Diana Walsh Pasulka is a UNC Wilmington religion professor and author of American Cosmic, home of the anonymous "Tyler" source. Here's the verified record.
Diana Walsh Pasulka (who publishes as D.W. Pasulka) is an American religious-studies scholar at the University of North Carolina Wilmington and the author of American Cosmic: UFOs, Religion, and Technology (Oxford University Press, 2019). She is one of the few credentialed academics to study the UAP phenomenon as a serious scholarly subject — analyzing modern UFO belief as a functionally religious phenomenon.
Who is Diana Pasulka?
Pasulka is a Professor in the Department of Philosophy and Religion at UNC Wilmington, where she formerly chaired the department (roughly 2015–2019). Her scholarship spans the history of religion, Catholic history, and belief in non-human intelligence. She is not the same person as similarly named novelists — she is specifically the religious-studies scholar and UAP author.
What is American Cosmic about?
The 2019 book argues that media, technology, and reported experiences of contact now perform meaning-making roles historically held by religious institutions, drawing parallels between UAP encounters and traditional accounts of miracles and the supernatural. It is built partly on ethnographic fieldwork among scientists and technologists who study the phenomenon privately.
Who is "Tyler" in American Cosmic?
Pasulka protected a central anonymous source under the pseudonym "Tyler D." (a nod to Fight Club's Tyler Durden), and she has deliberately preserved that anonymity. Online researchers have speculated that "Tyler" is aerospace figure Timothy E. Taylor, but this identification is not confirmed by Pasulka and should be treated as unverified public speculation, not fact.
What else has Diana Pasulka written and done?
She followed American Cosmic with Encounters: Experiences with Nonhuman Intelligences (St. Martin's Essentials, 2023) and the earlier academic work Heaven Can Wait (Oxford, 2014). She has appeared on major programs including The Joe Rogan Experience (#2091) and the Lex Fridman Podcast, and is associated with The Sol Foundation.
Notable Testimonies
- American Cosmic (Oxford University Press, 2019).
- Encounters (St. Martin’s Essentials, 2023).
- Appearances on Joe Rogan (#2091) and Lex Fridman.
- Associated with The Sol Foundation.
Frequently Asked Questions
Who is Diana Pasulka?
A religious-studies professor at UNC Wilmington and author of American Cosmic, known for studying UFO belief as a religious phenomenon.
Who is Tyler in American Cosmic?
An anonymous source Pasulka calls "Tyler D." Speculation that he is Timothy E. Taylor is unconfirmed; Pasulka has kept the source anonymous.
Is Diana Pasulka still a professor at UNC Wilmington?
Yes, she is a professor in the Department of Philosophy and Religion; she formerly chaired the department (c. 2015–2019).
What is American Cosmic about?
It examines how UFO belief functions like religion in a technological age, based partly on fieldwork with scientists who study the phenomenon.