GUEST INFO

Nick Gold is a media and information technologist based in Baltimore, Maryland. He’s worked with major broadcasters, studios, government agencies, and biotech startups. He has been a contributing member of the Scientific Coalition for UAP Studies and Harvard University's Galileo Project, and is the founder of Declassify UAP, an organization that helps US voters advocate for government transparency around the UAP subject, and that has so far driven over 25,000 calls and letters to Washington DC. You can find out more about that work, or voice your own support for UAP transparency at DeclassifyUAP.org.

TOPICS

We discuss a very condensed version of Nick's own UAP encounter, and some of the uniquely synchronistic elements that set it apart from most UAP encounters. If you enjoy this discussion, and want to hear the deep-dive conversation, look for the full length version, which will be the very next episode.

GUEST INFO

Rich Hoffman is an executive board member of the Scientific Coalition for UAP Studies (SCU). With decades of experience in UAP research and analysis, Rich has been instrumental in establishing scientific protocols for the investigation of anomalous phenomena. His background spans both technical and organizational leadership roles, making him uniquely positioned to discuss the intersection of scientific methodology and UAP studies. Rich has presented at numerous conferences worldwide and has contributed to several significant SCU research projects and publications.

QUESTIONS

- What are the main themes and focus areas for SCU's upcoming 2025 conference?

- Which speakers and panels should attendees be particularly excited about this year?

- What ongoing research projects will be presenting updates at the conference?

- Can you elaborate on the significant announcements regarding materials analysis from UAP sightings?

LINKS

- Register for SCU's 2025 Conference (June 6-8, Huntsville AL): [https://explorescu.org](https://explorescu.org/)

NOTE: Due to a technical error, the video portion of this episode shows only Rich's side of the conversation, though the audio remains intact for both participants.

This episode is part of a special miniseries featuring members of the Scientific Coalition for UAP Studies (SCU) who have had personal encounters with UAP. Each guest appears in two versions: a short interview focused on the core events, and a long-form conversation offering a deeper account and discussion. **This is the longer, deep-dive interview.**

GUEST:

Mike Pritchard is a technologist and member of the Scientific Coalition for UAP Studies. He started his career in Robotics and Artificial Intelligence, working on cutting-edge problems with NASA and the Department of Defense, where he solved all sorts of interesting problems by doing things like using ultra wide band radar to detect mines, figuring out how to navigate in environments where GPS is off-limits, and using machine learning techniques to solve all sorts of problems. His work has even earned him a commendation from NASA. At LG NOVA, he helped build an entire engineering team from scratch, supported clean tech and AI startups, $700M VC fund. At the U.S. Digital Service he was a Presidential Innovation Fellow. At LG NOVA, he helped build an entire engineering team from scratch. He was part of a team that secured $700M venture capital fund. Outside of work, you’ll find Mike hiking with his family, playing soccer, paddleboarding, or tinkering with 3D printers and Arduinos.

This episode is part of a special miniseries featuring members of the Scientific Coalition for UAP Studies (SCU) who have had personal encounters with UAP. Each guest appears in two versions: a short interview focused on the core events, and a long-form conversation offering a deeper account and discussion. **This is the short interview.**

GUEST:

Mike Pritchard is a technologist and member of the Scientific Coalition for UAP Studies. He started his career in Robotics and Artificial Intelligence, working on cutting-edge problems with NASA and the Department of Defense, where he solved all sorts of interesting problems by doing things like using ultra wide band radar to detect mines, figuring out how to navigate in environments where GPS is off-limits, and using machine learning techniques to solve all sorts of problems. His work has even earned him a commendation from NASA. At LG NOVA, he helped build an entire engineering team from scratch, supported clean tech and AI startups, $700M VC fund. At the U.S. Digital Service he was a Presidential Innovation Fellow. At LG NOVA, he helped build an entire engineering team from scratch. He was part of a team that secured $700M venture capital fund. Outside of work, you’ll find Mike hiking with his family, playing soccer, paddleboarding, or tinkering with 3D printers and Arduinos.

GUEST INFO

Larry Hancock is a board member of the Scientific Coalition for UAP Studies, and did his formal training is in history and cultural anthropology. Larry spent a career first in the United States Air Force, and then as a strategic analyst and consultant. After his retirement, his lifelong scholarly interests and his nature as a "document geek" led him to author several books on Cold War history, international relations, and national security, as well as several edited collections of CIA, FBI and military documents. He has been a board member of the Mary Ferrell Foundation, a major online interactive history archive. His most recent works include an books on covert action and deniable warfare ("Shadow Warfare"), command and control practices ("Surprise Attack"), and the national intelligence problem of UFOs ("Unidentified").

QUESTIONS

- How do people in the intelligence and security world think differently about UAP from people doing history, or empirical science?

- What are the assumptions, methods, and values at the foundation of how the intel and security worlds study UAP?

- If we were writing a history of the relationship between the subject of UFOs/UAP and national security, where would it start? In what direction would it be heading today?

- How can we know where to draw the line between reasonable and unreasonable ideas about what various government agencies might know about the UAP subject?

LINKS

- Unidentified: The National Intelligence Problem of UFOs https://amzn.to/4eHUlbd

GUEST

- Brannon is a professor in the department of history at the United States Naval Academy, where he teaches the history of religion, and religious history of the Middle East. He has a PhD from the University of Chicago, and has published a staggering eleven scholarly books. His most recent book is on animal sacrifice and the origins of Islam, published by Cambridge University Press. His current research, however, focuses on the role of Non Human Intelligence in human history.

TOPICS

- What’s the relationship between UAP and religious experiences?

- How did you become convinced of the reality of non-human intelligence (NHI)?

- What’s it like researching and teaching such an edgy topic at such a straight-laced institution as the US Naval Academy?

- What can people with interests in UAP learn from the humanities?

LINKS

- Archives for the Unexplained: https://www.afu.se/

- Umberto Eco's The Search for the Perfect Language: https://amzn.to/4fUQkB2

- Brenda Denzler's The Lure of the Edge: Scientific Passions, Religious Beliefs, and the Pursuit of UFOs: https://amzn.to/40nSzrO

- Lynn Picknett and Clive Prince's The Stargate Conspiracy: The Truth about Extraterrestrial Life and the Mysteries of Ancient Egypt: https://amzn.to/3PtSDjm

- Brannon Wheeler's Animal Sacrifice and the Origins of Islam: https://amzn.to/4h3v4d5

- Brannon Wheeler's author page at Amazon: https://amzn.to/3Ppkp0z

QUESTIONS

- What makes for a reliable UAP report, and what do the reliable reports tell us about the phenomena?

- What "kinds" of UAP emerge out of the data on UAP encounters?

- What are the trends in the form and behavior of UAP over the past 70 years?

- What does the data suggest about the origin of these strange phenomena?

GUEST INFO

Robert Powell is a chemist, engineer, and researcher with a BS in Chemistry and nearly three decades of experience in engineering management in the semiconductor industry. As the former Director of Research for MUFON (2007–2017), Robert established its Science Review Board and co-authored detailed reports on notable UAP cases, including the "Stephenville Lights" and the 2013 Aguadilla, Puerto Rico incident. A member of the Society for Scientific Exploration and the UFODATA project, Robert is also a co-author of _UFOs and Government: A Historical Inquiry_ and actively uses FOIA requests to uncover historical UAP-related data. Robert is executive board member of SCU. He and his wife reside in Austin, Texas.

LINKS

- Link to SCU's report, “The Reported Shape, Size, Kinematics, Electromagnetic Effects, and Presence of Sound of UAP”: https://www.explorescu.org/post/the-reported-shape-size-kinematics-electromagnetic-effects-and-presence-of-sound-of-uap

- Robert Powell's page at the Scientific Coalition for UAP Studies: https://www.explorescu.org/robert-powell

- Robert's book "UFOs: A Scientist Explains What We Know (And Don't Know)": https://amzn.to/4fJpigG

- Robert's book "The Truth About UFOs: A Scientific Perspective": https://amzn.to/3V9Ny35

Guest:

Matthew Szydagiz is a professor of astrophysics at the university of Albany, a founding member of UAPx, a regular on the History Channel's *The Proof is Out There*, and a member of SCU.

Topics:

- Thinking through the most common objections to serious UAP research.

- UAPx's first research expedition to Catalina Island, where they attempt to observe UAP.

- The technologies and methods UAPx employs, and how they're refining their work going forward.

- Whether the search for dark matter was doomed from the start.

- Whether the ET hypothesis is the most plausible explanation for UAP.

- Which works of science fiction are best at thinking about the anomalous, and the future of humanity.

Links:

- Matthew Szydagis' faculty profile at University of Albany: https://www.albany.edu/physics/faculty/matthew-szydagis

- Matthew's profile on UAPx: https://www.uapexpedition.org/drmatthewszydagis

- Matthew's work at Research Gate: https://www.researchgate.net/profile/Matthew-Szydagis