Texans report seeing UFO

[Airforce]

Originally Posted by kainjow

Agreed. I wouldn't be surprised that the US government has some crazy insane technology, with all the funding the defense department gets.

Join up, get your TS clearance, and you might find out about some of it

[Gelfin]

Originally Posted by obeygiant

The odds are very good that there is intelligent life out in the universe, the odds are even better that there is bacteria living somewhere out there.

I don't know if I'm willing to give you that one. "Intelligent life" is a substrate-independent concept, and a poorly defined one at that. A bacterium, however common they are on Earth, is a particular kind of organism. Having never seen an example of extraterrestrial life, we have no frame of reference to judge how likely that sort of life is to occur elsewhere.

We can guess that carbon-based chemistry is the most likely basis of life everywhere simply because it's by far the most abundant member of the carbon group and we generally understand the chemistry by which that happens. Beyond that, we don't even know whether the proteins we recognize are required, much less DNA. Prions and viruses demonstrate that the cellular machinery common to Earth biology is not strictly required for certain life-like behaviors. To talk about something so specific as a bacterium, you might as well say "odds are good there are chickens out there."

Incidentally, as large as the Universe is, odds probably are pretty good there are chickens out there somewhere. I mean, we'd never, ever find them, but if you disagree, might be you aren't really appreciating just how big the Universe is.

I'm just not sure I'm ready to conclude "intelligent life" (however we define that) is less common Universally than bacteria.

[Dont Hurt Me]

News on CNN.com is now saying ........Yes we had F16s flying.

The first story a week ago was no planes in the air by the 301st though a few people reported this thing taking off with a couple of F16s in pursuit. Now a week later they are saying oops.....we did have some F16s flying that day and thats what everyone saw.

I have a problem with so many people who see these F16s on a regular basis not able to identify them on this particular day. So we had a pilot and the sheriff along with this group of people who couldnt see or hear the F16s. Everyone reported this thing was silent, who knows maybe the F16s were gliding. Swamp gas sounds better. Its hard to have much faith in anything the federal govt says these days.

[Airforce]

Originally Posted by Dont Hurt Me

who knows maybe the F16s were gliding. Swamp gas sounds better.

You ever seen a rock glide? I'd go with some nice swamp gas

[EricNau]

Originally Posted by IEatApples

Not sure if it would leave any marks in the landscape though? We have no idea of what (possible) technology is involved, so it's fair to say it's "possible", or simply "we don't know!"

Physics still apply. Unless this "craft" was suspended by strings, there would need to be downward thrust to keep if afloat.

Originally Posted by Dont Hurt Me

I think the size was once again misreported by the press whats new with facts and the press?

Anyways the mile description I think came from the sherrif who reported the lights as a half mile across a mile long. Not a single object but the lights around the object.

Two places who have more on this is UFO evidence.com and ufo casebook.

A good video was posted by someone that shows a solid object hovering with flashing lights.That was at ufo evidence. This wasnt a airliner,nor venus nor swamp gas.
Again its ours and they aint talking or its someone elses and they(govt) avoids the subject like taboo. If its ours a simple experiments were being performed by the military would suffice. Now if it aint ours and it is someone else's then we have been lied to for a very long time.

As much as everyone loves a good government conspiracy, it just isn't realistic. UFOs and alien abductions are reported world-wide, and would require universal government cooperation worldwide (when's the last time that happened?).

Originally Posted by Dont Hurt Me

The truth is outhere but we wont get it from the feds.

You've already been given explanations, but choose not to believe them.

[KingYaba]

There's floatin' things in them there skies of mine.

[IEatApples]

Originally Posted by EricNau

Physics still apply. Unless this "craft" was suspended by strings, there would need to be downward thrust to keep if afloat.

Don't think this is true! There are several ways to stay in the air without thrust towards the ground. Something as simple as a hot-air balloon is one example, magnetism is another… and we DON'T KNOW EVERYTHING!! So, that "they" could have some *unknown* means/technology of travel is still very possible!

[Dont Hurt Me]

Originally Posted by EricNau

Physics still apply. Unless this "craft" was suspended by strings, there would need to be downward thrust to keep if afloat.


As much as everyone loves a good government conspiracy, it just isn't realistic. UFOs and alien abductions are reported world-wide, and would require universal government cooperation worldwide (when's the last time that happened?).


You've already been given explanations, but choose not to believe them.

Your right, 1st explanation was a lie, then some truth a week later. If you think the govt is honest on ufo's or even say border control you are pretty naive. And as far as govt cooperation on this matter many many govts have started to break away from the U.S. 60 year old stand on denying any possibilities of the existance of UFO's. Mexico,France,England, Belgium etc.

Funny thing is you can get more information from the govt on atom bombs made 50 years ago then you can on UFOs from 50 years ago. Do some research and educate yourself on real cases. Witnesses say they saw the ufo & the F16s.

[EricNau]

Originally Posted by Dont Hurt Me

Your right, 1st explanation was a lie, then some truth a week later. If you think the govt is honest on ufo's or even say border control you are pretty naive. And as far as govt cooperation on this matter many many govts have started to break away from the U.S. 60 year old stand on denying any possibilities of the existance of UFO's. Mexico,France,England, Belgium etc.

Funny thing is you can get more information from the govt on atom bombs made 50 years ago then you can on UFOs from 50 years ago. Do some research and educate yourself on real cases. Witnesses say they saw the ufo & the F16s.

And this lack of information couldn't possibly be related to the lack of substantial evidence?

Do some scientific research and education yourself on real science.

[MacNut]

Originally Posted by EricNau

And this lack of information couldn't possibly be related to the lack of substantial evidence?

Do some scientific research and education yourself on real science.

So because science can't explain it it doesn't exist?

[EricNau]

Originally Posted by MacNut

So because science can't explain it it doesn't exist?

That's not what I said. This isn't an issue where science is unable to provide an explanation; rather, this is an issue which science can address and the majority of evidence points to the contrary.

Extraordinary claims require extraordinary evidence, and in this case there isn't any.

[Mac Kiwi]

If aliens are visiting us,then they have some kind of propulsion system which would turn our scientific beliefs on their heads,thats what it comes down to.


The hypothesis for the donuts on a rope is supposedly from a pulse detonation engine,and meant to be an Aurora spy craft {the one which replaced the Blackbird}

[IEatApples]

Originally Posted by EricNau

Extraordinary claims require extraordinary evidence, and in this case there isn't any.

Maybe true in *this* case, but there's a lot of other evidence of UFO's that the (US) government isn't even willing to investigate (although I agree that most of it is probably bogus)

… ah, if only governments trusted people…

[Dont Hurt Me]

http://www.ufocasebook.com/2008/nomysterysolved.htmlThis is a interesting take on the govts spin.

[Rhosfelt]

Originally Posted by obeygiant

You know a normal star, close to the horizon, will go thru every color of the spectrum like a pinwheel. Its actually quite pretty.

I kind of hate that sight.

[obeygiant]

Originally Posted by Gelfin

I don't know if I'm willing to give you that one. "Intelligent life" is a substrate-independent concept, and a poorly defined one at that. A bacterium, however common they are on Earth, is a particular kind of organism. Having never seen an example of extraterrestrial life, we have no frame of reference to judge how likely that sort of life is to occur elsewhere.

We can guess that carbon-based chemistry is the most likely basis of life everywhere simply because it's by far the most abundant member of the carbon group and we generally understand the chemistry by which that happens. Beyond that, we don't even know whether the proteins we recognize are required, much less DNA. Prions and viruses demonstrate that the cellular machinery common to Earth biology is not strictly required for certain life-like behaviors. To talk about something so specific as a bacterium, you might as well say "odds are good there are chickens out there."

Incidentally, as large as the Universe is, odds probably are pretty good there are chickens out there somewhere. I mean, we'd never, ever find them, but if you disagree, might be you aren't really appreciating just how big the Universe is.

I'm just not sure I'm ready to conclude "intelligent life" (however we define that) is less common Universally than bacteria.

I know what you mean, but..



..look at that. ALL GALAXIES! Each with 200 billion or so stars.
There has to be someone with a brain out there.. HAS to be.

[IEatApples]

Originally Posted by obeygiant

..look at that. ALL GALAXIES! Each with 200 billion or so stars.
There has to be someone with a brain out there.. HAS to be.

Agreed… now we only have find them… eh, you take the left side & I take the right?

[Iscariot]

Well, approximately 1/4 of the world's population is near-sighted, and only about 35% of adults have 20/20 vision without glasses.

[Consultant]

Originally Posted by MacNut

What do you think the aliens think when they fly over. I bet it is by design tho, fly over the dumb people that nobody would believe or fly over hollywood and have a bunch of movie stars see something.

Yes, they have a low IQ detector to chart the best routes. Where else to go then Texas, the home state of W. =p

[Gelfin]

Originally Posted by obeygiant

I know what you mean, but..
..look at that. ALL GALAXIES! Each with 200 billion or so stars.
There has to be someone with a brain out there.. HAS to be.

Yeah, you took what I was saying exactly opposite of what I intended. You said you thought bacteria would be more common than intelligent life in the Universe. All I'm saying is, I think there's a chance you might have it backwards.

Let's say we define "intelligence" as "something we could hypothetically have a conversation with." That's still a really broad category, where "a bacterium" is a very narrow one.

The point on which this question hinges is whether the processes and structures which comprise life on Earth are the only possible way it could happen, and we just don't know. On the cosmological scale, all our evidence for how life happens is anecdotal. We've seen one example, and we're it.

Every living thing on Earth shares a common genetic ancestry. All the stuff you learned in high school biology about how a cell works is the product of a DNA "program" that is common to every living thing on Earth. Call it the operating system for life on this planet. It's been customized in trillions of different ways, but it's all built on a common foundation.

It's somewhat plausible that most or all examples of life in the Universe are based on coincidental emergence of DNA in multiple environments, but we cannot rule out the possibility that some other ingenious molecular structure could accomplish the same task and could plausibly develop in an alien environment, or even that the macro-scale functions of life could emerge by some other self-organizing principle altogether that is presently inconceivable to us.

Even if we take DNA for granted, the likelihood that a similar "operating system" emerged for constructing and maintaining cells as we recognize them in Earth biology is exceedingly remote. More likely any aliens we might hypothetically encounter would exhibit novel cell-like structures unlike anything we've seen before. Expecting an alien cellular biology to be compatible with a terrestrial one is little more plausible than expecting the aliens themselves to speak English. Even the idea that humans could be infected by an alien microbe is as implausible as Jeff Goldblum uploading a computer virus into an alien mothership from his PowerBook. Our disease vectors have evolved to prey upon us specifically. They wouldn't survive in an alien biology any more than we'd survive unaided at the bottom of the ocean, and the converse is also true.

So, alien life? No doubt. Intelligent alien life? Almost certainly. Bacteria? Maybe not so much. In all likelihood life out there would be different in ways we cannot even begin to make sense of from our current perspective. I'm not saying there are no bacteria out there. You've got the "infinite monkeys" factor at work making coincidental evolution pretty likely at least once somewhere, but again, good luck ever finding them.

I have little doubt there is alien life out there. I am far more skeptical that they could ever get here, or that human beings will ever travel far from Earth in any great numbers. The practical realities of travel in outer space make the classic notion of a spacefaring race really overwhelmingly impractical. At this point a Vingean singularity seems a lot more attainable than inventing technologies to keep animate piles of meat alive for extended periods outside the immediate vicinity of Earth. On the upside, a singularity would alleviate a lot of the resource issues that make us presently think human space colonization a good idea.

On the downside, as soon as it happens the RIAA will recognize the opportunity to install DRM directly into people's digital posthuman brains, which will seem like a good idea at the time, but the features of that DRM will be gradually increased by legislation until independent human existence is utterly extinguished and the resulting nonsentient program continues pointlessly buying copies of the music it is no longer capable of producing or appreciating until the sun explodes.

[Iscariot]

Originally Posted by obeygiant

I know what you mean, but..

..look at that. ALL GALAXIES! Each with 200 billion or so stars.
There has to be someone with a brain out there.. HAS to be.

Hard enough to find something with a brain down here.

[IEatApples]

Originally Posted by Iscariot

Hard enough to find something with a brain down here.

Yes, but "out there" I'm sure there must be someone!

[riscy]

Eventually we will discover someone/something "out there", only to find they use Windoze

Originally Posted by IEatApples

Yes, but "out there" I'm sure there must be someone!

[Olphus]

Originally Posted by Abstract

Then people will complain there's no photo or video, but when there IS a photo or video, people believe it was edited in.....an obvious fake.

Everybody has cellphones nowadays...if 3 or more would capture the same footage at the same time it would start to get credibility.

[Dont Hurt Me]

Originally Posted by Olphus

Everybody has cellphones nowadays...if 3 or more would capture the same footage at the same time it would start to get credibility.

You mean like one over chicago's airport last year. It was explained away as weather. It was caught by many cell phones.
Anyways its allways been spun by the govt. After 911 you would think the folks at homeleand security would be interested in something flying in our airspace but they dont even seem interested in millions of south americans strolling in so I guess they could care a less except to make sure its allways denied or explained away even if to call it weather like over chicago. I guess there was one cloud that just wouldnt move and when it did it shot straight up..