The UFO
Phenomenon, Absurdity and the Alien Existentialist Mirror
An interview with Eric Ruiz,
Ph.D. – September 1, 2014
All rights reserved – Author
contact: ruiz.ufos@gmail.com
Abstract:
The
UFO phenomenon is difficult to study scientifically: despite a lot of empirical
evidence, there is no logical explanation or established theory to support it.
Nevertheless, UFOs appear intelligent and purposeful – they exhibit
extraordinary performances and capabilities. Therefore, one or several
intelligences of unknown origins must be behind the phenomenon.
This superior but stealthy intelligence is mostly
uncooperative: it jams all scientific attempts to understand it. However, alien
intelligence is not hostile given its level of technology and the ease with
which it could harm mankind. In this context, the discretion of the phenomenon
is probably more for the protection of our civilization than a dark conspiracy
against humans.
Yet, the more one studies the phenomenon, the more
absurd it appears, hence the proposition that absurdity may be precisely what
alien communication is about. Since neither science nor religion can make sense
of the UFO phenomenon, an attempt is made to explain it with the help of
psychology, philosophy and literature. A meaningful analogy is drawn between
the UFO phenomenon and The Theater of the Absurd, leading to existentialist
questions and answers.
Question:
Hello Eric, could you briefly introduce yourself?
Eric
Ruiz: Certainly, I hold a Ph.D. in Operations Research. My main job is to teach
statistics and quantitative research methods at several business schools,
mostly in Paris. I have also published several scholarly articles in refereed journals.
Q:
When did you start investigating the UFO phenomenon?
E.R.: I started quite
early, when I was about ten years of age. My father was a physics teacher with
a passion for astronomy: he joined the Société
d’Astronomie Populaire of the city of Toulouse in the late 1970’s and he quickly
got in touch with the newly created GEPAN, the French organization in charge of
investigating UFO phenomena (known today as GEIPAN). When it started, GEPAN was
looking for volunteer investigators. I went with my dad as he interviewed several
witnesses of UFO sightings – we discovered quickly that there was something
real and deep behind the phenomenon.
Q: Any
particular case that comes to your mind?
E.R.: Yes, one case was
particularly striking. I vividly remember going to a safari hunter’s house filled
with various trophies and other artifacts. The place made a strong impression
on me. The witness described in detail how, when he was on a hunting trip on an
island of the Zaire River, a huge, whitish, shiny object flew silently over him
and his crew. It was night time; the circular object was about one hundred yards
wide and hovering upstream at a speed of maybe 20 mph. My dad and I could tell
that this man’s life had been changed forever. In fact, he wasn’t so much
interested in telling us about what he had seen, he wasn’t bragging, he was truly
looking for answers. Had anybody else seen the same object he saw on that night?
Could we explain what he saw? Visibly, my dad – a physicist – could not offer
any help.
Q: What
about the other cases?
E.R.: There were quite a
lot, more than I would have imagined. I remember one particular young woman who
had been followed and chased by a UFO while driving her little green car on a
small country road and how scared she had been. There was no abduction
involved. Again, I discovered that witnesses were more looking for answers than
trying to convince us of anything – they didn’t have a clue about what had
happened to them. Could we help them? Could science offer a relief? The answer
was clearly no. I soon discovered that a real UFO investigator always ends up
with more questions than answers. This is true with any kind of research, but even
more so with the UFO phenomenon.
Q:
You are talking about research and science; could you tell us more about your
scientific background?
E.R.: I hold a Ph.D. in
Operations Research, which is a discipline that deals with the application of
advanced analytical methods to help make better decisions. Employing techniques
such as mathematical modeling or statistical analysis, Operations Research
arrives at optimal or near-optimal solutions to complex decision-making
problems. I have also taught research methodology and epistemology courses at
different business schools and universities.
Q: How does your scientific background
help you deal with the UFO phenomenon?
E.R.: Well, the first
thing a good scientist should do is to define precisely the object he wishes to
study. The typical scientific approach is the following: based on a review of
the literature and empirical evidence, an object of study is precisely defined
and one or several hypotheses are derived. These hypotheses are then tested by
different means, preferably an experiment. Either the hypotheses are confirmed,
in which case the theory underlying the hypotheses is supported, or the
hypotheses are not confirmed and the theory is not supported (or sometimes
proven wrong).
Thus, there are four
questions to answer before the scientific method becomes possible:
1- What is the
object of study, also called “unit of analysis”?
2- What is the
underlying theory?
3- What are the
hypotheses?
4- How do we test
hypotheses in a satisfying manner?
Q: What
are your answers to these four essential questions concerning the UFO phenomenon?
E.R.: My overall answer
is very clear: the UFO phenomenon is NOT a scientific one. Consider question 1,
the unit of analysis. What is a UFO? It is a Unidentified Flying Object.
However, by definition, an object of investigation must be identified. If it is
unidentified, then it cannot be investigated. Also, a UFO is unidentified by
who? Depending on the witnesses, we may have something perfectly identified or
completely unidentified. Thus, there is a subjective element at the root of the
phenomenon itself – this is not scientific.
Now, what about abductions,
are they a part of the UFO phenomenon? Why, or why not? You can see that
defining a precise object of study here is very difficult, if not impossible.
The UFO phenomenon is fuzzy. But this is only the beginning.
Consider questions
2, 3 and 4: what are the possible underlying theories? Could it be planet
Venus, some sunlight reflections from birds, extra-terrestrial visitors, time
travelers, ancient gods? We have too many competing theories and this is not
encouraging. Also, what kind of hypotheses can be derived from such theories
and how can they be tested? How do you perform an experiment possibly involving
unwilling aliens or time travelers? Let’s now suppose that wild birds are
responsible for some sightings, can we conclude that all UFOs are wild birds?
To me, the UFO
phenomenon is therefore not of a scientific nature, but this doesn’t mean that
science doesn’t work or that the UFO phenomenon does not exist. Quite the
contrary.
Q:
Could you please elaborate a little more on this somewhat paradoxical
statement?
E.R.: Yes. To put it
differently, what we call the scientific approach is really two things:
empiricism and rationalism. Knowledge via empiricism involves gaining knowledge
through objective observation and the experiences of our senses. Empiricism
alone is not enough, however. Empiricism represents a collection of facts. Right
now, concerning the UFO phenomenon, we have nothing more than a long list of
observations or facts. But for these facts to be useful, we need to organize
them, think about them, draw meaning from them, and use them to make
predictions. In other words, we need to use rationalism together with
empiricism to make sure that we are being logical about the observations that
we make. This is what science does. With the UFO phenomenon, there is a huge
discrepancy between the data we have obtained and our ability to make sense of
them with logic; this can only mean two things:
1- We aren’t smart
enough to understand the data.
2- We are purposely
being misled.
Q: There
is another possible explanation: there may be no logic behind the UFO
phenomenon because the UFO phenomenon does not exist. You said you can’t really
define it, so how can you be sure that it does exist?
E.R.: Good question. What I said was that the UFO
phenomenon cannot be defined precisely enough for scientific measurement or
hypotheses testing by means of experiments, but some useful definitions of the
phenomenon do exist. They are simply not scientific. This is not a criticism;
this is just a fact. Consider an undercover journalist trying to infiltrate the
mafia: would you say that his approach is scientific? No. Does that mean that
his work and testimony are of no value? Again, no. The journalist may be
incapable of measuring the “mafia construct” precisely, yet this does not mean
that the mafia does not exist. Mafia killers are real and the journalist’s job
is dangerous. Similarly, I can give you some definitions of the UFO phenomenon
if you wish, but I wouldn’t call them “scientific”. Again, I don’t see this as
a problem. This is a problem only if you don’t understand what science does and
what it doesn’t do.
Q: Are
there any good definitions of the UFO phenomenon then?
E.R.: Yes, several, and
some of them are more or less objective, but I don’t consider any of them
scientific because there aren’t any sound theories backing them up. Science
requires both facts and theory: there is no validated UFO theory today and
probably never will be. It does not mean that human intelligence cannot
apprehend the UFO phenomenon or that UFOs do not exist, just that the UFO
phenomenon does not meet the more exacting standards of scientific research.
Q: So,
what is your definition of the UFO phenomenon?
E.R.: I can offer
several definitions. I really like the French system developed by the GEIPAN
and based on the notion of UAP or Unidentified Aerospace Phenomenon. UAP cases
are classified under four categories:
1- UAP A: phenomena
that were thought to be unidentified by the original witnesses but which are in
fact clearly identified (i.e. balloon, plane, star).
2- UAP B: phenomena
that were thought to be unidentified but which are probably identified, even if
there are still some doubts.
3- UAP C: phenomena
that lack accuracy – it is difficult or impossible to know what the witnesses
saw.
4- UAP D: the
testimony is precise and reliable but no conventional explanation is possible
(i.e. phenomena that fly at speeds of 20,000 mph or above, which can accelerate
almost instantly, which go up and down or turn at right angles without apparently
slowing down).
UAP D is what we
generally mean by UFO. Such cases are not uncommon (5% of all UAPs): witnesses are
often civilian or military pilots and radar evidence sometimes confirms what
they see.
Q:
Any other definition that you like?
E.R.: I like the
definition given by the late J. Allen Hynek, who introduced the idea of close
encounters. When a person sees a UFO within 500 feet, it’s an encounter of the 1st
kind. When an encounter with a UFO in the sky or on the ground leaves evidence
behind (i.e. leaves scorch marks on the ground or stops vehicles) it is of the 2nd
kind. When an encounter is with visible occupants inside the UFO, it is of the 3rd
kind. Close encounters of the 3rd kind can further be divided into 4
sub-categories (A, B, C and D).
Q:
What about occurrences such as bedtime visitors, cattle mutilation, crop
circles or men in black? Would you include them in the UFO phenomenon?
E.R.: Crop circles are
so easy to make that there is no need to link them to the UFO phenomenon...
This is not to say that no UFO ever made a crop circle but I don’t find this topic
interesting or meaningful. Men in black stories belong to the UFO folklore, and
as such are interesting to analyze, even if they are now outdated. On the other
hand, I do believe that there is a significant correlation between cattle
mutilation and the UFO phenomenon. I also find the evolution of bedtime
visitors’ stories interesting. Maybe we will have a chance to discuss all these
issues later.
Q: According
to a 2012 National Geographic survey, 77 percent of all Americans “believe
there are signs that aliens have visited Earth”. In your opinion, what are the
elements that make most people think that the UFO phenomenon is real and worth
investigating?
E.R.: Besides the fact
that there are hundreds of thousands of reliable witnesses across the world, pictures,
videos, radar evidence and material proofs, there are a few more things that
probably convince them that the phenomenon is real.
First, earthlike
planets are everywhere in the universe: it was calculated recently that there
are approximately 10,000 billion of billions of planets similar to the Earth in
our universe! This number is staggering; it is equivalent to the number of
water drops in all the oceans of our planet. New planets around nearby stars
are discovered almost daily. So our universe is probably teeming with life, and
life ultimately leads to intelligence.
Second, since
ancient times, written and pictorial representations suggest a very long
cohabitation between humanity and the UFO phenomenon (i.e. vimanas, Ezekiel’s
wheels).
Last but not least,
massive UFO cover-ups by the US and other governments have been demonstrated: this
is not paranoia (i.e. Freedom of Information Act). Such important cover-ups imply
that there is something crucial to hide.
Q:
And this something crucial is?
E.R.: One or several
alien intelligences of unknown origins: most likely from another planet in our
galaxy but they could also come from another galaxy, another universe, another
dimension, another time, or a combination of these.
Q:
What makes you think that there is an intelligence involved?
E.R.: Mostly, the flying
devices detected demonstrate extraordinary performances and capabilities, well
beyond our technical means. The following maneuvers have been observed: supersonic
speed without bang or shock wave, silent levitation, deceleration or
acceleration at lightning speed, incredibly high rate of climb, apparent lack
of inertia, zigzags, right angle or acute angle turns, instant change or
reversal of direction without braking.
Features also include:
rotation of the device about its center, dead leaf descent, shape shifting,
division of an object, fusion of two or more objects, apparent volume increase
or decrease, temporary invisibility, very bright and “otherworldly” lights or
beams.
Additionally, UFO
behaviors occasionally appear purposeful: repeated flights over sensitive
military installations and nuclear sites, intimidation against military
aircrafts, witnesses’ paralysis, etc.
Q:
What would you like to say to skeptics and debunkers?
E.R.: I would like to
tell them that empiricism is the key to science: debunkers are not skeptics; they are against empiricism, like the
priests who refused to look into Galileo’s telescope. The rejection of empirical
evidence is the most unscientific approach of all.
As I briefly
explained before, science is both empiricism and logic or theory. The main
problem with the UFO phenomenon is not the lack of factual evidence, which is
plentiful, but rather the lack of theory. This is why there is no UFO science.
But the absence of science doesn’t mean a lack of evidence.
I have made the
point that there is no logic behind the UFO phenomenon for two possible
reasons:
1- We aren’t smart
enough to understand the data.
2- We are purposely
being misled.
Q: What do you mean by “being misled”, is there some
kind of conspiracy?
E.R.: No, not really a
conspiracy in the sense that something is done against us, but there is a good
amount of secrecy behind the phenomenon.
Q: Are you referring to the idea that UFOs and
aliens do not get involved more openly because they would destroy the human
spirit, our civilization?
E.R.: Yes, this is a
very important concept: aliens could destroy our civilization by simply making
themselves known publicly. This is the main reason behind the massive government
cover-ups. If the aliens really wanted to make themselves known, our governments
couldn’t stop them. Therefore, our governments just copy the aliens when they
keep everything hidden and undercover: they want to protect the population. I
believe that if the alien contact with us was more straightforward, some major misunderstandings
would occur immediately, even if the contact was completely neutral. Please
read the short conversation below to understand what I mean:
Aliens: Hello mankind, what’s up?
Mankind’s essential question: You are good
creatures, right; you came here to help us?
Aliens: What do you mean?
Army general: We want better weapons so
that we can crush our enemies.
Aliens: Well, we don’t do that, we don’t give weapons,
killing others is wrong.
Army general: But we only do it in
self-defense.
Aliens: Sorry, we can’t help you with this.
Scientist: Can you give us the secret of
infinite energy or space travel?
Aliens: We could, but you wouldn’t understand them and
you would harm yourself and others in the process. So we certainly won’t do
that.
Socialist: Are you going to help us
solve the problem of poverty and world hunger?
Aliens: This problem is due to your mismanagement of
resources, to your inability to share things, and to your exponential birth
rate. You also have fatal genetic defects. We are sorry, we won’t help you.
Religious person: Do you believe in God, what
is your religion?
Aliens: No, we don’t have any believes because we know
everything there is to know. We never die. To you, we are like gods. What you
call God is just an invention due to your inability to comprehend the world around
you, coupled with your fear of dying.
Average person: I don’t want to die, I want
to leave forever, do you have the technology to save us?
Aliens: We could make you immortal if we thought it
was worth it but there are more than 7 billion humans alive already. Given your
exponential reproductive rate, the Earth couldn’t stand it. Moreover, as explained
before, we think that you have some fundamental genetic flaws. We would need to
seriously alter your DNA and you wouldn’t like it.
Mankind: What can you do for us then?
Aliens: Nothing, really, we just thought saying hello would
be nice.
Army general: These ugly creatures are not
with us, yet they are so powerful. We must assume that they are against us,
just to be safe, and prepare for war!
Scientist: We thought we were so smart
but we now realize how far from greatness we indeed are. Those alien creatures
have ridiculed us. Whatever we do, we will always be far behind. What is the
purpose of our science then? Aliens must leave the Earth immediately!
Socialist: They refuse to help us solve
our dire problems and blame it all on us. They are not Marxists, they are not
our brothers from outer space, and therefore they must be vicious capitalists
or fascists!
Religious person: These evil creatures want to
convince us that there is no God. They were sent by the devil himself. We must
fight them off at all cost to save our souls!
Average person: What? These aliens have the
power to make us immortal but won’t? They despise us, this is not acceptable!
Why did they come here in the first place? To insult us? Maybe they want to
steal from us or kill us?!
Q: Do
you really think that the human reaction to their neutral but polite attitude
would be one of rejection and aggression?
E.R.: Yes, aliens are
communicating with us at the exact level they should. If they get more directly
involved in our affairs, it may ultimately mean drastically changing our DNA or
wiping out the human race altogether. That wouldn’t be very ethical, even if we
are not the best of species. If they don’t get more involved but simply
introduce themselves publicly, extremely aggressive and negative reactions from
mankind can be expected. We are not ready to face our true place in the
universe: we can’t deal healthily and happily with such an inferiority complex.
Most people do believe that God looks after them because they are so special
and important, that they will live forever. What if our true place in the
universe is much closer to the animals we slaughter to feed ourselves than to
aliens? Would we forgive them for letting us know the truth? Or would we rather
shoot the messenger? By not making closer contact, they protect our fragile ego
and our frail civilization.
Q: What
about the intelligence involved, do you
think it cannot communicate with us because it is too superior?
E.R.: As I just said, the
alien intelligence doesn’t communicate openly with us mostly because it wants
to protect us; at the very least it wants to maintain its neutral relationship
with us. But no, I don’t believe that aliens don’t communicate directly with us
because we are too inferior. It is not because we are like ants to them, as I
have read somewhere.
Still, I do believe
that this alien intelligence is superior, vastly superior to ours; it may also
be an artificial intelligence, qualitatively different from ours. However, we
humans are not like ants. Our means of communication are abstract: language,
mathematics, arts. Intelligence is precisely about abstraction, about the
ability to deal with complexity, and we humans possess the basics of intelligence
and communication. Aliens could easily use our major means of communication if
they wanted to. Basically, they have chosen more hidden paths, mostly to avoid
open conflict, and ultimately to protect us.
Q: So according to you, aliens are benevolent
creatures?
E.R.: Given how destructive the human species is and compared to us – I have
to say yes. They could wipe us all out if they wanted to. Maybe they are just
waiting for us to do so! More seriously, I view aliens as neutral creatures.
They are not Santa Klaus or Mother Theresa – they have their own agenda – and their
exact purpose must be investigated.
Q: Indeed,
UFOs are not angels or devils in disguise… But are there any links between UFOs
and the occult, religion, or spirituality?
E.R.: You have to
understand that the UFO phenomenon is very intelligent, fuzzy, stealthy and
uncooperative. This is why we have a lot of data without explanation. But empirical
evidence without proper explanation can easily lead to irrational thoughts and
behaviors. This is what you get when you jam science and rationalism. The
consequence on the population may be a regression to a lower level of mental
functioning such as magic, shamanism or religion, and here lies the real
danger.
Q: What
do you mean by “lower level of mental functioning”?
E.R.: Magic, shamanism
and religion are respectively about wishful thinking, false associations and
irrational believes, whereas science is about true facts and logic. The UFO
phenomenon is extraordinary and it cannot be explained by modern science. Most
people assume that if it is not about science, then it must be about the
occult, religion, or spirituality. Hence the current classification of UFO
books on library shelves. But this is not adequate because magic, shamanism and
religion are not answers: they are archaic lies that our ancestors found useful
in a world they could not understand. It is time to move up, not down.
Q: Do
you believe that more science is the solution then?
E.R.: No. I have already
explained why it is impossible to use experimental science to investigate the
UFO phenomenon. Personally, being a statistician specialized in data mining, my
first idea would be to establish a massive database and look for significant
patterns. In the past, this approach has helped establish some very significant
findings, in particular non-random UFO occurrences. Statistics has already contributed
– perhaps equally with radar evidence – to the notion that the UFO phenomenon
is real.
The main problem
with statistics, however, is that it doesn’t explain what is actually going on.
It can tell you whether there is a deviation from randomness, but not the
reason for this deviation. In other words, it doesn’t give you the logic behind
the phenomenon, or the smoking gun, or anything worthwhile.
This is why, in the
end, trying to establish ever more complex databases will lead us nowhere. The
intelligence involved controls almost all the inputs, possibly even the ones we
think it doesn’t (like the remains of possible UFO crashes). You can always accumulate
more data and try to find a pattern, but it won’t work because this is not what
the alien intelligence wants us to do. In fact, the alien intelligence jams our
pattern recognition system on purpose. So, the database approach will lead us nowhere
or to something false. Perhaps this jamming process has been ongoing for
centuries. Who do you think is smarter: us or them? I’d bet on the aliens any
time.
I also read occasionally
that the military may have reverse engineered UFOs. What a joke! What is the
likelihood that a chimp may reverse engineer the cell phone he stole from an
anthropologist?
Q: No
science, no religion, is there really nothing we can do to understand this
phenomenon?
E.R.: Well, we may turn
to psychology, philosophy and literature to find some keys. That’s all there is
left and this is where we should look right now. That’s what I did when I found
that the two previous approaches – science and religion – would take me
nowhere. After all, alien communication may not be impossible to fathom if the
proper tools are used. We may not be able to outsmart them, but we may be able
to learn from them, if we try hard and listen carefully...
Q:
Have you personally observed UFOs or been abducted? Do you have a special
connection with aliens?
E.R.: No, I have never
seen a real UFO with my own eyes and I have never been abducted. Maybe I should
emphasize here that I was not chosen by extraterrestrials either: I am in no
way their messenger! I have no special aptitudes. I am just a curious human
being looking for answers.
Q:
What about techniques such as channeling, remote viewing or hypnosis?
E.R.: There is no
scientific evidence that channeling or remote viewing works, not at all. Such
“techniques” have nothing scientific – I consider them to be pseudosciences. With
the UFO phenomenon we have empirical evidence but no theory. In the case of
channeling and remote viewing we have neither empirical evidence nor theory.
Thus, channeling and remote viewing belong to the realms of magic and
shamanism, and as such are regressions to lower levels of mental functioning.
Q:
What about hypnosis?
E.R.: Hypnosis is not a
science either, but as a technique there is some encouraging empirical evidence.
I would like to talk more about it when we discuss abduction cases and bedtime
visitors, if we have the chance.
Q:
What about stories of aliens harvesting human DNA and creating alien-human
hybrids?
E.R.: We humans don’t fully
understand DNA. The code from which all life on Earth comes from hasn’t been
decoded yet. Definitely, we have identified the different letters in the DNA
alphabet, and even some words in it, but we have not mastered DNA’s syntax. You
can bet the alien intelligence has decoded our entire DNA a long time ago. It
can make DNA “projections” and produce almost any creature it wishes at will.
Why produce a human being then? Why not produce instead a super tiger or a
super dolphin or a super octopus or whatever? I have a hard time to believe
that human beings in their current form are close to any kind of
perfection… Also, aliens’ life form may
be based on something entirely different from DNA, possibly not compatible with
ours, and much more powerful anyway.
So fabricating
human-alien hybrids cannot be the aliens’ true purpose. Aliens may have us
believe that this is what they do; nevertheless this is not what they are actually
doing.
Q: You
mentioned something about alien communication; can you tell us more please?
E.R.: It is false to assume
that aliens do not communicate with us. True, they do not use our common
communication means, such as language or mathematics, and they do not go
through our official channels, such as the government or the media. Nonetheless
they are communicating with us. The UFO phenomenon can be elusive and stealthy;
however, it can also be very spectacular. That’s how we know it exists.
Q:
How would you qualify alien communication?
E.R.: I would qualify
alien communication as highly symbolic. A symbol is something that separates
and brings together – it is the union of two opposites. According to Carl
Gustav Jung, the symbol reveals a binary model based on the tension of
opposites: male/female, day/night, black/white, zero/infinity.
For Jung, “mental
energy” is precisely based on this tension between opposites. Symbols can be
found in all cultures since the very beginning of mankind. In Chinese
philosophy, for example, the Yin Yang symbol is represented by two white and
black S shapes intertwined inside a circle.
Q:
Can you give us some examples of symbolic communication with respect to the UFO
phenomenon?
E.R.: There are many.
Let me give you the main ones. First, the phenomenon constantly oscillates
between stealth and ostentation. Alien knowledge and intelligence may have no
limit, yet and in total contrast, aliens are silent. Also, we know nothing about
their intentions: UFOs represent hope and terror. Hope, insofar as everyone
hopes for a better world; UFOs then represent the bearers of good news. They
are like the modern version of Christ. UFOs can also be terrifying; they show
the destructive force that is inside each of us. They then become the modern
version of the Horsemen of the Apocalypse...
I have studied in
depth the symbolic dimensions of UFO shapes, alien forms, abductions, cattle
mutilations, and men in black – among others – in my paper titled “Alien
symbolic communication and mental energy amplification.”
Q:
Yes, I have read this paper in detail – it is a very important and groundbreaking
article which, by the way, convinced me to interview you. Apparently, since
then, you have done some more advanced research involving literature and
philosophy…
E.R.: Indeed, I have
found some quite interesting elements that I would like to share with you and our
readers.
TO READ THE FULL INTERVIEW OF ERIC RUIZ GO TO THE FOLLOWING LINK: