exit to the cosmic rest stop

Alien fireflies in the dark forest

Thanks for tuning back into the BeX Files! Time to get lit (lit-erally) because this week’s file is about how fireflies can ~illuminate~ the search for extraterrestrial intelligence (SETI). Humans have been trying to communicate with extraterrestrial beings since we learned to dream up sky deities and skinwalkers (obligatory

Are there aliens in this moon slushy?

Thanks for tuning back into the BeX Files, a newsletter about aliens, humans, dinosaurs, alien humanoid dinosaurs, and more. Happy New Year! I hope you managed to snag the near-mythical “restful” break and welcome to another year of obsessing over 1) Earth and 2) everything else in the universe that

2025: A Banner Year for Aliens

Thanks for tuning back into the BeX Files: Goodbye to 2025 edition.  What an incredible year it’s been for aliens—and therefore the alien-obsessed.  We got possible biosignatures on Mars. We’ve got multiple new releases from legacy alien franchises like Superman, Alien: Earths, and Star Trek: Strange New

How deadly is Mars? Depends on the tardigrade

Thanks for tuning back into the BeX Files! Get your gardening tools and your spelunking gear, because today, we're going to try to inhabit Mars. Mars is the main focal point of modern fantasies about human settlements in space—a planetary canvas that evokes classic frontier tropes due

Aliens invade a book club (and other updates)

Thanks for tuning back into the BeX Files!  It’s a short file today with a few updates and links. To start, I’m excited to announce that First Contact has been selected for the Tompkins County Public Library (TCPL) book club. If you happen to be in central New

Americans Are Becoming More Convinced That Aliens Have Visited Earth

Thanks for tuning back into the BeX Files! This week, it's poll-tested. Let's jump right in: How likely do you think it is that aliens have already visited Earth? And if they have, what are the odds that they’re far more technologically advanced than we

Xenoarcheology: the search for extraterrestrial death

Thanks for tuning back into the BeX Files! Get out your trowels and sieves, because this Friday, we're excavating extraterrestrials.  Few motifs in alien lore are more entrancing than xenoarcheology, the study of unearthing un-Earthlings. This trope has been on my mind lately as I’m replaying Outer

Bugonia and the corporate alien

Thanks for tuning back into the BeX Files! I come in peace.  Before pulling the file for today, I wanted to give a quick heads-up that my website got a much-needed makeover (thanks to Kyle for the help!).  My portfolio is now updated to spotlight some of my favorite recent

So, we’ve discovered alien life. What next?

Thanks for tuning back into the BeX Files. Hope you had a lovely start to November. It will be a short transmission today because I’ve had a busy few months surrounding the publication of my book (ahem, FIRST CONTACT) and I am preparing to switch gears a bit going

And the Scariest Alien is....

Thanks for tuning back into the BeX Files! Well, it’s finally time: As spooky season reaches its pinnacle, I’m happy to share that the Search for ExtraTERRORestrial Life is OVER.  During the past month, battles have raged between shape-shifters and body snatchers, predators and invaders, interdimensional entities and

What Can Humans Offer Aliens?

Thanks for tuning back into the BeX Files! Hope you had an out-of-this-world week. First, shoutout to everyone who has bought, borrowed, or otherwise procured a copy of First Contact: The Story of our Obsession with Aliens (obligatory note: if you liked it, consider leaving a review on Goodreads, Amazon,

A UAP Craze in Renaissance Europe

Thanks for tuning back into the BeX Files! Put on your time-travel protective gear because we are going back 500 years to the wild UAP craze that took place in Renaissance Europe. Imagine that you were to wake up one day and witness the spectacular scene portrayed above. This vision