On the subject of communication and trying to understand each other and our reality, I've jotted down some observations. (We all come at this topic from different directions, and this is my general take on the state-of-weirdness.)
Mathematical concepts and relationships (logic & numbers) would exist without us; although there wouldn't be anyone around to appreciate them.
Our reality is stable because it follows rules.
Conway's Game of Life consists of simple rules applied to adjacent cells in a 2D grid; where initial randomness evolves into stable structures and moving objects, but eventually stagnates into a fixed pattern. Our reality is far more complex, but seems to share basic similarities (hopefully not stagnation).
Communication (language) with any other entity depends on a common frame of reference and time to recognise those commonalities and develop a shared vocabulary. Maths would be the most obvious initial commonality for all technologically advanced civilisations (even though each would have developed their own mathematical vocabulary). N.b. You can't have engineering without maths.
One important question is: Is everything we perceive derived from our physical reality? Apparently not, because although the colours we perceive in any given scene are dependent on information processed by our brains (light waves translated into electrical signals travelling between neurons), the quality of 'blueness', 'redness' or 'greenness' has no apparent analogue in the 'real' world. All colour is 'false colour' perceived by means that we don't understand and cannot replicate. We can't build a robot that appreciates colour.
(Or to put it another way, all the atoms of the skin of a naked smurf are waving at you, and you perceive blue. Freaky. It's easy enough to understand how we perceive the shape of a smurf i.e. the relative position of matter, but colour is a mystery. We are, however, very good at manipulating matter to produce colourful effects. It doesn't mean that we understand how our perception works.)
Is colour of practical benefit? (We use false colour to aid perception.)
Whatever individual UAP are (physical technology, artificially induced perceptions, simple illusions or delusions), they fall within the bounds of our reality, but we're still learning what those bounds are. If they aren't all illusions and delusions then chances are they will make sense to us eventually and provide some benefit.
Meanwhile, we're still struggling to communicate with each other down here.
Well, the light spectrum -- visible, IR, gamma, UV, etc. -- is all about vibrational wavelengths, which lay the foundations for our ability to describe our world. The discipline to transcend those barriers is waaaay beyond my capacities. Although I have no doubt it can be done --- because it *is* being done.
Wave-particle duality, the double slit experiment and the observer effect; all present questions about the true nature of reality and the levels of manipulation / engineering that may be possible.
"The transition from the 'possible' to the 'actual'" - I'm way behind current theoretical physics, but it's still unclear where the true boundaries are between quantum and classical effects. Stumbled upon this too: https://phys.org/news/2015-04-universe-hologram.html
If UAP do nothing else, they make one consider possibilities otherwise undreamt of.
Which suggests that Psi might represent a common frame of reference in its own right (including near-death experiences, where people still perceive colour); or the guys upstairs can artificially induce specific ideas by technological means.
If you don't have a pool of experiences and memories (gained within varying contexts) then how can someone communicate an idea to you? The definition of alien could be: something for which you have no existing concept or framework and no means of understanding (like listening to a previously unheard foreign language).
I naively thought that Kevin Day had no professional problems after the Tic-Tac incident, given the respect his training and skills would have deserved. It's a significant part of the extended incident that needed telling.
I read a bit of the Vallee-Davis paper. I'd say that aside from the possible psychic phenomena there has to be a significant psychological impact on the individual because it changes their perception of what's possible, which has to alter how they view the world (cognitively and at a higher level psychologically).
Military training involves an element of preparing individuals for what they may face in combat, but it can't cover every eventuality. There are reported phenomena that seem to be impossible by current scientific understanding. So how do you prepare an entire planet for such shocking revelations? As gently as possible, over time, I would suggest.
Don't think the military alone can and should shoulder that burden. Schoolkids need to know -- somehow, and I don't know how you'd teach it (yet) -- that they're part of a New Era of Exploration, without social stigmas to inhibit their imaginations. Because we're going to need their help to suss it all out.
I was also thinking in terms of the guys upstairs. The general reality is one of no formal contact (no big 'greetings humans'), no overwhelming invasion or presence, just a smattering of incidents indicating different craft & varying biological entities(; or something similarly intelligent and omnipresent but nothing we understand - which I don't to go for).
The nonsense saying that God doesn't put more on your shoulders than you can cope with (suicides?) - maybe that saying applies more readily to UAP. Or maybe not - if there really have been fatalities.
... not overtly hostile (almost never) and not overwhelming, when it could be very easily given the apparent technology or 'power' - suggests the phenomena regulates its/their effect on us as a civilisation (to some degree).
A wonderfully compassionate rendering, Billy. It evoked heartfelt sympathy in me for the countless witnesses - many with much closer encounters than Kevin's - suffering from the wrenching dissonance that grips when a profound experience is dismissed by the mainstream.
I wonder if his eventual "epiphany" - that shift from feeling unmoored... to clarity and a renewed sense of purpose - can be attributed to his Higher Self, his spiritual nature (latent in all of us) sorting it out and pouring its Light into his "dark night."
If it’s any solace to KEVIN, apparently the shooting down of the Iranian commercial airliner caused the Iranian government to terminate the war with Iraq. So net net net, lives were saved, until at least 2004.
Wow. Riveting. Again, and maybe I’m a little too attached to this idea, but hallucinogens, given in the proper setting, could bridge the mental and emotional gap between our more monkey-like inclinations and an evolved human future. Odd that these substances are gaining acceptance socially and scientifically now, right when masses of people are opening up to the possibility of ET life. Maybe we’re preparing for a cosmic meeting of minds unlike anything we expect.
Keep on keepin' on, dude. I remain pretty skeptical about UAPs but appreciate solid reporting/good writing when I see it. Truly Yours, Another Newsroom Survivor
“A Tear In The Sky (2022) | Official Trailer | HD” (1091 Pictures (YouTube channel)).
https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=OR3lCb0St0A
Kevin Day is one of the most important people in the UFO field. Kevin Day, thank you! Great story, Billy.
On the subject of communication and trying to understand each other and our reality, I've jotted down some observations. (We all come at this topic from different directions, and this is my general take on the state-of-weirdness.)
Mathematical concepts and relationships (logic & numbers) would exist without us; although there wouldn't be anyone around to appreciate them.
Our reality is stable because it follows rules.
Conway's Game of Life consists of simple rules applied to adjacent cells in a 2D grid; where initial randomness evolves into stable structures and moving objects, but eventually stagnates into a fixed pattern. Our reality is far more complex, but seems to share basic similarities (hopefully not stagnation).
Communication (language) with any other entity depends on a common frame of reference and time to recognise those commonalities and develop a shared vocabulary. Maths would be the most obvious initial commonality for all technologically advanced civilisations (even though each would have developed their own mathematical vocabulary). N.b. You can't have engineering without maths.
One important question is: Is everything we perceive derived from our physical reality? Apparently not, because although the colours we perceive in any given scene are dependent on information processed by our brains (light waves translated into electrical signals travelling between neurons), the quality of 'blueness', 'redness' or 'greenness' has no apparent analogue in the 'real' world. All colour is 'false colour' perceived by means that we don't understand and cannot replicate. We can't build a robot that appreciates colour.
(Or to put it another way, all the atoms of the skin of a naked smurf are waving at you, and you perceive blue. Freaky. It's easy enough to understand how we perceive the shape of a smurf i.e. the relative position of matter, but colour is a mystery. We are, however, very good at manipulating matter to produce colourful effects. It doesn't mean that we understand how our perception works.)
Is colour of practical benefit? (We use false colour to aid perception.)
Whatever individual UAP are (physical technology, artificially induced perceptions, simple illusions or delusions), they fall within the bounds of our reality, but we're still learning what those bounds are. If they aren't all illusions and delusions then chances are they will make sense to us eventually and provide some benefit.
Meanwhile, we're still struggling to communicate with each other down here.
Well, the light spectrum -- visible, IR, gamma, UV, etc. -- is all about vibrational wavelengths, which lay the foundations for our ability to describe our world. The discipline to transcend those barriers is waaaay beyond my capacities. Although I have no doubt it can be done --- because it *is* being done.
Wave-particle duality, the double slit experiment and the observer effect; all present questions about the true nature of reality and the levels of manipulation / engineering that may be possible.
"The transition from the 'possible' to the 'actual'" - I'm way behind current theoretical physics, but it's still unclear where the true boundaries are between quantum and classical effects. Stumbled upon this too: https://phys.org/news/2015-04-universe-hologram.html
If UAP do nothing else, they make one consider possibilities otherwise undreamt of.
Which suggests that Psi might represent a common frame of reference in its own right (including near-death experiences, where people still perceive colour); or the guys upstairs can artificially induce specific ideas by technological means.
If you don't have a pool of experiences and memories (gained within varying contexts) then how can someone communicate an idea to you? The definition of alien could be: something for which you have no existing concept or framework and no means of understanding (like listening to a previously unheard foreign language).
Great story Billy. All my best to Mr. Day, one day at a time brother, it adds up if you keep it simple.
I naively thought that Kevin Day had no professional problems after the Tic-Tac incident, given the respect his training and skills would have deserved. It's a significant part of the extended incident that needed telling.
I read a bit of the Vallee-Davis paper. I'd say that aside from the possible psychic phenomena there has to be a significant psychological impact on the individual because it changes their perception of what's possible, which has to alter how they view the world (cognitively and at a higher level psychologically).
Military training involves an element of preparing individuals for what they may face in combat, but it can't cover every eventuality. There are reported phenomena that seem to be impossible by current scientific understanding. So how do you prepare an entire planet for such shocking revelations? As gently as possible, over time, I would suggest.
Don't think the military alone can and should shoulder that burden. Schoolkids need to know -- somehow, and I don't know how you'd teach it (yet) -- that they're part of a New Era of Exploration, without social stigmas to inhibit their imaginations. Because we're going to need their help to suss it all out.
I was also thinking in terms of the guys upstairs. The general reality is one of no formal contact (no big 'greetings humans'), no overwhelming invasion or presence, just a smattering of incidents indicating different craft & varying biological entities(; or something similarly intelligent and omnipresent but nothing we understand - which I don't to go for).
The nonsense saying that God doesn't put more on your shoulders than you can cope with (suicides?) - maybe that saying applies more readily to UAP. Or maybe not - if there really have been fatalities.
... not overtly hostile (almost never) and not overwhelming, when it could be very easily given the apparent technology or 'power' - suggests the phenomena regulates its/their effect on us as a civilisation (to some degree).
Holy shit. What a story. And well told. Thanks.
A wonderfully compassionate rendering, Billy. It evoked heartfelt sympathy in me for the countless witnesses - many with much closer encounters than Kevin's - suffering from the wrenching dissonance that grips when a profound experience is dismissed by the mainstream.
I wonder if his eventual "epiphany" - that shift from feeling unmoored... to clarity and a renewed sense of purpose - can be attributed to his Higher Self, his spiritual nature (latent in all of us) sorting it out and pouring its Light into his "dark night."
If it’s any solace to KEVIN, apparently the shooting down of the Iranian commercial airliner caused the Iranian government to terminate the war with Iraq. So net net net, lives were saved, until at least 2004.
Wow. Riveting. Again, and maybe I’m a little too attached to this idea, but hallucinogens, given in the proper setting, could bridge the mental and emotional gap between our more monkey-like inclinations and an evolved human future. Odd that these substances are gaining acceptance socially and scientifically now, right when masses of people are opening up to the possibility of ET life. Maybe we’re preparing for a cosmic meeting of minds unlike anything we expect.
There's an aspiration, and we need all the help we can get. Just hope we're not too late.
Vallee. Best wishes, The Copy Editor from Hell. (terrific column BTW)
Merci!
Keep on keepin' on, dude. I remain pretty skeptical about UAPs but appreciate solid reporting/good writing when I see it. Truly Yours, Another Newsroom Survivor
Livescience copied from The Sun... doesn't look like they're sharing the full results. It appears to be the AAWSAP/BAASS output.
There are a bunch of linked articles, but I still can't see that they've provided access to download the whole 1500 pages :(