[stanfordkid]

We may be surrounded by aliens right now and just not know it. Perhaps alternate life forms are nothing more than laser beams or cosmic rays with specific encodings being beamed back and forth from some a distant transmission station or central "brain" and they take host in various organic creatures through manipulation of brain chemistry. Philip K. Dick has a novel called "VALIS" (Vast Artificial Intelligence System) that delves into these ideas -- the plot involves a satellite that essentially shoots down information to various living creatures in order to accomplish its ends.