This course explores the topic of extraterrestrial intelligence from multiple perspectives including history, psychology, sociology, astronomy, and religion. Students will analyze UFO sightings and alien abduction claims, examine how aliens are portrayed in popular culture, and discuss the search for life in the universe including the possibility of intelligent life. Requirements include class participation, papers, an in-class assessment, and a research project. The course aims to take an evidence-based, multidisciplinary approach to understand humanity's fascination with the idea of aliens and life beyond Earth.

1. The Best Selling Ufology Books Collection
www.UfologyBooks.com

2. Aliens
Close Encounters of a Multidisciplinary Kind
Spring 2010 Cross-listed: Cognitive Science/Natural Science 177
Professor: Salman Hameed
E-mail: shameed@hampshire.edu
Office: ASH 218
Phone: 559-6160
Office hours: Monday 4:00-5:00 pm & Thursday 2:30 – 4:30 pm or by appointment.
Course Description:
This course can be summed up as: everything you wanted to know about aliens but were
afraid to ask (a scientist). The course will explore the topic of extraterrestrial
intelligence from the perspective of several different fields. We will look at the history of
UFO sighting claims and analyze the reliability of eye-witness testimonies, explore
psychological & sociological reasons behind claims of alien abductions, and analyze the
current state of the search for extraterrestrial intelligence (SETI) from the perspective of
astronomy and planetary research. We will also examine how film and television have
shaped our view of aliens in popular culture. We will conclude the course by looking at
religions that have been inspired by UFOs and extraterrestrials.
REA, WRI
Readings:
Readings will be available on the course website:
https://athena.hampshire.edu/S300867/
“Extraordinary claims require extraordinary evidence”
- Carl Sagan

3. Requirements:
Readings & class participation: You are expected to have read the assigned reading for each class, and
come prepared to participate in the class discussion. Your class participation will be part of your final
evaluation. You may also be asked to lead a class discussion during the semester.
Papers: There will be 2 papers (3-6 pages) assigned over the course of the semester covering the different
topics discussed in the class. These will be due in class.
In-class assessment: There will be an in-class assessment of the topics discussed in the class on Monday,
April 19th.
Research Project and final paper: You are expected to conduct original research on topics related to the
course. More details will be discussed later in the semester. You will be asked to define your own topic and
write a proposal (due date for proposals: Mar 24th) for your project. You will also write an associated final
paper detailing your research and the paper is expected to be between 8-10 pages long.
E-mail policy: 1) I am happy to answer your questions over e-mail. However, before pressing the send
button, please think: Is the information you are seeking already available elsewhere (for example on the
syllabus)? 2) Please do not expect immediate response (please allow 24 hours for response before sending a
reminder) 3) If for some reason you have to send an assignment by e-mail, please cc a copy to yourself. I
will not accept the excuse of forgetting to attach the assignment or some other e-mail malfunction. It is
your responsibility to make sure we have received the full assignment. I will send you a confirmation e-
mail.
Portfolio: At the end of the semester you will hand in a portfolio that includes all of the work that you have
done for this class.
In order to receive an evaluation you must complete all written work (including the in-class
assessment) on time, attend class, and hand in a final portfolio. In order to receive a designation of
‘satisfactory completion’ you must meet the above requirements and your work must show sufficient
effort and proficiency with the general themes of the class.

4. Class Policies:
• All assignments are due in class on the specified due date; late work will not be accepted unless
you have spoken with me prior to the due date, and I have agreed to an alternate due date.
If, due to serious illness, death in the family or other tragedy, you miss significant class meetings
and/or assignments, please notify me as soon as you can.
• You are expected to attend class prepared to discuss the material assigned for that day and to
arrive on time. If you miss a significant number of classes this will affect your final evaluation.
• Class discussions should be a comfortable arena for sharing ideas, and every member of the class
should feel respected and included in the discussion. Paranormal/pseudoscientific beliefs can
sometimes be a sensitive topic, so it is particularly important to be mindful of this, and respectful
of your classmate’s ideas and contributions to class discussion. Be thoughtful and courteous in
making your own comments, and be sure everyone has a chance to contribute.
Plagiarism is a serious offense and will not be tolerated. If a student is found guilty of plagiarism, he
or she will not receive an evaluation for this class and the case will be brought before the Dean.

5. Syllabus
Introduction
W 1/27 Why are we fascinated with aliens? / Science – as an investigative tool
UFOs: Close Encounter of the First Kind
M 2/1 The idea of extraterrestrials
Readings: Steven Dick, From the physical world to the biological universe from Life on
Other Worlds
W 2/3 History of UFOs I / Type of Encounters
Readings: Steven Dick, The UFO controversy and the extraterrestrial hypothesis from
Other Worlds
Brenda Denzler, A short history of the UFO myth from The Lure of the Edge
M 2/8 How to evaluate strange claims? / Scientific methodology
Readings: Aliens Carl Sagan from The Demon-Haunted World
How Thinking Goes Wrong Michael Shermer from Why People Believe Weird Things
W 2/10 Can we trust our senses? The constructive nature of visual perception
Reading: The Constructive Nature of Human Perception Terence Hines, from
Pseudoscience and the Paranormal
UFOs II: Photographs, physical evidence and abductions Terence Hines, from
Pseudoscience and the Paranormal
M 2/15 What factors influence our perception about UFOs?
Reading: The effect of news stories about UFOs on reader’s UFO beliefs,
Communication Quarterly, 10, 165, 1997
Does Television news about UFOs affect viewer’s UFO beliefs?, Communication
Quarterly, 46, 284, 1998
Close Encounters: An examination of UFO experiences, Journal of Abnormal
Psychology, 102, 624, 1993
.
W 2/17 Advising Day (No class)
Abductions: Close Encounter of the Fourth Kind
M 2/22 History of Alien Abductions
Reading: A short history of Alien Encounters, Brenda Denzler, from The Lure of the Edge
W 2/24 Understanding claims of alien abductions I
Readings: Abduction by Aliens or Sleep Paralysis? by Susan Blackmore
Susan Clancy, Abducted: How people come to believe they were kidnapped by aliens,
chapters 1-2
M 3/1 Understanding claims of alien abductions II
Clancy, Abducted, chapter 3
Clancy et al., Memory Distortion in People Reporting Abduction by Aliens, Journal of
Abnormal Psychology Vol. 111, Issue 2, 2002. pp 455-461.
Please read the full article, but please pay more attention to Introduction, Method
(including all the sub-sections), and Discussion.

6. W 3/3 Understanding claims of alien abductions III
Clancy, Abducted, chapter 4-6
M 3/8 The trauma of “abductions” I
Reading: Leonard Newman and Roy Baumeister, Toward an Explanation of the UFO
Abduction Phenomenon, Psychological Inquiry, Vol. 7, Issue 2, 1996.
You don't have to read the full article. Please read until "Escaping the Self".
W 3/10 The trauma of “abductions” II
Readings: McNally et al., Psychophysiological Responding During Script-Driven
Imagery in People Reporting Abduction by Space Aliens, Psychological Science, Vol. 15,
Issue 7, 2004. pp 493.
M 3/15 Spring Break
W 3/17 Spring Break
Aliens: Mythology for the Scientific Age?
M 3/22 Aliens – Myhthology for the scientific age? I
Readings: Newberg & D'aquili, Myth-making: The compulsion to create stories and
beliefs from Why God won't go away 2001
Signs of the secular times: The adoptive and transcendent function of UFOs in America
from Encyclopedic Sourcebook of UFO Religions 2003
W 3/24 Aliens – Myhthology for the scientific age? II
Readings: James Lewis, Mythology and Folklore from UFOs and Popular Culture 2000
Dianna Tumminia, Rumor to postmodern myth from Encyclopedic Sourcebook of UFO
Religions 2003
The abduction narrative as a contemporary myth Matheson, p 279
Search for Life in the Universe
M 3/29 Getting a sense of scale
Reading: Benett et al, Developing Perspective from Cosmic Perspective
W 3/31 What is life? / Origin of Life on Earth
Reading: Hazen, Emergence and the experimental pursuit of the origin of life from
Exploring the origin, extent, and future of life 2009
M 4/5 The Habitable zone – The search for life in the solar system
Readings: Rothschild, A biologist’s guide to the solar system from Exploring the origin,
extent, and future of life 2009
Sushil Atreya, The Mystery of Methane on Mars & Titan from Scientific American, May
2007
W 4/7 Are there other solar systems out there?
Readings: Marcy & Butler, Giant planets orbiting faraway stars from Scientific
American 1998
Pilcher & Lissauer, The quest for habitable worlds and life beyond the solar system from
Exploring the origin, extent, and future of life 2009
Explore this page for nice visuals for detection, and also its parent page for general
information about extrasolar planets (here they are referred to as "exoplanets")
http://media4.obspm.fr/exoplanets/pages_detection/detectee.html

7. M 4/12 What about intelligence?
Readings: The evolution of intelligence: An integral part of SETI and Astrobiology by
Lori Marino
William H. Calvin, The Emergence of Intelligence from Scientific American 1998.
The big question: Intelligent aliens? by Seth Shostak
W 4/14 Discussion
Reading: An exchange between Carl Sagan and Ernst Mayr, Is There Intelligent Life on
Other Planets?
M 4/19 In-class Assessment (first 30 minutes)
Where is everybody? / Fermi’s paradox
Readings: The Chance of Finding Aliens by Govert Schilling and Alan M. MacRobert;
Sky & Telescope, 1998.
Ian Crawford, Where are they? from Scientific American July 2000
Ethics, Religion, and Life in the Universe
** Tu 4/20 TUESDAY NIGHT SCREENING: CONTACT, 6:30-9:30pm, ASH Auditorium
W 4/21 Religion and SETI : What if aliens did really contact us? Discussion of the movie
Contact
Reading: The quest for extraterrestrial intelligence by Carl Sagan.
Note that this article was written in 1979, but it conveys some of the questions we have
grappled with in our class.
M 4/26 What if we are the aliens?
Readings: The search for extraterrestrial life: epistemology, ethics, and worldviews from
Exploring the origin, extent, and future of life 2009
The implications of discovering extraterrestrial life: different searches, different issues
from Exploring the origin, extent, and future of life 2009
W 4/28 UFO Religions
Readings: Christopher Partridge, Understanding UFO religions and abduction
spiritualities from UFO Religions 2003
M 5/3 Raelians: A religion for the scientific age?
Readings: Susan Palmer, The Raelian apocalypse: Playing with prophesy, Appeasing the
aliens or Pleasing the public? from Encyclopedic Sourcebook of UFO Religions 2003
M 5/5 Concluding thoughts
Reading: Steven Dick, The Meaning of life: Implications of ET intelligence from Life on
other worlds 1998