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- As Dwight D. Eisenhower said, "Things are more like
they are now than they ever were before.", I'm constantly amazed at
the way things remain the same in Ufology. I was reading some ancient UFO
articles written back in the late '40's and 50's. I wanted to share some
of what I read with you.
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- One interesting quote by -Captain Edward J. Ruppelt of
Project Bluebook: "The Air Force has never ruled out the possibility
that we are being visited from outer space. It says only that it has no
evidence to support this possibility."
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- This is a strange thing for the head of our saucer program
to say in public. He goes on to say, "My own opinion is that either
the saucers are interplanetary or they do not exist. I do not believe that
there is enough evidence at hand to choose between these alternatives.
You can argue either case indefinitely, and in the end you will have only
an opinion." Sound familiar? I think we are still in debate on that
one today. Dr Carl Sagan told a symposium back in 1968 that Interstellar
flight at nearly the speed of light is not impossible, even with present
principles of science. "If we are being visited by representatives
of extraterrestrial life, just sticking our heads in the sand would be
a very bad policy. If there are other technical civilizations, any random
one is likely to be vastly in advance of us. It is unlikely there is any
other civilization in the galaxy that is as backward as we are." Quite
a change from the normal line of "aliens do exist, but just they can't
come here". Why the change?
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- Another report from Don Keyhoe states that: Intelligent
beings might conceivably exist on Mars or Venus. It speculated on the possibility
that a civilization on one of those planets might have begun its technological
advance thousands of years before ours did, and that the people of that
civilization might now be interested in watching our own advance - out
of scientific curiosity, perhaps, or out of fear of future aggression.
"Such a civilization might observe." Said the report, "that
on earth we now have A-bombs and are developing rockets.. We should expect
at this time above all to behold such visitations." Yet, we are now
out of the "cold war" and we possibly might have passed the "L
test" required in the Drake equation, If we have, why are we still
having visits from our UFO friends? For those who aren't familiar with
Drake, here's some info.
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- The Drake Equation The famous Drake Equation gives the
number of intelligent civilizations able to communicate within our
own galaxy. N=R*fs*fp*ne*fl*fi*fc*L
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- R is the average rate of star formation in the galaxy,
equal to about 20 stars per year (i.e. recent HST observations of M16 showing
star formation sites).
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- fs is the fraction of stars that are suitable suns for
planetary systems, approximately 0.1 (most stars belong to spectral type
M and are probably too small, whereas a few, such as O and B stars, are
too short-lived). The circumstellar disk around Beta Pictoris is evidence
of planetary formation.
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- fp is the number of suitable suns with planetary systems,
now thought to be around 1/2 (i.e. 51 Pegasus discovery), a value that
has made scientists optimistic about the possibility of intelligent life
elsewhere in the galaxy
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- ne is the mean number of planets that are located within
the Continuously Habitable Zone (assuming liquid water is necessary for
life)
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- fl is the fraction of such planets on which life actually
originates (given enough time primative organic substances will be synthesized
into DNA and RNA, recent detection of the amino acid Glycene in the ISM
by radio observations) fi represents the fraction of such planets on which,
after the origin of life, some form of intelligence arises (evolution probably
occurs wherever life arises, and intelligence has survival value fc is
the fraction of such intelligent species that develop the ability and desire
to communicate with other civilizations (they construct radio telescopes
or laser systems)
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- L is the mean lifetime (in years) of a communicative
civilization (because it depends on the NATURE of the race of intelligent
beings it is the most uncertain factor in Drake's Equation) His equation
gives us from 10,000 civilizations to millions now that we know there are
other planets out there.
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- Back to Keyhoe, "The truth is, there is no longer
any reasonable doubt that alien spacecraft are visiting the earth. The
statement may sound startling at first, but when you think about it, it
actually becomes quite mundane. It is not much more startling than the
statement that, if you stand on a street corner, sooner or later somebody
will pass by. In the light of recent scientific calculations, it seems
likely that several million of them have planetary systems, and at least
some of these planets must support life. It would be arrogant of us to
suppose that we are the only intelligent beings in the galaxy, and just
as arrogant to think that we are the first to develop space travel. Civilizations
far older than ours may have orbited their first satellites when human-kind
was just learning to light fires. Such a civilization would eventually
send its astronauts out to explore nearby space, and if they found a planet
that harbored intelligent life - a planet such as our own - they would
undoubtedly hang around and study it at length."
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- I have heard theories covering everything from an alien
wild animal park to a "freak show". For unknown reasons we are
being visited. I think we are being watched, for signs of intelligence.
If so they are still watching. (In my humble opinion). "A full explanation
of the 'flying saucers' seems due," said Senator Vance Hartke of Indiana
in a letter to NICAP on June 5, 1963. Said Senator William Proxmire of
Wisconsin in 1963: "The very fact that so many inexplicable incidents
have occurred is reason enough for a thorough investigation." Many
other members of congress, of both parties, have also made strong statements
in support of public hearings. hmm, today we are trying to get public hearings
too! Thanks to the hard work of ufologists worldwide, we are still where
we were in 1963! As I said the time's they aren't a changing.
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- I'm going to finish off this report with a quote from
Don Keyhoe that still fits today's ufology: "Sooner or later the truth
has got to come out. A secret this big, with such enormous implications
for all of humanity, cannot possibly be kept forever. Congressional hearings
are almost bound to be held eventually - probably within the next year.
The basic finding of these hearings - that we are indeed under surveillance
of some kind by visitors from the universe - will undoubtedly startle and
frighten many people throughout the world. But it shouldn't surprise you
at all. The facts, the evidence, are before you right now."
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