Ryan Graves: UFOs, Fighter Jets, and Aliens | Lex Fridman Podcast #308

Thank you for getting into podcasting, Lex. I like Rogan but as an engineer myself I was frustrated that he didn't seem to be asking the right questions of his science-literate guests. You've really filled that niche without sacrificing the human element of the conversation- you're killing it!

I love how much Lex has been covering these UFO related topics.

Here are the timestamps. Please check out our sponsors to support this podcast. 0:00 - Introduction & sponsor mentions: - GiveWell: https://www.givewell.org/ and use code LEX - Notion: https://notion.com/startups to get up to $1000 off team plan - Magic Spoon: https://magicspoon.com/lex and use code LEX to get $5 off - ExpressVPN: https://expressvpn.com/lexpod to get 3 months free 1:18 - Top Gun analysis 14:23 - Fighter jets 1:01:50 - UFO sightings 1:28:18 - Congressional hearing 1:36:19 - Tic Tac UFO & Gimbal UFO 1:50:45 - Alien life 2:04:07 - Autonomous weapon systems 2:21:15 - Advice for young people 2:29:30 - Meaning of life

FOBS (Graves' callsign) was a student of mine when he was learning the F-18. We also went to Aviation Safety Officer's school together. He's a solid dude.

Lt. Graves does a great job at explaining what it’s like being in a fighter jet , probably does a better job than any other pilot at making it relatable and understandable to the average person. I learned a ton just from the beginning of this interview. Very interesting stuff.

My grandad flew the F-86 as a fighter pilot through the Korean War. He had many interesting stories. After he passed away I was allowed to dig through his study and found a small bundle of carbon copies of some select mission reports from his time leading patrols over Alaska and Canada. All of them were describing UFO sightings. They all described spherical or tic-tac shaped objects that could hover motionless, match his high speeds with ease and do circles around the F-86s at high speeds and altitudes … then zip out of sight. I never got to ask him detailed questions that could elaborate on these experiences of his. But I do have memories of him expounding now and then on the incredible things that were being built by our government.

This is one of the smartest guys you’ve had on your show Lex. And genuine and humble. Kudos to him.

I love how Lex spends the first hour enabling his guest to establish his credibility. What a guy. Amazing interview.

I was a sailor on the USS Nimitz in 2004 when we spotted the tic-tac UFO video. I worked as a Reactor Operator in the Nuke plant, but I remember having a smoke that night and talking to one of the Pilots and flight crew from VFA-41. They were super amped up about it and I remember believing them (knowing that these guys would be crazy to make something like this up), but the hype just died down a few days later and I stored that memory somewhere in the back of my brain. When the DOD released the video in 2017, I couldn’t believe what I was watching. Putting the two events together changed my perspective on life all-together. I had always thought deeply about life elsewhere in the Universe, but having actual first hand knowledge and data helped make my mind up for good.

I’ve seen Ryan speak on many occasions and what I love about this chat you’ve asked beyond technical questions. Humanity and philosophy. This was extremely thoughtful and mind opening. Thank you