John,

On Mon, 26 Jul 2004 05:39:14 +0200, John Donson wrote:

Randall Schulz wrote:

Hi,

Recently it occurred to me to wonder what is the latest date in Earth
history when an extraterrestrial visit (a non-clandestine visit, i.e.)
could have occurred without having been recognized as such?

...

What makes you think that a visit from an alien today would be
recognised as such anywhere on earth?

Assuming you're not joking, I'd have to ask what it would take to go
unnoticed if an extraterrestrial appeared openly today? Perhaps they could
disguise themselves by wearing spikey purple hair and a dog collar, or
something (yes, now _I'm_ joking).

But even adopting the decorations of a subcultural group in attempt to
hide differences in their appearance would only work if the alien's body
structure were very similar to that of humans to begin with (a la the Star
Trek world), a possibility I exluded when I posed the question. (And I'm
not trying to start a discussion of what sentient life that evolved
independently of us would look like.)

And if the visitors have some kind of technology that allows them to
effectively disguise themselves as humans, then again it's outside the
parameters of the question I asked: Their appearance must be open,
non-clandestine and undisguised.

So yes, I do certainly think that if an alien showed up and interacted
with any humans, they'd be recognized as such. Of course, as Rob Dekker
pointed out, if they appeared to one person and then left (and left behind
no evidence) and that person tried to convince others he'd had an
encounter with an alien, he'd almost certainly be considered psychotic or
delusional or perhaps that he was attempting to perpetrate some kind of
hoax or stunt.

Again, I'm talking about a completely open appearance. Landing a craft on
the Mall in Washington D.C. or in Red Square or the Champs Elysees, or
some such.

RRS