Ken Feder, author of "Frauds, Myths, and Mysteries: Science and Pseudoscience in Archaeology" (McGraw-Hill, 2010) and the "Encyclopedia of Dubious Archaeology" (Greenwood, 2011), told Life's Little Mysteries that he's heard these claims before and considers them insulting to both the ancient Maya and modern audiences.
"The ancient Maya were perfectly capable of developing sophisticated architecture, a calendar, mathematics, a written language and an elaborate agricultural system without the intervention of extraterrestrials," said Feder, who is also an archaeology professor at Central Connecticut State University. "Claims that the Maya were visited by, inspired by, or mentored by ancient E.T.s is little more than a tired and trite fantasy, wholly and utterly devoid of any confirming evidence."