What the heck is this thing?

[CP489]

http://www.coasttocoastam.com/gen/page2022.html?theme=light


Any ideas?

I put this here because it's being called a "UFO", which, until it is identified, it technically is.

The writing on the underside is "alien" to me.

Interesting.

[aggle-rithm]

Is that Klingon writing on it?

It looks like some kind of camping gear from Sharper Image.

ETA: If the aliens are trying to keep themselves hidden, this is a crappy design. If they aren't, then how come only loonies see them?

[Hitch]

Streetlight? (http://forums.fark.com/cgi/fark/comments.pl?IDLink=2618004)

[Wowbagger]

I'm guessing it is a craft belonging to an amateur 3D graphics artist, of some sort.

[CP489]

For the record, I think it's a decently done photoshop.

[Ripley Twenty-Nine]

It looks like a movie prop to me.

"I just took the clearest pictures ever taken of an alien spacecraft. I might have just made the greatest discovery in the history of the world: Proof of extraterrestrial life visiting Earth. But what should I do with this incredible evidence?
Aha! I'll post these pictures on a website that deals with ghosts, Bigfoot and UFOs, and not tell anyone where I saw this!"

[CP489]

It does say, here:

http://www.earthfiles.com/news.php?ID=1252&category=Environment

Capitola, California.

[aggle-rithm]

It does say, here:

http://www.earthfiles.com/news.php?ID=1252&category=Environment

Capitola, California.

"Chad" needs to have his head examined. Literally.

[Lothian]

Nice, the round bit looks like a car tyre.

It look much smaller in the second picture to the third which is a shame as it suggests photoshop. I would rather they had spent hours chucking the thing up in the air trying to get a good pic.

[aggle-rithm]

The top part is a section of a whisk Photoshopped in.

[Ripley Twenty-Nine]

Streetlight? (http://forums.fark.com/cgi/fark/comments.pl?IDLink=2618004)
Hahaha.. Great thread.

[Freethinker]

The EXIF data on the images has been stripped of camera data and only shows that the image has been processed by Adobe Photoshop Elements 2.0. That may only have been used to resize, but the second link indicates it was taken by a digital camera, which normally writes its info to the EXIF data.

[tkingdoll]

I call Photoshop - what's particuarly suspect is all the different angles they've managed to get despite there being huge trees in the way. I mean, the 2nd pic from the bottom was surely taken from a helicopter? There are also differences in the type of foliage from pic to pic, and the height and size of the craft.

And if it was real, it would be all over national and international news.

Nice job though. Good spot with the whisk, aggle.

[Miss Whiplash]

These are parts of a scale model put together in new and interesting ways. The writing looks like Klingon. Agreed with the whisk. The angle of light on the craft doesn't quite match the angle of sunlight on the the background in some pics.

[slyjoe]

I would agree with The Vampire - scale model. The link in post 7 shows supposedly the same craft, with a slightly different arrangement of the appendages. Some letters are Klingon, others I can't tell.

So, I guess we can conclude that the aliens use part of the Klingon alphabet and reconfigure their spacecraft in a week.

[SirPhilip]

http://www.coasttocoastam.com/gen/page2022.html?theme=light


Any ideas?

I put this here because it's being called a "UFO", which, until it is identified, it technically is.

The writing on the underside is "alien" to me.

Interesting. This is what we 3DCG geeks call an average attempt at photorerealism. An alternative explanation is a race of advanced jellyfish from a nearby system have invaded our solar system and it's time to break out the ICBMs and fight a bunch of communists with some seriously gay looking military hardware.

[Bikewer]

Someone on a TV program said it was a high-tech barman's lemon juicer.

You hold the handle, center the thing over the glass, and squish the lemon down onto the vertical tines. Maybe they were joking, but it looks feasible.

[aggle-rithm]

I would agree with The Vampire - scale model. The link in post 7 shows supposedly the same craft, with a slightly different arrangement of the appendages. Some letters are Klingon, others I can't tell.

So, I guess we can conclude that the aliens use part of the Klingon alphabet and reconfigure their spacecraft in a week.

Perhaps they've been monitoring our television broadcasts and are emulating the race they assume to be the heroes.

[BPSCG]

Note the resolution of the foliage in the bottom photo. The leaves in the upper right corner are in pretty sharp focus. The buds just below it are blurrier, suggesting they are farther away. But then the lemon juicer whisk thingie itself - which is obviously farther away than the foliage - is in very sharp focus.

Never mind the lemon juicer whisk thingie; show me the cell phone camera that did that!

[Locknar]

Dang it! I thought nobody saw me when I was flying about....

Truth be told, that is my ship....I was sent to this planet to observe and then bring peace, love and understanding.

However, now that I've been discovered I have to destroy you...sorry folks, that's the breaks...no hard feelings :)

[FramerDave]

It's refreshing to see a nice clear photo of a UFO for a change, and good to see the aliens are finally using some imagination in their design and breaking away from the tired old saucers.

MkVIII Imperial drone, maybe?

[osmosis]

That must be ExtremeSkeptic's mothership.

[tkingdoll]

How is the damn thing flying anyway?

No room for an engine or power cells or whatever. And no emissions. If you're going to fake a spacecraft, at least fake one that looks like it could be in the air by itself.

[kitakaze]

Maybe these are just my culture goggles but some of the writing appears to be Japanese katakana. Specifically, フ (fu)　ソ　(so) and ロ (ro).

[Correa Neto]

"If you can read this, you are too close"

I liked the ship's concept.

Geeky woo "theory" on how it works:
Energy is haversted from the environment by the "antennas" in the top and sent to the radial pannel-like structures that act as repulsors, providing lift and vectoring. Modular design allow use for multiple missions by adding sensor palletes, etc.

What energy? Energy, dude, all of them are a single one, and you know that!

[steve s]

Also the ambient light doesn't quite match up. Note how dark the shadows in the trees are. But the underside of the craft is brightly lit.

Steve S.

[Miss Whiplash]

How is the damn thing flying anyway?

No room for an engine or power cells or whatever. And no emissions. If you're going to fake a spacecraft, at least fake one that looks like it could be in the air by itself.

Now, Teek. You know space aliens are so advanced they no longer need to worry about such things. They simply levitate the craft. :D

[ThatSoundAgain]

Someone on a TV program said it was a high-tech barman's lemon juicer.

You hold the handle, center the thing over the glass, and squish the lemon down onto the vertical tines. Maybe they were joking, but it looks feasible.

Hmm.. Designing a juicer like that would make it a serious danger to the person operating it. You'd have a number of pointy rods on top, right where you apply the most force. Not a good thing.

[Ripley Twenty-Nine]

"If you can read this, you are too close"

I liked the ship's concept.

Geeky woo "theory" on how it works:
Energy is haversted from the environment by the "antennas" in the top and sent to the radial pannel-like structures that act as repulsors, providing lift and vectoring. Modular design allow use for multiple missions by adding sensor palletes, etc.

What energy? Energy, dude, all of them are a single one, and you know that!
Points subtracted for not invoking Quantum theory in your explanation.

[Pythra]

It's me. You're all so rude, saying I look like a whisk or whatever. Words hurt too you know. I bet you aren't all supermodels either so don't be so judgemental.

[Aepervius]

Maybe these are just my culture goggles but some of the writing appears to be Japanese katakana. Specifically, フ (fu)　ソ　(so) and ロ (ro).

Actually somebody on another forum was saying this was japanese was was saying something liek "fish knife"... Does your culture extend to know how to write fish-knife (to check that) ?

[NobbyNobbs]

Someone on a TV program said it was a high-tech barman's lemon juicer.

You hold the handle, center the thing over the glass, and squish the lemon down onto the vertical tines. Maybe they were joking, but it looks feasible.

Nah, the lemon juicer rocket ships look like this. (http://www.popgadget.net/images/starcklemonjuicer.jpg)

[CynicalSkeptic]

I, for one, welcome our new alien-lemonjuicer-egg-whisk overlords.

[NobbyNobbs]

Nah, the lemon juicer rocket ships look like this. (http://www.popgadget.net/images/starcklemonjuicer.jpg)

Or then again, there may be an invasion of these (http://www.wb.com.tw/kitchen/kw44.html).

[Explorer]

The final shot in the series shows the light coming from the right hand side, with the majority of the "craft" in shadow on the left. However, the bush just below is bathed in strong sunlight coming from the left, or from behind the photographer. Whichever, this demonstrates that this is a set up in my view.

[Skeptic Guy]

"If you can read this, you are too close"

I liked the ship's concept.

Geeky woo "theory" on how it works:
Energy is haversted from the environment by the "antennas" in the top and sent to the radial pannel-like structures that act as repulsors, providing lift and vectoring. Modular design allow use for multiple missions by adding sensor palletes, etc.

What energy? Energy, dude, all of them are a single one, and you know that!

Energy runs through all living things and is only there for us once we start to perceive. These aliens clearly understand this and are much more advanced than us. :rolleyes:

[Arkan_Wolfshade]

Babylon 5 Shadow font? http://www.geocities.com/TimesSquare/4965/b5font.html#shadow
Star Wars New Aurabesh? http://www.geocities.com/TimesSquare/4965/sffont.html#MEW
Star Wars Naboo? http://www.geocities.com/TimesSquare/4965/sffont.html#naboo
Enemy Mine Drac? http://www.geocities.com/TimesSquare/4965/tfont.html
V? http://www.geocities.com/TimesSquare/4965/tfont.html

[Bikewer]

Nobbynobs...I saw that one while Iwas searching Google images....Looks pretty spaceship-like to me!

[kitakaze]

Actually somebody on another forum was saying this was japanese was was saying something liek "fish knife"... Does your culture extend to know how to write fish-knife (to check that) ?I disagree with whoever that person was. They certainly aren't Japanese. The Japanese that I recognized has been used willy-nilly. It certainly doesn't say 'fish-knife' as there's only three characters that are undeniably Japanese, yet one is backwards and all are syllabic without any meaning in the manner they are presented. Looks like what sci-fi geeks do when they try to make funky alien writing from a western perspective.

[Ossai]

The large part sticking out looks to be a powered antenna.

[largeprimenumber]

Where's the video? My cellphone takes video. My previous cellphone takes video. If you pull five people off the street in California, one of them will have a video capable device.

[SezMe]

If you pull five people off the street in Capitola, you get 4 illegals, two hippies and one artichoke.

[aggle-rithm]

I, for one, welcome our new alien-lemonjuicer-egg-whisk overlords.

Me, too. I'll be happy to help round up slaves to work in their lemon mines.

[JC Fla]

All hail the alien juice lords!!

(Does that get me on their good side?)

[Soapy Sam]

It's the planet Venus reflected from a cloud of swamp gas.

One of the more original fake ufo's I've seen in a while.

[fuelair]

Also the ambient light doesn't quite match up. Note how dark the shadows in the trees are. But the underside of the craft is brightly lit.

Steve S.Flashcubes.

[Wolverine]

Any ideas?



[capt. obvious]

A hoax, intended to reach as wide an audience as possible, and to keep people talking about it on all sorts of message boards.

[/capt. obvious]

[sk3ptical]

This guy (fxmodels) seems to know what he is talking about - it is photoshopped -

_xxx.flickr.com/photos/8418528@N06/506533536/#comment72157600244729882"

[kitakaze]

This guy (fxmodels) seems to know what he is talking about - it is photoshopped -

_xxx.flickr.com/photos/8418528@N06/506533536/#comment72157600244729882"I think definitely photoshopped.

[Aggs]

Where's the video? My cellphone takes video. My previous cellphone takes video. If you pull five people off the street in California, one of them will have a video capable device.

Even if you don't have video, does the digital camera only take 6 pictures? Was he just waiting for the thing to pose?

I also don't understand why aliens with the intelligence to create such technology need markings on the side of the craft for identity....

[robinson]

http://www.flickr.com/photos/8418528@N06/506533536/#comment72157600244729882

http://farm1.static.flickr.com/204/509339168_3d62482835_o.jpg

http://www.ufocasebook.com/strangecraftlaketahoe.html

http://www.ufocasebook.com/strangecraftphotos.html

[robinson]

After some really hard work, I have deciphered the alien code on the UFO.

http://forums.randi.org/imagehosting/1105346550db5d141c.jpg

[Jackalgirl]

The text is katakana (http://japanese.about.com/blkatakana1.htm), the Japanese script used for emphasis, sound effects, and the transliteration of foreign words. Some of the characters have been flipped around and it looks like some other random characters were thrown in.

For example, in the "All Your Base" section (thanks, robinson!) has -- I think -- an upside-down "so", the next one looks like the dash-mark that's used to indicate that the last syllable's vowel is drawn out, then "no"; not sure about the third one (maybe someone just made that up), then the next one is "fu". "Me" makes its appearance on the "are belong" section (along with "fu" and something else I can't see) and "N" shows up in the "to us" section.

"Stupid Americans -- you're too culturally blind to recognize Japanese! Muh hah hah hah hah hah!"

[Explorer]

Even if you don't have video, does the digital camera only take 6 pictures? Was he just waiting for the thing to pose?

I also don't understand why aliens with the intelligence to create such technology need markings on the side of the craft for identity....

Most people with digitals would select the "best" from a range of shots.

Comments on what is sensible or otherwise for alien behaviour, preferences or habits etc, can only be derived from speculative and unscientific terrestrial bias, don't you think? Unless of course, you happen to know a few aliens personally!

[fromdownunder]

Oh ye of little faith. Here is the pilot of the craft you are so cynical about. I cannot divulge where I got this 'cause th-th-th-they will g-g-get me if I do.

http://www.geocities.com/anuragvit/cross/crocoduck.jpg

If I do not post here again, you will know the truth.

Norm

[Soapy Sam]

Is that an allegory?

[fromdownunder]

Is that an allegory?

No, it's a Crockofwoo.

Norm

[Zep]

If you pull five people off the street in Capitola, you get 4 illegals, two hippies and one artichoke.Umm... That makes 7, not 5. Did the artichoke breed, perhaps?

[Ripley Twenty-Nine]

Or then again, there may be an invasion of these (http://www.wb.com.tw/kitchen/kw44.html).
Gotta love that Engrish!

Item No. HBJA-07:
Like a friendly spider, its striking eight legged freaks design makes this citrus squeezer an eye-catching accessory, worth of permanent display in your kitchen counter.

Try different juicer styles and shapes for different spider looks.

Design Kao's Brother

[aggle-rithm]

Oh ye of little faith. Here is the pilot of the craft you are so cynical about. I cannot divulge where I got this 'cause th-th-th-they will g-g-get me if I do.

http://www.geocities.com/anuragvit/cross/crocoduck.jpg

If I do not post here again, you will know the truth.

Norm

Has Kirk Cameron been notified? He claimed it doesn't exist.

[delphi_ote]

That must be ExtremeSkeptic's mothership.
Please say they've come to take him home...

[Damien Evans]

After some really hard work, I have deciphered the alien code on the UFO.

http://forums.randi.org/imagehosting/1105346550db5d141c.jpg

:eye-poppi

Oh no, they win now...

I surrender, i surrender!:D

[Damien Evans]

Oh ye of little faith. Here is the pilot of the craft you are so cynical about. I cannot divulge where I got this 'cause th-th-th-they will g-g-get me if I do.

http://www.geocities.com/anuragvit/cross/crocoduck.jpg

If I do not post here again, you will know the truth.

Norm

hey, didn't i see that in a park the other day...

Oh no, here they come, should have kept my mouth shut
:boxedin:

[Pup]

There's a theory (http://www.ufocasebook.com/strangecraftdrone.html) that it's a drone for monitoring power lines as pictured in this patent. (http://www.google.com/patents?id=yqYxAAAAEBAJ&printsec=abstract&zoom=4&dq=MONITORING+SYSTEM+FOR+POWER+LINES&output=html)

[SRW]

If it's from Capitola, it's gotta be used for surfing; or its a bong or would make a good bong. Anything else and no one would care.

[robinson]

Videos of the "cross" drone. (No, they are not real, but these do make a great point.) Videos, pictures, you can't trust photographic/video evidence anymore.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FRv3WAEnHMc

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XIfr12XhrZE

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XJiCxWUlgcY

Ain't computers great?

[robinson]

For example -

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N64H1g6apQo

heh

And a big thanks to saladfingers.

[bpesta22]

I'd hazard a guess and say it's a butt plug, though I admit to never having seen one in flight before...

puzzling!

[robinson]

If the source of this hoax had any real brains, they could have used real technology as a starting point, and made it believable. Instead of going for the "alien" look. Complete with "alien" text and a design that has no chance of passing a skeptical look.

The power line monitor, combined with something like
http://www.delphion.com/details?pn10=US06317310
or
http://www.rexresearch.com/desev/desev.htm

could have really strung the hoax out for a while.

[Whiplash]

Arg.. with the talk about it being a lemon juicer, etc, I wish I could find a picture from the episode "Star One" of Blakes 7, where the intergalictic alien fleet is led by what is clearly some kind of electric mixer modified into a spaceship.

I would wonder if these races are somehow connected... Or maybe they are from the Hardware Wars (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hardware_Wars) universe.

[strathmeyer]

Videos of the "cross" drone. (No, they are not real, but these do make a great point.) Videos, pictures, you can't trust photographic/video evidence anymore.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FRv3WAEnHMc

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XIfr12XhrZE

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XJiCxWUlgcY

Ain't computers great?

Wow, in the comments people are asking for proof that it's computer rendered because they don't believe that it's not real.


If Saladboy can provide a video of the exact same motion of the flying wing deal in pre-render wireframe, and show successive CGI texture layering, only THEN will we believe he did it. (From a CGI expert who works at ILM that I know very well). The flying iron howver clearly does not have the required natural speculation, shadowing or texture matching that the flying wing babies do. If you can prove you did it in CGI, I have very lucrative job offer for you.

I have sent this guy some of my college CGI projects and asked for a job but have received no reply. Perhaps teapots and trains aren't as exciting as UFO's.

[Whiplash]

Wow, in the comments people are asking for proof that it's computer rendered because they don't believe that it's not real.

Wow, amazing isn't it?

I have to admit, I've been following this one from the start.. I was listening to Coast to Coast the night these pictures were first talked about, and I did look at them on the website. My initial reaction was "fake", like many others, for a number of reasons (inconsistent lighting, perspective, size, focus, etc). But I felt that the design was at least somewhat imaginative.

I was then following a large thread about it at Above Top Secret. I was blown away by how many people really wanted this thing to be real. I specifically remember people saying things like "It can't be fake, it looks too good. Someone with that much skill would be in hollywood making movies, and not wasting time making up hoaxes".

There were numerous people who told them that it's NOT that hard to create something like this with modern tools like Photoshop. That there are tools in the software to do so much of the work for you, it just takes someone with some artistic skill or imagination and pretty much anything is possible.

But these people would not be swayed. To the point that people were like "I'll prove it's possible by doing it myself" and taking who knows how many hours to create this object in photoshop. Along the way they were posting images of the work in progress, which continuously got howls of "it looks fake, it looks nowhere near as good as the original" even though these were 'works in progress' that were not even textured yet (of course it doesn't look as good yet).

I stopped following it somewhere around there, until I saw this thread. It seems that these people have now gone so far as to finish their renders and even make videos using them. The result now?

OMG THAT MUST BE REAL! THERE IS NO WAY IT'S FAKE! PROVE YOU MADE IT IN PHOTOSOP! :wide-eyed

It's amazing how gullible people can be, or how they can allow their emotions sway them to believe something so farcical just because they "want" to believe.

What's also sad is I have heard that Linda Moulton Howe was actually parading one of these videos as the real deal as part of her "investigation" (read this in the ATS threads). She has since withdrawn that apparantley, but really, this goes to show the danger of even making things like this to prove hoaxes. There are people who are going to believe it also to be real. How many people do you think see these videos and go "OMG A UFO!" and forward it to other people without ever reading the comments?

Scary.

[robinson]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=He7dMOvgr7o

Even after the Actress in this SciFi clip assured the UFO community that it was nothing but a SciFi Channel Promo clip, some STILL believe it is a real video clip. That SciFi Channel CLAIMED it was a promo clip to cover up that fact it was a real UFO video.

For example
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kE7z9weWQ1Y

there is a Japanese TV show clip about it, etc etc

Orson Welles must be laughing, if that sort of thing is possible.

[hamelekim]

It's essentially impossible to prove the existence of alien ufo's using photos and video these days. Photo and video manipulation along with cgi means that you just can't trust what you don't see with your own two eyes. It's only going to get worse as computers get more powerful and new algorithms are created to make even more realistic objects and environments.

[robinson]

It's essentially impossible to prove the existence of alien ufo's using photos and video these days. Photo and video manipulation along with cgi means that you just can't trust what you don't see with your own two eyes.

This has been true for a long time. Even before computers, photos could not be trusted. Film can also be modified, even without a computer.

It's only going to get worse as computers get more powerful and new algorithms are created to make even more realistic objects and environments.

The real time video insertion technology means you can't even trust a "live" video feed anymore. It is possible to edit, or insert elements into a live HD video signal. It changes the game at a fundamental level.

Powerful home computers and software is a mixed blessing, is it not? A bedroom film maker can create the next Close Encounters, and put it on YouTube.

How interesting.

[Whiplash]

How interesting.


Indeed, we may end up entering a new "golden age" of woo ;)

[robinson]

On the upside, powerful computers in the right hands, (like mine for example), can speed up research and debunking. The trade off is worth it.

:alien011:

[Cheap Thrills]

All hail the alien juice lords!!

(Does that get me on their good side?)

Man if that thing can crank out a coconut smoothie, that'll get them on my good side!

[aggle-rithm]

I'd hazard a guess and say it's a butt plug, though I admit to never having seen one in flight before...


Then you're not doing it right.

[aggle-rithm]

Indeed, we may end up entering a new "golden age" of woo ;)

I don't know. No matter how fake it looks, there are always people who say it couldn't POSSIBLY be faked. I think as technology advances, the percentage of people who choose to ignore the fact that something wooish can be hoaxed will remain constant.

[BlackKat]

There's a theory that it's a drone for monitoring power lines as pictured in this patent.


The half-track in that patent made me laugh.

[The Kilted Yaksman]

Man if that thing can crank out a coconut smoothie, that'll get them on my good side!
Coconut smoothie, my ass. I want 'em to start whipping out the margaritas!

[Starthinker]

CGI so good they want you to prove it's fake? That's nothing. A man in a monkey suit can fool bigfooters for forty years. No CGI involved.

[Warge]

I love good computer animations (sherk is a fav) and this is no exception to it.

What is really depressing are the people still believing it's real and demanding evidence of it being fake. Go see any action movie made in the last 10 years or so (perhaps even 20) and you WILL see CGI - you just won't notice since it's so well done.

This drone probably took quite some time to come up with and I appreciate the craftmanship that went into it. But that's all there is to it - craftmanship.

Guess we have to wait for the little grey men a little longer...

[Alareth]

I posted this in a forum I go to dedicated 3D scifi modeling for opinions.

When someone asked if Art and George had been notified it was fraud the idea came up to prove it was fake by duplicating it. I think we may have some "new" ones on the way.

[robinson]

There are a lot of CGI UFO clips on YouTube. Much fun.

[Redtail]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=He7dMOvgr7o

Even after the Actress in this SciFi clip assured the UFO community that it was nothing but a SciFi Channel Promo clip, some STILL believe it is a real video clip. That SciFi Channel CLAIMED it was a promo clip to cover up that fact it was a real UFO video.

For example
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kE7z9weWQ1Y

there is a Japanese TV show clip about it, etc etc

Orson Welles must be laughing, if that sort of thing is possible.

:jaw-dropp Wow! I rember that clip being used by some 9/11 Cters to prove that it was an inside job. They claimed it was a secret USAF "black ops craft" that was doing a test run of the "plot".

[cbish]

I could knock it down with my 12-gauge!

[jezzedout]

Wow, amazing isn't it?

I was then following a large thread about it at Above Top Secret. I was blown away by how many people really wanted this thing to be real. I specifically remember people saying things like "It can't be fake, it looks too good. Someone with that much skill would be in hollywood making movies, and not wasting time making up hoaxes".

There were numerous people who told them that it's NOT that hard to create something like this with modern tools like Photoshop. That there are tools in the software to do so much of the work for you, it just takes someone with some artistic skill or imagination and pretty much anything is possible.

But these people would not be swayed. To the point that people were like "I'll prove it's possible by doing it myself" and taking who knows how many hours to create this object in photoshop. Along the way they were posting images of the work in progress, which continuously got howls of "it looks fake, it looks nowhere near as good as the original" even though these were 'works in progress' that were not even textured yet (of course it doesn't look as good yet).

I stopped following it somewhere around there, until I saw this thread. It seems that these people have now gone so far as to finish their renders and even make videos using them. The result now?

OMG THAT MUST BE REAL! THERE IS NO WAY IT'S FAKE! PROVE YOU MADE IT IN PHOTOSOP! :wide-eyed

It's amazing how gullible people can be, or how they can allow their emotions sway them to believe something so farcical just because they "want" to believe.

I check out the message boards at ATS sometimes. Those folks are the most gullible people on the planet. They want so badly to believe in the existence of UFOs, and they almost take offense when people present argments and evidence against the claims. There is one thread that's been going for a couple of months now, where someone submitted video of what appears to be a string of balloons floating in the sky above LA. Every time someone submits an alternate theory, suggests it's something other than an alien spacecraft, the die hards get all in a huff. I'm of the opinion that it's a complete waste of time to try to convince them otherwise.

... I saw it... it was in the sky... it wasn't an airplane or a helicopter... therefore, it must be an alien spacecraft!!! :cool:

(Edited to note... So happy I finally have enough posts to use emoticons!!! Yipee for me!!! :D )

[delphi_ote]

Those folks are the most gullible people on the planet. They want so badly to believe in the existence of UFOs, and they almost always take offense when people present argments and evidence against the claims.
Sorry. Had to fix it.

[Kahalachan]

Maybe these are just my culture goggles but some of the writing appears to be Japanese katakana. Specifically, フ (fu)　ソ　(so) and ロ (ro).

Looks like "ki" is also on there.
キ


I, for one, welcome our new alien-lemonjuicer-egg-whisk overlords.

AHAHAHAH

[DangerousBeliefs]

I just had to look at the angles to know this was fake...

The second to the last image appears to either have been taken in the air... or at the very top of a very tall tree.

Other photos.. the UFO is either a few inches off the tree tops... or dozens of feet off them...

Given the distance from the trees... and the shots from below... and the further shots above the power pole... I would estimate the UFO was no more than 10-15 feet long with the "wing" at most a foot wide... tapering to perhaps 6 inches.

It's a space craft for very very very small aliens.

[SRW]

I could knock it down with my 12-gauge!


Yes, but then you would not be able to use Photoshop on that computer again...

[robinson]

The design is based on an old sighting description of a star shaped craft, and how it moved. Whoever cranked up this hoax did their homework.

[calebprime]

This has been true for a long time. Even before computers, photos could not be trusted. Film can also be modified, even without a computer.



The real time video insertion technology means you can't even trust a "live" video feed anymore. It is possible to edit, or insert elements into a live HD video signal. It changes the game at a fundamental level.

Powerful home computers and software is a mixed blessing, is it not? A bedroom film maker can create the next Close Encounters, and put it on YouTube.

How interesting.

The design is based on an old sighting description of a star shaped craft, and how it moved. Whoever cranked up this hoax did their homework.

I'm pretty naive about video manipulation.

Does this mean that all the videos of the planes hitting the twin towers have no value as evidence?

Or just the amateur ones have no value?

Or can they be tested and/or looked over by people who know how to do it?

(Just so you know, I thought that the YouTube video showing all the clips of the planes hitting the towers from different angles was pretty convincing, along with everything else. But maybe I was wrong.)

[Corsair 115]

What is really depressing are the people still believing it's real and demanding evidence of it being fake. Go see any action movie made in the last 10 years or so (perhaps even 20) and you WILL see CGI - you just won't notice since it's so well done.I'll disagree with this somewhat - I think you can notice it, if you have a good eye for it and know what to look for.

There are three things which always give away a shot is a visual effects shot: 1) motion, 2) lighting, and 3) detail. Of these three, I personally find motion is the easiest one of the three to spot; the lighting and detail these days is usually very good but still on occasion do reveal a VFX shot, especially if it involves a dramatic camera move.

The first time I saw the much-ballyhooed freeway chase in The Matrix Reloaded, I could tell right away which cars where CGI creations and which were actual vehicles.

[robinson]

How?

[Checkmite]

Cool, it's a strategically-altered ceiling fan with its motor/hub assembly removed.

[Corsair 115]

How?I'm presuming the above is about me saying I could spot the CGI cars in the highway chase sequence from The Matrix Reloaded. In which case, I'll offer the clues which tipped me off:

The biggest is the shots themselves. When you have a vehicle racing against oncoming traffic and dodging those vehicles by the barest of inches, doing so with actual vehicles is extremely unlikely. Even the best stunt drivers in the world are not going to be able to dodge an oncoming vehicle by inches as was done in the movie - no one could have that perfect a reaction time, and be able to repeat that reaction on mulitple takes if needed. Thus, the cars coming closest to the wrong-way vehicle must be CGI creations. And sure enough, examine the making of the film, and it turns out the only actual cars going the wrong way were ones which were far enough away to give the stunt drivers the necessary reaction time to avoid a collision. The cars which missed by inches were added in later (which was about half the cars in the scene, if I recall correctly).

Also, there were shots which tracked right into a close-up of the bumper or back of car - that's something else you can't do with a real camera and fast-moving real cars, so again, that vehicle must be a CGI creation.

Then there were the CGI cars themselves - they just didn't look right. It's difficult to explain, but there was something off in the detail of the cars and how they seemed integrated into the surroundings. It's hard to explain, but I know it when I see it (in most cases).

Put all this together while watching and I could spot most of the fake cars straight off, or at the very least cars I was suspicious of.

It should be noted I've watched special effects movies ever since I was a kid several decades ago, and have seen how they've evolved from the optical to the digital realm. I also read a fair amount in the past about visual effects and how they were done. The result of all this is that I think I have a pretty good eye at spotting special effects. I'm sure there are some I miss, but plenty I can see the first time around, and others I'll notice after a repeat viewing or two.

[jezzedout]

Sorry. Had to fix it.



LOL Delphi... I suppose your corrected version is actually more correct. I think I was just trying to be diplomatic :blush:

[delphi_ote]

I think I was just trying to be diplomatic :blush:
How diplomatic is calling them "the most gullible people on the Earth"? Man, I'd hate to see you be undiplomatic. :D

[robinson]

I see it as hope springs eternal. There is this deep seated belief that there IS SOMETHING OUT THERE, and eventually they will appear, in a form that NO ONE CAN DENY!

Note the cool all caps emphasis which gives it that fanatic feel. It is much like the religious feeling, in which one prays, hopes and waits for Jesus to return. Then EVERYBODY WILL SEE!





























Just my opinion, and I got to do the all cap thing as well. A good day. A good day.

[jezzedout]

How diplomatic is calling them "the most gullible people on the Earth"? Man, I'd hate to see you be undiplomatic. :D


Well... okay... I guess you got me on that one... :D

[RBG]

Is that an allegory?

No, it looks more like a Quackadile. Maybe a Crockaductile.

RBG

[Wolverine]

Thanks to a truck driver, Google, Coast to Coast AM, and some quality investigative journalism, it appears we have a breakthrough in the case (http://www.earthfiles.com/news.php?ID=1271&category=Environment).

The aliens are clearly miffed by NASA's lunar exploration. It all makes sense now!

:D

[Brattus]

I don't know what it is. But it's surrrrre gotta a perrrrrdy mouth!

[Earthborn]

Thanks to a truck driver, Google, Coast to Coast AM, and some quality investigative journalism, it appears we have a breakthrough in the case (http://www.earthfiles.com/news.php?ID=1271&category=Environment).Very interesting! :oldroll:
Though for me, this (mhtml:http://www.corkcareelderly.com/powerpoint/intro.mht!intro_files/frame.htm) is the first thing that comes up, the NASA thing (http://starbase.jpl.nasa.gov/archive/clem1-l_e_y-a_b_u_h_l_n-2-edr-v1.0/cl_0060/lun262/lhxxxxxx/lhxxxxxd/lhd0437d.262) only comes in second. This (http://www.usauwh.com/teams/PDF/2006/v2-1_UWHW_February06.pdf) is comes up third.

[Wolverine]

Very interesting! :oldroll:
Though for me, this (mhtml:http://www.corkcareelderly.com/powerpoint/intro.mht!intro_files/frame.htm) is the first thing that comes up, the NASA thing (http://starbase.jpl.nasa.gov/archive/clem1-l_e_y-a_b_u_h_l_n-2-edr-v1.0/cl_0060/lun262/lhxxxxxx/lhxxxxxd/lhd0437d.262) only comes in second. This (http://www.usauwh.com/teams/PDF/2006/v2-1_UWHW_February06.pdf) is comes up third.

Your first URL isn't working for me.

I tried the recommended search syntax earlier and it "worked" as long as you didn't search for the exact phrase -- although since then, this (French-Canadian) blog entry (http://eso-news.blogspot.com/2007/06/x-yx7.html) has overtaken it as the first Google result.

I'm rather at a loss to describe why I find this so amusing. But, I do. (Maybe the comedic value will improve before it's over. :D )

[Jayoss]

Coast to Coast AM is now touting some photos and a document about top secret anti-gravity work from yet another anonymous source. :rolleyes: Just go to the website and see for yourself the nonsense being promoted.

[Wolverine]

That's very entertaining (http://isaaccaret.fortunecity.com/). :D

[robinson]

Fascinating. Did you check out those images and docs?

Wooeeeoooo .....

[ThatSoundAgain]

Fascinating. Did you check out those images and docs?

Wooeeeoooo .....

That's remarkable - they had access to radiosity rendering in 1986! Clear proof of ET technology!

ETA: And a darn advanced DTP system, too. Unless they had this report typeset and printed in larger numbers, in which case it is clear evidence of a massive cover-up. has there been an increased mortality rate for electrical engineers since the eighties?

[Gryphus-1]

The first image looks a tiny bit like a J.D. Power and Associates award. In fact thats the first thing I thought of when I saw it. The others look like its a toy.

[robinson]

We must also thank all of the people who sent photographs to her and gave her interviews, who contacted Coast-to-Coast and, aboveall, "Isaac," for the information he has given us today about Project Caret. He has provided on a website that you can visit pictures of pieces of a craft designed in the same manner as the drones that have been photographed recently in Northern California, that make it difficult to believe that these are anything other than alien technology and back-engineered human technology.

http://www.unknowncountry.com/news/?id=6293

This is certainly not just a quick CGI hoax. The detailed drawings remind me of something I have viewed before.

[chracatoa]

It's been some time now since the alleged aliens were spotted. "I'm beginning to think there'll be no forced mating at all." ;)

[robinson]

http://www.coasttocoastam.com/timages/page/Sparks120906c.jpg

GAH!