any technologically advanced alien society, odds are great that the bulk of that timeline will be represented by artificial intelligence relative to wetware or biological intelligence.

Most alien societies will be not just dozens, hundreds, thousands of years in advance of human society, but hundreds of thousands to millions of years more advanced. That is to say, most alien societies will be artificially intelligent societies; robotic societies if you will.

When it comes from getting from somewhere out there (wherever that is) to here (Planet Earth), robotic ‘life’ forms have all the advantages.

They have, for all practical purposes, robots or intelligent computers or artificial intelligence (for lack of a better word or phrase) would have a lifespan measured in such timeframes as to make any interstellar travel equivalent to humans taking a leisurely stroll around their local park. There’s no need for energy intensive interstellar velocities even remotely approaching the speed of light. The galaxy has been around long enough to allow for exploration (and colonization) hundreds of times over at even expansion rates one percent light speed. 

They (robots again) have no need for all of the cumbersome and weight enhancing luxuries of what humans or biological entities would require for interstellar journeys: life-support basically in the form of artificial gravity, an atmosphere, heating, food and water, waste recycling technologies, privacy requirements, sex, entertainment, etc. Any saving in weight is a saving in energy. Robotic ‘life’ forms could cross the galaxy (or just go from star A to star B) in what for all practical purposes one could describe as shutdown or sleep mode.

Why would artificial intelligences (AI) boldly go in any event? Any intelligences designing AI must exhibit a mastery of science and technology. In order to achieve that they must exhibit that trait we call curiosity. That trait, instilled into AI, or intelligent wetware downloaded into silicon chips, would exhibit curiosity. What’s over that hill translated into a cosmic setting is what’s beyond that star and the one beyond that, etc.

One flaw in advocating a pure form of robotic intelligence boldly going is that one could argue instead that it’s the original biological entities who need to boldly go, but that’s easily accomplished if their wetware in an organic housing (i.e. – their skull) could be downloaded as software in a metallic housing. That humans could download their mind into a computer has been suggested and advocated by many as a technologically feasible way to achieve virtual immortality. By the by, that human wetware downloaded as robotic software, that feasibility has been suggested as being possible within this century, not millennia down the track.

We’ve made a start already!

To be continued…



Seven Alien Misconceptions Revisited: Part One

The scientific community and the general community tend to have differences of opinion over the topic of extraterrestrial life, especially intelligent extraterrestrial life with advanced technological capabilities. The scientific community tends to be ultra conservative; the great unwashed are way less critical since they get their news and views from the tabloids and sci-fi programs. Perhaps the middle ground is a more viable option than either side’s extremely conservative or uncritical point of view. 

An article titled “7 Huge Misconceptions about Aliens” by Natalie Wolchover has appeared recently on several websites including Space.com; Life’s Little Mysteries (prime site); and the Huffington Post (abridged to just five). It’s all about how scientists view the existence and nature of advanced ET as opposed to the more common perceptions of the great unwashed. The following comments are my addressing of the common misconceptions raised. Let’s see if I agree or disagree with the verdicts, and most important, why. Oh, of course the “THEY” referred to is our intelligent and technologically advanced ET. 

THEY MIGHT NOT EXIST: Disagree

This is the only case of the magnificent seven with scientists hedging bets. They “might” not exist. Then too they “might” exist.

Okay, we have no actual alien bodies on the slab in the lab, so the existence of aliens to date is pure speculation. When it comes to life in the universe, we have to speculate from a statistical sample of one – terrestrial life. Extrapolating from a statistical sample of one is fraught with danger. But, when crunching the numbers, so many stars, so many planets, so much time, so much space, so much of the ‘right stuff’ available for life-as-we-know-it, that very, very few scientists would bet their family farm that terrestrial life, and terrestrial intelligent life, and terrestrial intelligent life with advanced technology was the proverbial IT in the cosmos at large.

Certainly SETI (Search for ExtraTerrestrial Intelligence) scientists, one of which featured prominently in the original essay, wouldn’t adopt the “we are alone” scenario. It would make a mockery of their very own chosen profession and careers. The possible existence of ET may currently just boil down to pure statistics, but those statistics have been crunched and double crunched and tripled crunched again and again and again by the best science currently available to us. The verdict, well SETI scientists have voted to put their time, efforts and energy into, and bet on, the “we are not alone” option.

Finally, if you adopt the quantum (physics) mantra, anything that isn’t forbidden is compulsory; anything that can happen, must happen. Life isn’t forbidden; life can happen – we’re proof; therefore life must happen again and again and again.   

THEY WON’T COME IN ‘PERSON’: Disagree

By “come”, the consensus is that flesh-and-blood aliens will boldly go via silicon and metal surrogates that are themselves constructed artificially intelligent (AI), thus saving the biological aliens a lot of time, cost, effort, energy and danger. Sending out zillions of robotic AI space probes to explore the galaxy while the flesh-and-blood aliens stay at home however runs counter to what we humans do. Sure, we invest massive amounts of resources into silicon and steel. Robotic probes are often our eyes and ears from unmanned military drones to spy-in-the-sky satellites to probes to the planets and into the depths of the ocean. But, there is just something crazy enough about the human condition that humans insist on seeing and hearing for themselves, even if supplemented by technology, the wonders of, whatever.

Sure we sent unmanned probes to the Moon – but we followed by sending humans in person. Sure we send unmanned probes to Mars – but humans will go there in person eventually. Sure we explore the ocean’s abyss with robotic submersibles, but humans still go down to look up close and personal at RMS Titanic, even unto the deepest parts of the ocean trenches. Sure we can, and do, send instrumentation into the heart of massive tornadoes, but that hasn’t stopped ‘storm chasers’ from deliberately inserting themselves into the vortex of deadly twisters, sometimes as a thrill, more often as not to advance the science of meteorology and forecasting. Humans constantly put themselves at risk even though robots do the risk-taking better and cheaper. That’s the essence of the question “Why climb Mount Everest?” The answer, as always: “Because it’s there”. Now of course to do these sorts of things requires technological augmentation, from warm clothes (Mount Everest) to scuba gear (exploring the Great Barrier Reef) to reinforced steel containers that keep out the outside environment (exploring RMS Titanic or going to the Moon). But the biological entity remains cocooned inside.

If aliens evolve a high IQ and a sophisticated technology, then they no doubt will have that desire to explore and see what’s on the other side of the hill and climb their own Mount Everest. Perhaps firstly by surrogates; but if they have one tenth the curiosity and drive of humans, they will boldly go in person by hook or by crook. Robotic probes might inform ET that the third rock from a stellar body called Sol has a biosphere, but ET will want to see for itself, sooner or later.  

Now I might concede that via advanced bioengineering abilities, aliens could augment themselves with technology to such an extent that they might be nearly artificial constructions – our artificial hip joints and dentures and plastic heart valves taken to their logical conclusion. The Daleks of “Doctor Who” are a prime example. Perhaps their mind could be downloaded into something more permanent than wetware like software part and parcel of a silicon and steel computer. But the key bit is that their biological essence (their mind) remains intact and boldly goes.

THEY WON’T MATE WITH US: Disagree

Alien biochemistry wouldn’t be absolutely identical to our biochemistry, or translated, their genetics wouldn’t be absolutely identical to our genetics. Just like humans can’t mate and reproduce with petunias, though both are terrestrial life forms and share DNA, humans are even less likely to be able to mate with ET. So, why do I disagree with this most obvious of the obvious? Four reasons: 1) Genetic engineering; 2) Mythology; 3) Modern animal mutilations and 4) UFO abductions. Taking each in turn…

Genetic Engineering: If ET is technologically advanced enough to get from there (wherever that is) to here, then it’s logical to assume that they are technologically advanced in lots of areas – like genetic engineering. Okay, humans can not naturally mate with petunias. But, assuming they wanted to; couldn’t our geneticists take a human reproductive cell and the reproductive cell of a petunia, and manipulate both to such an extent that a union between the two might be possible? Okay, that’s pretty far out, but geneticists have already combined two dissimilar species genes into one – the ‘Frankenfish’, patented as the GloFish, combining the Zebrafish with various genes of fluorescence proteins from other species comes to mind as just one example. Collectively, the field is known as producing genetically modified organisms (GMO’s)! There’s much controversy that rages about GMO’s as human foods. That aside, in theory, a human-petunia combo is possible. We share some genetics and DNA with the petunia.

Mythology: One would be hard pressed to find a culture who’s mythology didn’t include examples of their ‘gods’ mating with us mere mortals. Greek mythology is a no-brainer given the ever randy Zeus. Biblical mythology also records sex between the ‘sons of god’ and the ‘daughters of men’. Now do scientists accept all of the multi-thousands of deities of the world’s cultures as supernatural entities? - Probably not. That then leaves them a choice between all of these deities being as 100% fictional as the Easter Bunny and Sherlock Holmes, or else they are aliens. To me, probability dictates that the more logical option of the two is ET – a speculation that also solves the Fermi Paradox – “where is everybody?”

The Fermi Paradox can be summed up simply enough just by postulating the existence of at least one other technologically advanced extraterrestrial civilization in our Milky Way Galaxy that’s older than our civilization by at least a few millions of years and with the same sorts of ‘boldly going’ drives as we humans have (i.e. – plain old curiosity, the “what’s on the other side of the hill?”). If that alone is taken as a given and nothing else, then just as humans explored and colonized Planet Earth in a tiny fraction of the Earth’s existence (ditto microbes, insects, birds, etc.), technologically capable extraterrestrials would have explored and colonized the Milky Way Galaxy in a tiny fraction of its existence, even at say rippling out at one to ten percent the speed of light. Planet Earth is part of that Milky Way Galaxy, so “where is everybody?”

In the case of humans enveloping Earth, we don’t need to ask “where is everybody?” We’re everywhere. In the case of ET, we do ask “where is everybody?” They should be here. Scientists say they’re not, never have been, and thus they have to explain the Fermi paradox by other means. On the other side of the fence, those who see evidence in those ‘ancient astronauts’ and in UFOs have no paradox with which to have to come to terms with.

Animal Mutilations: Animal mutilations are certainly well documented, and the cause(s) are mysterious to say the least. If human culprits, why hasn’t anyone been apprehended, tried and convicted of violations of animal welfare laws, destruction of private property (if livestock) and trespass? If natural predators are to blame – well that should be bloody obvious if true and no controversy should therefore ensue. If extraterrestrials, well that explains a lot that natural predation can’t like precision incisions and lack of blood and no hoof/paw prints and no signs of a struggle, though it also leaves mega-questions unanswered. Presumably, it has something to do with ET interest in terrestrial biochemistry and genetics.

UFO Abductions: If UFO abduction accounts are taken at face value, and I’m not prepared to call these ‘victims’ either liars or deluded, then extraterrestrials are mightily interested in the creation of more hybrids – not animal-animal hybrids like the Chimera, or human-animal hybrids like the Mesopotamian Shedu (winged bulls with human heads) but human-alien hybrids, something perhaps akin to those alien-human close encounters of the intimate kind (those ‘gods’ mating with humans) referred to above in all things mythological. If you know your mythology, you’d be aware that there are more hybrids than you can tick off on your fingers and toes –squared.

Of course “won’t mate” is not the same as “can’t mate”. If we assume advanced aliens are skilled enough to ‘mate’ with humans, why the hell would they want to? Of course this isn’t apparently mating in the traditional way, rather aliens harvesting human gametes and doing their technological thing with them, hence an alien version of artificial insemination or in-vitro fertilization. Again, if the human abduction ‘victims’ are taken at face value, some sort of alien-human hybrid program is underway. Why a human-alien hybrid program is the $64,000 question. Perhaps someday we’ll have an answer. Perhaps it’s similar to why we created the ‘Frankenfish’ or why the ‘gods’ created the Minotaur or the griffin or even demigod/demigoddess hybrids like Hercules or Helen of Troy.  

To be continued…

ET’s Home Sweet Home Away From Home

If aliens are present in our neck of the woods as many believe, then they originated from somewhere way out there (an interstellar home sweet home). They are unlikely to commute daily between home sweet home and here, just like scientists don’t commute daily between New York City and the South Pole. Therefore, these extraterrestrials have set up a base of operations – a home away from home. Where might that be, and has the location(s) changed over recorded history?

Let’s start off with a commonly held, but unproven assumption or belief that extraterrestrials have in the past, and are currently, interacting with Planet Earth and humanity – ancient astronauts and UFOs respectively. Now since these aliens have neither invaded, nor sought diplomatic contact, they have been somewhat less than right royally in your face when it comes to making an absolute spectacle of themselves. Translated, they are here, but are somewhat shy, at least in the sense of staying out of harms way. Now where they would seclude themselves depends on a number of factors.

Firstly, if the aliens have indeed mounted a long-term expedition to our terrestrial neck of the cosmic woods, they will need access to resources. You can only bring so much with you and no recycling scheme is ever 100% efficient. Entropy rules: order to disorder; useful to useless. So, aliens will need to top up their energy tanks, their required minerals, water, fertilizers for their hydroponic tanks, etc. Fortunately for them, resources are abundant just about anywhere in our solar system – water (as ices), minerals, solar energy, hydrocarbons, etc. So, aliens don’t need to factor resources in their home away from home staying out of harms way equation.

Having satisfied their long-term resource needs, they need a place(s) to live – a home sweet home away from home – that’s out of harms way. Aliens are well aware that humans shoot first and ask questions later. Keeping out of harms way however is relative to the state of humans’ abilities to in fact harm them. In the days BCE; in the days of ‘ancient astronauts’, places like Mount Olympus and the high Andes would adequately serve. Ancient alien buffs have speculated that aliens had bases under the sea and/or underground, and these would have also served the alien’s security purposes. The same applies to regions generally inhospitable to humans – arid areas and the Polar Regions. Such terrestrial abodes would be a welcome relief from the confinement of their starship or ‘mother ship’ which obviously must exist in order to serve as their transport between there and here.

Fast forward to today, and Mount Olympus, the South Pole, underwater and caves/caverns would no longer adequately serve their security needs. It would be time to sell up and move to a new home sweet home away from home. It’s either back to the ‘mother ship’ or the next nearest but still remote and isolated from human activity piece of real estate. Well, the ‘mother ship’ is okay for getting from Point A to Point B, but aliens, like humans, need to stretch their legs. That leaves the nearby but out of this world abode – the Moon.

Now there’s nothing new about speculation that the Moon could be a ‘home away from home’ for E.T. In fact it was once topical for those whose grounding in basic science was a bit suss to speculate that our Moon was in fact the alien’s ‘mother ship’. The Moon was an artificially hollowed out spaceship. You don’t hear too much about that brand of pseudoscience anymore, but that doesn’t mean E.T. can’t phone home from the Moon.

What can’t be so easily dismissed are reports from bona-fide astronomers (both professional and amateur) about mysterious lights seen on and sometimes moving about on the Moon. They are collective termed Transient Lunar Phenomena (TLP). There have been thousands of TLP events reported, recorded and catalogued in the technical scientific literature. Explanations abound, like volcanic activity (which is highly unlikely), but nothing has come to the fore yet which has satisfied all of the people all of the time. It’s also not too difficult to find astronomical reports of anomalous structures on the Moon. I can recall reports of unusual lunar spires photographed from the series of Lunar Orbiter unmanned space probes used for detailed lunar mapping prior to selecting touchdown sites for the then upcoming Apollo Moon landings. 

Now quite off the record, it’s not hard to find information that links the American manned lunar program and American lunar flights with reports of UFOs both on and near the Moon. Cover-up and conspiracy theorists have had a field day with NASA and the powers-that-be censoring and covering up proof that aliens are on the Moon. There’s no doubt you’ll find dozens of Internet sites that cover that subject. But, there is one fact that translates into an oddity if you think about it. 

Now the absolutely oddest thoughts can strike you at the oddest times for no apparent reason. For some weird reason, the quotation on the Apollo 11 lunar plaque came to the fore, and why I thought of it at all I know not, but it all of a sudden struck me as being odd. This is the quote: “HERE MEN FROM THE PLANET EARTH FIRST SET FOOT UPON THE MOON JULY 1969, A.D. WE CAME IN PEACE FOR ALL MANKIND”.

Now the first sentence is perfectly understandable: But what of the second? Why go to an apparently lifeless hunk of rock (the Moon) and state that you come in peace? Are you going to declare war on lunar rocks? Do people, in their explorations, say bushwalks, go up to a rock and say they come in peace; I will not harm you Mr. Rock? And that bit about “for all mankind’ is also odd. How come an American expedition has the right and authority to speak “for all mankind”? Do you have the right to speak on behalf of your spouse; on behalf of your street; or suburb; or city; or state; your country; the hemisphere you inhabit; the entire Earth? - Of course not - Something’s screwy somewhere!

The only thing that makes any sense is that there are living things on the Moon and that mankind (those American powers-that-be at the very least) is collectively aware of that fact! Apollo 11’s plaque just reassured that alien life using our Moon as a base of operations that they (the astronauts) weren’t harmful; humans were peaceful and that they had the authority to speak for everyone back on Earth. Our security minded aliens were still out of harms way despite our trespassing on what’s become their home away from home! And we humans had to make certain the reverse was true – recall those first few lunar expeditions got quarantined when they returned – just in case they got exposed to extraterrestrial germs!

Now one has to ask why we (Americans or any other nationality) haven’t gone back to the Moon in over four decades. Why aren’t there any official plans set in hard concrete (money committed), or at least soft concrete (blueprints on the drawing board), to return? Is it just lack of political will; the lack of current superpower political rivalry; the economics of it all, or something else?  There is no real precedent in the Age of Exploration for abandoning a new landfall discovery. Where would the Americas be today if nobody had bothered to follow up Columbus? The same applies to Australia and other newly discovered lands (even if they did contain indigenous peoples). Even Antarctica, which is a pretty forbidding place, saw explorers returning in droves and today Antarctica is manned year round.   

Have we conceded the Moon to the aliens? In exchange for leaving them well enough alone, they (apart from an alien abduction or two or twenty) petty much mind their own business too, and are no longer quite as in our face as they were in ancient times when they ruled as ancient astronauts - the polytheistic ‘gods’. 

If God Isn’t God, Then Who or What is God? Part Two

In my opinion, all this Biblical nonsense boils down to a collection of myths and fairy tales for grownups. For those who really have the faith, I’m easy. But I think the concept of the Biblical God (and associated baggage) is the greatest con job ever fostered on the great unwashed. Unless, assuming that God or the gods (i.e. – Zeus, etc.) weren’t totally fabricated out of whole cloth, then maybe, just maybe, the gods, including God, are extraterrestrials.

I have argued that the concept of a supernatural, creator, all-knowing, all-powerful, God is philosophically flawed. But, there remains the question, if God isn’t really God, who is God? Well, IMHO, God isn’t God, since God is a flesh-and-blood extraterrestrial (ET)!

Continued from yesterday’s blog…

Some more explanations provided by a simulated universe, created by God, the extraterrestrial.

Biblical One: Explain the parting of the Red Sea in the Bible! It’s easy to do in the movies, on a computer, or in your head.

Biblical Two: Then there’s this Biblical bit about Joshua commanding the sun to stand still (at least that’s the way I recall it). That’s either a tall tale or a myth or the result of a simulation. Whatever, it can’t be a physical reality. 

Biblical Three: In the Bible we have this tale of the multiplying of loaves and fishes out of virtually nothing. Again, you can imagine it, but that’s about it. Likewise with any sort of miracle it’s easy to visualize the event, but infinitely harder to explain it. But, as in the case of loaves and fishes, it’s easy to write a software package that can do this multiplication feat as a simulation exercise.

Biblical Four: Heaven and Hell can be created as easily as any other sort of place, complete with either fluffy white clouds and pearly white gates; harps and haloes, or devils and pitchforks; fire and brimstone!

Biblical Five: If someone (or something) is calling the simulation shots, you could obviously and easily be resurrected or reincarnated or just allowed to cease to be (that is, deleted from the program).

Paranormal One: How can reports of a Bigfoot or a Loch Ness Monster continue for decades without physical verification as if these creatures were but phantoms? Again, it’s easy to visualize such creatures, but far harder to explain how a rather largish lake monster can elude detection in a confined lake seemingly indefinitely. All these observers can’t be totally mistaken. But what if the ‘monsters’ AND their observers are both simulations, where the ‘monsters’ are simulated to be a quasi-phantom – a sort of game to play with your simulated observers?

Paranormal Two: What about ghosts and fairies and all of their various relations? You can create them on film, in your mind, or on a computer screen, so, if you can, so could another – and create you as well in the process.

Paranormal Three: How can aliens abduct humans or mutilate cattle, decade after decade, without ever being seen? It’s easy to do in a computer simulation; difficult in reality.

Paranormal Four: That goes ditto for the English crop circles. The crop circle phenomena is totally unexplainable, but it doesn’t have to be explainable in a physical sense if it’s all a virtual reality created by an extraterrestrial intelligence including the observers who see the circles and wonder how on earth it was done.

From the examples above, I conclude that it almost seems as if someone (something) is ultimately responsible for aspects of the Universe, but he / she / it / they didn’t quite think things through sufficiently. Methinks an all knowing, all powerful supernatural God type being wouldn’t have stuffed things up. The Universe is certainly stuffed up and if the Bible isn’t a stuffed up piece of literary work, I don’t know what is! So both the Bible and our Universe are either naturally stuffed up (The Bible because it was authored by flawed human beings and thus has nothing to do with the infallible word of God), or it was created stuffed up! If it was created stuffed up, well again, it’s because the creator was flawed flesh-and-blood, and hardly an all-knowing and all-powerful God. Our flawed creator created a simulated Universe, including all the Biblical baggage we have to try to reconcile with a perfect creator God (who, in my version, doesn’t exist).

Could there be an afterlife without a God? I suggest that if there is an afterlife, there has to be a natural as opposed to a supernatural mechanism, and that we’d be hard pressed to come up with one. While I can’t think of a completely natural explanation to account for any plausible transition from life to afterlife, I can think of a non-supernatural one, albeit it’s not totally natural. Just as it’s within the realm of possibility that we exist as software in a computer program called “Planet Earth”, so too might there be another computer program with associated software called “The Spirit World” or “The Abode of the Afterlife”. When you reach your termination as a simulated living being in “Planet Earth”, you get resurrected in “The Spirit World”. Of course in that sense there’s still a god, but a ‘god’ who just happens to be an extraterrestrial computer programmer, who could be flesh and blood, or maybe an artificial intelligence in its own right. Either way, it’s not 100% natural, but it’s certainly not supernatural. Of course for all I know there maybe other software programs with names such as “Hell” and “Heaven” or “Valhalla” or maybe dozens, hundreds even thousands of others we’ve never even conceived or heard of. I mean the virtual beings in one of our terrestrial computer or video games wouldn’t be aware that there was thousands of other computer or video games in existence with dozens more being produced and brought out each and every month.

It all makes a sort of sense albeit in a weird or strange sort of sci-fi way. I mean, to paraphrase a rather famous observation, “the universe is not only stranger than we imagine, it’s stranger than we can imagine”.  If there’s anyone who can give a definitive proof that we’re not a creation of someone’s (something’s) virtual reality (computer simulation) then I’d like to hear it so I can cross the scenario off my list of things to have to worry about!

That specific aside, if there is any historical evidence for a god, gods or The God, then that evidence could just as easily be equally interpreted as evidence for the existence of extraterrestrial intelligence(s), whose purpose(s) or objective(s) may not be all that benign.

So my second and more likely possible answers to ‘if God isn’t God, then who is God?’ are summed up by the well known phrase ‘ancient astronauts’. God is, or was, an extraterrestrial, but not in this case the creator of a simulated universe. Rather, a being within a really real universe. Recall (the late) Arthur C. Clarke’s third law, “any sufficiently advance technology is indistinguishable from magic”, or in this context, an advanced extraterrestrial technology and alien being welding same is indistinguishable from the supernatural or a supernatural God.

If the above argument is valid, then I conclude that it’s easy to explore the nooks and crannies of our galaxy, and seeing that we have no place to run and hide, that then we indeed have been discovered by extraterrestrials. Since one or more extraterrestrial technological civilizations have already done their boldly going exploring thing, it stands to reason that at various times in our geological and historical past we would have received visitors from the stars. If one or more such occurrences happened in our historical past, there might be some suggestive evidence of same; and thus the concept of the ‘ancient astronaut’ has come to pass.

Erich Von Daniken, including those of a similar point of view who came before and after him, collectively had the germ of a good idea, but he, and they, IMHO got rather carried away with the concept and started seeing ancient extraterrestrial astronauts behind every pyramid and megalith in existence. Now I don’t believe for a moment that aliens, or humans assisted by aliens, built the pyramids or the statues at Easter Island or any other type of archaeological monument. Evidence suggestive of ancient astronauts will probably best be found in myths and legends, including the myths and legends central to our major religions, perhaps in advanced human knowledge of scientific concepts out of sync with that particular culture so hosting that knowledge, or in art works, or other archaeological works that are suggestive of an awareness of sky beings.

Firstly, nearly all cultures have stories and pictograms about or of sky beings, including the Australian aboriginals and American Indians. Myths and legends surrounding, say, the Greek / Roman / Norse gods can be interpreted in an ancient astronaut context (ditto for other religious beings or gods), or perhaps the Biblical ‘Wheel of Ezekiel’ is suggestive. While the etchings on the Plain of Nazca were certainly not runways, for flying saucers, they can easily be interpreted as mammoth human constructions designed to be viewed by sky beings. Why go to the trouble if sky beings weren’t really around to appreciate your efforts?

Then there’s a whole pot-full of mythological creatures – the Centaur, unicorns, the Sphinx, the Griffin, Pegasus, the Minotaur, mermaids, dragons, etc. which might be non-humanoid extraterrestrial life forms. Or, more realistically, perhaps in light of the UFO abduction and Roswell greys, are the myths and legends shared by many cultures dealing with elves, dwarfs, gnomes, the fairy-folk, the wee-people, and other smallish beings that aren’t quite human. It strikes me as more logical that these ‘wee folk’ actually exist, and that’s why all the references to, and belief in, them, exist. That is, they are really real vis-à-vis references to, and belief in them, because there is some psychological, sociological or cultural necessity to invent imaginary beings, calling it mythology (as opposed to literary fiction), or perhaps calling it religion.

In conclusion, the ‘ancient astronaut’ field is a subject ripe for detailed academic study, and the concept of the ‘ancient astronaut’ shouldn’t be dismissed by scholars are readily as it has been. Unfortunately, it’s unlikely any academic would put his or her career on the line by pursuing such a controversial, ‘pseudo-scientific, topic because of the ‘giggle’ factor – Pity that.

Further recommended ‘ancient astronaut’ readings:

Blumrich, Josef F.; The Spaceships of Ezekiel; Bantam Books, New York; 1974: 

Castle, Edgar W. & Thiering, Barry B. (Joint Editors); Some Trust in Chariots!!; Westbooks, Perth, W.A.; 1972:

Daniken, Erich von; Chariots of the Gods? Unsolved Mysteries of the Past; G.P. Putnam’s Sons, New York; 1969:

Daniken, Erich von; Gods from Outer Space: Return to the Stars or Evidence for the Impossible; G.P. Putnam’s Sons, New York; 1971:

Downing, Barry H.; The Bible & Flying Saucers; Avon Books, New York; 1968:

Drake, W. Raymond; Gods and Spacemen in the Ancient East; Sphere Books, London; 1974:

Drake, W. Raymond; Gods and Spacemen in the Ancient West; Sphere Books, London; 1974:

Norman, Eric; Gods Demons and UFOs; Lancer Books, New York; 1970:

Story, Ronald; Guardians of the Universe?; New English Library, London; 1980: 

Story, Ronald; The Space-Gods Revealed: A Close Look at the Theories of Erich von Daniken; Harper & Row, New York; 1976: 

Temple, Robert K.G.; The Sirius Mystery; Sidgwick & Jackson, London; 1976:

Wilson, Clifford; Crash Go the Chariots; Lancer Books, New York; 1972:

Wilson, Clifford; The Chariots Still Crash; Signet, New York; 1975:

Wilson, Clifford; The War of the Chariots; S. John Bacon, Melbourne, Victoria; 1978:

I Think We Are Property! An Outline

Assuming one or more extraterrestrial civilizations with advanced, interstellar spaceflight capability exists – then what? Well, they find Planet Earth and set up shop! I think we’re property!

*The phrase ‘I think we’re property’ apparently originated with the late Charles Fort, an anomalies researcher who compiled several volumes of strange, weird, unusual, phenomena culled from newspapers and journals. His name has given rise to the word ‘Fortean’ as in ‘Fortean phenomena’. Actually the exact quote or a variation thereof, is apparently "The Earth is a farm. We are someone else's property." Regardless of the exact quote, IMHO, he’s spot-on!

*If we’re property, who or what is ultimately our owner? E.T.; that’s who or what! Why?

*Based on conservative estimates (guesstimates?) of the number of interstellar travelling extraterrestrial civilizations there were in the galaxy, and how fast they could spread out and explore, the late Carl Sagan (astrobiologist and planetary astronomer) calculated that on average, each star in the Milky Way Galaxy should get a monitoring visit roughly once every 100,000 terrestrial years, more frequently in proportion to the more interesting the accompanying stellar system of planets were. Thus, Planet Earth should have received lots of monitoring visits over her vast eons of geologic time. So it shouldn’t be surprising that not only are we in various alien databases, but since we, as a biological planet, should get even more frequent visits. It’s just another version of the Fermi Paradox – where is everybody? Well, they’ve been here! [1]

*Being a rather nice sort of planet, perhaps one or more of our cosmic visitors decided to set up shop on Earth, either as a place for a brief R&R (maybe they thought Mount Olympus or Mount Meru might make a nice resort location) or a ‘permanent’ home-away-from-home. Perhaps Planet Earth was colonized by extraterrestrials long before humans were dreamt of in anyone’s philosophy.

*E.T. would have had no moral or ethical qualms about using Planet Earth as an R&R resort and/or base of operations way back then. There was no intelligent life and indigenous civilization already present – the Prime Directive (assuming such a concept in real as opposed to the fictional Star Trek concept) would not apply.

*Now mythologies from around the world tell that the gods created humanity, which in itself is mysterious since there’s no intuitive reason for human myth-tellers to assume that humans needed creating in the first place. But that’s a separate story. The bottom line here is that humans were created. The gods created us, not out of a separate whole cloth, but via genetically engineering us from primate stock. We biologically evolved from the primate branch of zoology, but with a little bit of technological help from our friends, the gods.

*Further, recall that nearly all mythologies around the world credit the gods with not only creating humans, but giving humans the gifts of knowledge, culture, all the various skills and the intellectual and material tools central to domestic settlements needed to establish ‘modern’ civilization, while at the same time archaeology records our extremely rapid transition from our hunter-gather mode of making a living to living in rural villages, towns and finally urban cities. So we’re created by, and we’re further indebted to, the gods to boot.

*Normally, if you create something, you own what you create unless you voluntarily give or sell it away – transfer ownership elsewhere. I assume here that the gods didn’t sell us, trade us, or give us away!

*The general reason the gods created humans was to do the hard work and free the gods to do other things, no doubt of a more pleasurable nature. Humans were also created in order to serve the gods, and I assume that wasn’t to be voluntary servitude either.

*There’s nothing strange about that concept. There are lots of terrestrial parallels.

*Humans ‘own’ many fellow life-forms, from scientists owning laboratory rats, mice and rabbits to farmers with their cattle and sheep to everyday Joe Blow and his cats, dogs, and goldfish as pets.  Lots of animals ‘serve’ humans as food, as beasts of burden, as entertainment and in ‘sports’, be it hunting, fishing, cock-fights, bullfighting, thoroughbred or greyhound racing, rodeos, etc.

*Ownership of an intelligent life-form by another intelligent life-form is usually called “slavery”, which might be benign or harsh. There are many terrestrial examples of slavery as we’re all well aware, so it’s hardly an unknown concept.

*We are the ‘slaves’ of the gods who created us.

*However, in my scenario, the gods aren’t gods, but ‘gods’ – not supernatural deities but flesh-and-blood extraterrestrials.

*Throughout history, humans have often been subjected to traumas inflicted by various non-terrestrial beings; often called under a variety of names, from demons like the incubi and succubi to the UFO ‘greys’. Various entities, including the ‘gods’ can have their wicked ways with us and there’s nothing we can do about it.

*Modern UFO abductions have historical counterparts. The ‘greys’ are but elves and fairies (fairy-folk in general) in a modern context; the fairy-folk just the ‘greys’ in an historical context.

*The UFOs agenda is one of neither invasion nor take-me-to-your-leader, rather more one of scientific study including the concept inherent in the Zoo Hypothesis. We are ‘animals’ – they are the zoo keepers. Alternatively, we are their ‘slaves’; we are their property; they are the masters and the owners.

*The UFO abduction ‘greys’ seem to be interested in humans mainly with respect to areas or aspects surrounding reproduction and genetics. These are the same sorts of areas required for the ‘gods’ to have ‘created’ humans in the first place, so maybe their grand plan is still unfolding!

*There’s an obvious parallel with aliens abducting humans. If humans are anything to be judged by, we abduct animals for all sorts of reasons, from the illegal trade in wildlife, to animals for zoos and safari parks, for medical research and biological research. With respect to the latter, wildlife biologists will often abduct, tag and release animals. Sound familiar? If animals communicate among themselves, their verbal history must be chockfull of abduction tales with humans the abductors.  

*Okay, we’re the property of the UFO ‘greys’ and they feel they have every moral, ethical and legal right to have their wicked way with us.

*However, few will even remotely face up to this possibility, the probability that aliens are abducting humans for various and not too pleasant reasons, because the implications of the “I think we’re property” scenario are just too terrifying!

*When it comes to alien abductions, if taken at face value, you’re not safe – in your home, in your bed, in your car. You can’t stop them taking you. You can’t protect yourself. You can’t protect your loved ones. You’re their property and they’re stronger than you are.

*Of course even in today’s realm, you, the reader, are in one real sense just the property and slave of society. You do not have the ability or right to do whatever you damn well please. Society can force you to do what society wants you to do (like get drafted into the armed forces, serve jury duty, pay taxes, obey the road rules and otherwise go along with a whole pot-load of ‘thou-shall-nots’) and you have no real say in the matter. You might be a willing slave; an agreeable slave, but you’re ultimately a slave nonetheless. Of course way back when, back in the days before we had democratic institutions and freely elected governments, there was rule by divine right, where kings and queens and emperors and empresses and pharaohs were ‘appointed’ and ‘approved’ by the gods, and by that divine right, you were property of that ruler and a subject required to carry out their every whim. They could do with you what they wished.

*It’s a sort of property/ownership hierarchy at work here. At the relativity lowest level you’re the property of the society you find yourself in. Society is the property of those ruling by divine (or elected) right - The Big Cheese (king, emperor, pharaoh, prime minister, etc.). The Big Cheese was the property of the gods (or God), at least way back when the Big Cheese survived at the whim of the gods (or God) and answered to the gods (or God). Of course the gods (including a God) were just the extraterrestrials that came to Earth eons ago, though today for the most part leave us pretty much to our own devices, apart from some monitoring and those abductions, the purpose of which isn’t entirely clear though the emphasis is certainly on reproduction and genetics. 

*Still however, I guess we have a mental case here of better the devil you know than the devil you don’t. Being kidnapped/abducted and subjected to medical tortures by a human is bad; being kidnapped/abducted and subjected to invasive medical tortures by an extraterrestrial is far worse. Things get uncomfortable when E.T. enters the equation, especially when you’re totally helpless.

*However, the worrying bit is that personal refusal to even acknowledge such a (“I think we’re property”) possibility because such an acknowledgement would mean throwing away your knowledge that you are in control, suggests the subject of alien abductions will never be dispassionately addressed. The most professional of us are at the core human, and this sort of scenario could easily cause the human to turn, not turtle, but ostrich and bury one’s head in the sand. Like a child hiding under the covers hoping the monster will just go away. Unfortunately, the alien abduction phenomena probably won’t – go away that is.

*Sceptics in denial (‘it can’t be, therefore it isn’t – my mind is made up’) will counter that UFOs (and by association abductions) are all misinterpretations, hoaxes and delusions, physical evidence (radar, photographs, motion pictures, ground markings, electromagnetic and physiological effects) be damned. However, there are two very logical facts that dispute any ‘all in the mind’ hypothesis for UFOs (and associated abductions).

*One very telling point about ufonauts or UFO occupants (aliens associated with UFOs) and the aliens and scenarios behind alien abductions: in the case of the former, within the ranks of sci-fi (films, TV, novels, short stories, video games, etc.) the range of alien body-types is massive. If you can imagine it, it’s been done. However, the range of alien body-types associated with UFOs is way, way, way more limited. Imagination is not at the forefront here. With respect to the abduction plot, if you were asked to write a sci-fi story that started with the premise of UFO aliens abducting a human in their ‘flying saucer’, the evolution of that initial plot element could take hundreds of different turns. Real abduction tales hardly differ from initial abduction to final resolution. Again, imagination isn’t coming to the forefront. If UFOs, UFO occupants and abductions are all in the mind, well the variety should be more akin to Heinz (57 varieties) squared.

*One common thread in the tales of abductees is some sort of invasive medical procedure(s) performed on them. Back in the real world, anybody undergoing a routine terrestrial medical, standard medical exam, blood donation, etc. will be able to count on one universal part and parcel of same. Their heart/circulatory system will be checked. There will be stethoscopes, blood pressure measurements, pulse rates taken, haemoglobin levels checked, etc. That’s nearly a given. However, in abduction scenarios, the ‘medicals’ never, but never, seem to include anything to do with the heart, veins, arteries, and only rarely with associated blood chemistry. Now if abduction tales were all in the mind, all made up, entirely imaginary, you’d bet the family farm that the aliens would check your heart and blood pressure! They don’t!

*There’s one more interesting point to be made about the ‘greys’ behind UFO abductions. Horror author Whitley Strieber came out of the closet to tell the world that he too had been abducted by aliens - the ‘greys’ and wrote a best seller about it called “Communion” (plus sequels). Strieber’s claims, true or false, aren’t the point here. The image on the dust cover of “Communion” – a head shot of a typical ‘grey’ – well a picture is worth a thousand words or perhaps nightmares in this case. That image, on the front cover of his book in thousands of bookstores around the world had an amazing responsive chord with the public; it had a resonance with multi-thousands of ordinary people. It seemed to unlock hidden, repressed memories/experiences in many people. The question is why? If ‘greys’ don’t exist; if UFO abductions aren’t real, then that image should not have had the psychological impact it did. 

*There is an interesting quasi-parallel between the 50’s contactees and the later abductees, even though the ‘Nordic’ ‘Space Brothers’ appear vastly different than the abductee’s ‘greys’. The contactees were pre-Hippy New Ager types. In contrast, many abductees seem to undergo quasi-New Age lifestyle changes post abduction(s). They may have become vegetarians, gave up smoking or drinking, joined community groups, started participating in charity work, developed ecological concerns and/or become overall a more spiritually-oriented being.

*In conclusion, UFOs have a right to invade our air space as Planet Earth is their turf, their real estate; their property. From the point of view of the ‘greys’, they have every right to abduct us, just because we’re property!

[1] Sagan, Carl & Shklovskii, I.S.; Intelligent Life in the Universe; Holden-Day, San Francisco; 1966; pages 450-452:

UFOs Not, Because E.T. Isn’t: Part Three

Seeing as how the Universe is some 13.7 billion years old, and seeing as how the current human species (defined as Homo sapiens) has been around for only some 100,000 years (give or take), then I have to ask, is it logical to assume that we’re the proverbial ‘It’? If the answer should prove to be ‘yes’, if terrestrial life and humanity is the be all and end all of life in the Universe, then UFOs can’t have anything to do with extraterrestrials.

Continued from yesterday’s blog…

Longevity third:

Lastly, there’s the issue of longevity. If your neighbours buy up and move in, but then sell up and move out again in less than 24 hours, that doesn’t allow much time to meet and greet them and gossip over an afternoon cup of coffee - blink, and they’re gone. But if you’re both on the block for twenty years, that allows lots of time for afternoon teas, philosophical chats, bridge games, etc. So, how long do technological civilizations last?  

Well, the pessimist will look around and cite global warming, probably antibiotic resistant germs giving rise to pandemics, chemical, biological and radiological warfare and/or terrorism, the extinction of biological species, rampant industrial pollution, and in general an overall quality of life heading rapidly down the gurgler, right down to the point that the human race will probably go extinct by our own hand. But if you’re an optimist, then the sky’s the limit.

It’s not all that obvious that technology actually adds all that much value towards ultimate long-term survival. Lots of technological advancements have, like controlling energy sources such as fire, developing a sustainable food supply via agriculture, the rise of modern medicine and food preservation technologies. But then lots of modern technological wonders, the automobile, CDs, sofas, microwave ovens, and thousands of other consumer products don’t really contribute much to our overall survival – certainly cars don’t when considering the road toll! That brings up the fact that things technological can sometimes work in the opposite direction. Toxic this, pollutant that, nuclear the next thing; then throw in a bit of global warming; the rise of urban city living with overcrowding and in general overpopulation; chemical, biological and radiological warfare/terrorism; instruments of warfare in general, like guns; the overuse of antibiotics hence the rise of antibiotic resistant germs; exposure to electromagnetic fields – well, the list of horrors or potential horrors keeps on keeping on and on.

It makes for an interesting question: would mankind ultimately survive longer had technology never entered the equation, or not? It’s an unanswerable question in that 1) we can’t run the contrary as a controlled experiment, and 2) that the genie is well and truly out of the bottle and there’s probably no turning back now.

Assuming humanity as a collective whole doesn’t end up going the way of the Dodo within the next several generations, even centuries – whether it actually morally deserves to go extinct is another question – then what?.

It’s hard to imaging what human civilization, what humans themselves will be like 1000 years from now. If you could come back 1000 years hence, would you indeed find a human civilization, indeed find recognizable ‘humans’ at all? Once you have evolved to the stage of being a multicellular critter with intelligence and advanced technology, then physics, chemistry and plain everyday evolutionary biology are no longer in control of your evolution. You are now in control! You are in control not only over the future evolution of other species (artificial selection instead of natural selection) but of your own evolution. The age of the designer baby is already here, albeit still in its infancy (pun intended). What will another few decades bring to this now embryonic field; obviously one with an ever ongoing and continuing maturity? 

Humans will probably go kaput within 1000 years, not because of any global nuclear war, or pandemic, or asteroid strike, but because humans have by their own free will evolved themselves into something else, and the process has already started. In fact, it’s possible that in 1000 years time there could be two humanoid species on Earth. One will be an amalgamation of flesh-and-blood plus ‘iron-and-silicon’; the other pure ‘iron-and-silicon’ (artificial intelligence, perhaps in the form of robots).

The first is not too difficult a swallow. Just replace or augment flesh-and-blood bits with ‘iron-and-silicon’ bits (or wood bits, or ceramic bits, or plastic bits, etc.). Look at most pirate films and you’ll see those beloved peg-legs and hook-hands. Do you wear glasses or contact lenses? What about a hearing aid? Perhaps you have an artificial joint(s) or a heart pacemaker. You surely have a dental filling (or two), maybe even dentures. Then there’s artificial skin and all manner of other internal or external types of technology that have replaced your failed flesh-and-blood – like kidney dialysis. There’s now serious talk about the development of a bionic eye within a few years (to go alongside the bionic ear). What further artificial bio-bits will be available in another 20 years, another 50 years, or another 200 years? The era of “RoboCop” or a real life “Six-Million Dollar Man” (and “Woman”) is getting close to fruition.

Within 500 years or so, maybe less, I can envision that someone will be able to download the contents of their brain (their mind) into an ‘iron-and-silicon’ equivalent.  Why? Well, does the word ‘immortality’ (or as close to immortality as makes no odds) suggest a possible reason? You don’t think anything of endlessly replacing worn automobile parts for new parts to extend the useful lifetime of your car. Why not endlessly replace your worn parts? Your mind, that ‘inner you’ housed within your brain won’t last forever. Replace it - transfer it to a more durable technology. Do it again, and again and again as is necessary. In fact, one might create a mega-mind or super-mind by merging into an ‘iron-and-silicon’ body containing a lot of minds (in much the same way as computer hardware can have a lot of operating software programs. By merging the minds of say a cosmologist, general relativist, quantum physicist and mathematician, one might speed up the development of the Holy Grail of physics, the Theory of Everything (TOE) – which is as currently conceived, a theory of quantum gravity. 

Once your mind is contained in an ‘iron-and-silicon’ ‘head’, just attach that to an all ‘iron-and-silicon’ ‘body’. Then boldly go where no ‘iron-and-silicon’ human has gone before. Immortality indeed!

All of which leads to a future Earth inhabited by a humanoid robot species, artificially evolved from today’s human species. That process too has already started - robotic appliances, even artificial ‘iron-and-silicon’ ‘pets’ are now on the market. Research into artificial intelligence is ever ongoing. Watch that final minute of the final episode of the TV revision of “Battlestar Galactica’! How about those sci-fi “Transformers” or “Terminators”, or Data (from “Star Trek: The Next Generation”)? Then there’s “Doctor Who’s” Cybermen or his main enemy, the Daleks (though Daleks are part machine; part organism).

Think of those robots from “Westworld” or the “Futureworld” sequel where nothing can go wrong, go wrong, go wrong, go wrong, go wrong… Then there’s “The Stepford Wives”, “Cherry 2000”, the original Cylons from the original “Battlestar Galactica”, and many more. It might be just science fiction today – could it be science fact tomorrow? There doesn’t seem to be any violation of physics involved. In physics, everything not forbidden is compulsory! However, some of those sci-fi scenarios suggest that perhaps ultimately there might be a conflict between the (part) machines we become, and the (artificially) intelligent machines that we create!

We’re ultimately in control, so a quasi-robotic future isn’t of necessity compulsory. But I suspect it will happen. Why? There are rational reasons for humans deliberately abandoning their flesh-and-blood existence and evolving themselves, if not 100% into ‘iron-and-silicon’ then at least into something part flesh-and-blood coupled with part ‘iron-and-silicon’ – sort of like we have today (recall those now primitive dentures and peg-legs). 

Quite apart from immortality (well quasi-immortality anyway) arguments, its nice having more indestructible bodies and bodies that can be more easily repaired. Death won’t go away of course, not totally – accidents will still happen. Presumably, your mind will be able to absorb 10, 100, 1000 times the amount of experiences, memories, knowledge, etc. than is currently the case. You might be able to explore environments now closed to you, like taking a stroll across the sea bottom – many kilometres down – in your ‘iron-and-silicon’ robotic ‘birthday’ suit.

All of which then opens up the entire ‘boldly going’ experience hinted at above. What’s the hardest part of going to Mars? – it’s the flesh-and-blood frailty of the human body – the need for gravity, oxygen, organic food, water, space suits, and that you can’t carry spare flesh-and-blood parts along.  Extrapolate to our exploration of the entire solar system, then our stellar neighbourhood, eventually the galaxy. Even if you don’t want to go yourself, well, there’s artificial intelligence housed in perhaps nanotechnology bodies, spreading throughout the cosmos like so much a cancer analogy.  

The ultimate point of all of this is that if eventually us (humans), why not them (extraterrestrials) now? Translated, after a relative short period of biological development, a civilization can obtain longevity that evolutionary development into ‘iron-and-silicon’ provides, coupled with far easier expansion into the realm of outer space.

So, overall, UFOs might not be alien spaceships right here and now, because it’s 1) somewhat relatively hard to evolve multicellular organisms (but obviously not impossible); 2) will intelligence tend to have evolutionary survival? 3) Associated advanced technology isn’t inevitable and might even be counterproductive. 4) If counterproductive, longevity is at risk. Thus, Earth, with its multicellular critters and humanity with its technology, might be quite the rare planet within the Universe – according to some.

But, there’s a catch. There’s always a catch. What ultimately undermines the UFO ETH sceptics is that all you need is ONE boldly going, intelligent, advanced technological and long-lived extraterrestrial species and the galaxy is theirs for the taking and we’re in their sights. Few pundits would like to bet against that ONE, given, in the immortal words of the late Carl Sagan, a statistical possibility of ‘billions and billions’.