Aspects of the (UFO) abduction phenomenon Aspects of the (UFO) abduction phenomenon are excerpted below from pp. 158-162 of Joe Lewels' book The God Hypothesis: Extraterrestrial Life and Its Implications for Science and Religion (Wild Flower Press, POB 190, Mill Spring, NC 28756; tel: 704/894-8444 fax: 704/894-8454; email: This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it ; URL: : ...no single organization or researcher has access to all the abduction research that has been, and continues to be, conducted throughout the world. Independent researchers proliferate, standardized procedures are lacking, reporting procedures are cumbersome and, in some cases, professional jealousies prevent researchers from sharing their data. As a result, generalizations about the nature of the phenomenon, the purpose for the abductions, the types of beings involved, their origins, and the relationships between the various types of beings are difficult to make. The most systematic effort thus far to answer such questions involves a massive study launched in 1992 by MUFON, called the Abduction Tran_script_ion Project, directed by Dan Wright. Funded in part by the Fund for UFO Research [FUFOR], the project collects tran_script_s of audiotaped interviews and hypnosis sessions with experiencers, provided by well-known and respected researchers from different parts of the country. The verbatim tran_script_s are entered into a sophisticated computer system for a multi-factor analysis of the abduction experience. Ultimately, it is hoped that the data will reveal the true nature of the abduction experience and be able to answer many of the questions researcher have about the beings and their purpose. Through February 1996, Wright had accumulated 750 tran_script_s involving 215 separate cases detailing abductions going back to the 1940s. Although this represents a massive amount of data, it is clear that the project is in its infancy and that many more cases are needed to reach the point where the resulting analysis will have scientific validity...At the 1995 MUFON Symposium held in Seattle, Wright summarized the project's findings, which at the time consisted of only 142 cases, submitted by 15 researchers ... An away team of very short, whitish, grayish, or bluish beings take the person from his home, car, or other location. In 45 of the cases, the beings passed through solid walls or _object_s during the abduction and in 31 cases the witnesses were aware that they, themselves, were being passed through solid matter, such as a wall or a ceiling, and then floated up to an awaiting craft. Wright reports that one of the beings heads the team and speaks for the others, always telepathically. A being who is perceived to be a doctor takes over aboard the craft. This being is nearly always taller than the others and is sensed to be male, although gender differences are not outwardly visible. Often displaying a superior, no-nonsense demeanor, he performs intricate procedures on the subject. Other beings of nearly the same likeness serve as ?interns' or ?technicians,' helping to examine the subject. They are sometimes chastised by the doctor for lack of precision. Quite often, one of these is sensed by the abductee to be female and is given the job of comforting the subject, ensuring cooperation. Sometimes, subjects report the presence of a tall blonde