A comparative analysis of 62 "solid light" beam cases
11-50
Abstract: Witnesses of UFO related events have repeatedly mentioned the fact that the anomalous objects observed by them emitted one or several solid looking, slowly propagating light beams ('solid light' beams).
A comparative analysis of 62 cases of this type is presented. It is shown that the characteristic of 'solid light' beams are remarkably constant: uniform luminosity; sharply defined edges; low propagation velocity; conical or cylindrical shape; and (sometimes) propagation along a curved path.
GATHERING and PROCESSING of DATA
Ernst BERGER
Austrian UFO Patterns
53-89
Abstract: 54 sporadic and 31 local flap reports (on a total of 127 objects/phenomena), 56 of them investigated personally at their original sites by the author, are compared statistically. The first data set consists of cases all over Austria reported by 89 observers during 5 years; the second one is from Traunstein area of Lower Austria with 34 local witnesses (13 reporting) and three years of sightings. The data are similar with regard to time of day, duration, number of objects, shape, size and motion of the phenomenon, but other observed characteristics show deviations. Austrian UFO patterns are extracted and compared with the results of statistical studies by HANSEN, POHER and VALLEE.
The "CE III"
Claude RIFAT
In the Locus Coeruleus, an important anatomical center of the brain, involved in the most bizarre aspects of UFO Report? The induced dream hypothesis
93-120
Abstract: This paper deals with an hypothesis, first proposed by Guérin, which might help in appraising the weird content of UFO reports defined as 'Close Encounters of the Third Kind' by Hynek.
The Locus Coeruleus is a small but very important part of the mammalian brains: it would be the inducing mechanism of what we call 'dreaming'. The author suggests that UFOs seen at a close range, and in which the so-called occupants are 'sighted', interfere with the normal functioning of the brain in the waking state by acting on the Locus Coeruleus. The most important conclusion of this work is that UFO reports of that type do not give us any indication on the true stimulus which elicited the report; they give us only what the subject fancies about the nature of a UFO.
If we consider these puzzling reports from this vantage point, a better understanding of bizarre events associated to those occurrences might result. Close Encounters of the Third Kind are LSD-like experiences in which a subject perceives a mixture of the real world and of her/his inner unconscious one.
PSYCHOLOGICAL and PERCEPTIVE ASPECTS
Richard F. HAINES
UFO drawings by witnesses and non witnesses: Is there something in common?
Abstract: This paper describes the results of two separate efforts: (1) administration of a specially prepared UFO drawing 'test' to several groups of alleged UFO eye witnesses and non-witnesses, and (2) a relatively comprehensive review of the published UFO literature containing drawings of UFOs by eye witnesses. This was done in order to determine whether or not any differences might be found between the drawings of the two groups in terms of such features as the UFO's width to height ratio, amount and kind of surface detail, presence or absence of other (environmental) scene detail, and other readily quantifiable information. A second and equally important objective was to allow for the development of a UFO Appearance Recognition and Identification Test Procedure which has appeared in the first issue of this journal (Vol.1, no. 1, 1976). It was found that there are not any readily discernable differences between the eye witnesses and the non eye witnesses UFO drawing on the above features. While this evidence does not prove that the two participant groups come from the same population sample or that all UFO witnesses may be merely portraying (through their drawing) a commonly held social stereotype image of what UFOs are supposed to look like, the evidence could be interpreted this way. Another tentative hypothesis raised from these findings is that almost everyone (eye witnesses and non eye witnesses alike) has seen a drawing, photograph, movie, etc. of a UFO at some time in the past (in distinction to having seen an actual UFO) which might account for the similarities between these two sets of drawings. The paper concludes with illustrations of the most common UFO shapes along with their perspective shape/detail codes derived from the previously published paper (referenced above).
EPISTEMOLOGY of the RESEARCH
Luis SCHÖNHERR
The present situation of UFO Research?
155-173
Abstract: This paper compares the present situation of UFO research with the phase in the development and in the structure of a scientific discipline in general. Some of the problems of documentation as well as of the interpretation of UFO reports are touched. Special attention is given to the question of disinformation (if we are to assume that the UFO phenomenon is a manifestation of some unknown intelligence). The necessity of a thesaurus for all UFO-related qualities is stressed and the main advantages of a proposed 'unlimited' machine readable UFO data base are demonstrated. Finally this paper discusses the possible meaning of the prevalence of the extraterrestrial hypothesis (ETH) in UFO research: Does this hypothesis constitute a methodologically feasible tool or is merely an indication, that UFO research is partly still in a pre-scientific phase?
