Scientists tighten the protocols for announcing any evidence of alien life
New protocols developed by Search for Extraterrestrial Intelligence (SETI) project and approved by the International Academy of Astronautics (IAA) now tighten significantly what the scientific community is expected to do if anyone detects evidence that might be extraterrestrial life.
You can read the full protocols here [pdf]. From the press release:
At the heart of the new rules is a reaffirmation of a core scientific principle: “extraordinary claims require extraordinary evidence.” Under the revised protocols, no public announcement should be made until a signal or artifact has been rigorously authenticated by independent organisations using different instrumentation.
“We do not shout “alien” the moment we see a strange blip,” Garrett added. “The scientific method demands we check, check again, and then ask others to check. Only when we have reached a consensus that a signal is credible do we bring it to the world.”
SETI’s press release notes this rule is necessary due to the modern nature of social media, which allows the wildest claims to be spread like poison almost immediately. As noted in this story, the new rules almost appear to be a direct slap at hack Harvard scientist Avi Loeb, who with both interstellar objects Oumuamua and Comet 3I/Atlas claimed evidence of alien technology when there was no evidence to say so.
The new rules also underline a second point: Under no condition will any scientist attempt to reply or contact any potential alien source. “The Declaration reaffirms the enduring principle that transmitting a response to an extraterrestrial intelligence is a decision that belongs to all of humanity and should only take place following international consultations, specifically through the United Nations.”
It will be impossible for the science community to enforce this rule, but by stating it they hope to encourage scientists to exercise more caution, and further ostracize those like Loeb who do not. I remain skeptical, especially because it will have no influence on government agencies like NASA, which love to scream “We have found alien biology!” at the slightest hint. Nor will it influence the public, which seems determined to accept such wild claims with no skepticism at all.
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https://avi-loeb.medium.com/on-mysterious-orbs-and-fireballs-4563eecd282a
Here Loeb affirmed his “Leadership”:
“The UAP Science Advisory Council for the U.S. Government, under my leadership, inaugurated today its public website here. We aim to figure out scientifically the nature of Unidentified Anomalous Phenomena (UAP), reported by the Office of the Director of National Intelligence, the All-Domain Anomaly Resolution Office in the Pentagon, the White House, the FBI and the intelligence community.”
and
“These UAP mysteries call for a rigorous scientific study, which is precisely the goal of the newly established UAP Science Advisory Council under my leadership (as described here)”
We have much to look forward to.
Sorry, but I don’t believe in the UAP stuff.
James Randi once said kids were the hardest to fool, and scientists the easiest.
A Navy aviator got all this started, and his call-sign “Sex” Fravor tells you all you need to know.
Look up “Dan the Navy Man” and “North Pacific Deck-Pecker.”
I think this UAP stuff started as a prank– went through the game of telephone–and came back out with gravitas it didn’t deserve.
The Corridor Crew debunked videos –but, like Randi–were considered outsiders and no one listened. Camera artifacts of flares were called “angels” for Pete’s sake.
The only evidence I am willing to entertain are those astronomy supplied photographic plates that Sabine talked about as being pre-Sputnik.
We know those are real–same with 1972 Teton and Oumuamua.
Guys in the ‘Service love tall tales–and it is my opinion this UAP nonsense was an example of this that got out of hand…like what happened when guys voted for this fat girl to be homecoming queen as a joke–and she almost won–that’s how far it got.
For instance–I think a stage-and-a-half rocket that needs no chopsticks and burns from the pad all the way up to over a thousand kilometers would make for a simple wet workshop.
This rocket, in launching that high, also placed two human rated capsules on circumlunar trajectories, and cost a fraction of military interventionism America has been bogged down with
But–due to blind ideology–people attack this proven system.
And so people cheer when grain silos fall over in the Indian ocean having flown only 100 miles are so up.
Such is the power of belief over rational thought.