Ancient Aliens

[Nonton]

Anyone seen Ancient Aliens on Netflix?

Half way through and not sure what to make of it tbh. Really entertaining and the theories are an interesting way of looking at things we take for granted. Is it credible though?

Any thoughts?

@TheLeadbetterLife

Does the alien DNA alteration extend to all species which have not evolved to be as advanced as their common ancestors?

Also, is their argument that aliens altered human DNA, then tens or hundreds of thousands of years later came back and built the pyramids? Why didn’t they do both at the same time?

The episode was “Ancient Aliens: Aliens and the Creation of Man” the last one in season 3. It seems that’s as far as my Netflix subscription goes with Ancient Aliens.

@MrsTerryPratchett

I’ve just finished the series and it seems that the archaeological stuff is only one part of their argument. They’ve gone as far to suggest our DNA was purposefully altered by aliens and that’s used by them to explain why humans are so different (and more capable) than the common ancestors.

I'd argue that this is because they aren't clever enough to understand genetics. Same as they aren't clever enough to understand engineering or archeology. This seems to be the gap; "I don't understand [thing] therefore ALIENS"

Ive often said that in my field, housing, which isn't that complicated, when I retire I will get a cross stitch for my wall that says, "why don't you just..." because I hear it every day from people who don't understand that experts know more than them about it.

After Brexit and coronavirus though, I see that armchair trade experts and epidemiologists turn into armchair anythingists when the need takes them.

There's also the issue of human exceptionalism. We think we're incredibly capable compared to other animals. But are we? Many human 'inventions' existed in the animal world and we just observed it and replicated it. We're not as clever as we think!

Is it because they don’t understand something, or because they have an intuition that something else is going on and that’s how they’ve come to the aliens conclusion?

They’re just trying to make sense of stuff. And maybe got a bit carried away by it too. That’s all imo.

As for experts, they are more likely to be right but they’re still prone to making mistakes (heard of Einstellung?). I also think it’s healthy for people to feel like they can challenge experts. If they’re good experts they will be open minded enough to consider alternative possibilities and confident enough in their expertise to take on a challenge too.

We should be encouraging questions and thinking. Even if they seem “stupid”. Making mistakes is usually how people learn.

Heard of Einstellung? It’s considered to be a “curse of knowledge” where there are roadblocks in the mind through the development of expertise. New ways of thinking about something can be harder for an expert.

And yes, animals are amazing inventors! Their approaches are far more sustainable too. Ants are incredible imo!!!

*Einstellung Effect

Is it because they don’t understand something, or because they have an intuition that something else is going on and that’s how they’ve come to the aliens conclusion?

No it's not understanding. That bloke says four times an episode that there's no explanation, no way, no science. When anyone that's spent any time actually looking at it knows there are absolutely ways it is possible without aliens.

It's like me saying my kettle boils by magic because there's no explanation. There is one.

@MrsTerryPratchett

The guy who looks like a Mad Scientist? That all seems very deliberate for the show. It’s entertainment too.

He might not be clever enough for the hard science, but he sure knows how to make money on the back of his Alien theories. That’s not exactly a stupid person…

So he's either a stupid fantasist or a con artist. Neither are good reasons to take his alien theories seriously.

@TheLeadbetterLife

So he's either a stupid fantasist or a con artist. Neither are good reasons to take his alien theories seriously.

@TheLeadbetterLife

Or an entertainer.

Here was actually a TED talk by an Archeologist that echoed many of your views. Very interesting.

"Aliens built the pyramids" and other absurdities of pseudo-archaeology

*There

There’s usually an undercurrent of racism in these things - ‘amazing achievement can’t be down to brown people, must be… Aliens!’

@orinocosfavoritecake

There’s usually an undercurrent of racism in these things - ‘amazing achievement can’t be down to brown people, must be… Aliens!’

Yeah the Archeologist claims that Ancient Alien ideas are racist and xenophobic.

Have the Ancient Alien guys addressed those claims?

Saw something with the Chariots of Gods guy Erich Von Daniken. I’m not convinced he’s coming from a racist place. His ideas came from his own Christian education and how the bible stories seemed more like science fiction and technological than spiritual or woo. He gave lots of examples. That doesn’t sound like there is an undercurrent of racism in his ideas and he’s the first well-known proponent of the alien theories.

They do also look at stone henge and the US constitution too…

I don't understand why you're so invested in this idea OP.

Apart from anything else, I find "aliens did it" theories so unimaginative and dull. It's the same as creationism - lazy, closed-minded thinking.

The truth is so much more interesting - human ingenuity, evolution. People who refuse to learn about these things are missing out on astounding, exciting knowledge.

The real world is much, much more fascinating, complex and bizarre than fairy / alien / god mythologies.

@TheLeadbetterLife

I don't understand why you're so invested in this idea OP.

Apart from anything else, I find "aliens did it" theories so unimaginative and dull. It's the same as creationism - lazy, closed-minded thinking.

The truth is so much more interesting - human ingenuity, evolution. People who refuse to learn about these things are missing out on astounding, exciting knowledge.

The real world is much, much more fascinating, complex and bizarre than fairy / alien / god mythologies.

The alien theories are new to me. That’s why I was interested. Like with most novelties it’s something to get excited about.

I’m also a Harry Potter fan. Does that mean I don’t appreciate human ingenuity? No, of course not. In fact, I think of the fairy/ alien /magic world as being an example of human ingenuity.

I’m not sure about EvD having racial undertones but the man is a complete fraud, he’s been reasonably accused of plagiarism, ripping off actual scientists work among others. Many of his claims have been debunked by multiple scientists and archaeologists. I get your interest in the area (as I clearly have the same interest!) and the thought experiment it provokes but I wouldn’t accept the theories of EvD anymore than David Icke.

So did the aliens fly their Digger all the way to Earth for the purpose of building the pyramids? If they didn’t use their cool alien tools does that mean that people could have figured it out for themselves?

@tangone

So did the aliens fly their Digger all the way to Earth for the purpose of building the pyramids? If they didn’t use their cool alien tools does that mean that people could have figured it out for themselves?

Watch the show. They have various theories. Too much and not enough time to explain here.

@livingwithbees And yet he appears to have built an alien astronaut theory empire from it. Same with David Icke - people actually pay him for his ideas.

It is true that it’s sad for the experts working in the real-world areas of these fields.

Also what they are trying to explain is a bit

Nascar lines. They are cool. But the Alien program premise is that they are so amazing and to be viewed for the air so they are incomprehensible without aliens.

I mean they aren't photorealism, are they? If I had an interstellar ship, I'd do a bit better than this. Ancient people? Pretty good and impressive for the time. Aliens, frankly shoddy.

Presumably you don’t think Harry Potter is actually real though? Otherwise I can’t see what he has to do with this.

@TheLeadbetterLife

Presumably you don’t think Harry Potter is actually real though? Otherwise I can’t see what he has to do with this.

I don’t consider what the ancient alien theorists are saying is real either. In their case theories means ‘we have an idea’ in the same league of Harry Potter being an idea. There’s still some human ingenuity involved with their alien world building, just as it is with J.K.Rowling’s magical world building.

As @livingwithbees said, the show provokes a bit of a thought experiment. This is a tv addict thread; it’s for fun and entertainment.

Got this from EvD’s Wikipedia page:

“That writing as careless as von Däniken's, whose principal thesis is that our ancestors were dummies, should be so popular is a sober commentary on the credulousness and despair of our times. I also hope for the continuing popularity of books like Chariots of the Gods? in high school and college logic courses, as object lessons in sloppy thinking. I know of no recent books so riddled with logical and factual errors as the works of von Däniken.”

— Carl Sagan, Foreword to The Space Gods Revealed

Right now in the world you have subsistence farmers living side by side with particle physicists. Why is it so inconceivable that the ancient Egyptian population contained brilliant engineers?

That was the point i was going to make.

I would so love definitive proof that Earth has been visited by aliens but I don’t think pyramids and other wonders of the ancient world provide it. As a species we have only been on this planet for a very short time and our brains now are still probably no different in terms of size and function than they were when the Egyptians were building pyramids, writing hieroglyphs, crafting jawdropping artwork and working out highly effective embalming methods.

@BajanB

Right now in the world you have subsistence farmers living side by side with particle physicists. Why is it so inconceivable that the ancient Egyptian population contained brilliant engineers?

That was the point i was going to make.

I would so love definitive proof that Earth has been visited by aliens but I don’t think pyramids and other wonders of the ancient world provide it. As a species we have only been on this planet for a very short time and our brains now are still probably no different in terms of size and function than they were when the Egyptians were building pyramids, writing hieroglyphs, crafting jawdropping artwork and working out highly effective embalming methods.

Have you seen the show?

They have a lot of ideas for their alien theories and the pyramids is only one of many. They claim that humans couldn’t have had the tools or electricity for the tools required back then (some claim that lasers were required to get things like the symmetry of the Sphinx exact). Obviously, an actual Archeologist may have a different viewpoint, which is why Alien Theories are called pseudoarcheology!

Alien theorists ideas about the pyramids also ask why it’s aligned to the stars and why there’s similar star themed monuments on the other side of the world etc. There was something about the star stuff mattering you aliens as a sort of spaceship airport. Lol!

These guys had an idea and done some alien world building. It’s just a fun show and a bit of a thought experiment. Am rather amazed by how popular the show is though!!

I caught a bit of this. I think it's on another channel too perhaps, as I just turned the TV on and it was there.

I found it pretty problematic. For example they seemed to imply lots of things which were from non western civilisations were aliens. As if people from those societies weren't advanced or intelligent enough.

nonton. I have to be honest and admit I haven’t seen the programme. I’ll give it a go as it was unfair to give an opinion not having watched any of it. My scepticism meant I didn’t give watch it as I was assuming it would be on the lines of Von Danikens theories.

@BajanB

nonton. I have to be honest and admit I haven’t seen the programme. I’ll give it a go as it was unfair to give an opinion not having watched any of it. My scepticism meant I didn’t give watch it as I was assuming it would be on the lines of Von Danikens theories.

@BajanB it is based on von Danikens theories, he does pop up as a talking head from time to time. I enjoy watching ancient aliens in the same way I love bad shark movies, with a suspension of belief and furious googling to debunk the theories

@livingwithbees I googled how much his net worth was! It’s about $30 million. He has sold about 63 million copies of his books.

Now just think how many actual scientists and professionals in the field make that much from their better researched and proven ideas?!

livingwithbees. I love a good bad shark movie too 🦈. And I also enjoy paranormal shows which are equally funny so I will definitely be giving the aliens a shot.