The Shape of the Phenomenon

A few things a couple years of UFO research has taught us, and a few things it hasn’t.

We don’t know what the phenomenon which makes itself most apparent through unidentified flying objects is. We don’t know where it comes from. It could be extraterrestrial or it could be “other.” So, what is “other?”

Other could be any of the following or as Monty Python would often say…”something completely different.” Future humans, past humans, aquatic creatures, interdimensional or beings from outside of space and time…The US Government and researchers who’ve spent decades studying the phenomenon seem to agree on this point. They don’t know the origin of the phenomenon. Yet, people don’t seem to want to accept the phenomenon exists unless they’re told where it comes from. This is silly.

The origin of the UFOs and beings which appear around UFOs is unknown. We know the objects are real. We and (likely) the government do not know where it comes from, and if there is one thing we can offer to help this conversation along it is: Stop this conversation.

It’s not likely we will find out where these objects are from until we learn much more about them. This will take study, it will take research. It will take mass acceptance of the phenomenon along with academics and journalists studying the phenomenon in earnest, and then….we might get an answer…we might not. We may never really know or understand where this phenomenon comes from. Accept it, so we can move forward.

For the time being, the question should not be the focus of research, because there is no way to determine the origin of the objects. Even if a UFO entity were to state where they are from (and according to reports they have – they’ve said they’re from different places), these entities have proven they are capable of great deception.

Famed UFO researcher Jacques Vallee wrote a great book called “Messengers of Deception.” He details how the phenomenon takes different forms and shapes. It tells humans all sorts of contradictory and sometimes absurd information. Vallee wonders if these deceptions are said with the intent of manipulating humanity. It’s a good question, but for now we’ll just point out that all of this deception means asking the phenomenon where it’s (or it telling you where it’s from) is not a reliable means of determining the origin of the phenomenon.

We don’t need to know the origin of the phenomenon to acknowledge its existence. In fact, we need to study the phenomenon in order to determine its origin.

Where to begin? Charles Fort said “One measures a circle, beginning anywhere.” He faced this exact question in the early 20th century. Because he was facing the exact same phenomenon. Which brings us to our first point in understanding the shape of the phenomenon. It is old. If Fort was studying it a hundred years ago, it’s at least a hundred years old (more likely thousands).

The Phenomenon is Old.

Fort found evidence the phenomenon existed during his own time and chronicled UFO stories in his numerous books and articles. Yet, again we’d have to point to Jacques Vallee as the most credible researcher on this subject, there is something to the all the ancient aliens hypotheses. Vallee points to a number of historical events, UFO sightings and abductions in his work “Dimensions.” There is enough evidence to suggest the phenomenon is much older than a hundred years. This doesn’t mean they built the pyramids…it just means they were around when it happened.

Cover of the book "Dimensions" by Jaques Vallee

That’s a good first point. We need to collect these points. If we put enough of these points on paper. We can look for patterns. Patterns might help us understand intent. While the question of origin may be delayed indefinitely, the question of intent needs to be answered as soon as possible. These entities interact with us, and we should learn why. If we put enough dots on paper, we might be able to connect them and find the central threads to their interaction with us.

The good news is all of this phenomenon history makes a sudden attack seem less likely. If they were invaders from outer space who just showed up this century with increasing frequency, it might be building toward something bad.

The Phenomenon Interacts with Humanity

Which is a good second point. The phenomenon interacts with humanity. A UFO sighting is an interaction. Many people have said encounters with UFO craft changed them. “Havana Syndrome” bears hallmarks of UAP related brain damage. Some cases of “Havana Syndrome” are directly related to UAP as they involved a sighting or interaction. Thus, the phenomenon does more than interact with humanity, it affects us. Cataloging these effects and placing them into categories is essential to understanding the most basic question of intent: is the phenomenon helping us or hurting us?

balwyn ufo 1966
Balwyn UFO Melbourne, Australia 1966

We’ve discussed radiation effects caused by proximity to UFOs, and they are not positive. The vast majority of cases looked at by physicians showed people who stood too close to an energy source. It damaged their insides while leaving their outsides relatively unharmed. This may not be the product of a weapon, but rather the result of being too close to a craft or entity which is emitting a lot of energy. Yet, our clear conclusion after looking at the data in the report compiled for the US government is being anywhere near a UFO is generally bad for people.

In the book “The Eighth Tower” author John Keel wrote: “The most chilling problem I found in my own efforts to reexamine some old cases was the disturbing fact that witnesses, particularly monster witnesses, often die within six months to two years. The apparitions seem to be omens. The deaths usually natural-heart attacks, accidents, prolonged illnesses. Ancient folklore linked the appearances of demons with impending death. There may be more truth to this than we can admit.”

Keel wrote that in 1975. Long before the government released the public report on the physiological effect of UFOs on humans.

UFO/UAP seem to have a big interest in nuclear power and weapons. Researcher Robert Hastings has done fantastic work uncovering the connection between UFOs and UAP. The Malstrom Incident was brought up during the congressional hearing of 2022 and the DOD agreed to look into it. The UAP in this incident flew over a nuclear warhead and disabled it. This is the most famous UFO – Nuke instance. However, Hastings collected sightings of UFOs around power plants, submarines etc.

During contact experiences, UFO entities often warn of impending nuclear danger. They warn us to change course before we destroy ourselves. Which seems benevolent and may be their interest in nukes, but we might be a resource, and they wouldn’t want their resource destroyed. Also, whether or not they are here to gather resources or they live here all the time, or they actually from here….they are here. So, they likely don’t want us blowing them up along with ourselves.

UFO entities have a similar relationship with the environment. Often warning contactees of impending environmental doom. All of the same motives as nukes may be in play regarding their interest in the environment. Particularly, the last one. Author Mac Tonnies made a very strong argument these UFO entities are actually from here. He popularized the term “cryptoterrestrials” meaning an indigenous species of humans responsible for the phenomenon. Tonnies’ theory fits with much of the behavior we’ve seen from the phenomenon. It co-exists with us and has for a long time. Long enough to be considered indigenous. If it doesn’t live here…it’s here often enough…it should really pay taxes.

The next interaction is controversial. When researching UFOs, one of the hardest pieces to accept is abductions. It’s easy to accept there are craft in the sky we can’t identify, but accepting abductions takes a lot more evidence and a lot more courage. We discussed abductions in detail, and it is a real phenomenon. People experience missing time, physiological effects and are physically missing. These are just a few of the physical effects.

The psychological effects range far and wide. Obviously, this is devastating for people who experience it. Yet, the abduction experience goes beyond the psychological. Harvard Psychiatrist Dr. John Mack wrote:

“Neurophysiological explanations include sleep paralysis and temporal lobe epilepsy (Spanos et al. 1993; Persinger 1992; Blackmore 1994), but researchers exploring these possibilities have either failed to find such pathology among abduction experiencers or have chosen to overlook important aspects of the phenomenon. For example, many abduction experiences occur under conditions that do not appear to be associated with sleep. Second, abduction experiences are often corroborated by independent UFO sightings or physical evidence. Third, neurophysiological explanations do not account for hyperarousal and anxiety triggered by certain events or images symbolically linked to abduction.”

John Mack – Abduction: Human Encounters with Aliens -1994

The existence of abductions, their existence among families and the types of organs extracted during cattle mutilations (reproductive, soft tissue) make it seem very likely the phenomenon is involved in some genetic manipulation, resource gathering or experimentation involving humans.

UFO Interactions Run in Families

Abductions are the most obvious example of a filial connection. Abductions are often repeated events. Meaning they happen throughout a person’s life. If a mother is an abductee. She knows her children are more likely to be abductees. The same is true of many UFO witnesses. They see the objects more than once, and can often find a family member who has seen something similar. The same is also true of events described as “paranormal” or “high strangenesss.”

The connection between UFO sightings and families is an important feature of the UFO-Humanity interaction patterns. Besides further establishing a genetic connection, it might be a way to develop more proactive means of gathering data around the phenomenon. No one may volunteer to be bait, but if they’re already being contacted…why not carry along an EMF meter or have a sensor nearby?

This might be the means by which contact is established. It’s inserted into bloodlines. It is definitely the way the phenomenon spreads through families. If I’m a contactee and your not and we have kids, now our kids are contactees. You just infected my family. Thanks.

This might be a marker or beacon to allow further contact between two beings from different worlds. Researchers at Skinwalker Ranch experienced the “Hitchhiker Effect.” Where people who had previously had no paranormal experiences began having them, after they left the ranch. Then people close to them began having the experiences. It transferred like a virus. Here again we see an example of the phenomenon being related to our physiology and biology. This presents an opportunity for research.

visible light on the elctromagnetic spectrum chart

The UFO Phenomenon Involves High Strangeness

Abductions might be the hardest point to accept, because of its implications regarding our own safety

The second hardest point for many researchers to accept is the phenomenon involves “high strangeness.” The term was coined by the late astronomer
J. Allen Hynek to incorporate the stranger side of UFO encounters. This includes poltergeist activity (sounds of people in the house), cryptids (creatures that only exist in legend e.g. Sasquatch) and the infamous Men in Black. Hynek was the lead scientist on project Blue Book for the Air Force. He knew what he was talking about. Mind you, he began his career as a UFO skeptic.

Author John Keel thought the “Men in Black” might be the key to the whole thing. He wrote about them during the UFO flap which yielded his book “The Mothman Prophecies.” The Men in Black Keel was most interested in, were the kind witnesses considered not human. Keel went to great lengths to document and verify what he saw during that time, and his book is widely read and respected among the research community. The events in Keel’s book took place over a year of “high strangeness” in Point Pleasant West Virginia during the 1960’s. These events bear a striking similarity to modern accounts and reports yielded from the study of Skinwalker Ranch.

Cover to the book "The Mothman Prophecies" by John Keel

Keel documented many of the elements of the UFO phenomenon which seem absurd. And that’s the rub…everyone who gets into UFO research is looking at those flying objects as advanced ships a la “Star Trek” and hoping to meet a Vulcan. When they encounter data that demonstrates the UFO phenomenon is more suggestive of an interdimensional or mysterious intelligence, they become more likely to reject it based on their own bias.

Skinwalker Ranch is the perfect example. The USG spent millions of dollars studying the ranch. The small program studying UAP (which yielded the Tic-Tac videos) was just a part of this larger Skinwalker Ranch program. Many elements of high strangeness (cryptids, portals, poltergeists) were observed and recorded at the ranch along with UFOs, establishing a rock solid connection between the two. The incidents happened during the private (Bigelow) study that preceded the government program and the study that is currently following it (Fugal). Backed by similar incidents in Point Pleasant, West Virginia and Bradshaw Ranch, Arizona this seems a solid line of inquiry. Unless you simply dismiss the ranch because of what it implies, but that would be silly.

Again, that’s why it’s important to suspend the question of origin. It gets in the way of the data, and we’re always trying to make the data fit into a point of origin for these objects. We do this to make them into something we understand. Yet, evidence defies categorization and the phenomenon is not to be trusted. It can lead us to believe it’s from where ever it would like to be from that day.

The Phenomenon is Deceptive

It takes two sides to have a conspiracy. You can’t have a conspiracy of one. Well, you can but it would be boring. If we consider the hidden existence of the UFO phenomenon a conspiracy. The one side is keeping it hidden (the government) and the other side is staying hidden (the phenomenon). It’s not like it just shows up at the White House, dangling over O’hare Airport or hovering over downtown Phoenix. OK. It did those things, but it’s pretty shy and has managed to stay out of the spotlight for (maybe) thousands of years.

Which lead us to wonder what abductees and contactees have heard during their experiences. Have any of them heard where the UFOs are from and why they are here? They have, and they’ve heard a lot of different stories. People with remarkably similar stories to “alien” abductions were also abducted by Faeries and other creatures of myth. Yet, the template of their encounter (which was documented) is very similar to the template of an “alien abduction.”

This indicates abduction and (possible) genetic manipulation has been occurring in bloodlines for as long as the objects have been here (which is likely thousands of years). This might be the “why” of the UFO phenomenon. We might be lab rats in a big genetic experiment, and those in charge of the experiment might not be extra-terrestrial. The purpose of the experiment might be as difficult to comprehend as a lab rat trying to understand a vaccine. Yet, at least the rat knows it’s in an experiment.

It seems less necessary to understand the purpose of the experiment (quantum entaglement, hybridization, genetic, immunity or reproductive material, alteration of human dna long-term etc.) than to acknowledge the fact that it looks like an experiment. Medical and physical research on the people affected and the patterns that emerge will likely divulge the central reason it is interacting with humanity.

In “Dimensions” Vallee argues that these abductions are an attempt at misdirection, and the phenomenon is impacting our belief systems in order to teach humanity something. UFO related phenomenon are part of a performance that acts as a control system by altering our behavior as a species over time. He questions why such a powerful species would need humanity for something so simple as reproductive material. And if it’s DNA they want…why go through all of the trouble of abductions? We have much simpler ways of collecting DNA. Ya know…like spit.

It’s a good question. Yet, in our view that doesn’t mean that something else physical isn’t taking place during the abduction scenario. Something else isn’t added or removed. To us, it looks like all of these (phenomenon) staged abductions are just ways of spicing up getting the milk from the cows.

We all have a habit of overthinking the phenomenon. For example, in the Nimitz encounter the pilot who engaged the tic-tac UAP felt like he was in a dog fight and was beaten at every move. When the naval jets left to go to the rendezvous point. The UAP was already there waiting for them. From our POV it sounds obvious. The UAP was saying “everything you can do I can do better, and you couldn’t even run from me.” Simple definitions. Scientists sometimes have a hard time seeing simple definitions. Police officers talk about seeing the world in simple definitions, because those are most often correct in their line of work. In simple terms, the Nimitz encounter was a show of force. That is what the pilots felt they witnessed. A show of force.

That attitude doesn’t sound like peace loving space bros. It sounds like someone saying: “we can beat you anytime we want.” That’s a warning. It’s a gorilla beating its chest. This fits into the overall attitude of the phenomenon. It’s doing what it wants when it wants and it wants us to know it from time to time. There is a general lack of mutual respect here…and the phenom might not be as sophisticated as we are in some ways (or as familiar with human thought). You don’t have to be smart or cool to run fast. These things may have been born with these capabilities. It may have involved no more sophistication or development to demonstrate them than the ability to run fast.

They may not be trying to teach us anything. They might be doing what they normally do, and messing with us when they get bored, and that sounds almost human or at least animal. This is consistent with some of the behavior evidenced at Skinwalker Ranch where the phenomenon broke equipment, hid a pack of prize bulls and put on cosmic light shows. The experiences were even tailored to individuals. The stories from the ranch don’t sound like it was teaching people something to us. It sounds like a cat playing with a ball of yarn.

The forms chosen when taking a human or interacting with a human might involve the same amount of forethought as a child choosing from a box full of old costumes. “I don’t think I’ll wear the Mothman today. I wanna be an alien grey.” Although abductees and experiencers say the forms they interacted with are as real as flesh and blood, and there is further evidence the phenomenon takes definite shape in some of the physical traces it leaves, these forms may be only temporary or chosen for the purpose of the task.

This includes the shape of the crafts and their form. While the US Government is very likely in possession of both a craft and occupants from Roswell, New Mexico and Varghina, Brazil, the craft and bodies are likely nuts & blots and flesh & blood. The phenomenon is not strictly visionary and capable of full materialization in the physical world.

Theory: People don’t report being abducted by Faeries anymore. The Phenomenon is deceptive. We don’t believe in faeries anymore. Similar beings to faeries are a part of the mythology of cultures worldwide (Japanese Kami, Middle Eastern Djinn). So, it had to choose a form which had a similarly “magical” capability. It needed a form that could do things beyond our imagination and it needed us to believe that it could. So, it chose aliens. This is more or less the conclusion of many researchers (Vallee, Keel et al), and appears to be the the conclusion of the author of the Pentagon report as well. It is also the most likely conclusion from our POV.

This makes it difficult to explain when someone asks a question like “Do you believe in Bigfoot?” I think Bigfoot is as real as a grey alien. They are real for the moment. Whether or not they were independently intelligent and conscious for the time they exist is not known. Though a number of abductees and experiencers believe the grey aliens are a form of organic robot. All of it might be staged.

Vallee refers to these forms, craft and beings as “interaction icons.” It’s as good a name as any. The form is chosen based on the individual and the situation. Whether or not the form is controlled by an individual or mass intelligence is unknown, but the point on which we agree most is: The forms it displays are not the true shape of the phenomenon. Some of those forms might be its original shape, but we would have no way of knowing whether it prefers the Mothman shape to the Sylph shape.

Thus, we take what we can from this. The phenomenon is deceptive. Its true form is unknown, and the same phenomenon and patterns are present regardless of the form of craft or physical body. Faerie abductions are the same as insectoid-reptilian abductions which are the same as grey alien abductions. It’s the same thing.

In this theory, it might be easier to think of our reality as a video game, and prior to entering the game the phenomenon chooses a ship, body and mission to complete each level.

This theory tends to fall into the larger research category of “interdimensional hypotheses.” It is seen as opposed to the “extra-terrestrial hypotheses” which sees the earth as being visited by a variety of extra-terrestrial species. This division is spurious. An extra-terrestrial species could have all of the capabilities mentioned in this article, just as easily as an interdimensional species. Our science fiction creates these categories. The data merely suggests we’re dealing with something our fiction would relegate to an interdimensional entity. Whether or not this is accurate is less important as what it says about the nature of the phenomenon.

The Phenomenon is Powerful

Whether or not these beings are from the 8th dimension or Orion’s belt they have the capabilities we mentioned. This includes: traveling at impossible speed, trans-medium travel, telepathy, teleportation, matter manipulation/materialization, clairvoyance or future prediction et al. These capabilities make them vastly more powerful than a pack of Vulcans. The propensity for deception combined with these capabilities makes it unlikely we will find to the keys to unlocking the most basic questions of who they are or where they are from in the near term. Because these capabilities give them the ability to hide those answers from us. So, it doesn’t really matter if they are interdimensional or extraterrestrial. What is the nature of their interaction with humanity? This we can discern. We know us. We can talk to us. We’re sometimes reasonable….

The most concrete link to the phenomenon and humans is through the abduction phenomenon. There has been some study of people who’ve been abducted and Professor Gerry Nolan has been studying them. The results of his data may indicate the nature of biological or genetic changes abductees experience. The nature of these changes will provide some clue as to the focus of the phenomenon’s interest in us. For example, if they’re taking from or enhancing our immune systems, it might be to boost their own immunity.

The other group of humans worthy of more study are those who’ve come into proximity with a UFO. In our article “UFOs and Brain Damage: Stranger Danger” we delve further into this subject, but it gets complex. The radiation signature left on humans after close contact with UFOs is similar to that of individuals affected by “Havana Syndrome.” In both cases, it’s bad. People who come into close contact with UFOs tend to get irradiated.

The Phenomenon is Callous

This last part is difficult to take. It’s the part that should put a fire under Congress to improve efforts toward disclosure. People are getting hurt. There are anecdotal cases of people who say they’ve been helped by a UFO related experience. There is a whole book here in which people claim to have been healed by a UFO related experience. Some cases of UFO healing have medical evidence associated. It is likely that a small minority of UFO cases have yielded positive effects. That’s the good news.

The bad news is the vast majority of reported cases involve negative health effects derived from close contact with UFOs. The best (collected) data we have in the public to support this claim comes from the Pentagon’s report titled: Anomalous Acute and Subacute Field Effects on Human and Biological Tissues. The report compiled decades of research conducted on individuals who’d come close to UFOs and attempted to identify what the effect was on humans.

From the DIA “Sub Acute” report mentioned

The results were bad. The report is worth reading and the index is worth looking into as well. The index mentions the cases used in compiling the report. There are a lot of them. Immune system issues are repeatedly reported following a UFO experience, along with non-ionized radiation effects and pregnancies. The fetus is removed from the mother prior to birth.

Analysis: We keep asking ourselves…why are they here? And yet the Pentagon’s own report indicates there is a genetic experimentation program in place. We all see the dots. Everyone is afraid to connect them. No one wants to cause a panic. The connection between abductions and families speaks to a genetic component to the phenomenon. Humanity might be a resource. That’s the bad news. No one wants to wipe out a resource. That’s the good news.

Resources aren’t treated like friends. The nature of our interactions with the phenomenon, when taken en masse, appear to be the relationship between a group of lab animals and researchers. Simple definitions: The researchers protect and avoid contact and don’t harm the lab animals…unless it’s part of an experiment or the gathering of resources. Also, farmers don’t shoot their cows…mostly.

However, the phenomenon will defend itself when attacked, and harm humans when it sees the need. Which seems consistent with the researcher – lab animal – or resource dynamic. Do we live in a lab or on a farm might be the better question?

Disclosure and Future Study

To sum up we have a:
1) Ancient worldwide intelligence
2) Extremely powerful/capable
3) Interacts and Abducts Humans
4) Is strange and absurd
5) Remains hidden

When we look at just those five points, the lack of disclosure and acceptance among academia and media make sense. The lack of forthcoming information from world governments makes sense. While humans have a remarkable capacity for adaptation and (in today’s world) perhaps apathy…accepting all of this would be disruptive. Some people wouldn’t take it well.

Currently, polls show 41% of the US believes some UFOs have been alien spacecraft. This is up 8 points from the last poll, likely due to the more serious way the discussion is being conducted. The “Tic-Tac videos” and scientists such as Harvard Chair of Astrophysics, Avi Loeb engaging with the subject in a serious way has had a positive effect. The more people who accept the phenomenon and demand answers, the harder the answers will be to hide. Even if they are prematurely declaring it extra-terrestrial.

Yet, disclosure may not bring answers. The ambiguity is likely one reason for the lack of disclosure. World governments don’t know what this is. They don’t want to cause a panic among their own people, and they don’t want to tell rival nations what they know about the phenomenon. Mastering UFO technology might give a nation an unbeatable edge on the battlefield. If your opponent believes you might be ahead of them on this track, why would you tell them you don’t even know where to find the track?

So, how do we in the public learn more about the phenomenon from our little ant hill? We should do what we do best. Gather data, categorize it and analyze the patterns. We gather pieces (wavelengths, bio-signatures, sensor data), we combine this with witness reports and credible research to create and eliminate hypotheses. More money into research will help.

It is likely Project Galileo will trigger more questions, more research and more money. Those of us with some information on the subject can help those who don’t by encouraging open minds. Accepting that objects we can’t explain are flying around our skies is a big step for people. We’re not even there yet…still at 41%. We’re a long way off from people accepting they are interacting with something(s) much more strange and powerful than us.

A Nimitz “Tic Tac Encounter” image – fair use

This website was begun with the same mentality of gathering evidence and analysis. After learning UFOs were real, we began collecting related pieces. We created a standard of evidence, so we would only count the relevant pieces, and two years later we wound up here. Our first summary or thesis to date is something akin to the Keel, Valle Ultraterrestrial – Interdimensional Hypotheses with a bit of Mac Tonnies Cryptoterrestrials thrown in because we think they’re from here or they live here, maybe just off to the side.

The human-animal behavior evidenced means they’re either imitating us, related to us or they are us. The fact they do us little harm means we’re important to them, either a resource or an experiment. Which is arguably the same in its effect upon us.

The various categories on the site coordinate to the shape of the phenomenon as we see it. We’ve gone to great lengths to demonstrate with credible links and research the evidence which suggested this summary. UFOs, Cryptids, Poltergeists, Ancient Mysteries, and Strange Science. All of that might just seem like your standard list of the paranormal…but it began with UFOs. Just UFOs. We wanted to know how they flew.

Reccomendations: Hypotheses developed for experimentation should incorporate the current state and suggestions of the evidence. More attention needs to be paid to the human connection and genetic testing. Less focus on things like propulsion make sense, (the phenomenon demonstrates capabilities far beyond our own). Paranormal hotspots such as Skinwalker Ranch are UFO stories. The events that happened there are related to UFOs, and there is a lot of corroborative evidence in the public if one doesn’t trust the USG. The data gleaned from the ranch should be incorporated into UFO hypotheses slated for experimentation. Three major scientific studies, numerous scientists, researchers and they keep filming UAP on the TV show…something is there. Something repeatable, and it says a lot about the phenomenon.

The research brought us here and this is better than ignorance. It’s tempting to just shrug your shoulders and smile when people ask what UFOs are. It’s easier to just say “I don’t know,” but that’s not true. We know a lot about this phenomenon. We just need to look at it without objection and without bias. Occasionally, we need to have the courage to explore this phenomenon without a hypothesis.

If it toys with our expectations…let us have no expectations.

Appendix:

Without going into too much detail, for your notes and ours, we’ll collect trends we’ve seen when looking through credible sightings and data. These are not requirements or guidelines. They’re just trends. Things that keep turning up and might mean something to determining some of the bigger questions around the phenomonenon.

  1. The phenomenon is not just attracted to Nuclear energy, but all types of energy generation. UFOs are seen around many different types of power plants. Leading researchers to wonder if they are recharging their batteries.
  2. The phenomenon is often seen around volcanoes and mountains. Areas that have seen a lot of geological activity. As these UFOs are transmedium, they have been seen passing into mountains and volcanoes. Leading some researchers to theorize there are bases structures for these entities within the earth.
  3. There are an unusual amount of odd disappearances which involve reports of associated paranormal phenomenon around National Parks.
  4. There is a long list of ranchers who associate cattle mutilations and researchers with UFOs. Cattle mutilations are loaded with evidence. Energy signatures, incision marks, types of organs removed.
  5. Crop circles are both man made and some seem to have anomalous origins. The way the stalks/vegetation are depressed and its orientation appear to be the best way to determine whether or not what you’re seeing is anomalous.
  6. “Havana Syndrome” bears the hallmarks of UAP energy signatures, but the selection of targets appear to have strategic value for adversaries of the USA. Indicating some cases of Havana Syndrome may be related to UAP, while others are the product of an energy weapon.
  7. There is some resemblance in both appearance and behavior of entities seen while under the influence of the drug DMT and UFO entities. The study of entities seen while on DMT is continuing.
  8. Cryptid events are often reported by couples engaged in romantic behavior. The classic B movie trope of monsters attacking the hormonal teenage couple is somewhat warranted. Hormones or pheromones may cause a reaction in the phenomenon.
  9. UFO encounters, especially close encounters, are more likely to occur in rural or sparsely populated areas.
  10. Numerous USO (Unidentified Submersible Object) have been seen my submarines and the public. The objects are moving at impossibly fast speeds, indicating the water may not be affecting its travel. They can travel through the sky, earth and water….no problem.

Angelic Descriptions in the Bible

The image of angels with white wings and golden hair did not come from the Bible. Nor did the image of chubby cherubs shooting bows come from the Book of Job. Biblical Angels were creatures of pure spirit, and thus could take many forms. Most Biblical scholars believe it’s impossible for us to know what form an Angel might take. However, they did make various appearances in the Bible and some allege to have seen them since the Biblical era.

Invisible Angels

“The angel of the LORD encamps all around those who fear Him, and delivers them”

Psalm 34:7

The Bible gives multiple accounts of Angels appearing invisible to humans, but still being able to affect the physical world. In Psalm 91 verse 11 it is said that God “will command his angels concerning you to guard you in all your ways.” Many Christians interpret this to mean Angels are surrounding us and involving themselves in human affairs daily.

Of course, this lends itself to the opposite as well, and demons too are trying to get at people daily. It invokes the concept of Spiritual warfare with prayer and communication with God at the center. From this perspective, Angels are the invisible protectors which guard and help humanity.

Depiction of an Angel appearing before a group of men in awe.
The Angel Appearing before the Shepherds’ by Thomas Buchanan Read, Dayton Art Institute

Angels Appearing as Humans

“Don’t forget to entertain strangers, because in this manner, some have entertained angels without knowing it.”

Hebrews 13:2

Angels can appear in human guise and do so in the Bible. The above verse from Hebrews is often quoted in response to the concept of Angels in human form. In Genesis, Jacob wrestles with an Angel (some believe God). The Angel then tells him he’s persevered and should now be called Israel. Many believe this to be an allegorical tale of the Israeli people’s own struggles with God.

Angels came to Abraham and Sarah in the form of men to tell them they would have a son. Sarah laughed, as she thought she was past the age of childbirth. The Angel asked her why she laughed. She gave birth to Isaac at the age of 90. Their appearance is described as men.

And he lifted up his eyes, and looked: and lo, three men stood by him, and when he saw them, he ran to meet them from the tent door, and bowed himself to the ground.

Genesis 18:2

Angels Appearing as the Unknown

“Above him were seraphim, each with six wings: With two wings they covered their faces, with two they covered their feet, and with two they were flying. And they were calling to one another: ‘Holy, holy, holy is the Lord Almighty; the whole earth is full of his glory.’”

Isaiah 6: 2-3

There are a category of Angelic appearances which defy description. Here we’re simply going to call them unknown. The above which describes Angels with six wings is difficult to visualize, and we we have no earthly analog to such a creature.

It is possible the form taken during these appearances were messages in themselves. In the book of Ezekiel, the prophet is shown visions of Angels (Cherubim) with the heads of animals and four wings. He is also shown a vision of perhaps the most bizarre description of an Angel in the Bible. These are known as the Ophanim.

 “They sparkled like topaz, and all four looked alike. Each appeared to be made like a wheel intersecting a wheel. As they moved, they would go in any one of the four directions the creatures faced; the wheels did not change direction as the creatures went. Their rims were high and awesome, and all four rims were full of eyes all around” – Ezekiel 1: 16-18

Ezekiel 1: 16-18
A large set of white wings on a black background above the Fortean Winds Logo
“Madonna and Child with Angels” by Pietro di Domenico da Montepulciano, 1420 (Photo: Metropolitan Museum of Art Public Domain)

Modern Accounts of Angels

Modern accounts of Angels take many forms. Many of us have the felt presence of protection. Perhaps we didn’t fall when should have fallen, and marveled at the miracle of good fortune. Yet, the feeling of a presence and a warmth is often described in modern Angelic accounts, along with a pleasant scent. Some describe a white robed humanoid with a celestial glow about them, giving them the right warning at the right time to avoid danger. These accounts are often what is characterized by popular fiction as an “Angel.”

“And I was surprised they really did have wings, even more so that these wings reached from above their head to the ground”

Seeing Angels: Emma Heathcote-James · 2009

Fortean Analysis:

Our modern perception of what Angels look like, is clearly informed by the history of our art. The image of winged gods dates back to Assyria (and before). When Angels first began to appear in what has become our modern version of Christianity (post-Constantine, 4th or 5th Century AD). The art in this era didn’t include wings, and winged angel art really took off during the Renaissance. Thus forming our modern concept of what an Angel looks like.

That said, the Bible DOES mention Angels with wings. It’s just that they happen to have six of them. Not many paintings with those Angels on them. God tells Noah to put Cherubs on the ark, but the Cherubim had two sets of wings and four faces (ox, lion, eagle and human). A lot different than what you would find on a Valentine’s Day card. Then of course there is the book of Enoch which we mention in our article. The Curious Case of Moses Wilhelm Shapira. It goes a little deeper into Angelic lore. If you haven’t heard of it, it’s worth checking out.

Neil Armstrong and the Lost Library of Gold

We had to write this article because the whole thing sounds like Pulp Fiction from the 1930’s.  What’s most shocking about this story (besides the fact that Neil Armstrong did go searching for a lost library of gold in South America) is that it was so out of character for America’s first man on the moon.  He was always such a steady guy, so in 1976 when he went down to Southeastern Ecuador to look for a lost library of gold…it counts as an anomaly.  In fact, outside of the moon landing, this is the most famous expedition of the intrepid adventurer known as: Neil.

The Discovery

The expedition began with a discovery.  A local Salesian priest named Father Carlo Crespi (1891-1982) worked with the indigenous people of Ecuador.  He was a revered humanitarian, academic and historian.  He is credited with acquiring the first film footage of the native Shuar people of the region in the 1920’s, and they liked him.  They liked him a lot.  They began to bring him local artifacts they found as thanks for his kindness.  Many of the artifacts were metallic and included strange writing.

Father Carlo Crespi – With his Ethnogrpahic Collection – Wikidata

Crespi knew the natives were poor but proud.  While he thought they might be reluctant to accept donations, they would accept payment for the objects they brought to Crespi.  So, the villagers continued to bring Crespi objects and he would pay for them when he could (even if the objects were fake).  The result was a collection of 50,000 artifacts from various periods of South American history ( and not just South American).  Many of them were authentic. Over time, Father Crespi is estimated to have collected 50,000 artifacts. The objects were kept in the courtyard of the church Maria Auxiliadora in Ecuador.  However, in 1962 there was a fire and many of the objects were lost. Many of the remaining artifacts disappeared with the assumption they were sold to private collectors, claimed by the Vatican or just plain stolen.  Still, some of the artifacts remain as does photographic evidence of the collection and they contain numerous anomalies.

The objects bear similarities to artifacts from distant ancient cultures such as Babylon, Assyria, Egypt, China, and Africa.  The writing and alphabet on some of the objects is completely unknown and intricate.  It matches no known alphabet, ancient or otherwise.  Furthermore, pyramids identical to the Egyptian pyramids (rather than the stepped pyramids of South America) are depicted along with a symbol resembling the “Eye of Horus” or “Eye of Providence.”  It can be seen hovering over the top of the pyramid the same way it can be seen on the dollar bill or The Great Seal of the USA.  What remains of the objects is no longer accessible to the public and the origin and date of the artifacts remains unknown.  Naturally, this mystery attracted interest and speculation.

Depiction of a Pyramid – Father Crespi Collection

The Entrance to the Cave

In the 1960’s an explorer by the name of János Juan Móricz claimed to have discovered a library within a massive cave system which would come to be known as “La Cueva de los Tayos” or The Tayos Cave System.  He claimed to have wandered through the system until he came to a hall of man-made walls and architecture.  Within these halls were tablets made of precious metals such as gold and silver with strange writing on them.  Móricz thought they contained the history of humanity.

He claimed the symbology on the artifacts resembled ancient Sumerian and Egyptian pieces.  However, once Móricz left the cave system he (apparently) lost track of the library but was able to still identify the entrance.  The claims made by Móricz echoed the artifacts collected by Father Crespi, which made researchers wonder if Móricz had not found the source of the objects given to Crespi by the Natives.

Cueva de los Tayos, Ecuador – Google Maps

This theorizing culminated with the publication of a book by ancient astronaut theorist Erich Van Daniken titled “Gold of the Gods.”  In the book, Van Daniken expanded on the alleged findings of Móricz and publicized the idea that the Metal Library was extraterrestrial in origin.  He believed the findings in Ecuador were similar to findings at other ancient sites, such as Nan Madol in Micronesia. Van Daniken argues these sites show contact between ancient cultures over vast distances and artifacts which go beyond coincidental, and point to past contact with ancient aliens and advanced technology.

Exploration

Stan Hall was a Scottish researcher and engineer with a penchant for exploration and adventure.  He became intrigued by Móricz ‘claims and attempted to mount an expedition.  Through an acquaintance(they had a distant relation), Hall reached out to Neil Armstrong who was living on a farm in Ohio and teaching Aerospace Engineering.  For reasons of his own, Armstrong agreed to join Hall on the expedition and this added the star power needed for the expedition to gain resources.  Funding came from the governments of the United Kingdom and Ecuador, allowing Armstrong and Hall to pursue the “Metal Library” of legend.

In 1976 Hall and Armstrong entered the cave accompanied by more than a hundred people including top scientists, joint special forces and sperologists.  They did not find the library, but they did find evidence of human occupation along with a body dating back to 1500 BCE.  They also found more than 100 new species of butterflies, 40 new species of bats and 200 new species of beetles.  It’s still one of the largest cave explorations ever conducted and Neil’s second most-famous adventure.

Legend of Los Tayos 1976 program

Today, Stan Hall’s grand-daughter Eileen Hall still explores the area and leads expeditions in the hopes of finding “The Metal Library.”  The cave system entered by Armstrong and Hall has been heavily explored since the 1970’s.  There are even tours into parts of it.  Yet, there is controversy as to how much of the cave has been explored.  There is also debate as to whether or not Armstrong and Hall went through the right entrance to find the Metal Library.  Adventurers still head to the Tayos caves today in hopes of finding the hidden pathway of Juan Móricz and the Metal Library of the ancient aliens.

Analysis

Armstrong’s involvement and evidence of Father Crespi’s collection are the two strangest pieces of evidence in this affair.  Stan Hall was also known as an analytical and logical man.  While less is known of Juan Móricz, who did know the entrance to the cave system.  Yet, he (suspiciously)  did not bring back evidence of the metal library or its exact location.  Crespi’s collection is a complete unknown.  What remains of it might be in the Vatican museum or has been taken by private collectors and thieves, which would make them very hard to verify.  Finding and dating the objects in Crespi’s collection seems to be the shortest and most logical path to determining whether or not they are authentic and anomalous. So, we’ll hope one turns up available for study. Until then, we can hope one of the present day adventurers into the unknown hands us a metal library card.

What is a Fortean?

There are varying definitions, but a Fortean follows the anomalous researcher and writer tradition of Charles Fort. Charles Fort (1874- 1932) wrote numerous articles and books involving unexplained scientific and paranormal events. He is regarded by many to be the god-father of UFOlogy, the discoverer of ball lightning and the inventor of the term “teleportation.” Could any anomalous researcher match this curriculum vitae? We think not, but we endeavor to persevere.

As do many, in their own unique ways. Some Forteans focus on one aspect of the phenomenon. Faerie religions and the Fay are a favorite topic of many. You can find articles on faeries and ultrahumans in copies of the Fortean Times. Other Forteans form societies, groups or organizations. There are a number of them, and they all perform research in their own way. However, it’s worth noting that Fort himself chose to turn away from the first Fortean Society to bear his name. So, one doesn’t need to join any group or receive anyone’s blessing to become a Fortean.

From the Fortean Winds POV: In order to become a Fortean one needs only curiosity and an open mind. Fort rejected scientific dogma. He often used humor to make his point. This doesn’t mean he rejected science. He didn’t allow theory to overcome data. UFOs or UAP are the perfect example. Fort followed the subject closely. He was an early proponent of the extra-terrestrial hypothesis. In 2019, the Government admitted (again) that UFOs were real and NASA administrator Bill Nelson considers the extra-terrestrial hypotheses plausible.

Charles Fort – 1920 – Public Domain

Some of Fort’s hypotheses were tongue-in-cheek. He knew they were ridiculous, and put them out as a way of “trolling” science. This has value. He would not allow science to reject a world filled with anomalies and the unexplained. However, today people often confuse humor with fact, and when it comes to the subject of the unexplained this has created a distortion.

I believe nothing. I have shut myself away from the rocks and wisdoms of ages, and from the so-called great teachers of all time, and perhaps because of that isolation I am given to bizarre hospitalities. I shut the front door upon Christ and Einstein, and at the back door hold out a welcoming hand to little frogs and periwinkles. I believe nothing of my own that I have ever written. I cannot accept that the products of minds are subject-matter for beliefs. But I accept, with reservations that give me freedom to ridicule the statement at any other time, that showers of an edible substance that has not been traced to an origin upon this earth, have fallen from the sky, in Asia Minor.

Charles Fort (Lo! )1931

To illustrate this we would point to the second most famous Fortean of all time: John A. Keel. He wrote “The Mothman Prophecies” and a number of other books regarding anomalous subjects. While Fort did much of his research in the library, Keel was prone to adventure. He visited Point Pleasant, West Virginia in the 1960’s and became a part of the infamous UFO and cryptid flap during that era. He visited Egypt to look for ancient anomalies and saw a UFO. Like Fort, Keel was a bit of a loner. Many of his investigations were done by himself, and he chose not to join any particular group.

Fortean Winds is a collective made up of private and anonymous researchers. We have no organization and rarely agree on anything. This is healthy in our opinion. So, if you’re that type of person who needs a place to publish your research…please reach out. The only commonality we have is our data driven approach to the phenomenon. We do what we can to separate our theory from data. Because theory is always changing…

John A. Keel author of “The Mothman Prophecies” Vanity Fair.

Due to his experiences in Point Pleasant, Keel adopted a different view of UFOs and the paranormal in general stating: “I abandoned the extraterrestrial hypothesis in 1967, when my own field investigations disclosed an astonishing overlap between psychic phenomena and UFOs,” Keel wrote. “The objects and apparitions do not necessarily originate on another planet and may not even exist as permanent constructions of matter. It is more likely that we see what we want to see and interpret such visions according to our contemporary beliefs.”

Keel’s work bears a striking similarity to the current events and theories surrounding Skinwalker Ranch.

Keel coined the term “ultraterrestrial.” It featured heavily in his book “The Eighth Tower” and was meant to give readers his evolved view of the phenomenon toward the end of his career. The term “ultraterrestrial” was a way of getting people to stop thinking about the entities behind UFOs as E.T.’s from science fiction, and more like interdimensional beings or what’s commonly associated with demons and evil spirits.

He felt this term was a failure as people began to name the ultraterrestrials and assign them personalities. It became its own form of research when it was merely meant as a literary device. They forgot John A. Keel’s first maxim: “Never Form a Belief.” Theorize, hypothesize, guess, joke….but never form a belief. We’re looking for anomalous phenomenon and trying to show people it exists. That’s it. As you can see by looking at Fort and Keel. The reason they are so well known is they found real anomalies. They didn’t know what they found.

There are many other Forteans continuing to fight the good fight by pointing out that mysteries still happen every day. Some of them focus on taking field reports and following up on sightings. This is valuable data, and no doubt the people who witnessed the events are pleased to find someone who believes them. We can’t imagine how alone that must make someone feel, to witness the unknown and be called mad. It’s awful.

We don’t typically add single witness accounts to our research because they’re too hard to validate, but that doesn’t mean we don’t believe people. This is our own brand of Fortean research and you can read more about our approach in our about section. However, those firsthand accounts are important and we read as many as we can. Groups like “The Singular Fortean Society” are publishing detailed reports of anomalous activity frequently. As we look for patterns in the data, we always need more data.

The term “Fortean winds” specifically refers to a phenomenon described by Fort in which strange events seem to occur in clusters or waves, often coinciding with unusual weather patterns or changes in atmospheric conditions. For example, there might be a sudden increase in reports of UFO sightings or mysterious creatures seen in the woods during a period of stormy weather. This term has become a popular expression among paranormal researchers and enthusiasts, and is often used to describe strange and unexplained phenomena that seem to occur in inexplicable patterns or waves.

So, what is a Fortean? A Fortean is someone who researches the anomalous or unexplained. They are doing it in groups, they are doing it by themselves. They are doing it for no money, because there’s no money in it. Sure there are con-artists out there, selling all the answers for money. Yet, if they have all the answers, they’re not researching the unexplained because they have all the answers. We don’t have the answers. We have data, and we have theory. We’re just trying to understand it better. To us, that’s what a Fortean is. So, congratulations. You just became a Fortean.

Göbekli Tepe : Our Oldest Architecture and a Reminder

At 12,000 years old Göbekli Tepe predates Stonehenge by at least 6000 years. That’s a long time. That’s as long ago as Stonehenge was built compared to where we are now. So, if people from the era of Stonehenge found Göbekli Tepe, it looked to them like Stonehenge does to us today. That’s old. The site sits over 8 hectares on an artificial mound in what is now Southern Turkey and draws in researchers from around the world.

The structures qualify as architecture by any definition:

Architecturethe art or science of building

specifically the art or practice of designing and building structures and especially habitable ones

Merriam Webster Dictionary

The buildings our ancient ancestors erected were stylized, functional and habitable. That counts as architecture on all fronts. The current thinking around Göbekli Tepe’s function is that it served as a temple (or group of temples) and meeting area. Goods were likely exchanged and gatherings certainly occurred here for religious purposes. This is all occurring at a time when farming and agriculture is not supposed to exist. Which is the first of many mysteries surrounding Göbekli Tepe.

These buildings were erected during what is considered the “Pre-Pottery Neolithic” era, but that term (and what it indicates) was invented prior to discovering Göbekli Tepe. Clearly, we see a civilization far ahead of where scientific theory thought early man was prior to understanding the significance of Göbekli Tepe in 1994. The layout of the various buildings show an understanding of geometric shapes and the layout of three main structures follow an equilateral triangle.

Beytullah eles – Wikimedia commons

The art at Göbekli Tepe depicts a variety of animals and events carved in reliefs on massive stone pillars up to 5 meters high. The art shows a style and aesthetic far more advanced than would have been expected in this period (This is supposed to be Pre-Pottery Neolithic era). Of particular interest among the carvings is “The Vulture Stone.”

Sue Fleckney – CC FLikr

The Vulture Stone includes a depiction of a vulture holding an orb, egg or sphere. The significance of the sphere is debated. Some scholars say it points to the existence of a Vulture cult and the structure is a temple to this cult. Yet, further down the rock we see a relief of a scorpion and headless man. The headless man is thought to represent a catastrophe and a team of scientists from the UK think they may understand this special rock.

The Edinbugh team ran computer simulations and found the carvings on the Vulture Stone likely represented constellations. In fact, Göbekli Tepe may not have been a temple. It was likely an ancient observatory. This observatory appears to have predicted and recorded a mini ice age known as “The Younger Dryas” which occurred around 12,900 to 11,700 B.C.E..

The Younger Dryas was an incredibly important event in the history of humanity. It is believed the colder climate forced humanity to switch from nomadic hunter and gatherers to a more sedentary agriculture-based civilization. The rise in agriculture and large societies is what allowed us to create cities and share knowledge. Resulting in the evolution of our technology and science.

Yet, here in Göbekli Tepe we find a civilization which existed prior to (or on the edge of) the Younger Dryas which undoubtedly was able to process wheat. The existence of agriculture during the building and occupation of Göbekli Tepe is still debated.

We at Fortean Winds would guess that a structure of that size was not erected without some form of agriculture to feed its people. We’d go so far as to guess…they grew the #$%@ wheat.

Scientific theory can be slow to change…

Göbekli Tepe was occupied for roughly a thousand years before, for completely unknown reasons, the occupants filled it in and left. Leaving us with yet one more history mystery to uncover, and it is still literally being uncovered. If you were taught history prior to the mid-1990s you never heard of the place, and everything your history teacher was telling you about pre-pottery man…was about to change.

The history books still haven’t caught up, and they can’t. This place changes everything we knew about ancient man. So, if you’re someone who is fascinated with our ancient past. Or, if you just love the fact science is always changing…keep an eye on the discoveries being made at Göbekli Tepe. We’ve given you some good links here to start researching, but the significance of this place is still being uncovered, and there are mysteries here YOU can help uncover. Here’s a good one to start.

In 2003, Researcher Klaus Schmidt found the mound is positioned in a location filled with geomagnetic anomalies.

In 2003 a geomagnetic survey could demonstrate that
the prediction based on the archaeological surface investigations at Göbekli Tepe, that round or oval enclosures
exist all over the site and are not restricted to a specific
part of the mound, was right. More than ten large enclosures could be located in the geomagnetic map

Klaus Schmidt (NEO-LITHICS 2/03)

The connection between the Vulture Rock and the constellations was made in 2019. Our past is constantly changing and with it comes a new understanding of our present. Göbekli Tepe is a reminder to all of we still have much to learn and must continue to learn. To us at Fortean Winds, that is just plain EXCITING.

The Curious Case of Moses Wilhelm Shapira

The revered Fortean John A. Keel wrote about Moses Wilhelm Shapira. A 19th Century antiquities dealer who died of suicide by revolver in a hotel in Rotterdam. He also may have found the most exceptional biblical relic of the modern age.

You can find Moses’s story recounted by John Keel in “The Eighth Tower” on page 17, but it’s a complex story which has evolved some. Even in the last year. We thought the Wikipedia entry on Moses was solid if you’d like more information after our summary below.

Moses was an an adventurous buisnessman in the 19th Century. He became infamous during the relic craze of the 1880’s. Some of his antiquities were proven to be genuine and some were proven to be hoaxes.

His most famous and controversial find was the “Shapira Strips,” which contained a different version of the book of Deuteronomy and an eleventh commandment: “Thou shalt not hate thy brother in thy heart: I am GOD, thy GOD.”

Shapira Scrolls Rendering *public domain

When Moses presented these scrolls to experts at the time, they declared them a forgery. This disgrace ultimately lead to Moses taking his own life. However, that is not where the story ends, and it didn’t end in John’s book either. It’s still debated today. If they’re proven to be authentic, these scrolls would be about as old as the Dead Sea Scrolls. And that 11th Commandment might be hard for some people to take to take.

The Dead Sea Scrolls are used as evidence by some biblical scholars of divine intervention. The modern Christian Bible IS remarkably similar to the text of the Dead Sea Scrolls. Their accuracy over time IS remarkable. Yet, if this is proof of divine words, aren’t all of the Dead Sea Scrolls divine? Even the texts found by Moses Wilhelm Shapira?

One of the more interesting open questions is how Moses came to be in possession of these scrolls. Here we had a businessman with a spotty past in relics. How did he get a hold of (possibly) one of the greatest historical biblical finds of all time? According to Keel, some shepherds wandered into his shop and offered them up. Shapira’s account of how he came into possession of the scrolls varies. We find Keel’s account more likely given Shapira’s penchant for showmanship.

Why does it matter? Beyond the historical and biblical significance of Moses Wilhelm Shapira’s find, we see how quickly foundational theory becomes forgotten. Regardless of whether or not Shapira’s find is proven true, fragments of the Book of Enoch were found among the Dead Sea Scrolls. Yet, they didn’t make it into most current versions of the Bible. In case you’re unfamiliar, Enoch’s book is a wild ride.

Biblical history like all other history is subject to constant change caused by new discovery.

Does this mean there is no God? No Jesus? No Christian Church? Of course not. Shapira himself converted to Christianity. As a society we’ve unnecessarily conflated history and fact with religion. If our standard of what God intended to say is dictated by the age of his words, God will always be changing his mind. Religion is Faith pure and simple.

The Curious Case of Moses Wilhelm Shapira remains unsolved and as such becomes a grand reminder: Even our deepest held beliefs are subject to change. We shouldn’t apologize for changing our mind based on new information. For example, we at Fortean Winds are people who believe wholeheartedly in science, and we’ve been proven wrong time and time again.

To us, that is science. We’re all just learning. So, let’s be open to new discoveries and follow their threads wherever they may lead. Keep your faith close to you while we do, our research has lead us to believe Faith has a power of its own.

We do believe science will ultimately solve the mystery of the authenticity of Moses Wilhelm Shapira’s find. What that means is entirely up to you.

The Oldest Human Anomalies

For our first ancient history post we thought it made sense to start at the beginning. Evolutionary history is interesting, and the competing species of humans, is also an interesting piece of our history which is still being uncovered. In terms of evolutionary history, we’ll just say something resembling humans existed 6 million years ago and one of those species became Australopithecus.

From Australopithecus developed the genus homo somewhere around 2.8 million years ago, and from a data driven anomalists perspective, this is where things start to get interesting. They started making stone tools, and that gives us more to go off of than the fossil record.

First stone tool dated 3.3 million years ago. *fair use

There are certainly many mysteries buried in our deep past, but we simply have no way of knowing what they are unless we find a fossil or remnants of humanity.

Theories abound involving everything from aliens to monsters. Yet, we’re lucky to find bones which predate the homo genus. So, we don’t hold out much hope for discovering links to anomalies we study in the time before civilization.

We’ll just point out the one anomaly we just told you and go back to fossils. The genus of homo is supposed to have coincided with the rise of the making of stone tools. Yet, the picture above shows a stone tool existing 500k years before the homo genus. This is odd. A distant human ancestor was using stone tools.

When the homo genus arrives on the scene (2.8 million years ago), they have bigger brains and more tool making.

A huge barrier in front of our window to the past is created by the fossil record (or lack thereof). Not everything that dies creates a fossil. Bones turn to dust unless something intervenes.

So, in order to preserve bones and DNA we need something to die in a specific way, or under specific circumstances. Something like a dying creature falling into tree sap (a la Jurassic Park) will do it. Many fossils are contained in layers of rock, and these layers give us a good idea of when they existed.

Yet as you can see from the modern record, fossil preservation is somewhat random. Therefore, many creatures have come and gone on this planet, and we have no idea what they were.

From what we currently know, humanity began or was located in Africa. Our ancestors left Africa in two waves. The first wave occurred between 130k to 100k years ago. The second wave came around 70k to 50k years ago.

Here is another area which is ripe for theory and exploration. Why did they end up settling where they did and when? Australia 65k years ago, Eurasia 60k years ago and Americas 15k years ago. Shifting geography and migration patterns account for much of the movement in this time, but we find the specifics of where these groups chose to settle fascinating.

Many ancient dwelling are located near water sources which makes perfect sense, but what about the ones which are not? Why mine granite rocks 500 miles away from the Egyptian pyramids? Seems an awful long way to carry them. We’re just using Egypt as an example of a strange megalithic site. There are many more. Why was Stonehenge built? No one knows. Period. Thus, as humanity begins to build and create art. We find evidence of our first anomalies.

We’ll look forward to exploring some of the ancient sites with you in greater detail. For example, the “Baghdad Batteries” are likely actual batteries which date back to 300 b.c.

Now that’s an anomaly.

Coming Soon:

Industrialization

Modern Era

Information Age

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