The Non-Fiction of Contact What would it be like?

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The Non-Fiction of ContactWhat would it be like?

• Craig R. Lang MS CHt
• Researcher/Investigator, Minnesota MUFON
• www.craigrlang.com
• craig_at_craigrlang.com

MarsCon 2006 Sunday March 5, 2006
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ET Life (and thus ETI?) becoming more accepted

• Life based upon common biochemical principles -
  probably universal in scope
• Number of E.T. Civilizations probably relatively
  large
• We are becoming a space-faring civilization
• Long-term space flight now a reality
• Likely we will find some form of ET life in near
  future
• Thus Human-ETI contact more likely

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Drake equation

• N R fp fe fl fi L
• R Rate of star formation
• Factors such as percent of stars with planets,
  etc.
• L lifespan of civilization

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Governing Factors

• Principle of Mediocrity (nothing special about
  us)
• Planet hunters finding it more likely that there
  are many planets out there
• Evidence suggests Life nearly inevitable given
  chemical/physical opportunity to start
• Big variable L
• Lifespan of a civilization
• Biggest factor civilization lasting long enough
  to be capable of contact (will we?)

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Variables of contact

• Factors
• Impact Strangeness
• Manageability
• Range
• Min impact/Max manageability Scientific
  discovery of simple/ancient life
• Max impact/Min manageability E.T. open arrival
  on earth

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Acceptance of Contact?

• Least impacting scenarios accepted by scientific
  community at present time or near future
• Discovery of simple life (past or present)
• SETI hit something intelligent very far away
  in space
• Other moderate impact ideas denied by mainstream
  science
• Anything from ruins on Mars to ancient E.T.
  contact
• High impact/strangeness, low manageability cases
  may never be accepted by orthodox scientific
  community
• A challenge to authority structure

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Most research now focuses on most conservative
possibilities

• Ancient or current primitive life (exobiology)
• Both have High Manageability, Low impact
• Low Strangeness - fits into most scientific
  paradigms
• NASA Origins program
• Mars and Europa may be real-life laboratories for
  ET biology

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Artifact Discovery ETI out there - long ago

• Discovering a statue or ruins on another world
  (Cydonia?)
• Higher Impact, but still moderate to high
  manageability
• Moderate strangeness Could imagine it to be true
  without too much revision of theory
• Would force a lot of questions
• Where are they now?
• What were they like?
• What happened to them?

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SETI Hit ETI far away, but in present time

• Higher impact ETI exists now !!!!!!!
• Theoretical challenge - how do we talk with them?
• Still reasonably high manageability
• possible philosophical questions,
• but life goes on...
• Still relatively low strangeness
• Radio physics, information theory etc. well
  understood
• Primary problem would be linguistics

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Historical Contact E.T.s Here a long time ago

• Possible prospects for this
• Sirius/Dogon Mystery
• "The Bible and Flying Saucers by Rev. Barry
  Downing
• Zecharia Sitchin books on the Anunaki
• (use your own discernment...?)
• Intermediate impact - normal lives, but need to
  revise historical views
• Affects many religious beliefs
• Raises questions about the historical God
• Forces questions about our own origins
• Intermediate manageability, higher strangeness
• How did they get here?
• Are they part of our history?

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UFO's - Perhaps they are here, observing us now

• Intermediate to high impact - affects our world
  view tremendously
• Low manageability
• No human agency can control the phenomenon
• Higher strangeness
• UFO Behavior is outside of human paradigms
• Aliens are alien

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Close Encounters (UFO abduction)

• Ramifications Covered mostly in Fridays talk
• If true, then impact is very high
• Contact affects experiencers RIGHT NOW
• Effect is often profound
• Current visitation has major implications for
  modern and post-modern civilization

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Close Encounters (contd)

• Very low manageability
• outside of human control
• Defies efforts of human agencies to control it
• Very high strangeness ("one sure thing about
  aliens is that they are alien")
• Motives seem to defy logic
• Agenda seems to be ambiguous
• CE4 phenomenon presents many paradoxes

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Overt Contact What if they came here now?

• "Whitehouse Lawn" Scenario
• Absolute maximum impact and strangeness,
• Absolute minimum manageability
• ETs would be in control
• Human future dependent upon their good will
• Motives likely alien to us
• Ramifications of Overt ET contact (how well
  would we fare?)
• By most accounts not very well
• Historically, lower technology civilization loses
  out
• Economic vassal of higher tech civilization

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Who Speaks for Earth?

• Who's White House Lawn would they land on?
• Abductees/Contactees? Scientists? Governments?
  (which gov?) UN?
• Little or no agreement on this among scholars of
  the topic
• SETI Declaration of principles forbids response
  until this question is resolved
• But CSETI attempting to establish individual
  contact
• UFO abductees are (arguably) the only ones to
  speak for Earth at the present time

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Significant Implications

• 1997 Comet Hale-Bopp flyby resulted in scores of
  people committing suicide
• What if Hale-Bopp really HAD been a UFO?
• Suggests that "enlightened" ETs would postpone
  overt contact
• Feb 2004 issue of Popular Mechanics When UFOs
  Arrive
• E.T. will be handcuffed by an FBI agent dressed
  in a Biosafety Level 4 suit
• whisked away to the Department of Agriculture's
  Animal Disease center.
• Brookings Report of 1961
• Significant negative implications for human
  society
• Biggest Impact on science and religious community
• Suggests that humanity not ready for open contact

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Fermi Paradox

• Assume that space travel or E.T. radio contact
  possible
• Numbers indicate that significant number of E.T.
  civilizations exist for contact.
• We should have found them by now!
• Fermi Suggests that Number of ET Civilizations
  0
• So far No SETI hits and no open contacts

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The Zoo Hypothesis

• Possible resolution to Fermi Paradox
• They are here but covertly observing us
• Want to remain undetected The Prime Directive
• Prevent interference?
• Prevent us from threatening them?
• Thus, we would seldom see evidence of their
  presence

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Deardorff Hypothetical ET Strategy for Earth

• Expands on Zoo Hypothesis
• E.T. Assumption Humanity not yet ready
• The Prime Directive Initial interstellar
  quarantine
• Stages of contact
• Observing stage mapping, surveying, scientific
  observations careful prime directive
• Clandestine contacts, abductions, etc.,
• gradual disclosure
• Eventual Entry into "Cosmic Kindergarten"

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Nature Preserve Hypothesis

• Another variation of Zoo Hypothesis
• Aliens as Rangers, Humans as Critters
• Earth as a managed/protected ecosystem
• Periodically Rangers capture and study
  animals
• Rangers Implant radio collars on the animals
• An intriguing metaphor for UFO abduction

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Theory of Taming of Humanity

• The Scenario
• A warlike humanity
• Lots of Super-weapons Nukes, particle beams,
  bio-weapons, etc...
• And about to develop the star drive
• The Solution(?)
• Somehow make humanity less warlike, better
  citizens of the cosmos
• Warn humanity

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Genetic aspect to abduction?

• Described in much of the UFO abduction literature
• Budd Hopkins and David Jacobs books
• UFO abduction literature extensively describes ET
  genetic interest
• Abductee reports of hybrids, etc...
• Many abductees describe Indigo children
• Are we being modified
• to be better citizens of the cosmos?
• For other (less benevolent) reasons?

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Scenarios of Contact

• Limits to any given contact scenario
• Personal paradigm is limiting factor
• Could Seth Shostak accept an E.T. walking in his
  door?
• Scenario of Recognition
• ETI acceptable as long as theyre out there
  SETI, etc...
• Biological Intervention
• Abduction, hybridization, Nature Preserve
  metaphor
• Initiation
• Individual awakening of experiencers
• Described by many experiencers
• Human Initiated Communion
• Contact (open or covert) often by human
  invitation
• Lisette Larkins, Talking to Extraterrestrials

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First Contact Rules of Thumb

• "What To Do" article
• Assuming UFOs are of ET origin, then
  ambassadors are UFO witnesses/experiencers
• SETI Declaration of Principles
• Be absolutely sure, then tell everyone
• CSETI PSI-based Contact Protocols
• Contact may be on-going at the grassroots
• UFO abduction
• Clandestine contact

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Is Contact Occurring?

• Many abduction cases in researcher client files
• Many UFO and CE4 reports
• Sagan/Drake/Shostak Show me the evidence
• Inconclusive from hard science perspective
• Contact as a given to new age community
• A reality to the experiencer, and thus a fit with
  Deardorff model
• Whether physical or not, it is the non-fiction of
  contact

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Contact Info

• Craig R. Lang MS. CHt
• http//www.craigrlang.com
• craig_at_craigrlang.com
• 763-257-7334
• MUFON http//www.mufon.com
• MN MUFON http//www.mnmufon.org