NEW YORK (AP) 鈥� has had a lifelong fantasy of being abducted by That’s right, he actually wants to be taken.
鈥淚 even picture the scenario in my head: I鈥檓 sitting out there alone, and a beam of light comes down,鈥� he says. 鈥淚t鈥檚 not a spacecraft that鈥檚 hovering over me. It鈥檚 just a beam of light from space. And I just get lifted up into that beam of light, and I appear in a new place.鈥�
America鈥檚 favorite astrophysicist has turned that lifelong fascination into a book, which 鈥� like that beam of light 鈥� illuminates what we know about possible space critters and what we can anticipate if they ever come calling.
鈥淓ven if it doesn鈥檛 actually happen, there鈥檚 value to going through the thought experiment of what could happen,鈥� he says. 鈥淢aybe there鈥檚 some takeaways that offer insights into how you think about the world, how we think about each other and the future of our civilization.鈥�
The book, out Tuesday, is a unique road map into the prodigious brain of Tyson, who has an ability to blend pop culture with quantum physics. Tyson is the director of the at the American Museum of Natural History in New York City.
鈥淭ake Me to Your Leader鈥� references evolutionary biologist Stephen Jay Gould and Cartoon Network鈥檚 鈥淩ick and Morty鈥� and weaves ideas from both the French philosopher Voltaire and mixes the physics of invisibility with 鈥淪tar Trek鈥� and has digressions into multispectral vision, how Superman 鈥� an alien, remember? 鈥� could kill us all just by farting and why supersonic planes 鈥渓ook badass.鈥�
They’re going to be smart
Tyson concludes that if aliens were to arrive on Earth, they are likely to be much more advanced than humans. He writes it would be like trying to teach a chimp long division.
鈥淭hey鈥檒l not only be brilliant, but they鈥檒l be way more powerful than us in practically any way that matters, which is why it鈥檚 so laughable when you see in Hollywood movies some mothership arrives and people pull out their pistols and start shooting guns at it. Like, 鈥楻eally? Have you thought this through?鈥欌��
During first contact, he advises against trying to shake hands or raising a hand in a sign of hello. 鈥淟eave all your habits at home, until you learn a thing or two about theirs,鈥� he writes.
The book arrives during a spasm of interest in aliens. The Pentagon has begun releasing 鈥淧roject Hail Mary鈥� was a smash and 鈥淒isclosure Day,鈥� while former President Barack Obama declared on a podcast that . (He later clarified that he had seen no evidence but that 鈥渢he odds are good there鈥檚 life out there.鈥�)
Tyson decided to write his book after watching recent congressional hearings on UFOs, noting that both Republicans and Democrats seemed unified in finding the truth.
鈥淭hey had a common subject that they鈥檙e both interested in,鈥� he says. 鈥淲hen I saw it hit that level, I realized I have something to contribute.鈥�
A book of etiquette
It is the first book under Simon & Schuster’s new Simon Six imprint led by Jonathan Karp, Tyson’s editor, who called the scientist 鈥渢he Bruce Springsteen of astrophysicists.鈥�
鈥淵ou name a respected scientist who has ever written a book of etiquette on how to meet aliens. It hasn鈥檛 been done. This is truly terra incognita,鈥� Karp says.
The aliens will, of course, not speak any Earth languages, but Tyson thinks we can still communicate via science 鈥� universal constants like the speed of light, Newton鈥檚 laws of motion and gravity and Einstein鈥檚 relativity. The aliens may even recognize our periodic table 鈥� not the names or symbols 鈥� but the simple organization, which they may likely also have done.
He also concludes that they won’t be tiny or enormous, citing brain-to-body-weight ratios. Too big and they collapse under their own body weight. Too small and they couldn鈥檛 construct a spaceworthy vehicle. 鈥淭he laws of physics greatly restrict the likelihood of Earth being visited by, much less invaded by tiny aliens,鈥� he writes.
If they’re monitoring us, though, there’s a good chance they’ll want to be taken to our apparent leader 鈥� Taylor Swift. Instead, Karp says Tyson should be the point man for the human race and the book is his calling card.
鈥淚 think this is the funniest factual book that anyone will ever read on aliens and that鈥檚 quite a statement,鈥� says Karp. 鈥淭here鈥檚 so much chaos and conflict in the world, and it’s a book on aliens that has the potential to bring us all together. He鈥檚 clearly been thinking about aliens his entire life, and he鈥檚 managed to write about them with the acuity of a scientist and the appeal of an entertainer. That鈥檚 a powerful combination.鈥�
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