Crop Circles: Best Evidence

[Sierra Sky (Johnson)]

Crop Circles: Best Evidence
Although science regards them as no more than clever manmade designs,
many researchers say there is compelling proof that the origins of
these mysterious formations is unexplained.



They began as simple circles laid down in fields of wheat, corn and
other crops. Then the formations became more complex, some taking the
form of pictograms that seemed to be ciphers for messages of unknown
meaning. The phenomenon has continued over the years, and each summer
season we are treated to ever-more complex and often beautiful crop
circle designs.

The ongoing debate among many crop circle investigators and skeptics
has been: Are they manmade or not? While many designs are clearly and
admittedly made by people (even veteran crop circle researcher Colin
Andrew estimates that up to 80 percent of them are probably manmade),
some researchers insist that many formations are not - in fact, cannot
be - made by humans.

Skeptical explanations for crop formations have ranged from the
ludicrous (one early theory was that they were created by hedgehogs
running in circles) to the probable (clever college students). The
believers' explanations have been equally as diverse, ranging from the
work of extraterrestrials to the idea that the formations are created
by the Earth itself as some kind of warning to mankind.

On their side, skeptics have cold rationale and the confessions of
such crop circle creators as Doug and Dave in the UK. In 1992, Doug
Bower and Dave Chorley, two somewhat elderly retirees, came forward
and claimed that they had created hundreds of crop circles over the
preceding 15 years using a plank of wood, rope and a baseball cap
fitted with a loop of wire to help them walk in a straight line. While
their claim is called into serious question by some researchers, it is
unquestioned that many crop formations have been "hoaxed" by people
using little more than a well-planned design and, yes, planks of wood
and rope. Such hoaxers have proved before witnesses and television
cameras that they can create large, elaborate designs at night in just
a few hours.

But what of the assertion that crop formations are created by some
supernatural, extraterrestrial or paranormal force? What is the
evidence that compels some researchers to conclude that they almost
certainly are not manmade? There are peculiarities to "genuine" crop
circles, these researchers say, that cannot be created or hoaxed by
humans. Here is some of their "best evidence":

Number and Complexity, and Placement

Number and complexity. Some researchers contend that crop formations
are too numerous and too complex to all have been made by humans. This
may be the weakest argument against them being manmade as it naively
underestimates the abilities and ingenuity of some people.

Placement. While most crop circles can be found in readily accessible
fields, some are not. Some have been found within restricted areas,
according to "Peculiarities of Crop Circles" - "numerous accounts of
crop circles appearing inside military installations that are fenced
off (quite securely!) from the surrounding area. Most notably in
Wiltshire along the Salisbury Plain." This article also points out
that several crop circles have been formed away from the farmer's tram
lines, which makes it very difficult for the circle makers to hide
evidence of their presence.

Changes to Plants

Weaving. Researchers have long contended that the plants in genuine
circles are weaved together in a particular way when they are
flattened. Hoaxers have supposedly not been able to duplicate this
pattern. "The plants are masterfully overlapping each other, and
gently spiking into the standing crop in a spoke effect creating the
circle," says Urn Greene at "Crop Circles: Fingerprints of the Gods?".
"This is an effect that is not achieved by simply stomping on the
plants with a board and or a garden roller, two tools commonly used by
hoaxers to create fakes."

Elongated nodes. Joseph E. Mason at "Arguments Against the Hoax Theory
of Crop Circles" says that there is a distinct difference between
crops that are bent in genuine circles and those bent by hoaxers. With
photos to support his claim, Mason says: "The bent node of the plant
from inside a [genuine] crop formation is elongated yet undamaged.
Plant stems bent by people via mechanical means appear damaged and do
not have the elongated nodes."

Blown nodes. Many plants inside genuine circles also have "blown
nodes," according to Mason.

Dried ground. The soil beneath crop circles often appears inexplicably
dehydrated, even after heavy rain.

Increased size. Dr. Eltjo H. Haselhoff, Ph.D., a former employee of
Los Alamos National Laboratories, noted these alterations in crop
circle plants in his research: "It was discovered that the plant stems
inside these formations had increased in diameter, as an effect of
intensive heating, with an astonishing circular symmetry. Moreover,
this effect perfectly matched the radiation pattern of an
electromagnetic point source at a height of four meters and ten
centimeters above that field." This finding, he says, supports the
contention that the formations were created by the "balls of light"
(see below) that witnesses have claimed to see at crop circles.

Bent unbendable plants. Some plants just should not be able to be
bent, say some researchers. "Crop circle formations often appear in
canola (oil seed rape) fields," says Joseph Mason. "This plant has a
consistency like celery. If the stalk is bent more than about
45-degrees, it snaps apart. Yet, in a 'genuine' crop circle formation,
the stalks are often bent flat at 90-degrees. No botanist or other
scientist has been able to explain this, nor has it ever been
duplicated by a human being."

Altered seeds. Tests by some researchers have shown that seeds planted
from crops that were part of crop circles grow abnormally.
"Biophysical Effects found in Crop Formation Plants" by BLT Research
says that the seed-heads (barley) from the 1992 formation at Barbury
Castle are "stunted and seedless." Some crop circle plants also
produce seeds that are noticeably smaller than normal plants.

Crop yield. At the other end of the spectrum, "Peculiarities of Crop
Circles" says that some farmers have experienced increased crop yield
in fields in which formations have appeared: "In 1997, Tim Carson who
farms East Field (where the 'DNA' formation appeared in 1996) reported
to researchers that his yield was up 30-40%."

Cellular changes. There are microscopic changes as well, Joseph Mason
says, and provides photos that show the differences. It isn't
explained what the differences mean, however. BLT Research also shows
photos that depict an unexplained cell wall enlargement in a crop
circle wheat plant.

source about.com

Happy Hauntings
Sierra Sky