Alien experiences
By Jonathan Amos
People who claim to have been kidnapped by aliens have a tendency to believe in fantasies and suffer disturbing experiences in their sleep, scientists have found.

But the researchers say "abductees" also believe in their experiences so deeply that they display real stress symptoms similar to those of traumatised battlefield veterans.

The latest research on the "taken" phenomenon was unveiled at the annual meeting of the American Association for the Advancement of Science in Denver. "This underscores the power of emotional belief," Professor Richard McNally, from Harvard University, told the BBC. "If you genuinely believe you've been traumatised and recall these memories, you'll show the same psycho-physiologic emotional reactions as people who really have been traumatised."

One member of a group of abductees speaking about their experiences said: "I've had several encounters with alien craft and I've had an alien implant removed from my body." It was typical of the stories they all had to relate. It is thought there are about four million Americans who believe they have been abducted by extraterrestrials.

Scientists believe this clearly is not true, so why do abductees believe they have been taken? Professor McNally has found that many of them share personality traits and sleep disorders. "Most of them had pre-existing new-age beliefs - they were into bio-energetic therapies, past lives, astral projection, tarot cards, and so on," he said. "Second, they have episodes of apparent sleep paralysis accompanied by hallucinations."

These frightening experiences usually prompted the individuals to visit therapists, who would frequently suggest alien abduction as a cause - an explanation which the abductees readily accepted, he said. Professor McNally has come up with a rational explanation of alien abduction experiences which was endorsed by other psychologists in Denver. He said the individuals conformed to a "common recipe". But the researcher stressed that many of the people really did believe what they were saying. In laboratory experiments, individuals were asked to relate their experiences. These stories were played back to them and their physical responses recorded. "When a Vietnam vet has his experiences played back to him in the lab of some combat event, his heart rate goes up and you see an increase in sweating. If you don't have post-traumatic stress disorder, you don't react that way. "The heart-rate responses and sweating responses were at least as great in the alien abductees when they heard their memories of being taken and molested by space aliens and subjected to experiments as those of people with genuine traumatic events."

The night belongs to us
By The Night-Birds
Come 10 p.m., whilst the rest of the world prepares to turn in, we the prowlers are all out for a midnight feast, ready to chat all night, listen to music or watch movies until the wee hours of the morning. This is the best time of day, So how come so many people miss out on it?

What do we see that others don't as darkness envelops us? Plenty!!! Beautiful moonlit pathways, quiet streets, creatures out at night in search of prey, 'interesting' people hanging out at street corners and tempting aromas from 'saiivar' kades wafting in the air. I mean what are these so-called 'morning people' thinking?

Most morning folk are under the misconception that nighttime is mostly for 'party' folk. They have no idea how wrong they are. The night has much more in store for us than just night life. The cool breezes calm our restless souls, relax our weary bodies and rejuvenate our very being.

The night has a sense of mystery and adventure all wrapped in one. The thirst for the unknown overwhelms you. It in turn challenges you to go against the norm and break free. The free spirit in you is rekindled.

Take for instance last weekend when we went on a trip upcountry, with a combination of both night and (unfortunately) morning people. Whilst us wise night birds were up all night, on the porch, in the freezing cold, those poor unfortunate souls were tucked up in their beds, fast asleep. We played cards, had a sing-song, chatted until we couldn't say a word more, played all sorts of creative games (mainly inspired by the night, of course) and fell asleep finally at a 'so called' ungodly hour.

Little did we know that we'd be up again within two hours of falling asleep due to the annoying habit the morning people have of waking up at the crack of dawn. So, there we were, barely amongst the living, trying to make some sense of the mirth shared amidst those who had had more than their fair share of sleep (to be precise… more than two hours of sleep!!!!) Due to our good temperaments though, we forgave and they survived… this time.

I'm told, by a morning lover, that she enjoys waking up with the birds and listening to the refreshing sounds of nature. Who wants to listen to some stupid creatures who wake up way too early and rouse us all in the process? Although it's accepted that birdsong is beautiful, why can't they all be like the nightingale and sing at twilight?

Unconfirmed reports say that night people are far saner than the morning people. Take the case of one of our friends. She gets up at the break of dawn and mows the lawn, in the process waking up most of us. Insane or what?

We have to admit that we cannot really not have morning people cos' who would have our breakfast made when we get up in the late afternoon after a night of prowling? But, please keep us away from those who are so chirpy and cheery they make us want to crawl straight back into bed. Do we ever go around waking people up? No. We are more caring and thoughtful.

Imagine what all these people are missing. The star formations that are both mesmerizing and romantic. There is the ancient saying the stars tell us our future. Well, guess which bunch of people will never know what they are headed for. They would never know what it is to look up to the sky and see a meteor shower or the thrill you feel to suddenly see a shooting star and make a wish. You sure don't get them in the morning.

The creatures of the night carry with them their own uniqueness. The bats for one; think about it… they are the only mammals that can fly. They are also blind but they still manage to find their way around. Ah! The wonders of nature at night time.

If not for us night folks, think about the businesses that would go broke. No more people at parties, no more people at restaurants. This would seriously affect the economy now, wouldn't it?

As they say if you can't beat em', join em'. So many do see the light, (not of day) and finally realize what they are missing out on. So feel free to join us, all you unenlightened beings of the morn!!!

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