Posts

Trust in the Scientific Method.

Image
Greetings. Trust in the scientific method.  Science has proven time and time again to be a remarkably productive way of understanding our natural world. There is no doubt that scientists have dramatically increased our knowledge about the universe we reside in, the natural history of life on our planet, and about how our species' physiological processes work. Additionally, scientific knowledge has directly led to the development of technologies like vaccines, computers, and combustion engines. These technologies, and many, many others, have radically altered the way we live and are strong evidence that scientists have gotten their theories largely correct. Does this decades long record of success mean that we should always blindly trust the science? The term "science" is a word that is admittedly somewhat dfficult to pin down. The majority of the population, at least in advanced countries, agree that science has generally been a good thing for society and accept the major...

The Illness of Rampant Abandonment: The Slide Down to Ufological Hell.

Image
Greetings. The effort to examine and investigate undetermined possibilities is a worthwhile endeavor, in fact, the undertaking is an incredibly rewarding exercise. Regardless of the subject matter being scrutinized, keeping logic and dispassionate thinking part of the game is essential. There is no reason, at least none that I have come across in my own lifetime, to enthusiastically abandon one's own critical thinking skills, no reason whatsoever. However, that kind of thing happens all the time, particularly when so-called "fringe topics" are the focus of the investigative effort. UFOs, ghosts, remote viewing, cryptozoology, and extrasensory perception are just a few of the topics that somehow consistently induce the rampant abandonment of intellectual, level-headed thinking processes. It has become a disease of the intellect.  The UFO problem is perhaps the most well-known subject matter that motivates people to place their intelligence on the backburner to oblivion. Va...

Nash-Fortenberry, an Unknown with Expected Responses.

Image
Greetings. Nash-Fortenberry.  The Nash-Fortenberry UFO sighting occurred on July 14th of 1952. Two commercial pilots, William B. Nash and William H. Fortenberry, claimed to have seen eight unidentified flying objects flying in a tight formation over Chesapeake Bay in the state of Virginia, in the United States. UFO researchers have consistently stated that the pilots' observation allowed for the precise measurement of the unknown's overall motion and dimensions when compared to known landmarks, and that the encounter was corroborated by several groups of independent witnesses on the ground.  The events in question took place as follows, in a somewhat vague and incomplete ufological nutshell: On the evening of July 14th in 1952, a Pan American World Airways DC-4 was on a routine flight, flying from New York to Miami with ten passengers and a crew of three, including Captain F. V. Koepke, First Officer William B. Nash and Second Officer William H. Fortenberry. The sun had set ab...