Thinking Outside of the Box
Shostak, certainly a very knowledgeable, and well respected man, stated that:
"Ostensibly, the issue is extraterrestrial intelligence. Not whether it exists, but whether the aliens have come to Earth. This idea, often monikered as "the UFO hypothesis," is a belief that's neither fringe nor uncommon. A 2002 Roper poll found that nearly half of all Americans believe that alien craft have visited Earth, and an even larger percentage feel in their heart of hearts that the government is playing dumb about these cosmic callers."
I understand that science has its own criteria: Nothing is real unless you can prove it. I understand this to a point, but not everything can be so readily proven nor disproven. Everything cannot be seen in black and white, and UFOs fall into this gray area. The problem with Shostak's position is that he thinks only inside the box. To even begin to understand the mystery of UFOs or alien visitation, one must think outside of the box, and sometimes use a little imagination, certainly not a scientific approach.
We are studying UFO sighting reports, photographs, video, alien abductions, and we cannot think just inside the box. Many of today's accepted theories and inventions were only imagined not so many years ago, and maybe someday the reality of UFOs will be made known, and it may even be different than we imagine today. Can you think outside of the box?
Comments
Perhaps the present-day notion of science being based on empirical data with repeatable results is the biggest roadblock to the evolvement of our species. I agree, Billy, that there is much that cannot be so readily proven using this model. And one needn’t look much further than our contemporary (main stream) understanding of space itself to see how this model just doesn’t work beyond our physical, tangible world. Take the sun, for example. There is a great deal of evidence to support the electric sun concept than a nuclear fusion concept. In fact, the electric sun theory fits the evidence that we DO know much better than nuclear. Then there’s the black hole theory and the evidence to suggest that black holes don’t even exist and, in fact, cannot exist. We infer their existence, but have never once been able to observe a black hole or its event horizon, yet we plug them into our working model simply because it makes the rest of the model work. The list goes on and on and maybe, just maybe, the UFO phenomena must be looked at using a new paradigm which does not limit contemplation or examination to only those things which we already understand. I think there is a growing sense of this and certainly it is embraced by alternative science groups and the UFO community. It is just another example of the world moving ahead of main stream science as it continues to lag behind in a “research, publish, peer-review, re-publish and put it on a shelf because it doesn’t fit the other models” model that is forever proving what has already been known to be fact.
Billy, I understand your point and I agree that innovation requires imagination and thinking beyond ‘the rules’. Innovation is not a bag thing, of course, but science is a way for us to understand our world. No one has to perceive our world through the ’science’ lens (e.g. some people view the world strictly from their religious beliefs). Of course there is no one single ‘right’ or correct way to perceive, understand, or even know anything. This is why it’s important to stay open and listen to everyone. I hesitate to relinquish science of its importance in the study of UFO’s, and admit that I ascribe to science. I guess my point here is that I do not think that just because some argue that we should be studying UFO’s via the scientific method that we should dismiss science’s relevence. I’m making the ‘baby with the bath water’ argument. I understand your point that we can’t entirely view all phenomenon that we do not understand through one perception (e.g. science). I agree. But, I do believe that there are scientific facts that will lead us to finally prove UFO phenomenon. For instance: I do not think that we fully understand physics; we do not know all of the laws of physics, yet (e.g. the purpose of gravity and its importance to life on Earth, nor understanding how many dimensions exist). As science proves (if it can) its new findings, imagine when we begin to understand the full scope of physics; and that binary star systems with planets rotating stars (or ’suns’) are not unusual in the galaxy, at all, how “possible” and likely UFO’s will be even according to the scientific method. Think outside the box but don’t shut yourself off from what science can help the UFO study with. Best, Arlene
It’s the “Thinking outside the Box” which has advanced our technologies to where they are today. Whenever someone comes up with a new theory, idea or scientific law, they are usually shot down as a lunatic, but they persevere and eventually prove their idea and science finally looks at it and accepts it into their equations. We do not know everything there is to science, physics, astronomy and it’s the thinking outside the box which has allowed scientists to prove new theories.
“sometimes use a little imagination, certainly not a scientific approach.”
Nah science can and will prove ufos. We don’t need to use our imaginations, we can see these things. This article is la la talk, just accept there isn’t any credible physical evidence available. That doesn’t mean we won’t have that someday though.
The world of modern science can only prove something as a result of effort. As far as I can see the scientific world is not putting much effort into attempting to detect UFOs; it appears to be leaving this to everybody else. Remember that the extrasolar planets they have found and now intensively look for were considered, by many, to be a figment of someone’s imagination not so long ago but they are there.
It is only natural that interested parties should bother to take up the slack in areas where scientific research is lacking although I would agree that in thinking outside the box you need to be very careful about what you believe in order to get to the truth. I suppose it requires a balancing act and why should modern science have a monopoly on that. Throughout history our thoughts have been vulnerable to lyers and people who are just plain wrong. So, until all is revealed why not enjoy ourselves with our real interest and real effort!
And as for the claim that there is not any evidence to support the alien vehicle idea, Mr Shostak obviously doesn’t read enough. Although some claim that all these convincing black triangle sightings(something that nature could not possibly produce) are secret government aircraft I can only give that a Belief Factor of 15%. And as for claiming that police officers only imagine them flying past well, what can I say…..Hang on, I can say this: I’d rather risk giving a police sighting a Belief Factor of 75% than give someone who’s never seen a black triangle any credibility whatsoever.
Everybody’s entitled to their opinion, obviously, and I know what mine is.
I’m not trying to monopolize the message list here. I have to recommend a read of the sighting reports on the PRUFOS Website. Sorry if I seemed rude above. It’s not a normal day!
Well said Billy.
Scientists, by nature, do not think outside the box. This is why many of them fail to grasp the concept of alien visitation of Earth. Hopefully at some point, an event will force mainstream science to take this extremely important subject seriously.
Seth Shostak is one of the skeptics. These people can explain away anything they do not believe in. Unfortunately one could explain away the North and South Poles just as easily. If defense attorneys could use the Skeptical Inquirer methods in court no person would ever be convicted of a crime.
I read his article and his main complaint was that some people were sending him emails that were threatening in nature. That, of course, is wrong. No one should threaten anyone for his opinions and beliefs. On the other hand trying to say that all people that claim alien abduction is imagining or faking it could be construed to be mass libel. To people like this I say, “Prove it.” After all they are the ones making the accusation against those who claim to be abductees. Abductees are like witnesses in court. To accuse them of lying one needs to prove it. Proof is not saying something does not exist or not believing something.
Science is caught up in paradigm logic- where one law of science becomes the guiding light, till another better law comes along or rather a new paradigm comes along.
The problem with science is it relies on natural world, rather than creative natural world, in which what you see is not all it is possible to get.
Science only believes that which can be observed in a lab is the only truth in science, which is to say, its repeatable. I have yet to see life as being repeatable, so the only thing they can truly have is – if it works it has to be done in the same manner as before, and all elements have to be the same. Where in life is all elements the same. This lab belief is the foolishness of genius- where they create a false reality; to prove a law in a real world, which doesn’t stay the same, but evolves, transforms each second.
UFOs are beyond human science- they rely on organic and above ships to be able to navigate the galaxies and the universes, and are not hemmed in by paradigm thinking, which shows science as a meandering thought process, which has no relation to life, other than accidents, which give insight, rahter than thought it out science.
Science laws have come about more by accident, than the scientific method.
Science doesn’t need to think outside the box!
Before Europeans were able to successfully navigate the earth’s oceans a few hundred years ago, there were all sorts of stories about contact with strange people who lived in far off lands – people with eyes in the middle of their chest or cyclops or people one huge leg and the like. These were accounts of sailor-explorers at the time. What settled the whole thing was making contact with the inhabitants of those strange far-off lands.
But, today it seems it’s the reverse. It’s technology first that brings the stories. Today there are literally thousands of stories from people across the world, made possible with the new photographic technology and by the way of the internet their information is made available for nearly everyone anywhere.
But, what will settle the whole thing, as in the past, is contact, real contact between many people and the inhabitants, if there are any, of UFOs.
Scientists like to have things proved normally before accepting there are things outside of this world. Its because its the way their minds have been trained, but I know a good Catholic scientist so somewhere in his heart he has faith.
Hu0axw hi! how you doin?