Alien Contact

From the introduction:
It seems logical that in an infinite universe of infinite time intelligent alien life must exist, or have existed, or be going to exist, somewhere. It does seem inconceivable that we could be the only intelligence in all the universe. But it is not impossible; we do not know why we exist. If our lives are the product of random evolution then others like us, or not so like us but intelligent none the less, should surely have developed elsewhere. But what if we are a freak accident? Or a one-off design by God? Or some other notion that we cannot even conceive of? We do not know enough about ourselves and the universe to have certainty in the answers.
We have searched, scientifically, for the aliens using listening ears, searching for signs of life. We have been successful in finding planets around stars, but not in finding even a single intelligent communication from elsewhere? Why? Are they not there? Or are we using the wrong ears? Or expecting the wrong kind of ‘voice’? Our failure to locate ‘them’ does not mean they are not ‘out there’.
And we must consider the widespread phenomenon of reported alien contact embraced within the subject of ‘UFOs’, which contains literally thousands - and suspected millions - of people who believe they have had actual contact with aliens. The variety of claims is wide. Those claims cannot be dismissed as easily as science would like to dismiss them. But neither should they blindly be taken at face value as many proponents of UFOs would like us to do.
There is no doubt that there is a hard, scientific reality within the phenomenon known as UFOs. Multiple witness sightings, radar returns, ground traces and physiological and psychological aftermath give testimony to a world wide phenomenon. However, it would be naive to believe that such an influential modern phenomenon would not also bring with it myths and mythologies. A great many of the UFO claims probably do not represent that hard scientific reality but wishful-thinking, self-delusion, cultural interpretation, sociological influence and so on. Furthermore there is clear evidence that a mythology is forming around UFOs in the true mythological tradition. Mythology gives a culture a way of identifying itself, its rules, its boundaries, its taboos and so on. It is possible that in the ‘West’ the failing of traditional religion and the lack of belief in ‘old mythologies’ has created a climate where a belief in the existence, and presence on Earth, of aliens has become the anchor for the building of a modern mythology.
Those who seek the scientific answers to the hard scientific reality must learn where the boundaries are and they must learn not to ignore the myth and mythological claims but to understand how, where and why they arise.
So, do aliens exist? In this book we set out the scientific searches, the probabilities, and the stories of those who claim to have contacted them. We set out the arguments in support of the claims and the evidence, the contrary problems of belief at face value, and the alternative possibilities.
The question - ‘do aliens exist?’ - is the most exciting challenge to our modern view of the world. And should the answer turn out to be ‘yes’, then it is surely impossible to disagree with the Report of the Astronomy Survey Committee of the National Academy of Sciences in 1982, which stated: “It is hard to imagine a more exciting astronomical discovery or one that would have greater impact on human perceptions than the detection of extraterrestrial intelligence.”