Ancient Alien Probes and the Breakthrough Starshot Proposal

The Breakthrough Starshot  proposal from Stephen Hawking and Yuri Milner got me to think about ancient alien probes again. Their proposal adds a twist to my earlier thoughts.

I've listed the ancient alien probe blog posts I did earlier at the bottom of this post.

Hawking, Milner and their collaborators have proposed a plan to send probes to visit nearby star systems. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Breakthrough_Starshot  

Their proposal is to build a multitude of centimetre sized probes with meter sized light sails, which would be accelerated to 20% the speed of light by huge lasers. This would allow them to reach the nearest star system, Alpha Centauri, in about 20 years.

One of the research goals is to develop the technology to build useful probes that are a thin wafer about 1 or 2 centimetres in size. While this is a big challenge, they point out that smart phones already have similar capabilities and the bsic components are almost that small.

When I've thought of alien probes in the past, I've always envisioned them as similar to the monolith in "2001: A Space Odyssey". It's my favourite movie, so that influenced my thoughts. I assumed the probe would be of a similar size, something on the order of 3 to 4 metres.

The Starshot proposal made me realize that alien probes could well be no more than a few centimetres tall. A probe that small wouldn't look very impressive, unless you are an ant.

It is quite realistic to search for a 4 metre tall probe. Large parts of the Moon and Mars have already been photographed in sufficient detail to spot something that large. However, a search for a 4 centimetre tall probe is far beyond what we are currently capable of.

A failure to find an alien probe with our current technology would not prove that there are no alien probes in the solar system.

Some other posts on Ancient Alien Probes:

"Felix" and The Ancient Astronauts

http://dynamiclethargyfilms.ca/felix-and-the-ancient-astronauts/

If There Really Were Ancient Astronauts, What Kind of Evidence Would We Find?

http://dynamiclethargyfilms.ca/if-there-really-were-ancient-astronauts-what-kind-of-evidence-would-we-find/

Why Would Ancient Astronauts Visit Earth?

http://dynamiclethargyfilms.ca/why-would-ancient-astronauts-visit-earth/

Do Ancient Alien Probes Watch Earth?

http://dynamiclethargyfilms.ca/do-ancient-alien-probes-watch-earth/

A Brief Thought About the Fermi Paradox

http://dynamiclethargyfilms.ca/a-brief-thought-about-the-fermi-paradox/

Ancient Alien Visitations: Show Me the Garbage

http://dynamiclethargyfilms.ca/ancient-alien-visitations-show-me-the-garbage/

This post is a mirror from my main blog http://www.dynamiclethargyfilms.ca/blog

A Brief Thought About the Fermi Paradox

When I looked into some of the ancient astronauts stuff a few weeks ago, I came across a lot of discussions of the Fermi paradox. I think I've come up with a possible explanation that I haven't seen before.

The argument made by Enrico Fermi was that while it would take millions of years for a technologically advanced civilization to explore the entire Milky Way galaxy, this is not very long compared to the billions of years that the galaxy has existed. Therefore, if a technologically advanced civilization existed in the Milky Way galaxy, then they should be here by now.

A number of suggestions have been put forward to explain why we see no evidence of extraterrestrial civilizations. This range from, we are the first and only civilization to they are hiding from us. You can read about some more proposals on the Wikipedia page: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fermi_paradox

A few days ago I came up with another explanation. Some time ago I came across an article that suggested that there could well be planets that are more suited to life than Earth (see: http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2014/01/140117-exoplanets-superhabitable-planets-space-astronomy-science/). I thought, if extraterrestrial civilizations arose on a planet more suited to life than Earth, they might very well look at Earth as uninhabitable and pass it by.

Our space programs have sent probes to planets that we don't think are inhabitable. But, would a civilization that had visited many solar systems still want to explore uninhabited planets? I suspect that if we explored other solar systems, that after a period where we did explore uninhabitable planets, we would come to see that as a waste of time. I've made the assumption that life on an Earth-like planet is sufficiently rare that an extraterrestrial civilization is unlikely to find a case before they give up on Earth-like planets.

An extraterrestrial civilization could have explored many Earth-like planets and never found one that was inhabited. If they saw Earth from a nearby solar system, they might well conclude that there wasn't any point to actually visit. They might think: if you've seen one Earth, you've seen them all.

The main objection I see to this idea is that it assumes that the civilization had a low level of curiosity. For a civilization that had decided to undertake interstellar travel, this seems unlikely. I'm not sure we can discard the idea based on this objection, especially since, as of now, we can't prove it one way or another.

This post is a mirror from my main blog http://www.dynamiclethargyfilms.ca/blog

Why Would Ancient Astronauts Visit Earth?

I continue my contemplation of the kind of evidence that would convince me of the truth of the ancient astronaut hypothesis. This week I consider the question: why did the come?

Last week I began to explore the question: If there really were ancient astronauts, what kind of evidence would we find? (see http://dynamiclethargyfilms.ca/if-there-really-were-ancient-astronauts-what-kind-of-evidence-would-we-find/). I started on a new project this week; it is more of a writing exercise than something plan to share, but that depends on how it turns out. I did some more thinking about the ancient astronaut hypothesis and pushed a little further ahead with my exploration.

Why did they come?

I think that the  reason ancient astronauts would visit Earth would have an effect on the kind of evidence that we would find. I came up with four possible explanations. There could be others that I didn't think of, so I am open to suggestions.

Resource extraction

Could they have come to obtain resources? This idea was explored in the movie Avatar http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Avatar_(2009_film) from the perspective of the alien visitors. Of course it does place us humans in the role of the aliens.

I think that this is unlikely. Materials of all kinds are spread throughout the Universe. With the vast distances and resulting cost of transportation, it is hard to imagine anything that would be valuable enough to extract and ship to other solar systems.

For example, it appears that vast quantities of hydrocarbons exist on other bodies in our own solar system. It is believed that the volume of hydrocarbons on Saturn's moon Titan far exceed what exists on Earth. See http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lakes_of_Titan. It is far beyond our ability to extract this resource and bring it back to Earth now. By the time we develop the kind of technology that might make it worth while, it is likely that the technology would make hydrocarbon unnecessary.

Nevertheless, let us assume that this was the reason for the aliens to visit. What kind of evidence would we find?

One type of evidence would be the remains of resource extraction, such as abandoned mines and waste heaps. The extraction would need to be on a very large scale, and so should be very obvious.

Another type of evidence would be the rarity of resources that should be abundant. If significant resource extraction had occurred, then those resources would be dramatically depleted. This might not be immediately obvious. We usually assume that the way things are when we find them is the norm. Only later research would unveil unexpected rarity.

I am not aware of any evidence along these lines.

Colonization

Could they have come to colonize? Many of our own science fiction stories postulate humans setting up colonies on other planets. Ray Bradbury's The Martian Chronicles

is an example of this. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Martian_Chronicles

The experiences of the natives of the Americas and Australia under European colonization does not paint an optimistic picture of what humans could expect from alien colonizers. The best evidence for alien colonization is that humans would at best be a marginalized minority and at worst we would be extinct. Neither of these seem to be the case.

It is, of course, possible that an alien attempt at colonization failed, which would let humans survive. If that were the case, then the evidence that we might find would be the remnants of  alien technology.

Since the aliens would need a technology far beyond what we have now, any remnants could well be beyond our ability to recognize. In any event it would be beyond our current abilities to create.

Although there have been claims of advanced technologies found in ancient cultures, I have not heard of claims of technology that is beyond our current capabilities. The evidence would probably not be some isolated technology, but would involve a wide range of technologies. The evidence would not be ambiguous.

Scientific research

An example of how scientific study by aliens might go can be seen in the television docufiction program Alien Planet. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alien_Planet

In this scenario, the aliens would only be interested in the study of Earth, and would likely limit contact. This would mean there would be limited evidence of visitation. The primary evidence would be alien probes or their remains. While probes do land on Darwin IV in Alien Planet, and come to tragic ends, I think a scenario like that of 2001: A Space Odyssey is more probable. See: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2001:_A_Space_Odyssey

There has been some serious interest in the search for alien artefacts on Earth,  and other planets and objects in the Solar System. So far as I am aware, there has been no credible claims of discoveries.

I found one scientific paper on-line that discussed the issue, but can't find it now. The paper concluded that the solar system had not been imaged in sufficient  detail yet to preclude the existence of alien probes.

Crash landing/ cast-a-ways

Could have the alien visit to Earth be unintentional? In this scenario, the alien visitors would have been forced to land on Earth and be unable to leave. The closest example in science fiction I could think of was the original Planet of the Apes movie. See:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Planet_of_the_Apes_(1968_film)

It is in this case that some of the claims of ancient astronaut believers might be true. Trapped on our planet, and bereft of their advanced technology, ancient astronauts may very well have resorted to helping the native human population to develop more advanced technology.

The plot of Planet of the Apes does not follow this direction though. The astronauts are barely able to survive, much less become like gods to the indigenous beings. Edgar Rice Burroughs' John Carter stories have a more optimistic, albeit unrealistic, outcome. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_Carter_of_Mars

Unambiguous evidence of this scenario would be difficult to find. If there was a crash, there would be no direct evidence beyond the immediate site of the crash, which could be quite small in extent. Any other evidence would be more easily attributed to more prosaic explanations.

So where do we stand now?

I have identified some lines of evidence that might provide proof of alien visitation. By no means do I feel that I have covered the whole range of possibilities. There are still questions I raised in my previous blog post that I would like to address.

I haven't actively looked for any of the evidence that could provide proof of alien visitation. Indeed, much of the search is beyond my ability and resources. For now I will limit myself to consideration of the possibilities.

Some of this speculation could be the basis for some interesting science fiction tales.

This post is a mirror from my main blog http://www.dynamiclethargyfilms.ca/blog

If There Really Were Ancient Astronauts, What Kind of Evidence Would We Find?

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 [CC BY 4.0 (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0)],
via Wikimedia Commons

Now that I have finished my movie "Summer's Too Short" https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Mk4tVFfgSP4, it is time to embark on a new project.

For many years I had an interest in the ancient astronaut hypothesis. Unfortunately, I have not found the kind of credible discussion that I want to see. I will try to start on that path myself and see where it takes me.

When I first heard of the ancient astronaut hypothesis, over 40 years ago, I was immediately fascinated. At first I was firmly convinced. But as I dug into the "evidence", it just dissipated in a puff a smoke. Nevertheless, I was still fascinated with the idea, albeit, disappointed there didn't appear to be any real evidence.

I think it is plausible that aliens visited Earth in the past. I  looked for people who have done a serious investigation, but only found vague comments about some speculation by Carl Sagan. That left me unsatisfied.

If there really were ancient astronauts, what kind of evidence would we find?

I have not seen any evidence that would convince me that the ancient astronaut hypothesis is valid. Old stone monuments can be easily explained by the skills people in the past could draw on. I am also uncomfortable with the implied racism inherent in some of the evidence.

I need to decide what kind of evidence would convince me. This is not a simple question.

Before we can speculate, we need to explore some other questions.

Where are they from and what is the level of their technology?

This could be two questions, but I think they need to be linked. The further away they come from, the higher their level of technology would be need to be. The more advanced their technology is, the harder it would be for us to recognize it. Their level of technology would affect how many of them there were and if they sent robot probes instead of living beings.

Why did they come here?

If they came here for scientific study, the evidence would be much different than if they came for colonization. Would Earth have been their primary goal, or might it be a way point on their route to their final goal.

Were they successful?

This is related to why they came. If they accomplished what they came here for, the evidence would be different than if they had failed. Between full success and abject failure there is a wide range of out comes.

When did they come?

Aliens who visited Earth billions of years ago would be much harder to detect than aliens who visited after human civilization arose. A closely related question would be how long did they stay. Did they ever leave?

How did they interact with humans?

If aliens visited openly, then evidence could be found in the cultural materials of ancient societies. If they visited clandestinely, we would need to look elsewhere. They might have engaged directly with humans or may have simply ignored them.

I suspect that there are many more questions that could be asked. For now though, I will cogitate on these as fodder for future blog posts.

This post is a mirror from my main blog http://www.dynamiclethargyfilms.ca/blog

Return to Blogging

My wife was in the hospital from mid December until a week ago. I dropped all of my other activities to help her. Now that she is home, I think I can get back to my creative projects.

Wife's Health

When my wife went into the hospital last December, my top priority was to help take care of her. I dropped all work on this blog, my films and my writing projects. While she is home now and things are stable, we still have a way to go before she is healthy again.

While she was in the hospital, I visited her every day. I took her home cooked food; the hospital food was not to her taste. I know I am fortunate to be able to drop every thing else and just focus on her. Many other people don't have that luxury.

Now that my wife is home and more capable of taking care of herself, I feel I can start to work on my creative projects again.

Normally at the start of the year, I write a blog post about my plans. It is well past new years, but it is time for me to do that again.

Blog

I want to get back to my blog with a post every week. Until last December I had only missed a few times since the beginning of 2010. I hope to keep to that schedule again.

My Most Difficult Case

http://www.dynamiclethargyfilms.ca/my-most-difficult-case

This project has been on my to-do list since the early 1990s, and I finished it last year. It is nice to be done with it. I do need to try to promote it. I have it posted on a pay per view site. I think that is the way to go with my films. This is an experiment to gain some understanding of the process.

Website Theme

In December I started to work on a new theme for my website. The old one was not mobile friendly and a bit clunky. It was a version of the Core theme that I had fiddled around with. I set up a test site using Bitnami. I did some preliminary work, but didn't get far with it.

A few weeks ago I discovered that someone was injecting a spam link into my main page. I didn't have time to fix it, so I tried a different theme: Candour. It took care of the mobile friendliness and the injection problem. It doesn't look exactly the way I would like, but I don't see a need to do anything with it for a while.

Summer is Too Short (and the Rabbits Ate All the Seeds)

This is a short movie I worked on last year. Everything is shot, but it will take a lot of post production to get it ready. It will be finicky work.

Felix

I had started a rewrite of this story, but have left it for a long time. I had planned to do that anyway. It is time to get back to work on it.

The Barrier

http://dynamiclethargyfilms.ca/the-barrier/

I have a version of this movie done (version 0.6), but I want to do some more work on it. There are some changes I'd like to make to some of the dialogue, but the big change is to replace the "robot" voices with actors. Xtranormal can do that, but the status of the program is still up in the air, so I'm reluctant to start.

I don't think a movie about transportation planning will find a large audience, so I don't want to spend too much money on it.

Pete's Plan

I'd written this short short story a couple of years ago and submitted it to a few Science Fiction magazines. I had rejections from all of them. I had planned to submit to some others, but got side tracked onto other projects. The main comment I got was that it read like a treatment for a story rather than a story. While I like what I did do, I think I should try a rewrite in first person. I'm inclined to post it on my website rather than try to submit it to magazines again.

Bright Freedom

I'd done this as a movie script, but then decided to redo it as a novelette. I got a 17,600 word draft done and started to make revisions to it, but put it on hold. I'd like to get back to it and get it into shape to have some other people read it.

Another Story

When I reviewed where I left off on my projects I came across a post: http://dynamiclethargyfilms.ca/another-story/. I talked about a new story idea, but didn't say anything about the story itself. I could not remember anything about it. I managed to find the material I wrote up. It is a short detective story.

A New Transportation Planning Story

About a year ago I did some work on the outline for another transportation planning story. I'd forgotten about this one too. I had a look at the outline this week and developed it a bit further. It still needs work, but I think it has potential. For a story like this, I think I should spend much more time on the outline than I do on the story itself.

Ancient Astronauts

When I first heard of this idea I was convinced it was true. Later, as I learnt more about it, it all seemed to evaporate in smoke. There was nothing there.

I still find the idea intriguing, but there seems to be very little serious study of the idea, even though it is plausible that aliens visited Earth in the distant past. The field has been taken over by people who recycle old claims that have been debunked.

I would like to do something with the concept. Initially I want to write an article that takes a serious look at the idea. Then maybe I can develop a story.

My Priorities

My wife, of course, is my top priority.

I find it hard to pick one of these projects to work on first. As a start I think I will do some work on Summer is Too Short and then work on Felix. Then we'll see where that goes.

This post is a mirror from my main blog http://www.dynamiclethargyfilms.ca/blog

"Felix" and The Ancient Astronauts

The Red One

They say that reading is part of writing, so I think I can count some of my recent reading as work on "Felix". I've read a bunch of stuff about Lovecraft and ancient astronauts recently, which is something touched on in my story.

Pseudoscience

When I first learnt of Erich von Däniken’s "Chariots of the Gods", I was immediately convinced of it's veracity. However, as I read more, all of the claims disappeared in a puff of smoke. This lead to my interest in scepticism.

I have long since stopped reading the work of the people who perpetuate von Däniken’s ideas. These proponents haven't come up with any convincing evidence for their hypothesis. Nonetheless, I am still fascinated with the idea. In part, it is because the idea is, to me, plausible.

Recently I started to follow Jason Colavito blog about ancient astronauts and pseudo archaeology. See: http://www.jasoncolavito.com/blog. He takes a sceptical stance and investigates claims in some detail. One his major claims is that people who make claims about ancient astronauts were inspired by the stories of H. P. Lovecraft. He published the book "The Cult of Alien Gods" about his ideas. See: http://www.jasoncolavito.com/cult-of-alien-gods.html.

Jason Colavito links to Michael S. Heiser blogs. See: http://drmsh.com/ and http://michaelsheiser.com/PaleoBabble/. Heiser has debunked some ancient astronaut claims.

One of the disturbing aspects of many the ancient astronaut claims is their inherent racism. Although it doesn't often appear overtly, many of the arguments used boil down to "those people" were not capable of building something so impressive. Lovecraft often expressed racist views, which many of his modern day fans are uncomfortable with.

Science Fiction

Over the years I've come across many stories and movies that invoke the possibility of extraterrestrial visitors to Earth in the distant past. As noted above, H. P. Lovecraft's Cthulhu Mythos stories involve extraterrestrial visitors who have influenced history. He wrote most of these stories between 1926 and 1936.

Recently I came across an earlier story, Jack London's "The Red One", which was published in 1918. It concerns a man who finds an alien artefact deep in the interior of Guadalcanal. The descriptions of the natives in the story are quite racist, although it isn't clear to me if this reflects London's views or those of the character in the story. The story is available from Project Gutenberg. See: http://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/788.

Several of Arthur C. Clarke stories have ancient alien visitations as a back ground. Most famous are the 1951 short story "The Sentinel" and the 1968 novel and movie "2001: A Space Odyssey". See: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Sentinel_(short_story).

I hope to soon add my story "Felix" to this list.

Scientific Study

In the past, some scientists have taken the idea seriously. Most notable was Carl Sagan, who published papers on the subject in the early 1960s and later was involved with the SETI project. Since pseudoscience has taken over the ancient astronaut hypothesis, few scientists will take a serious look at the possibility. If you know of a serious scientific study of this, please let me know.

I remain intrigued by the idea of alien visitations in the past. For now it seems that it can only be explored in fiction. Some day some thing may show up to validate the hypothesis, but it does seem that not even the advocates have made any serious attempts to find that evidence.

I would like to explore this idea more in my stories and movies.

This post is a mirror from my main blog http://www.dynamiclethargyfilms.ca/blog

Read Read Read Write Write Write Rewrite Rewrite Rewrite

I haven't done much writing, or rewriting lately, but I did read a lot. I have some thoughts about my reading.

I took the title of this post from some very common advice to writers. I picked it up in Pierre Berton's book "The Joy of Writing".

What Kind of Reading?

I don't think anyone would argue about the need for a writer to read a lot. What I wonder is, what kind of reading? When I started to make movies, I mostly watched movies for enjoyment, but also began to watch to study the movie. I'd make notes about various aspects of the movies to gain a better understanding of how to make movies.

I haven't done the same with reading though, it is still all for enjoyment. I suspect that I should try to analyze some of the material I read, as I did with movies. I have done a little of that. I remember back in high school I spent some time working through a Doc Savage book to try to suss out how it was done. I didn't succeed. All it did was distract me from the stuff I should have done for English class.

I do read some books about writing , like "The Joy of Writing", and I think that helps. However, I think that you can learn from other kinds of books.

I am unsure if reading for pleasure helps. Maybe, as you read, your subconscious picks up on the mechanics of the writing, which you can draw on later. I have my doubts if that is very effective. It would be nice if it does. I wonder if anyone has studied this.

What Have I Read?

I used to read quite a few books. Over the years I drifted from science fiction to mysteries to non-fiction. Over the last year I've noticed that more and more of what I read is eBooks on my eReader, or on-line: things like news articles and blogs.

I visit some U.S. news and opinion pages on a regular basis: Paul Krugman, Salon, and Slate. I'd like to find similar sites in Canada because I find myself thinking too much about U.S. economics and politics, which is really not my major concern. I pick up articles here and there from the people I follow on Twitter or FaceBook.

Just recently I discovered Jason Colavito's blog: http://www.jasoncolavito.com/. His main focus is on debunking the ancient astronaut theory. He writes a lot about how H. P. Lovecraft's stories have influenced AA theory. He seems to do a new post almost every day. I wish I could be as prolific; and successful, he gets more comments than I get views.

Another recent discovery was Space Archaeology, http://spacearchaeology.org/. Unfortunately the last post was back in November 2012. That said, I did find some worthwhile posts. One of these, 10 Space Archaeology Stories You Must Read (http://spacearchaeology.org/?p=219) got me to read "The Red One" by Jack London, http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Red_One. It is reminiscent of some of Lovecraft's Yog-Sothothery stories, but was written a decade before "The Call of Cthulhu".

I do worry that the time I spend reading these blogs are a diversion from what I really want to do. Blogs can be addictive. On the other hand, I think that anything that stimulates thought is a positive thing.

This post is a mirror from my main blog http://www.dynamiclethargyfilms.ca/blog

"2001: A Space Odyssey" and H. P. Lovecraft

A couple weeks ago I posted "What is "2001: A Space Odyssey" About?" (http://dynamiclethargyfilms.ca/what-is-2001-a-space-odyssey-about/). In it, I mentioned in passing that I saw some similarities between it and the works of H. P. Lovecraft. Since then I've delved a little deeper into that idea.

Arthur C. Clarke and H. P. Lovecraft

I was reluctant to make too much of the possibility that Lovecraft's work dad an influence on "2001", because I didn't know if Clarke was familiar with Lovecraft. A quick search showed that he did.

In 1940, Clarke wrote "At the Mountains of Murkiness", a parody of Lovecraft's "At The Mountains of Madness". In "Icons of Horror and the Supernatural: An Encyclopedia of Our Worst Nightmares" S. T. Joshi mentions the story and notes that both "2001" and "Childhood's End" both share some ideas with Lovecraft's stories.

Lovecraft and "2001" Similarities and Differences

Lovecraft's basic idea is that extraterrestrials visited Earth far in the past and influenced the development of humans. The same idea underlies "2001".

Lovecraft suggests that these extraterrestrials were the inspiration for the gods that humanity worships. This is not suggested in the movie or book "2001", but Clarke does make the suggestion in his later novel "3001: The Final Odyssey".

A major difference between Lovecraft and Clarke is the attitude of the extraterrestrials. In Lovecraft they are at best indifferent to people and can be very antagonistic. Clarke sees the attitude of the  extraterrestrials as positive to people. In Clarke's earlier short story "The Sentinel", which was the basis for "2001", the attitude of the extraterrestrial is not so clearly positive. In "3001" the attitude of the extraterrestrials is also not necessarily kindly toward people.

Is it possible that maybe "2001" could be viewed as a Lovecraftian horror story? In the book Clarke does seem clear that the extraterrestrials are benign, but that might not be true of the movie. Like many of Lovecraft's heroes, at the end, Bowman appears to become overwhelmed by what is revealed to him. The scene in the "hotel room" could be just a figment of his imagination after he has lost his sanity.

Robert E. Howard and the Monolith

An interesting parallel to "2001" can be found in another Cthulhu Mythos story, "The Black Stone" by Robert E. Howard. In it the hero finds an ancient black monolith that was set up by ancient extraterrestrials. Although a different shape than the monolith in "2001" (octagonal) it is about the same height and depth.

"2001" and the Ancient Astronauts

In his book "Cult of Alien Gods" (http://www.jasoncolavito.com/cult-of-alien-gods.html), Jason Colavito makes the case that the ancient astronaut theory popularized by Erich von Däniken in his book Chariots of the Gods? was inspired by Lovecraft's stories. A review I read suggested that the case is weak, but it convinced me.

The ancient astronaut theory predates "2001", but I suspect that it could have played a role in the popularity of the ancient astronaut theory. In 1968, "2001" was a very high profile cultural event, and even people who did not go see it were aware of some of the ideas in the movie. Chariots of the Gods? was published the same year and was more broadly promoted by a TV program in 1970.

Because of "2001", the possibility of extraterrestrials visiting Earth in the past was an idea that was "in the air". This could have made people more open to the idea when von Däniken book was released. I know that this was a factor in my own interest in the theory. I was completely sold on the idea then, although eventually my interest led me to the skeptic movement.

What Can We Conclude?

I don't want to exaggerate the importance of the connections I found, but I think the comparisons do help me to understand "2001". Arthur C. Clarke said that the book he wrote was just his thoughts about what the movie was about.

I suspect that "2001" is more of a question than a statement. The explanations of the story suggested by comparisons with Lovecraft show that the "answer" to what "2001" is about is not straight forward. I think it is the stimulation we gain from the exploration that is important.

This post is a mirror from my main blog http://www.dynamiclethargyfilms.ca/blog