1235 The Alien Mirror: How 2,500 Years of Cosmic Imagination Shapes Who We Are

Richard Syrett's Strange Planet

Richard Syrett & Glassbox Media

Society & Culture, News, Politics

4.4 • 1.8K Ratings

🗓️ 1 August 2025

⏱️ 56 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

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Summary

FOLLOW RICHARD Website: https://www.strangeplanet.ca YouTube: @strangeplanetradio Instagram: @richardsyrettstrangeplanet TikTok: @therealstrangeplanet EP. # 1235 The Alien Mirror: How 2,500 Years of Cosmic Imagination Shapes Who We Are Today on Strange Planet, we embark on a 2,500-year journey through humanity’s obsession with aliens—not as sci-fi oddities, but as profound reflections of ourselves. Astrobiologist and bestselling author Mark Brake reveals how ancient philosophers, satirists, and dreamers imagined alien empires, Moon serpents, and interstellar wars long before Roswell or SETI. His new book, The Science of Aliens, is a cosmic romp through history, myth, and science, challenging everything we think we know about the alien question. Are we searching for others—or just projecting our hopes and fears into the stars? GUEST: Mark Brake is an astrobiologist, science communicator, and pioneer in the public understanding of science and science fiction. He created the world’s first university course on life in the universe and collaborated with the London Science Museum’s Science of Aliens exhibition. Brake has taught science fiction and cosmology across five continents and authored bestselling books including The Science of Star Trek and The Science of James Bond. His latest work, The Science of Aliens, explores 2,500 years of humanity’s fascination with extraterrestrial life, blending history, philosophy, and science in a provocative and entertaining narrative. WEBSITE: https://www.skyhorsepublishing.com BOOKS: The Science of Aliens: The Real Science Behind the Gods and Monsters from Space and Time The Science of The Beatles The Science of Jurassic World The Science of James Bond The Science of Superheroes The Science of Science Fiction The Science of Star Trek SUPPORT OUR SPONSORS!!! ⁠BUTCHERBOX⁠ ButcherBox delivers better meat and seafood straight to your door – including 100% grass-fed beef,free-range organic chicken, pork raised crate-free, and wild-caught seafood.Right now, ButcherBox is offering our listeners $20 off their first box and free protein for a year. Go to ⁠ButcherBox.com/strange⁠ to get this limited time offer and free shipping always. Don’t forget to use our link so they know we sent you. HIMS - Making Healthy and Happy Easy to Achieve Sexual Health, Hair Loss, Mental Health, Weight Management START YOUR FREE ONLINE VISIT TODAY - HIMS dot com slash STRANGE https://www.HIMS.com/strange ⁠⁠RingBoost⁠⁠ The largest provider of custom phone numbers since 2003 ⁠⁠https://www.ringboost.com⁠⁠ If you’re ready to sound like the business people want to call, head over to ⁠⁠https://www.ringboost.com⁠⁠ and use promo code STRANGE for an exclusive discount. QUINCE BEDDING Cool, Relaxed Bedding. Woven from 100% European flax linen. Visit QUINCE BEDDING to get free shipping on your order and 365-day returns. BECOME A PREMIUM SUBSCRIBER!!! https://strangeplanet.supportingcast.fm Three monthly subscriptions to choose from. Commercial Free Listening, Bonus Episodes and a Subscription to my monthly newsletter, InnerSanctum. Visit https://strangeplanet.supportingcast.fm Use the discount code "Planet" to receive one month off the first subscription. We and our partners use cookies to personalize your experience, to show you ads based on your interests, and for measurement and analytics purposes. By using our website and services, you agree to our use of cookies as described in our Cookie Policy. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://strangeplanet.supportingcast.fm/

Transcript

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0:41.1	Richard Serrett's Strange Planet, following the truth wherever it needs. Exp exposing evil and corruption and the secret machinations of powerful elites, revealing the high strangeness beneath the surface of our supposed
0:48.0	reality, coming to you from the Great White North and his studio beneath the stairs.
0:55.2	Here's Richard.
0:59.9	Welcome to another episode of Strange Planet,
1:03.3	and today we're going to voyage far beyond the Van Allen Belt,
1:07.2	past the moons of Jupiter,
1:09.1	and into the minds of philosophers, prophets, and scientists,
1:12.6	and dreamers, who dared to ask, are we alone? My next guest argues that this question is not new,
1:19.3	it's ancient. Before SETI, before Roswell, even before Galileo pointed his telescope to the heavens,
1:25.7	our ancestors were already imagining alien
1:28.7	empires, moon people, shape-shifting women, and interplanetary war, that the alien, real or imagined,
1:36.7	is not just a creature of science fiction, but a recurring specter inhuman thought, a mirror
1:42.4	reflecting our deepest fears, our highest hopes, and our
1:45.9	unquenchable thirst for meaning in an indifferent universe. Professor Mark Brake is an astrobiologist,
1:52.4	science communicator, and the creator of the world's first university course on life in the
	...

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