Recall the clerics who refused to look through Galileo’s telescope. The scientific community’s prejudice or closed-mindedness—however you want to describe it—is particularly pervasive and powerful when it comes to the search for alien life, especially intelligent life. Many researchers refuse to even consider the possibility that a bizarre object or phenomenon might be evidence of an advanced civilization. Some of these scientists claim that they simply will not dignify such speculation with their attention. But as I’ve noted, other forms of speculation are enshrined in the scientific
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