No one would have believed in the last years of the nineteenth century that this world was being watched keenly and closely by intelligences greater than man's and yet as mortal as his own; that as men busied themselves about their various concerns they were scrutinised and studied, perhaps almost as narrowly as a man with a microscope might scrutinise the transient creatures that swarm and multiply in a drop of water.
In H.G. Wells' "The War of the Worlds," the story begins with a striking observation about humanity's ignorance regarding the greater forces watching over them. At the end of the 19th century, people were so caught up in their daily lives that they were unaware of the extraterrestrial intelligences observing them. This sets up a foundation for the impending conflict as humanity remains oblivious to the intense scrutiny of these advanced...