Aliens

Excerpt from Wikipedia article on Extraterrestrial Life
A radio drama version of Wells' novel broadcast in 1938 over the CBS Radio Network led to outrage because it supposedly suggested to many listeners that an actual alien invasion by Martians was in progress.

In the wake of the Roswell UFO incident in 1947, conspiracy theories on the presence of extraterrestrials became a widespread phenomenon in the United States during the 1940s and the beginning Space Age during the 1950s, accompanied by a surge of UFO reports. The term UFO itself was coined in 1952 in the context of the enormous popularity of the concept of "flying saucers" in the wake of the Kenneth Arnold UFO sighting in 1947. The Majestic 12 documents published in 1982 suggest that there was genuine interest in UFO conspiracy theories in the US government during the 1940s.

The trend to assume that celestial bodies were populated almost by default was tempered as actual probes visited potential alien abodes in the Solar System beginning in the second half of the 20th century, and by the 1970s belief in UFOs had become part of the fringe beliefs associated with the paranormal, New Age, Earth mysteries, Forteana etc. A number of UFO religions developed during the surge in UFO belief during the 1950s to 1970s period, and some, such as Scientology (founded 1953) and Raëlism (founded 1974) remain active into the present. The idea of "paleocontact", supposing that extraterrestrials ("ancient astronauts") have visited the Earth in the remote past and left traces in ancient cultures, appears in early-20th-century fiction such as The Call of Cthulhu (1926) and the idea came to be established as a notable aspect of the Ufology subculture in the wake of Erich von Däniken's Chariots of the Gods? (1968). Alien abduction claims were widespread during the 1960s and 1970s in the United States.

On the scientific side, the possibility of extraterrestrial life on the Moon was decisively ruled out by the 1960s, and during the 1970s it became clear that most of the other bodies of the Solar System do not harbour highly developed life, although the question of primitive life on bodies in the Solar System remains an open question. Carl Sagan, Bruce Murray, and Louis Friedman founded the U.S. Planetary Society, partly as a vehicle for SETI studies in 1980, and since the 1990s, systematic search for radio signals attributable to intelligent extraterrestrial life has been ongoing.

In the early 1990s, NASA was set to join in on SETI research with a planned targeted search and all-sky survey. However, Senator Richard Bryan of Nevada cut funding for the project, and no comparable search has taken place since.[114]

Excerpt from Kidnapped by an alien: Tales of UFO Abductions
In Bullard's study, he found the aliens most often described as humanoids three to five feet tall with large hairless heads and tapering chins, enormous eyes wrapping around the sides of the heads, the mouth only a slit, the nose practically nonexistent, and the ears tiny or absent. The skin is ashen or gray, often soft and fungus-like. Some beings are frail and slender, others more robust with large chests. Limbs are usually thin: arms may hang to the knees, hands sometimes have only three fingers; legs may be unusually short or oddly jointed. Some abductees regard the beings to be asexual or neuter, although others notice slight sexual differences. The beings almost always wear tight one-piece uniforms, with an occasional belt or hood fitting closely around the head. One being serves as leader or liaison, and communicates with abductees by telepathy; the rest of the crew seem unfriendly. Most of the time the beings show no emotion, but are capable of anger, surprise, excitement, and irritability.

Physical and mental effects give abduction stories a surreal quality. The alien beings have supernatural powers, being able to float above ground and pass through solid objects. Witnesses may report paralysis upon meeting the aliens or euphoria alternating with terror; a desire to look down or close the eyes is common among witnesses. Betty Hill reported that the pain she experienced during the strange examination was relieved immediately when the leader touched her forehead.

Witnesses may suffer such physical aftereffects as burning eyes, sunburned skin, puncture wounds, or gastrointestinal upset. Abductees often experience acute thirst, and many witnesses feel dirty or in need of a bath. After a few weeks, physical symptoms lessen and psychological effects occur in the form of nightmares, anxiety, or panic attacks. Personality changes for the better or worse may come about, with new interests or changes in habits. Commonly, abductees and witnesses have further paranormal experiences: extrasensory abilities may develop, and even poltergeist activity. Men in Black appear and, most ofte n, abductees report further encounters or kidnappings by alien beings.

Resources
Alien Abductions (Youtube)



Kidnapped by an alien: Tales of UFO Abductions

Wikipedia article on Extraterrestrial Life