Samuel McCracken

In the following viewpoint, Samuel McCracken argues that there is no proof that extraterrestrial beings are abducting and performing experiments on humans. Researchers who believe such claims to be true are relying on circumstantial evidence, flawed investigative procedures, and poor logic, McCracken contends. People who claim to have been abducted by aliens are either lying or being subconsciously influenced by fanciful depictions of aliens in popular culture, he maintains. McCracken is assistant to the chancellor of Boston University.

As you read, consider the following questions:

1. According to McCracken, how did the UFO phenomenon emerge?
2. In the author’s opinion, what famous historical event reveals the fallibility of sincere personal narratives?
3. In what way is the Betty and Barney Hill abduction case an example of life imitating art, according to McCracken"

Over the last 50 years, the...