Kelly Chase on UFO Phenomena,
Ten Points of Contact with Process Philosophy
Unfurling the Myth: Narrative as Interface
between the Psyche and the Field
Kelly Chase is the writer and executive producer of Cosmosis: UFOs & A New Reality and the co-host of the Cosmosis podcast. She is the former host of The UFO Rabbit Hole, a highly acclaimed podcast that ranked in the top 1% of global podcasts on Spotify in 2023. She is also the monthly guest host on the long-running Dreamland podcast, created by Art Bell and currently helmed by Whitley Strieber. Kelly is a published author and speaker on the intersection of science, spirituality, and the unexplained. She has been featured on shows such as Beyond: UFOs and the Unknown (Bad Robot) and UFO Revolution (TMZ), and has frequently offered her expertise on UFO topics for NewsNation.
"Last month I traveled to the University of Exeter for a workshop on Process Philosophy, Plasma Cosmology, and Transpersonal Psychology. It was one of those rare gatherings where scientists, philosophers, and researchers from completely different fields sit down together and ask: What if the universe is stranger than we’ve ever imagined?
One idea that came up again and again was plasma—the fourth state of matter that makes up over 99% of the observable cosmos. Thinkers like Robert Temple have suggested that plasma might not just be inert substance, but a medium for intelligence itself. If that’s true, we may be embedded in a vast, plasma-based ecology of consciousness that we’re only beginning to glimpse.
The paper I presented at Exeter is the one you’ll hear in today’s episode. It’s called “Unfurling the Myth: Narrative as Interface Between the Psyche and the Field.”
Here’s the heart of it: the UFO is not just an object in the sky. It is a rupture in reality—an event that demands story. When we encounter it, we don’t just interpret reality differently; we actually begin to remake reality through narrative. Myth isn’t primitive science. Myth is the technology of transformation."
In this episode, I explore:
— How narrative functions as a generative interface between psyche and cosmos
— Why the UFO resists explanation but compels curiosity
— The ways experiencer testimony points to cultural transformation, not conquest
— And why the phenomenon might be seeding new myths into our collective imagination
- Kelly Chase (Introducing her lecture on Instagram)
Process Philosophy & Ufology
Ten Points of Contact
Note: A small portion of the wording in this essay is AI-generated and edited by me, but the majority is my own writing, refined through AI-assisted editing. The essay is a response to the podcast shared above by Kelly Chase. I encourage readers to listen to her podcast first—which stands fully on its own—and then, if desired, explore my reflections in “Ten Points of Contact with Process Philosophy.” - Jay McDaniel
Kelly Chase is a thoughtful and innovative voice in contemporary explorations of UFO phenomena. In the podcast above, she shares a paper originally presented at the University of Exeter as part of a workshop on Process Philosophy, Plasma Cosmology, and Transpersonal Psychology. As a specialist in process philosophy—though a newcomer to the field of UFO studies—I offer some initial connections between process thought and her work, in the hope that they might spark further discussion at the intersection of these domains.
By UFO phenomena, I mean lights in the sky that defy conventional explanation, structured craft moving in ways that seem to violate known laws of physics, anomalous radar returns, close encounters with entities of various forms, and altered-state experiences sometimes interpreted as abductions or visitations. Kelly's argument is that these phenomena are best understood as relational events not isolated occurrences; that they may be catalysts for much needed social transformations; and that they "they might be seeding new myths into our collective imagination."
As I listen to her podcast I realize that process philosophy, too, can be a catalyst for social transformation and that, in its own way, it is a new myth. Perhaps it is even a myth not unlike the one Chase anticipates and hopes for. In this spirit I offer connections between her thinking and process philosophy under the following rubrics: ten points of contact to spur further conversation.
Kelly Chase is a thoughtful and innovative voice in contemporary explorations of UFO phenomena. In the podcast above, she shares a paper originally presented at the University of Exeter as part of a workshop on Process Philosophy, Plasma Cosmology, and Transpersonal Psychology. As a specialist in process philosophy—though a newcomer to the field of UFO studies—I offer some initial connections between process thought and her work, in the hope that they might spark further discussion at the intersection of these domains.
By UFO phenomena, I mean lights in the sky that defy conventional explanation, structured craft moving in ways that seem to violate known laws of physics, anomalous radar returns, close encounters with entities of various forms, and altered-state experiences sometimes interpreted as abductions or visitations. Kelly's argument is that these phenomena are best understood as relational events not isolated occurrences; that they may be catalysts for much needed social transformations; and that they "they might be seeding new myths into our collective imagination."
As I listen to her podcast I realize that process philosophy, too, can be a catalyst for social transformation and that, in its own way, it is a new myth. Perhaps it is even a myth not unlike the one Chase anticipates and hopes for. In this spirit I offer connections between her thinking and process philosophy under the following rubrics: ten points of contact to spur further conversation.
1. Relational Events: Objective and Subjective Poles
If we follow her lead, we begin to think of UFO phenomena in fresh ways—not as self-enclosed events isolated from our lives but as relational events. This raises the question: What is an event?
In process philosophy, an event is not a substance or an inert object but a temporal happening without sharp boundaries—like the “happening” of a morning rainfall. A relational event is such a happening, and what is related in a UFO event includes the phenomena themselves (the lights in the sky), the subjective experiences of the people who witness them, the stories they tell, and the ripple effects these experiences and stories have on others.
Process philosophy offers a vocabulary for thinking about such events. The phenomena themselves are the “objective content” of the experience. This content may be veridical or non-veridical, revelatory or hallucinatory, familiar or surprising - but it is nevertheless objective in the sense that it is experienced as given, not self-generated.
However, what is given is also received. The act of experiencing and interpreting these phenomena forms what Whitehead calls the “real internal constitution” of the subjective side of experience. This internal constitution includes acts of feeling (prehensions), emotional tones (subjective forms), entertainments of possibilities (conceptual feelings), and decisions about how to interpret what is felt. These two poles—the content and the subjective response—always go together. There can be no “event” without both. Together, they form a happening, a relational event.
If we follow her lead, we begin to think of UFO phenomena in fresh ways—not as self-enclosed events isolated from our lives but as relational events. This raises the question: What is an event?
In process philosophy, an event is not a substance or an inert object but a temporal happening without sharp boundaries—like the “happening” of a morning rainfall. A relational event is such a happening, and what is related in a UFO event includes the phenomena themselves (the lights in the sky), the subjective experiences of the people who witness them, the stories they tell, and the ripple effects these experiences and stories have on others.
Process philosophy offers a vocabulary for thinking about such events. The phenomena themselves are the “objective content” of the experience. This content may be veridical or non-veridical, revelatory or hallucinatory, familiar or surprising - but it is nevertheless objective in the sense that it is experienced as given, not self-generated.
However, what is given is also received. The act of experiencing and interpreting these phenomena forms what Whitehead calls the “real internal constitution” of the subjective side of experience. This internal constitution includes acts of feeling (prehensions), emotional tones (subjective forms), entertainments of possibilities (conceptual feelings), and decisions about how to interpret what is felt. These two poles—the content and the subjective response—always go together. There can be no “event” without both. Together, they form a happening, a relational event.
2. Experience Beyond Ordinary Waking Consciousness
Chase suggests that those who encounter UFO phenomena are affected inwardly, at deep psychic levels. Process philosophy resonates with this idea, emphasizing that much—perhaps most—of our experience is pre-reflective and pre-conscious, operating beneath the surface of ordinary waking awareness. Some of this deeper experience surfaces in dreams, in active imagination, and in altered states of consciousness.
This means that the objective content of UFO experiences often evokes responses in these deeper layers, and may even originate within them. We may encounter UFO phenomena in dreams and visions, as well as in ordinary sightings. There is much more to human experience than ordinary sense perception.
Chase suggests that those who encounter UFO phenomena are affected inwardly, at deep psychic levels. Process philosophy resonates with this idea, emphasizing that much—perhaps most—of our experience is pre-reflective and pre-conscious, operating beneath the surface of ordinary waking awareness. Some of this deeper experience surfaces in dreams, in active imagination, and in altered states of consciousness.
This means that the objective content of UFO experiences often evokes responses in these deeper layers, and may even originate within them. We may encounter UFO phenomena in dreams and visions, as well as in ordinary sightings. There is much more to human experience than ordinary sense perception.
3. Novelty and Rupture
Such encounters often challenge and rupture conventional views of reality, and this rupture is a vital part of their transformative power. This parallels an important idea in process philosophy: that the universe itself is a creative advance into novelty, and that rupture—abrupt discontinuity—can be one way novelty emerges. Disruption opens a psychic space from which individuals begin to tell new stories—stories not only about their own lives but about the nature of reality itself. These stories often challenge consensus worldviews, especially those that are hyper-materialist, reductionist, and strictly modernist. They can take on a mythic dimension, drawing on symbols and archetypal narratives—what Kelly refers to as narratives.
Such encounters often challenge and rupture conventional views of reality, and this rupture is a vital part of their transformative power. This parallels an important idea in process philosophy: that the universe itself is a creative advance into novelty, and that rupture—abrupt discontinuity—can be one way novelty emerges. Disruption opens a psychic space from which individuals begin to tell new stories—stories not only about their own lives but about the nature of reality itself. These stories often challenge consensus worldviews, especially those that are hyper-materialist, reductionist, and strictly modernist. They can take on a mythic dimension, drawing on symbols and archetypal narratives—what Kelly refers to as narratives.
4. Co-Creating Narratives: Building New Worlds
As these stories are shared, they resonate beyond the individual experiencer, shaping communities and, potentially, culture at large. Experiencers—and those who listen to and learn from them—often grow more curious, developing new ontologies, or ways of seeing and being, that, so Chase explains, reinterpret reality in constructive and life-enhancing ways. They 'build' new ontologies, and thus new worlds.
Smith uses the term co-creative to name the symbiotic relationship between UFO phenomena in their objective content and human interpretation as, together, they help co-create new narratives. Co-creativity is precisely the term that many process philosophers use to name how humans co-create with God (see #10) but can also be used to name how we co-create with one another and the more-than-human world: the natural world, to be sure, and also the psychic worlds and the UFO worlds. Never do se create alone. We create with others, and their agency, their creativity, is part of our own.
This co-creativity is not only how we think about the world, but also how we live in it. Chase emphasizes UFO relational events, while seemingly isolated and anomalous, can also catalyze new ways of living in the world, emphasizing compassion, interconnectedness, and care for the planet. They point toward an expanded sense of belonging within a larger cosmic community.
As these stories are shared, they resonate beyond the individual experiencer, shaping communities and, potentially, culture at large. Experiencers—and those who listen to and learn from them—often grow more curious, developing new ontologies, or ways of seeing and being, that, so Chase explains, reinterpret reality in constructive and life-enhancing ways. They 'build' new ontologies, and thus new worlds.
Smith uses the term co-creative to name the symbiotic relationship between UFO phenomena in their objective content and human interpretation as, together, they help co-create new narratives. Co-creativity is precisely the term that many process philosophers use to name how humans co-create with God (see #10) but can also be used to name how we co-create with one another and the more-than-human world: the natural world, to be sure, and also the psychic worlds and the UFO worlds. Never do se create alone. We create with others, and their agency, their creativity, is part of our own.
This co-creativity is not only how we think about the world, but also how we live in it. Chase emphasizes UFO relational events, while seemingly isolated and anomalous, can also catalyze new ways of living in the world, emphasizing compassion, interconnectedness, and care for the planet. They point toward an expanded sense of belonging within a larger cosmic community.
5. The Cumulative Effects of Myth-Making
Events, as process philosophy emphasizes, have duration and momentum. A happening may last only a moment—like a brief rainfall—or extend for decades, even centuries. A UFO sighting can also be momentary.
However, happenings as interpreted can build upon earlier happenings, gaining collective energy over time. In Whitehead's philosophy, past actual occasions of experience affect subsequent occasions, and sometimes the subsequent effect is conformal to, but also further develops, the past occasion. In human life, this is how social movements develop; a past event, the ministry of Jesus, for example, or the events of the Western enlightenment, or the stories told by indigenous elders, initiate movements in the present, which then influence the future through what Whitehead calls "experience in the mode of causal efficacy." Chase's view is that this is happening - or at least can happen - in the UFO movement. It can be part of a larger cultural shift toward a new ontology.
Chase and others in UFO studies suggest that UFO relational events are like this: their increasing frequency and the stories arising from them are building momentum, making possible larger cultural shifts.
6. The Reality of Non-Human Intelligence
In process philosophy, intelligence need not be human, biological, or carbon-based. The fundamental units of reality are actual occasions of experience, enjoyed and suffered by concrescing subjects. Every moment of concrescence brings with it what Whitehead calls a “mental pole” of experience, with its own distinctive sense of possibility in the moment. This mentality—made up of what Whitehead calls “conceptual feelings”—may be conscious or unconscious, but it is intelligent in its own way. Practically speaking, this means we can—and should—be open to, even expect, non-human forms of intelligence as part of the universe, and acknowledge that, given the interrelatedness of all things, they may interact with and affect us.
In process philosophy, intelligence need not be human, biological, or carbon-based. The fundamental units of reality are actual occasions of experience, enjoyed and suffered by concrescing subjects. Every moment of concrescence brings with it what Whitehead calls a “mental pole” of experience, with its own distinctive sense of possibility in the moment. This mentality—made up of what Whitehead calls “conceptual feelings”—may be conscious or unconscious, but it is intelligent in its own way. Practically speaking, this means we can—and should—be open to, even expect, non-human forms of intelligence as part of the universe, and acknowledge that, given the interrelatedness of all things, they may interact with and affect us.
7. Language as Lures for Feeling
Whitehead invites us to think of language not merely as verbal statements but as propositions—“lures for feeling,” whose function is to evoke or catalyze experiences, ideas, and emotions. Myths and stories, therefore, carry meanings that reach far beyond linear logic. This also suggests that humans can be communicated with by non-human intelligences through propositions received (prehended) in intuitions, dreams, visions, and other altered states of consciousness. Such propositions may also be transmitted iconically—through images, movements, or other non-verbal forms.
Whitehead invites us to think of language not merely as verbal statements but as propositions—“lures for feeling,” whose function is to evoke or catalyze experiences, ideas, and emotions. Myths and stories, therefore, carry meanings that reach far beyond linear logic. This also suggests that humans can be communicated with by non-human intelligences through propositions received (prehended) in intuitions, dreams, visions, and other altered states of consciousness. Such propositions may also be transmitted iconically—through images, movements, or other non-verbal forms.
8. Hybrid Prehensions and Telepathic Connections
In developing his cosmology, Whitehead describes a form of connection he calls “hybrid physical prehensions.” These are “hybrid” because they link the physical pole of an experiencer with the mental pole of the object of their experience. He further proposes that such prehensions can be immediate, even across distances.
For example, one might feel what is happening in the life of another several feet away—or even far away, as in certain forms of telepathy. Likewise, it is possible to affect others in this way, as when we “send” ideas or goodwill to a friend at a distance. These prehensions allow for action and feeling at a distance, unfolding in the depths of experience. Some accounts of “communication” between non-human intelligences and human experiencers may be explained in this way. Whitehead also believed that God communicates in this manner, offering aims and possibilities that humans can feel and respond to through hybrid prehensions.
In developing his cosmology, Whitehead describes a form of connection he calls “hybrid physical prehensions.” These are “hybrid” because they link the physical pole of an experiencer with the mental pole of the object of their experience. He further proposes that such prehensions can be immediate, even across distances.
For example, one might feel what is happening in the life of another several feet away—or even far away, as in certain forms of telepathy. Likewise, it is possible to affect others in this way, as when we “send” ideas or goodwill to a friend at a distance. These prehensions allow for action and feeling at a distance, unfolding in the depths of experience. Some accounts of “communication” between non-human intelligences and human experiencers may be explained in this way. Whitehead also believed that God communicates in this manner, offering aims and possibilities that humans can feel and respond to through hybrid prehensions.
9. Living in a Multi-Dimensional Universe
Process philosophy holds that we live in a universe more multi-dimensional than we typically perceive. Whitehead’s concept of the extensive continuum describes reality as a vast field of relationships that includes, but is not limited to, the three familiar spatial dimensions and the linear progression of time. This continuum is the underlying matrix in which all actual occasions arise, interact, and pass into the ongoing creative advance. It is similar to what Chase calls "The Field."
From this perspective, UFO phenomena may be understood as events that occur within dimensions of this extensive continuum that we do not ordinarily access. Human experience, bound by ordinary sense perception and habitual modes of consciousness, may occasionally be disrupted—through altered states, extraordinary encounters, or deep intuitive experiences—allowing fleeting glimpses of these other dimensions. These “openings” may help explain why UFO encounters often feel simultaneously real and surreal, grounded in physical reality yet rich with symbolic or otherworldly elements.
Process philosophy holds that we live in a universe more multi-dimensional than we typically perceive. Whitehead’s concept of the extensive continuum describes reality as a vast field of relationships that includes, but is not limited to, the three familiar spatial dimensions and the linear progression of time. This continuum is the underlying matrix in which all actual occasions arise, interact, and pass into the ongoing creative advance. It is similar to what Chase calls "The Field."
From this perspective, UFO phenomena may be understood as events that occur within dimensions of this extensive continuum that we do not ordinarily access. Human experience, bound by ordinary sense perception and habitual modes of consciousness, may occasionally be disrupted—through altered states, extraordinary encounters, or deep intuitive experiences—allowing fleeting glimpses of these other dimensions. These “openings” may help explain why UFO encounters often feel simultaneously real and surreal, grounded in physical reality yet rich with symbolic or otherworldly elements.
10. Living in a Divine Field of Consciousness
Finally, process philosophy affirms that the universe unfolds within a divine consciousness—what Whitehead calls the consequent nature of God—which permeates all regions of the space-time continuum, being “everywhere at once.” This divine consciousness both receives and is affected by all that happens and responds to what is received with lures toward goodness, truth, beauty, and peace.
This is the ultimate field in which life on Earth—and anywhere else—unfolds. All relational events, of any kind, are within this field, which (or, better, who) is an inclusive and cosmic milieu. It is entirely conceivable that this divine consciousness seeks to communicate with us—not only through UFO phenomena but in countless other ways.
Finally, process philosophy affirms that the universe unfolds within a divine consciousness—what Whitehead calls the consequent nature of God—which permeates all regions of the space-time continuum, being “everywhere at once.” This divine consciousness both receives and is affected by all that happens and responds to what is received with lures toward goodness, truth, beauty, and peace.
This is the ultimate field in which life on Earth—and anywhere else—unfolds. All relational events, of any kind, are within this field, which (or, better, who) is an inclusive and cosmic milieu. It is entirely conceivable that this divine consciousness seeks to communicate with us—not only through UFO phenomena but in countless other ways.
Next Steps
In naming these ten points of contact, I do not mean to suggest that process philosophy is the only new myth available today to help humanity integrate UFO phenomena into a larger psychic network. Rather, I see it as one among several emerging myths—helpful because it brings together insights from science as well as psychology, spirituality as well as ecology. The conference at Exeter embodied this spirit. Its aim was to explore how a particular field of science—plasma physics—and, more deeply, a particular state of matter—plasma itself—might provide a key to a new myth for our time.
In her lecture, Chase does not speak to this possibility, nor do I here. Still, it occurs to me that process philosophy might provide a needed bridge for this issue, because its understanding of the universe is, in many ways, plasma-like. Whitehead envisions reality not as a collection of inert, isolated objects but as a dynamic, relational field of activity—a continuous flux of interdependent processes. Like plasma, which is fluid, charged, and constantly in motion, the universe in process thought is alive with energy and creativity. Events are not fixed entities but emergent happenings shaped by relational interactions, carrying information and potential across space and time. This fluid, interconnected vision resonates with the idea that UFO phenomena may emerge from, or move within, dimensions of reality that are far more dynamic and complex than our ordinary frameworks of matter, space, and time allow. Chase hints at this possibility early in her talk, and then moves on. In so doing she invites into a direction in which we, too, might move: recognizing along with Whitehead that "matter" is more, much more, than the three states of solid, liquid, and gases, and that relational events, including UFO related events, may well be as "material" in a plasma-like way as the ground upon which we stand, or the air we breathes, or the psychic energies within the depths of our own experience.
In naming these ten points of contact, I do not mean to suggest that process philosophy is the only new myth available today to help humanity integrate UFO phenomena into a larger psychic network. Rather, I see it as one among several emerging myths—helpful because it brings together insights from science as well as psychology, spirituality as well as ecology. The conference at Exeter embodied this spirit. Its aim was to explore how a particular field of science—plasma physics—and, more deeply, a particular state of matter—plasma itself—might provide a key to a new myth for our time.
In her lecture, Chase does not speak to this possibility, nor do I here. Still, it occurs to me that process philosophy might provide a needed bridge for this issue, because its understanding of the universe is, in many ways, plasma-like. Whitehead envisions reality not as a collection of inert, isolated objects but as a dynamic, relational field of activity—a continuous flux of interdependent processes. Like plasma, which is fluid, charged, and constantly in motion, the universe in process thought is alive with energy and creativity. Events are not fixed entities but emergent happenings shaped by relational interactions, carrying information and potential across space and time. This fluid, interconnected vision resonates with the idea that UFO phenomena may emerge from, or move within, dimensions of reality that are far more dynamic and complex than our ordinary frameworks of matter, space, and time allow. Chase hints at this possibility early in her talk, and then moves on. In so doing she invites into a direction in which we, too, might move: recognizing along with Whitehead that "matter" is more, much more, than the three states of solid, liquid, and gases, and that relational events, including UFO related events, may well be as "material" in a plasma-like way as the ground upon which we stand, or the air we breathes, or the psychic energies within the depths of our own experience.