Tag: science

Alien Visitation Beliefs Are “Spiraling Out of Control,” Becoming a Societal Problem, Warns Prominent Philosopher

The topic of unidentified aerial phenomena (UAP) and the possibility that some form of alien or non-human intelligence is visiting Earth has captured immense public interest in recent years.

However, in a thought-provoking paper accepted for publication in the Proceedings of the International Astronomical Union, Scottish philosopher, and professor at King’s College London, Dr. Tony Milligan, argues that this increased belief in alien visitation is fast becoming a widespread societal issue, posing challenges to science communication, government policy, and even cultural integrity. 

In his forthcoming paper, Equivocal Encounters: Alien Visitation Claims as a Societal Problem, Dr. Milligan suggests the rise of social media and the increasing influence of UAP claims in public and political discourse demands a more robust response than the periodic debunking efforts traditionally employed by the scientific community.

“This belief is slightly paradoxical as we have zero evidence that aliens even exist,” Dr. Milligan wrote in an article published by The Conversation. “If beliefs of this sort, in conspiracy, concealment, and collaboration, have made it into the mainstream, then periodic debunking has simply not worked.” 

Dr. Milligan contends that the alien visitation narrative, once confined to countercultural fringes and conspiracy theorists, is now making serious inroads into the political mainstream. 

In the past year, the belief in alien visitation has only intensified, largely fueled by several former government officials who have claimed that the U.S. government has secretly recovered crashed vehicles of non-human origin.

In 2023, The Debrief was the first media outlet to report that David Grusch, a former Air Force officer and intelligence specialist with the National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency (NGA) and the National Reconnaissance Office (NRO), had filed an official complaint with the Intelligence Community Inspector General (ICIG). 

Grusch alleges that the U.S. government has recovered several vehicles “of exotic origin—attributed to non-human intelligence, whether extraterrestrial or otherwise unknown—based on their unique vehicle morphologies, material science analyses, and distinctive atomic arrangements and radiological signatures.” 

In July 2023, Grusch reiterated his claims under oath before the Congressional Subcommittee on National Security, the Border, and Foreign Affairs. In response, the Pentagon has denied that the Department of Defense (DoD) has recovered any “exotic technologies” or operates secret alien reverse engineering programs.

Because Grusch’s assertions of recovered alien craft are closely tied to classified information and national security programs, it remains virtually impossible for journalists, scientists, or the general public to verify or refute his statements.

While much of the fascination with aliens is harmless or confined to bickering on social media, Dr. Milligan argues that its expansion into mainstream belief systems can also have troubling consequences. 

The persistence of these beliefs—and the increasing pressure on governments and scientific institutions to address them—has stretched beyond simple curiosity into a problem that touches various societal sectors.

Dr. Milligan suggests that the traditional approach to handling alien visitation claims—periodic public debunking—is no longer sufficient. He further argues that dismissing alien visitation narratives without engaging in deeper discourse may even be counterproductive. 

“If we hold that the practice of science in a democratic society requires the answerability of the science community to sustained public concerns, then something more robust may be due,” Dr. Milligan asserts. “This will be the case even if the end story that is told (‘no aliens, no cover-up, no conspiracy’) is likely to be the same.” 

The exponential rise in social media platforms has amplified the potential for unsubstantiated claims, making it harder for scientific facts to break through the “background noise” that detracts from serious scientific discourse.  The focus often shifts to debunking sensational claims rather than fostering meaningful scientific dialogue.

Dr. Milligan acknowledged that social media or news outlets, like The Debrief, have played a particular role in shaping the conversation surrounding alien visitation beliefs. However, he says that science, as a whole, could do a better job addressing unscientific populism. 

“There are responsibilities that all of us have. I don’t think that we could police social media even if we wanted to. It’s too big, too varied and too entrenched,” Dr. Milligan explained to The Debrief in an email. “But people from the sciences could do much more outreach and aim for a stronger ongoing presence so that people can start to see the difference between real science and plausible imitations.”

“I also think that analytic skills (especially argument building and recognition of the difference between good and bad arguments) could be taken more seriously across academia,” he added. “In recent years, it has been watered down. Pseudoscience thrives upon bad argumentation, weak analogies, fallacies, and grudge argumentation. But without a solid analytic background, it is hard for younger academics to recognize the box of tricks that get used, and so rather than being easily recognized as bad reasoning, pseudoscience can sound a lot like fearless thinking.” 

In fields like biology and astronomy, where public understanding is already limited, the intrusion of alien visitation narratives can further complicate the communication of scientific findings.

“Particular difficulties get in the way of astrobiology outreach,” Dr. Milligan notes. “We are making progress towards understanding the origins, emergence, distribution, and survival of rudimentary life forms. However, discussions about ‘life’ and ‘space’ can easily be confused with storytelling about aliens crashing into hillsides.”

For Dr. Milligan, this is particularly concerning in the context of cultural astronomy—where astronomy intersects with indigenous cultures. He points out that Indigenous storytelling, which is deeply respected by many astronomers, is increasingly being muddled with alien visitation narratives. This fusion of indigenous origin stories with modern UFO claims can distort traditional narratives, making it difficult to separate fact from fiction.

“Astronomy faces a specialized problem because it requires ground infrastructure in indigenous areas where local people may have been worked over pretty badly by the ‘ancient aliens’ people and convinced that ‘the scientific establishment’ is concealing the truth about ancient indigenous technologies,” Dr. Milligan said. “Responsible siting of astronomy infrastructure draws upon a sense of the importance of cultural astronomy, but that becomes really tough when authentic cultural astronomy gets intermingled with new age tales and suspicions.”

Despite his criticisms, Dr. Milligan does not call for an immediate dismissal of the legitimate study and investigation of unidentified aerial phenomena or possible near-Earth evidence of alien life. 

Instead, he advocates for a more measured yet engaged response. He suggests that while current responses may not be sufficient for much longer, it is not yet time for a full-scale paradigm shift in how science tackles the issue.

In his paper, Dr. Milligan points to scientists like Harvard’s Dr. Avi Loeb, and his establishment of the Galileo Project, or Dr. Martin Elvis, who have advocated for scientific research programs exploring alien visitation claims in a more structured manner.

In his paper, Dr. Milligan notes about the Galileo Project and Dr. Loeb, “Rather than targeting the wilder horizons of dubious testimony about abduction, they have focused upon equivocal material evidence in forms such as possible derelict craft and possible physical residues.” 

Critics have suggested that Dr. Loeb’s scientific approach to hunting for alien visitors is “shaped too much by wanting to believe” and “too entangled in the kinds of populist narratives.”

However, Dr. Milligan points out that based on current attitudes towards topics like UAP or alien visitation, “it may simply be difficult to build any robust SRP program dedicated to [the] evaluation of artifact claims without involving a disproportionate number of people who also want to believe, and who have a certain attitude towards the conservatism of more mainstream lines of scientific research.”

While Dr. Milligan does not necessarily endorse scientific research programs focused solely on hunting for near-Earth alien life, he acknowledged that such programs could have merit, provided they maintain scientific rigor.

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U.S. taxpayers funded Chinese labs that carried out grisly experiments on beagle puppies

The federal government has been paying Chinese labs that carry out animal testing including experiments that involved severing beagle puppies’ spines to study how they would react to such a horrific injury.

The White Coat Waste Project, in a new investigation shared first with The Washington Times, said 28 Chinese labs are approved to receive U.S. taxpayer money for animal testing. Among them are Sun Yat-Sen University and the Chinese Academy of Sciences, which carry out the grisly experiments on beagles.

Video of some experiments, compiled by WCW, shows beagles whose spines had been severed crawling on their front paws with their rears dragging across the ground, unable to move normally on their own.

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Groundbreaking Study Affirms Quantum Basis for Consciousness: A Paradigm Shift in Understanding Human Nature

A groundbreaking study has provided experimental evidence suggesting a quantum basis for consciousness.

By demonstrating that drugs affecting microtubules within neurons delay the onset of unconsciousness caused by anesthetic gases, the study supports the quantum model over traditional classical physics theories. This quantum perspective could revolutionize our understanding of consciousness and its broader implications, potentially impacting the treatment of mental illnesses and our understanding of human connection to the universe.

Exploring the Quantum Basis of Consciousness

For decades, one of the most fundamental and vexing questions in neuroscience has been: what is the physical basis of consciousness in the brain? Most researchers favor classical models, based on classical physics, while a minority have argued that consciousness must be quantum in nature, and that its brain basis is a collective quantum vibration of “microtubule” proteins inside neurons.

New research by Wellesley College professor Mike Wiest and a group of Wellesley College undergraduate students has yielded important experimental results relevant to this debate, by examining how anesthesia affects the brain. Wiest and his research team found that when they gave rats a drug that binds to microtubules, it took the rats significantly longer to fall unconscious under an anesthetic gas. The research team’s microtubule-binding drug interfered with the anesthetic action, thus supporting the idea that the anesthetic acts on microtubules to cause unconsciousness.

“Since we don’t know of another (i.e,. classical) way that anesthetic binding to microtubules would generally reduce brain activity and cause unconsciousness,” Wiest says, “this finding supports the quantum model of consciousness.”

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Hardy, Radiation-Resistant Organism Could Rewrite Your Genetic Code to Cure High Cholesterol

Scientists are programming one of the world’s hardiest, most radiation-resistant organisms to rewrite a specific gene, allowing them to cure a common type of inherited high cholesterol. Dubbed TnpB and originating from the bacterium Deinococcus radiodurans, this exceptionally robust microbe also survives cold, dehydration, vacuum, and acid, making it an ideal tool for genetic editing.

Although the team has only tested its “genetic scissors” on mice models with an inherited predisposition to a type of high cholesterol called hypercholesterolemia, which currently affects 31 million Americans, the researchers believe their approach will one day allow them to cure high cholesterol in humans by essentially rewiring their genetic code.

Reprogramming TnpB to Cure High Cholesterol

In the published study outlining the new genetic reprogramming approach, the researchers note that genetic editing has shown significant promise in editing certain inherited health conditions by essentially “reprogramming” specialized bacteria to genetically edit the faulty gene in a person’s genetic code with a properly functioning one. However, the process, made famous by the CRISPR gene editing tool, has resulted in mixed successes.

One of the primary limiting factors of the CRISPR-Cas organism most commonly used in genetic editing is its size. According to the study authors, the microbe is too large to be precisely targeted, which “creates challenges when trying to deliver them to the right cells in the body.”

More recently, researchers in genetic editing have begun to focus on the organism’s “evolutionary progenitors,” some of which are much smaller than the CRISPR-Cas microbe. Among the most promising is TnpB, whose smaller size and hardiness offer scientists a new path for genetic editing.

These smaller progenitors are less efficient at reprogramming and show limited targeting ability due to their limited recognition requirements when binding DNA than the larger CRISPR-Cas microbes. Now, the researchers behind this study say they may have finally overcome that limitation, resulting in a much more efficient method of targeting TnpB to cure high cholesterol.

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New study finds personal care products cause development disruptions in children

A link between the use of personal care products such as lotions, ointments, shampoos and hair conditioners and higher levels of endocrine-disrupting chemicals called phthalates in children was directly correlated in a new study. Published in the journal, Environmental Health Perspectives, the study, which was conducted at George Mason University, examined clinical data from urine samples collected from 630 children ages 4 to 8.

The study linked endocrine disruptors, which “mimic, block or interfere with the body’s own hormones,” to disruptions in children “during key developmental moments,” NPR reported.

“We found that the recent use of several different types of skin care products was associated with higher urinary concentrations of several different types of phthalates,” Michael Bloom, a professor and researcher at George Mason University, said.

While prior studies have found similar results in infants and pregnant women, the link hasn’t been made with children between the ages of 4 and 8. But the new study “provides clear evidence of the links between kids’ exposures and a range of personal care products, Dr. Lynn Goldman, a pediatrician and epidemiologist who formerly served as an assistant administrator for toxic substances at the Environmental Protection Agency,” said, according to NPR.

“I think we should be much more concerned than we have been in the past about the fact that these [chemicals] might be allowed in cosmetics and personal care products,” Goldman said.

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Ingredient found in Doritos turns mouse’s skin transparent, may have medical applications

Scientists at Stanford University were recently able to make a mouse’s skin transparent using a common food dye, something the study’s author told Fox News Digital could have exciting benefits for humans once additional research is conducted. 

The paper, titled “Achieving optical transparency in live animals with absorbing molecules,” was published in the journal “Science” on Sept. 5. 

In it, the researchers used a solution of red tartrazine, a food dye known as FD&C Yellow 5, on the abdomen, scalp and hindlimb of a sedated mouse, said a release from Stanford University.

The dye turned the mouse’s skin red, which then made the skin appear transparent – and the mouse’s organs were visible to the naked eye, said the release. 

“The researchers believe this is the first non-invasive approach to achieving visibility of a mouse’s living internal organs,” the release noted. 

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The science is in. Climate alarmism can end. Since 1959 increases in atmospheric CO2 is due to sea surface temperature

Last month, Japanese researcher Dai Ato published a study that examined the relationship between atmospheric carbon dioxide (CO₂) levels and human emissions, with sea surface temperature as a key factor.

The findings reject the theory that human-caused emissions are the primary driver of atmospheric CO₂ increase. Instead, the study concludes that sea surface temperature plays a dominant role in regulating CO₂ levels and no human impact is observed.

Ato’s study was published on 16 August in Science of Climate Change, a not-for-profit independent scientific journal dedicated to the publication and discussion of research articles, short communications and review papers on all aspects of climate change.

The multivariate analysis used publicly available data from prominent climate research and energy-related organisations. He found that human emissions were not a determining factor in any of the regression models. 

A regression model is a statistical technique used to estimate the relationship between a response (dependent) variable and a set of explanatory (independent) variables. 

The study concluded that sea surface temperature (“SST”), not human emissions, was the independent determinant of the annual increase in atmospheric CO₂ concentration.

“This study is the first to use multiple regression analysis to demonstrate that the independent determinant of the annual increase in atmospheric CO₂ concentration was SST, which showed strong predictive ability. However, human CO₂ emissions were irrelevant. This result indicates that atmospheric CO₂ has fluctuated as natural phenomenon, regardless of human activity,” the study says.

“The global SST has been the main determinant of annual increases in atmospheric CO₂ concentrations since 1959. No human impact was observed.”

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Egyptologists uncover 2,500 year-old observatory full of precise tools

Egyptologists have excavated a nearly 9,150-square-foot astronomical observatory in modern-day Tell el-Faraeen dating back to the sixth century BCE—the first and largest of its kind from that era. In an August 23 announcement from Egypt’s Ministry of Tourism and Antiquities (interpreted from Arabic to English using Google Translate), the mud brick structure contained numerous tools that, although comparatively simple in design, allowed for the precise study and measurement of solar calendrical dates related to Egyptian religious rites, royal coronations, and agricultural plans.

The facility is located within a sprawling archeological site now known as the Temple of Buto (the Greek name of the Egyptian god, Wadjet), and is located about 50 miles east of Alexandria. Built in the southeastern portion of the temple, the astronomical complex featured an east-facing entrance for sunrises, an L-shaped open central hall supported by columns, and a high, inward sloping mud brick wall “resembling the style of the Egyptian edifice known in temple entrances,” according to the government’s statement.

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Scientists Detect Invisible Electric Field Around Earth For First Time

An invisible, weak energy field wrapped around our planet Earth has finally been detected and measured.

It’s called the ambipolar field, an electric field first hypothesized more than 60 years ago, and its discovery will change the way we study and understand the behavior and evolution of our beautiful, ever-changing world.

“Any planet with an atmosphere should have an ambipolar field,” says astronomer Glyn Collinson of NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center.

“Now that we’ve finally measured it, we can begin learning how it’s shaped our planet as well as others over time.”

Earth isn’t just a blob of dirt sitting inert in space. It’s surrounded by all sorts of fields. There’s the gravity field. We don’t know a lot about gravity, especially considering how ubiquitous it is, but without gravity we wouldn’t have a planet. Gravity also helps keep the atmosphere snug against the surface.

There’s also the magnetic field, which is generated by the rotating, conducting material in Earth’s interior, converting kinetic energy into the magnetic field that spins out into space. This protects our planet from the effects of the solar wind and radiation, and also helps to keep the atmosphere from blowing away.

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Stone Age builders had engineering savvy, finds study of 6000-year-old monument

The Neolithic farmers and herders who built a massive stone chamber in southern Spain nearly 6,000 years ago possessed a good rudimentary grasp of physics, geometry, geology and architectural principles, finds a detailed study of the site.

Using data from a high-resolution laser scan, as well as unpublished photos and diagrams from earlier excavations, archaeologists pieced together a probable construction process for the monument known as the Dolmen of Menga. Their findings, published on 23 August in Science Advances1, reveal new insights into the structure and its Neolithic builders’ technical abilities.

The dolmen pre-dates the main stone circle at Stonehenge in the United Kingdom by about 1,000 years, but the construction process described in the study would have involved similar techniques and demanded a similar level of engineering.

“These people had no blueprints to work with, nor, as far as we know, any previous experience at building something like this,” says study co-author Leonardo García Sanjuán, an archaeologist at the University of Seville in Spain. “And yet, they understood how to fit together huge blocks of stone” with “a precision that would keep the monument intact for nearly 6,000 years”.

“There’s no way you could do that without at least a basic working knowledge of science,” he adds.

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