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Right, and the author glosses over UFOs but the evidence is undeniable.

by wefarrell 8y ago

michaelmrose 8y ago
Do me a favor and stop right here before going further and defend this position.
- wefarrell 8y ago
  I didn't say they were aliens. Militaries have released footage UFOs and physicists have poured over the footage and ruled out every other possible explanation.
  - namarie 8y ago
    Do you have any sources for that?
    - wefarrell 8y ago
      https://www.washingtonpost.com/outlook/the-military-keeps-encountering-ufos-why-doesnt-the-pentagon-care/2018/03/09/242c125c-22ee-11e8-94da-ebf9d112159c_story.html https://www.washingtonpost.com/outlook/the-military-keeps-en... http://www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/ufos/ http://www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/ufos/ https://cosmosmagazine.com/space/why-we-should-take-ufo-sightings-seriously https://cosmosmagazine.com/space/why-we-should-take-ufo-sigh... https://www.cia.gov/library/readingroom/collection/ufos-fact-or-fiction https://www.cia.gov/library/readingroom/collection/ufos-fact...
    - gattilorenz 8y ago
      Credible sources, if I may add. As in, what is the scientific consensus?
      - wefarrell 8y ago
        I am often asked by friends and colleagues, “Why don’t astronomers see UFOs?” The fact is that they do. In 1977, Peter Sturrock, a professor of space science and astrophysics at Stanford University, mailed 2,611 questionnaires about UFO sightings to members of the American Astronomical Society. He received 1,356 responses from which 62 astronomers – 4.6 percent – reported witnessing or recording inexplicable aerial phenomena. This rate is similar to the approximately 5 percent of UFO sightings that are never explained. As expected, Sturrock found that astronomers who witnessed UFOs were more likely to be night sky observers. Over 80 percent of Sturrock’s respondents were willing to study the UFO phenomenon if there was a way to do so. More than half of them felt that the topic deserves to be studied versus 20 percent who felt that it should not. The survey also revealed that younger scientists were more likely to support the study of UFOs. https://cosmosmagazine.com/space/why-we-should-take-ufo-sightings-seriously https://cosmosmagazine.com/space/why-we-should-take-ufo-sigh...
        gattilorenz 8y ago
        > Over 80 percent of Sturrock’s respondents were willing to study the UFO phenomenon if there was a way to do so Over 80% say that they would study them, but there's no way to do that (in a scientific way). More than 50% say they should be studied. The majority did not conclude that they are extraterrestrial.
        wefarrell 8y ago
        There are plenty of non reproducible phenomena that are studied scientifically and UFOs wouldn't be any different. Funding can be allocated to deploying observation devices with instruments specifically for this purpose. Evidence can be cataloged and analyzed to find patterns. Unfortunately no prestigious scientific institute is going to allocate the proper focus. This isn't happening to the extent that it should because of the stigma involved, not because of the lack of evidence or lack of capability to investigate that evidence. There are no good hypothesis that fit within the framework any conventional scientific theory but that doesn't make the evidence any less reliable.
        8y ago
  - guscost 8y ago
    > physicists have poured over the footage and ruled out every other possible explanation. This seems unlikely, to put it mildly.
    - wefarrell 8y ago
      I should rephrase, scientists have ruled out natural phenomenon and the result of human technology. There are other explanations but they are further on the fringes than alien civilizations. See my other comments with credible sources and the discussion here: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=16002771 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=16002771
simonh 8y ago
What does the 'U' stand for again?
adrianN 8y ago
The evidence that there is something happening in the skies is pretty strong, but the evidence that it's extraterrestrial visitors is weak.
- wefarrell 8y ago
  They're a complete mystery. There is extensive evidence that US and international militaries and space programs have released. That evidence points to physical objects in the sky that respond to our aircraft and behave in a way that physicists have said is not possible given our level of technology. Maybe they're from a small African nation that's hiding their technology in plain sight. Maybe they're time travelers. Maybe they're the result of some distortion in the earth's magnetic field. Maybe they're aliens. It's a scientific mystery but it doesn't get the proper funding and respect because of the stigma. This is a huge loss.

Right, and the author glosses over UFOs but the evidence is undeniable.

michaelmrose 8y ago

Do me a favor and stop right here before going further and defend this position.

wefarrell 8y ago
I didn't say they were aliens. Militaries have released footage UFOs and physicists have poured over the footage and ruled out every other possible explanation.
- namarie 8y ago
  Do you have any sources for that?
  - wefarrell 8y ago
    https://www.washingtonpost.com/outlook/the-military-keeps-encountering-ufos-why-doesnt-the-pentagon-care/2018/03/09/242c125c-22ee-11e8-94da-ebf9d112159c_story.html https://www.washingtonpost.com/outlook/the-military-keeps-en... http://www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/ufos/ http://www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/ufos/ https://cosmosmagazine.com/space/why-we-should-take-ufo-sightings-seriously https://cosmosmagazine.com/space/why-we-should-take-ufo-sigh... https://www.cia.gov/library/readingroom/collection/ufos-fact-or-fiction https://www.cia.gov/library/readingroom/collection/ufos-fact...
  - gattilorenz 8y ago
    Credible sources, if I may add. As in, what is the scientific consensus?
    - wefarrell 8y ago
      I am often asked by friends and colleagues, “Why don’t astronomers see UFOs?” The fact is that they do. In 1977, Peter Sturrock, a professor of space science and astrophysics at Stanford University, mailed 2,611 questionnaires about UFO sightings to members of the American Astronomical Society. He received 1,356 responses from which 62 astronomers – 4.6 percent – reported witnessing or recording inexplicable aerial phenomena. This rate is similar to the approximately 5 percent of UFO sightings that are never explained. As expected, Sturrock found that astronomers who witnessed UFOs were more likely to be night sky observers. Over 80 percent of Sturrock’s respondents were willing to study the UFO phenomenon if there was a way to do so. More than half of them felt that the topic deserves to be studied versus 20 percent who felt that it should not. The survey also revealed that younger scientists were more likely to support the study of UFOs. https://cosmosmagazine.com/space/why-we-should-take-ufo-sightings-seriously https://cosmosmagazine.com/space/why-we-should-take-ufo-sigh...
      - gattilorenz 8y ago
        > Over 80 percent of Sturrock’s respondents were willing to study the UFO phenomenon if there was a way to do so Over 80% say that they would study them, but there's no way to do that (in a scientific way). More than 50% say they should be studied. The majority did not conclude that they are extraterrestrial.
        wefarrell 8y ago
        There are plenty of non reproducible phenomena that are studied scientifically and UFOs wouldn't be any different. Funding can be allocated to deploying observation devices with instruments specifically for this purpose. Evidence can be cataloged and analyzed to find patterns. Unfortunately no prestigious scientific institute is going to allocate the proper focus. This isn't happening to the extent that it should because of the stigma involved, not because of the lack of evidence or lack of capability to investigate that evidence. There are no good hypothesis that fit within the framework any conventional scientific theory but that doesn't make the evidence any less reliable.
        8y ago
- guscost 8y ago
  > physicists have poured over the footage and ruled out every other possible explanation. This seems unlikely, to put it mildly.
  - wefarrell 8y ago
    I should rephrase, scientists have ruled out natural phenomenon and the result of human technology. There are other explanations but they are further on the fringes than alien civilizations. See my other comments with credible sources and the discussion here: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=16002771 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=16002771

simonh 8y ago

What does the 'U' stand for again?

adrianN 8y ago

The evidence that there is something happening in the skies is pretty strong, but the evidence that it's extraterrestrial visitors is weak.

wefarrell 8y ago
They're a complete mystery. There is extensive evidence that US and international militaries and space programs have released. That evidence points to physical objects in the sky that respond to our aircraft and behave in a way that physicists have said is not possible given our level of technology. Maybe they're from a small African nation that's hiding their technology in plain sight. Maybe they're time travelers. Maybe they're the result of some distortion in the earth's magnetic field. Maybe they're aliens. It's a scientific mystery but it doesn't get the proper funding and respect because of the stigma. This is a huge loss.