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  • American Cosmic

  • UFOs, Religion, Technology
  • By: D.W. Pasulka
  • Narrated by: Norah Tocci
  • Length: 8 hrs and 55 mins
  • 4.7 out of 5 stars (48 ratings)

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American Cosmic

By: D.W. Pasulka
Narrated by: Norah Tocci
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Publisher's Summary

More than half of American adults and more than 75 percent of young Americans believe in intelligent extraterrestrial life. This level of belief rivals that of belief in God. American Cosmic examines the mechanisms at work behind the thriving belief system in extraterrestrial life, a system that is changing and even supplanting traditional religions.

Over the course of a six-year ethnographic study, D. W. Pasulka interviewed successful and influential scientists, professionals, and Silicon Valley entrepreneurs who believe in extraterrestrial intelligence, thereby disproving the common misconception that only fringe members of society believe in UFOs. She argues that widespread belief in aliens is due to a number of factors, including their ubiquity in modern media like The X-Files, which can influence memory, and the believability lent to that media by the search for planets that might support life. American Cosmic explores the intriguing question of how people interpret unexplainable experiences and argues that the media is replacing religion as a cultural authority that offers believers answers about non-human intelligent life.

©2019 Oxford University Press (P)2019 Tantor

What listeners say about American Cosmic

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Very good book.

Great story. Great research. Fascinating people.
Thank you.
Great story. Great research. Fascinating people.
Thank you.
Great story. Great research. Fascinating people.
Thank you.

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  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
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    4 out of 5 stars
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Great book. Disappointed with the narration

I’ve been looking forward to this book but personally I’m finding the narrator very flat and monotonous, a bit like an AI, which leads me to drift off and not engage with the content. Again, just a personal perspective but I think it’s so important for narrators to inject some energy and rhythm into the performance.

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  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
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Life changing

This book WILL change the way you look at pretty much everything. A classic for certain.

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  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars

fascinating read

Real deep dive into the phenomena, approaching it from a variety of intriguing perspectives...must read

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    5 out of 5 stars
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    4 out of 5 stars

Fascinating, of major importance

A landmark text that will become all the more important as time goes on.

But it’s tantalising, leaving the reader wanting more detail on nearly everything covered. Hopefully following books by the author and the decreasing secrecy of the subject will provide some of those details.

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    1 out of 5 stars
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Nothing new

Expected more from the prof.
I read the whole book as I bought it. Regret not reading the reviews prior to purchase. The book is incoherent all over the place and a collection of what others have written. There are many more much better books on the subject.

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    3 out of 5 stars
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    3 out of 5 stars

Found it all a little confusing

I understand what Pasulka set out to do with this book but at times it felt like reading about someone with a crush on the main character as there was no critical assessment of their beliefs. Still an interesting read but fell short of what I was expecting.

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