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same time, of course, such a process would have to provide its own explanation to make ultimate detection impossible. In other words, it would have to project an image just beyond the belief structure of the target society. Jt would have to disturb and reassure at the same time, exploiting both the gullibility of the zealots and the narrow-mindedness of the debunkers. This is exactly what the UFO phenomenon does. Metalogic is the form of consistency found in statements like: "Does a unicorn have a horn in the middle of her forehead?" - Yes. "Is there such a thing as a unicorn?" - No. 4 tala soa at , Aaa at I have pointed out that the concept current among most flying-saucer enthusiasts that the unidentified flying objects are simply craft used by visitors from another planet is naive. The explanation is too simple-minded to account for the diversity of the reported behavior of the occupants and their percieved interaction with human beings. Could this concept serve precisely a diversionary role in masking the real, infinitely more complex nature of the technology that gives rise to the sightings? Observations similar to the landing at Pascagoula (where two fishermen claimed to have been abducted by "clawmen") have been made every year in the United States since 1947. A catalogue of well-documented close encounter cases would hold the details of well over two thousand cases of that type, from all countries, indicating that a formidable impact is being made on our collective psyche. Yet what trace has this produced on scientific efforts? A small one indeed: a few courageous astronomers are beginning to revise the probability estimates for other civilizations in space; much is made of the possibility of detecting radio signals from other solar systems; and a few physicists are beginning to voice their doubts concerning Dr. Condon's biases. Against such a background I am afraid that my own speculations may contradict both the ideas of the believers and the assumptions of the skeptics. Here then, is a brief statement of five new propositions based upon the material we have reviewed ° so far: The things we call unidentified flying objects are neither objects nor flying. They can dematerialize, as some reliable photographs seem to show, and they violate the laws of motion as we know them. 2. UFOs have been seen throughout history and have consistently recieved (or provided) their own explanation within the framework of each culture. In antiquity their occupants were regarded as gods; in medieval times, as magicians; in the nineteenth century, as scientific geniuses; in our own time, as interplanetary travelers. (Statements made by occupants of the 1897 airship included such declarations as "We are from Kansas" and even "We are from anywhere... but we'll be in Greece tomorrow.") UFO reports are not necessarily caused by visits from space travelers. The phenomenon could be a manifestation of a much more complex technology. If time and space are not as simple in structure as physicists have assumed until now, then the question "where do they come from?" may be meaningless; they could come from a place in time. If consciousness can be manifested outside the body, then the range of hypotheses can be even wider. The key to an understanding of the phenomenon lies in the psychic effects it produces (or the psychic awareness it makes possible) in its observers. Their lives are often deeply changed, and they develop unusual talents with which they may find it difficult to cope. The proportion of witnesses who do come forward and publish accounts of these experiences is quite low; most of them choose to remain silent. 5. Contact between human percipients and the UFO phenomenon always occurs under conditions controlled by the latter. Its characteristic feature is a factor of absurdity that leads to a rejection of the story by the upper layers of the target society and an absorption at a